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Transcript
Which event is generally considered to be the first belligerent act of World War II? Germany’s attack on Russia Germany’s attack on Britain Germany’s attack on Poland Germany’s occupation of Austria Which two countries were the first to declare war on Germany? Italy and Greece Britain and France Norway and Denmark The United States and the USSR Against which country did the Soviet Union instigate an armed conflict in late 1939? Finland Hungary Yugoslavia Italy What were the first two western European countries that Germany invaded? France and Belgium Norway and Denmark Switzerland and Liechtenstein Austria and the Netherlands Which best describes Germany’s standard invasion strategy at the beginning of World War II? Attack with a combination of speed and overwhelming force Intimidate the enemy by first amassing a large force along the enemy’s border Begin with acts of sabotage behind enemy lines Draw out battles for as long as possible to wear the enemy out What major mistake did the Allies make in preparing to defend against Germany’s attack on France? They failed to anticipate that the attack would take place They expected an attack by ground forces rather than a naval assault They misinterpreted where the main invasion would take place They failed to set up minefields along the border with Germany What happened at Dunkirk in May 1940? British forces retreated across the English Channel The French army lost a major battle German forces were defeated in a large naval battle US forces invaded France Where was the French surrender to Germany signed? On a boat In Paris On a railway car In Berlin Why did the British Royal Navy attack French warships at Mers-el-Kebir? 1 The French crews had sworn allegiance to Germany France was at war with Britain The French crews refused to surrender their ships when the British requested They were manned by Germans What was Germany’s initial strategy for conquering Britain? First establish air superiority, then send in ground forces First destroy the British navy, then send in ground forces First send in ground forces, then attack the country with aircraft Immobilize London with poison gas attacks What was the “London Blitz”? Germany’s plan for a blitzkrieg on London A term used for Germany’s bombing campaign on London A series of German missile attacks late in the war Code name for a secret British radar system Overall, the Battle of Britain is considered to be A victory for Germany A victory for Britain A victory for neither A minor conflict What was Italy’s primary role in the war? It helped Germany in accomplishing its main objectives It was helpful to Britain It caused problems for Japan It distracted Germany from accomplishing its main objectives What was Hitler’s primary justification for invading Russia? Stalin was preparing to attack Germany Germany needed more space for its population Hitler believed that a war on two fronts would be to his advantage He desired revenge for the execution of Tsar Nicholas II What was the code name given to Germany’s plan to invade the USSR? Operation Sea Lion Operation Barbarossa Operation Wolfenstein Operation Crossbow What happened to the Soviet air force during the opening days of the German invasion? Up to 2,000 Soviet aircraft were destroyed while still on the ground. Soviet pilots scored easy victories against inexperienced German pilots It was evacuated to Siberia The Soviet air force engaged in huge dogfights involving thousands of planes on each side 2 Which of the following was not a part of the Soviet defense plan against Germany? Well-organized partisan resistance A strict policy of destroying any usable resources before retreating The Soviets sought to lure German armies into forests, which they would then set on fire Major factories were disassembled and moved east On which region of the Soviet Union did Hitler place the highest priority? Ukraine and southern Russia Leningrad and northern Russia Moscow and central Russia Siberia Via what route did Russians manage to send some supplies to Leningrad during the German siege of the city? A German supply line across the Black Sea An underground railroad A supply route across Lake Ladoga An airlift Which country was the site of most of the Nazi extermination camps? The USSR Czechoslovakia Poland Hungary How did the Western Allies respond to Germany’s invasion of Russia? They sent supplies and intelligence information to the USSR They were largely indifferent to the situation in Russia They sent large numbers of troops to fight in Russia They attacked German naval forces from the Black Sea What Japanese action created tension with the United States? Its seizure of territory in China Its seizure of territory in Russia Its seizure of territory in Korea Its decision to block American shipping routes What U.S. action created tension with Japan? Its blockade of Japanese ports Its freezing of Japanese assets Its establishment of a trade embargo against Japan Its default on Japanese loans Who was the Japanese admiral behind the Pearl Harbor attack? Hirohito Myamoto Yamamoto Matsuhito Which of the following was not true about the Pearl Harbor attack? 3 U.S. officials knew the day before that Japan was planning a major attack There was concern among U.S. military leaders that Peal Harbor was vulnerable to attack The Japanese painted their aircraft to look like American planes Prior to the attack, Japanese spies had verified which U.S. battleships would be in port What was unique about the Doolittle Raid? The bombers were launched from an aircraft carrier It was the first raid to employ jet aircraft The bombers flew to Japan all the way from Hawaii The bombers were unmanned Which battle is considered to be the turning point for the war in the Pacific? The Battle of the Coral Sea The Battle of Guadalcanal The Battle of Iwo Jima The Battle of Midway The Battle of the Coral Sea was a unique naval battle in that It was fought entirely with submarines It was fought during a typhoon It was fought entirely with carrier-based aircraft It was fought primarily at night During the Battle of Midway, Japan lost Most of its battleships Most of its aircraft carriers Admiral Yamamoto Most of its Pacific Fleet The Battle of Stalingrad was A clear-cut example of a blitzkrieg An easy victory for Germany One of the deadliest battles in human history Primarily a tank battle Who met at Casablanca? Roosevelt and Churchill Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin Roosevelt, Churchill, Stalin, and Hitler Truman and Churchill What was the focus of the Tehran Conference? The Allied invasion of France The war in the Pacific The Battle of Stalingrad The division of Germany after the war What was the significance of Guadalcanal to Japan? 4 The island was sacred to the Shinto religion The island offered a good position for attacking the Philippines The island was known to have oil reserves beneath it The island was in an ideal position for controlling the Solomon Islands Why was the Japanese capture of Rangoon such a bitter loss for the Allies? They were worried about Rangoon historical sites As a major seaport, it was an excellent supply point Winston Churchill was born there The location was perfect for launching air strikes against Japan Which statement best characterizes the series of battles in the Pacific following the Battle of Guadalcanal? With each battle, the Allies became increasingly disheartened until they finally gave up With each battle, the Japanese surrendered in large numbers With each battle, the Japanese soldiers increasingly fought to the death With each battle, civilian inhabitants of the islands joined the Allies in battle What was the significance of Mt. Suribachi? It was the site of the bloodiest fighting on Okinawa It was the Japanese defense headquarters outside Tokyo It was the location where Japan was defeated in New Guinea It was the site of a major battle on Iwo Jima Which country instigated the conflict in North Africa? Germany Italy Britain US Why did Allied forces invade Italy after it had already surrendered? German forces were still fighting in the country Italy refused to meet all of the Allied demands There was strong anti-Allied resistance among Italian partisans The Allies felt that Italy needed to be punished What was Monte Cassino? A place where Allied soldiers celebrated after the fall of Rome The place where Italy’s surrender was signed A large monastery in central Italy where the Germans defended Rome from Allied forces The site where Mussolini was killed The Battle of Kursk is best described as Trench warfare An aerial battle 5 Hand-to-hand combat A tank battle After the Battle of Kursk, German forces Advanced deeper into southern Russia Finally entered Moscow Began a lengthy retreat back to Germany Held their position until the end of the war What was the code name for the Allied invasion of Europe? Operation Barbarossa Opeation WatchTower Operation Sea Lion Operation Overlord The Allied invasion of Europe was primarily directed at The Danish Coast The French Coast The German Coast The British Coast What was the location of the second major Allied assault into Europe in 1945? The Italian coast Greece The French Mediterranean coast The German North Sea coast Why was the Luftwaffe so ineffective during the last part of the war? Germany was experiencing a severe oil shortage Germany was running out of pilots Most of Germany’s airplanes had already been destroyed The Allies had developed a way to interfere with German navigation equipment Where did the Battle of the Bulge take place? The Ardennes Forest In northern Italy, near Milan Normandy In northern Germany, near Hamburg What were the V1 and V2? Italian army battalions German missiles The two atomic bombs dropped on Japan Nightclubs in Berlin Which Allied country’s forces arrived in Berlin first? The United States Britain 6 France USSR the last six months of the war, what was the U.S. strategy for winning the conflict with Japan? Negotiate with Japan for a conditional surrender Insert ground forces on the Japanese home islands Break the Japanese will with massive bombing raids on Japanese cities Place all of Japan under a naval blockade until the country surrendered At what conference did the Allies set the terms for the Japanese surrender? The Yalta Conference The Casablanca Conference The Tehran Conference The Potsdam Conference Perhaps the best kept secret of the war (which wasn't made public until the 1970s) was that the British had a code machine which, along with some brilliant code-breaking skills, allowed the Allies to read most of Germany's diplomatic code as well as some encrypted high-level military communication. The secret was known as Ultra. What was the name of the German encoding machine? Enigma Pianoforte Labyrinth Norden Operation Torch referred to which operation? The building of the Burma Road The invasion of North Africa The return to the Philippines The trap set for the Japanese at Midway Island The invasion of Sicily by British and American troops in 1943 was known as Operation _______________. Bulldog Cricket Rugby Husky Admiral Isoruku Yamamoto, who had planned the invasion of Pearl Harbor, was shot from the skies less than a year and a half later. The aerial interception was an ambush made possible by US intelligence, whose breaking of the Japanese Naval code and its exploitation was known as __________. Magic Setting Sun Venona Red piano To keep the Germans guessing about Allied plans and unit strengths as preparations were made to invade Europe, an intricate deception plan was undertaken that involved fake radio traffic, inflatable tanks, and a host of other tricks. Gen. Patton, who the Germans believed to be the obvious choice to command the ground forces of the invasion, was even paraded about England to show that he was in command of the bogus force that had been created. This operation was ___________. Fortitude Valiant 7 Thrust Pogo In its early stages, Operation Dragoon had been designated Operation Anvil. The former name was perhaps more appropriate, in that the real "hammer" was being swung north of its objective. Anvil, and later Dragoon, was the invasion of _______? Guadalcanal The Salerno Beachhead Iwo Jima Southern France 15 June 1944: B-29 bombers dropped the first American ordnance on Japan since Doolittle's raid two years earlier. When the bombs were away, the codeword for success was sent out from the bomb group. It was_________? Enola Gay, All the Way Climb Mt. Fuji Betty, Betty, Betty Remember Bataan When the A-bombs dropped on Japan in 1945, the US was engaged in planning for what would certainly be the costliest battle of the war (for both attacker and defender): the invasion of the Japanese home islands. When Japan capitulated after Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the invasion plan lost its raison d'etre. Operation _______, had it been necessary, would have killed millions upon millions, including US boys shipped in after having defeated Hitler. Spectre Cave/Fire (Cave= aerial assault; Fire, the landings) Olympic Pearl Necklace What was the "Gooney Bird"? PBY Catalina (Landed and took off at sea) B-29 Superfortress C-47 Dakota Transport B-17 Flying Fortress Who or what was "Bouncing Betty"? A British bomb that skimmed across water to destroy dams A German mine that exploded above ground A Sicilian prostitute shot as a German spy A female German-American propaganda broadcaster "Ike" was in command of SHAEF. This acronym stood for what? Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force Operation Cobra referred to what? The failed attempt on Hitler's life in 1944 The British attempt at relieving Greece The Allied breakout from the Normandy area 8 The building of the airfield on Tinian from which the A-bomb was delivered Replacement Depots in the European Theater of Operations were known to troops as __________. Repple-Depples New Useless Guy (NUG) Factories Meat Markets Camp Disney A drug used for "battle fatigue" cases at convalescent hospitals was thought to get combat soldiers over their fear of battle by causing them dream flashbacks to the front. There success rate was meager, at best. These pills were known to troops as a variation of the name of one of the best weapons the Germans fielded in the war. What were they? Potato Skull Mashers Panzer Poppers Blue .88s Stuka Shriekers Churchill was fond of the idea of attacking the "soft underbelly" of Axis-controlled Europe. When this was undertaken, one American general-- seeing the bloody fighting in this country--instead found it "a tough old gut." Austria Yugoslavia Italy Greece The first enemy ground troops faced by American soldiers outside the Pacific were referred to by this epithet. the Huns Krauts Spaghetti Soldiers Frogs The MF in REMF is an obscenity still in common use. What did the RE stand for? Reserve Enlisted Restricted Engagement Rear Echelon Routine Evacuee A G.I. party referred to the following activity. Surprise P.T. the morning after a unit had a drinking bout The beating (w/ soap bars in socks) of a soldier whose misdeeds brought collective punishment A mandatory, organized clean-up, particularly of a latrine area A roving band of inebriated soldiers looking for a fight with sailors or marines When Britain declared war on Germany in September, it was several months until they became involved in any land battles. What was this period of time known as? The Funky War The Fake War The Bogus War The Phoney War During this period of time there were only a few small naval skirmishes. However, in October 1939, a German U-boat successfully penetrated the defences of Scapa Flow managing to sink which ship? HMS Nelson HMS Ark Royal HMS Royal Oak HMS Warspite 9 Due to a conflict which had taken place between Finland and the Soviet Union the raw materials found there, attentions turned to Scandinavia. In April 1940 Britain became involved in its first significant land battle of WWII. In which country did this take place? Finland Norway Denmark Sweden After Britain’s poor performance in this conflict there was a large debate in the Houses of Commons concerning the government's handling of it. The result was the formation of a coalition government in May 1940, with Winston Churchill as Prime Minister. Whom did he replace? Clement Atlee Lloyd George Stanley Baldwin Neville Chamberlain On the same day that Churchill was appointed Prime Minister, Germany invaded the Netherlands and Belgium. Where did the *main* attack take place? Paratroops were dropped from the air Through the forests of the Ardennes Across the Spanish border From the Bay of Biscay The German army moved at an incredibly fast rate under the control of Erwin Rommel. They had moved so swiftly through France it took them only until 12th May to reach which river? The Garonne The Meuse The Seine The Loire The German army inflicted huge losses on the French and British armies. This was due to the element of surprise in their attack. However, another factor which caused this was the incompetence of the Allied armies. Under which general did the French army serve during this conflict? Gamelin Pétain Weygand Fournier With almost the entire British army in France at this time, British generals began to worry that they could be wiped out by the German army. This led to the idea of the Dunkirk evacuation. Who first suggested this solution? Lord Gort Eisenhower Churchill General Montgomery The evacuation was a success, rescuing approximately 338,000 British and French soldiers. Which of these was NOT a factor in the success of Dunkirk? The RAF kept German planes away from the beaches German soldiers drowned in nearby rivers German forces stopped, allowing slower divisions to catch up 10 The boggy terrain near the beach was unsuitable for tanks The success of Dunkirk was used as propaganda by the British government. How did they refer to the Dunkirk evacuation? The Victory of Dunkirk The Miracle of Dunkirk The Magic of Dunkirk The Bravery of Dunkirk Winning the Battle of the Atlantic was crucial to Britain’s continuation of the war, as it allowed supplies to be brought from America. The first nine months of the war were relatively easy for Britain in the Atlantic due to their naval superiority and the fact that Germany did not have enough U-boats to make any sort of serious impact on Britain’s supply routes. On top of this, British ships were able to destroy nearby U-boats which may have been a threat. How did they do this? By using atomic devices By using laser guided torpedoes By using machine guns By using depth charges Britain also fitted its ships with Sonar, allowing U-boats to be detected underwater. What was this Sonar known as? Asdic Laser Radar U-Boat tracker Doenitz (the German naval commander) realised the potential of the U-boats and so their number increased. Also, after the fall of France Germany was able to use French ports and so could spend longer in the Atlantic. U-boats also began using new tactics, the result being the increased amount of shipping damaged and the reduction of supplies to Britain. One way U-boats did this was by attacking in groups, what was this known as? Vampire tactics Werewolf tactics Wolf pack tactics Tiger ambush tactics This disastrous period, starting in the summer of 1940, lasted until June 1941. However, Britain also changed its tactics. What was the name of the radio frequency detector used to intercept massages between U-boats, thereby avoiding them? Ruff-ruff Huff-Huff Huff-Duff Duff-Huff Another way Britain reduced its losses was by increasing available protection to convoys. One way they did this was by making a deal with the USA in September 1941 by which Britain received more ships capable of providing this protection. What was this deal known as? Boats for guns deal Destroyers for bases deal Guns for butter deal Ships for arms deal 11 Britain extended its advantage in the Atlantic in May 1941, when a sinking U-boat was boarded by British sailors who obtained the German naval enigma codes. This allowed Britain to correctly determine when attacks were coming and was therefore able to avoid them. What name was given to this information? Ultra Mega Super Nano The Battle of the Atlantic was very much a see-saw of success as Germany regained the upper hand. By July 1942 Doenitz had almost 300 U-boats, which were capable of staying at sea for longer periods of time. British shipping losses also rose again due to German attacking of convoys in the middle of the Atlantic, rather that near ports, due to lack of air protection. What was this area in the middle of the Atlantic, without air cover, known as? The Atlantic Gap The Atlantic Death Trap The Great Atlantic Graveyard The Denmark Straits Germany began to crack British naval codes. Moreover, Doenitz became suspected that Britain was cracking the German naval code and so changed the enigma code by adding a fourth wheel to the machine. What was the new code known as? Shark Ray Sturgeon Crocodile Finally, Britain again got on top of Germany in the Atlantic as the new naval code was broken, and adopting a more aggressive stance towards the threat of the U-boats. Who encouraged this aggressive attitude? Admiral William "Bull" Halsey Admiral Max Horton Admiral Sir Henry Harwood Admiral F Daubin The decisive point of the Battle of the Atlantic was the entry of the USA into the war. America offered a seemingly unlimited supply of resources to be used on land and at sea. One of the major contributions America made to the Battle of the Atlantic was their construction of a bomber plane fitted with radar, searchlights and machine guns which offered constant air protection to convoys. What was the name of this plane? The Lancaster The Liberator The Helldiver The Flying Fortress After the Battle of France came the Battle of Britain. This was a battle in the skies between the RAF and the Luftwaffe for air superiority. What was the plan issued by Hitler which spoke of the German plan to invade Britain? Operation Polar Bear 12 Operation Walrus Operation Sealion Operation Panda It has been suggested that invading Britain had an ambiguous priority for the Nazi leadership, which saw Britain mainly as an obstacle to plans for a land campaign in Eastern Europe. This was reflected by the fact that Hitler actually proposed a peace to Britain. In what month was this offer made? January 1941 May 1940 July 1940 September 1940 Following Britain's refusal of the German peace offer, Germany began its attack on Britain. However, the Germans' first target made little impact on the British armed forces. It was instead another attempt to force Britain to accept peace. What was the Germans' first target? English Beaches Merchant Ships Civilian Areas Army bases The German attacks then became more severe as the Luftwaffe targeted fighter stations. Which of these was one of the stations targeted? Filton Dyce Manston Usworth In early September 1940 Britain was thought to be close to defeat. However, what German action on 7th September 1940 relieved the pressure on the RAF, allowing them to recuperate? German shifted its sights to the Soviet Union and redeployed its bombers The deliberate bombing of civilian areas London A 1,000 bomber raid by the RAF on Cologne The bombing of Buckingham Palace Britain was able to gather enough fighters to launch affective attacks on the Luftwaffe. One such example was on 15th September where over 200 German planes were intercepted by the RAF, which shot down 60, significantly changing the course of this battle. Who was the Commander-in-Chief of Fighter Command at the time? Keith Park Hugh Dowding Sholto Douglas Trafford Leigh-Mallory Daylight raids of London bacame less and less frequent, suggesting the RAF had gained air superiority. Another reason for Britain starting to get on top of Germany in the sky was the fact that Britain was producing twice as many fighter planes as Germany during this period. Appointed in May 1940 as Minister of Air production, who is largely responsible for this rapid rate of production? Lord Beaverbrook Lord Camelbrook 13 Lord Badgerbrook Lord Alanbrooke The fighters being produced in Britain were the Spitfire and the Hurricane. Against which plane would they most likely to have been fighting? 'Me' stands for Messerschmitt and this was the main fighter plane used by the Germans Me-109 Me-1 ME-55 Me- 210 Another reason for Britain’s victory in the Battle of Britain was the tactics in the air. An example of this was instructing Spitfire planes to target German fighters (due to its manoeuvrability) and for the Hurricane to target German bombers (due to its ability to take more damage). Who suggested this tactic? Keith Park Hugh Dowding Sholto Douglas Roderic Hill Finally, it would have been difficult to have won the Battle of Britain without the British people. These people contributed to the victory either as pilots or in the early warning system, where they watched for German planes and reported back to Fighter Command. Which organization were those involved in the early warning system most likely a part of? RAF spotters Luftwaffe watchers Observer corps Coastal watch Who named the air war between the Luftwaffe and the RAF, "The Battle of Britain"? Air Chief Marshall Hugh Dowding Adolph Hitler Reichmarshall Herman Goering Winston Churchill Which fighter plane shot down the most enemy planes in the Battle of Britain? The Hawker Hurricane The Avro Lancaster The Supermarine Spitfire Messerschmitt Bf 109 How many fighter aircraft did the Royal Air Force have at its disposal at the beginning of the Battle of Britain (July, 1940)? 