Churchill and International
Diplomacy 1939 - Chapter 3
,Chapter 3
Churchill and International Diplomacy 1939-1951.
What were Churchill’s views on Britain’s world and imperial roles?
• Dramatised war as conflict between democracy, freedom, civilised and Christian values and
dictatorship, and Nazism.
• Britains’s role to defend values against the dictatorships + Maintain an Empire that used
violent repression to keep control and not allow ‘non-white subjects’ to vote.
• Part of coalition of 30 nations (in order to defend British values) but dominated by Big Three.
• Britain defeated in 1940 in Norway and France.
BUT by 1941 played considerable role in world, maintained links with Empire with support from
dominions + colonies
• Kept alliance with powerful USSR and USA —> played major role in way war was fought until
1944, without committing land forces to Europe. (Notable achievement!)
• No need for Britain’s Empire to give support and at time of appeasement policies 1930s, not
all certain self-governing dominions would support war.
• USA persuaded, despite making bigger contributions to war effort, not to prioritise Pacific
War, but to defeat Germany first + follow British ideas of Med war (not opening second front
on Germany with invasion of N. France)
Soviet deaths: 9 million + 13 million civilians
@Stalingrad: over 1 million deaths (according to official Soviet records)
British deaths: 452,000
USA deaths: 420,000
• Despite agreeing to Atlantic charter of 1941, and affirming democracy and self-gov as
principles
…Britain not forced to make any commitment to end Empire at price of US support.
• Churchill held onto Britain’s world role as moral leader, champion of civilisation, influence on
war policy and imperial power.
How did Churchill manage his relations with wartime leaders?
, Chapter 3
Churchill and Roosevelt
• Seemed as if ‘Natural ally’ to him than Stalin as both heads of English speaking
democracies.
• BUT US leader difficult person to know – on surface he was charming and sympathetic but
had rep for not committing himself, while giving listeners impression he had.
• Relationship seen as ‘partnership that saved the West’ —> Churchill worked hard to
maintain it.
• How relationship started? First met in 1918- Roosevelt disliked him. R though C = ‘a stinker’
and that he had ‘lorded it’ over him
• Churchill made unfavourable remarks about Roosevelt in 1937- quoted by Roosevelt’s
opponent Wendell Willkie in US election campaign 1940.
US Support and Non-Intervention:
Roosevelt had to be limited in US intervention in war, which Churchill hoped for, as danger
of war with Japan, and US public opinion against European war.
But US did offer some support:
Nov 1939: US repealed The Neutrality Act, allowed Britain to purchase American arms.
October: USA declared neutral zone along coast of USA and South America + US navy
patrolled this to prevent sinking of merchant shipping by Germans. Involved Anglo-American
naval co-operation.
Sept 1940: 50 US destroyers exchanged with Britain for leases to 8 British naval bases (from
Newfoundland to British Guiana).
December: Roosevelt used phrase ‘arsenal of democracy’ to defend sales of arms to Britain.
March 1941- Lend-Lease Act passed, permitted President to ‘sell, transfer title to, exchange,
lease, lend, or otherwise dispose of’ weapons to ‘any country whose defence the President
deems vital to the defence of the USA’ (US gives country weapons on basis this is to defend
US in turn)
—> $31.6 billion of assistance went to Britain by 1945.
April: US troops occupied Greenland.
1st July 1941: Iceland occupied by US in order to stop Germany using either as military base.
Churchill disliked Roosevelt stressing US isolationism at time of presidential election in 1940.
‘as the PM says, President Roosevelt is ready to play a dirty trick on the world and risk the ultimate
destruction of the Western Democracies in order to secure re-election’ – Chief Diplomatic
Adviser
August 1941: Placentia Bay meeting, first meeting as National leaders
…Churchill wanted to make a good impression, and obtained joint declaration of ‘certain
common principles’ = Atlantic Charter.
