LENDING - NOT COMMONLY KNOWN FACTS

[Gil Boyd]

We talk a lot on this site about Lend Lease weapons etc but did you know after WW1, Britain owed a fortune. in 1931, President Herbert Hoover announced a one-year moratorium on war loan repayments from all nations, due to the global economic crisis, but by 1934 Britain still owed the US $4.4bn of World War I debt (about £866m at 1934 exchange rates).

It got worse as no money that was owed after WW1 has ever been repayed so we owe our brothers on the otherside of the pond a great deal

On 31 December 2006, Britain made its final payment of £45.5m roughly $83m and thereby discharged the last of its war loans from the US. By the end of World War II Britain had amassed an immense debt of £21 billion. Thats what happens when we liked the Sherman so much in the desert campaign especially when it carried a bigger gun to match the Tigers!

Big Thanks

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[JimF4M1s (Deceased)]

Money, though nothing can repay the hundreds of thousands of lives lost.

[Sunray]

"...Britain owed a fortune..." Bankrupt after W.W. I. The U.S. Lend/Lease Act of 1941 was strictly W.W. II. Brits were broke again by then. Couldn't continue paying for stuff from the U.S.
"...to match the Tigers..." Not even close. The Sherman was ok against Panzer III's and IV Ausf. F2's(the Ausf. G version of 1942 had more armour. An M4 had to be within 100 yards), but a Tiger or Panther(HV 75mm gun) could shoot 'em from way out of range of the low velocity 75mm Shermans carried. The Sherman was obsolete by 1944. G.S. Patton told the U.S. government a new tank, that was already designed and was just waiting to be built(M48 Patton), was required. Lotta troopies died because of that.
Shermans were called Tommy Cookers and Ronsons for a reason.

[Brit plumber]

As Gill said, The lessons were learnt and by 1944, the upgunned Sherman FireFly was in British and commonwealth service and it was more than a match for the Tiger and Panther. The British used to bait them in by disguising the gun as the 75mm and the Americans tried to scare the Germans off by pretending their 75mm guns were 17pdrs with additional pipe lengths.

[Roy W]

I wonder PPI on that lot?

[Gil Boyd]

To understand the true worth of the Sherman in "the desert campaign" only, it travelled further on a tank full of fuel which was easier to get to them then the Germans found it.
Rommel had a clear problem with getting his fuel to his tanks quick enough and without doubt lost him the campaign. Thats what I was referring too!!

[Mk VII]

The Johnson Act forbade nations which had defaulted on their WW1 debts (as Britain and France had, technically it was a rescheduling but it counted as a default) from raising fresh loans in the United States so it had to be 'cash and carry' in 1939.

All Lend-Lease balances as of VJ Day were written off; aid in transit between VJ Day and 1st September 1945, when Lend-Lease was terminated, was converted into a 50-year loan at 2% - with an option to defer annual instalments, which Britain exercised several times, which was why it took longer than 50 years.

The WW1 loans are not being serviced, but technically they haven't been written off either.

[Jaxson50]

We talk a lot on this site about Lend Lease weapons etc but did you know after WW1, Britain owed a fortune. in 1931, President Herbert Hoover announced a one-year moratorium on war loan repayments from all nations, due to the global economic crisis, but by 1934 Britain still owed the US $4.4bn of World War I debt (about £866m at 1934 exchange rates).

It got worse as no money that was owed after WW1 has ever been repayed so we owe our brothers on the otherside of the pond a great deal

On 31 December 2006, Britain made its final payment of £45.5m roughly $83m and thereby discharged the last of its war loans from the US. By the end of World War II Britain had amassed an immense debt of £21 billion. Thats what happens when we liked the Sherman so much in the desert campaign especially when it carried a bigger gun to match the Tigers!

Big Thanks

Interesting post. No pun intended!

[Brit plumber]

Wasn’t some of our debt paid in the way of letting the USAF have use of some of our UK bases including Akrotiri?

[Paul S.]

Actually, that was a result of the 'Lease' component of the Lend Lease Act. The US 'lent' war materials to Britain in trade for 'leases' to bases in the British Empire (as it was at the time).