Introduction

Scope of Coverage

This volume presents documentation on the first three conferences participated in by President Franklin D. Roosevelt and Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill after the United States became a belligerent in World War II. These are the First Washington Conference of December 1941–January 1942, the Second Washington Conference of June 1942, and the Casablanca Conference of January 1943. Two of these conferences are also known by their code names: Arcadia for the First Washington Conference and Symbol for Casablanca. No code name was ever assigned to the Second Washington Conference, which was hastily called and was regarded at the time as a set of military staff conversations rather than a formal conference.

At all of these conferences President Roosevelt and Prime Minister Churchill were accompanied by their top military advisers, and the primary topic of discussion was the formulation of American-British strategy for the war against Germany, Italy, and Japan. Accordingly, the documentation on military subjects (including logistics and production) bulks large for all three conferences. But important political subjects were also discussed, often by Roosevelt and Churchill in private, sometimes with representatives of other countries. Thus the drafting of the Declaration by United Nations at the First Washington Conference entailed conversations with representatives of China, the Soviet Union, and other allied countries. At the same conference the question of St. Pierre and Miquelon, which arose while the Conference was in session, involved not only Roosevelt and Churchill but also Secretary of State Cordell Hull and Prime Minister Mackenzie King of Canada. Members of the Pacific War Council held discussions with Roosevelt and Churchill during the Second Washington Conference. At Casablanca there were conversations of a political nature with French leaders, as well as considerations with political overtones of the policy of “unconditional surrender”.

In addition to these discussions, which were integral parts of the conferences, President Roosevelt and Prime Minister Churchill also held conversations during the period of the conferences with eminent representatives of other countries not directly involved in the work of the conferences. Thus during the period of the Second Washington [Page XIV] Conference they talked with King Peter II of Yugoslavia and his Foreign Minister; and at Casablanca there was a dinner with the Sultan of Morocco and his Grand Vizier. The editors have included documentation on all such high-level conversations that took place during the conferences, although they may have been peripheral to the work of the conferences as such.

The editors have also included the records of discussions held in the period of the conferences by the President’s Special Assistant, Harry L. Hopkins, and by Secretary of State Hull and by Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson with important officials on conference subjects.

Organization of the Volume

For each of the conferences presented herein, the editors have followed an identical basic pattern for the organization of the material. Each conference has a chapter on pre-conference papers, a chapter on proceedings, and a chapter containing conference documents and supplementary papers.

The chapters on pre-conference papers contain documents, arranged chronologically, showing the immediate origin of each conference, the physical arrangements made for the gathering, and substantive papers that were prepared for it either explicitly or implicitly. The number of such pre-conference substantive papers is rather limited for all three conferences, particularly with respect to political subjects. There were no comprehensive “briefing books” of the sort that were prepared in the Department of State for the later conferences at Yalta and Potsdam; and the few substantive papers that were prepared do not present, for any of these conferences, anything like a complete survey of the status of all conference subjects on the eve of each conference. Extensive background information on the subjects that came up for discussion at these conferences may be found in the annual volumes of Foreign Relations of the United States and in the series United States Army in World War II, published by the Department of the Army. The editors of this volume have included citations to these and other authoritative publications where such references appeared necessary to an understanding of the background of conference subjects.

For each conference the chapter on proceedings is organized chronologically by meetings. Every meeting attended by any prominent American is accounted for. All minutes and memoranda of conversations are included; where none was found, the editors have supplied an editorial note, embodying what information was available on that particular meeting.

There were no general meetings of the American delegation at any of these conferences. There were, however, conversations on conference [Page XV] subjects between President Roosevelt and various other American participants, and the records of such conversations have been included whenever any could be found.

The chapters entitled “Conference Documents and Supplementary Papers” contain the documents that were presented and discussed at each conference, together with other memoranda, letters, and telegrams pertinent to conference subjects, prepared during the period of the conference. These documents and papers are arranged topically for the First Washington Conference and Casablanca; for the Second Washington Conference a chronological arrangement was considered preferable in view of the small quantity of documentation on any one subject.

