Touch of Harry refers to Shakespeare's Henry V on the night before the 1415 Battle of Agincourt, the disguised king walked amongst the soldier to enlist their trust.
This has information, including documents from the former Soviet archives. FDR's selection of Harry Hopkins as his closest adviser. shared the knack of attracting talent to their administrations.
Hopkins was involved in the New Deal and already worked with Roosevelt for many years.
He was born in Sioux City Iowa and graduated in1912. In 1913 married Ethel Gross of Hungarian Jewish origin. He worked for AICP in social work. Here he discover that most people would prefer a decent job to living on the dole. Later based in New Orleans he worked for the Red Cross where he was able to attain a National Reputation . In the mid 1920s he helped found the Nation Association of Social Workers.
1931 with 3 children he divorced Ethel and married Barbra Duncan but she died in 1937 leaving him with their daughter Diane.
1931 Roosevelt created TERA The Temporary Emergency Relief Organization, the New Deal was born with and Harry became the head of this. He now worked with Francis Perkins the new Secretary of Labor. 1934 He was sent to Europe to study social system there.
The Social Security Act was passed in 1935. Also the Works Progress Administration WPA where Roosevelt named him director.. This constructed roads , schools etc and initiated programs for hot school lunches, day care for children of working women and literacy classes for immigrants. Southerners were enraged that WPA sponsored mixed race programs.
1937 he was diagnosed with Stomach cancer.
Aubrey Williams the future head of the National Youth Administration had been inspired by John Maynard Keynes to increase government spending.
1938 |He joined the cabinet as commerce secretary.. Roosevelt who understood German listened to Hitler's Nuremburg Speech. This resulted Harry being sent by Roosevelt to the West Coast to assess US capacity to build military aircraft. So his education in National Security began, and with Marshall and Roosevelt decided to enlarge this capacity so that the US could supply the UK and France to deal with the German menace. Roosevelt now appointed Marshall Chief of Staff and credited Hopkins for that.
When George VIs and Queen Elizabeth visited the White house Eleonor Roosevelt. introduced them to 6 year old Diane Hopkins who lived there and was looked after especially while her father was in hospital. At this stage both Roosevelt and Hopkins were living on borrowed time.
1939 Sept 1st Start of WW2. Roosevelt knew that the security of the US was directly linked to Britain's survival. 50 WW1 Destroyers were provided for British bases in the Americas like Bermuda , Newfoundland. Hopkins set up a 7 member advisory commission to organize war production also the Manhattan Project. Congress had banned the sales of military equipment to foreign powers.
Hopkins and Sam Rosenman became Roosevelts speech writers.
1940 The Blitz 7 Sept till May 1941 began over Britain and more than 500 merchant ship were sent to the bottom. Because of the Neutrality pact weapons had to be paid for with cash. By the end of the Blitz the British knew the danger of German invasion was over.
1940 July a military regime in Japan brought down the civilian government. America restricted sales of high octane aviation fuel and iron scrap to Japan.
1940 Tripartite pact between Germany , Italy and Japan.
The Lend Lease program was worked out so countries never had to pay till the war was over. This was supported by 66% of Americans. Joe Kennedy the US Ambassador to the Court of St James predicted defeat of Britain. The worlds "arsenal of democracy" were Hopkins words. So the President sent Hopkins to London to find out about the situation. Churchill was warned to treat Harry as if he were talking to Roosevelt himself. He flew on a Clipper flying boat the largest aircraft of the day and landed at Poole Bay nest to Bournemouth. He reported Britain commitment to fight the war and met Foreign Secretary Antony Eden. He told Churchill that Roosevelt was committed to fighting the Nazis by all means. Both Churchill and Hopkins were impressed with each other. Both Edward Murrow and his wife remained in England . Hopkins reported back that Churchill is trusted by labour .the army, navy , and airforce. Halifax had been sent to be British Ambassador to Washington so as to get rid of him as he advocated a negotiated peace. By John " Gil" Winant becoming the US Ambassador to London also improved relations between the 2 countries. Averill Harriman was sent to London to co-ordinate Lend Lease and he later married Pamela Digbe Churchill she had been married to Churchills son Randolf.
Americas First Committee founded at Yale was included former President Hoover and Charles Lindberg led the Isolationists.
1940 Sept Hitler's Operation Sea Lion to invade Britain was indefinitely postponed.
Hopkins formed a strong bond with Clementina Churchill. Hopkins was invited to have lunch with the king and Queen at Buckingham Palace.
1941 March House of Representatives passed the lend lease vote by 260 to 165. This was called an Act to Defend the US and it gave Roosevelt a blank cheque to his discretion. hopkins became the chairman of this committee.Hopkins became a strong friend of General George Marshal. Roosevelt had no plans of repealing the neutrality Act.
1941 May The Robin Moor US flagged merchant ship was sunk by a Uboat. This led to the US freezing German funds and closing German embassies.