754 single-seat fighters and 149 two-seat fighters 683 single-seat fighters and 128 two-seat fighters 1,103 single-seat fighters and 232 two-seat fighters 732 single-seat fighters, 243 two-seat fighters and 59 three-seat fighters 14 Why did Luftwaffe bombing have a temporarily disastrous effect on the British Fighter Command's strength? The Luftwaffe targeted Fighter Command HQ in London The Luftwaffe's attacks demoralised the factory workers, which lowered fighter production. Every Luftwaffe bomber sortie resulted in a large number of RAF fighters being shot down The Luftwaffe targeted airfields, radar stations and industrial factories On August 24th, 1940, some German aircraft dropped high-explosive bombs on civilian suburbs of London, causing a loss of life. Churchill ordered an immediate retaliatory raid on Berlin. Hitler then: Ordered the Luftwaffe to destroy London completely Gave up the air war and transferred the bombers and fighters units back to Germany for the upcoming invasion of the Soviet Union Ordered continuous attacks on the civilian population and air defenses of major British cities, by day and night Attempted to invade Britain but was stopped in the English Channel by the RAF and the Royal Navy Which infamous Luftwaffe dive-bomber was stopped from taking further part in the Battle of Britain after a few months? Heinkel He 111 "Doppel-Blitz" Junkers Ju 87 "Stuka" Dornier Do 17 "Flying Pencil" Heinkel He 149 "Falcon" Which Battle of Britain fighter ace had prosthetic legs? In 1930, two years after joining the RAF, he lost both of his legs while attempting a dangerous and illegal "tarmac" landing. In 1940, he started flying again. He performed well in the Battle of Britain, continuously inspiring his squadron with his bravery and skill. In 1941, he was forced to bail out of his aircraft over Occupied France. He spent the rest of the war as a prisoner of war. Hans Von Ricthoffen Eric Lock Douglas Bader William "Taffy" Higginson We did not recognise this means of rescuing enemy pilots so they could come and bomb our civil population again. . . All German air ambulances were forced down or shot down by our fighters on definite orders approved by the War Cabinet." - Winston Churchill. What was the name of the German Air Ambulances Churchill was referring to? Dornier Do 17 "Flying Pencil" Heinkel He 149 "Falcon" The Seisemohoff The Seenotdienst 15 After the Battle of Britain and the Blitz ended, the RAF (and later the USAAF) had unquestionable aerial superiority and the attacks on British cities stopped (with the exception of the retaliatory Baedeker Blitz of 1942 and Baby Blitz of 1943). Why then, over second-half of 1944, with the Allies on the offensive in France (and later in Belgium and the Netherlands) did 9,000 civilians die in London and other major British cities from aerial attacks? Massive retaliation by the Luftwaffe bomber units navigation error caused USAAF pilots to head out to sea. They headed back to England, believing it to be France and bombed London by mistake The Germans were experimenting with air-dropped atomic explosives V1 Flying Bomb "Doodlebug" and the V2 Rocket What was the codename of the operation for the Battle of Arnhem in September 1944? Operation Torch Operation Anvil Operation Market Garden Operation Dragoon What famous Hollywood film director once served as a combat engineer during the Battle of the Bulge? Billy Wilder Cecil B. DeMille John Ford Mel Brooks What did John Banner, who found fame as the portly and myopic Sergeant Schultz on Hogan's Heroes, do during WWII? Modeled for recruiting posters Guarded German prisoners of war Study Optometry Worked in a sandwich shop called "Hogan's Heroes" When stricken by appendicitis just before shipping out, this future legandary college coach was replaced at the last minute by an officer who was killed by a kamakazi pilot while manning his post. John Wooden Adolph Rupp Paul "Bear" Bryant Ara Parseghian Due to eye problems, this actor memorized the recruitment center eye chart in a failed attempt to join the US Marines. Sammy Davis Jr. Marty Feldman Peter Falk Jack Elam 16 The father of these famous siblings died while being held as a prisoner of war. Zsa Zsa and Eva Gabor Joe and Dom DiMaggio Tom and Dick Smothers Dick and Jerry Van Dyke Later the butt of endless jokes on American television, this actor won five Bronze Stars. Don Adams Don Knotts Ted Knight Art Carney After the war, this Hollywood tough guy was falsely touted by the studios as having served as a tail gunner on a bomber during WWII. Charles Bronson Gary Cooper Humphrey Bogart Charlton Heston This British actor, who was assigned to the U.S. 1st Infantry Division, was among the first soldiers to land at Normandy on D-Day. Alec Guinness John Gielgud David Niven Lawrence Olivier This comedian boasted that he was the only celebrity to go into the war as a Private and come out of the war as a Private. Bob Hope Sid Caeser Jack Benny Red Skelton Although he appeared in 14 films set in WWII, this actor used his 3-A draft status to repeatedly postpone enlistment and never served in the war. John Wayne Danny Kaye Paul Lynde Wally Cox Considered by many to be the finest carrierborne fighter of its time, this fighter was a threat to Japanese holdings in the East. Vought F4U Corsair Douglas SBD Dauntless Mitsibushi A6M Zero Junkers Ju87 Stuka This versatile German weapon is now known as the "father of all assault rifles." 17 MG34 MP44, STG44 MP40 Gewehr 43 Which German division defended Omaha Beach against the U.S. 29th Division? 2nd SS Panzer Division 312th Infantry Division 6th Fallschirmjager Regiment 716th Infantry Division While the 101st Airborne Division was making history in the crossroads town of Bastogne, the 82nd fought a less-known but almost as tough and important battle at this town. Bizory St. Lo St. Vith Foy What was the nickname of the Russians' infamous Katyusha rocket launchers? Screaming Mimi Steel Rain Walking Stuka Stalin's Organ When German troops were poised to take Moscow, Hitler abruptly shifted the advance to which region? Archangel Caucasus Siberia Britain Who were the first enemy recipients of American bullets in ground combat during declared war in World War II in the European Theater of Operations? French Germany Italy Japan (NOTE: During Operation Torch, the American invasion of North Africa, the Vichy French (pro German government in France) were occupying Morocco. Although the French troops were generally unwilling to fight, they had orders to oppose the Allies, and so many did. Therefore, the first enemies on the ground in World War II in the ETO were the French. The Italians came soon after, in the North African and Southern Europe campaigns.) The Germans took a heavily defended fort on the Belgian border; what was the fort's name? Eben Emael Gotterdam 18 Crete Siegfried The offensive in France taught the English-speaking world a new word called "Blitzkrieg." What does it mean? Lightning War Panzer Assault Mechanized War Combined Forces Which country denied much needed border access to the Soviets, thus finding itself at war against the Red Army? Sweden Denmark Finland Norway Germany turned its aggression on its old foe France. Even with Allied help, France fell easily, leaving Britain to be the next target. A massive air battle soon followed. What was this battle called? Battle of Gibraltar Battle for the English Channel Battle of Britain Battle of Dover Italy decided to join Hitler's march of conquest in June 1940. Which Italian dictator was calling the shots? Umberto II Mussolini De Gasperi Ruini German U-boat attacks threatened Britain's fragile economy by concentrating on shipping tonnage along which vital supply route? North Sea English Channel Atlantic Mediterranean Japan's day of infamy came with the attack on the American naval base at Pearl Harbor. In which year did this attack take place? 1939 1940 1941 1942 Which German general was sent to Tripoli ahead of his army to stem considerable Italian losses? Hess Rommel Himmler 19 Goebbels Which two British ships (one a battleship, the other a battlecruiser) were sent to Singapore to provide artillery support and to help prevent the Japanese invasion of Malaya (now Malaysia)? HMS King George V and HMS Churchill HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Azalea HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Repulse HMS Repulse and HMS King George V In a surprise attack, three miniature Japanese submarines sneaked into which harbor sinking the HMAS Kuttabul? Hong Kong Pearl Bangkok Sydney British Admiralty knew the havoc the new German battleship Bismarck could inflict on allied shipping if it were to escape into the open sea. They therefore threw every available ship and plane into the hunt. The first engagement with the Bismarck would prove devastating to the Royal Navy when she sent which capital ship to the bottom? HMS King George V HMS Hood HMS Royal Oak HMS Rodney Guadalcanal was the scene of some of the fiercest fighting in the Pacific. In which group of islands is Guadalcanal found? The Solomon Islands The Philippines New Guinea Indonesia Which of the following was NOT a Nazi death camp? Auschwitz – Poland Berchtesgaden – Germany Mauthausen Gusen – Austria Majdanek – Poland June 6, 1944, D-Day: The longest day in WWII. What was the code name for the allied invasion of Europe? Operation Bismarck Operation Market Garden Operation Overlord Operation Debarkation On which beach did the Americans run into a firestorm of resistance during the D-Day landings? Utah Omaha Juno Gold 20 Which significant 1942 naval battle thwarted Japanese attempts to land troops in New Guinea, sunk one carrier and badly damaged another? Battle of the Coral Sea Battle of Santa Cruz Battle of Midway Battle of Truk It was the largest battleship ever built. It was a symbol of Japanese supremacy, not only on the sea but also as a race. The characteristics of this super battleship brought naval power to a new level. What was it named? Shokaku Yamato Shoho Zuikaku Military deaths in World War II: What country suffered the most military deaths in the war? Great Britain France USSR USA Civilian deaths in World War II: Which country suffered the largest number of civilian deaths? USSR Germany Poland Japan For hundreds of years of naval warfare, large battleships dominated the seas. In one single battle these giants of the sea were to become largely redundant and a new style of naval warfare was unveiled. What was the location of the first naval battle ever fought where opposing fleets never actually came in contact with each other? Midway Coral Sea Vella Gulf Iwo Jima Two nations were able to bring fully operational jet fighters into the war before it ended. Britain's Gloster Meteor showed promise when it shot down a V1 Flying Bomb in July 1944. On the other side of the English Channel, Germany were about to mass-produce 1400 of which infamous jet aircraft? Focke-Wulf Fw 190 Dornier Do335 Junkers Ju-88 Messerschmitt Me 262 Which American general was nicknamed "Blood and Guts"? Eisenhower Bradley Patton Westmoreland The scale of loss sustained in the invasion of Okinawa was so high that it lent weight for which action to bring the war to a speedy conclusion? Full-scale Marine landings in Japan The use of the atomic bomb Massive bombing runs on Tokyo 21 The execution of Emperor Hirohito Where did the signing of the Japanese surrender take place, bringing the close to the long and costly war? A subway in Osaka Parliament House, Tokyo Aboard the USS Missouri The War Centre, London What machine gun was called "Hitler's buzzsaw"? M2HB MG34 MG42 SG43 What grenade was known as the potato masher? Mk 1 RDG-33 Stielhandgranate M2 What rifle made a distinctive "ping" sound when the last round was ejected? Lee-Enfield Mosin-Nagant M1 Garand Gewehr 98 What submachine gun had the highest rate of fire? MP 40 Beretta Modello 1938A Thompson M1 PPSH-41 What gun was adapted as an anti-tank gun from its original role as an anti-aircraft gun? 105mm 17lb QF 38mm Flak-88 What was the most feared German tank of the war? Panzer Mk VII Jaguar Panzer Mk V Panther Panzer Mk IV Panzer Mk VI Tiger What WWII truck was nicknamed the 'Duece and a half'? Gaz-67 Morris C8 GMC 6x6 Bussing-NAG 22 What was one of only three jet fighters, besides the HE-162 and the Meteor, used in World War II? Messerschmitt Me 262 Supermarine Spitfire P51 Mustang Messerschmitt Me 110 What was the most widely used bomber in the European and Pacific Theaters? Lancaster Hienkel He 111 Tupolev Tu2 Boeing B-17 What landing craft could drop troops off on any stretch of land? LCI Motor Torpedo Boat LCT Higgins boat When were British Commando units formed? right after Dunkirk after the fall of Tobruk at the start of hostilities during the Battle of Britain How were the first members of the Commandos selected? they were volunteers the British Admiralty selected them they were conscripted they were remnants from shattered formations What vital item was recovered in Operation Claymore? plans for secret weapons encryption devices looted gold political prisoners Who did #11 Commando attempt to kill in a raid behind enemy lines in Libya? Fritz Bayerlein Emilio Garavelli Gastone Gambara Erwin Rommel What did #2 Commando use to destroy the drydock at St. Nazaire? 23 HMS Campbeltown HMS Glory HMS Trident HMS Chariot From which Native American Nation were the majority of codetalkers for the US Marines recruited? (Note: On a lesser scale, Commanche and Meskwaki speakers were employed by the US Army in Normandy and North Africa.) Choctaw Navajo Cherokee Wampanoag Who had the original idea to employ Native Americans as codetalkers? He was a fluent speaker of the Navajo language, which is called 'Diné'. Major General Clayton B. Vogel (US Amphibious Forces) Chee Dodge, Chairman of the Tribal Council Lieutenant General Thomas Holcomb (Commandant, USMC) Sergeant Philip Johnston (USMC Recruiting Service) As far as the Marines were concerned, which feature of the particular language employed by the codetalkers made it useful as a code for battlefield communications? It was incomprehensible to outsiders It had no written form It had few native speakers All of these reasons Aproximately how many codetalkers were trained to serve with the US Marines during World War II? 40 400 4,000 40,000 Why did the codetalkers devise a special vocabulary for most military terms? Their language had no words for modern military terms To confuse the Japanese even more For all these reasons For reasons of extra security During World War II, in which battle were codetalkers first deployed? Iwo Jima Guadalcanal Marshall Islands Philippines The film 'Windtalkers' focuses on the relationship between the Codetalkers and their bodyguards whose primary role was to protect the code at all costs. According to official US Marines historians, did such a role exist? Yes No 24 Where were the codetalkers trained in code and radio communications? Fort Wingate, New Mexico Fort Benning, Georgia Camp Pendleton, California Camp Lejeune, North Carolina How many codetalkers were captured alive by Japanese forces? 