Andrew Rawson - Organizing Victory: The War Conferences 1941–1945

A fascinating insight into the war in Europe Britain at War

History as it occurred not as it has been retold time and again through liberal interpretations and pundit opinions. After four years research for a biography of a former OSS operative at SHAEF, it opened my eyes to the reality of that War. I wish I had read it first, before studying 50 others. Forget the rest until youve read it. Eyes Only should be required reading for every World War II American history student studying the European theater for 1938 to 1945. Yes Its that important Vic Currier

Between December 1941 and July 1945 the Allies had ten main conferences where the Heads of State and their advisors gathered to discuss the conduct of the war. Within these pages you will read the edited minutes of these meetings.

To begin with, it was only President Franklin D. Roosevelt of the United States and Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill of Great Britain making the decisions about strategy, aided by their Chiefs of Staff. Later on, Premier Joseph Stalin of the Soviet Union and Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek of China joined the conferences.

The first meeting, codename ARCADIA, was held in Washington just after the attack on Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941 and it was a meeting of the two new Allies, the United States and Great Britain. The main decisions taken were to secure Great Britain and to attack Germany first rather than Japan, which involved securing a supply line across the Atlantic. The Declaration of the United Nations was also signed on 1 January 1942 by 26 governments. It stated that complete victory over [their] enemies is essential to defend life, liberty, independence and religious freedom, and to preserve human rights and justice in their own lands as well as in other lands, and that [they] are now engaged in a common struggle against savage and brutal forces seeking to subjugate the world. The words complete victory established the Allied precedent for obtaining unconditional surrender from the Axis powers later on.

There were many questions raised at ARCADIA and while Churchill returned to Britain, his Chiefs of Staff worked on with their American counterparts until May. They dealt with a host of issues in time for the Prime Ministers return in June. The hastily organized conference had no name but important strategies were agreed. The main one was to make a landing on the North Africa coast before making a cross-channel attack against northern France.

The SYMBOL Conference was held on captured territory in Casablanca, Morocco, in January 1943 and it was the first time a President of the United States had left his country in time of war. The main topic was the Mediterranean campaign, particularly the invasion of Sicily, codename HUSKY, and where to go afterwards; Sardinia, Greece or the Italian mainland. The continuing build up of American troops in the United Kingdom, codename BOLERO, and the projected channel crossing were also discussed. Attempts to unify the French leaders, General Charles de Gaulle and General Henri Giraud, were also made.

The TRIDENT Conference was held in Washington in May 1943 and news that the Axis troops in Tunisia had surrendered, completing the capture of the North African coast, intensified planning for the Italian campaign. Now that the American air forces were concentrating in the United Kingdom plans were put in place to increase the bombing attacks on occupied Europe and Germany. Plans to step up the Pacific campaign were also discussed.

The QUADRANT Conference was held in Quebec in August 1943 because the climate was cooler than Washington. With Sicily taken and plans for the Italian campaign well underway, it was time to focus on the invasion of France the following spring. The reorganization of Southeast Asia command was also agreed.

Starting at the end of November 1943 there were three conferences in quick succession. The first SEXTANT conference was held in Cairo where Roosevelt and Churchill met Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek to discuss aid for China and postwar Asia. Roosevelt and Churchill then headed to Tehran in Iran to meet Stalin for the EUREKA conference, the first time the Big Three came together. Marshal Joseph Stalin, as Premier of the Soviet Union, had been unable to attend the previous conferences because he was too involved with the campaigns on the Eastern Front. By the end of 1943, the tide had turned in favour of the Red Army and he was able to meet Roosevelt and Churchill.

They agreed a final strategy for the defeat of Nazi Germany including a date for the invasion of Northwest France and a simultaneous attack on the Eastern Front. Stalin also suggested conducting a simultaneous attack against southern France, an idea the Allies eventually adopted. The third meeting, an extension of EUREKA, was again at Cairo and Roosevelt and Churchill took the opportunity to meet President Inonu of Turkey. They also reviewed a hectic two weeks of meetings.

In September 1944 it was back to Quebec for OCTAGON. By now the Allies had been ashore in France for two months but after a difficult campaign in Normandy, their troops had liberated most of the country. The end of the war in Europe was in sight and plans for postwar Germany were discussed. The Pacific campaign was also high on the agenda because it was increasing in momentum.

ARGONAUT involved two meetings in February 1945, just as the Allies were beginning their final offensive on Nazi Germany. Roosevelt and Churchill met briefly in Malta on 1 February before heading for Yalta in the Crimea to meet Stalin. They discussed the final offensive on Germany as well as developing their plans for postwar Europe. The conditions for the Soviet Unions entry into the war on Japan were also discussed. The Yalta Declaration laid down the foundations for a postwar world and set an April date for the United Nations Conference.

The final conference was aptly named TERMINAL and it was held in Potsdam, in the outskirts of Berlin. With Germany defeated, there was plenty to discuss about postwar Europe and the final attack on Japan. Borders had to be decided, reparations had to be calculated, diplomacy had to be re-established and populations had to be fed. There were also old problems to solve, many of them caused by the Treaty of Versailles.

The United States and British Chiefs of Staff worked hard, before, during and after the conferences, performing many functions on behalf of the Heads of State. They reported on the current conduct of campaigns and suggested future operations. They also conducted assessments of the enemy capabilities and possible strategies. However, they had to consider their strategies as a whole because this was a global war the likes of which had not been seen before. Consultation with the air, army and navy chiefs of staff brought together a great deal of information and views. For example, what may have been a strong amphibious operation from an army point of view may have been a problem from the naval chief of staffs point of view. All military factors had to be considered. Of course, the political circumstances then had to be considered by the Heads of State.

The Chiefs of Staff then had to decide if they were feasible from a manufacturing point of view; could they build the weapons and make the supplies needed? Then they had to consider what were usually the most difficult questions; how to get the men and equipment to the theatre of war and then how to get them into contact with the enemy. That involved consultations with a host of experts covering shipping, manufacturing and munitions.

During the final year of the war, the need for new military strategies waned but the need for political solutions increased and a Committee of Foreign Ministers of the three nations was formed to deal with them. The Foreign Ministers often had preliminary discussions on political matters, deciding areas of agreement and disagreement before they were referred to the Heads of State. In turn, the Foreign Ministers were sometimes called upon to look at new solutions raised by the Heads of State. The Foreign Ministers then set up subcommittees to investigate particular problems. One in particular was the Economic Subcommittee, which investigated the economic impact of decisions on a Europe in turmoil.