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called for an economic quarantine of the aggressor nations- but no declaration of war
Americans were greatly opposed to going to
Isolationists sought an amendment to the Constitution that would prevent Congress from declaring war without first submitting the question to a popular vote
A poll of the American people resulted in 75%
1939-
Neutrality Act
war materiel on a cash-and-carry basis Countries at war had to pay for the goods before the goods left our shores and had to carry the goods in their own ships Resulted in a sharp upswing in manufactured goods and an end to the recession of 1937-38 and ultimately ended the decade-long problem of unemployment
September
possessed neither the weaponry nor the manpower to mount a credible deterrent on Germanys western flank
September
November
refusal to be a part of the Soviet sphere of influence and provide naval bases to protect Leningrad US sent millions of dollars for non-military supplies Finland fell to the USSR anyway
1) Germanys successful blitzkrieg of Poland and stabilization of the western front during the winter of 1939-40 2) Germanys offensive in the West through the Low Countries and the rapid collapse of France and the eventual evacuation of the British from the continent 3) transformation into a world war in which the USSR would join and then the US
April
June
June 14, 1940- Paris falls to the German army British and French army escape the continent
at Dunkirk in a makeshift flotilla of private ships/boats over a period of nine days French puppet government is established at Vichy, France under President Philippe Petain Free French Army operates out of London, England under Charles de Gaulle
Codename
with the air force to be followed by an amphibious invasion of the shores of England across the English Channel
Summer
British Prime Minister Hitler made the mistake of bombing civilian centers instead of war targets such as army, navy, and air force bases
British
fight back with their air force (RAF) and keep the government from collapsing
Three major advantages over the Germans Ultra- a German secret code machine that was
Radar- (ra)dio (d)etecting (a)nd (r)anging Pinpointed German airplanes crossing the English Channel Superior Quality of Aircraft- Spitfires and
Brit
civilians did not wilt under roundthe-clock bombings of major metropolitan areas, but instead were galvanized, supported their government, and dared to carry on the war in the face of such death and destruction
FDR- Democratic nominee More for the Forgotten Man Neutrality, but aid to the Allies Destroyers for Bases Deal Wendell Willkie- Republican nominee Part of the Anti-New Deal coalition Neutrality, but aid to the Allies Attacked FDR for leading the US towards war FDR wins an unprecedented third term
September
in exchange for the use of eight British naval bases all along the Atlantic coast from Newfoundland to British Guiana FDR had accomplished helping the Allies without committing US troops to war
Appeased both warhawks and isolationists
January 1941- Lend-Lease Act British needed more US war materiel, but had
no more cash FDR proposed a lend-lease program in which nations at war would be able to lease US-made goods
US would send a limitless supply of arms to the victims of aggression and they would return the used weapons or their equivalents when the war was over
democracy
January
upon the principles of Wilsons Fourteen Points Freedom of speech Freedom of religion Freedom from want Freedom from fear
June 1941- Operation Barbarossa Hitler makes a bad decision and starts this
invasion too late in the year and will eventually get bogged down in the Russian winter
Cause- German aid for Italys engagement in the Balkans was bogged down by fierce Greek resistance and British military aid
Hitler is now engaged in a two-front war West- Britain and the Free French East- Russia
Three-Pronged
own objective
Leningrad in the North Moscow in the center Ukrainian grain fields and Caucasian oil wells
in the South
Germanys
Condition
Completely unprepared Reeling in confusion Tactically incompetent Due to the officers purge in 1937-1938
In
August
1941- FDR and Winston Churchill secretly meet on a ship off the coast of Newfoundland, Canada
Discussed post-war situation if the Allies won No discussion of US intervention
Created
Based on Wilsons Fourteen Points Adopted by the USSR and several other Allied
nations