Download World War II

WORLD WAR II
The Rise of Stalin in the USSR
– Lenin had been authoritarian
– Stalin leads USSR into harsh dictatorship
»Five-Year Plan
• Eliminated private property
- Puts peasants onto collective farms
• Eliminates kulaks or “better off
peasants”
- Sent to “re-education” camps
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The Great Purges
– Nearly eight million opponents of Stalin
arrested
– Most died in forced labor camps or were
executed
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Fascism (more of a methodology than an
ideology)
Falsely Associated
with “Right Wing”
How are we all
“Bound Together”?
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Fascism
1. Reject rationality/Govern based on
emotion
2. Superiority/inferiority of groups
3. Subjugate the inferior group
4. Rejecting individual rights in favor of
corporatism (workers for the state)
5. Demand that economic activity support
the corporate state
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Fascism
6. The state is a living thing (Organic State
Theory)
7. The individual’s highest expression is in
the people (volk in Germany)
8. The people’s highest expression (and by
extension, the individual’s) is in the
leader (fürhrer in Germany)
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The Rise of Fascism in Europe
– Benito Mussolini “Il Duce” seizes power in
1922 in the name of “Law and Order”
–Public works, building
projects and Social Security
make Mussolini popular
–Il Duce purges his
opposition like Stalin
–In 1935, Italy attacks
Ethiopia (Abyssinia)
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Worse than Mussolini is his friend and Fascist
neighbor
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Adolph Hitler
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The Growth of Nazism
– Popular/Cultural reaction to World War I
»Germans could NOT deal with defeat
»Nazis promise to repudiate Treaty of
Versailles
– Treaty of Versailles de-militarized Germany
»Military officers support Nazis because
they promise to repudiate the Treaty of
Versailles
– Inflation destroying savings and faith in
existing government – Nazis have answers
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The Rise of Hitler
– Depression hits Germany hard
»President Hindenburg gives Chancellor
Heinrich Brüning emergency powers
– Hitler uses mass media to his advantage
»Nazis were effective
communicators/propagandists
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Group of industrialists, landowners and bankers
back Hitler for Chancellor
– Appointed January 30, 1933
– February 27 – Reichstag burns
– March 23 – Enabling Act
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Night of the Long Knives
– June 30, 1934 – SA leadership purged
David Low,
They salute
with both
hands now
(3rd July,
1934)
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The dark side – extreme racism and the idea of
Nordic racial supremacy
Assassinated opponents or sent them to
concentration camps
Deprived the Jewish population of civil rights
– 1935 – Nuremberg Laws
»Kristallnacht
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1936 – Hitler reoccupies the Rhineland, the
demilitarized zone between Germany and
France
1936 – Hitler and Mussolini form the RomeBerlin Axis
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1937 – Fascist strongman Francisco Franco
launches revolt against elected Communist
government in Spain
Hitler and Mussolini aid
Franco
-Early forms of
“Blitzkrieg” used against
Spanish republican army
- Franco overthrows
republican government
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Major causes of WWII
– Failure of Treaty of Versailles
– Balance of power in Europe (off balance)
– Nationalists in Germany discontented with
depression, Treaty of Versailles, etc.