0 1 6 more than 10 During the Battle for Saipan, what was the main function carried out by the codetalkers? Co-ordinating infantry assaults against enemy positions Co-ordinating air support Directing naval gunfire on to enemy positions Ensuring efficient re-supply of munitions Who took a famous flight with Charles Anderson, the Chief Flight Instructor at Tuskegee Institute’s Civilian Pilot Training Program? Franklin Roosevelt Henry Stimson Hap Arnold Eleanor Roosevelt The first 36 graduates at Tuskegee formed the 99th Pursuit Squadron. Where were they first stationed for combat in April of 1943? Morocco Italy Tunisia Algeria The 99th Pursuit Squadron along with other bomber groups neutralized what German held island in June 1943? Malta Pantelleria Panarea Lipari Who is credited as the only "Ace" of the Tuskegee Airmen? Lee Archer, Jr. Spann Watson Roscoe Brown, Jr Hannibal Lee The Tuskegee Airmen are most known by the distinct coloring of their P-51’s tails. What color were they? Green 25 Yellow Red Blue Using the record of the Airmen, along with other contributions by African-American soldiers during the war, President Harry Truman issued an Executive Order in 1948 that did what? Allowed African Americans to serve as Officers Desegregated the military Desegregated schools Gave African Americans the right to fly in the Air Force The American press dubbed this German Commander ‘Smiling Albert’ on the eve of the Italian campaign. Guderain Runsdedt Manstein Kesselring This Japanese general with a force of just 30,000 defeated 130,000 British, Australian and Indian troops when he conquered Malaya and Singapore and became known as the ‘Tiger of Malaya’. Yamashita Honda Homma Iwabuchi General Holland M Smith of the US Marine Corps considered to be the pioneer of amphibious warfare was known by his men as ________ . Howlin’ Mad His Majesty Hoppin’ Mad 'He Man' This fighting Admiral was known as ‘Bull’ for his aggressive tactics when confronting an enemy. Chester Nimitz William Halsey Raymond Spraunce Jackie Fisher This military commander was a staunch advocate of strategic area bombing for which he received the nickname ‘Bomber’. Arthur Harris Toohey Spaatz Curtis Le May Hap Arnold His habit of turning up unexpectedly at critical phases of the North African campaign earned Field Marshall Erwin Rommel the epithet __________________. ‘The Desert Rat’ 26 Elusive Erwin’ The Cunning Fox’ The Desert Fox’ Hard talking General George S Patton’s speeches to his men were always liberally sprinkled with profanities and they referred to him as: Old Blood and Thunder’ Old Blood and Gore’ Old Blood and Guts’ ‘Old Guts and Grime’ What was the name given to the first generation Japanese in the United States prior to World War II? Sansei Nisei Issei Kibei Long before the bombing of Pearl Harbor the Japanese Americans were the object of racism. Which of these demands of the Oriental Exclusion League were passed into law? Ban on further immigrant male workers from Japan Ban on Japanese women entering the U.S. to marry Ban on land ownership by Japanese immigrants All of these How many Japanese Americans were convicted of espionage in the U.S. in World War II? 0 3 8 11 What was the main reason the Japanese Americans were interned? the United States felt they were spies for Japan, and thus a danger to country's well being the Japanese Americans hated the United States they bombed Pearl Harbor the Japanese Americans developed a deadly virus At least two-thirds of those sent to internment camps were American citizens. True False By what name did the American government wish to call the internment camps? Moving centers Relocation centers Living centers Concentration camp centers Even though Pearl Harbor is in Hawaii, only a small fraction of the Japanese Americans in Hawaii were interned. True False 27 Which camp was most comparable to a Nazi concentration camp? At this camp, tanks patrolled the grounds and 'trouble makers' were forced to renounce their US citizenship at gun point. Anyone who answered no to the Loyalty Question, which asked all Japanese Americans if they would renounce Japan and declare allegiance to the United States, was sent to this camp. This was the last camp to close. The internees who renounced their citizenship at this camp were deported to Japan, Heart Mountain Manzanar Tule Lake Topaz On what date did the final internment camp close? November 27, 1947 December 5, 1945 March 20, 1946 January 12, 1948 What year did the Japanese Americans receive an apology for their unnecesary internment? 1948 1976 1988 1992 After the war ended, who became the military governor of Japan? General Douglas MacArthur General Dwight Eisenhower Admiral Chester Nimitz General Holland Smith What was the unusual Krummlauf weapon meant to do? Shoot off tank tracks Thermal seeking bullet Stop bombs in mid-air Shoot around corners Name the largest battleship in Europe in World War II. Scharnhorst Bismarck Tirpitz Graf Spee There was much dispute over whether it was necessary to try the Nazi leaders. Which Allied leader strongly disagreed with a trial? Roosevelt Stalin Churchill They all did Which countries presented the prosecution at Nuremberg? France, Britain, USSR, US Britain, Italy, US, Germany 28 France, Britain, US, Poland France, Holland, Ukraine, Austria The trial was arranged to be at Berlin but Nuremberg was chosen. What was the reason for this? Nuremberg had not been bombed at all and was almost untouched. Nuremberg had an intact prison while Berlin did not. Berlin had seen fierce fighting and was still not safe. Some Nazi leaders refused to return to Berlin as it was now in Russian control. When did the trial of the major Nazi war criminals begin? November 15th 1945 November 20th 1945 January 1st 1946 January 25th 1946 On November 29th 1945, the prosecution revealed the true horror of Nazism by showing a film of what? A film showing the conditions at Auschwitz A film of the concentration camp at Belsen. A film showing the German advance into Russia in 1941. A film of Nazi troops invading Poland in 1939. Of the twenty-two Nazis tried at Nuremberg how many were found not guilty? 0 1 2 3 Which Nazi leader cheated the gallows by taking cyanide the night before the execution? Ribbentrop Speer Hess Goering At Nuremberg an IQ test was taken by all of the defendants. Who scored the lowest marks? Hess Streicher Sauckel Kaltenbrunner We all know about Albert Speer, Hitler's architect and Minister of Armaments. Speer got twenty years but his assistant in the slave labor program was sentenced to death by hanging. What was the name of this Nazi? Sauckel Rosenberg Funk Frick After the hanging the eleven bodies (including Goering's) were photographed. The bodies were then taken where? 29 To Dachau concentration camp where they were cremated in the death ovens The bodies disappeared mysteriously after the trial. To Berlin where they were buried in a mass grave that can be visited to day. The bodies were given back to their families. Which general led the German tanks into the Ardennes Forest to capture France? Erich von Manstein Heinz Guderian Erwin Rommel Gerd von Rundstedt What did the British soldiers call their Sherman medium tanks fitted with 17- pounder cannons? Tiger Churchill Firefly Crusader Vice Admiral Mikawa of the Imperial Japanese Navy inflicted one of the worst defeats of the war on the American Navy at which battle in the Pacific? Battle of Tokyo Bay Battle of the Coral Sea Battle of Savo Island Battle of Leyte Gulf Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, who was the planner behind the Pearl Harbor attack, was shot down by American P-38 fighters touring which island? Guadalcanal Bougainville Tarawa Midway What killed famous war journalist Ernie Pyle? Japanese sniper Explosion at American fuel dump German artillery round Friendly fire Which inhabited continent did not contribute troops to WWII? Oceania South America Africa None What was the last country to enter the war on the side of the Allies? Mongolia 30 Brazil Bulgaria Vietnam What country was invaded on the day after the attack on Pearl Harbor? France Thailand Laos Poland Which side(s) was Bulgaria on during the war, and in what order? It was neutral Allies, then Axis Axis, then Allies Axis How many countries signed the United Nations declaration by the end of the war? 26 29 38 47 Although it declared war on Germany in March 1945, which South American country was known for being pro-Nazi and later harbored several wanted Nazis after the war? Peru Argentina Columbia Brazil Although not the first formal reference, who was the first to use the term "axis", in reference to the Axis Powers? Churchill Roosevelt Musolini Hitler The French post-Blitzkrieg government that was eliminated in 1944 was based in what town? It was led by Marshall Pétain, the Prime Minister of the French Third Republic at the time. Marseille Paris Vichy Bordeaux The Manhattan Project effectively started with a letter from two famous scientists to President Roosevelt in 1939, whom they warned of the possibility of nuclear weapons being developed by Germany. They were ...? Einstein and Szilard Rutherford and Bohr Einstein and Bohr Oppenheimer and Feynmann The Manhattan Project would not have come to fruition without an exceedingly able leader. In overall command was a Army General. What was his name? 31 Vannevar Bush Vinegar Joe" Stillwell Douglas MacArthur Leslie Groves Probably the General's wisest decision was to pick a theoretical physicist with little practical engineering experience as overall scientific leader of the Manhattan Project. Who was it? J. Robert Oppenheimer Richard Feynmann Harold Urey Ralph Serber Nuclear explosives require suitable fissile fuel, an excess of neutrons to sustain a chain reaction, and a sufficient mass to sustain fission of most of the available fuel. This mass is called what? Fissile mass Available mass Self-sustaining mass Critical mass Only two elements were fissile (i.e. broke into two roughly equal daughter nuclei) with thermal (i.e. slow) neutrons and produced one or more further neutrons to sustain the chain reaction. These were ...? Uranium 238 and Plutonium 238 Plutonium 238 and Thorium 233 Uranium 239 and Thorium 233 Uranium 235 and Plutonium 239 The first controlled nuclear chain reaction was conducted at the University of Chicago in 1942 by the great Enrico Fermi, using Uranium 238 and neutron moderating or slowing by graphite. In what building was this first "atomic pile" located? Swimming pool Tennis courts Squash courts Handball courts Most of the theoretical work on the atomic bomb, and all of the final assembly, was conducted at a secret site in New Mexico where a whole town was erected in secret around a former boys' school. What is the name of the place? Dugway Alamogordo White Sands Los Alamos After the first nuclear explosion at 5:30 AM on July 16th 1945, at the so-called Trinity site, the erudite Robert Oppenheimer was reminded of the following quotation: I saw a pale horse, and its rider was named Death Don't expect to die a natural death! I am become Death, the Shatterer of Worlds All has been lost 32 The Manhattan Project came to fruition with two nuclear blasts on the Japanese homeland at Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945.These blasts finished WWII, at a heavy cost in human life. What were the names of the B29 bombers which dropped the first nuclear bombs? The Great Artiste and Glamourous Glennis Enola Gay and Bock's Car Memphis Belle and G for George Nostromo and Sulaco General Leslie Groves was chosen to be the military leader of the Manhattan Project, the project to develop the atomic bomb. What major project had he overseen for the Army just prior to this appointment? The development of the Sherman tank The construction of the Pentagon The construction of the airfields in Honolulu The development of the B-17 Bomber The first two atomic weapons utilized different elemental isotopes to create explosive fission. Which isotope of Uranium was used? U-233 U-234 U-235 U-238 Natural uranium ore is composed mostly of two isotopes. What percentage of the isotope needed for an atomic weapon is found in uranium ore? 0.71 3.03 6.71 14.5 Special plants were built to separate and concentrate the required uranium isotope from the natural ore. Where were these plants built? Hanford, WA Wendover, UT Los Alamos, NM Oak Ridge, TN The 509th Composite Group was an air combat group created to deliver the atomic bombs over mainland Japan. Who was the commanding colonel of the 509th? Charles Sweeney Paul Tibbets James Hopkins Charles Schultz The very first of the atomic weapons was detonated in the New Mexico Desert. What was the date of this test of the weapon? 