Casablanca Conference (1943)

The Casablanca Conference (codenamed SYMBOL) or Anfa Conference was held at the Anfa Hotel in Casablanca, Morocco, from January 14 to 24, 1943, to plan the Allied European strategy for the next phase of World War II. In attendance were United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt and British prime minister Winston Churchill. Also attending were the sovereign of Morocco Sultan Muhammad V and representing the Free French forces Generals Charles de Gaulle and Henri Giraud, but they played minor roles and were not part of the military planning. USSR General Secretary Joseph Stalin had declined to attend, citing the ongoing Battle of Stalingrad as requiring his presence in the Soviet Union.

The conference's agenda addressed the specifics of tactical procedure, allocation of resources, and the broader issues of diplomatic policy. The debate and negotiations produced what was known as the Casablanca Declaration, and perhaps its most historically provocative statement of purpose, "unconditional surrender". That doctrine came to represent the unified voice of implacable Allied will and the determination that the Axis powers would be fought to their ultimate defeat.

The work of the conference was primarily military—deciding on the invasion of Sicily (after completion of the North African campaign) rather than an immediate invasion of western Europe, apportioning forces for the Pacific theatre and outlining major lines of attack in the Far East, and agreeing on the concentrated bombing of Germany. Roosevelt and Churchill also found time to discuss nuclear bomb research, to consider competing claims between Henri Giraud and Charles de Gaulle for the leadership of the French war effort against the Axis powers, and, most important of all, to demand an “unconditional surrender” from Germany, Italy, and Japan.

American president Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882 - 1945) and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill (1874 - 1965) at the Casablanca Conference in Morocco, 16 January 1943. Roosevelt, with advice from General George C. Marshall, the U.S. Army Chief of Staff, lobbied for a cross-Channel invasion of Europe. Churchill, with advice from the British Chiefs of Staff, led by General Sir Alan Brooke, the Chief of the Imperial General Staff (CIGS, the professional head of the British Army), felt the time was not opportune, and favored an Allied assault on the island of Sicily followed by an invasion of mainland Italy. The British argument centred on the need to pull German reserves down into Italy where, due to the relatively poor north-south lines of communication, they could not be easily extracted to defend against a later invasion of northwest Europe. Additionally, by delaying the cross-Channel landing, it would mean that any invasion would be against a German army further weakened by many more months fighting on the Eastern Front against the Red Army. Throughout the conference, Roosevelt's attention was prominently focused on the Pacific War front and he faulted the British for what he felt was not a full commitment against Japanese entrenchment. The Italian strategy was agreed upon, a compromise between the two leaders, Roosevelt acceding to Churchill's approach for Europe. Churchill, in turn, pledged more troops and resources to the Pacific and Burma to reinforce positions held by Chiang Kai-shek against the Japanese. The United States would provide assistance to the British in the Pacific by supplying escorts and landing craft.

American military commander Brigadier General William Hale Wilbur (1888 - 1979) (second right) kneels to receive the Medal of Honor from American President Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882 - 1945) (seated, second left) outside the Anfa Hotel, Casablanca, Morrocco, January 22, 1943. Roosevelt is assisted by Major General George S. Patton (1885 - 1945) (right) while US Chief of Staff General George C. Marshall (1880 - 1959) (left) watches. The men where in Morrocco for the Casablanca Conference where they planned Allied strategy for the European campaign in World War II.

 1943-Casablanca, Morocco: President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and Prime Minister Winston Churchill (seated) pose with their staffs after historic allied conference at Casablanca. Standing (L to R) are: Lt. Gen. H.H. Arnold, Adm. Ernest J. King, Gen. George C. Marshall, Sir Dudley Pound, Sir Charles Portal, Sir Alan Francis Brooke, Sir John Dill, Lord Louis Mountbatten, and Brehon H. Somervell. Others are unidentified

American President Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882 - 1945) (seated left) and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill (1874 - 1965) (seated right) review documents at the Casablanca Conference where they planned Allied strategy for the European campaign in World War II, Casablanca, Morrocco, January 17, 1943. Among those behind them are, from left, Chief of the US Army Forces Lieutenant General Henry 'Hap' Arnold (1885 - 1950), Commander-in-Chief of the US Navy Admiral Ernest J. King (1878 - 1956), US Chief of Staff General George C. Marshall (1880 - 1959), Chief of British Naval Staff Admiral Sir Dudley Pound (1877 -1943), Chief of the Imperial General Staff General Sir Alan Brooke (1883 - 1963), and Air Chief Marshall Sir Charles Portal (1893 - 1971)

