Download 1 U. S. History World War II Prelude to Global War I. Fascism and

WILHITE
U. S. History
World War II
Prelude to Global War
I.
Fascism and Nazism
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1920s and 1930s totalitarian governments took power in some European countries
 Italy, Spain, and Germany had governments based on fascism
 USSR had communism
 totalitarian governments place importance of the nation above the individual
Italy was governed by Benito Mussolini
 Mussolini felt his country had been shortchanged in the Versailles Treaty
 1919, he joined with other dissatisfied war veterans to organize the revolutionary Fascist party
 calling himself Il Duce (“the leader”), Mussolini organized Fascist groups throughout Italy
 he relied on gangs of Fascist thugs, called Blackshirts because of the way they dressed, to
terrorize and bring under control those who opposed him
 by 1922 Mussolini had become such a powerful figure that when he threatened to march on
Rome, the king panicked and appointed him prime minister
 claiming that efficiency and order were necessary to restore the nation’s greatness, Mussolini
and the Fascists suspended elections, outlawed all other political parties, and soon established a
dictatorship
 1935, Mussolini invaded Ethiopia
 by March 1936 the East African nation was in the Italian hands
Germany was governed by Adolf Hitler
 he was enraged by the outcome of the war and by the terms of Versailles Treaty
 1919, Hitler joined a small political party which soon took the name National Socialist German
Workers’ party, or Nazi party
 Nov. 1923, with 3,000 followers, Hitler led an unsuccessful revolt against the German
government
 he was sentenced to 5 years in prison, but only served 9 months
 while in prison he wrote the first volume of an autobiography titled Mein Kampf (“My Struggle”).
 outlined the Nazi philosophy, his views of Germany’s problems, and his plans for the nation
 he was critical of the nation’s Jewish population, which he blamed for many of Germany’s
problems
 proposed strengthening the nation’s military and expanding its borders to include Germans
living in other nations - lebensraum
 called for purifying the so-called Aryan “race” (blond, blue-eyed Germans) by eliminating
those groups he considered undesirable
 Germany suffered high unemployment and massive inflation in the 1920s
 early 1930s, the effects of the Great Depression further hurt the German people
 Hitler and the Nazis promised to stabilize the country
 by Jan.1933 the Nazis were the largest group in the Reichstag (the German parliament)
 Nazis burned the Reichstag building and successfully blamed the communists
 Hitler convinced the Reichstag to give him dictatorial powers and took for himself the title of
Der Fuhrer (the “leader”)
 suspended civil liberties
II. Europe Goes to War
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Hitler saw expansion as a way to bolster national pride
 he wanted to return Germany to a dominant position in the world
March 9, 1936, German troops moved into the Rhineland
1936, Hitler signed an alliance with the Italian dictator, Mussolini.
 created and "axis" between Germany and Italy
 Japan joined later and the three nations became known as the Axis Powers
March, 1938 Hitler sent German troops into the neighboring nation of Austria and annexed it
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later, he demanded the Sudetenland, a region of western Czechoslovakia with a heavily German
population
Britain and France followed a policy of appeasement
 because of the memory of World War I they did not want another war
Sept., 1938 at the Munich Conference, Britain and France agreed to let Hitler have the Sudetenland
and Hitler promised not to seek any more territory
March, 1939 Hitler annexed the rest of Czechoslovakia
 British and French leaders warned him that any further German expansion risked war
 March 31, 1939, they formally pledged their support to Poland, agreeing to come to its aid if
invaded by Germany
Hitler invaded Poland on Sep. 1, 1939
 Britain and France declared war on Germany
in invading Poland, the German military unveiled a tactic called blitzkrieg, or “lightning war”
 Germany overran Poland in less than a month
after Poland was defeated, the war entered a quiet period the Germans labeled the Sitzkrieg, or “sitdown war”
France relied on the Maginot Line for defense
 Maginot Line was a system of fortifications on the eastern frontier of France, along its border
with Germany, begun in 1929, extending from Switzerland to Belgium
 it was named for André Maginot the French minister of war (1929-32) who directed its
construction
April 9, 1940, Hitler launched an attack on Denmark and Norway
May 10, German troops attacked Belgium, the Netherlands, and France
British forces in France, and some French forces retreated to the coastal city of Dunkirk
 Churchill organized a makeshift fleet to rescue the troops
 one of the great rescues in history
 allowing the escape of the British and French at Dunkirk was one of the major mistakes which
ultimately lost the war for Germany
June 14, German troops entered the city of Paris and a few days later France surrendered
 in less than 3 months Hitler had conquered most of Western Europe
Germany massed troops on the French coast
 Hitler's next target was Great Britain, 20 miles away across the English Channel
 Hitler was reluctant to invade Great Britain
 he turned to the Luftwaffe (German air force) to destroy Britain’s ability and will to resist
 he launched one of the greatest air assaults in history
 this became known as the Battle of Britain
 as many as 1,000 planes day rained bombs on Britain
 Britain's Royal Air Force (RAF) was greatly outnumbered
 pilots sometimes flew six and seven missions a day
 Churchill said: Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few.
