NAVAL STRATEGY AND POLICY Inter-War Years Sea Power & Maritime Affairs Lesson 10

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Last Class Navy in WWI  Naval war  US involvement

Today Navy during Inter-War Period ( )  Treaty of Versailles  State of world navies  Naval Arms Limitations – Washington Conferences  Birth of new technologies – Aircraft carrier

8 Key Themes 1.Navy as an instrument of foreign policy 2.Interaction between Congress and Navy 3.Interservice relations 4.Technology 5.Leadership 6.Strategy & Tactics 7.Evolution of US Naval Doctrine 8.Future missions of Navy and USMC

Main Naval Themes  German Navy sinks own fleet  Britain, US & Japan navies emerge strong Agree to naval disarmament and limitations  Rising international tensions in 1930’s  Another naval arms race

German Navy Destroyed  Germans forced to surrender entire fleet as part of treaty terms.  Germans sink own fleet at Scapa Flow instead of surrendering. Why? – Reluctant to give UK and France its ships – Doubts the truthfulness of terms of treaty. Expects resumption of war.  UK and France extract indemnity from Germany for destroying its fleet without their permission. (Germany pays)

Post-WWI Sea Power  British Navy = #1  US Navy = #2 (convoy escorts)  Japanese Navy = #3  Threat: Unlike UK/Japan, US pledges to accelerates ship building after WWI – Complete Naval Act of 1916 Scares UK and Japan US uses threat as leverage for League of Nations and naval limitations treaty

League of Nations  President Wilson’s war aim – The UN/NATO of the age: “Collective security” – Pledge of men and material to forestall war  Problem – UK didn’t like it – France didn’t like it – Heated disputes during peace negotiations  Wilson coerces British and French by threatening to complete Naval Act of 1916 – Disapproved in US Congress

Naval Limitation Treaty  1921  President Harding invites UK, France, Italy and Japan to US  Washington Naval Arms Conference – US recommends naval arms limitations – All countries sign treaty  5:5:3 Ratio (UK:US:Japan)  Scrap battleship construction  Limitations for: – Capital ship tonnage – Capital ship guns – Aircraft carrier tonnage – (France refused to outlaw submarines)  Non-Fortification Clause – No US/British military installations in Pacific besides Hawaii and Singapore BackgroundAgreement 1922

Capital Ships to be Retained or Destroyed

Treaty Navies

Outcome of Treaty US is happy - save money and have Navy as strong as UK UK is happy - feared US would out- build and surpass them. Japan is happy - US and UK will minimize installations in Pacific. Later got 5:5:3 increased to 10:10:7

Era of Cooperation  “4-Powers Pact” – UK, US, Japan & France agree to respect each other’s territorial rights in Pacific  “Nine-Powers Pact” – Nine countries agree to respect each other’s territorial rights in China.  Kellogg-Briand Pact – Almost all world nations renounce war as tool for diplomacy  Three additional Naval Arms Limitations Conferences in next fifteen years

Era of Cooperation  Good Neighbor Policy

US Naval Development  US Adheres to limitations treaty but explores all avenues to keep Navy strong: 1. Leading edge of technology 2. Carrier & non-limited ship development -Builds ships to absolute-highest weight limitation -“Treaty Cruisers” – 10,000 pounds and 8-in guns 3.US Merchant Marine strengthening - Does not count towards naval limitations

US Naval Development Franklin RooseveltHardingWilsonHooverCoolidge US Naval Construction Ships in Service or under Construction Pre-WWII Pacifist Great Depression Limitations Agreement Post-WWI Build Asst SecNav during WWI. Loves Navy like his uncle $1.9 billion to $302 million 80% personnel

Other Cuts  80 % of personnel  Chronic under-manning of ships

War Planning & Strategy Interim Years

War Planning Navy War Planners get busy – War College and Navy War Plans Division Revise WWI War plans – Plan Orange (Japan) ** Considered most likely – Plan Red (Britain) – Plan Black (Germany) Add “Rainbow Plans” – Plans for multiple enemies – Plan “Rainbow 1” through “Rainbow 5” – “Rainbow 5” for war with Japan and Germany

