Office of the Historian

740.00119 European War 1939/9–2843: Telegram

The British Prime Minister (Churchill) to President Roosevelt 6

[London,] September 28, 1943.

We agree that long-term surrender documents should be kept secret for the present. I have no doubt Uncle Joe will concur but it would be well if you told him our views speaking for both of us.

2.
We think it would be a mistake to talk about making Rome an open city,7 as it may hamper our forward movement and will anyway not bind the enemy. We should prefer therefore to omit the words beginning “as an open city” down to the words “proposed by your Government”.
3.
I am asking Treasury about exchange rate and will cable you tomorrow. I agree with Eisenhower that we should not treat the Italian population unfairly.
4.
I am very glad about Sforza. Badoglio would be very foolish not to embrace him after his generous letter. A shotgun marriage will have to be arranged if necessary.
  1. Copy transmitted to the Department by the British Embassy on September 28.↩
  2. For correspondence on this subject, see pp. 910 ff.↩