 June 1941, Hitler ended the bombing
III. The American Response
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after the outbreak of war in Europe, isolationists wanted the United States to stay out of the war and
let Europe take care of its own problems
 Americans disillusioned by WWI
 Roosevelt said that the U.S. would remain neutral
mid-1930s, Congress had responded to isolationist sentiment by passing a series of Neutrality Acts
 declared that the United States would withhold weapons and loans from all nations at war
1938, President Franklin D. Roosevelt began a naval buildup in the Pacific
1939, he moved the American Pacific Fleet from San Diego, California, to Pearl Harbor in the
Hawaiian Islands
after the war began, Congress passed the Neutrality Act of 1939
 law permitted Britain and France to purchase weapons on a cash-and carry basis
September 1940, Roosevelt traded 50 destroyers to Britain in return for permission to build bases on
British territory in the Western Hemisphere
 bases for destroyers
Selective Service Act of 1940 required all males ages 21 to 36 register for military service
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Lend-Lease Act in March 1941 authorized the President to aid any nation whose defense he
believed was vital to American security
August 1941, Prime Minister Winston Churchill and President Franklin Roosevelt met aboard a
warship in the North Atlantic off the coast of Newfoundland and agreed on war goals
 Churchill and Roosevelt believed the United States would soon be allied with Britain in the war
 reached an agreement known as the Atlantic Charter
 declared that the U.S. and Britain sought no territorial gains from the war
 proclaimed the right of all peoples to choose their own form of government and not to have
boundary changes imposed on them
IV. Japan Builds an Empire
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discontent spread in Japan after 1930, as the Great Depression added to Japan’s economic woes
 military leaders argued that policy of imperialist expansion would help bring recovery by
providing Japan with raw materials and new markets
1931, Japan invaded Manchuria to get natural resources
1937, Japan invaded China
 the US sent aid to China
 by 1940, Japan controlled most of China
September 1940, Japan formed an alliance with Nazi Germany and Italy
 called the Tripartite Alliance or Tripartite Pact
April 1941, the Japanese signed a neutrality pact with the Soviet Union
V. Japan Attacks Pearl Harbor
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soon after France fell to the Germans, the Japanese demanded control of French colonies in
Indochina
 in mid-1941 Japanese forces occupied the region
in response, Roosevelt froze Japanese financial assets in the United States and cut off all trade with
Japan
October 1941, General Hideki Tojo became Prime Minister of Japan
the United States demanded that Japan withdraw from all conquered territory and from its Tripartite
Alliances with Germany and Italy
shortly after 7:00 A.M. on December 7, and American army radar operator on the Hawaiian island of
Oahu reported to his headquarters that planes were headed toward him
Japanese planes bombed and strafed (attacked with machine gun fire) the American Pacific Fleet at
anchor in Pearl Harbor
 in less than two hours some 2,400 Americans had been killed and 1,200 wounded
showed the impact a single event can have on public opinion a time of crisis
calling December 7, 1941 “ A day which will live in infamy,” the next day Roosevelt asked Congress
to declare war on Japan
 Congress complied
three days later, Germany and Italy declared war on the United States
Mobilizing For War
I. Americans Mobilize for War
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15 million Americans served as soldiers, sailors, and aviators during World War II
American soldiers called themselves GIs, after the ‘Government Issue” stamp that appeared on all
clothes, shoes, weapons, and other equipment provided by the military
Americans from all ethnic and racial backgrounds fought during World War II
 among these were more than 300,000 Mexican Americans and 25,000 Native Americans
 Marines recruited about 300 Navajos to serve as radio operators
 they developed a code based on their language that the Japanese could not break when
they eavesdropped on marine radio transmissions
 they became known as “code talkers”
 Japanese Americans were not accepted in the armed forces until early 1943
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 17,000 Japanese Americans eventually fought in the American armed services
 most were Nisei, or citizens born in the United States of Japanese immigrant parents
 the all Nisei 442nd Regiment became the most decorated military unit in American history
 nearly a million African Americans volunteered or were drafted to serve in the military
 African Americans fought in segregated units
 Army Air Corps 99th Fighter Squadron, known as the Black Eagles, shot down more than
110 enemy planes
 many black pilots were trained at Tuskegee, AL - became known as Tuskegee Airmen
nearly 275,000 American women had volunteered for military service
 WASPs: Women Air Force Service Pilots
 WAVES: Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service
 WACs: Women’s Army Corps
The Shift to Wartime Production
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supplying goods to the Allied forces at the start of World War II helped boost the American economy
 brought a swift end to the Great Depression
many industries converted to wartime production
for example-clothing workers made uniforms, tents and mosquito nets
I. Mobilizing the Economy for War
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Roosevelt understood that the outcome of the war ultimately depended on America’s ability to
produce enough bombers, tanks, uniforms, and other war materials
April 1941, an executive order established the Office of Price Administration (OPA).