Unpublished Sources

Since the conferences at Washington and Casablanca documented in this volume dealt primarily with questions of military strategy and command, it is not surprising that the files of the Department of State were found to be of only limited value as a source of material. Accordingly, the editors sought and obtained the assistance of several other Government Departments and Agencies for gathering the bulk of the source material for this publication. Of paramount importance were the Presidential papers from the Franklin D. Roosevelt Library at Hyde Park and the military papers from the Department of Defense, principally from the files of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The Roosevelt Library provided photocopies of all Presidential papers (including the papers of Harry L. Hopkins) that could be found relating to any of these conferences. The Department of Defense provided all papers that could be found, documenting the official position or advice of the War and Navy Departments on politico-military subjects discussed at the international level, as presented by the civilian leaders of those departments and by the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Combined Chiefs of Staff.

The papers printed in this volume which came from the indexed Central Files of the Department of State are indicated by means of a file number in the headnote, in the usual style of Foreign Relations. The provenance of papers obtained from other sources is also shown in headnotes, as indicated on the following list:

a. inside the department of state

1.

Algiers Consulate Files—The records of the American Consulate at Algiers, which (for the period of World War II) are now in Washington, include correspondence of Robert Murphy, the Personal Representative of President Roosevelt in North Africa.

2.

EUR Files—The files of the Division of European Affairs. Most of the papers from these files relating to the question of St. Pierre and Miquelon have been incorporated into the Central Files of the Department and are cited by file number.

3.

Matthews Files—Records and correspondence of H. Freeman Matthews, who held various assignments relating to European affairs.

4.

IO Files—The files of the Division of International Organizations.

b. outside the department of state

1.

Roosevelt Papers—The papers of President Roosevelt in the Franklin D. Roosevelt Library at Hyde Park, New York. This large collection was found to be particularly valuable for Heads of Government correspondence.

2.

Hopkins Papers—The papers of Harry L. Hopkins, located at Franklin D. Roosevelt Library. Although some of the Hopkins files duplicate material in the Roosevelt papers, a large number of unique papers and records were found for publication in this volume.

3.

J.C.S. Files—The files of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. These files provided documentation of the American Joint Chiefs of Staff and of the American-British Combined Chiefs of Staff. The approval of the British Chiefs of Staff, along with that of the American Joint Chiefs of Staff, was obtained for declassification of the Combined Chiefs of Staff documentation published in this volume.

4.

Defense Files—The files of the Secretaries of War and Navy and other relevant top-level files of the military departments for 1941–1943.

5.

W.P.B. Files—The records of the War Production Board, now in the National Archives, include various documents relating to the First Washington Conference.

6.

W.S.A. Files—The files of the War Shipping Administration, now in the National Archives, contained a few papers of importance in connection with the Second Washington Conference.

7.

Stimson Papers—Several entries from the diaries of Henry L. Stimson have been included by permission of Yale University Library and the Trustees of the Henry L. Stimson Literary Trust.

8.

Hull Papers—Several documents have been included from the papers of Cordell Hull, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress.

9.

Arnold Papers—Several documents have been included from the papers of General of the Army Henry H. Arnold, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, by permission of Mrs. Arnold.

In addition to the collections listed above, the editors also consulted the papers of Norman H. Davis at the Library of Congress, and a number of special “lots” or unindexed files within the Department of State. They also interviewed or had correspondence with William L. Batt, Thomas K. Finletter, W. Averell Harriman, Douglas [Page XVII] MacArthur II, H. Freeman Matthews, Carlton Savage, Henry A. Wallace, Sumner Welles, and others. From several of these sources there were derived items of information that have been incorporated in editorial notes where appropriate.

Published Sources

a. official

In addition to the Foreign Relations of the United States volumes and the Department of State Bulletin, the official publications listed below were found to be of particular value in the preparation of this volume. Other official publications consulted by the editors are identified in editorial notes and footnotes.