1941 June Operation Barbarossa attack on USSR by Germany. Thus the US policy of supporting the UK had paid off and had turned Hitler to attack Russia. However it meant that Japan could not be attacked by Russia and was stronger against the US.
Even Senator Harry Truman had said " If we see Germany is winning we must sent help to Russia" Joe Davies who had been US Ambassador in Moscow correctly predicted that British/ French appeasement of Hitler would drive Russia to make a pack with Hitler.
1941 April FDR drew a line in the Atlantic which included Iceland that America Navy would patrol saving the British this obligation.
Within 3 weeks Hopkins began his mission to Moscow to clarify the USSRs most urgent requirements. He discovered that Stalin hypocrisy was breathtaking Stalin saying that Hitler never kept his treaty obligation after Stalin's purges and destruction of Poland. It was only Stalin who had control not any of his subordinates could make a commitments thus he saw the limitations of a totalitarian regime.. They needed anti aircraft weapons immediately.
Japan now realized that with the US supporting Russia at war with Germany it left a Japan had a free hand in the Far East. Molotov was scared Japan might make aggressive moves in Siberia. Maxim acted as interpreter , he had been foreign minister but Stalin purged all Jews the Ministry of Jews and replaced him with Molotov. Although Hopkins determined that the Russians would fight to the end and not make a seperate peace with the Nazi's
Russia was losing 10 times as many soldiers as the Germans. But Stalin would not negotiate a separate peace with Hitler. Hopkins was convinced that if the Soviets were kept supplied they would beat the Germans. Stalin could see that Hopkins requested nothing in return. The Russians were moving factories beyond the Urals far from German access.
On his return Hopkins had to be given blood transfusions and this was done often as he had had a lot of his gut removed because of cancer.
1941 August The meeting between U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill on the HMS Prince of Wales in was the Atlantic Charter Conference the foundation of the UN. Thus the US was waging war but dot declaring war. This also presaged the dissolution of the British Empire. This ship was later 1941 Dec. dive bombed by Japanese torpedo and half the British sailors and officers here would die.
1941 August Draft Extension Bill up to a total of 30 months was passed in the House. US navy and planes wee authorised to destroy German submarines. Charles Lindberg the Isolationist was spreading Nazi antisemitism.
1941 August State Dept Dean Acheson refused to grant licences to Japan to buy US oil because they were expanding into French Indochina. Japan now had to look to the Dutch Indies for oil as 95 % of their oil came from the US.
1941 October Reuben James a US destroyer sunk by a U-boat with115 crew off Iceland. A law allowing US merchant ships to be armed was passed in the US
.1941 Oct General Tojo became Japanese PM, ending the civilian government.
1941 December 7 Japanese attack of Pearl Harbour but coordinated with this were attacks on Philippines, Malaya , Hong Kong, Guam, Wake Island and Midway Island. Roosevelt now waited and it was Hitler who declared war on the US and Italy immediately followed suit. Germany never knew of the Japanese attack plans. Hopkins was relieved that Hitler had made the first move. Luckily all 3 Aircraft Carriers of the Pacific Fleet had been out of port. 56 fighter planes had been destroyed on the Philippines.
The US agreed to beat Germany first strategy as it was agreed that Germany was the Prime enemy and key to victory.
That you had to have one man in charge in the entire theatre of air ground and ships. The CCs was formed the combined Chiefs of Staff which would sit in Washington. Roosevelt to try push the Soviets for religious freedom in the Atlantic Charter as US anti communists wanted this and Maxim Litvinov got Stalin to agree to this.
Seeing that Britain was losing control over the war effort, Churchill set up the Municians Control Board with 2 branches headed by Beaverbrook in London and Hopkins in the US reporting to Roosevelt, so both could control allocations of material. Holding the coalition of the US, UK , and Soviets together was critical for victory and Hopkins worked on this. This was one of the most successful collaboration in military history and ensured not separate peace by the Soviets. Also the 3 and China became the first dignitaries of the UN Declaration. The big 3 as well as the Admirals and Generals were indebted to him for the flow of "Arsenal of Democracy."
1941 Christmas Day garrison in Hong Kong surrender to Japan.
1942 Feb. 15 Singapore fell very swiftly. They were worried the Japanese Navy and the German one would link up somewhere in the middle East. 338pg
Historian have concluded that attacking North Africa in 1942 was the most strategically sensible as the American troops were not yet trained. Had Roosevelt headed Marshall advice to do Overlord then Russia might not have had the chance to control Poland.
While Hopkins was in hospital treasury secretary Henry Morgenthau advised Roosevelt. He was successful in the Bretton Woods conference and the Bank of Reconstruction and Development was set up and later became the world Bank. Morgenthau wanted to see the total dismemberment and de industrialization of Germany. This way he Britain could replace Germanies industry reducing Germany to an agricultural economy. Churchill pointed out that a weak Germany would lead to the USSR dominance of Europe. In the election Harry Truman won to be vice President. As the President distanced himself to the Morgenthau Plan he relied on Hopkins more.
