1943 Allied conference during World War II
The
First Quebec Conference
, codenamed
Quadrant
, was a highly secret military conference held during
World War II
by the governments of the United Kingdom, Canada, and the United States. It took place in
Quebec City
on August 17?24, 1943, at both the
Citadelle
and the
Chateau Frontenac
. The chief representatives were
Winston Churchill
and
Franklin D. Roosevelt
, hosted by the Canadian prime minister
William Lyon Mackenzie King
.
[1]
Conference
[
edit
]
Although Churchill suggested that Mackenzie King be involved in all discussions, Roosevelt vetoed the idea owing to concern that future conferences would be burdened by all of the Allied nations demanding seats.
[2]
As a result, Mackenzie King's hospitality was almost purely for ceremonial purposes.
Joseph Stalin
, leader of the
Soviet Union
, had been invited to join the conference, but he did not attend for military reasons.
[3]
The
Allies
agreed to begin discussions for the planning of the
invasion of France
, codenamed
Operation Overlord
, in a secret report by the
Combined Chiefs of Staff
. It was agreed that Overlord would commence on May 1, 1944, but this was subsequently disregarded, and a later date was finalised.
[4]
However, Overlord was not the only option; for example,
Operation Jupiter
remained a strong possibility had the Germans proved too powerful on the French coast.
[5]
In the
Mediterranean
(a
theatre
on which Churchill was very keen) they resolved to concentrate more force to remove
Italy
from the alliance of
Axis powers
and to occupy it along with
Corsica
. Churchill and Roosevelt made it clear that they would only accept unconditional surrender from Italy, with a complete and immediate cessation of fighting.
[6]
News came through of the
fall of Sicily
to Allied forces, an invasion that had taken just 38 days.
[7]
It was then decided that an
invasion of Italy
would begin on September 3, 1943. However, an
armistice was signed that same day
, which officially put Italy out of the war.
[8]
There were discussions about improving the coordination of efforts by the Americans, British, and Canadians to
develop
an
atomic bomb
. Churchill and Roosevelt, without Canadian input, signed the
Quebec Agreement
, stating that the nuclear technology would never be used against one another, that they would not use it against third parties without the consent of one another, but also that
Tube Alloys
would not be discussed with third parties. Canada, although not being represented at the particular meeting, played a key role in this agreement as it was a major source of uranium and heavy water, both essential in the atomic bomb.
[9]
It was decided that operations in the
Balkans
should be limited to supplying
guerrillas
, whereas operations against
Japan
would be intensified in order to exhaust Japanese resources, cut their communications lines, and secure forward bases from which the Japanese mainland could be attacked.
[
citation needed
]
In addition to the strategic discussions, which were communicated to the Soviet Union and to
Chiang Kai-shek
in
China
, the conference also issued a joint statement on
Palestine
, intended to calm tensions as the British
occupation
was becoming increasingly untenable. The conference also condemned German atrocities in
Poland
.
[
citation needed
]
In the
Pacific theater
the conference decided to bypass and isolate
Rabaul
rather than proceed with the original plan of taking Rabaul. This decision fulfilled General
Douglas MacArthur's
plan to
neutralize
the heavily fortified fortress of Rabaul in
New Britain
.
[10]
MacArthur's
Operation Cartwheel
led to the creation of a de facto prisoner-of-war camp of over 100,000 Japanese troops who were cut off from the rest of their forces.
It was clear that eliminating Italy from the war was the Allies' main priority; this was expected to be done by the end of 1943. Following this, the next hope was that Germany would be defeated by the fall of 1944, which would leave just Japan remaining among the Axis powers.
[11]
Following the conference, Churchill was on holiday at a fishing camp
[12]
and then, on August 31, 1943, delivered a radio address
[13]
before travelling by a special train that was going to Washington, D.C., to resume talks with Roosevelt.
[14]
[15]
Gallery
[
edit
]
Misplaced portfolio
[
edit
]
Given the highly secret topic under discussion at the conference, security at the Chateau Frontenac and the Quebec Citadelle was important. Sgt. Maj. Emile Couture (then 25 years of age) of the Canadian Army was responsible for cleaning the offices at both of these locations after the Conference had ended.