American

Ray S. Cline, Washington Command Post: The Operations Division (Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1951) in the series United States Army in World War II: The War Department. Hereafter cited as “Cline”.

Stetson Conn and Byron Fairchild, The Framework of Hemisphere Defense (Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1960) in the series United States Army in World War II: The Western Hemisphere. Hereafter cited as “Conn and Fairchild”.

George F. Howe, Northwest Africa: Seizing the Initiative in the West (Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1957) in the series United States Army in World War II: The Mediterranean Theater of Operations.

Richard M. Leighton and Robert W. Coakley, Global Logistics and Strategy: 1940–1943 (Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1955) in the series United States Army in World War II: The War Department. Hereafter cited as “Leighton and Coakley”.

Maurice Matloff and Edwin M. Snell, Strategic Planning for Coalition Warfare, 1941–1942 (Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1953) in the series United States Army in World War II: The War Department. Hereafter cited as “Matloff and Snell”.

Maurice Matloff, Strategic Planning for Coalition Warfare, 1943–1944 (Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1959) in the series United States Army in World War II: The War Department. Hereafter cited as “Matloff”.

Louis Morton, Strategy and Command: The First Two Years (Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1962) in the series United States Army in World War II: The War in the Pacific. Hereafter cited as “Morton”.

Charles F. Romanus and Riley Sunderland, Stilwell’s Mission to China (Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1953) in the series United States Army in World War II: China–Burma–India Theater. Hereafter cited as “Romanus and Sunderland”.

Marcel Vigneras, Rearming the French (Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1957) in the series United States Army in World War II: Special Studies.

Mark S. Watson, Chief of Staff: Prewar Plans and Preparations (Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1950) in the series United States Army in World War II: War Department.

[Page XVIII]

British

C. B. A. Behrens, Merchant Shipping and the Demands of War (London: Her Majesty’s Stationery Office and Longmans, Green and Co., 1955) in the series History of the Second World War: United Kingdom Civil Series.

J. M. A. Gwyer (Part I) and J. R. M. Butler (Part II), Grand Strategy, volume III, June 1941–August 1942 (London: Her Majesty’s Stationery Office, 1964) in the series History of the Second World War: United Kingdom Military Series, edited by J. R. M. Butler.

H. Duncan Hall, North American Supply (London: Her Majesty’s Stationery Office and Longmans, Green and Co., 1955) in the series History of the Second World War: United Kingdom Civil Series.

H. Duncan Hall and C. C. Wrigley, Studies of Overseas Supply (London: Her Majesty’s Stationery Office and Longmans, Green and Co., 1956) in the series History of the Second World War: United Kingdom Civil Series.

W. K. Hancock and M. M. Gowing, British War Economy (London: His Majesty’s Stationery Office, 1949) in the series History of the Second World War: United Kingdom Civil Series.

Woodburn Kirby, The War Against Japan, volume II, India’s Most Dangerous Hour (London: Her Majesty’s Stationery Office, 1958) in the series History of the Second World War: United Kingdom Military Series.

Sir Llewellyn Woodward, British Foreign Policy in the Second World War (London: Her Majesty’s Stationery Office, 1962) in the official British series History of the Second World War.

Soviet

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the U.S.S.R., Commission for the Publication of Diplomatic Documents, Correspondence between the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the U.S.S.R. and the Presidents of the U.S.A. and the Prime Ministers of Great Britain During the Great Patriotic War of 1941–1945, volume I, Correspondence with Winston S. Churchill and Clement R. Attlee (July 1941–November 1945), volume II, Correspondence with Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry S. Truman (August 1941–December 1945) (Moscow: Foreign Languages Printing House, 1957). Reprinted in the single volume Stalin’s Correspondence with Churchill, Attlee, Roosevelt and Truman, 1941–1945 (New York: E. P. Dutton, Inc., 1958). Hereafter cited as Stalin’s Correspondence.

