Casablanca Conference

After the onset of the Second World War, there was a recognition that the Allied Powers of Britain, the US, and the Soviet Union would need to work together closely and cooperate to defeat the Axis Powers and also to shape the postwar world in ways that would prevent a third war. For that reason, they held many wartime and postwar conferences. The first of these was the Casablanca Conference of 1943. Learn about what they agreed on and the Casablanca Conference's significance here.

Casablanca Conference Summary

The Casablanca Conference was held in January 1943.

Franklin D. Roosevelt, the President of the United States, and Winston Churchill, the Prime Minister of Great Britain, were the two key players at the conference. Joseph Stalin, the leader of the Soviet Union, was unable to attend.

The Casablanca Conference of 1943 was focused on deciding how the Allies would coordinate the war. Two important decisions came out of the conference.

First, having established a foothold in North Africa, US and British forces would next launch an invasion of Italy.

Second, and arguably more important, the Allies agreed on a policy of unconditional surrender by the Axis Powers. They stated their desire to achieve the complete defeat of the ideologies of Nazism and Fascism and not engage in negotiations for peace that might give the impression the Axis could have won the war. This stated goal ensured there would be no negotiated peace or separate peace between Germany and the US and Germany and Great Britain.

That is a short summary of the Casablanca Conference. Read more details about the context of the Casablanca Conference and WW2, the events of the 1943 Casablanca Conference, and the Casablanca Conference's significance in the sections that follow.

Fig. 1 - Roosevelt and Churchill seated in front of their advisors at the 1943 Casablanca Conference of WW2.

The Context of the Casablanca Conference in WW2

The Casablanca Conference of 1943 was held January 14-24, 1943.

At this point in the war, Nazi forces had effectively occupied France, although Free France resistance forces fought against them. The Nazi advance across the Soviet Union had bogged down, but the city of Leningrad remained under a stifling siege, even though a narrow land route to supply the city was opened up the same month. Meanwhile, German forces were encircled in fierce fighting at Stalingrad.

German defeat at Stalingrad would be a turning point in the war, but in January 1943, the outcome of the battle was still in question. In fact, the fighting at Stalingrad was the reason Joseph Stalin declined to attend the Casablanca Conference, feeling his presence in the Soviet Union at this crucial time was more important.

So, Franklin Roosevelt and the Winston Churchill would be the two leading figures at the Casablanca Conference. Also in attendance was Charles de Gualle and Henri Giraud, leaders of the Free France forces, and the Sultan of Morocco Muhammad V, host to the conference.

However, Churchill and Roosevelt were the main decision makers.

The Western Allies had achieved important gains by the time the Casablanca Conference of WW2 took place. US and British forces had landed in North Africa only a few months before during Operation Torch, in November 1942. Debate over the next course of action in Europe was an important part of the Casablanca Conference.

Fig. 2 - Map showing the operation of Operation Torch during the invasion of North Africa in November 1942, preceding the Casablanca Conference of 1943.

The Anfa Hotel and the Casablanca Conference

The Anfa Hotel hosted the Casablanca Conference. Having the conference in Morocco, which had been under the control of Nazi puppet government of Vichy France before the Allied invasion in November, was of symbolic importance in being one of the first areas liberated from Axis control.

Fig. 3 - Photo of the Anfa Hotel, site of the Casabalanca Conference in 1943.

What Happened at the Casablanca Conference of 1943

Roosevelt and Churchill discussed Allied war strategy in the Atlantic theater of North Africa and Europe, as well as in the Pacific theater.

In the Atlantic, the key question was whether to proceed with an invasion of Europe. Roosevelt advocated for an invasion of France from across the English Channel.

However, Churchill argued an invasion of Italy was better to complete first. This would draw German forces south to aid the Italians, where the inferior roads and crossing of the Alps would hinder their return to aid a later invasion of northern Europe.

He also believed that continued fighting on the Eastern Front would further weaken German forces before an invasion of Germany itself. Churchill was staunchly anti-communist, and he likely preferred both a weakened Germany and USSR through a prolongation of fighting in the Soviet Union.

Roosevelt and Churchill did agree to continue and ramp up the strategic bombing of Germany, especially German war industry. Additionally, they pledged to continue to supply the USSR with war supplies. Finally, while they agreed to delay an invasion of Northern Europe, they did agree to begin concentrating troops in Great Britain to prepare for an eventual invasion.

The two leaders also candidly discussed the war in the Pacific. Roosevelt felt the British were not fully committed to extricating the Japanese from the many islands they had occupied. He sought and achieved a greater British commitment to the war in the Pacific at the 1943 Casablanca Conference.

Fig. 4 - Sultan Muhammad V, Franklin Roosevelt, and Winston Churchill at the Casablanca Conference of 1943.

Agreements at the 1943 Casablanca Conference

There were a number of important points agreed to at the Casablanca Conference and issued in the Casablanca Declaration that followed. They are summarized below:

• After completing the conquest of Northern Africa, British and American forces would invade Italy through Sicily.
• Plans for an eventual invasion of Europe from the English Channel would start.
• US and British supplies to the USSR would continue.
• They would increase bombing of Germany.
• The British would send more troops to Burma.
• Additional supply lines would be set up to aid the Chinese Nationalist forces of Chiang Kai-shek fighting Japanese occupation.
• The Western Allies pledge to fight to an unconditional surrender of the German, Italian, and Japanese forces.

Call for Unconditional Surrender of the Axis

This clause is usually considered to be the most significant of the decisions reached at the Casablanca Conference of 1943.

The doctrine that the Allies would only accept unconditional surrender from the Axis was announced by Roosevelt at the final press conference of the meeting on January 24.

There is debate among historians as to what degree Roosevelt and Churchill agreed to this doctrine. Some believe they agreed to it in private beforehand, while others believe Roosevelt's announcement caught Churchill by surprise.

It's thought that, regardless of how much they agreed to beforehand, that Roosevelt was the architect of the unconditional surrender doctrine. He believed stating the Allies would accept no negotiated peace would reassure the Soviet Union, who had felt betrayed by the policy of appeasement before the war, that the Allies would not leave them to fight Germany alone. This would also prevent the USSR from attempting their own separate settlement.

Casablanca Conference Significance

When assessing the Casablanca Conference's significance, the unconditional surrender doctrine was the most important outcome. It sent a clear signal that the Allies would continue the war effort to the complete defeat of German, Italian, and Japanese military forces.

In addition to reassuring the USSR, it also meant that there would be less room for ideological remnants of fascism to survive the war in the defeated Axis countries. After World War One, the myth of the "stab in the back," which contended the German Army could have won the war had politicians not agreed to a ceasefire, was pervasive and aided the Nazi rise to power. The unconditional surrender doctrine aimed to prevent a similar occurrence.

The declaration of a commitment to fight on the unconditional surrender also boosted morale among Allied soldiers.

The Casablanca Conference was also significant in that it set the tone for Allied cooperation throughout the war effort and the eventual plans for postwar Europe. The Tehran Conference, the Yalta Conference, and the Potsdam Conference would follow in its footsteps in planning the later phases of the war and the postwar status for Europe.