[16]
Couture found a leather portfolio with a gold inscription "Churchill-Roosevelt, Quebec Conference, 1943." on the exterior and kept it as a souvenir not realizing that it contained nearly complete plans for
Operation Overlord
. That evening Couture discovered the contents of the portfolio and, realizing the extremely sensitive nature of those documents, hid the portfolio under his mattress until he could return the portfolio in the morning. Couture was investigated by
Scotland Yard
and the
FBI
to ensure none of the information had been leaked. At the
Second Quebec Conference
Couture was awarded the
British Empire Medal
for his silence though it was attributed for "services rendered". Couture was interviewed on Radio-Canada's radio program
Appelez-moi Lise
by Lise Payette in 1972 about this issue. Additional magazine interviews with Couture are on display at the permanent exhibit for both Quebec Conferences in the Quebec Citadelle
[17]
after September 2019.
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"Quebec City: 400 Years of History"
. Retrieved
2013-01-23
.
Canadian Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King hosted Churchill and Roosevelt, but did not participate in the conferences.
- ^
English, John A. (1991).
The Canadian Army and the Normandy: A Study of Failure in High Command
. London: Praeger Publishers. p. 31.
ISBN
978-0275930196
.
- ^
Dewaters, Diane K. (2008).
The World War II Conferences in Washington, D.C. and Quebec City: Franklin D. Roosevelt and Winston S. Churchill
. Arlington, Texas: University of Texas. p. 115.
- ^
Reardon, Terry (2012).
Winston Churchill and Mackenzie King: So Similar, So Different
. Toronto: Dundurn Press. p. 254.
ISBN
978-1-4597-0590-6
.
- ^
Dewaters, Diane K. (2008).
The World War II Conferences in Washington, D.C. and Quebec City: Franklin D. Roosevelt and Winston S. Churchill
. Arlington, Texas: University of Texas. p. 120.
- ^
Dewaters, Diane K. (2008).
The World War II Conferences in Washington, D.C. and Quebec City: Franklin D. Roosevelt and Winston S. Churchill
. Arlington, Texas: University of Texas. p. 111.
- ^
Reardon, Terry (2012).
Winston Churchill and Mackenzie King: So Similar, So Different
. Toronto: Dundurn Press. p. 256.
ISBN
978-1-4597-0590-6
.
- ^
Morison, Samuel Eliot (2002).
History of United States Naval Operations in World War II: Sicily - Salerno - Anzio: January 1943?June 1944
. Champaign, IL: University of Illinois Press. p. 239.
ISBN
0-252-07039-9
.
- ^
Reardon, Terry (2012).
Winston Churchill and Mackenzie King: So Similar, So Different
. Toronto: Dundurn Press. pp. 249?250.
ISBN
978-1-4597-0590-6
.
- ^
"Chapter V: Up from Papua"
.
Reports of General MacArthur: The Campaigns of MacArthur in the Pacific
. Vol. I. U.S. Army Center of Military History.
LCCN
66-60005
.
- ^
"Quadrant conference, August 1943: Papers and Minutes of Meetings (Digitised 2001)"
(PDF)
. Washington, DC: Office, U.S. Secretary, Office of the Combined Chiefs of Staff. 1943.
Archived
from the original on 28 January 2016
. Retrieved
16 August
2023
– via Combined Arms Research Library Digital Library.
- ^
"Mr. King Leaves Today for Quebec to Meet Churchill"
.
Ottawa Citizen
. 1943-08-30
. Retrieved
2013-01-23
.
- ^
"Text of Premier Churchill's Address"
.
Ottawa Citizen
. CP. 1943-08-31
. Retrieved
2013-01-23
.
- ^
"Churchill Urges Parley of Three Allied Nations"
.
St. Petersburg Times
. UP. 1943-09-01
. Retrieved
2013-01-23
.
- ^
Reardon, Terry (2012).
Winston Churchill and Mackenzie King: So Similar, So Different
. Toronto: Dundurn Press. p. 254.
ISBN
978-1-4597-5090-6
.
- ^
"How a young Quebec soldier found confidential D-Day invasion plans ? and kept it a secret"
. Retrieved
August 25,
2019
.
- ^
"Permanent Exhibit"
. Retrieved
August 25,
2019
.
Further reading
[
edit
]
- Bernier, Serge (2008). "Mapping Victory".
Beaver
.
88
(1): 69?72.
- Ehrman, John (1956).
Grand Strategy Volume V: August 1943?September 1944
. London: H.M. Stationery Office. p. 15f.
British official history.
External links
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Conferences
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Declarations
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Organizations
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Related
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