b. unofficial

Much authoritative information is to be found in unofficial publications written by those who participated in the conferences (or in the preparations therefor) or by authors who used the papers of conference participants. In view of the incompleteness of the official record for the conferences presented in this volume, the editors have made extensive use of such unofficial publications and have cited them for factual information, which was noted as being specifically supplementary to, or at variance with, the official record. The Department of State assumes no responsibility for the accuracy of fact or interpretation in these unofficial publications. The publications of this type which have been most consulted in the preparation of this volume are [Page XIX] set forth in the list that follows. Other works also consulted on particular points are identified in editorial notes and footnotes at the appropriate places.

H. H. Arnold, Global Mission (New York: Harper and Brothers, 1949). Hereafter cited as “Arnold”.

Arthur Bryant, The Turn of the Tide: A History of the War Years Based on the Diaries of Field Marshal Lord Alanbrooke, Chief of the Imperial General Staff (Garden City: Doubleday & Company, 1957). Hereafter cited as “Alanbrooke”.

Harry C. Butcher, My Three Years with Eisenhower (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1946).

General Georges Catroux, Dans la Bataille de la Méditerranée: Egypte–Levant–Afrique du Nord, 1940–1944 (Paris: Rene Julliard, 1949). Hereafter cited as “Catroux”.

Winston S. Churchill, The Second World War (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1948–1953), 6 volumes.

• Volume II, Their Finest Hour. Hereafter cited as “Churchill, Their Finest Hour”.
• Volume III, The Grand Alliance. Hereafter cited as “Churchill, Grand Alliance”.
• Volume IV, The Hinge of Fate. Hereafter cited as “Churchill, Hinge of Fate”.

Mark S. Clark, Calculated Risk (New York: Harper & Brothers, 1950).

Charles de Gaulle, The War Memoirs of Charles de Gaulle, volume II, Unity 1942–1944 (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1956). Hereafter cited as “De Gaulle”. Also War Memoirs: volume II, Unity 1942–1944, Documents (London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 1959). Hereafter cited as “De Gaulle, Documents”.

Anthony Eden, The Memoirs of Anthony Eden, Earl of Avon: The Reckoning (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1965).

Dwight D. Eisenhower, Crusade in Europe (Garden City: Doubleday & Company, 1948).

General Henri Honoré Giraud, Un seul but, la victoire: Alger 1942–1944 (Paris: René Julliard, 1949). Hereafter cited as “Giraud”.

William D. Hassett, Off the Record with F.D.R., 1942–1945 (New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press, 1958).

Sir Leslie Hollis, One Marine’s Tale (London: Andre Deutsch, 1956). Hereafter cited as “Hollis”.

Cordell Hull, The Memoirs of Cordell Hull, volume II (New York: The Macmillan Company, 1948). Hereafter cited as “Hull”.

Lord Ismay, The Memoirs of General the Lord Ismay (London: William Heinemann, 1960).

Sir John Kennedy, The Business of War: The War Narrative of Major General Sir John Kennedy (New York: William Morrow and Company, 1958).

Ernest J. King and Walter Muir Whitehill, Fleet Admiral King: A Naval Record (New York: W. W. Norton and Co. 1952).

William D. Leahy, I Was There: The Personal Story of the Chief of Staff to Presidents Roosevelt and Truman, Based on His Notes and Diaries Made at the Time (New York: Whittlesey House, McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1950).

The War Diary of Breckinridge Long: Selections from the Years 1939–1944, selected and edited by Fred L. Israel (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1966).

[Page XX]

Harold Macmillan, The Blast of War, 1939–1945 (London, Melbourne, Toronto: Macmillan, 1967. Hereafter cited as “Macmillan”.

Robert Murphy, Diplomat Among Warriors (Garden City: Doubleday and Company, 1964). Hereafter cited as “Murphy”.