33 June 24, 1945 July 16, 1945 July 5, 1945 August 1, 1945 What was the name given to the first atomic weapon tested in New Mexico? The Gadget Little Boy Jumbo Thin Man (Note: Little Boy was the name given to the bomb dropped over Hiroshima. Fat Man was the name given to the one dropped on Nagasaki.) Hiroshima was the target of the first bomb used against Japan, which was dropped by the Enola Gay. Nagasaki was the target of the second weapon used. Which plane dropped the Nagasaki bomb? Bocks Car The Big Stink The Great Artiste Necessary Evil Nagasaki was not the first choice of targets on the day the atomic bomb was used on it. Which city was the first choice, but spared due to local weather conditions? Yahata Kyoto Niigata Kokura What was the most common rifle used by the United States Marines when first engaging the Japanese? Lee-Enfield Mk. III M1 Garand Springfield 1903 Browning Automatic Rifle What was the main rifle issued to US soldiers in WWII? Lee-Enfield Mk. III M1 Garand Thompson Browning Automatic Rifle What US sub-machine-gun was designed and manufactured during WWII served in limited numbers during and after Vietnam. M3 "Grease Gun" M1A1 Thompson Browning Automatic Rifle (BAR) Browning 1911 What was the most common sidearm in the German army in WWII? Walther P 38 Luger P08 34 Browning 1911 Lee-Enfield Mk. III Who signed the Potsdam Agreement (August 1945)? Stalin, Churchill and De Gaulle Roosevelt, Attlee and Churchill Truman, Roosevelt and Churchill Stalin, Truman and Attlee Germany had Hitler, Italy had Mussolini. Who was the Japanese supreme leader, Emperor _____? Yamamto Hirohito Nagasaki Kokura Which of these was a key figure in the July 20, 1944 plot attempt on Hitler's life? Heinrich Fraenkel Claus von Stauffenberg Erik von Amsberg Nikolaus von Below How did Mussolini meet his end? He caught by Italian Communist guerrillas and shot dead He was killed while visiting Hitler in Munich He was killed by the Allies when they invaded Italy Mussolini was not killed; he escaped to Argentina The Yalta conference took place from February 4-11, 1945. Who met at the conference ? Truman, De Gaulle, Churchill and Stalin F.D.Roosevelt, Churchill and Stalin Truman, Churchill and Stalin F.D.Roosevelt, Churchill, Chiang Kai-shek and Stalin One of the first engagements between British and German forces took place in this port in Norway. What was the name of the port? Vermork Stavanger Narvik Andalsnses This was the first major tank battle of the war between heavy Matilda tanks of the BEF, and the panzer tanks of the German armoured corps. It is believed to have been the first battle where the 88mm AA gun was converted to act as an anti-tank gun. Which battle was it? El-Alamien Arras 35 Tobruk Leningrad This battle effectivly saved Cairo and the Suez Canal from falling under German occupation. Which battle was it? El-Alamien Arras Tobruk Leningrad What was the name of the Russian City that held out under siege for over two years? Minsk Leningrad Kiev Smolensk What was the name of the only battleship to be permenatly disabled after the Japanease attack on Pearl Harbour? USS Arizona USS Iowa USS Wisconsin USS Missouri What was the codename for the landings in the south of France which were to take place several days after DDay? Operation Kitchener Operation Storm Operation Dragoon Operation Buffalo What was the codename for the Allied breakout in Normandy? Operation Barbarossa Operation Thunderbolt Operation Torch Operation Cobra What were the names of the three American aircraft carriers involved in the Battle of Midway? USS Yorktown, USS Hornet, USS Enterprise USS Yorktown, USS Enterprise, USS New Orleans USS Saratoga, USS Hornet, USS Mississippi This was probably the most monumental battle of the whole war. It may very well be the largest battle in history. It was the turning point of the war in Europe. It was a five-month siege in 1942-1943. Leningrad Stalingrad Moscow Kiev 36 A ring of coral atolls in the Pacific, that form an almost picturesque lagoon, the far end of a defensive perimeter protecting the Japanese mainland. The main target was the largest island in the atoll. The first target in what would become the great ocean-borne offensive. (1943) Yitiian/Naman Wokomano/Niaagri Tarawa/Betio Guadacanal/Leyte (Note: Betio, the target island in Tarawa, was about the size of New York Central Park. It was a two-day battle, yet the Marines and Navy suffered 3,407 casulties, and literally the entire Japanese garrison of 4,600 was annilhated. Only 17 Japanese soldiers survived. More men died in this two day battle than the in entire six-month siege of Guadalcanal.) This battle decided the fate of Britain. A four month battle between the RAF and the Luftwaffe. Both tried to control the skies. The Battle of Falaise Operation Sealion The Battle of the Atlantic The Battle of Britain Of the delaying battles fought by the Germans after Stalingrad, this battle was one of the most effective, almost stopping the Soviets from completing their northern drive to Berlin. The Soviets were slaughtered, due to the impatience of their high command. The battle for the Seelow Heights Battle of Koenigsberg The siege of Prenzlauer Berg The Battle of Lutzow This battle is regarded as the last great battle of WWII. It is a large island in the Pacific, about 60 miles long and 18 miles wide. The kamikazes would strike hard, the Japanese would defend to the end, and two generals would die. This was one of the most fiercely fought battles in the Pacific theatre. (1945) Iwo Jima The Battle for Ulithi Atoll Peleliu The Battle of Okinawa The decision to invade France came as a bitter blow to Churchill who wanted to continue with his efforts in the Mediterranean. However, the Allies had already agreed in the Quebec conference (August 1943) and the Tehran conference (November 1943). Before D-Day could occur, the RAF and USAAF (US Air Force), under the command of General Eisenhower, were to bomb French railways. They did this to restrict German movement after the landings. What was the bombing of French railways known as? Railway Plan Transportation Plan Travel Plan Track Plan 37 The British set up floating harbours on the French coast after their landings in order to provide the soldiers with supplies. What were these floating harbours known as? Raspberries Thornberries Mulberries Blueberries The landings in Normandy were to take place on five beaches, known as Sword, Gold, Utah, Omaha - and what was the fifth? Daphne Io Juno Calisto The British, American and Canadian soldiers had to build up their supplies to a sufficient scale before Germany could recuperate and recover their defensive positions. This was a relatively easy task due to a number of factors. Firstly, the Allies had sea and air superiority, allowing them to make use of the plentiful US resources available. Another reason was the problems Germany faced in the East, as Russia launched an offensive in June 1944. What was this offensive known as? Operation Anvil Operation Bagration Operation Overlord Operation Market Garden The Germans faced heavy casualties at the hands of the Allies. One of the major reasons for this was Hitler’s obstinate reluctance to retreat. The Allied General Bradley used this to his advantage, suggesting to Montgomery that their forces should move round the German army, trapping them. What was this technique known as? A Quick Sweep A Short Hook A Swift Loop A Brief Swoop was the Battle of the Bulge which arguably caused the defeat of Germany in the West to become imminent. It was seen to have broken the morale of the German soldiers and exhausted the resources of the Wehrmacht. However, the Germans did have much initial success in their offensive, so much so that they offered the allied forces a surrender ultimatum. This was presented to US General Anthony McAuliffe. What was his famous one word reply? Poppycock! Nuts! Damn! Never! George Patton always carried two pistols made of what material? Ivory Mahogany Walnut Cedar What was the standard military handgun for the United States Army? M1917 Revolver Colt M1911A1 38 M1942 Liberator Smith&Wesson 0.38/200 What firearm was a hybrid of a rifle and a machine gun? Browning Automatic Rifle Type 11 Light Machine Gun Browning M1919 Browning M2 Which US general who evacuated the Phillipines in 1942 famously said, "I came out of Bataan and I shall return"? General Dwight D. Eisenhower General Douglas MacArthur General Mark Clark General Omar Bradley Which two German generals came to Rommel's home to arrest him for treason for his complicity in the 20th July bomb plot to kill Hitler? Hermann Hoth and Hans Krebs Heinz Guderian and Erich Hoepner Wilhelm Burgdorf and Ernst Maisel Which British general commanded the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) in France during 1940 and was rescued from Dunkirk? General Harold Alexander General Lord Gort General Bernard Montgomery The "Desert Fox" was a deadly strategist that threatened British possessions in North Africa. Who was he? Erwin Rommel Douglas MacArthur George Patton Hans Kreb What was the nickname of the infamous German Nebelwerfer rocket launcher? Herr Rocketen Screaming Mimi General Shriek This allied admiral had a high IQ and prudent strategies that earned him the nickname "Electric Brain." Who was this admiral? Chester Nimitz Raymond Spruance Andrew Cunningham The Japanese were victims of heavy extensive bombing by the American B-29s toward the end of the war. What did they respectfully dub the bomber? B-san Last Straw The Enemy from the Heavens 39 Droning Tiger The Germans created one of the most effective anti-personnel mines of the war, which the Allies named: Thunder from Down Under Bye-Bye Johnny U-mine Bouncing Betty This US general attained fame by commanding the US Army's most prestigious infantry division, the "Big Red One", through some tough fighting in North Africa and Sicily. Relieved of his command by "Ike" for maintaining poor discipline he was rescued from oblivion by George C. Marshall and was given the "Timberwoolf" infantry division to command. Who is this US general? Terry de la Mesa Allen Clarence Huebner Theodore Roosevelt, Jr. George S. Patton Who commanded "The Big Red One" US infantry division during the Normandy assault? Russell P. Hartle Theodore Roosevelt, Jr Clarence R. Huebner Leonard T. Gerow This US general was a pioneer of strategic bombing. His major contribution to the American arsenal was as the father of the "Superfortress". Curtis E. LeMay Carl A. Spaatz James H. Doolittle Henry H. "Hap" Arnold One of the youngest US generals of the war this airman directed the massive bombing of Japan, from lowlevel incendiary runs to having a major role in selecting the targets for the A-bombs. Who was he? Curtis E. LeMay Carl A. Spaatz James H. Doolittle Henry H. "Hap" Arnold What was the first country that Hitler demanded after seizing Austria? Poland Denmark Belgium Czechoslovakia Which country lies directly to the north of Germany and was taken over by the Nazis? 40 Poland Denmark Belgium Hungary Which country did Germany invade which brought Britain and France into the war? Poland Denmark Belgium Hungary Which country lay in the middle of Europe but remained neutral and basically untouched? Switzerland The Netherlands Denmark Holland Who said 'Never has so much been owed by so many to so few'? Churchill Hitler Chamberlain Roosevelt What was the code name for the allied efforts to create an atomic bomb? The Mannerheim Project The Manhattan Project The Mammoth Project The Madison Project The Allies tried to fool the Germans into believing that they were going to invade France through the French port of Calais. To this end they built elaborate fake installations in the Dover area of south-east England. What was the code name given to this operation? Operation Forthright Operation Phoney Operation Fortitude Operation France What was the allied code name for the D-Day landings? Operation Landlord Operation Overlord Operation Highlord Operation Lowlands On September 8th, 1943 General Mark Clark led the US 5th Army on this invasion of the Italian Mainland, code named? Operation Avalanche Operation Austral Operation Alpine Operation Kestral 41 What was the name of the pivotal Naval battle fought between the USA and Japan off the north east coast of Australia in May 1942? The Battle of Midway The Battle of Guadalcanal The Battle of Okinawa The Battle of the Coral Sea What was the code name for the allied assault on Arnhem in the Netherlands on September 17th, 1944, depicted in the movie 'A Bridge Too Far'? Operation Flying Fox Operation Bridgehead Operation Market Garden What was the name given to the last major tank battle of World War 2 on the Western Front? The Somme The Battle of the Bulge Operation Breakout What was the name of the decisive naval battle, in June 1942, that saw the destruction of a major part of the Japanese fleet? The Battle of Midway The Battle of Guadalcanal The Battle of Okinawa The Battle of the Coral Sea As part of 'Operation Thunderclap' on February 13-15 1945, the RAF and US Airforce fire bombed a major German city into non-existence. Which was it? Berlin Dresden Hamburg Only 3 men of a crew of 1,420 survived the sudden explosion of this British ship, engaged in a battle with the German warship 'Bismarck' on May 24th, 1941? HMS Prince of Wales HMS Hood HMS King George V What was the name of the US warship upon which the final Japanese surrender was accepted, on September 2nd, 1945? USS Enterprise USS Missouri USS Arkansas The Ploesti oil fields, vital to the German war effort, were located in which country? Hungary Romania Poland Ukraine 42 Which was the only other country, besides Germany, to field jet aircraft in the European theatre before the end of the war? United States Britain France USSR Which US Division was tasked with capturing Hitler's famed Eagles' Nest Complex in the Alps in the closing days of the war? 101st Airborne 82nd Airborne 1st Infantry 29th Infantry The Japanese invasion of the Aleutian Islands in Alaska was actually a diversion to draw the Americans away from ...? Pearl Harbor Truk Midway Wake Island Which Allied invasion beaches were code-name Cent, Dime and Joss? Sicily (Operation Husky) Normandy (Operation Overlord) North Africa (Operation Torch) Southern France (Operation Dragoon) Who was the German Commando who rescued Mussolini from the Badglio Government on September 12, 1943? Major Werner Pluskat SS Colonel Otto Gunsche SS Major Otto Skorzeny Colonel Bernhard Ramcke What was the pact that Germany, Italy and Japan signed on September 27, 1940? The Axis Pact The Tripartite Pact The Third Reich Pact The Berlin Pact Which U.S. Army Division made the greatest advances inland from the beaches on D-Day June 6, 1944? 