| United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt (January 30, 1882 – April 12, 1945) signed the declaration of war against Germany at the White House on December 11, 1941, at 1505 Hours, Eastern Standard Time. From left to right: Representative Sol Bloom (March 9, 1870 – March 7, 1949), Democrat of New York; Representative Luther A. Johnson (October 29, 1875 – June 6, 1965), Democrat of Texas; Representative Charles A. Eaton March 29, 1868 – January 23, 1953), Republican of New Jersey; President Roosevelt; and Senator Tom Connally (August 19, 1877 – October 28, 1963), Democrat of Texas, holding a watch to note the time of the signing. Roosevelt wears a black armband in mourning for his mother, Sara Delano Roosevelt (September 21, 1854 – September 7, 1941). There was no oratory in Washington that Thursday to match United Kingdom Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill’s (November 30, 1874 – January 24, 1965) speech in Parliament or Italian Duce and Prime Minister Benito Mussolini’s (July 29, 1883 – April 28, 1945) address to the masses in the Piazza Venezia, nor was there a grand event comparable to Führer und Reichskanzler (“Leader and Reichchancellor”) Adolf Hitler’s (April 20, 1889 – April 30, 1945) performance at the Kroll-Oper. United States President Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856 – February 3, 1924) had made a fuller speech to Congress in April 1917. Publicly, the American Declaration of War on Germany in 1941 was an anticlimax after the President’s “Date of Infamy” speech to Congress on Monday, December 8, and even more than his radio address on Tuesday evening. 2 German diplomats presented themselves at the State Department at 0820 Hours on the morning of December 11, 1520, Hours Berlin time, as winter had finally arrived in the American capital. These were Hans Thomsen (September 14, 1891 – October 31, 1968), the Chargé d’Affaires, and Heribert von Strempel (March 8, 1902 – December 6, 1981), the German Embassy’s 2nd Secretary. They brought with them the Nazi Declaration of War. 3 photographers crowded into the lift with them. “This is not very dignified,” observed von Strempel. Secretary of State Cordell Hull (October 2, 1871 – July 23, 1955) declined to meet them. The pair were left cooling their heels until 0930 Hours when Ray Atherton (March 28, 1883 – March 14, 1960), head of the Division of European Affairs, received them. The Declaration of War handed to Atherton was the exact text that Reichsminister des Auswärtigen Joachim von Ribbentrop (April 30, 1893 – October 16, 1946) had presented to Leland B. Morris (February 7, 1886 – July 2, 1950), the American Chargé d’Affaires in Berlin. In the middle of the morning, President Roosevelt wrote a simple request to Congress, rather than appearing in person, asking for a Declaration of War on Germany and Italy. He explained that Germany, “pursuing a course of world conquest,” had declared war that morning; “the long known and the long expected has taken place.” Congress met at 1200 Hours and passed 2 joint resolutions: “The Congress of the United States hereby pledges all of the resources of the country.” Roosevelt’s understated action was shrewd. The declarations passed the Senate and the House of Representatives without “No” votes; Representative Jeannette P. Rankin (June 11, 1880 – May 18, 1973), who voted against the Declaration of War against Japan, abstained this time. At 1500 Hours, Vice President Henry Wallace (October 7, 1888 – November 18, 1965) and a small delegation of Congressional leaders arrived at the White House with the Declarations of War on Germany and Italy. The President signed them. The text of the resolution read: “Seventy-Seventh Congress of the United States of America; At the First Session Begun and held at the City of Washington, on Friday, the third day of January, 1941.” “Joint Resolution Declaring That a State of War Exists Between The Government of Germany and the Government and the People of the United States and Making Provisions To Prosecute The Same” “Whereas the Government of Germany has formally declared war against the Government and the people of the United States of America:” “Therefore be it Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the state of war between the United States and the Government of Germany which has thus been thrust upon the United States is hereby formally declared; and the President is hereby authorized and directed to employ the entire naval and military forces of the United States and the resources of the Government to carry on war against the Government of Germany; and, to bring the conflict to a successful termination, all of the resources of the country are hereby pledged by the Congress of the United States.” “Signed, Sam Rayburn, Speaker of the House of Representatives” “Signed, H. (Henry) A. Wallace, Vice President of the United States and President of the Senate” “Approved December 11, 1941, 1505 Hours Eastern Standard Time” “Signed, Franklin D. Roosevelt” | |
| Image Filename | wwii0927.jpg |
| Image Size | 673.09 KB |
| Image Dimensions | 1492 x 2048 |
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| Caption Author | Written or Adapted by Jason McDonald |
| Date Photographed | December 11, 1941 |
| Location | |
| City | Washington |
| State or Province | District of Columbia |
| Country | United States |
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| Status | Caption ©2026 MFA Productions LLC Please Do Not Duplicate or Distribute Without Permission; Image in the Public Domain |
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