Isolationist interests in the government kept the United States on the sidelines at the start of WW II, but public opinion was starting to turn. President Roosevelt had authorized the sale of supplies and ammunition to Britain on a “cash and carry” basis, meaning all purchases had to be paid for in advance, before delivery. But when Britain ran out of money for the purchases, Roosevelt authorized the Lend-Lease Act, which delivered supplies without charge, and expanded the list of recipient countries beyond just Britain.

On this day, November 24, in 1941 the U.S. negotiate a lend-lease agreement with the Free French, the partisan resistance movement in occupied France.

As the Free French had to lead a necessarily mobile and spartan existence to stay one step ahead of the German security forces, they relied heavily on American aid for everything from equipment and ammunition, to medical supplies and clothes. Lend-lease supplies also went to China, who was fighting Japan, Australia, and New Zealand. The Soviet Union, bearing the brunt of the German attacks, took the lion’s share of the lend-lease supplies.