Transcript Isolationism Continues Topic: From Isolation to World War

Isolationism Continues
Topic: From Isolation to World War
(1930-1945)
The isolationist approach to foreign policy
meant U.S. leadership in world affairs
diminished after World War I. Overseas, certain
nations saw the growth of tyrannical
governments that reasserted their power
through aggression and created conditions
leading to the Second World War. After Pearl
Harbor, the United States entered World War II,
which changed the country’s focus from
isolationism to international involvement.
Content Statement:
During the 1930s, the U.S. government
attempted to distance the country from
earlier interventionist policies in the
Western Hemisphere as well as retain an
isolationist approach to events in Europe
and Asia until the beginning of WWII.
Expectations for Learning:
Analyze the reasons for American
isolationist sentiment in the interwar
period.
Post WWI Foreign Policy
• Monroe Doctrine
–Early 19th Century
–President Monroe tells
European countries they can
not colonize or interfere in
the Americas or it would be
seen as an act of aggression
–Likewise, the U.S. would
not interfere in European
affairs
Post WWI Foreign Policy
• Roosevelt Corollary
–Early 20th Century
–President Teddy
Roosevelt adds this to
the Monroe Doctrine,
basically re-stating to
European countries
that the U.S. will take
care of things in the
Americas
U.S. Isolationism
• After World War I and especially in the
1930’s, the United States had a policy of
isolationism
–Take care of ourselves and not get
involved in foreign affairs
Good Neighbor Policy
• The policy's main principle
was that of non-intervention
and non-interference in the
domestic affairs of Latin
America
• Reinforced the idea that
the U.S. would be a “good
neighbor” and engage in
reciprocal exchanges with
Latin American countries
Good Neighbor Policy
• The Roosevelt
administration expected
that this new policy
would create new
economic opportunities
in the form of reciprocal
trade agreements and
reassert the influence of
the U.S. in Latin America
U.S. Foreign Relations
• Following World War I, the U.S. was
reluctant to become entangled in overseas
conflicts that would lead to another war
• In the past, the U.S. had used the Monroe
Doctrine and the Roosevelt Corollary to
justify intervention into Latin American
affairs
• U.S. retreated from these policies during
the1930’s with the Good Neighbor Policy
Europe Close to War
• When FDR took over in 1933, world
prospects were grim
• Europe was again in shambles and close
to war
• Europe did not like democracy or the
ideals that the United States was trying to
promote
Around the World
• America was
struggling to make
ends meet during
the Great
Depression
• Militarists
consolidated their
hold on the Japanese
government
Fascism
• Fascism swept Italy and
Germany
– Fascism: a way of
organizing a society in
which a government ruled
by a dictator controls the
lives of the people and in
which people are not
allowed to disagree with
the government
Neutrality Acts
• The Neutrality Acts of the 1930’s were
attempts to isolate the country from the
problems erupting in Asia and Europe
Neutrality Acts
• Spurred by the growth
in isolationism and noninterventionism in the
U.S. following its costly
involvement in WWI
• Sought to ensure that the
U.S. would not become
entangled again in
foreign conflicts
Legacy of the Neutrality Acts
• Generally negative reaction:
–No distinction between aggressor and
victim, treating both equally as
“belligerents”
Belligerent: a nation or person
engaged in war or conflict, as
recognized by international law
Legacy of the Neutrality Acts
–Limited the U.S.
government’s ability
to aid Britain and
France against Nazi
Germany
–Largely repealed in
1941, because of
German submarine
attacks on U.S. vessels
and the Japanese attack
on Pearl Harbor
Germany Begins Taking Territory
• 1936 –
German troops
move into the
Rhineland,
bordering
France and
Belgium
Germany Begins Taking Territory
• 1938 –
Germany
claimed the
Sudetenland, a
part of
Czechoslovakia
Germany
Sudetenland
Munich Conference
• September, 1938 – At the Munich
Conference, Hitler invited the leaders of
Britain and France to Germany and
assured them that he wanted no more
territory
Munich Conference
• Britain and France allow for Hitler to go
on unopposed as he expands German
territory in Europe
• They ignore German military build-up
even though it violates the Treaty of
Versailles
• Britain and France gave into Germany
hoping that ignoring these actions would
prevent conflict from escalating to war
–This was known as appeasement
Stalin and Hitler
• 1939 – Nazi-Soviet Pact
–Hitler and Stalin agreed not to attack
one another
–Also agreed to divide Poland and
Eastern Europe amongst themselves
• September 1, 1939 – Germany invaded
Poland without having to fear of a Soviet
attack
• Two days later, Britain and France
declared war on Germany
New Warfare
• Blitzkrieg “Lightning warfare”
–Strike quickly
–Much different than WWI
• Air power
• Use fast vehicles
–Planes
–Tanks
–Trucks
–Motorcycles
France Falls
• Germany marches into France through
Belgium
• Italy joins the side of Germany and
invades from the south
• French Leader Charles DeGaulle escapes
to Great Britain
• June, 1940
–France surrenders
–Britain vows to fight alone
War in Europe
• The Soviet Union seized eastern Poland,
Finland, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania
• 1940 – Germany conquered Denmark,
Belgium, Holland, Norway and France
• 1940 – The Germans severely bombed
Great Britain during the Battle of Britain
but were unable the defeat the island
nation
Cash and Carry Plan
• FDR changed the Neutrality Acts through
a “cash and carry” plan
–Allowed the sale of material to
belligerents, as long as the recipients
arranged for the transport using their
own ships and paid immediately in
cash, assuming all risk in transportation
• Meanwhile, the U.S. prepared for war by
setting up the first ever peacetime draft in
U.S. history
Destroyers for Bases
• September 2, 1940
• Agreement between the U.S. and
the United Kingdom
• Fifty mothballed destroyers were
transferred to the Royal Navy from
the U.S. Navy in exchange for land rights
on British possessions
• The U.S. had chosen a side in the war
–They were no longer neutral
Lend-Lease Act
• A plan of President Roosevelt’s to help
Great Britain
• March 11, 1941
–The U.S. would lend or lease war
materials to the allied countries
–These items were to be returned to the
U.S. after the lease was over, but that
rarely happened
Lend-Lease Act
• The U.S. would supply everything
necessary for the war, except troops
The Atlantic Charter
• Roosevelt met with Churchill in the
summer of 1941 and agreed to the
Atlantic Charter, a statement that outlined
Anglo-American war aims
Japan
• Japan felt that they had the right to start
an overseas empire, just as European
countries such as Britain and France had
• In 1931, Japan seized Manchuria, China,
for its valuable coal and iron
• The League of Nations failed to help
China
• In 1937, Japan began an all-out attack on
China, eventually conquering Korea and
French Indo-China as well
The Japanese Empire – 1942
The U.S. Enters the War
• The U.S. was the only nation standing
against Japanese domination of the entire
Pacific Rim
• Economic sanctions against Japan produced
a diplomatic stalemate
• Japan launched a ruthless surprise attack
against American naval bases at Pearl
Harbor
• Faced with an assault on its own forces, the
U.S. finally entered World War II
From Isolationism to War
• The U.S. tried to maintain its isolationist
approach when war broke out in Europe
• The U.S. aided countries fighting against
fascist aggression
–Introduced the cash-and-carry policy
–Negotiated the destroyer-for-bases
agreement
–Enacted the Lend-Lease Policy
–Helped write the Atlantic Charter
From Isolationism to War
• The expansionist policies of Japan and
the bombing of Pearl Harbor ended U.S.
isolationist policies
• Video