NWC Issues in National Security Lecture Series, Lecture 12 “FDR and the Road to Pearl Harbor”

This lecture took place on April 4, 2023. From Professor Maurer: Professor Maurer will examine the grand strategy of President Roosevelt as he prepared America for the coming trial of strength. In confronting the threat from Japanese aggression in Asia, FDR also contended with the danger posed by Nazi Germany in Europe. Professor Maurer will follow the steps taken by the United States that led to war on that fateful day more than eighty years ago. “Remember Pearl Harbor!” That was the rallying cry for the American people during the Second World War. It is eighty years since the United States was attacked on December 7, 1941—“a date which will live in infamy,” in the memorable words of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The American people, government, and armed forces suddenly found themselves caught up in a desperate global struggle from which there could be no turning back. The ordeal of waging a world war would transform the United States into a global superpower. From that day to the present, American power and purpose has played a leading role in world politics. Dr. Maurer serves as the Alfred Thayer Mahan Distinguished Professor of Sea Power and Grand Strategy in the Strategy and Policy Department. He is a graduate of Yale College and holds a MALD and PhD in international relations from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. At the College, he served for eight years as Chairman of the Strategy and Policy Department. He teaches in the advanced strategy program and an elective course on Winston Churchill and the history of the two world wars. He served on the Secretary of the Navy John Lehman’s special advisory committee on naval history. His most recent book is an edited volume of essays published by the Naval Institute Press, The Road to Pearl Harbor: Great Power War in Asia and the Pacific. In recognition of his contribution to professional military education, he has received the U.S. Navy’s Meritorious Civilian Service Award and Superior Civilian Service Award. The views presented by the faculty or other guest speakers do not reflect official positions of the Naval War College, DON or DOD.