When did the U.S. replace Great Britain as the world's most powerful nation? (WW2, war)

[Mouldy Old Schmo]

At what point did the United States replace Great Britain as the world's most powerful nation?

[MrRational]

Originally Posted by Mouldy Old Schmo

At what point did the United States replace Great Britain as the world's most powerful nation?

January 1940

It was understood to be the case before then...
but it took the immediate aftermath of Hitler crossing into Poland to make it official

[Snowball7]

I would say August 1898, right after the Spanish-American War.

[Dd714]

Arguably after WW1, without a doubt after WW2.
Maybe a better question would be when did GB cease to be a world power - I can almost pin that down to a date - February 1945.

[Listener2307]

July 4, 1776.

[Grandstander]

In terms of real gross domestic product (GDP) , in 1870 Britain produced 100,180 (millions) in international dollars to the US's 98,374 (millions).

By 1913 the US was already in first place by a large margin, 517,383 (millions) to Britain's 224,618 ( millions)

The end of WW I left Britain and France deeply in debt to the US, that was one of the reasons for those nations taking a hard line on German reparation payments, they needed the money to pay back what they borrowed from America. There would be no comeback for Britain.

[mwruckman]

Originally Posted by Grandstander

In terms of real gross domestic product (GDP) , in 1870 Britain produced 100,180 (millions) in international dollars to the US's 98,374 (millions).

By 1913 the US was already in first place by a large margin, 517,383 (millions) to Britain's 224,618 ( millions)

The end of WW I left Britain and France deeply in debt to the US, that was one of the reasons for those nations taking a hard line on German reparation payments, they needed the money to pay back what they borrowed from America. There would be no comeback for Britain.

One should also include the economic output of the British Empire which was mostly controled from the UK. The British Pound Sterling was the worlds principle reserve currency before 1945. Until 1947 Britain could count on places like Canada, Australia, British Africa India or Malaya to provide military units and in some cases ships and planes for the Imperial War machine. The US took over from Britain after the 1945 when it surrendered its role as world peace keeper, to the UN and the USA, agreed to the Breton Woods system where the US dollar replaced the pound as the world's principle currency. Other milestones were the decolonialization started with British India and Burma in 1947 and the withdrawal of the last permanent bases of the Royal Navy east of the Suez by 1970 and the Nationalization of the Suez canal by Egypt in 1956.

[ovcatto]

Originally Posted by mwruckman

One should also include the economic output of the British Empire which was mostly controled from the UK. The British Pound Sterling was the worlds principle reserve currency before 1945. Until 1947 Britain could count on places like Canada, Australia, British Africa India or Malaya to provide military units and in some cases ships and planes for the Imperial War machine. The US took over from Britain after the 1945 when it surrendered its role as world peace keeper, to the UN and the USA, agreed to the Breton Woods system where the US dollar replaced the pound as the world's principle currency. Other milestones were the decolonialization started with British India and Burma in 1947 and the withdrawal of the last permanent bases of the Royal Navy east of the Suez by 1970 and the Nationalization of the Suez canal by Egypt in 1956.

We have a winner.

[MrRational]

Originally Posted by mwruckman

Until 1947 Britain could...

Until the end of WW1 they still had an empire like momentum to press influence.
Until the start of WW2 they were able to pretend the 20th Century really hadn't come.
But '47 was just the long delayed funeral. The empire had been dead for a long time before then.

The filial tie contribution during WW2 by former colonies of the Empire notwithstanding.

[Escort Rider]

There is more than one way to measure a nation's power, the two major methods being gross domestic product (economic strength) and military power. Military power is a function of what percent of GDP is devoted to creating it and maintaining it. Consider North Korea, for example. The people are starving but everything goes into their military. So North Korea ranks much, much higher on a list of military powers than on a list of economic powers.

Considered in this dual way, the United States was worse than a third-rate military power prior to World War II. We simply maintained a tiny military. That's why I do not consider that the U.S. displaced Britain as a world power until some point during WW II. My own choice of date for the change would be May, 1945 (the time of the German surrender). At that point Britain was exhausted in every respect - financially, in terms of war weariness, in terms of numbers killed, in terms of their ability to hold onto their empire.