Q10 – The Great Depression. The USA in the IIWW. Franklin Delano-Ruswelt.

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In November 1928, The Republican party and its leader Herbert Hoover won the presidential elections. It seemed to be the most favorable period in the economic development of the USA and Hoover's presidency promised to be easy and not troublesome. The industrial boom reached its peak, the speculations on the stock exchange markets reached an unprecedented level. However the imbalances between the production and the consumption of goods became more and more obvious. But in general, the USA was prosperous as ever. On the 24^th of October in 1929 (The Black Thursday) one the New-York stock exchange panic selling of 12 million shares at a time took place which wiped out the stock exchange itself and gave a double blow to the American economy in general. Thousands of investors lost their money instantly, millions of citizens lost their deposits in banks. The employers began to get rid of the staff in all of the companies. The industrial production fell dramatically. The agricultural companies got bankrupt, no one needed their production, the prices were extremely low. In 1929 the USA produced 4.9 million automobiles. In 1930 only 1 million. At the same time the unemployment rates reached 12 million people. Initially, Hoover was sure that the free economic mechanisms would balance the situation without the interference of the government. He started giving even bigger loans to banks, supporting the big companies, he asked big businesses not to make people redundant. Hoover's administration created reconstruction finance corporation, which was supposed to accumulate the money for the support of this project. The situation in 1931-32 changed from bad to worse, Hoover's popularity was extremely low and was obvious that in 1932 Democrats would win the elections. The Democrats chose Franklin Delano-Roosevelt in the 1932 elections. He was the only US president who was elected 4 times. He suffered from polio, he could hardy walk by himself. He radiated confidence, kindness and the ability to change the situation in the country. During the presidential campaign he visited all the states of the US. “The only thing we have have to fear is fear itself”. “This action asks for action and action now”. His program was called a 'New Deal'. There was a point called 'Hundred Days'.

ñ As for the financial sphere, Roosevelt closed all the banks, and reopened only those, that were ready to work under the stricter control of the government.

ñ He abolished gold standard of the currency, devalued the dollar and succeeded in the policy of mildly controlled inflation.

ñ They put the biggest emphasis on public employment (building dams, roads, etc.)

ñ A great support was guaranteed for theaters, cinemas, museums, concert halls and other establishments of culture.

ñ The conservation of national resources. 3 million people got the employment in that sphere at once.

ñ In agriculture Roosevelt's idea was to return to the prices of foodstuffs that existed before the Great Depression.

These were the main measures undertaken by Roosevelt's government in 100 days. In took 10 years to accomplish the results. By the 1944 the USA's development was even higher than before the Great Depression.

The second world war. President Roosevelt's domestic reforms were outshadowed by the growing threat of a new world war, instigated by the expansionist's policies of totalitarian regimes in Italy, Germany and Japan.

1931 Japan invaded a Chinese province called Manchuria.

1935 Italy invaded Ethiopia in Africa.

1936-38 Spanish regime of Francisco Franco overturns the republic and government, and Spain becomes a fascist state.

1938 Germany incorporates Austria and after the shameful Munich pact invaded Czechoslovakia. In 1939 Germany attacks Poland, which marks the beginning of the 1^st WW.

The policy of isolationism of the United States led to the inefficiency of the system of collective security associated with the League of Nations. The United state behaved neutrally, but in 1941 the program of Land Lease was adopted, that guaranteed the supplies of planes, tanks, weapons, foodstuffs to the countries, the security of which was in the US interest. Even Soviet Union got certain ammunition. On the 40^th of August President Roosevelt and Winston Churchill met in the Mid-Atlantic and passed the famous Atlantic charter, many points of which later were reflected in the Charter of the United Nations. By December 1941 the atmosphere in the US on the one hand and Japan on the other was so tense that on the 6^th of December president Roosevelt the emperor of Japan Hirohito and asked for a peaceful solution. On the 7^th of December Japan undertook a smashing blow on many targets in the Pacific, such as the Philippines, Guam and especially the military base Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, destroying 8 battleships, dozens of planes, killing 2300 American soldiers. On that same day the congress declared war on Japan. Two days later Italy and Germany declared war on the USA.

