Undeclared War with Germany

German sub

September 1940- the Greer was attacked by a

FDR mandated that merchant ships

arm themselves

October 1940- the Kearny was attacked and

eleven sailors were killed

October 1940- the Reuben James was sunk

and half its crew were killed

US was now involved in an undeclared

5/11/12

war in the Atlantic

War in the Atlantic

1939 to 1942- German submarines

dominated the Atlantic

Sunk thousands of tons of Allied supplies

Freedom of the seas was critical to the

Allied cause
Allied forces needed their food and

supplies

1942 to 1943- Allies used radar and

German 5/11/12

sonar to locate and destroy German subs

subs became less and less

German Sub Threat Ends

Spring 1943American convoys and reconnaissance

planes counteracted the stealth effect of German subs for the first time an invasion of the German-held continent

This enabled Allied strategists to envision

5/11/12

5/11/12

FDRs Europe-First Strategy

FDR announced that the US would fight

in the European Theater (ETO) first even though Germany was not a threat to Americas vital interests like Japan was

5/11/12

FDRs Europe-First Strategy

Why?
US discussions and military plans about

going to war in Europe were being developed throughout the late 1930s

Negotiated between America, Britain, and Canada (ABC-1 Talks) in early 1941 Re-endorsed at the Atlantic Conference in August 1941

Eurocentrism due to cultural affiliation

and/or latent racism

5/11/12Assumptions about German military superiority

were based upon realistic assessments, BUT

FDRs Europe-First Strategy

FDR was deeply concerned about the

American publics outrage against Japan and how that might force him to initiate a Japan-First strategy
A dispatch of significant US forces to the

Pacific in 1942 was, in part, prompted by FDRs concern

5/11/12

Russian Pleas for a Second Front

From 1941 to 1942- Joseph Stalin had

begged the Western Allies for a second front in the West in order to alleviate the military stress on the Soviet army in the East

The Western Allies held off on an

invasion of German-held France early on due to a belief that a defeat of Italy posed an easier task to accomplish

5/11/12

Conspiracy Theory
The Soviets believed that the Western

Allies did not open up a Western Front because they wanted to see Russia depleted militarily while they conserved their military and economic resources in order to step in at the last moment to replace Germany and preempt Russia as the dominant power on the continent

5/11/12

Reality Check
1) Insufficient number of landing craft,

risks associated in transporting British and US troops with German sub presence, and the entrenched position of German forces along the French coast

2) The existence of a more attractive

alternative

Allied landing in North Africa and a

backdoor invasion through the Mediterranean Sea into Italy 5/11/12