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1938 – Hitler announces “Greater Germany”
He intends to annex all German speaking areas
of Europe
– Austria
»Nazi troops welcomed as heroes
Hitler then focuses on Czechoslovakia
– Sudetenland Czechs speak German
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Neville Chamberlain and “appeasement”
– Germany has legitimate grievances that need
to be addressed
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Neville Chamberlain
– Meets with Hitler in Munich in September
1938 – Declares “peace in our time”
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David Low, Spineless Leaders (pre dates Munich Conference by two
years - 8 July, 1936)
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March 1939 – German forces march into
defenseless Czechoslovakia
April 1939 – France and England and Poland
sign a mutual defense pact
– If Hitler invades Poland, it will start a
second World War
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The Start of World War II
– August 23, 1939 – German / Soviet Union
nonaggression pact
– September 1, 1939 – Hitler launches
invasion of Poland
– September 3, 1939 – England and France
declare war on Germany
»World War II has started
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Hitler conquers Europe
– Poland falls in only five weeks
»Blitzkrieg
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Hitler conquers Europe
– Poland falls in only five weeks
»Blitzkrieg
– “Phony War” - October 1939 and April
1940
– April 9, 1940 – Hitler invades Denmark and
Norway
– May 10, 1940 – Hitler launches Blitzkrieg
on France
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The Fall of France
– May 1940 - British troops forced to evacuate
at Dunkirk
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The Fall of France
– May 1940 - British troops forced to evacuate
at Dunkirk
– June 10, 1940 – Paris is surrounded by
Hitler’s troops
– June 22, 1940 – France surrenders to Hitler
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France Divided
– Northern France Occupied by Germans
– Southern France (Vichy France)
»Henri Philippe Petain – signs armistice
with Hitler
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The Battle of Britain
– Britons hold on – are NOT demoralized by
constant bombing
»Tens of thousands of civilians killed
“If the British Empire lasts a thousand years,
men would say ‘This was their finest hour.’”
– Winston Churchill
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The Battle of Britain
– Hitler Fails
»Attacks Russia instead
»June 22, 1941
– England and USA both offer aid to Russia
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Aid for the Allies
– US reluctant to enter war
– “Waiting to be pushed into the situation”
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Hitler begins to “Push Roosevelt into it”
– Sept. 4, 1941 – USS Greer fired upon by
German U-Boat
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– Oct. 17, 1941 – USS Kearny damaged by
German U-Boat torpedo
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– Oct. 31, 1941 – USS Reuben James sunk by
German U-Boat
• 44 Survivors – 100 Dead
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Increasing Friction with Japan
– US cuts off steel and petroleum to Japan
after June 1940
»Japan turns to Italy and Germany for these
resources
• September 1940 –Rome-Berlin Axis
becomes Rome-Berlin-Tokyo Axis
– July 1941 – Japanese assets in US frozen
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– October 1941 - Japanese hardliners take
over government
»Prince Konoye resigns as Prime Minister replaced by Hideki Tojo
– November 25 –naval strike force under the
command of Isoroku Yamamoto launches
»Akagi, Kaga, Soryu, Hiryu, Shokaku and
Zuikaku
– Negotiations fail – US refuses to lift
embargo and continues to support Chinese
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Pearl Harbor
– Japan’s “Purple Cipher” codes broken
• Speculation: Japan will attack Malaya
or the Philippines
• December 7, General Marshall informs
Pacific commanders of potential threat
- The message reached Hawaii after
the bombs started falling
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WAR – December 8, 1941 – Congress declares
war on Japan
– Rep. Rankin of Montana is the only NO vote
– December 11 – Germany and Italy declare
war on the United States
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The War Fronts
– The Doolittle Raid
Original Film taken from Thirty Seconds over Tokyo (1944)
Original Film showing Ted Lawson’s take-off without flaps
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The War Fronts
– The Year of Retreat
»Japanese capture Singapore, Hong Kong,
Dutch East Indies and Burma
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The Year of Retreat
– May 1942 – US and Philippine forces
surrender after Battles of Bataan and
Corregidor
– MacArthur retreats to Australia, promising
“I Shall Return”
– Bataan Death March
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The War Fronts
– Hitler remains the priority
»Pacific war is a “holding” operation until
US ready for a two front war
»Early 1942 – First GIs arrive in Britain
»Late 1942 –Operation Torch, invasion of
N. Africa
• General Erwin Rommel – Afrika Corps
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Pacific Theatre
– Japanese carriers advancing on Australia
– May 4-8, 1942 - Battle of the Coral Sea –
US Carriers meet Japanese Carriers
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Battle of the Coral Sea
– Japanese lose carrier Shoho
– Carrier Shokaku seriously damaged
– Carrier Zuikaku’s air wing destroyed
– Americans lose carrier USS Lexington
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Battle of the Coral Sea
– First naval battle in history where the
opposing ships never make contact
»All fighting done by airplanes
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Pacific Theatre
– Japanese fleet on the move – but to where?
