Lend-Lease Act

Setting the scene

The Lend-Lease Act was signed into law on March 11, 1941, allowing the United States to supply Allied nations with war materiel without immediate payment. Proposed by President Franklin Roosevelt, the act was a response to Britain's near-bankruptcy—by late 1940, Britain had exhausted its funds to purchase American weapons under 'cash and carry.' Roosevelt, seeking to support Britain against Nazi Germany without entering the war, proposed lending or leasing equipment, famously comparing it to lending a neighbor a garden hose to put out a fire.

What happened

The act authorized the president to 'sell, transfer title to, exchange, lease, lend, or otherwise dispose of' defense articles to any country whose defense was deemed vital to U.S. security. Congress approved $7 billion initially, eventually $50 billion ($700 billion today). Lend-Lease supplied Britain, the Soviet Union (after June 1941), China, and other Allies with tanks, planes, ships, food, and raw materials. The U.S. sent 17 million tons to the USSR alone, including 400,000 trucks and 12,000 tanks.

Why it still matters

Lend-Lease was crucial to Allied victory—it kept Britain fighting in 1941 and supplied the Soviet war effort. It also marked the end of American isolationism and the beginning of the U.S. as the 'arsenal of democracy.' The act demonstrated American industrial might and established the pattern of U.S. military aid that continues today. Lend-Lease also created debts and dependencies that shaped postwar relations. It was a decisive step toward U.S. entry into World War II, making America an undeclared belligerent months before Pearl Harbor.

Background

It turned America into the arsenal of democracy.