What Factors Influenced the Development of Roosevelt’s Policy Towards Britain Between May 1940 and December 1941?

The United States had adopted a largely isolationist foreign policy following its involvement in the First World War, isolation that many of its voters apparently wished to maintain. The Americans had not joined the League of Nations leaving Britain and France to ineffectively the aggressive foreign policies of Germany, Italy and Japan. Although few could doubt Roosevelt’s sympathy towards Britain there seemed little prospect of the United States joining the Second World War on Britain’s side even if Winston Churchill could persuade the Americans to provide material aid.

In domestic political terms Roosevelt regarded 1940 as a pivotal year for his presidency, for it was a year in which he sought to win an unprecedented third term in the White House. Since his first presidential election victory in 1932 the Roosevelt administration had reduced the devastating economic consequences of the Great Depression via the New Deal programme. Roosevelt had kept the United States strictly neutral at the start of the Second World War even though he was personally inclined to support Britain and France. However isolation seemed to be an almost sacrosanct feature of foreign policy amongst American voters and any moves towards joining the war had to carefully taken to maintain the administration’s popularity. Roosevelt was concerned enough about Japanese intentions in the Pacific to start a rearmament programme yet hoped that diplomacy would avert war in that region.

American industry meanwhile was happy to make and sell arms to Britain and France whose own rearmament programmes had not hit top gear prior to the outbreak of the Second World War. Roosevelt was aware that American exports would be vital for Britain’s ability to survive and eventually win the war. Most experts might have expected that the Second World War would turn out to be a long drawn out stalemate with the French army and Royal Navy keeping the Germans in check. In such a situation the biggest factor would have been German attacks on American shipping carrying supplies to Britain. In the event the Nazis-Soviet Pact and the rapid German victories of 1939-40 changed the military and strategic balance dramatically. The disastrous Anglo-French campaign in Norway led to the replacement of Neville Chamberlain with Winston Churchill as Prime Minister on the very day, 10 May 1940 that the Germans launched their offensive against France and the Low Countries. As the defeat of France became inevitable the qualities of Winston Churchill in keeping Britain fighting alone came to the fore. Churchill perhaps more than any other person kept trying to persuade Roosevelt to change American policy towards Britain and to a great extent succeeded.