 OPA was created to keep shortages from sending up prices and rents and causing inflation
 to regulate distribution of food and other consumer goods, the OPA issued ration books
 meat, butter, flour, shoes, fuel and other things were rationed
 the war created shortages of metal, rubber, nylon and various foods
 the items were needed for the war and so people had to do without some things zippers,
stockings, girdles, sugar, coffee
 to help make up for food sent to soldiers people were encouraged to plant Victory gardens
War Production Board (WPB) was created in January 1942 to direct the conversion of peacetime
industries to those that made war goods
May 1943, the President organized a "super agency", the Office of War Mobilization
 James F. Byrnes headed it
 Byrnes had such board authority that he was often called the “assistant president”
 factories stopped making consumer products and converted to making military products
 2/1/42 the last cars rolled off the assembly lines and auto workers began making bombers
Henry J. Kaiser introduced mass production techniques to shipbuilding and set production speed
records
 Kaiser made Liberty ships – large, sturdy merchant ships that usually carried supplies or troops,
but were sometimes converted to hospital ships or other uses
 1941, it took an average of 150 days to build one Liberty ship
 Kaiser's shipyards cut building time to an average of 46 days
the government established the “cost-plus” system for military contracts.
 the military paid development and production costs, plus a percentage of costs as profit
thousands of business executives went to Washington to work in the new government agencies
 they received a token “dollar-a-year” salary, while remaining on their own companies’ payroll
Robert Woodruff, head of Coca-Cola declared in December 1941: “We will see that every man in
uniform gets a bottle of Coca-Cola for five cents wherever he is and whatever it costs [the company]”
 by the time the war was over, American troops had drunk 5 billion bottles of Coca-Cola
December 1940, Franklin Roosevelt had told Americans that the country must become “the great
arsenal of democracy”
 the U.S. had an abundance of natural resources and an industrial infrastructure that was not
affected by the war and was therefore in a better position to supply needed materials to the
Allies than was any other country
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the middle of 1945, the U.S. had produced around 300,000 airplanes; 80,000 landing craft; 100,000
tanks and armored cars; 5,600 merchant ships; 6 million rifles, carbines, and machine guns; and 41
billion rounds of ammunition
II. The Wartime Work Force
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war production benefited workers
many blacks and poor whites leave the South to get jobs in northern factories
average weekly wages in manufacturing, adjusted for inflation, rose 27 percent on a little over 3
years
 union membership increased
two weeks after the attack on Pearl Harbor, labor and business representatives agreed to refrain
from strikes and “lockouts”
 still, the number of strikes doubled between 1942 and 1943
 some strikes were wildcat strikes (organized by the workers themselves and not endorsed by the
unions)
the National War Labor Board (NWLB) was created in 1942 to help settle labor disputes in defense
industries
June 1943, Congress passed the Smith-Connally Act to limit future strike activity
III. Financing the War
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federal spending increased from $9.4 billion in 1939 to $95.2 billion in 1945
 the Gross National Product (GNP) more than doubled in that time
overall, the cost to the federal government between 1941 and 1945 was about $321 billion
 ten times as much as World War I
the Revenue Act of 1942 increased the number of Americans who paid income taxes from 13 million
to 50 million
 introduced the idea of withholding income taxes from people’s paychecks, known as “pay-asyou-go”
government borrowed money from banks, private investors, and the public
 late 1942, the Treasury Department launched bond drives to encourage Americans to buy war
bonds
 war bond sales brought in about $156 billion
Daily Life on the Home Front
I. Wartime Popular Culture
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U.S. population grew by 7.5 million between 1940 and 1945
 the postwar “baby boom” that extended through the 1950’s really began during World War II
people bought and read more books and magazines
 1939, Robert de Graff started Pocket Books company
 developed a market for small-size paperback books
 34,000 copies of the first Pocket Book, Dale Carnegie’s How to Influence People, were sold in
only 2 months
Hollywood contributed to the war effort
 director Frank Capra made a series of films for the army called Why We Fight
popular sports changed as a result of the war
 more than 4,000 of the 5,700 major and minor league baseball players were in the military
 1943, Philip Wrigley founded the All-American Girls’ Softball League, which became the AllAmerican Girls’ Baseball League in 1945
as in World War I, many popular songs encouraged hope and patriotism
in the 1942 film Holiday Inn, Bing Crosby sang Irving Berlin’s song “White Christmas”
II. Shortages and Controls
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some familiar consumer items were unavailable “for the duration” of the war
 metal to make zippers or typewriters was used for guns
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 rubber for girdles went into tires for army trucks
 nylon made parachutes instead of stockings
to conserve cloth, government regulations changed fashions
 dresses became shorter and men's suits were made without vests
 women's fashion also changed because of changing roles in the work place
 women began wearing pants because dresses were impractical for factory work
sugar became scarce when the Philippines, the major source of American imports, fell to the
Japanese
Office of Price Administration (OPA) was given authority to freeze rents and prices
beginning in 1943, the OPA assigned point values to items such as sugar, coffee, meat, butter,
canned fruit, and shoes
 consumers were issued ration books of coupons worth a certain number of points for categories
of food or clothing
III. Enlisting Public Support
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June 1942, the Office of War Information was created
 hired writers and artist to create patriotic ads and posters
the Secretary of Agriculture suggested that families could plant home gardens to make up for the
farm produce sent to feed the soldiers
 became known as "victory gardens"
men too old for the army joined the Civilian Defense
 wearing their CD armbands as they tested air-raid sirens
shortages produced efforts to recycle scrap metal, paper, and other materials
 government used slogans such as: "Play your part." "Conserve and collect."