Atlantic Charter: confirmed that neither the US nor Britain wanted territorial gains
Diplomacy 1939 - Chapter 3
,Chapter 3
Churchill and International Diplomacy 1939-1951.
What were Churchill’s views on Britain’s world and imperial roles?
• Dramatised war as conflict between democracy, freedom, civilised and Christian values and
dictatorship, and Nazism.
• Britains’s role to defend values against the dictatorships + Maintain an Empire that used
violent repression to keep control and not allow ‘non-white subjects’ to vote.
• Part of coalition of 30 nations (in order to defend British values) but dominated by Big Three.
• Britain defeated in 1940 in Norway and France.
BUT by 1941 played considerable role in world, maintained links with Empire with support from
dominions + colonies
• Kept alliance with powerful USSR and USA —> played major role in way war was fought until
1944, without committing land forces to Europe. (Notable achievement!)
• No need for Britain’s Empire to give support and at time of appeasement policies 1930s, not
all certain self-governing dominions would support war.
• USA persuaded, despite making bigger contributions to war effort, not to prioritise Pacific
War, but to defeat Germany first + follow British ideas of Med war (not opening second front
on Germany with invasion of N. France)
Soviet deaths: 9 million + 13 million civilians
@Stalingrad: over 1 million deaths (according to official Soviet records)
British deaths: 452,000
USA deaths: 420,000
• Despite agreeing to Atlantic charter of 1941, and affirming democracy and self-gov as
principles
…Britain not forced to make any commitment to end Empire at price of US support.
• Churchill held onto Britain’s world role as moral leader, champion of civilisation, influence on
war policy and imperial power.
How did Churchill manage his relations with wartime leaders?
, Chapter 3
Churchill and Roosevelt
• Seemed as if ‘Natural ally’ to him than Stalin as both heads of English speaking
democracies.
• BUT US leader difficult person to know – on surface he was charming and sympathetic but
had rep for not committing himself, while giving listeners impression he had.
• Relationship seen as ‘partnership that saved the West’ —> Churchill worked hard to
maintain it.
• How relationship started? First met in 1918- Roosevelt disliked him. R though C = ‘a stinker’
and that he had ‘lorded it’ over him
• Churchill made unfavourable remarks about Roosevelt in 1937- quoted by Roosevelt’s
opponent Wendell Willkie in US election campaign 1940.
US Support and Non-Intervention:
Roosevelt had to be limited in US intervention in war, which Churchill hoped for, as danger
of war with Japan, and US public opinion against European war.
But US did offer some support:
Nov 1939: US repealed The Neutrality Act, allowed Britain to purchase American arms.
October: USA declared neutral zone along coast of USA and South America + US navy
patrolled this to prevent sinking of merchant shipping by Germans. Involved Anglo-American
naval co-operation.
Sept 1940: 50 US destroyers exchanged with Britain for leases to 8 British naval bases (from
Newfoundland to British Guiana).
December: Roosevelt used phrase ‘arsenal of democracy’ to defend sales of arms to Britain.
March 1941- Lend-Lease Act passed, permitted President to ‘sell, transfer title to, exchange,
lease, lend, or otherwise dispose of’ weapons to ‘any country whose defence the President
deems vital to the defence of the USA’ (US gives country weapons on basis this is to defend
US in turn)
—> $31.6 billion of assistance went to Britain by 1945.
April: US troops occupied Greenland.
1st July 1941: Iceland occupied by US in order to stop Germany using either as military base.
Churchill disliked Roosevelt stressing US isolationism at time of presidential election in 1940.
‘as the PM says, President Roosevelt is ready to play a dirty trick on the world and risk the ultimate
destruction of the Western Democracies in order to secure re-election’ – Chief Diplomatic
Adviser
August 1941: Placentia Bay meeting, first meeting as National leaders
…Churchill wanted to make a good impression, and obtained joint declaration of ‘certain
common principles’ = Atlantic Charter.
Atlantic Charter: confirmed that neither the US nor Britain wanted territorial gains
