American shipbuilding World War II

World war II was a global military conflict fought in every one of the five continents and involving combatants from every continental region. Fought in two phases, the first phase involved Asia in 1937 and also known as Sino Japenese war. The second phase began in Eupore in 1939 with Germany voilating the treaties and by being aggressive, without any previous declaration invaded poland. The globe was divided into two military alliance: the allies and the Axis powers. Allies primarily were formed by the union of United Kingdom and France, whereas the Germany, Japan and Italy dominted axis powers.

World War II involved over 100 million military personnel, making it the most widespread war in history, and placed the participants in a state of total war, erasing the distinction between civil and military resources. This resulted in the complete exhaustion of a nation's economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities for the purposes. Tension cretaed due to great depression that swept the world in early 1930s sharpened national rivalries, increased fear and distrust and made masses susceptible to the promises of demagogues.

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Also the condition created by post world war I settlement, led to the this global military conflict of world war II. After world war I, defeated germany and ambitious Japan and Italy anxious to increase their power, eventually adopted forms of dictaorship. In Gemany the National socialist Adolf Hitler began a rearming campaign on a massive scale and in mid 1937 and following a marco Bridge incident Japan invaded China. Some tolerance was shown to these invasions as they were of anti communist nature but soon entering of Soviet to aid China marked the division of the global scenario.

America in world war II Through the global turmoil for the power and series of conqest,United states chose to be a isolationist and passed neutrality act in August 1933, a dyanamic impulse to stay aloof from all Europeon politics . But in November 1939, the American neutrality act was amended to allow cash and carry, to support Allies. United stated, to protect and aid china, implemented a series of embargos, including oil, iron, steel and mechanical parts, against Japan.

The Tripartite pact between the Axis powers served as a warning to United States of the consequences resulting in war if it continued extending help to the allied power. But regardless of the pact, the United States continued to support Britain and China, further, by introducing the lend-lease policy and creating a security zone pning roughly half of the Atlantic Ocean, where the United States navy protected British Convoys. Though attacks on America were rare by the Axis power, but ultimately, it was attack on pearl harbour in 1941 that drew United States into direct war .

In later years of 1942 Japan repeatedly attacked America in wars of Aleutian Islands and fort Stevens attack. America- Japan relations Attack on china, led Japan into series of trouble when the move prompted America embargo on oil exports to Japan, which in turn caused the Japanese to plan the takeover of oil supplies of Dutch east India. The attack on the Pearl Harbor was a surprise attack of Japan against the United States naval base on December 7; 1941, also called “a day of infamy” by President Roosevelt .

The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, dramatically heralded the new age of naval combat, divided into two phases, the first attack wave targets airfields and battleships. The second wave targets other ships and shipyard facilities. It was intended as a preventive action to remove US pacific fleet that was involved in protection of British Convoys and Dutch East India, and also to wage war against United States. Both the U. S. and Japan had long-standing contingency plans for war in the Pacific, continuously updated as tension between the two countries steadily increased during the 1930s.

Though numerous sanctions were imposed on Japan as a result of steadily growing tension, and America under the export control act halted the shipments of machine tools, high octane gasoline to japan, but the oil export was continued to japan in early pre war years to resist undue provocation. Assets were to be frozen till Indochina was declared as neutral. The Japanese high command was certain, though mistakenly so that an attack on the United Kingdom’s colonies would bring the U. S. into the war. So a preventive strike appeared to be the only way to avoid US interference in the Pacific.

. With the Pacific cleansed of American ships, Japan would have an unchallenged defensive perimeter, stretching from the North Pacific through mid-ocean to the South Pacific. The attack wrecked two US Navy battleships, destroyed several aircrafts, and US suffered huge personnel losses though the, Vital fuel storage, shipyard, maintenance, were not raided. The japanese suffered minimal losses in artiliary and personnels. While it accomplished the intended objective, the attack was pointless. US Navy The new Navy 1890-1909 A crucial date in the reconstitution of U.