Plan Orange 1.Assume Philippines can hold out for 6 months 2.Secure Island of Eniwetok as staging base 3.Island hop to relieve Philippines & reclaim south-pacific territory 4.WWII Amphibious Doctrine developed in USMC

Marine Corps Planners  Expeditionary or Amphibious?  MAJ Earl “Pete” Ellis  Wrote paper: “Advance Base Operations in Micronesia” – Basis for USMC amphibious doctrine – Basis for Plan Orange

Rising International Tensions  Germany aggressively develops military – Rise of Hitler/Nazi Fascism – : Annexation of Austria, Sudetenland, Czechoslovakia  Soviet Union and Germany sign nonaggression pact – Protects Germany from another disastrous 2-front war – Protects Soviet Union from war with Germany

Rising International Tensions  Japan withdraws from Naval Limitations Agreement – Increasing colonial aggression – Makes war in China in 1930’s – Anti-Comitern Pact with Germany (1936) – Tripartite Pact with Germany and Italy (1940) US conclusion : – Germany & Japan most likely threat – Plan Orange abandoned for Rainbow 5

Alliances Again Made  Germany  Japan  Italy  Soviet Union (swap in 1941)  United States  United Kingdom  France AggressorsAllies

World moving toward war New naval arms race

US Preparations Vinson-Trammel Act (1934)  1934: – 372 ships, displacing 1,038,660 tons – 150,000 tons short of the treaty limitations  Replacement of obsolete vessels  Gradual increase of ships by 1942 – 65 destroyers – 30 submarines – 1 aircraft carrier – 1184 naval airplanes  Up to Washington Treaty limitations

US Preparations Naval Expansion Act of 1938  20 % increase in size of Navy  3000 aircraft by 1945  June 1940 – “11% Act”  July 1940 – “70% Act”

Biggest Changes  Aircraft Carriers  Submarines

Rise of the Aircraft Carrier  Nothing was more important to WWII naval warfare. All major battles fought with carriers  Reason for rapid carrier development: Carriers were loosely regulated in 1921 limitations treaty. So countries invested money in development: – Aircraft carriers – Naval aircraft & tactics – Naval air warfare doctrine – US Navy Bureau of Aeronautics (1921)

USS Langley  CV-1  First US aircraft carrier  Converted cruiser hull  Conceived as vessel for scouting planes

USS Ranger  First carrier designed specifically as an aircraft carrier

Aviation Doctrine  1921 – General “Billy” Mitchell demonstrates aircraft use as bomber. – Sinks obsolete German battleship off Virginia coast.  1920’s –Battleship still king. – “Gun Club” – Aircraft engineering improves. – Dive bombers and torpedo bombers. – More demonstrations. Fleet Problem IX – Panama Canal Fleet Problem XVIII – Attack of battleship fleet Fleet Problem IX – Surprise attack on Pearl Harbor

Aviation Doctrine  1930’s – Aviation buds as a viable attack platform. – Still subservient to battleships. – Aircraft engineering improves further. – Japanese and German aircraft surpass US design  Brink of War – Japan realizes deadliness of aviation more than US. – Pearl Harbor teaches US a lesson.

Submarines  New boats  Larger boats  Greater submersion and endurance under water  Lower acoustic signature  Dangerous force as WWII approaches. No country underestimates their effectiveness.  Germany starts rebuilding sub fleet during 1930s *** Anti-Sub technology and tactics also improve to combat sub development

Marine Amphibious Vehicles  Andrew Higgins  Europe & Pacific  13,000  Donald Roebling  Pacific  18,621 LCVP Higgins BoatLVT “Alligator”

Overall Message  World powers all poised for war. All have developed diverse and robust fleets that will fight in the most costly and universally advanced war in history.

Oh by the way…  1925  Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps authorized by congress for six universities in the US. – University of California (Berkley) – Northwestern – University of Washington – Harvard – Yale – Georgia Tech  Marines joined in 1932

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