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French, determined to secure American territory against encroaching British/American traders, built a chain of forts along Pennsylvania's Allegheny River.
British ministry ordered colonial governors to repel the French advance by force. Britain wanted colonial territory, larger global empire, wealth, and, as a result, POWER.
"First" World war (spanned three continents, including the Caribbean)
Three prior wars between Britain, France, and Spain from 1688-1748 (King William's War, Queen Anne's War, King George's War)
England and France traded for furs with Native Americans in Ohio County and, by the 1750s, English colonists wanted wilderness for farmland. As a result, each side tried to keep the other out of THE OHIO COUNTY.
North America is so important that it's causing fights to break out in Europe.
Sides:
- Britain, Prussia, Portugal, Native Americans
- France, Spain, Austria, Russia, Sweden, Native Americans
1750: French soldiers captured English trading posts and built Fort Dusquesne
In 1753, Washington sent to demand French troops leave. They don't leave.
May 28, 1754: Massacre at Jumonville
- GW Native American ally Tanacharison (Half King) assassinates French leader Jumonville, violating codes of war
July 4, 1754: Battle of Fort Necessity
French surround Washington. French win. Washington signs surrender that admits to Jumonville's assassination AND THE WAR OFFICIALLY STARTS
1754: Battle of Fort Dusquense
- British suffer HUMILIATING DEFEAT
1755: Battle at Lake George
- Neither side wins
1756-1757: Alliance of Shawnee & Delaware Indians vs. British. Cause serious British defeats.
1756: William Pitt took over as chief minister in Britain, and diverted all military resources to America. Guaranteed payment to the colonies in order to unite them. His strategies worked.
1758-1760: British begin to win.
- Indian allies abandon French
In 1758 (with colonial forces assisting) Louisbourg was seized. In 1759, Quebec was seized.
1760: Montreal was also surrendered to the British, marking the end of the war in America.
DIFFERENT WAR STYLE IN NORTH AMERICA: GUERRILLA
(European style of British troops: good weather, open field, straight rows of soldiers, rules of engagement FAIL in American wilderness. The Stage:
- Post War of 1812
- Huge burst in nationalism
- Need for TERRITORY
- COMMERCIAL needs
- South America fighting for its independence (could become commercial interest to the U.S.)
- John Quincy Adams sees Latin American revolutions and says American should support fighting for independence but we can't FIGHT because then we're getting into wars
- Need to balance our interests AND support recognizing independent South American colonies, without getting militarily invested
The Solution:
- Monroe decided to anact his Doctrine
- Europe: stay away from us, we'll stay away from you
- Warning: stop trying to keep colonies in this hemisphere
- In exchange, we won't get involved in European wars again
The Impact:
- 1st foreign policy we have FOR OURSELVES that isn't just reaction to Europe
- Stay out of our backyard, we stay out of yours
- Demand for Europe to stay out of our hemisphere is either a defence of American security and ideals OR a way of giving America the green light to expand into the hemisphere as they saw fit (leading into manifest destiny)
- Steadily after the doctrine, the US acquired territory through conflict, purchases, and annexation
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"We're protecting this side of the Atlantic. It's not in our best interests, then, to get involved in any international affairs in Europe"
- Justification for non-neutrality ->
- if Europe attempts to "extend their system to any portion of this hemisphere, as dangerous to our peace and safety"
- "it's only when our rights are invaded or seriously menaced that we become resentful and make preparation for our defense" Beginning of Wiemar Republic
- German officials afraid of unrest and revolt of their people following defeat in WWI
- German generals asked the government to form a REPUBLIC
- Nov. 9, 1918 declared Germany a republic
- But, at the same time, HUGE HYPERINFLATION
- Economy down the drown, worthless money, etc.
