The Pacific War Council was an inter-governmental body established in 1942 and intended to control the Allied war effort in the Pacific and Asian campaigns of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. Following the establishment of the short-lived American-British-Dutch-Australian military command (ABDACOM) in January 1942, the governments of Australia, the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

and

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

began to push

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from ...

for an inter-governmental war council based in

Washington D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, Na ...

The Far Eastern Council was established in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

on February 9, with a corresponding staff council in Washington. However the smaller powers continued to push for a Washington-based body. The Pacific War Council was formed in Washington on April 1, 1942, with a membership consisting of President

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

, his key advisor Harry Hopkins, and representatives from Britain, China, Australia, New Zealand, the Netherlands and

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. Representatives from

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

and the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

were later added. Australia and New Zealand (Prime Ministers

John Curtin John Curtin (8 January 1885 – 5 July 1945) was an Australian politician who served as the 14th prime minister of Australia from 1941 until his death in 1945. He led the country for the majority of World War II, including all but the last few ...

and

Peter Fraser Peter Fraser (; 28 August 1884 – 12 December 1950) was a New Zealand politician who served as the 24th prime minister of New Zealand from 27 March 1940 until 13 December 1949. Considered a major figure in the history of the New Zealand La ...

) wanted a council which was responsible for higher direction of the Pacific War; the London Council (Far East Council) was ''purely advisory and subordinate''. Roosevelt wanted to retain the current arrangements for British-American collaboration, and suggested that where the interests of the three countries (Australia, the Dutch East Indies and New Zealand) were involved they could attend meetings of the Combined Chiefs of Staff in Washington (CCOS) and give their views ''on the spot''. In return, the United States undertook the establishment of close working arrangements with the three military missions so they could give informed advice. Both Australia and New Zealand accepted under protest. Much of the impetus for the council was lost during the collapse of ABDACOM, in March and April. The council never had any direct operational control and any decisions it made were referred to the U.S.-British Combined Chiefs of Staff, which was also in Washington. Although there were relatively few U.S. forces in the Pacific in mid-1942, the sheer volume of matériel and forces controlled by the United States government soon gave it effective control of strategy in the Pacific War.

References

External links

"Fact File : Formation of the Pacific War Council"
BBC: WW2 People's War

Politics of World War II {{WWII-stub