America in the Forties

Preface

xi Preface “BE NOT A FR A ID OF GR E AT N ESS: some are born great, some achieve greatness and some have greatness thrust upon them.” These famous words from William Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night aptly apply to the three outstanding Allied leaders of the 1940s: Winston Churchill, Franklin Roosevelt, and Harry Truman. Winston Churchill was born into an extremely prominent British family that included a legendary general and various political leaders, including his own father, who had served in the British Parliament. He was born on the estate of his ancestor the duke of Marlborough, hero of the 1703 Battle of Blenheim against the French. Heavily involved in politics at an early age, Churchill was a rising star until his career suffered a major reverse. Somewhat in political disgrace after World War I for being linked to a disastrous British defeat at the 1915 Battle of Gallipoli in Turkey, he returned to power in time to save his island nation from the Nazis. An inspiring leader and brilliant speaker, Churchill took power when virtually all of Europe had fallen to the Nazis, and defeatism was rising in England. He rallied the British, was able to work closely with his American counterpart, Franklin Roosevelt, and helped steer the British through the crisis. He realized the enormous consequences to follow should Britain be defeated by the Nazis and persuaded his country to “never surrender.” Though similarly born into wealth, Franklin Roosevelt did not have as distinguished a political bloodline as Churchill. Except for his famous cousin, President Theodore Roosevelt, his family consisted mainly of successful businessmen rather than political leaders. His father was a low-key businessman, already fifty years old when his famous son was born. XII P R E F A C E Roosevelt, who had pulled the United States through the greatest economic crisis in its history during the 1930s, was able to guide his nation during one of the most dangerous periods in world history. A defeat of the Allies might plunge the world back into the “dark ages” for centuries. Roosevelt’s great accomplishments were to steer an isolationist-minded nation into helping oppose the Nazis and, after 1941, to serve as a brilliant wartime leader. In the bloodiest war in history, Roosevelt preserved an often difficult alliance of the three anti-Axis powers—Britain, Soviet Russia, and the United States—culminating in the final victory in September 1945. The career of Harry Truman is perhaps the most amazing of the three principal Western leaders of the 1940s. Born into a humble family, failing in business, he rose politically with the help of a corrupt political machine. Elected vice president in 1944, he literally had greatness thrust upon him when he assumed the presidency following the death of Franklin Roosevelt less than a year later. Although many expected very little from him, he became a strong leader during the final days of World War II and the subsequent emergence of the Cold War. He created a revolution in foreign policy after the war, comparable in scope to the domestic revolution achieved by Roosevelt’s New Deal. Challenged by expansionist-minded totalitarian powers during a crucial period in history, the West produced a number of extraordinary leaders. When the Cold War finally ended in 1989, the legacy of these three men was complete. The military crisis of World War II and the long, drawn-out challenge from the Communists that followed tested their greatness and resulted in a major triumph of Western traditions. The decade of the 1940s determined the history of much of the twentieth century. The heroic accomplishments of the United States during World War II and the early Cold War helped lay the foundation for its current dominant role in economic and military affairs worldwide. This general overview of the period focuses on many of the key players and the main ideas that shaped this crucial era and that continue to affect American history. ...