S. naval shipyards is 1890 . From about 1850, American shipping and shipbuilding rose from a position of superiority to near international significance. Until the late 1880s the United States possessed no modern warships, and the technological gap widened, where European progress was rapid with the assembly of armor plate, guns, torpedoes, high-speed propulsion systems, and steel hulls. By 1890 American shipyards lagged far behind their European counterparts in techniques and in speed of construction. Progress started in year 1885 with the funding of “new navy”.

Warships of the new American navy built between 1890 and 1909 were steel hulled, purpose-built for steam power, and substantially more complicated than their predecessors. In its first thirty years, armored ships dominated new American naval construction. Between 1910 and 1929 a much wider range of warships was built. Battleships still dominated tonnage figures, and the pace for construction of new ships steadily increased. Both the number and the size of these ships amplified, in the competition to build better warfare compared to European powers, also called “dreadnoughts fever”.

Shipbuilding in World War II World War II saw the U. S. Navy emerge as the world’s largest naval force, a commanding role that would be maintained for the next fifty years. Hallmarks of the two decades included an intensified effort of existing private shipbuilders, massive new construction at government navy yards, and the development of new private shipyards, in new locations, to produce large numbers of small- or medium-sized warships. At a time of near-total national commitment, almost 1. 5 million workers built American warships in dozens of locations.

Destroyers were numerically were the most important warships built during the period. More than 550 full-sized destroyers were eventually launched, because of the German submarine threat, these ships held a very high priority. Pacific produced majority of warships, and some of the mass produced warships were “escort aircraft carrier” at Todd- pacific, and at Kaiser Yards, Vancouver. Also, pacific were specialized war- damaged ships. Submarines were built at a number of yards, but majorly at two locations, Portsmouth Navy Yard, near Portsmouth, New Hampshire; and Electric Boat, at Groton, Connecticut.

Another in land production included the fabrication of almost 1,051 large landing ships, most of them tank-landing ships out of which, more than 60 percent were constructed along inland waters by five major steel-fabricating firms. World War II encompassed a massive national effort for production of massive warships. Pacific fleet A Pacific Fleet was created in 1907 and was marked as the largest naval construction effort ever undertaken by any nation.. Building warships for the U. S navy was a major sector of the American defence industry over a hundred year period during which the growth of the US navy was substantial.

It was also the chief activity of most large American shipyards and had a sizable influence on regional economy and identity. Until May of 1940, this unit was stationed on the west coast of the United States . During the summer of that year, as part of the U. S. response to japanese expansionism and prevent its intrusion into Phillipines, it was instructed to take an "advanced" position at Pearl Harbor,Hawaii. During the time of attack the pearl harbor strength consisted of, nine battleships, three aircrafts, eight light crusiers, 50 destroyers, 33 submarines and 100 patrol bombers.

American battleships can be roughly divided into four groups, pre-dreadnoughts, dreadnoughts, standards and World War II ships Japanese Imperial Navy Japanese imperial navy was one of the most powerful and world third largest navies. Initially, it was built overseas in England but soon Japanese yards built ships on English designs. The advancement in the concept resulted in Ships that were at par or better than any ship afloat. Early years of the war were dominated by the Imperial navy, however in later years it succumbed to the pressure of huge opponent power.

Its naval aviation corps, consisting of 10 aircraft carriers and 1500 topnotch aviators, was the most highly trained and proficient force of its kind. Victory of American Navy over Japanese Imperial Navy America had a period of economic depression prior to commencement of the War, though Japan was also “economically disadvantaged” in waging a war against allies but, its misplaced sense of superiority in economic and military areas, against the allies, led to its ultimate downfall.

While, America in the midst of seemingly interminable economic crisis, still had almost seven times more coal production, five times more steel production, eighty times the automobile production compared to the production of Japan. There is no doubt, however, of the abundance of American resources even though in the depth of depression, it had much more capability for war production compared to any other nation. Also US had nearly twice the population of Japan and hence, the manpower was never a setback.