Changes for Working Women
I. Changes for Working Women
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World War II brought women into different parts of the work force
women worked in airplane plants and shipyards as riveters, steelworkers, and welders
despite the increased number of working women, there was a labor shortage
to fill those jobs, the Office of War Information launched a recruitment campaign
posters and advertisements told women that it was their patriotic duty to work for their country
 the government used images of Rosie the Riveter - fictional young woman who worked in a
factory - in posters and recruitment films of the 1940s to attract woman to the work force
 as a result of this campaign, the number of working women increased by almost one third
women began wearing pants because dresses were impractical for factories
 women also cut their hair shorter for industrial work
 the government even asked well known Hollywood actresses to cut their long hair so style
conscience women workers would do the same and save time and prevent accidents
II. Benefits of Employment
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many women earned money for the first time
the money they earned made a difference in their lives
some women found the work more interesting and challenging than what they had done before
women were eager to prove that they could do whatever their jobs required
black women had long worked in greater proportion than white women
 black women often faced both gender prejudice and racial discrimination
 between 1940 and 1944, the proportion of black women in industrial jobs increased from 6.8
percent to 18 percent
 the number working domestic service dropped from 59.9 percent to 44.6 percent
III. Problems for Working Women
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many working women also worried about leaving their children alone
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women usually earned much less than men doing the same jobs
the National War Labor Board declared in the fall of 1942 that women who performed “work of the
same quality and quantity” as men should receive equal pay
 the policy was widely ignored
 women began at the bottom, with the lowest-paying jobs, because they had less seniority
IV After the War
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the government drive to bring women to defense plants assumed that when the war was over,
women would leave their jobs and return home
 war work was just “for the duration”
after the war, a campaign by industrialists and government officials encouraged women to leave their
jobs
articles in women’s magazines changed their emphasis after the war
 they focused on homemaking, cooking., and child care
The Struggle for Justice at Home
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in his 1942 Columbus Day speech , President Roosevelt expressed the need to overcome bigotry for
the sake of the wartime effort
 "We can no longer afford to indulge in such prejudice." ~F. Roosevelt
I. Discrimination Continues Against African Americans
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Jim Crow system was strong in the South
the North had fewer laws enforcing segregation
 blacks in the North faced discrimination in employment, education, and housing
during the 1940s, more than 2 million blacks migrated from the South to cities in the North to seek
better jobs
segregation severely limited the houses and apartments where blacks could live
 many ended up living in urban ghettos
June 1943, riots in Detroit killed 34 people and did millions of dollars’ worth of damage
 later the same summer, race riots broke out in New York City
in the military white and black troops were segregated
 German POWs in the US could eat where black GIs could not
The Pittsburgh Courier, a black newspaper, started a Double V campaign
 the first "V" was for victory against the Axis powers
 the second was for victory in winning equality at home
the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) was founded in Chicago in 1942
 believed in using non-violent techniques to end racism
II. A. Philip Randolph
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many unions did not accept black members
Phillip Randolph worked to overcome discrimination in unions
 he made a place for blacks in the labor movement
he planned a massive march on Washington for July 4, 1941
 June 25, 1941, President Roosevelt signed Executive Order 8802
 prohibited racial discrimination in hiring in war industries
 created the Fair Employment Practices Committee (FEPC)
 Randolph called off the march
III. Mexican Americans
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the wartime economy brought Mexican Americans new job opportunities in defense industries,
especially on the west coast
shortage of farm labors led the United States to seek help from Mexico
 U.S. and Mexico made an agreement to provide for transportation, food, shelter, and medical
care for Mexican farm workers called braceros
