Fellow Britons, it is my melancholy duty to inform you officially that in consequence of a persistence by the United States to interfere with our interests, strangle our commerce and bring ruin to our Empire, Britain finds itself at war. No harder task can fall to the lot of a democratic leader than to make such an announcement. Great Britain and France have struggled to avoid this tragedy. We have, as I firmly believe, been patient. We have kept the door of negotiation open. We have given no cause for aggression. But I in the final result, our efforts have failed and we therefore involved in a struggle which we must win at all costs and which we believe in our hearts we will win.
What I want to do tonight is just to put before you, honestly, and as clearly as I can, a short account of how this crisis has developed.
The history of recent months in Asia has been an eventful one. It will exhibit to the eyes of the future student some of the most remarkable instances of indifference to the service of peace in all the centuries of war. Moreover, I believe, I will demonstrate that the United States has for a long time pursued a policy which was deliberately designed to produce either a state of general war or a subjugation of one power after another.
We all remember when President Roosevelt speaking in Washington said, referring to the Siam Crisis, which was then approaching its acutest stage that would “commit to sanctioning the goods of the United Kingdom and France”. This was a heavy blow for which the United Kingdom and France received no forewarning or chance to negotiate. The reasons for this ambush soon became manifest when four days later, before the United Kingdom and France could even respond the United States committed to “dramatically reducing our import and export trade tariffs with all nations who have united in defense of Siam’s sovereignty“. The United States had resolved to pair the diplomatic hammer with the economic noose to smoother in one swoop the commerce of the United Kingdom and France. Still the United Kingdom believed the United States when it desired peace.
What a strange piece of irony that seems today, only months later. In those months, what has happened? In cold-blooded knowledge of its actions the United States has sought to play for time as the world slid towards chaos. It has called the United Kingdom children, it has cursed us, and protested that it desired peace.
In the meantime the United States has, without flickering an eyelid, strengthened its pact with autocracies and Oriental despots and made common cause with the slave owners who had been his chief stock-in-trade to criticize. And has now, under circumstances which I will describe to you, sought to bring about the downfall of the United Kingdom and France, in service to these interests and against the interests of democracy and against the interests of his own race. All I need say is, that whatever the inflamed ambitions of the American President will be, he will undoubtedly learn, as other great enemies of freedom have learned before, that the bayonet, yoke and whip will stand prostrate to the Royal Navy's Castles of Steel.
Let me now say something about the events of the last few days. The facts are not really in dispute. They are, for the most part, contained in documents which are now a matter of record.
On Friday, Roosevelt asked the British Ambassador to call on him, and had a long interview with him. Roosevelt said that he wished to make a move towards the United Kingdom, as decisive as his overtures to his current allies. He went on to indicate that he was looking forward to a general settlement in Siam and that if this would be achieved, he would be willing to accept a reasonable peace. The Cabinet consulted on the matter and replied on Monday that the desired a complete and lasting understanding between the two countries. It emphasized that the British Government would not demobilize, unless the Siamese Government demobilized and sent its troops to barracks, and that at that point a conversation could be had on the fate of Siam. The United States accepted this formulation.
The Siamese Government however has remained silent and its troops still stand at the threshold of India and Malaya. We have been informed this morning that a British patrol has been attacked patrolling the British side of the frontier in Malaya and that localised fighting has developed with the exchange of artillery fire and probing attacks by Siamese troops along the frontier. The British Government has been informed that troop transports from India under escort by the Singapore squadron will arrive shortly in Malaya to repel the assault. A separate convoy is now on route to ferry troops to Burma to hold the frontier there. The British Government has taken all possible care to resolve the crisis, and has delayed a response, but does not see a path to peace with Siam. The crisis in Siam lies directly at the feet of the United States which precipitated a crisis there, having failed in China. It gave succor to Siamese resistance and provided diplomatic cover for its actions. The British Government therefore finds itself inescapably and regrettably at war with Siam.