Hopkins advise that the Lend Lease should carry on for Britain as they would be bankrupt after the war.
1944 June 4th Rome the first Axis to fall into American hands.
June 6th D- landings.
1944 August 15 Operation Anvil in Southern France , Hopkins advised to go ahead with this as it divided the German troops. It was meant to be done during Overlord but they never had landing craft so it was delayed.
The UN would not be effective unless the US could commit its armed forces to where it was immediately needed. Isiah Berlin was working at the British Embassy in Washington at the time.
1944 October General Mc Arthur had landed in the Philippines and what was left of the Japanese fleet was destroyed there in the battle of Lingayen Gulf 1945 Jan.
Charles Bohlen had spent years at the US embassy in Moscow and spoke Russian and was an expert on the Soviets. George Kennan was another US Ambassador there.
The British landed troops in Greece to support the Monarchy against the Greek Communists . Admiral King would not transport supplies to support the embattled British troops but Hopkins convinced King to countermand his order.
1945 to 1949 Greek Civil war
1945 Feb. The Yalta Conference was Hopkins idea of the big 3 leaders meeting in Crimea. Charles de Gaulle was not invited as "he makes no effort to please." It took place in the 50 room Livadia Palace a home build by Czar Nicholas II in the 1860s The German army had occupied it during their occupation and stripped it of all valuables. Stalin was in the Yusupov Palace the home of a wealthy prince who assassinated Rasputin in 1916. In the Cold War it was claimed that Yalta like Munich of 1938 was a bad instance of appeasing tyrants. Because the Allies got into the war in Europe so late the Soviets had maximum leverage over the fate of Poland and Eastern Europe. Hopkin's room here was a centre of activity as all three delegations stopping to seek his advice. China also lost land to the Soviets.
Later Hopkins met De Gaulle in Paris to improve relations with the French. He sided with Churchill in and de Gaulle on the importance of restoring France, and giving it a seat on the Allied Control Commission that would run occupied Germany. The dismemberment of Germany was consigned to a commission of foreign minister so Stalin never got what he wanted there.
In 1939 Britain had gone to war on the invasion of Poland but the Soviets had already set up a puppet government there as the Lublin Government. The language of the final agreement on Poland was vague, they wanted election in Poland. The Soviets were not offered any form of financial aid at Yalta. Had both Roosevelt and Hopkins been healthy at Yalta would Poland's fate have been different? Averell Harriman knew that Stalin was bound to break any agreement.
Stalin had offered Robert Hopkins the opportunity to be a photographer in the capture of Berlin. He asked his father and Hopkins told him that the Soviets would not let him near the front and would never let him leave the country. This shows Hopkins cynicism and distrust to the Soviets. Churchill would soon pay a heavy price for the Polish settlement. Roosevelt conviction that he could personally handle Stalin would be buried with him,
Roosevelt at Suez met Ibn Saud , King Farouk and Haile Selassie, this upset Churchill as he considered it part of undermining the British Empire. Ibn Saud said they would never allow a Jewish State in Palestine.
A telegram from de Gaulle that he wanted to meet Roosevelt in Algiers on the Presidents way home but was turned down.
1945 April Roosevelt died of cerebral hemorrhage. Everyone could see he was very ill at Yalta.
The 2 Harrys were well acquainted as Truman had been the Missouri director of federal re-employment in 1933 and wanted Hopkins to carry on in his role. Hopkins tutored him but felt that the cabinet must resign and Truman must choose his own people. Hopkins felt that only Stimson and Forrestal should carry on as they were dealing with the war.
Truman and Molotov very soon were in conflict. It took Hopkins to explain that the Soviets had lost too much in blood and treasure, to risk another invasion via neutral Poland. 16 Polish underground leaders designated to go to Moscow were arrested. Hopkins was now sent with Harriman to Moscow to reassure Stalin that Roosevelts policy would continue. The Soviets were recognized as powerful nation, and they wanted a free hand in Poland. The US got their agreement to launch the UN. Also to take part in war against Japan. On the way back from Moscow Hopkins plane would be the first civilian plane to touch down in Tempelhof Berlin after VE day. This airport would become the ground zero of US planes to the cut off US sector in 1948 later in the cold war. The Soviets knew about the Manhattan Project already in 1942. Hopkins was accused of giving the USSR information of this.
1945 April 30 Hitler was dead and Victory in Europe took place on 8th May.
1945 July the Potsdam Conference where Clement Attlee was British PM instead of Churchill with Harry Truman and Stalin.
Hopkins retired and was offered a huge advance to write his memoir.
1945 August 15th Victory in Japan Day.
1946 Hopkins died aged 55 of cirrhosis of the liver.. He was one of the most courageous, self sacrificing people of the war. He knew how to read people and never looked for political advancement. He left an estate in debt especially to his wife Ethel who he owed money to.
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