»Japanese JN-25 Codes being read:
- “AF is Short of Water”
– June 3-6, 1942 – Battle of Midway
»US and Japanese Carriers meet again
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Battle of Midway
– Yorktown, Hornet and Enterprise
– Akagi, Kaga, Soryu and Hiryu
»June 4 – Akagi, Kaga and Soryu all sunk
»June 6 – USS Yorktown damaged and
abandoned
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Battle of Midway
– June 6 – Hiryu sunk
– June 7 – Yorktown sunk by Japanese
submarine
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The Significance of Midway and Aircraft Carriers:
United States
Japan
Dec 7, 1941
Eight Fleet Aircraft Carriers
(Large Carriers with 80+ airplanes)
Ten Fleet Aircraft Carriers
Coral Sea
May 1942
Seven Carriers (- 1 at Coral Sea)
Eleven Carriers (- 1 at Coral Sea ,
+ 2 New)
Midway
June 1942
Eight Carriers (-1 at Midway, + 2
New)
Seven Carriers (-4 at Midway)
New
Carriers
up to
August
1945
(Not
counting
losses)
24 New Fleet Carriers
15 New Fleet Carriers
AT LEAST 126 Escort Carriers
(Small Carriers that carry 15 to 20
airplanes)
10 Escort Carriers
4 Charger Class
45 Bogue Class
23 Commencement Bay
Class (not converts)
4 Sangamon Class
50 Casablanca
Class
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Battle of Midway
– The turning point in the Pacific War
»Japan in facing a defensive war without
experienced carrier pilots and fewer
carriers than US
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August 1942 to February 1943 – Battle of
Guadalcanal
– “Island Hopping” campaign begins at
Guadalcanal
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The Holocaust
– Wannsee Conference (Jan. 20, 1942)
»Hitler’s “Final Solution to the Jewish
Problem”
– American’s DO NOT bomb gas chambers
»“Essential resources” would be diverted
from military targets
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Germany and Russia
– German troops had reached Moscow in
September 1941
– 1941-42 were stand-off between Germans
and Russians
– Battle of Stalingrad – Winter 1942-43
»Thousands of Germans surrender
»German fortunes decline after Stalingrad
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Spring 1943
– Germans slowly retreat from Russia
– German Afrika Korps defeated by George S.
Patton and Bernard Montgomery
»Rommel escapes
»250,000 Axis troops surrender
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Summer 1943
– Allies invade Sicily
»Operation Husky, 9 July 1943
Lt. Col. Lyle
Bernard discusses
military strategy
with Lt. Gen.