President Franklin D. Roosevelt and Prime Minister Winston Churchill talk on the lawn of the President's villa during the Casablanca conference, 17 January 1943. The conference produced a unified statement of purpose, the Casablanca Declaration. It announced to the world that the Allies would accept nothing less than the "unconditional surrender" of the Axis powers. Roosevelt had borrowed the term from US Army General Ulysses S. Grant (known as "Unconditional Surrender" Grant), who had communicated that stance to the Confederate States Army commander during the American Civil War. So Roosevelt stated at the concluding press conference on 24 January that the Allies were demanding "unconditional surrender" from the Germans, the Italians and the Japanese.

Military journalists at a press conference listen to President Franklin Roosevelt and Prime Minister Winston Churchill during a press conference at the Casablanca Conference, January 1943. Roosevelt and Churchill excluded the press from the conference—partly for safety reasons and partly to allow them to work without scrutiny of their every move. But, toward the end of the conference, Allied Forces Headquarters invited a group of approximately 50 journalists to Casablanca, promising them a history-making event. With space short in Anfa, the journalists received lodgings at the Excelsior, an upscale hotel on Casablanca’s main thoroughfare across from the entrance to the old medina. They were instructed not to talk about their assignment in front of hotel employees or others in Casablanca. They were also told to behave as if their rooms were bugged. The Excelsior’s bar had been a favorite hangout for the German Armistice Commission, and the current extent of Nazi infiltration of the hotel staff remained unclear. To help with security, the U.S. Army temporarily took over the hotel’s switchboard and kitchen.

General Charles de Gaulle of Free French Forces at Casablanca Conference, 17 January 1943. He had to be forced to attend, and he met a chilly reception from Roosevelt and Churchill. No French representatives were allowed to attend the military planning sessions. Elliott Roosevelt’s book, 'As He Saw It' (1946) describes how Franklin Roosevelt wanted the French provisional government to be set up with Giraud and de Gaulle, who would be “equally responsible for its composition and welfare.” That is because Franklin Roosevelt saw de Gaulle as Churchill’s puppet and thought that Giraud would be more compliant with US interests. Complications arose because most people in the French Resistance considered de Gaulle the undisputed leader of the Resistance and so Giraud was progressively dispossessed of his political and military roles. Roosevelt eventually recognized de Gaulle as the head of the Free French in mid-1944.

 Roosevelt's Delegation At Casablanca. Seated in the center, President Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882 - 1945) discusses the British problem with a group of Casablanca Conference attendees, Morocco, 1943. Left to right, front row: General Goerge C. Marshall (1880 - 1959), Chief of Staff, President Roosevelt, Admiral E.J. King (1878 - 1956), Commander in Chief of the US Navy. Left to right, back row: Lieutenant General Harry Hopkins (1890 - 1946), Lieutenant General HH Arnold (1886 - 1950), Commander of US Army Air Forces, Lieutenant General Brehon Somervell (1892 - 1955), and Averell Harriman (1891 - 1986). Roosevelt presented the results of the conference to the American people in a radio address on February 12, 1943. During the return trip to the United States, President Roosevelt met with the President of Brazil, Getúlio Vargas, at the Potenji River Conference, where they discussed Brazil's participation in the war effort and defined the agreements that led to the creation of the Brazilian Expeditionary Force. The conference took place aboard the USS Humboldt in the Potenji River harbor in Natal, on January 28 and 29, 1943.

 View of British Prime Minister Winston Churchill's delegation at the Casablanca Conference, January, 1943, Casablance, Morocco.

Allied leaders (from left) French General Henri Giraud, U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, French General Charles de Gaulle, and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill on the lawn of President Roosevelt's villa during the Casablanca conference, 24 January 1943. The conference called for the official recognition of a joint leadership of the Free French forces by de Gaulle and Henri Giraud. There was notable tension between the two men, who limited their interactions to formalities like pledging their mutual support. Roosevelt encouraged them to shake hands for the photographers eager for a photo opportunity, but the ritual handshake was with reluctance and done so quickly that they reportedly had to pose for a second shot! Roosevelt would later describe this meeting between the French leaders as a "shotgun wedding".

Source :
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