An Analysis of the Causal Factors behind the United States Navy's Warship-Building Programs from 1933-1941
Abstract
On 7 December 1941, the U.S. Navy had 343 warships in commission. However, a "second" fleet, consisting of 344 warships, was in various stages of construction in shipyards across the country. Given that building a warship could take anywhere from less than a year for a destroyer, to over 3 years for a battleship or aircraft carrier, it is clear that the foresighted building of warships in the years prior to U.S. involvement in World War II would play a major role in enabling the U.S. Navy to counter and eventually defeat the Imperial Japanese Navy in the Pacific. In tracing the evolving influences behind this warship building program, this thesis divides the pre-war period into three separate phases. The first phase begins in 1933 with the arrival of President Roosevelt in office and ends in 1937 with the USS Panay incident. The second phase of analysis begins in 1938 and runs through 1940, ending with the outbreak of war in Europe. The final phase of analysis continues from the outbreak of war in Europe through the attack on Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941. In total, the building programs of all three pre-war phases amounted to 586 warships.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jun 17, 2005
- Accession Number
- ADA436462
Entities
People
- John M. Barrett
Organizations
- United States Army Command and General Staff College