1st Infantry Division 2nd Infantry Division 4th Infantry Division 29th Infantry Division When did the U.S. 'officially' declare that war with Germany had ended? December 31, 1946 June 4, 1953 May 7, 1945 43 August 8, 1949 Which was the only U.S. Navy submarine to be sunk by a Japanese submarine in World War Two? USS Cisco SS-290 USS Kete SS-369 USS Golet SS-361 USS Corvina SS-226 When did Germany launch the first V-2 bombs against Britain? October 10, 1943 December 15, 1942 January 1, 1945 September 8, 1944 Five Brothers (George, Frank, Joe, Matt, and Al ) went to war on the same ship...none of them came back. Where were the Sullivans Brothers from? Mentor, Ohio Waterloo, Iowa Tempe, Arizona French Lick, Indiana In what famous battle did the Sullivans fight and die in World War II? The Battle of Midway The Battle of Guadalcanal The Battle of the Bulge The Battle at Henderson Field What was the name of the Sullivans' ship? USS Indianapolis USS San Francisco USS Juneau USS Des Moines On which two beaches did the British land on D-Day? Omaha and Utah Sword and Gold Utah and Juno Gold and Utah On what day did D-Day occur? June 6, 1944 Dec., 6, 1944 June 7,1944 Dec. 7, 1944 What was the longest battle of WWII? Battle of the Atlantic Battle of the Bulge 44 Midway Kursk What was the name of the American general who captured Rome two days before D-Day? Omar Bradley George Patton Mark Clark What German field marshal, also known as 'Desert Fox' was in charge of the Atlantic Wall? Leni Riefenstahl Heinrich Heine Erwin Rommel Ernst Roehm Who was the Head of the SS? Adolf Hitler Erwin Rommel Ernst Roehm Heinrich Himmler On August 6, 1945, the first atomic bomb used in warfare was dropped on what city? Kokura Hiroshima Nagasaki Sakhalin When did the signing of the Japanese surrender treaty aboard the USS Missouri take place? September 2, 1945 August 7,1945 September 1,1946 June 6, 1944 What was the name of the admiral who commanded the Bismarck in battle and went down with the ship? Maximilin Graf von Spee Karl Doenitz Guenther Lutjens What is the name of the TOP flying ace of the Second World War? Gerhard Barkhorn Guenther Prien Otto Kittel Erich Hartmann What was the name of the bomber that dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima? Enola Gay Fat Man 45 Retribution Alamo What was the name of the MOST decorated soldier of the Second World War? He became a film star in Hollywood after the war. He was awarded 28 medals during WWII including the Medal of Honor. Capt.Franklin Pierce Lt. Audie Leon Murphy Lt.Aaron Murray What was the name of the US Navy's first aircraft carrier? USS Langley USS Enterprise USS Saratoga What was the name of the Admiral who was in overall command of the Imperial Japanese Navy? Shoji Nishimura Isoruku Yamamoto Kiyohide Shima Admiral Tojo What was the code name for the Allied invasion of North Africa? Operation Overlord Operation Torch Operation Torch Operation Anvil What was 'Operation Millennium'? Invasion of Italy 1st bombing of the Ploesti oilfields Invasion of Germany The first 1,000 bomber raid On what date did the Allied invasion of France occur? July 6, 1944 June 6, 1944 June 8, 1945 What was the name of the ocean liner sunk by a German U-boat that helped bring the United States into WWII? SS Athenia SS Erethusa SS Mauetania SS New York Who was the overall commander of all Allied forces in Europe at the end of WWII? General Bradley General Eisenhower Archibald Wavell 46 The invasion of Normandy has two Operation Code-Names, Overlord was one, what was the second Codename which was for the naval portion of the invasion? Operation Advance Operation Avalanche Operation Neptune On October 31 1941, weeks before a declaration of war, a US Navy destroyer was torpedoed and sunk by a German U-Boat. What was the name of the US Destroyer? USS Lawrence USS Greer USS Reuben James Which was the Operational Code-Name for the evacuation of the British and French troops at Dunkir Operation Bertram Operation Nest Egg Operation Dynamo Operation Relocate Which was the French Ocean Liner seized by the US Government after the fall of France in 1940, that was turned into a troop ship? SS Ile De France SS Champlain SS Normandie SS Liberte What year was butter rationed in the U.S.? 1940 1941 1942 1943 What occupied nation was the subject of the harshest rationing system during the war? Poland France USSR Finland What nation never instituted rationing? New Zealand Canada France Italy What was the German defensive line in Italy during WWII called? Siegfried Line Vandals' Line Odoacer Line Gustav Line 47 Which battle is regarded as the biggest naval battle in history? Battle of the Leyte Gulf Battle of the Coral Sea Battle of Midway Which German admiral was the originator of the wolf-pack submarine technique? Hans von Friedeburg Franz von Hipper Erich Raeder Karl Doenitz Whose army was nicknamed the 'Desert Rats' ? Claude John Auchinleck Alan Gordon Cunningham Bernard Law Montgomery During the war, a large number of artificial harbours were constructed to be towed across the English Channel to the coast of France. What were these harbors called? Mulberry Harbour Old Harbour Swinging Harbour Some neo-Nazi youths wear shirts with the number '88'. What is the significance of this number? Heil Hitler Supremacy of Aryan Race Rise of Third Reich Supremacy of Nazis (note: 8 refers to the eighth letter of the (Roman) alphabet 'H'. Therefore 88 means HH or Heil Hitler i.e. the Nazi salute.) What name was given to American Volunteer Group of fighter airplane pilots during the war? Flying Tigers RAF Flying Bats Roughnecks During the attack on Pearl Harbour, the Japanese bombarded several cruisers, navy airplanes and destroyed five major battleships. Four of them were the USS Arizona, Oklahoma, West Virginia and California. Which was the fifth one? (though later repaired) USS Tennessee USS Ohio USS Nevada USS Washington What were the Zoot Suit riots? Rioting in Los Angeles Garment Industry riots Rioting in New York Civil unrest in Washington D.C. 48 Who were the 'night witches'? Russian female partisans Female Russian combat pilots Women of the French Resistance Women in the US working on late shifts What country was the only democracy to fight on the Axis side? Hungary Finland Austria Denmark At the Trinity test site in Alamogordo, New Mexico on July 16,1945, the US exploded the first atomic bomb. This specific type of bomb was the same type as the bomb used on what Japanese city? Nagasaki Hiroshima Neither Both (Note: The bomb used on Nagasaki was a plutonium based atomic bomb which is what the Trinity test bomb was. When the Manhattan Project started its goal was to produce TWO radically different types of atomic bombs. The plutonium bomb used at Nagasaki employed pure plutonium surrounded by explosives which imploded the plutonium to cause a gigantic eruption. The other type that was used at Hiroshima was a uranium based bomb that worked by colliding two pieces of uranium to cause an explosion. The scientists who devised the uranium based bomb were so convinced that their theory was a sound theory, that they did not field test this device. Thus the first atomic bomb used against Japan had never been tested prior to being dropped on Hiroshima.) What small port on the English Channel was the site of the evacuation of most of the British Expeditionary Force in 1940? Calais Omaha Beach Dunkirk Cherbourg What air battle provided a rallying point for the British people during 1940 and early 1941? Battle of Norway Battle of France Battle of Britain Battle of Germany What island battle has been immortalized through a picture of the flag-raising on Mt. Suribachi? Okinawa 49 Iwo Jima Midway Guadalcanal Forces from what country completed the capture of Berlin on May 1, 1945? US Soviet Union Britain France Which German U-Boat Commander sunk the most ships? Wolfgang Luth Otto Kretschmer Herbert Schultze Which American submarine commander sunk the most ships? Edward Shelby Richard O'Kane John Lee FDR had a couple of codenames, One was Admiral Q, was one of them also Victor?. True False During the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor what was the first target hit by a Japanese bomb? Hickham Field Battleship Row Ford Island Sub Base What was the nickname for paradummies used on D-day? Oscars Ruperts Steves Toms Which Allied plane did bomber crews nickname "Little Friend"? Thunderbolt Hellcat Spitfire Mustang The most deadly air raids carried out by Allied strategic bombing forces were launched against what Axis City? Hiroshima Dresden Berlin Tokyo 50 (Note: The USAAF incendiary raids on Tokyo were more destructive of human life than either of the atomic bomb raids.) What French coastal city was the target of a disastrous commando raid by Canadian troops during the buildup to the invasion of Normandy? Brest Dieppe Dunkirk Cherbough What Luftwaffe General had overall command of German ground troops in Italy during most of the fighting on the Italian mainland in WWII? Keitel Rommel Kesselring Model What was the code name for the massive US air-ground operation which led to the break out from the Normandy beachhead? Operation Goodwood Operation Cobra Operation Diadem Operation Pointblank The introduction of what long-range fighter enabled US bombers to penetrate deep into Germany during the final years of the Strategic Bombing Campaign? P-51 D-4 B27 Spitfire What were the primary weaknesses of the Sherman tank? engine unreliable, low-velocity gun Too heavy, engine unreliable Thin armor, low-velocity gun Armor too thick, poor gun sights What was the name of the fictitious unit 'commanded' by Gen. Patton as part of the deception plan executed prior to the invasion of Normandy? Allied Liberation Force (ALF) Tenth US Fleet First U.S. Army Group (FUSAG) American Expeditionary Force (AEF) 51 The first Series E Defense Bond was sold on: January 1, 1942 June 6, 1942 December 26, 1941 May 1, 1941 What was the Anzio Express? Nickname given to a German Railway Gun The first train blown up by the enemy The first train to exceed 100 mph Nickname for a German train Who commanded the Luftwaffe? Hermann Goering Albert Speer Rudolph Hess Intrepid was the code name of the head of the British intelligence network. Who was he? Sir Lawrence Olivier Sir William Stephenson Sir Arthur Scott On what date did Germany and Italy declare war on the United States, and in turn the United States declared war on Germany and Italy? December 11, 1941 December 6, 1941 December 8, 1941 January 6, 1942 What was the nickname of the German propaganda broadcaster? Her real name was Mildred Gillars (190088). She was convicted of treason in 1949 and sentenced to 10-30 years. She was released in 1961. Munich Gertie Wartburg Wilma Berlin Barbie Axis Sally What did Hedy Lamarr, the movie actress do to help toward the war effort? Spent more time entertaining troops than Bob Hope She co-invented a torpedo guidance system, that was approved but not used Made more war movies than any other actress Sold the most War Bonds Who was the commander of the US Navy during WW2? Admiral King 52 Admiral Nimitz Admiral Halsey Admiral Spruance How many ships were moored at Pearl Harbor Naval Base on Sunday December 7th, 1941? 24 48 96 165 What was the codename for the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor? Operation J Operation T Operation V Operation Z Who was known as "Lord Haw-Haw"? Johnny Walker Emil Fuchs William Joyce The attack on this Italian port inspired Admiral Yamamoto to attack Pearl Harbor by using aircraft carriers. The site of the first major aircraft strike from aircraft carriers in history. Which port was it? Taranto Anzio Sicily This allied force was nicknamed the "Devil's Brigade" by the Germans. First Special Service Force British 6th Airborne U.S 9th Army Russian 3rd Army This man was the German economics minister and a Reichsbank president. He persuaded Himmler to put the loot from the Death Camps in a false bank account. He was sentenced to life imprisonment after the war. Who was it? Wilhelm Frick Hans Frank Walther Funk Adolf Eichmann What happened on June 6th, 1944? Japan Surrenders Allied Invasion of France at Normandy Battle of the bulge Sinking of the German Submarine, Bismarck What country fell *first* to the Nazis in World War II? France Romania Poland 53 Austria What happened immediately after Germany invaded Poland? France and Britain declared war on Germany Germany declared war on Russia Russia declared war on Germany Germany declared war on France What French port city was the British Expeditionary Force stuck in, with the English Channel to their backs, and the Nazis surrounding the city? Paris Dunkirk Dieppe What country did the Zero belong to? Germany Japan Italy Russia How close did the Nazis come to Moscow before being turned back? 5 miles 7 miles artillery range What country had the heaviest civilian casualties? Japan Germany Russia France In 1942, what was the code name of the operation that surrounded the German Sixth Army? Ring Little Saturn Saturn Uranus What was the German objective (city) of the 1942 summer offensive? Stalingrad Leningrad Moscow What term was given to deserted Russian POWs working for the Germans? Tongues Russkies Hiwis Traitors What was the greatest tank battle of World War 2? Kursk Stalingrad Battle of the Bulge 54 What was the name of the German defence line designed to stop the D-Day invasion? Atlantikwall Westwall Sudwall Ostwall What was Operation Galvanic? The U.S. invasion of Iwo Jima The U.S. invasion of the Marshall islands The U.S. invasion of the Gilbert islands The U.S. invasion of the Palau islands What was the German "Fall Rot" (Operation Red)? The invasion of Russia in 1941 The invasion of Denmark in 1940 The invasion of Greece in 1941 The invasion of France in 1940 What happened on December 7, 1941? Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor Allied invasion of Normandy Allied victory over the Nazis Atomic bombing of Hiroshima What happened on September 1, 1939? Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor Battle of Britain German invasion of Poland Retreat from Dunkirk A total of five countries that had not existed during World War I were established on land that had been carved wholly or largely out of Russian territory after World War I. Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Poland are four of them. Which country is missing? Belarus Lithuania Czechoslovakia Yugoslavia What were the acts called that were passed by the US government in order to keep the United States out of a future war? Neutrality Acts Conscription Act Wagner Act How many of the 22 Nazi leaders accused of War crimes at the Nuremberg trials were sentenced to death? 12 15 55 18 22 What Nazi party member saved 1,100 Jewish people by giving them work in his factory, named D.E.F.? Erwin Rommel Hermann Goering Rudolf Hess Oskar Schindler What senior Nazi party member flew to Scotland in 1941? Hermann Goering Rudolf Hess Josef Goebbels Who was leader of the SS? Josef Goebbels Heinrich Himmler Eichmann Josef Heinz In Auschwitz, what was the name of the doctor who is known for his nauseating experiments on the inmates? Josef Goebbels Horst Heinz Stramm Josef Mengele Hitler invaded Poland on Sept 1, 1939. On what day did Britian and France declare war on Germany? Aug. 15, 1939 Sept 1, 1939 Sept 3, 1939 Oct. 3, 1939 What were "Fat Man" and "Little Boy"? Submarines Battleships Atomic bombs Bombers Where did Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin meet for the first time? Moscow Tehran Yalta Berlin What were Japanese suicide bombers called? Zeros Russkies Kamikaze Shoguns 56 US Military Leaders Henry Arnold Henry Hartley Arnold, the son of a doctor, was born in Gladwyne, United States, on 25th June, 1886. He attended the West Point Military Academy and graduated in 1907 (66/111) and joined the United States Army. 57 Arnold took an early interest in flying and became the US Army's first pilot in 1911 and helped establish the Signal Corp's aviation school at College Park, Maryland. During this period Arnold set an altitude record of 6,540 feet. Transferred to an administration post in Washington Arnold missed much of the early development in combat flying that took place during the First World War. After the war Arnold joined William Mitchell in his campaign for more military air power. In 1936 Arnold was promoted to assistant chief of the Air Corps and took the top job when Major General Oscar Westover was killed in a crash on 29th September 1938. He also joined with Ira Eaker to write three books on flying, This Flying Game (1936), Winged Victory (1941) and Army Flyer (1942). In 1940 Henry Stimson, the US Secretary of War, and General George Marshall, the Chief of Staff of the US Army, decided to reorganize the air force. The Air Corps that had been responsible for training and procurement, and the Air Force Combat Command, were merged to become the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF). Arnold was appointed as commander of the USAAF. In 1941 the USAAF had 25,000 personnel and about 4,000 aircraft. This included the fighters, Seversky P-35 and Curtis P-36, and the bombers, Lockhead Hudson, Douglas SBD-3 and the B-25A Mitchell. This USAAF suffered badly during the Japanese Air Force attack on Pearl Harbor on 7th December, 1941. A total of 178 aircraft were destroyed on the ground and 159 were damaged. An estimated 2,403 men were killed and a further 1,778 were injured. After the United States entered the Second World War aircraft production rose dramatically. In 1942 10,769 fighters and 12,627 bombers were built. The following year this was increased to 23,988 fighters and 29,355 bombers. The peak was reached in 1944 with 38,873 fighters and 35,003 bombers being built. This included new fighters such as the P-51 Mustang, the Grumman Hellcat, the Chance-Vought Corsair and the Republic Thunderbolt. Dramatic improvements also took place in the production of US bombers such as the B-17 Flying Fortress, the B24 Liberator and the B-29 Stratafortress. Arnold was a strong supporter of area bombing (known in Germany as terror bombing) where entire cities and towns were targeted. The US 8th Air Force, based in southern England, played an important role in this strategic bombing offensive. In March 1942, Arnold was promoted to Commanding General. He was also a member of the American Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Allied Combined Chiefs of 58 Staff. In December 1944 Arnold was promoted which placed him fourth in ranking behind George Marshall, Douglas MacArthur and Dwight D. Eisenhower. After the war Arnold suffered a heart-attack and was succeeded by Carl Spaatz. Henry Hartley Arnold died on 15th January, 1950, in Sonoma, California. Walter Bedell-Smith Walter Bedell-Smith was born in United States in 1895. He joined the United States Army and on the outbreak of the Second World War was appointed Secretary of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff and American Secretary of the AngloAmerican Combined Chiefs of Staff. In September 1942 he was sent to Britain where he became Chief of Staff to General Dwight D. Eisenhower. He remained with Eisenhower, who called him the "perfect soldier-diplomat", until the end of war. His tasks included arranging the surrender of the German forces in April 1945. Walter Bedell-Smith died in 1961. Omar Bradley Omar Bradley was born in Clark, United States, on 12th February, 1893. His father, a school teacher who had married a 16 year old pupil, died when he was a child. His mother worked as a seamstress and took in boarders in order to send her son to West Point Military Academy where he graduated in 1915 (44/164). Bradley joined the United States Army and in 1929 became an instructor at the Infantry School at Fort Benning. The head of the institution was George Marshall who was impressed by Bradley's abilities and played an important role in his future career in the army. Promoted to brigadier general, he became head of the Infantry School in February, 1941. After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor Bradley was given command of the 82nd Infantry Division. In June 1942 Bradley was given command of 28th Division where he remained until General Dwight D. Eisenhower picked him to go to North Africa. He arrived in Algiers on 24th February 1943, and in April became head of the 2nd Corps during 59 the campaign in Tunisia. Promoted to lieutenant general in June 1943 he served under General George Patton in the conquest of Sicily that summer. Bradley was placed in charge of the 1st US Army in 1944 and after arriving in Britain helped to plan Operation Overlord. After the D-Day landings Bradley was appointed commander of the 12th Army Group. Promoted to four-star general on 12th March 1945, he succeeded Dwight D. Eisenhower as army chief of staff in 1948. The following year he became chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. His memoirs, A Soldier's Story, was published in 1951. After retiring in August 1953 Bradley joined the Bulova Watch Company and became chairman of the board five years later. Omar Bradley died in New York on 8th April 1981. Clay Blair used Bradley's papers to publish A General's Life in 1983. Simon Buckner Simon Buckner was born in Munfordville, Kentucky, on 16th July, 1886. He attended West Point Military Academy and graduated in 1908. Commissioned in the infantry he joined the USA Air Service in 1917. However, he left the following year without seeing action in the First World War. Buckner returned to West Point and worked in its tactical department before becoming commander of cadets (1933-36). A strict disciplinarian, he was known to confiscate after-shave lotions from cadets with the words: "If you're going to be a man, you've got to smell like a man." In July 1940 Buckner was promoted to brigadier general and sent to Alaska. After directing the defence of the region for 15 months he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant general and transferred to 10th Army Headquarters in Hawaii. In April, 1945, Buckner was given command of the invasion of Okinawa. On the first day 60,000 troops were put ashore against little opposition at Haguushi. The following day two airfields were captured by the Americans. However when the soldiers reached Shuri they came under heavy fire and suffered heavy casualties. Reinforced by the 3rd Amphibious Corps and the 6th Marine Division the Americans were able to repel a ferocious counter-attack by General Mitsuru Ushijima on 4th May. The United States Army gradually gained control of the island but on 18th June 1945, Buckner was mortally wounded by artillery fire while 60 observing an attack by the 8th Marine Regiment. Simon Buckner was the highest ranking American field commander killed during the Second World War. Daniel Callaghan Daniel Callaghan was born in San Francisco, United States, on 26th July, 1890. He attended the United States Naval Academy and graduated in 1911 (39/193) and joined the United States Navy. In 1938 Callaghan was appointed as Naval Aide to President Franklin D. Roosevelt. In 1940 he was given command of the San Francisco. Promoted to rear admiral he supported the American landings in Guadalcanal with five cruisers and ten destroyers. This resulted in heavy fighting off Savo Island and he was killed in action on 13th November, 1942. Evans Carlson Evans Carlson, the son of a church minister, was born in the United States in 1896. He ran away from home at the age of 14 and two years later lied about his age in order to join the United States Army. Carlson was sent to the Western Front in France during the First World War but arrived too late to take part in the fighting. He left the army after the war and worked as a salesman until 1922 when he joined the United States Marine Corps. In 1927 Carlson was sent China with the 4th Marines. After three years in China he served in Nicaragua where he had to deal with local bandit groups. This experience started a lifetime interest in guerilla warfare. After one successful operation against these bandits Carlson was awarded the Navy Cross. After another tour of duty in China (1933-35) Carlson was appointed commander of the Marine Guard at the presidential home at Warm Springs. Carlson got to know Franklin D. Roosevelt and when he was sent to China again in 1937 he was asked to send weekly reports to the president. Carlson witnessed the Japanese capture of Shanghai before working as an observer with the Chinese Army. Carlson noticed that while the Chinese conventional forces performed badly the small Red Army was much more successful against the Japanese invaders. For the next two years Carlson spent a considerable amount of time with the Red Army. He was impressed with the 61 effectiveness of their guerrilla warfare tactics and the way they developed good relationships with the local people. After finishing his period as an observer Carlson upset his superiors by giving a newspaper interview where he praised the Red Army for forming co-operatives and accusing the US government of helping Japan's war effort by supplying them with oil and other raw materials. When he was officially censored for the interview he resigned from the US Marines. Carlson returned to the United States where he wrote two books on the subject, The Chinese Army and Twin Stars of China. He also joined the committee established by Henry L. Stimson to campaign for an embargo against Japan. In 1940 Carlson made a private visit to China in order the investigate the progress of the cooperatives set up by the Red Army. While there he became convinced that Japan would attack the United States. He visited General Douglas MacArthur and urged him to establish guerilla units in case the Japanese Army invaded the Philippines. However, MacArthur ignored his advice. On his return to the United States Carlson rejoined the US Marines. After the Japan attacked at Pearl Harbor Carlson and Merritt Edson advocated the use of guerrilla