This is a list of World War II conferences of the Allies of World War II. Names in boldface indicate the three conferences at which the leaders of the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union were all present. For the historical context see Diplomatic history of World War II. See also the Anglo-French Supreme War Council, which operated from September 1939 until June 1940.
Name (CODE NAME) |
City | Country | Dates | Major participants: | Major results |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
U.S.-British Staff Conference (ABC-1) |
Washington, D.C. | United States | January 29 – March 27, 1941 | American, British, and Canadian military staff | Set the basic planning agreement for the U.S. to enter the war. |
First Inter-Allied Conference | London | United Kingdom | June 12, 1941 | Representatives of Britain, 4 Dominions, Free France and 8 Allied governments in exile | Declaration of St James's Palace.[1] |
Atlantic Conference (RIVIERA) |
Argentia | Newfoundland | August 9–12, 1941 | Churchill and Roosevelt | Atlantic Charter; proposal for a Soviet aid conference. |
Second Inter-Allied Conference | London | United Kingdom | September 24, 1941 | Eden, Maisky, Cassin, and 8 Allied governments in exile | Adherence of all the Allies to the Atlantic Charter principles.[2][3] |
First Moscow Conference (CAVIAR) |
Moscow | Soviet Union | September 29 – October 1, 1941 | Stalin, Harriman, Beaverbrook, Molotov | Allied aid to the Soviet Union. |
First Washington Conference (ARCADIA) |
Washington, D.C. | United States | December 22, 1941 – January 14, 1942 | Churchill, Roosevelt | Europe first, Declaration by United Nations. |
Third Inter-Allied Conference | London | United Kingdom | January 13, 1942 | Free France and 8 Allied governments in exile: Belgium, Czechoslovakia, Greece, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland (Sikorski), Yugoslavia | Declaration Punishment for War Crimes, regarding Nazi atrocities against civilians.[4] |
Second Washington Conference (ARGONAUT)[citation needed] |
Washington, D.C. | United States | June 20 – 25, 1942 | Churchill, Roosevelt | Make first priority opening a second front in North Africa, postpone cross-English Channel invasion. |
Second Claridge Conference | London | United Kingdom | July 20 – 26, 1942 | Churchill, Harry Hopkins | Substitute Operation Torch, the invasion of French North Africa, for US reinforcement of the Western Desert campaign. |
Second Moscow Conference (BRACELET) |
Moscow | Soviet Union | August 12 – 17, 1942 | Churchill, Stalin, Harriman | Discuss reasons for Torch instead of cross-Channel invasion, Anglo-Soviet pact on information and technological exchanges. |
Cherchell Conference | Cherchell | French Algeria | October 21 – 22, 1942 | Clark, Vichy French officers including Mast | Clandestine conference before Torch, some Vichy French commanders agreed not to resist the Allied landings in Morocco and Algeria.[5] |
Casablanca Conference (SYMBOL) |
Casablanca | French Morocco | January 14 – 24, 1943 | Churchill, Roosevelt, de Gaulle, Giraud | Plan Italian Campaign, plan cross-Channel invasion in 1944, demand "unconditional surrender" by Axis, encourage unity of French authorities in London and Algiers. |
Potenji River Conference | Natal | Brazil | January 28 – 29, 1943 | Roosevelt, Vargas | Creation of the Brazilian Expeditionary Force. |
Adana Conference | Yenice | Turkey | January 30 – 31, 1943 | Churchill, İnönü | Turkey's participation in the war. |
Bermuda Conference | Hamilton | Bermuda | April 19 – 30, 1943 | American and British delegations separately led by Harold W. Dodds and Richard Law | Jewish refugees freed by Allied forces and those still in Nazi-occupied Europe discussed. US immigration quotas not raised, UK prohibition on Jews seeking refuge in Mandatory Palestine not lifted. |
Third Washington Conference (TRIDENT) |
Washington, D.C. | United States | May 12 – 25, 1943 | Churchill, Roosevelt, Marshall | Plan Italian Campaign, increase air attacks on Germany, increase war in Pacific. |
Algiers Allied Planning Conference |
Algiers | Algeria | May 29 – June 4, 1943 | Churchill, Eden, Brooke, Tedder, Cunningham, Alexander, & Montgomery met with Marshall & Eisenhower | Finalize plan for Italian Campaign, increase air attacks on Germany, fix date for Operation Husky. |
First Quebec Conference (QUADRANT) |
Quebec City | Canada | August 17 – 24, 1943 | Churchill, Roosevelt, King | D-Day set for 1944, reorganization of South East Asia Command, secret Quebec Agreement to limit sharing nuclear energy info. |
Third Moscow Conference | Moscow | Soviet Union | October 18 – November 11, 1943 | Foreign ministers Hull, Eden, Molotov, Fu; and Stalin | Moscow Declaration. |
Cairo Conference (SEXTANT) |
Cairo | Kingdom of Egypt | November 23 – 26, 1943 | Churchill, Roosevelt, Chiang | Cairo Declaration for postwar Asia. |