Around one million people had engaged in war production in America and furthermore, it was ever willing to utilize its women population in the war effort counting work of 6. 5 million women as a tremendous advantage, a concept not acknowledged till later years by the Axis powers. Also, America had some hidden advantages that didn't show up directly in production figures. First, the U. S. factories were, on average, more modern and automated than those in Europe or in Japan. A rapid boom to the industrialization and technological advantage worked significantly in favor of the US navy.

Additionally, American managerial practice at that time was the best in the world. Together taken, the per capita productivity of the American worker was the highest in the world. The average income of America was seventeen times more compared to that of Japan. By mid-1942, even before U. S. force of arms was being accepted as a most powerful force globally, American factories were nevertheless beginning to make a material effect in the war's progress. The U. S. churned out seemingly endless quantities of equipment and provision, which were then funneled to forces and provided an endless support.

By 1944, most of the other powers in the war, though still producing furiously, noticed a decline in the economic front and also the production was steadily decreasing from destruction of industrial bases and constriction of resource pools. But the enormous productive apparatus of the U. S. economy was pouring out war munitions in overwhelming volume Especially in Japan, the oils supplies had cut down to a trickle owing to decisive battle of the US against the Japanese imperial navy. And unless Japan could ward off obvious enemy retaliatory blows designed to capitalize on her greatest weakness, vulnerability to blockade,

seizure of the southern areas would be just a hollow and ephemeral event, improving but little the basic weakness of Japan's economy. The American submarines had specially targeted the oil carriers of Japan, and its only source left was from the Dutch East Indies behind a screen of islands that ran from the Philippines through Formosa and the Ryukyus. . After that the Japanese economy, with the possible exception of oil, was based on the continent and upon Japan proper. Resources proved much less than the expansionist propaganda had previously anticipated. . Inadequate rail facilities made it difficult to bring resources to the coast.

And from mid-1944, due to the attack on shipping, only a small percentage of the material that reached the coast could be transported to Japan proper further leading to commotion. Owing to its large resources backup and abundant manpower, America suffered none of these problems and as a consequence its economy grew at an annual rate of 15% throughout the war years. It is perhaps not surprising that in 1945, the U. S. accounted for over 50% of total global GNP. Battle of Midway. Midway is often cited as the 'Turning Point in the Pacific', the 'Battle that Doomed Japan,' and a string of other stirring epithets.

And there's no question that it broke the offensive capability of the Japanese Navy and led to major crisis. The United States built more merchant shipping in the first four and a half months of 1943 than Japan put in the water in seven years and there was really no noticeable increase in Japanese merchant vessel building until 1943, by which time Japan was deeply involved in war with US and was not able to do much. Just as with their escort building programs, the Japanese were operating under a tragically flawed national strategy that dictated that the war with the United States would be a short one.

Again, the United States had to devote a lot of the merchant shipping it built to replace the losses inflicted by the German U-Boats. But the battle of Leyte Gulf, the largest naval battle in history markedly changed the prevalent condition and favored US more than the axis powers. Underlying the Six naval forces, four Japanese and two American, were converging on, a titanic clash spread over three days and 100,000 square miles of sea, engaging 282 ships and 200,000 sailors. In the condition of loss of massive number of war ships and the inability to produce adequately, the Japanese war front was further deteriorated.

.Japan's own ability to produce basic materials was completely inadequate to support a war against a major in¬dustrial power. In retrospect, it is difficult to comprehend how Japan's leadership managed to rationalize their way around the economic facts when they contemplated making war on the US. The war ended with Japanese Imperial Navy defeated in shortage of material and personnel resources, while the resources of US were just warming up and could continue for years to come. , Bibliography Keegan John; Who’s who in World War II; routledge; 2002

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