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1940s some young Mexicans in the Los Angeles barrio began to wear a style known as the “zoot
suit”
 this look offended many people, especially sailors
 sailors roamed the streets looking for "zoot-suiters" who they beat up and humiliated
 early June 1943, the street fighting turned into full-scale riots
more than 300,000 Mexican Americans served in the military
IV. Native Americans
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about 25,000 Native Americans served in the military
 Marines recruited about 300 Navajos to serve as radio operators
 they developed a code based on their language that the Japanese could not break when
they eavesdropped on marine radio transmissions
 they became known as “code talkers”
50,000 Native Americans worked in war industries around the country
V. Japanese Americans
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Japanese Americans suffered the worst discrimination during the war
 most lived on the west coast
 about two thirds of the Japanese American were Nisei or first generation Americans
February 19, 1942, President Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066
 authorized the Secretary of War to establish military zones on the West Coast and to remove
people from those zones
the War Relocation Authority was established to remove everyone of Japanese ancestry
 about 110,00 people, both citizens and non-citizens, were sent to internment camps
all the internment camps were in desolate areas, with wooden barracks covered with tar paper
California resident Fred Toyosaburo Korematsu, a defense-plant worker, was arrested for refusing to
report to a relocation center
 Korematsu sued claiming his civil rights were violated
 in Korematsu v. U.S. (1944) the Supreme Court ruled in that the decision was not based on race
 said, the military urgency of the situation demanded that all citizens of Japanese ancestry be
segregated from the West Coast temporarily"
1988, Congress passed a law awarding each surviving Japanese American internee a tax-free
payment of $20,00
 U.S. government also apologized
The Road to Victory in Europe
I. Fighting in North Africa and Italy
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to deliver the food and supplies that the British needed, merchant ships formed convoys
 American warships often served as escorts
Germans countered with groups of as many as 30 submarines, called wolf packs, that carried out
coordinated attacks on the convoys
 German submarines began attacking merchant ships off the American coast
 wolf packs were very effective, they sank nearly 175 ships in June 1942 alone
since August 1940, a British army had been battling Italian and German troops in North Africa
in North Africa the German army "Afrika Korps" was led by General Erwin Rommel, who was known
as the "Desert Fox"
November 1942 the British, under General Bernard Montgomery, won a decisive victory at El
Alamein in Egypt
 a few days later, British and American troops commanded by American general Dwight D.
Eisenhower landed in Morocco and Algeria and quickly pushed eastward
 May 1943 the two Allied armies came together in Tunisia, trapping Rommel's forces
Churchill and Roosevelt met in January 1943 at Casablanca, Morocco
 became known as the Casablanca Conference
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decided to continue concentrating Allied resources on Europe before trying to win the war in the
Pacific
 the Allies agreed to an invasion of Italy in the spring, invasion of France in 1944,
 agreed to accept only the unconditional surrender of Italy, Germany, and Japan
July 1943, American troops under General George S. Patton invaded Sicily
 the island fell in just 38 days
 Mussolini was overthrown
 Italy's new government surrendered
 German troops in Italy continued to resist
January 1944, an allied force landed behind the German lines at Anzio
II. War in the Soviet Union
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June 1941, nearly 3.6 million German and other Axis troops invaded the Soviet Union, from the
Baltic Sea. in the north to the Black Sea in the south
Soviets adopted a scorched earth policy, destroying everything useful to the enemy as they retreated
Stalin asked Roosevelt for help through the Lend-Lease program
 American aid did not begin until June 1942
Stalin urged his allies to launch an attack on Western Europe
the Red Army (Soviet Army) decided to make its stand at Stalingrad
 mid-September 1942 the Germans began a campaign of bombing and shelling that lasted more
than two months
 mid-November Soviet forces counterattacked and surrounded the German army
 January 31 1943, more than 90,000 surviving Germans surrendered
III. George Marshall
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Marshall was Roosevelt’s Army Chief of Staff
he became Deputy Chief Staff in 1938
Marshall pushed the President to prepare for war by strengthening the army
as Secretary of State for Harry Truman after the war, Marshall launched a massive effort to rebuild
postwar Europe
 known as the Marshall Plan.