- As unemployment rose, so did votes for Hitler (promised to solve unemployment, but also blames bankers/JEWS and was very Nationalistic and Militaristic)
HITLER'S RISE TO POWER
- Brings Nazi party to power using anger over Treaty of Versailles & Inflation and economic crisis to rally support
- On January 30, 1933, he's named Weimar Chancellor
- Quickly ends all democratic institutions and individual rights (constitution is TRASHED, burned)
- New goal: taking back of the Rhineland and building up of the miltiary Roots:
- Japan (an Allied Power) had been ignored at the Peace of Paris Conference
- Becomes increasingly imperialist
- This triggers US to move Pacific Fleet from San Diego to Pearl Harbor Hawaii - a message to threaten Japan and to protect the Philippines
- Under Neutrality Act -> America cut off Steel and Oil Shipments to Japan (80% of Japanese oil from US)
- Japan only had 2 years worth of oil reserves
- Also cut off 90% of trade in raw materials needed by Japan for war
- Japan didn't believe it could win a drawn-out war with the US
- Wanted to cripple the Pacific Fleet in one hit so it could invade oil-rich Dutch East Indies and Philippines without opposition
- 360 Japanese planes hit at 7:45 Hawaii time
- Despite warnings, no one believed the Japanese were capable fo the attack
- 5 of 8 US battleships, 3 destroyer ships, 7 other naval ships sunk or destroyed
- 2,400 Americans killed, 1,200 wounded
- Japan only lost 30 planes, 5 small subs, and less than 100 men
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By December, 1941, Japanese Army had a force of 2,400,000 trained ground troops and an air fleet of 7,500 planes. US had a force of 1,500,000 with only 500,000 being completely trained, and 1,157 planes with 347 war ships
- Much of America's further war production was committed through the Lend Lease Program
- Japan believed US Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor was their only threat and set out to eliminate the fleet through a surprise air attack
- US received several warnings in advance, but the US War Department didn't believe Japan was on the verge of attacking the US (after all peace talks were underway)
- Even upon receiving a written message from Japan threatening war on the day of the attack, the US couldn't appreciate the full implications
- Poor communications between Washington and Hawaii helped Japan achieve the surprise attack
- Two early warnings came, but both were ignored. The second warning involved the sighting of planes about 50 miles away from an Army information center at Fort Shafter, but the lieutenant believed they were US planes returning from a spy mission
TWO WAVES OF ATTACK
- First at 7:45 am attacking seven U.S. ships along "Battleship Row"
- Second wave finished the devastation
- In less than two hours the Japanese had ruined the U.S. Pacific Fleet's battleship force, ensuring the US would not interfere with further plans for conquest
AFTERMATH
- Martial law was established, as were strict curfews and blackouts
- Censorship of news and mail
- Japanese owned businesses shut down
- Japanese internment
- Poor conditions, with no plumbing or cooking facilities, and even though the camps closed in 1945, it wasn't until 1968 that the US Government began paying compensation to Japenese American citizens (which was only ever provided to approximately 60,000 of those who had survived to receive it)
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"Battleship row"
- Bunch of ships in one area
- In a harbor without easy access to the ocean
- So close together that domino effect of explosions made the ships one giant target
"Yesterday, December 7, 1941 - a date which will live in infamy - the United States was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan"
- US declared war -> other Axis powers Germany and Italy declare war on the US -> US declares back - From July 17 to August 2, 1945
- The Big Three met in Cecilienhof Palace in Potsdam, Germany
- Final wartime conference (after Germany had surrendered unconditionally and Japan continued to fight)
- The Big Three delivered an ultimatum to Japan during the conference (surrender unconditionally or be destroyed)
- Rest of the conference devoted to the arrangement of postwar Europe (Soviet control of Eastern Europe was recognized by the Western powers as well as terms for dividing Berlin, Germany into four quadrants (each to be ruled by an ally - The UK, the US, the USSR, and FRANCE)
- Number of other agreements reached for reestablishment of governments and economies in the defeated countries of Germany, Italy, and Japan
- Truman received word of successful atom bomb testing during the conference and informed Churchill but only told Stalin the US had developed a "new weapon"
- Political and ideological differences between the US and the Soviet Union began to clearly emerge at the conference, and many consider it the start of the Cold War (due to the growing distrust between the US and the USSR)
GERMANY:
- Decided didn't want a repeat of Treaty of Versailles, so they only asked for $23 billion in reparations ($287.5 billion in today's money) July 1945
- US government foreign policy has 1 focus = CONTAINMENT
- Contain the spread of communism and SPREAD democracy
- Deep Freeze: US and Soviet Union Foreign Policy Relations 1949-1991
- Aim to secure post WWII peace
- Potsdam conference
- Big three, splitting into two (USA and Britain for free gov't vs. Stalin of USSR for communism)
- Allies in war, but ideological differences = conflict
- Liberal democracy vs. communism
Lack of trust between liberal democracies and communists
- Truman gave order to use the bomb, but never told Stalin of its existence
- Stalin would later note the bomb destroyed balance between USSR and USA (USA too far ahead)
- Tensions would erupt in cold war
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Starts with Post WWII recovery
- US leading superpower after WWII (no destruction on our soil aside from Pearl Harbor)
- Nations of Europe destroyed -> ruined by bombs, starvation, needing to be re-built
- Soviet Union (USSR) is SECOND biggest superpower to survive the war
- Now has additional countries in its "empire" called Soviet Satellites
- US and USSR have totally opposing views of what to do post WWII
- US thinks Germany should be healed and re-built, wants to spread democracy
- USSR feels Germany should be kept weak so it can never attack again (since it had attacked twice w/ WWI-II), wants to spread communism (political system where economy and society are all equal - no separate classes and government controls it all)
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COLD because tense as war but never actual war between USSR and US
- Instead, it was deep-rooted hatred, political, military, technological rivalry
- Was a war of political ideologies, nuclear weapon threats, and proxy war
INCLUDED SUCH CONFLICTS AS
- President Truman and the Korean War (1950-1953)
- President Kennedy and Cuba - Bay of Pigs, Cuban Missile Crisis (1960-1963)
- President Nixon and Vietnam War (1965-1973)
- President Nixon and Vietnam War, Visit to China (1972)
- President Carter and Soviet invasion of Afghanistan (1979)
- President Reagan and Fall of Berlin Wall (1989)
- President G.H. Bush and the First Gulf War (1990-1991)
- President Obama and Russia over Syria intervention (2013) ;