Tehran Conference (EUREKA) |
Tehran | Persia | November 28 – December 1, 1943 | Churchill, Roosevelt, Stalin | First meeting of the Big 3, plan the final strategy for the war against Nazi Germany and its allies, set date for Operation Overlord. |
Second Cairo Conference |
Cairo | Kingdom of Egypt | December 4 – 6, 1943 | Churchill, Roosevelt, İnönü | Agreement to complete Allied air bases in Turkey, postpone Operation Anakim against Japan in Burma. |
British Commonwealth Prime Ministers' Conference | London | United Kingdom | May 1–16, 1944 | Churchill, Curtin, Fraser, King, and Smuts | British Commonwealth leaders support Moscow Declaration and reach agreement regarding their respective roles in the overall Allied war effort. |
Bretton Woods conference | Bretton Woods | United States | July 1 – 15, 1944 | Representatives of 44 nations | Establishes International Monetary Fund and International Bank for Reconstruction and Development. |
Dumbarton Oaks Conference | Washington, D.C. | United States | August 21 – 29, 1944 | Cadogan, Gromyko, Stettinius, and Koo | Agreement to establish the United Nations. |
Second Quebec Conference (OCTAGON) |
Quebec City | Canada | September 12 – 16, 1944 | Churchill, Roosevelt | Morgenthau Plan for postwar Germany, other war plans, Hyde Park Agreement. |
Fourth Moscow Conference (TOLSTOY) |
Moscow | Soviet Union | October 9 – 18, 1944 | Churchill, Stalin, Molotov, Eden | Establishing post-war spheres of influence in Eastern Europe and Balkan peninsula. |
Malta Conference (ARGONAUT and CRICKET) |
Floriana | Crown Colony of Malta | January 30 – February 2, 1945 | Churchill, Roosevelt | Preparation for Yalta. |
Yalta Conference (ARGONAUT and MAGNETO) |
Yalta | Soviet Union | February 4 – 11, 1945 | Churchill, Roosevelt, Stalin | Final plans for defeat of Germany, postwar Europe plans, set date for United Nations Conference, conditions for the Soviet Union's entry in war against Japan. |
United Nations Conference on International Organization | San Francisco | United States | April 25 – June 26, 1945 | Representatives of 50 nations | United Nations Charter. |
Potsdam Conference (TERMINAL) |
Potsdam | Allied-occupied Germany | July 17 – August 2, 1945 | Stalin, Truman, Attlee, Churchill (in part, until election defeat of the Conservative Party) | Potsdam Declaration demanding unconditional surrender of Japan, Potsdam Agreement on policy for Germany. |
In total Attlee attended 0.5 meetings, Churchill 16.5, de Gaulle 1, Roosevelt 12, Stalin 7, and Truman 1.
For some of the major wartime conference meetings involving Roosevelt and later Truman, the code names were words which included a numeric prefix corresponding to the ordinal number of the conference in the series of such conferences. The third conference was TRIDENT, the fourth conference was QUADRANT, the sixth conference was SEXTANT, and the eighth conference was OCTAGON. The last wartime conference was code-named TERMINAL.
-
Atlantic Conference, Argentia, Dominion of Newfoundland, 1941
-
Casablanca Conference, Casablanca, Morocco, 1943
-
Potenji River Conference, Natal, Brazil, 1943
-
First Quebec Conference, Quebec City, Canada, 1943
-
Cairo Conference, Cairo, Egypt, 1943
-
Tehran Conference, Tehran, Iran, 1943
-
Second Cairo Conference, Cairo, Egypt, 1943
-
Yalta Conference, Yalta, USSR, 1945
-
Potsdam Conference, Potsdam, Germany, 1945
See also
- Allies of World War II
- Diplomatic history of World War II
- Grand Alliance (World War II)
- Four Policemen
- Greater East Asia Conference
- List of Axis World War II conferences
References
- ^ "St. James Agreement; June 12, 1941". Avalon Project. Yale Law School. 2008. Retrieved 5 April 2020.
- ^ "The Inter-Allied Council Meeting in London." Bulletin of International News 18, no. 20 (1941): 1275-280. Accessed April 5, 2020. www.jstor.org/stable/25643120.
- ^ "Inter-Allied Council Statement on the Principles of the Atlantic Charter : September 24, 1941". Avalon Project. Yale Law School. 2008. Retrieved 5 April 2020.
- ^ Capurro, Daniel (4 April 2022). "Nuremberg has shown that tyrants like Vladimir Putin can be brought to justice". The Telegraph.
- ^ David H. Lippman, WORLD WAR II PLUS 55, World War II Notes, November 8, 1942 (Operation Torch) Archived June 5, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
Further reading
- What major conferences were held during World War II?, website of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library
- United States Army Center of Military History
- Planning for Coalition Warfare, 1941 -1942[permanent dead link ]
- Strategic Planning for Coalition Warfare, 1943 -1944 Archived 2015-05-28 at the Wayback Machine
- Washington Command Post: The Operations Division Archived 2021-04-17 at the Wayback Machine
- Appendix C: Principals at the international conferences January 1943—September 1944 Archived 2015-06-21 at the Wayback Machine