received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1953
IV. The Invasion of Western Europe
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F. Roosevelt, W. Churchill, and J. Stalin (the "Big Three") met in Tehran, Iran November 28December 1, 1943
 called the Tehran Conference
 Stalin agreed to launch a military offensive from the east to coincide with a planned invasion of
Western Europe
 the invasion of Western Europe was code named “Operation Overlord”
 Dwight D. Eisenhower was chosen to command
the RAF had begun bombing Germany in 1940
 the Luftwaffe quickly forced the British to give up daylight missions for safer but less accurate
nighttime raids
 developed a technique called carpet bombing (A method of aerial bombing in which large
numbers of bombs are dropped over a wide area)
 German cities suffered heavy damage as a result
by 1944 British and American commanders were conducting coordinated air raids
 U.S. bombed by day - RAF bombed at night
a massive buildup of troops began in southern England as American, British, and Canadian forces
were joined by Polish, Dutch, Belgian, and French troops
June 6, 1944, the largest landing by sea in history began as some 4,600 invasion craft and warships
slipped out of their harbors in southern England
 approximately 150,000 troops invaded the French coast
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the Allies landed on June 6, 1944 at five beaches in the Normandy area with the codenames of:
Omaha Beach (American), Utah Beach (American), Sword Beach (British), Gold Beach (British),
Juno Beach (Canadian)
 Allied planes pounded the Nazi defenders and dropped thousands of paratroopers behind
German lines the night before the landings
 French Resistance forces, alerted to the imminent invasion, engaged in behind-the-lines
sabotage and combat against the occupying Germans
 Erwin Rommel, commanding general for German defenses at Normandy, was away in Germany
for his wife's birthday at the time of the invasion
 Hitler hesitated
 he thought the Normandy landing was a deception and feared a larger invasion at the
narrowest part of the English Channel near Calais along the Strait of Dover
 the Allied liberation forces doomed Hitler's dream of a Nazi controlled "Fortress Europe"
despite Allied successes, Allied troops were held in check by the Germans and confined to the
Normandy region for several weeks after D-Day
 Allied commanders devised a plan to break out of Normandy known as Operation Cobra
 Operation Cobra began July 25, 1944
 opened with heavy carpet bombing along a three mile front (some of which fell on friendly
troops)
 three US infantry divisions punched a hole in the German lines
August 1944, Allied troops liberated Paris
 the Free French 2nd Armored Division were the first in on August 24
 British and Canadian forces freed Brussels and Antwerp in Belgium a few days later
September a combined Allied force attacked the Germans occupying Holland
 at the same time Americas crossed the Western boarder of Germany
December, 1944 Germany launched a counterattack in Belgium and Luxembourg that became
known as the Battle of the Bulge
 lasted from December 16, 1944 to January 28, 1945
 largest land battle of World War II in which the United States participated
 the American 101st Airborne was surrounded at Bastogne, Belgium
 December 22 Germans demanded the American surrender
 American Brigadier General McAuliffe, commanding at Bastogne, responded with the reply,
"Nuts!"
 George Patton moved his entire army of 250,000 soldiers from western in just a few days to
help rescue Bastogne
 January 1, Hitler launched a plan he called "The Great Blow" to eliminate Allied air power
 instead it was the Luftwaffe that suffered the most losing 300 planes and 253 trained pilots
 the Germans were able to slow the Allied advance toward Germany, but the Battle of the Bulge
was an Allied victory
 after the battle most of the Nazi leaders realized the war was lost
 at the conclusion of the battle the casualties were: 81,000 U.S. with 19,000 killed, 1400 British
with 200 killed, and 100,000 Germans killed, wounded or captured
V. War Ends in Europe
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March 1945, American ground forces crossed the Rhine River and advanced toward Berlin from the
West
 Allied bombers pounded Germany
 the Soviets pushed into Germany from the East
13.6 million Soviets and 3 million German military killed accounted for more than 2/3 the total dead
for all World War II
 Soviet civilian and military deaths together estimated at 27 million
April 1945, the Soviets fought their way into Berlin, which was more than 80% destroyed by the
Allied bombing
Hitler committed suicide on April 30
Roosevelt died April12
 Harry S Truman became the President
May 8, 1945 Germany surrendered
Allies celebrated V-E Day (Victory in Europe Day)
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The Yalta Conference
 February 1945, Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin met at Yalta, a city in the Soviet Union near the
Black Sea
 the purpose was to plan for the post war world
 agreed to split Germany into four occupation zones, each under the control of one of the major
Allies
 Berlin, which would lie in the Soviet zone, would also be divided
 agreed in principle to the organization of the United Nations
 self-determination agreement for the war-torn countries of Eastern Europe
 Stalin promised to allow elections
 he also promised to enter the war against Japan
Potsdam Conference, July 17-August 2, 1945
 Stalin, Churchill, and Truman met to discuss the partitioning of the postwar world and to plan for
the final assault against Japan
 Issued an ultimatum to Japan
The War in the Pacific
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the three major theaters of World War II were the European, North African, and Pacific
I. The Japanese Advance, 1941-1942
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hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor, Japanese warplanes based in China attacked Clark Field, the
main American air base in the Philippine Islands
 Gen. Douglas MacArthur, was the commanding general of the Philippines
about half of the American planes destroyed as they sat on the ground
within days, a large Japanese force landed in the Philippines
 MacArthur withdrew his troops to the Bataan Peninsula on Manila Bay
for four months, American and Filipino troops held out on the Bataan Peninsula
March 1942, President Roosevelt ordered MacArthur to escape to Australia
 MacArthur promised: “I shall return.”
