![Ensuring Freedom of the Seas [Icelandic], 1942 US poster: A photograph shows the deck and superstructure of a US battleship](../images/us-owi-ensuring-freedom-of-the-seas-icelandic-1942.jpg)
Ensuring Freedom of the Seas [Icelandic]
A photograph shows the deck and superstructure of a US battleship with its gun barrels firing into a cloud of smoke and sailors in the foreground, above an Icelandic text block, a US flag and a portrait of President Roosevelt. The text gives only the ship's cost, firepower and fleet counts and frames the ships as the US answer to those who would prevent free navigation (card-stacking), and the flag and presidential portrait lend authority (transfer).
Propaganda techniques used in this poster
- Date
- 1942
- Period
- Second World War
- Made by
- Office of War Information (NARA RG 44 series; issuer not printed on the sheet)
- Region
- North America
- Country
- United States
- Medium
- Poster
- Issuer type
- State
- Regime
- Roosevelt Administration
- Leader
- Franklin D. Roosevelt
- Audience
- Foreign public
- Purpose
- Persuade or win support
- Theme
- War and the military
- Event
- World War II
- Regime
- Roosevelt administration
- Leader
- Franklin D. Roosevelt
- Source
- Identified Openly sourced: the speaker is who they say they are
- Source
- U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, Record Group 44, World War II Foreign Posters, retrieved October 3, 2026
- Rights
- Public domain (U.S. government work, NARA RG 44 OWI series)
Office of War Information, 1942-1945. National Archives and Records Administration, RG 44 (NAID 44268455, 44-PF-R-5j).
Text on the object
HÖFIN SKULU VERA FRJÁLS Sextán þumlunga fallbyssurnar á þessú nýja Bandaríkja herskipi sem, sýndar eru á þessari mynd skjóta kúlum sem koma niður 26 mílur frá skipinu. Þetta er herskip sem kostaði 65 milljónir dollaraog er eitt af fimm sem nýlega hefur verið hleypt af stokkunum og á það ekki jafninga sinn hvað viðvíkur vopnum og skotmagni. Bandaríkjin hafa nú 343 herskip á sjónum og nú er verið að smíða 345 til viðauka og eru þessi herskip svarið sem Bandaríkjin gefa þeim þjóðum sem gera tilraun til þess fyrirbyggja frjálsar siglingar. ROOSEVELT, FORSETI
THE SEAS SHALL BE FREE The sixteen-inch guns on this new United States warship, shown in this picture, fire shells that come down 26 miles from the ship. This is a warship that cost 65 million dollars and is one of five recently launched, and it has no equal in weapons and firepower. The United States now has 343 warships at sea and 345 more are now being built, and these warships are the answer the United States gives to those nations that attempt to prevent free navigation. ROOSEVELT, PRESIDENT