The sanctions imposed by the United States have therefore come into force. The British Government noted early on that tying the United States hand to such an irresponsibly party on the international stage carried with it risks. The United States did not care and offered no alternative formulation which averted the imposition of sanctions. Russia which acted a mediator in these final discussions agreed that there was no hope of averting a crisis without a change in the United States position. No such change was made. The United Kingdom has since concluded that this effort was never sincere and that its chief purpose was to split the United Kingdom from France. War was the desired goal of the President Roosevelt, but he preferred that it be against one power and not two. The formulation which drove us to war was decided upon by the United States, with limited input from a select group of belligerent powers, moderate powers like Japan were excluded and asked to sign a formulation which guaranteed war. Japan and Mexico to their credit declined to involve themselves in this and their judgment is to be recognized and applauded.
You see what a travesty the whole thing was. The American Government was treating the United Kingdom and France as in default, because the Siamese would not negotiate irrespective of the terms offered. The American Government was no help in reaching out to Siam, and its intentions should are clear in that it pushed a Treaty which sought to insulate its interests and smother our trade even as we feverishly sought to avoid war. The only reply to the United Kingdom and France efforts to reach a peaceful settlement was blandishments as the Siamese attacked our soldiers.
The United States claims that it intends only sanctions and not a blockade a stance which the British Government has dismissed as posturing. The bare truth of the matter is that the United States blockade will deal an incalculable blow to British trade, industry and way of life. The United States would seek to deny us the Americas. They would seek to close Russia to us. In fact the United States would seek by its actions to close our trade the world and lock in this state of misery by taking advantage of us. This has real consequences for the provision of food and material comforts to British subjects. Though the Empire is vast, our surviving markets vast, such a loss will be difficult to make up. The United States has also been quiet as to how it intends to enforce these sanctions.
We have received an answer, this morning a British merchantman was boarded, the crew arrested and the ship impounded for breach of sanctions. Some among the crew were injured. Elsewhere a Confederate destroyer fired upon a merchantman enroute to Freeport in the Bahamas. It was to the great fortune of these brave seafarers that the Royal Navy cruisers Agincourt and Diadem and attached destroyers of the First Destroyer Squadron were in the vicinity. After repeated attempts to communicate with the Confederate vessel and mindful of the risk of ambush from other Confederate vessels and fearful of the clouds of great smoke coming from the merchantman, Agincourt and Diadem opened fire at 6000 yards and scored a number of hits. Agincourt ceased fire and moved to assist the merchantman. Six merchant sailors were killed by the Confederate fire. Diadem continued her pursuit to screen Agincourt but ceased her fire after it was observed that the Confederate destroyer was listing heavily to port and that her guns were silent. Six minutes later the Confederate destroyer exploded. Numerous secondary explosions were witnessed.
Similar though less dramatic incidents have occurred in the Gulf of Saint Lawrence, there a British merchantman managed to elude pursuit, a British merchantman managed near Cyprus to frustrate a Turkish boarding party for long enough for the cruiser Andromeda, a sister ship of the Diadem, to arrive upon which time the Turkish vessel fled, and in a final act an Austrian vessel sought to intercept a French merchantman on route to Dalmatia, a French warship exchanged fire with the Austrian vessel which was forced to limp back to port trailing thick smoke. War has by the very operation of the United States policies become inevitable. This was forseeable as the Austrian ambassador in his final comminuqe noted.
The United Kingdom however pledges this. It does not hold any enmity towards those nations which signed up under a false understanding of the United States intentions. States other than those named here being the Ottoman Empire, Austria-Hungary, the Persian Empire, Bavaria, the United States and Confederate States of America which wish to retreat from the precipice may do so with honor and without threat of retaliation or consequence. Those who do intend to hew to the United States line will find themselves at war with ourselves.
Before I conclude, may I say this to you – in the bitter months that have come, calmness, resoluteness, confidence and hard work will be required as never before. This war will involve not only soldiers and sailors and airmen, but supplies, foodstuffs, money. Our staying power, and particularly the staying power of the empire, will be best assisted by keeping our production going; by continuing our avocations and our business as freely as we can; by maintaining employment and, with it, our strength. I know that in spite of the emotions we are all feeling, you will show that the United Kingdom is ready to see it through. May God in his mercy and compassion grant that the world may soon be delivered from this agony.