Page 346 - 1992 - XVIII Congresso Internazionale di Storia Militare

312 jli~GEN ROHWEl

Having l~arncd from intercept~ messagcs that Hitler wann:d 10 avoid war
with the United Scares unril his vietory ov~r Russia. Rooscvelt acccptcd incidcnrs
like the rorpedoing of thc denroyer Ktarny and t:hc sinking of t:he destroy~r Rtubm
Jamu during escort operacioos and used thcm co persuade Congrcss 10 revoke rhc:
last pam of t:he Ncutraliry Aru. While che big rearmamem prograrns picked up
spc~. che Atlantic fleer was already fìghcing oo che si de of the Allied navies. Things
couJd go on uncil a bigger incidcnc mighc force Hitler to dedare wur.
Even thc dereriorarion of che situacion in che Pacifìc causc:d by Japanesc ~x­
pansion into lndochina, and the uncompromismg behavior of t:he j ap2nese in che
diplomacic nc:gotiations, t:he background ro which was known becausc lheJapane-
se diplomatic ciphcr 'Purple' had b«n decoped by 'Magie', couJd nor chang~ Ame-
rican policy. When in 0Ctober and November t:he craffìc analysis of the Japanese
n a val radio signals dearly showcd that the Japanc:se were deploylng forccs for an
attack in South East Asia, thc ancntion of Rooscvclt and his military sraff rurncd
ro rhis area as rhey waiccd for the Japanese ro aCt. But when the Japanese anack
slllned with rhe raid on Pearl Harbor, ir ca mc as a surprise and was a serious shock
m mnny lt-ading circles and 10 the public roo, and it might have led to a recurn
ro pian Orangt. Howt'ver. sober analysis and a calculadon of the realistic options
led co the dccision nor to nbandon the arrnngemcncs of thc ABC-agrecment and
che Rainbou1 Fhv pian.
During thc ncxt four ycars of rhe Second World War t:he hcads of govcrn-
menc, the America n and Briush staffs and the Sovier aUy concinually discussc:d w ha t
their bt'st srraccgy to win the war Wll5 and t:he U.S. Army and Navy Commnnders
and their sraffs in Washington and in t:he diffcrenc rheatcrs of che war discussed
sub-straregies, bur the fìrm p rinciples of R4inbow Fivt wt're nevcr forgonen. Thc:
analysis of thc discussions on sub·srnucgies is of great intl'rest co t:he histOrian, but
it must be rhe t:heme of a scparnte papcr.

BIBUOGRAJ>HY
P. Abbuoa, M r. R•Jtwlt'J N•"1· Tb. Pri .. "tt Wanfthe U.S. Nlallltt Flld. 19)~1942 Anna·
poli~. U.S. Naval 1nnitute Preu 19n.
R.G. Alboon, l\flthn o/N""''' Pllliry. 1793-1947. Annapolis, U.S. No val 1nsmute Prcss 1980.
AM6RICAN MIUT/\RY H ISTORY, 1\TIIJ Hilfortral Smu, Mauricc MadofT (C'd.), Wa~hington,
Office of che Choe( of Milit:ary Hismry, U.S. Army 1969. chapteu 13 10 21.
T. Auhr, Ot /, Glfffft Naawu, Puis 188~.
H.K. Beale, ·r~ !Wosn•lt ami ti~ Rh• of Amtriut IIJ WHIJ Poour, Ba1cjmore,Johns Hopkins
University Press 1956.
l
l. ·!. Brune, Tb. Or~gin1 of A111trÌr<~n Natio,AI S«vril] Polity: s,.., PtJJL.,.,., "" P""'*Y '""' l'bmgn
Poliry. 1900-1941, Manhauan, Kansas: MA/AH Publishing 1981.