George S. Patton,
10 July 1943
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Summer 1943
– Allies invade Sicily
»Operation Husky, 9 July 1943
»Mussolini resigns – Germans fortify
Italian Peninsula
Fall 1943
– Allies invade Salerno, 10 September
»Germans slowly retreat to north
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The Teheran Meeting – Nov. 1943
– Stalin, Churchill and Roosevelt meet to plan
military operations against Germany
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Winter 1944 – Russia
– German slow retreat becomes fast retreat
»Leningrad freed in January
»Russians reach Poland in February
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Summer 1944 – Italy
– German slow retreat becomes fast retreat
»Rome freed on June 4
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Summer 1944 – Invasion of France
– Prior Deception in Sicily invasion
»Operation Mincemeat
• The Man who Never Was
- Fake dead officer
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Hitler was convinced that the Mediterranean
invasion was coming in Greece and Sardinia
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Summer 1944 – Invasion of France
– Massive Deception for D-Day
»Operation Fortitude
• First US Army Group (FUSAG)
• Paper Airplanes – inflatable tanks
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Summer 1944 – France
– Allies open second front – Operation
Overloard
»Dwight Eisenhower
»June 6, 1944 – D-Day
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Summer 1944 – France
– Late July – 3rd Army breaks out of
Normandy & drives for Germany
– August 25 – Paris Liberated
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September 1944
– Patton v. Montgomery
»Patton wants to push straight to Berlin
»Monty wants to go north around the
Siegfried line
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September 1944
– Eisenhower accepts Monty’s plan
»Operation Market-Garden
• Market = Airborne
• Garden = Ground forces coming from
the south
OPERATION MARKET-GARDEN
At Arnhem:
– British 1st Airborne = 10,000 men
– Polish 1st Parachute Brigade = 600 Men
»Held out for 9 days (planned for 4)
»Ground troops never reached Arnhem
• ~1500 died
• ~6500 captured
• ~2400 rescued by elements of the U.S.
82nd and 101st
OPERATION MARKET-GARDEN
At Nijmegen:
– US 82nd Airborne dropped ~ 12,000
»~1500 casualties (KIA, POW, Injured)
At Eindhoven:
– US 101st Airborne dropped ~12,000
»~2100 casualties
From the south (ground troops):
– British XXX Corps ~ 50,000
»?? casualties
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Winter 1944-45
– Battle of the Bulge
»Last ditch effort for German Army
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Yalta Conference – February 1945
– Churchill, Roosevelt and Stalin meet again
»Agree to root out Nazis
»Agree to San Francisco Conference to
create “United Nations”
»“Agree” to let USSR keep eastern Europe
/ Expand into Poland
• Foundations of Cold War
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Invasion of Germany - Spring 1945
– Germans may hate Hitler, but they will
defend the Fatherland!
– Spring weather came early, in February
– German Autobahn provides transportation
infrastructure for invaders!
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Spring 1945
– April 22 – Russians reach Berlin
– April 25 – Russian and American soldiers
meet face to face
– April 30 – Hitler commits suicide
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May 7 – German military commanders
surrender
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Pacific War
– After Midway and Guadalcanal Japanese
fighting defensive war
»Japanese VERY strong on the defensive
– October 25, 1944 – Japanese launch first
Kamikaze attacks in Leyte Gulf
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Iwo Jima – Feb-March 1945
– 27,000 Japanese defenders
»21,000 Japanese deaths
– 110,000 US attackers
»6,000 US deaths
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Okinawa – April-June 1945
– 110,000 Japanese defenders (estimated)
»109,000 Japanese deaths
»100,000 CIVILIAN deaths (many by
suicide)
– 190,000 US attackers
»12,000 US deaths
INVADE JAPAN?
2,000,000 Japanese defenders (estimated)
– 1,500,000 or more estimated military deaths
– 1,000,000 or more estimated CIVILIAN
deaths (they WILL commit suicide)
»(One War Dept. estimate said up to TEN
MILLION dead Japanese)
3,000,000 or more US attackers needed
– 1,000,000 or more estimated US deaths
3.5 MILLION or more estimated dead if US
invades Japanese mainland
The War
department
ordered
500,000 Purple
Hearts to
accommodate
expected
casualties in the
invasion of
Japan
Leo Szilard and Albert Einstein send letter to
FDR outlining the dangers of a German bomb
project on August 2, 1939
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The Manhattan Project
– J. Robert Oppenheimer
– Harry S. Truman
»Knew NOTHING about the bomb as VP
Trinity Test Site – July 16, 1945
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August 6, 1945
Hiroshima – Enola Gay and Little Boy
– 60,000 dead
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August 9, 1945
Kokura / Nagasaki – Bock’s Car and Fat Man
– 35,000 dead
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Japan Surrenders – September 2, 1945
– USS Missouri
Lecture 13