936 Chapter 7
Narrative: Germany seized an American steamship accused of transporting con-
traband to Britain. A prize crew took it to the Soviet port of Murmansk, where the
Soviets detained the ship and everyone aboard.
Coding changes: Start Date changed from October 24, 1939. End Date changed from
October 24, 1939.
MID#414
Dispute Number: 414
Date(s): March 31, 1941 to December 11, 1941
Participants: 2 United States of America/255 Germany
Outcome (and Settlement): Joins ongoing war (None)
Fatalities: 101–250 deaths
Narrative: On March 29, 1941, the United States detained 30 merchant ships and
crews belonging to Axis powers. Germany and Italy diplomatically protested the
seizures, and Germany lodged an official complaint protesting the treatment of the
detained crew. The United States claimed that it had legally seized the ships and crew,
and it took further action to arrest the captains and crew under the Sabotage Act of
- Germany protested that this act was intended to prevent damage to US property
at ports and harbors and that there was no legal basis under which the United States
could arrest the crewmen. The United States rejected the German protest, and Secre-
tary of State Hull contended that the arrest and seizures were legal under the Sabotage/
Espionage Act and under international law.
On April 10, the United States made the decision to involve itself further in the
European war against the Nazis by using the Monroe Doctrine to put Greenland under
the protection of the United States. The United States signed an accord with the Danes
and opened temporary bases in Greenland in an effort to keep control of the Atlantic
out of German hands. On this same date, the USS Niblack reportedly charged a Ger-
man U-boat after it had attacked a Danish freighter, marking the first use of force in
this particular dispute.
After increasing its involvement with the Danish defense, US naval ships engaged
in a number of confrontations with German vessels, particularly in the fall of 1941.
On September 4, the USS Greer was attacked by a German U-boat, on October 17, the
USS Kearney was hit by a German torpedo, and on October 31, the USS Reuben James
was sunk by the Germans. In total, 108 US crewmen were lost at sea as a result of the
German-US dispute, the largest number being lost in the attack on the Reuben James.
On December 7, Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, and the United States subsequently
declared war on Japan on December 9. On December 11, Germany and Italy declared
war on the United States, ending the US-Germany dispute with the US involvement
in the larger interstate war.
Coding changes: Start Date changed from April 10, 1941.
2 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA/300 AUSTRIA-HUNGARY
MID#257
Started in July 1914. See the narrative in the 300 Austria-Hungary/345 Yugoslavia
dyad dispute list.