World War II Database

Contributor: C. Peter Chen

ww2dbaseThe conference codenamed "Quadrant" was held in Quebec, Canada, three months after the conference "Trident", with largely similar topics as Trident. The British delegation, led by Winston Churchill, argued for a campaign in Italy to completely remove Italy from the war, while the Allied prepared for the invasion on France. The Americans wanted a decisive strike on France without diversions, ie. the Mediterranean actions the British wanted. As a result of this meeting, the Allied command decided that "Overlord", as it was now named, and the Italian campaign would both proceed as planned, but resources would be given to Overlord in terms of priority. It was also decided that an American commander, Eisenhower, would oversee Overlord, while being assisted by a coalition of both British and American commanders.

ww2dbaseA plan to defeat Japan by 1948 was presented by, mainly, the British. This plan included a land campaign in Southeast Asia, China, and the acquisition of Chinese airfields and ports for a total blockade of the Japanese home islands. The American Joint Chiefs thought the plan was unnecessarily conservative, and wanted Japan beaten within a year of Germany's eventual fall. As a compromise, the British agreed to an accelerated schedule in the Pacific Theater.

ww2dbaseA new Supreme Allied Command, Southeast Asia (SACSEA) was also established as a result of this conference, with Admiral Lord Louis Moutbatten as the Supreme Commander. Americans cynics joked of this new command as "Save England's Asiatic Colonies".

Quadrant Conference Interactive Map

Photographs

Quadrant Conference Timeline