American and Filipino troops surrendered to Japanese forces in early April
 about 2,000 soldiers and nurses escaped to the fortified island of Corregidor in Manila Bay
 fought on for another month
May 6, 1942, over 11,000 Americans and Filipinos surrendered
as a result of fighting in the Philippines, about 76,000 Filipinos and Americans became prisoners of
war
 Japanese soldiers split the prisoners into groups of 500 to 1,000 and marched them some 60
miles to a railroad
 at least 10,000 prisoners died during the 6 to 12 day march in what became known as the
Bataan Death March
 guards executed many when they could not keep up
May 1942, a largely American naval group halted a Japanese advance by engaging a superior
enemy fleet in the Coral Sea, northeast of Australia
 the Battle of the Coral Sea was the first naval combat carried out entirely by aircraft
 the enemy ships never came within sight of one another
 each side lost more than half their aircraft
 the American aircraft carried Lexington was destroyed, and the Yorktown was badly damaged
 blocked an invasion of that Australia
II. Allied Victories Turn the Tide
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Japanese admiral Isoroku Yamamoto believed that American naval power still held the key to victory
or defeat in Asia
 hoped to destroy what remained of the Pacific Fleet by luring in into battle at Midway Island
 correctly believed that American admiral Chester Nimitz would use all his resources to protect
Midway
the Battle of Midway began on June 4, 1942
 it was fought entirely by air
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American planes found the Japanese carriers at a vulnerable time
 the Japanese were still loading bombs onto their planes
 the Americans swiftly demolished three of four Japanese carriers
 the fourth was destroyed trying to escape
 the lost carriers and planes dealt a devastating blow to Japan
 after the battle, Japan was unable to launch any more offensive operations
the Battles of the Coral Sea and Midway were significant in stemming the tide of Japanese advances
in the Pacific
 as a result of the Battle of Midway in the Pacific, El Alamein in North Africa, and the invasion of
Italy in Europe, the Allies began turning the tide of the war
the Allies took the offensive in the Pacific
 their first goal was to capture Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands
the Battle of Guadalcanal was fought between August 7, 1942 and February 8, 1943
 centered around a small, mountainous, jungle covered, island in the Southern Solomon Islands
 provided the marines with their first taste of jungle warfare
III. Struggle for the Islands
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from Guadalcanal, American forces began island-hoping to within striking distance of Japan
 island-hoping is a strategy of selectively attacking of bypassing a specific enemy-held islands
in 1943 and 1944, the Allies pushed north from Australia and west across the central Pacific
 forces under General MacArthur and Admiral William Halsey leapfrogged through Solomon
Islands
 other Americans led by Admiral Nimitz began a similar campaign in the Gilbert Islands
 after seizing the island of Tarawa, Nimitz used it to launch bombing raids on Japan’s bases in
the Marshall Islands
 from the Marshalls, Nimitz captured parts of the Mariana Islands in June
 American long-range bombers were able to reach Japan from this location
 by the end of 1944, American planes were dropping tons of explosives on Japanese cities
October 20, some 16,000 American troops invaded the Philippine island of Leyte
 Gen. MacArthur waded ashore and proclaimed, “People of the Philippines, I have returned.”
October 23, the Battle of Leyte Gulf [Oct. 23-25] began offshore
 greatest naval battle in world history
 more than 280 warships were engaged during the three-day battle
 American fleet commanded by Admiral William F. Halsey, Jr.
 the battle saw the first use of kamikazes by the Japanese
 the Japanese Navy was virtually destroyed
not until June 1945 were the Philippines securely in Allied hands
IV. Iwo Jima and Okinawa
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the Battle of Iwo Jima began February 19, 1945
 U.S. Marines landed on the beaches from ships offshore
 bombing of the island had begun in June 1944
 prior to the invasion, Iwo Jima suffered the longest, most intensive shelling of any Pacific
island during the war
 the 8-square-mile island’s steep rocky slopes were honeycombed with caves and tunnels
 Japanese built 800 pillboxes and over 3 miles of tunnels
 after 3 days of combat, the marines had advanced only about 700 yards inland
 eventually nearly 110,000 American troops were involved in the campaign
 fewer than 25,000 Japanese defended the island
 it took about a month for the marines to secure the island
 the last pocket of Japanese resistance was secured at Kitano Point on March 25
 was one of the bloodiest battles of the war
 American marines had 23,573 casualties
 Japanese: 1,083 POW and an estimated 20,000 killed
 27 Medals of Honor were awarded for actions on Iwo Jima
 more than any other in any single operation of the war
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the Battle of Okinawa fought, from April to June 1945, proved to be the bloodiest battle of the
Pacific War
 more than 100,000 defenders occupied the island, which was little more than 350 miles from
Japan
 Okinawa was the largest amphibious invasion of the Pacific campaign and the last major
campaign of the Pacific War
 more ships were used, more troops put ashore, more supplies transported, more bombs
dropped, more naval guns fired against shore targets than any other operation in the Pacific
 Japanese pilots flew nearly 2,000 kamikaze attacks against the American fleet
 thirty-four allied ships and craft of all types had been sunk, mostly by kamikazes, and 368
ships and craft damaged
 the fleet lost 763 aircraft
 defenders on the island made equally desperate banzai charges (attacks designed to kill as