Donald M. Nelson, Arsenal of Democracy: The Story of American War Production (New York: Harcourt, Brace and Company, 1946). Hereafter cited as “Nelson”.

Gerald Pawle, The War and Colonel Warden: Based on the Recollections of Commander C. R. Thompson, Personal Assistant to the Prime Minister, 1940–1945 (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1963).

Kenneth Pendar, Adventure in Diplomacy: Our French Dilemma (New York: Dodd, Mead & Company, 1945).

J. W. Pickersgill, The Mackenzie King Record, volume I, 1939–1944 (Toronto: The University of Toronto Press and the University of Chicago Press, 1960). Hereafter cited as “Pickersgill”.

Eleanor Roosevelt, This I Remember (New York, Harper & Brothers, 1949).

Elliott Roosevelt, As He Saw It (New York: Duell, Sloan and Pearce, 1946). Hereafter cited as “Elliott Roosevelt”.

S. McKee Rosen, The Combined Boards of the Second World War (New York: Columbia University Press, 1951).

Robert E. Sherwood, Roosevelt and Hopkins: An Intimate History, revised edition (New York: Harper and Brothers, 1950). Hereafter cited as “Sherwood”.

Sir John Slessor, The Central Blue: The Autobiography of Sir John Slessor, Marshal of the RAF (New York: Frederick A. Praeger, 1957).

Edward R. Stettinius, Jr., Lend-Lease, Weapon for Victory (New York: The Macmillan Company, 1944).

Henry L. Stimson and McGeorge Bundy, On Active Service in Peace and War (New York: Harper & Brothers, 1947). Hereafter cited as “Stimson and Bundy”.

Arthur W. Tedder, With Prejudice: The War Memoirs of Marshal of the Royal Air Force Lord Tedder (London: Cassell, 1966).

Maxime Weygand, Recalled to Service (Garden City: Doubleday and Company, Inc., 1952).

Editorial Treatment

In the preparation of this volume the editors have been guided by the regulations of the Department applicable to the Foreign Relations series, viz.:

1350 Documentary Record of American Diplomacy

1351 Scope of Documentation

The publication Foreign Relations of the United States constitutes the official record of the foreign policy of the United States. These volumes include, subject to necessary security considerations, all documents needed to give a comprehensive record of the major foreign policy decisions within the range of the Department of State’s responsibilities, together with appropriate materials concerning the facts which contributed to the formulation of policies. When further material is needed to supplement the documentation in the Department’s files for a proper understanding of the relevant policies of the United States, such papers should be obtained from other Government agencies.

[Page XXI]

1352 Editorial Preparation

The basic documentary diplomatic record to be printed in Foreign Relations of the United States shall be edited by the Historical Office, Bureau of Public Affairs of the Department of State. The editing of the record shall be guided by the principles of historical objectivity. There shall be no alteration of the text, no deletions without indicating where in the text the deletion is made, and no omission of facts which were of major importance in reaching a decision. Nothing shall be omitted for the purpose of concealing or glossing over what might be regarded by some as a defect of policy. However, certain omissions of documents are permissible for the following reasons:

a.

To avoid publication of matters which would tend to impede current diplomatic negotiations or other business.

b.

To condense the record and avoid repetition of needless details.

c.

To preserve the confidence reposed in the Department by individuals and by foreign governments.

d.

To avoid giving needless offense to other nationalities or individuals.

e.

To eliminate personal opinions presented in despatches and not acted upon by the Department. To this consideration there is one qualification—in connection with major decisions it is desirable, where possible, to show the alternatives presented to the Department before the decision was made.

1353 Clearance

To obtain appropriate clearances of material to be published in Foreign Relations of the United States, the Historical Office:

a.

Refers to the appropriate policy offices of the Department and of other agencies of the Government such papers as appear to require policy clearance.

b.

Refers to the appropriate foreign governments requests for permission to print as part of the diplomatic correspondence of the United States those previously unpublished documents which were originated by the foreign governments.