At the beginning of the outbreak of World War II, European countries generally suffered from "Germanophobia", as the strongest in Europe, Britain and France formed a coalition army, stationed in the "Maginot Line" to wait for a strict position, trying to force Germany to stop. Washington on the other side of the Atlantic is also full of confidence in this, if Britain and France can persist, the United States is very safe.
However, the fall of France and the precariousness of Britain have stunned the world, and the United States has been even more stunned. Once Britain also falls, the security of the United States will be seriously threatened. To this end, Roosevelt quickly reached a certain "tacit agreement" with Churchill to fully support the British War of Resistance, but Churchill preferred to be the "boss".
It was in America's interest to help Britain fight, but Churchill preferred to use its war potential.
For helping Britain, the Attitude of Army Chief of Staff Marshall was supportive. Although the "isolationism" of the United States took a 180-degree turn, agreed with the government's policy of military expansion, and Roosevelt began to provide all-round assistance to Britain, marshall still had reservations about this, not too willing to send weapons to Britain first.
First of all, the US military is also under-armamented. According to the military expansion plan, the US military will reach the scale of 4 million people before 1942, and the supporting weapons and equipment are very different. That is to say, if the US military wants to form combat effectiveness in 1-2 years and deal with wars around the world, weapons are the priority of the priority, but Roosevelt is very "generous".
In addition to more than 500,000 guns and 1,000 guns, Roosevelt also planned to ship the newly developed B-17 bombers that had been delivered to the troops to Britain. His "selflessness" infuriated Marshall completely, and he replied: "Can't do it!" Secretary of Defense Stimson and the Air Force Commander were grateful for saving the U.S. Air Force.
Second, Marshall was wary of whether Britain could hold out. In his view, the German army has the strength to cross the sea, especially large-scale submarine warfare, with the cooperation of bombers, it is completely possible to block its maritime "lifeline" and then land in Britain. As Chief of the General Staff, he must consider his country's armaments in the worst-case light.
More importantly, if the British were to be reinforced with all their might, the aid equipment would become a weapon against the United States once London fell. Marshall must put the country's security first, especially when Britain's future is uncertain, and he is trying to maintain the minimum support of the US military and to a limited extent to cooperate with the president's strategic needs.
Churchill naturally understood the importance of relying on the United States. In order to influence and influence Washington's strategy, he repeatedly discussed with Roosevelt the strategic cooperation between the two countries, and finally determined the strategy of "first Europe and then Asia", completely tying the United States to the British chariot, thus using the powerful war potential of the United States as his strategic base.
But the "selfishness" and "greed" of the British made Marshall very angry.
In 1941, in accordance with the strategic needs of "first Europe and then Asia", Marshall transported a large amount of American armaments to Britain on the one hand, and on the other hand strengthened the construction of his own army, he reorganized the General Staff Headquarters, set up three major headquarters of the Air Force, the Army, and logistics, implemented the "three-three system" in the Army, and formed a number of special forces, such as armored divisions, airborne troops, and so on.
The expansion of the army must have corresponding equipment, but at this time, the United States did not participate in the war, and the output did not meet the needs of the war. As a result, the British and American armies often grabbed the phenomenon of "weapons", Marshall became more and more disgusted with the "high demands" of the British, but the "generous" Roosevelt was almost "responsive", making Churchill think that the support of the Americans was deserved.
With the German invasion of the Soviet Union, the pressure in the direction of the British was reduced. Britain, the United States, and the Soviet Union established an anti-fascist alliance. From a strategic point of view, Roosevelt decided to provide assistance to the Soviet Union, but it was bound to affect the support for Britain, Churchill secretly glad that Britain survived the most difficult period, but also did not want the United States to reduce the amount of support materials.
In particular, Britain and the United States agreed to declare war a year later, and Marshall accelerated the progress of the expansion of the army. All this made Churchill worry about the reduction of aid and prevent the US military from "getting bigger" and threatening the dominance of the British army in the Allies. Therefore, they secretly instigated the "isolated elements" in the United States to stir up trouble and disagree with the government's military expansion plan.
They preach that the United States can build a huge navy and air force, and there is no need to expand the size of the army. Marshall soon realized that the British were behind his back, and he sternly warned the other side that if he continued to make trouble, he would announce the "black hand" behind his back. But the British "conspiracy" succeeded, and the Conscription Act was extended.
Marshall was also angry and began to plan for help to the Soviet Union, and the list of aid was quickly sent to the factory, and the first batch of military aid arrived safely. To his embarrassment, production was clearly out of demand under the Lend-Lease Act's aid to the Allies, and he was impressed by the "selfishness" and "greed" of the British on the issue of priority.
After Pearl Harbor, Marshall consciously escaped British influence.
The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor surprised everyone, and Marshall was one of them. But there are two sides to everything, and although "the losses are heavy and the lessons are profound," it contributed to the participation of the United States in the war, which played a decisive role in changing the war situation and speeding up the course of the war, especially Churchill has been eager for the United States to enter the war since he became prime minister.
Now, Britain and the United States are finally "in the same boat", and Churchill was happy for a while, but the subsequent events worried him. It turned out that Marshall had ordered the ports to stop and unload all the aid that had been loaded on ships and trans-shipment in the Pacific Ocean. This result, which Churchill did not expect, began to get nervous.
On the one hand, it is feared that the Americans will abandon the previously determined "first Europe and then Asia" strategy and shift the strategic focus to the Pacific; on the other hand, the United States has fully entered the wartime system, the war machine is turning at full speed, and the planning of nearly ten million troops is bound to affect the amount of assistance provided by the British army. So, on the 7th day after the "incident", Churchill came to the United States.
The old and cunning Churchill apparently persuaded Roosevelt, and the outcome of the meeting basically met the requirements of the British. Apparently, Churchill "did his homework", accompanied by senior officers of the three services, and the two sides negotiated joint operations. Although the 7-day meeting was originally planned to be extended to 28 days, Marshall and others did not have any good feelings for their British counterparts.
First, the British people's high-spirited appearance is disgusting. As an old capitalist country, Britain was once a military power, and it participated in World War II before the United States, and has rich combat experience. Especially in determining strategy, the British often pose as the "boss" and point fingers, and Marshall and others are very unconvinced.
Second, the strategic goals of the two sides have deviated, and the resistance is very large. The joint operation between the British and American armies made Marshall worry that the strategy of the American army would succumb to the British ideas. Sure enough, Churchill proposed that behind the North African landing operation was to protect the British road traffic line, but with Roosevelt present, Marshall had no choice but to accept.
What is even more disgusting is that Churchill and his men lived on the second floor of the White House, the secretariat, offices, war rooms, etc., all available, and the British who came in and out seemed to regard this place as their headquarters, and the anti-guests were the mainstay. All this aroused Marshall's vigilance, and he decided not to follow the British line anymore, but to have the opinion of the United States.
Marshall insisted on opening up a "second front" and landed in France in response to the Soviet Union's eastern front, that is, to consider the global interests of the United States in the context of the war situation in Europe, and said "no" to the British, resulting in the hasty end of the Italian campaign launched by Churchill. Since then, it has freed itself from the influence of the British and established the dominant power of the United States.
Without American assistance, could Britain have prevented the German invasion? Comments and discussions are welcome.
bibliography:
World War II, Marshall
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