Naval strategy and policy

1. Sea Power & Maritime Affairs Lesson 10 Naval strategy and policy Inter-War Years 1919-1941

2. Admin • Anything you want to include • Quizzes • Assignments • Etc

3. Last Class Navy in WWI • Naval war • US involvement

4. Today Navy during Inter-War Period (1918-1939) • Treaty of Versailles • State of world navies • Naval Arms Limitations • Washington Conferences • Birth of new technologies • Aircraft carrier

5. 8 Key Themes • Navy as an instrument of foreign policy • Interaction between Congress and Navy • Interservicerelations • Technology • Leadership • Strategy & Tactics • Evolution of US Naval Doctrine • Future missions of Navy and USMC

6. 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

7. 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)

8. 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

9. 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

10. 1922 Naval Limitation Treaty Background Agreement • 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

11. Capital Ships to be Retained or Destroyed

12. Treaty Navies

13. 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

14. 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

15. Era of Cooperation • Good Neighbor Policy

16. 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 • US Merchant Marine strengthening - Does not count towards naval limitations

17. US Naval Development US Naval Construction Pre-WWII Post-WWI Build Ships in Service or under Construction Limitations Agreement Great Depression Asst SecNav during WWI. Loves Navy like his uncle Pacifist 1919 - 1924 $1.9 billion to $302 million 80% personnel Wilson Harding Coolidge Hoover Franklin Roosevelt 1918 1939

18. Other Cuts • 80 % of personnel • Chronic under-manning of ships

19. War Planning & Strategy Interim Years

20. 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

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

22. 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

23. Rising International Tensions • Germany aggressively develops military • Rise of Hitler/Nazi Fascism • 1937-1938: 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

24. 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

25. Alliances Again Made Aggressors Allies • Germany • Japan • Italy • Soviet Union (swap in 1941) • United States • United Kingdom • France

26. World moving toward war New naval arms race

27. 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

28. 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”

29. Biggest Changes • Aircraft Carriers • Submarines

30. 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)

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

32. USS Ranger • First carrier designed specifically as an aircraft carrier

33. 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

34. 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.

35. 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

36. Marine Amphibious Vehicles LCVP Higgins Boat LVT “Alligator” • Andrew Higgins • Europe & Pacific • 13,000 • Donald Roebling • Pacific • 18,621

37. 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.

38. 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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