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World War II WebQuest 1 BY MR. ROSSER 7-8 A Means to an End 2 7-8 explores the collapse of Germany and the extreme means used to defeat Japan Hitler’s death, Collapse of the Third Reich 3 By the end of the day on April 27, 1945 Berlin was completely cut off from the rest of Germany. Two days later on April 29th Hitler dictated the last will and testament of Adolf Hitler to his secretary. That day Hitler was also informed of the brutal execution of Italian dictator Benito Mussolini the day before. On April 30th as Soviet troops drew nearer, Hitler committed suicide, shooting himself in the mouth while simultaneously biting into a cyanide capsule. Hitler's body was put in a bomb crater, doused in gasoline and set alight as the Red Army advanced and shelling continued. Three days later Berlin surrendered. Victory in Europe By late 1944, the Red Army had driven the Germans back into Central Europe and the Western Allies were advancing into Germany. Hitler realized that Germany had lost the war, but allowed no retreats. He hoped to negotiate a separate peace with America and Britain, a hope driven by the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt in April of 1945. Hitler's stubbornness and defiance of military realities also allowed the Holocaust to continue. He also ordered the complete destruction of all German industrial infrastructure before it could fall into Allied hands, saying that Germany's failure to win the war forfeited its right to survive. Rather, Hitler decided that the entire nation should go down with him. Execution of this scorched earth plan was entrusted to arms minister Albert Speer, who disobeyed the order. 4 The Creation of the Atom Bomb Since 1940, Scientists working on the atomic bomb, called the Manhattan Project, had been working on a new weapon. It would prove to be more powerful than any the world had known. On July 16, 1945, the weapon was tested in the New Mexico desert. It worked. Its power to destroy was so great that some who saw the test thought it should never be used. The final decision rested with the president. Franklin D. Roosevelt had died in April during his fourth term in office. The new president, Harry S. Truman, would decide. Was the new weapon too horrible to use? Would an invasion really cost a million American lives? Truman decided America would drop the atom bomb. 5 Death of FDR, Enter Harry Truman 6 Franklin’s Roosevelt’s health had been declining since at least 1940. On April 12, 1945 FDR died. Harry Truman took over as President of the United States. As you soon will see this became a crucial turning point in WWII! Franklin D. Roosevelt 32 President Harry Truman 33rd President Decision to Drop the Bomb 7 The tide was turning in the Pacific Click on the photo to see video of an atomic bomb test theatre. American airplanes bombed Japan. They destroyed Yokohama, Osaka, and other cities. In Tokyo, two days of firebombing killed 84,000 people. America was winning the war in the Pacific. In Europe, Germany and Italy had already been defeated. But many Americans felt the Japanese might be ready to fight to the death. Some were saying that only further invasion of Japan would end the war. Truman felt that because of Japan’s Banzai tactics and willingness to fight to the end that it might mean the death of over a million American soldiers. Under the approval of the new President Harry Truman, the U.S. decided to do what it felt necessary to defeat Japan once and for all. Dropping of the Atomic Bombs The End of World War II America warned Japan it must surrender or face terrible destruction. Japan would not give up. At 2:45 A.M., on August 6, 1945, an American bomber, the Enola Gay, left the ground. It took off from the western Pacific island of Tinian on its way to Hiroshima, Japan. It carried a single, fat, odd-looking bomb called “The Thin Man.” The bomb weighed 9,000 pounds. At 8:05 A.M., the Enola Gay was ten minutes from Hiroshima. No Japanese fighter planes came up to meet it. Hiroshima had never been bombed. It was normal for planes headed elsewhere to fly over. At 8:15 A.M., “The Thin Man” was dropped. Hiroshima was going about its morning business. People were going to work, making breakfast, walking over the Aioi Bridge. Then there was a flash that was brighter than the sun. A fireball consumed the Aioi Bridge and everything around it. Over a mile away, steel doors and stonewalls glowed red-hot. A mushroomed-shaped cloud rose from a base of flames. The superheated air started fires all over the city. Over 80,000 people were killed. Those near the blast simply disappeared. More than 62,000 buildings were destroyed. Hiroshima, a city of 350,000 people, was in ruins. The first atom bomb had been dropped. Three days later, a second bomb was dropped on the city of Nagasaki. Japan gave up on August 15. Overall, between the two cities, it is estimated that over 200,000 Japanese were killed from the blast. World War II had ended. And the atomic age had begun. “The use of the atomic bomb was a military decision to end the war and save millions of lives. It was just the same as getting a bigger gun than the other fellow had to win the war and that's what it was used for. I never lost one minute of sleep over my decision.“ --President Harry Truman 8 Dropping of the Atomic Bomb 9 Damage and Photos from the Atom Bomb 10 Dropping of Bombs 11 “The atomic bomb was more than a weapon of terrible destruction; it was a psychological weapon.” -Former U.S. Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson, 1947 Damage and Photos from the Atom Bomb 12 Damage and Photos from the Atom Bomb 13 Damage and Photos from the Atom Bomb 14 Damage and Photos from the Atom Bomb 15 Dropping of an Atomic Bomb on Your Home City 16 Ever wonder what it would be like if an atomic bomb was dropped on your home town? Click on the map below. Feel free to enter any location to see the damage. Check the color codes to see the damage radius. Keep in mind, Even if you weren’t killed immediately, staying in these areas after the blast would cause death by radiation poisoning. Sunburn-like discomfort Blisters and pain Skin burns off the body Incineration 17 Japan Surrenders Realizing that they were defeated after the dropping of the Atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the Japanese surrendered on August 15th, 1945. Japan signed the Instrument of Surrender is September, officially ending its aggressions in Asia. A Japanese general signed the official the Instrument of Surrender on September 2nd, 1945. Casualties and Losses 18 Nuremburg Trials 19 The Nuremberg trials were a series of trials most notable for the prosecution of prominent members of Nazi Germany after its defeat in World War II. The trials were held in the city of Nuremberg, Germany, from 1945 to 1946, at the Palace of Justice. The first and best known of these trials was the Trial of the Major War Criminals, which tried 22 of the most important captured leaders of Nazi Germany. The second set of trials was of lesser war criminals . Of the 22 defendants, 11 were given the death penalty, 3 were acquitted, 3 were given life imprisonment and four were given imprisonment ranging from 10 to 20 years. Those sentenced to death were hanged at Spandau Prison on October 6, 1946. Click on either photo for more information about the Nuremburg Trials Post War Prosperity 20 After World War II the U.S. emerges as one of the clear world leaders. With most of the U.S.’s competition destroyed by warfare in both Europe and Asia, the U.S. thrives being the only world leader without significant damage to their homeland With our soldiers back home the U.S. returns to traditional conservative values for much of the next 15 years. We experience a “baby boom” causing an unprecedented rise in our population, and a continued rise in the U.S.’s influence over world issues. Post War Powers 21 While democracy ruled supreme in the Western Hemisphere with the United States becoming a world power, The Soviet Union and Communism would become our competitor for decades to come. In fact this divide eventually led to the division of Berlin into two sides by the Berlin Wall. Following World War II almost all colonies of Europe on the African continent were relinquished. The Berlin wall, US and soviets become world leader give back countries to Africa. 22 Click on the United Nations Flag to learn more about it’s role today! Creation of the United Nations The UN was founded in 1945 after World War II to replace the League of Nations, to stop wars between countries and to provide a platform for dialogue. It was created to keep peace and act as a sort of “world police”. Today the United States have a huge influence over the activities of the UN.