Theodore Roosevelt loved the Navy, especially the fleet of battleships he sponsored during his time as Assistant Secretary of the Navy and President of the United States. For him, the battleships were the "Big Stick" that made his "Speak Softly" foreign policy so effective. During his administration he had turned to the Navy time after time, first to face down the German and British fleets threatening Venezuela's independence in the winter of 1902-03, then to guarantee Panama's independence movement, and later to effect the return of a kidnapped American citizen in Morocco.
The Fleet had become a comforting talisman for Roosevelt when tensions in the international arena began to rise. So as the rhetoric between the United States and Japan turned ugly over California's exclusion of Japanese immigrants from public schools and other social services, TR decided to dispatch the Atlantic Fleet, with its 16 battleships, on a 'round the world cruise.
This operation was an extension of an exercise plan drawn up by the Navy's General Board that had proposed sending the battleships around South America to visit the west coast of the United States to test Fleet tactics and endurance. The trip would, in Roosevelt's mind, provide the additional benefit of increasing popular support for his naval building program among the Western populace. East coast political and business leaders protested the move, fearing the consequences of having the Atlantic seaboard denuded of naval power. But Roosevelt paid no heed to their concerns and personally sailed to Hampton Roads on board the presidential yacht Mayflower to see off the imposing behemoths.
Crowds Greet the Fleet
The absence of colliers to service the ships and inherent difficulties of refueling at sea necessitated numerous port visits to take on coal, water, food, and other supplies. Local popular reaction during these stops was completely unexpected. When the ships made their first stop at the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro, thousands of the country's citizens flooded the street that overlooked the harbor to cheer as the vessels steamed into their anchorages. The crowd size swelled at each subsequent stop as the Atlantic Fleet transformed into the historic phenomenon known as the Great White Fleet.
Such was the importance attached to a visit by the Fleet that nations not originally included on the logistical itinerary sent urgent messages through diplomatic channels protesting perceived snubs to their national honor.
As the Fleet proceeded with its circumnavigation of the South American continent enroute to the port cities of California prior to jumping off across the Pacific, it became increasingly clear that reaction to the Fleet was more than just a response to large ships with their brilliant white paint, gold bow fixtures, and large guns. Rather, it was reaction to a series of policies enunciated by Roosevelt, the effects of which were already evident in the Western Hemisphere's relations with the imperial powers of Europe.
Monroe Doctrine with Muscle
The first contributor to this new dynamic was Roosevelt's muscular interpretation of the Monroe Doctrine, which had forbidden European interference in the internal affairs of the free nations on the American continents. TR revised and extended this Doctrine in 1904, which declared that the United States would take upon itself the responsibility of "policing" its home hemisphere. While controversial and seemingly imperialistic in hindsight, it had the immediate effect of serving notice to European nations that they could no longer use military force to gain redress for defaulted loans or to other claims on behalf of their citizens.
The United States would henceforth act as the intermediary between its smaller, weaker neighbors to the south and the larger, stronger powers of Europe. The fact that the American President had built a Fleet capable of upholding these responsibilities had the immediate effect of reassuring the leaders of the South American republics that their enduring fear of colonial re-conquest by European great powers could be put to rest. In the southwestern Pacific, the overwhelming popular reaction to the Fleet continued, but drew its strength from a different source—a fear of Japan.
In 1907 New Zealand and Australia relied largely on the Royal Navy to provide the sea borne defense of their nations. As colonies of the United Kingdom, this was their privilege. However, when the First Lord of the Admiralty, Admiral Sir John Fisher, decided to concentrate the preponderance of British naval power in the island nation's home waters to counter the perceived growing German naval threat, colonies like Australia and New Zealand were left vulnerable.
The Birth of ANZUS
The leaders of Britain, which had a treaty with Japan, tried to assuage these concerns but found no success in this endeavor. The populace within these two English-speaking nations became increasingly concerned that Japan's recent successes against China, Korea, and Russia might encourage the island empire to look elsewhere in the Pacific for more acquisitions. With England so far away, the visiting American Fleet appeared almost as a lifeline. This interest in the Fleet caused a crowd of nearly 100,000 (nearly 10 percent of the total population) to turn out in Auckland, New Zealand. Ten days later, as the Fleet approached Sydney, Australia, American Sailors witnessed between 500,000 to 650,000 people ringing the harbor. The relationships created during these two port visits laid the foundation for the Australia-New Zealand-United States security arrangement (also known as ANZUS) that defined the early days of World War II in the Pacific and continues to this day.
The Fleet's next stop, in Japan, ostensibly the target of Roosevelt's directive to send the battleships on their 'round the world odyssey, began smoothly when hundreds of Japanese school children serenaded the American ships as they came to anchor in Yokohama harbor. Japan's government acted as perfect hosts throughout the visit, and the diplomatic results of the Great White Fleet's stop were immediately felt.
Two days after the Americans departed Japanese waters, Japan's ambassador in Washington suggested that the two great naval powers in the Pacific reach an agreement with regard to their mutual interests in the Far East. Subsequent conversations resulted in the Root-Takahira Agreement, which positively affected relations between the two nations and perhaps pushed back the eventual conflict between the two countries by 20 years.
The Great White Fleet continued on its way, making stops in Amoy, China (the Chinese were miffed that only half of the battleships made the stop as compared to all of them anchoring in Japan), Manila in the Philippines and Sri Lanka. After clearing the Suez Canal and entering the Mediterranean, the Fleet demonstrated the unique advantages of a mobile and flexible force in responding to emergent crises. Because of requests from virtually every country that bordered the Mediterranean, the Fleet split into small groups to begin its port visits.
A desire by the Fleet's commanders to characterize these visits as unofficial—and thus more focused on crew rest and recreation—were met with disfavor by American diplomats in the various embassies and legations. These representatives of the State Department were quick to point out how a very diverse collection of American interests would be best served by the ships' arriving in an official manner, with the numerous receptions and court balls that accompanied this form of international exchange.
Fleet to the Rescue
A massive earthquake near Messina, Sicily, provided the Fleet with a comparatively rare opportunity to demonstrate the Navy's humanitarian capabilities. Units within the Fleet were scoured for foodstuffs, water, and excess medical supplies. These materials, along with six surgeons and other available medical personnel, were transferred to two ships sent ahead to the scene of the calamity at high speed. On arrival at Messina, the much-needed supplies were offloaded, and working parties proceeded ashore in the days that followed to search for survivors and recover the bodies of victims, including those of the American consul and his wife. Other ships transported additional equipment and personnel from other countries.
Ultimately, the Great White Fleet arrived back in the United States in the waning days of Theodore Roosevelt's presidency. He was there to meet them, just as he had seen them off. He had already signed the order to have the ships repainted battle-gray, never again to flash a brilliant white to the world. It was the dawn of the American Century. Roosevelt was in no small part the father of this modern American Navy, and it had been he who sent the Fleet out to establish a new mission for the U.S. Navy in the world. Henceforth—be it termed presence operations or engagement—the United States would maintain a credible combat naval force, forward-deployed to display the flag and uphold American interests.