Soon after the USA entered the war American, British and Soviet war planners decided to concentrate their war effort in Europe while the Pacific region was made secondary.

After the defeat of the Germans near Moscow in 1941 the Anglo-American troops undertook a number of successful operations in Africa and Asia. In 1942 the American defeated Japan in the battle at the Coral Sea thus saving Australia from the occupation. In that same year as a result of the battle at midway the Hawaiian Islands were no longer in danger. In spring 1942 Anglo-American forces under the command of General Montgomery landed in Egypt which was Hitler's target. As a result of the battle Al-Alamaine 24 Oct-3 November 1942 the Suez Canal was defended. And thus Egypt was liberated. In 1943 the US army under the command of general Dwight Eisenhower French African colonies and by the summer of 1943 Tunis and Algeria were liberated and the way to the Southern part of Italy (Island of Sicily) was cleared from the Mediterranean Sea. In July 1943 the Anglo-American troops landed in Sicily and occupied the Southern part of the Italian mainland. The resistance of the Italians was not severe. On the 25^th of July in 1943 the fascist leader Benito Mussolini was deposed. He escaped. 8 months later he was captured by the Italian partisans and publicly hanged in Milan. It took one more year to clear Italy of fascists because the German troops in Italy were fighting bravely and up to the last soldier. Rome was liberated only on the fourth of June 1944.

In November 1943 there took place a conference in Teheran where Churchill, Roosevelt and Stalin discussed the matter of the opening of the second front in Europe. This was the principal decision to start the war from the West as well.

«Тегеран-43» - фильм.

During the first half of 1944 the operation Overlord – The Invasion of Normandy – was carefully worked at by the American and British strategists. The D-day was appointed on the 6^th of June 1944. On the eve of that day the concentration of forces in Britain reached its top. 4 thousand ships, 11000 planes, 3 million soldiers and sailors and airmen. The operation was successful. More than 200.000 allies were moving through France towards Germany. At the end of August 1944 Paris and Brussels were liberated. In October 1944 the allies took Luxemburg and entered Germany.

In 1944 a very important event took place in the Pacific. The US liberated the Philippines. In 1944 the Germans undertook the last important offensive in the Belgium Ardens. The situation in the East was much harsher because the Soviets liberated Poland and Berlin was close.

In February 1945 in Yalta there was held another conference of the three leaders, the main issues of which were the following: the punishment of the Nazi leader after the second world war , the boundaries of Poland were established, the agreement of Soviet Union to start a war against Japan when the war in Europe was over, establishment of the United Nations organization were discussed.

In April 1945 two important events happened in the USA. On the 12^th of April Franklin Roosevelt died of a stroke in his Winter Residence in Warm Springs, the state of Georgia. His successor Harry Truman had to participate instead of Roosevelt at the ceremony of the opening of the United Nations Organization, that took place in the 25 of April 1945 in San-Francisco.

On the 25^th of April took place in Germany, meeting on the Elbe, when the Anglo-American soldiers met the soviet troops moving from the East in a small German town Torgao. On the 8^th of May Germany signed the unconditional surrender and thus the war in Europe was over.

On the 17^th of July 1945 the last conference of the three leaders opened in Potsdam near Berlin. The task for the three leaders was to decide upon the partition of Germany, the Establishment of Nurnberg tribunal on war crimes. Clement Attley from Britain. This was the last meeting of the three leaders before the Cold War. The Soviet Union remained firm to its commitment and declared war to Japan in summer 1945. It didn't last long. The famous Qwantun division was crushed by the Soviets in Manjuoria and Japan signed the unconditional surrender on the 2^nd of September in 1945. That was the end of the second world war. Before that in August Truman signed the order to attack two Japanese cities using atomic bombs. On the 6^th of August Hiroshima, on the 9^th of August Nagasaki were bombed. Tho hundred thousand people were killed immediately my the nuclear attack, million suffered from deceases years later.