many of the enemy as possible while dying in battle)
 casualties: more than 38,000 Americans wounded and 12,000 killed or missing, more than
107,000 Japanese and Okinawan conscripts killed, and as many as 100,000 Okinawan civilians
killed
 only 7,200 defenders remained to surrender
 more people died during the Battle of Okinawa than all those killed during the atomic
bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
 American losses at Okinawa were so heavy that Congress called for an investigation into the
conduct of the military commanders
V. The Manhattan Project
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1939, Albert Einstein suggested to President Roosevelt that an incredibly powerful new type of bomb
could be built
 he hinted that the German were already working on such a weapon
 Roosevelt organized the top secret Manhattan Project to develop the bomb
1942, Enrico Fermi, a scientist who had left Facist Italy, accomplished a chain reaction ,such as one
that would be necessary for a successful atomic bomb, in a laboratory at the University of Chicago
Manhattan Project scientists and engineers worked to develop the bomb at Los Alamos, NM
July 16, 1945, Manhattan Project successfully tested the world’s first atomic bomb in the desert of
New Mexico
once the bomb was ready, the question became whether to use it
 an advisory group of scientists, military leaders, and government officials called the Interim
Committee, formed in the spring of 1945 to discuss whether or not the bomb should be used
 the end, they found themselves unwilling to recommend any other alternative
 the heavy American casualties at Iwo Jima and Okinawa were a factor in the committee’s
support for using the bomb
August 6, 1945, an American plane dropped an atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima
 an estimated 140,000 died in the explosion or within a few months from burns or radiation
 90 % of the city’s buildings were damaged or totally destroyed
August 9, 1945 a second bomb was dropped on Nagasaki
August 14 Japan agreed to surrender
 the next day Americans celebrated V-J Day (Victory in Japan Day)
September 2, 1945 Japan formerly surrendered in a ceremony aboard the U.S.S. Missouri in Tokyo
Bay
from 1945 to 1952, Japan occupied by U.S. military under command of General Douglas MacArthur
 military leaders in Japan removed from power
 armed forces disbanded - Japan forbidden to rebuild military
 democratic government installed
1. emperor stripped of political power
2. democratic constitution written
3. women given legal equality
1956, Japan was admitted to the U.N.
The Holocaust
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Adolf Hitler had outlined his ideology in Mein Kampf
 among his goals was the removal of "non-Aryans"
the killing of Jews by the Nazis is referred to as the Holocaust
 about 6 million killed
I. The Start of Persecution
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(Semites began as name for mid-Eastern peoples, by 1880's anti-Semitism meant anti-Jew)
Nazi's take action
businesses own by Jews were not patronized
 1935 Nuremberg Laws
 Jews were no longer German citizens
 intercultural marriage was forbidden
 1937 and 1938, Nazis began a program to "Aryanize" Jewish businesses
 property of Jews was required to be registered
 jobs were taken away from Jews
 Jewish doctors could only treat Jewish patients
 identity cards
 all Germans were issued ID cards
 Jews had different IDs (had a red letter J, all men were given middle name "Israel", and all
women given middle name "Sarah")
 political enemies were thrown into camps
 Nazis organized the SA to silence opposition to the Nazis
 Hitler later formed the SS that became the private army of the Nazis
 a Secret State Police or Gestapo was also formed
 concentration camps soon held:
 POWs (prisoners of war), political enemies, homeless, homosexuals, Jehovah's Witnesses,
physically and mentally disabled, Gypsies, Slavs
Kristallnacht "night of the broken glass"
 looting and destruction of Jewish property by Nazi thugs November 9-10, 1938
 many Jews arrested
from 1933 through 1937, about 130,000 Jews fled Germany
 encouraged by Nazi's to leave
 fled throughout the world
 Europe
 Palestine
 Latin America
 United States
July, 1938 Evian Conference met in France to discuss Jewish refugees
 out of 29 nations only the Dominican Republic relaxed its immigration laws
II. From Murder to Genocide
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1939 invasion of Poland brought about 2 million Jews under German control
 about 350,000 Jews lived in the capital city of Warsaw
 30% of the city's population
Nazis confined Jews to ghetto on about 3% of the city's land
 death and disease ran rampant
Eisatzgruppen (mobile killing unit) entered a country with the invading army
 targeted: Polish upper class, Soviet communist leaders and intellectuals, priests, influential Jews
January 1942, Nazi leaders met at the Wannsee Conference outside of Berlin
 came up with the "final solution to the Jewish question"
 designed "special" concentration camps for genocide
death camps used a poison gas called Zyklon B in death chambers disguised as showers
 at Buchenwald in Germany, 43,000 died
 at Auschwitz in Poland, 1.5 million died
Jews resisted the Nazis
 April 1943, a revolt broke out in the Warsaw ghetto
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 the Treblinka camp had to be closed after an uprising in August 1943
 some managed successful escapes
January 1944, F. Roosevelt created the War Refugee Board (WRB) to help people threatened with
murder by Nazis
 saved 200,000 or more
Raoul Wallenburg of Sweden helped rescue Hungarian Jews
 disappeared in Eastern Europe after the war
Schindler saved 1,300
thousands liberated by Allies as troops discovered camps
November 1945, Allies place 24 leading Nazis on trial for crimes against humanity
 became known as Nuremberg Trials
 12 sentenced to death
 set precedent that following orders wasn't an excuse
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