warfare against the Japanese Army in the Pacific War. Eventually Edson was given command of the 1st Raider Battalion whereas Carlson got the 2nd Raider Battalion. Over 7,000 applied to join the 2nd Raider Battalion but only 1,000 were accepted. Each candidate was interviewed about the political significance of the war. He later said he favoured men with initiative, adaptability and held democratic views. James Roosevelt, the son of Franklin D. Roosevelt, became Carlson's assistant. Based in San Diego, the Carlson's Raiders were taught the military tactics employed by the Red Army against the Japanese. This included learning how to kill silently and quickly. Following the example of the guerrillas in China, Carlson abolished the traditional privileges enjoyed by officers. They ate the same food, wore the same clothes and carried the same equipment. Carlson's observations of the Red Army convinced him that men perform better when they believe in they are fighting for a better political system. Therefore Carlson provided information on the undemocratic nature of the governments in Nazi Germany and Japan. He also encouraged the men to discuss the kind of society the men wanted after the war. In August 1943 Carlson and 222 marines set off from Pearl Harbor and they were landed on the small island of Makin Atoll. After two days of fighting Carlson's men were able to destroy the radio station, burned equipment and captured important 62 documents. Thirty marines were killed before General Alexander Vandegrift ordered them to leave the island. As a result of the raid the Japanese Army fortified the Gilbert Islands. On 4th November 1943, the Carlson's Raiders landed in Guadalcana. Over the next month Carlson's men killed more than 500 Japanese while only losing 17 men. Carlson's was himself wounded and forced to return to the United States for treatment. Carlson's superiors told him they were concerned about his unorthodox ideas and tactics. They were also concerned about his close friendship with Agnes Smedley, the radical journalist who was involved in campaigning for USA support of communist forces in China in order to help them to fight the Japanese Army in Asia. In May 1943 Carlson was promoted to be executive officer of the Raider regiment and was stripped of direct command of his battalion in Guadalcana. Carlson now upset his superiors by becoming involved in a controversial project of publishing pamphlets on the contribution of the Afro-American in the war. Carlson eventually returned to action in November 1943 at the battle of Tarawa. On Saipan he received severe wounds when trying to rescue a radio operator who had been shot by the Japanese. He never fully recovered from his injuries and was forced to retire from the United States Marines. Carlson's exploits were celebrated by the book, The Big Yankee: The Life of Carlson of the Raiders (1947) and the feature film, Gung Ho. After the war Carlson ran for the Senate in California but was forced to withdraw after suffering a heart attack. Evans Carlson died after another heart attack in May 1947. Mark Clark Mark Clark, the son of an infantry colonel, was born in the United States on 1st May, 1896. He attended the West Point Military Academy and graduated in 1917 (110/139) and joined the United States Army. In the First World War he fought on the Western Front in France and was seriously wounded by shrapnel while leading his company of the 11th Regiment 5th Division. 63 Promoted to the rank of major he held several important staff assignments before graduating from the US Army College in Washington. General George Marshall was impressed by Clark who helped to get him a teaching job at the college. In April 1941 Clark became a brigadier general and the following year went to Britain with General Dwight D. Eisenhower where he helped him plan Operation Torch. Along with Robert Murphy, Clark negotiated the controversial deal with Jean-Francois Darlan. On 13th October 1942, Clark became the US Army's youngest ever three-star general. In December 1942 Clark took command of the 5th Army. He also had special responsibility rear area defence and troop training. On 9th September 1943, Clark and his troops made an amphibious assault on Italy. Landing in Salerno, near Naples, he encountered serious resistance but with the help of General Bernard Montgomery and the 8th Army the beachhead was made safe by the 15th September. Clark had difficulty taking Cassino which was needed to open the way to Rome. Eventually he was forced to make his main effort through Valmontone. He continued to push north through the Apennines but suffered heavy casualties at the hands of General Albrecht Kesselring. On 18th May, 1944, Allied troops led by General Wladyslaw Anders (Polish Corps) and General Alphonse Juin (French Corps) captured Monte Cassino. This opened a corridor for Allied troops and they reached Anzio on 24th May. The German defence now disintegrated and General Mark Clark was able to take his forces direct to Rome which he liberated on 4th June. Clark replaced General Harold Alexander as head of the 15th Army Group in December 1944, and the following March became America's youngest full general. He took part in the spring offensive that led to the unilateral surrender by Karl Wolff. After the war Clark was commander of US Forces in Austria until being given command of the 6th Army in San Francisco in January 1947. He expected to replace Omar Bradley as Chief of Staff of the US Army but this post went to Joe L. Collins instead. In April 1952 Clark replaced Matthew Ridgeway as head of the far east Command and the UN Supreme Commander in Korea. He retired from the United States Army in October 1953. Mark Clark, who published two books of memoirs, Calculated Risk (1950) and From the Danube to the Yalu (1954), died at Charleston on 17th April 1984. 64 Joseph Lawton Collins Joseph Lawton Collins, the son of Irish immigrants, was born in the United States in 1896. He attended West Point Military Academy and graduated in 1917 (35/139) and joined the United States Army. Commissioned in the infantry he was disappointed not to get sent to Europe during the during the First World War. Collins eventually became an instructor in the US Army College where he impressed General George Marshall. On the outbreak of the Second World War Collins was appointed chief of staff in the new 6th Corps Headquarters in Birmingham, Alabama. After Pearl Harbor Collins became chief of staff of the Hawaiian Department. In February 1942 he was promoted brigadier general and three months later was placed in command of the 25th Infantry. Collins and his troops relieved the US Marines on Guadalcana. In January, 1943, Collins took part in the attack on Kokumbona. This caused some of the most savage fighting of the Pacific War and during the campaign Collins got the name "Lightning Joe". General Douglas MacArthur considered Collins too young to be a three-star general so George Marshall arranged for him to join General Dwight D. Eisenhower in Britain. Collins was given command of the 7th Corps and during the D-Day landings led his men in securing Utah Beach. Collins and the 7th Corps made steady progress taking Cherbourg on 27th June and after being held up at St Lo he broke through German lines and was able to help General George Patton and the US 3rd Army in Brittany. With France liberated Collins and the 7th Corps moved into Nazi Germany through the Aachen Gap. After encountering stubborn resistance from the German Army Collins eventually got into the Ruhr and took Cologne on 11th March 1945. Heavy fighting at Paderborn he defeated General Walther Model and his army of 300,000 men. Promoted to lieutenant general in April 1945, it is said that German generals considered Collins to be the best US corps commander in Europe. After the defeat of Germany Collins became chief of staff of the Army Ground Forces but in December 1945 was given the post as the US Army Chief of Information. 65 Collins remained in Europe after the war and in 1947 was appointed deputy chief of staff to General Dwight D. Eisenhower. He remained in this position when Eisenhower was succeeded by General Omar Bradley in February 1948. Promoted to full general in 1948 the following year he replaced Bradley as Chief of Staff of the US Army. He also served as the US representative on the NATO Standing Group. After retiring from the United States Army in 1956, Collins wrote his memoirs, Lightning Joe: An Autobiography (1979). Joseph Lawton Collins died in Washington on 12th September 1987. Luicius Clay Luicius Clay was born in Marietta, Georgia, on 23rd April, 1896. He attended the West Point Military Academy and after graduation was commissioned in the Corps of Engineers. In 1933 Clay allied himself with Harry Hopkins and became a strong supporter of Franklin D. Roosevelt and the New Deal. In 1939 Clay organized the building of the Denison Dam Red River. In June, 1940, Clay became head of the emergency Defence Airport Program and organized the building or expanding over 250 airports before the United States entered the Second World War. Clay remained in Washington for most of the war as Director of War Department Material. He also served on the Munitions Assignment Board and the War Production Board. In July, 1944, Clay was also a delegate to the Bretton Woods conference. Soon afterwards he was sent to France to become supply chief under Dwight D. Eisenhower. The following year he was appointed Eisenhower's deputy as military governor of occupied Germany. In May, 1946 Clay became military governor of Germany. He held the post during the Berlin Airlift and was replaced by John J. McCloy in 1949. Clay retired from the United States Army in 1949 and went into industry and worked as Chief Executive Officer of Continental Can and Lehman Brothers, the investment bankers. Luicius Clay died in Chatham, Massachusetts, on 16th April, 1978. 66 William Donovan William Donovan was born in Buffalo, United States, on 1st January, 1883. After graduating from Columbia University in 1907 he became a lawyer. Donovan was an active member of the Republican Party and after meeting Herbert Hoover he worked as his political adviser, speech writer and campaign manager. During the First World War Donovan joined the United States Army and as a colonel in the 69th Infantry Regiment won the Medal of Honor and three Purple Hearts. While in Europe he visited Russia and spent time with Alexander Kolchak and the White Army. Donovan ran unsuccessfully as lieutenant governor in 1922 but was appointed by President Calvin Coolidge as his assistant attorney general. In 1932 he was the Republican candidate for the post of governor of New York. By the time Franklin D. Roosevelt was elected president in 1932 Donovan was a millionaire Wall Street lawyer. He was a strong opponent of Roosevelt's New Deal but shared the president's concern about political developments in Nazi Germany and in 1940 Donovan agreed to take part in several secret fact-finding missions in Europe. In July 1941, Roosevelt appointed Donovan as his Coordinator of Information. The following year Donovan became head of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), an organization that was given the responsible for espionage and for helping the resistance movement in Europe. He was helped in this by William Stephenson and Britain's MI6 chief, Stewart Menzies. Donovan was given the rank of major general and during the Second World War he built up a team of 16,000 agents working behind enemy lines. The growth of the OSS brought conflict with John Edgar Hoover who saw it as a rival to the Federal Bureau of Investigation. As soon as the Second World War ended President Harry S. Truman ordered the OSS to be closed down. However, it provided a model for the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) established in September 1947. Donovan returned to his law practice in 1946 but agreed to become ambassador to Thailand in 1953. William Donovan died in 1959. 67 Dwight David Eisenhower Dwight David Eisenhower, the son of a small farmer, was born in Denison, Texas, on 14th October, 1890. He attended West Point Military Academy and graduated in 1915 (61/164). Eisenhower became a temporary lieutenant colonel during the First World War. He was appointed commander of a heavy tank brigade in Pennsylvania but was not sent to Europe during the conflict. After the war Eisenhower served under George Patton at Fort Meade, Maryland. These two pioneers of tank warfare became close friends. Promoted to the rank of major Eisenhower was appointed as chief of staff to Brigadier General Fox Connor when he was sent to Panama in 1922. Connor was a great influence on Eisenhower and introduced him to books written by philosophers and military strategists such as Plato, Tactitus, Clausewitz and Nietzsche. Eisenhower entered the Command and General Staff School at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, in 1942. He graduated two years later as head of the class. He then served under General John Pershing at the American Battle Monuments in France. This included working on the commission's guide, American Armies and Battlefields in Europe. In February 1932, Eisenhower was appointed to the staff of General Douglas MacArthur. Along with George Patton, Eisenhower was involved in dealing with the Bonus Army in Washington. MacArthur, was later criticized for using tanks, four troops of cavalry with drawn sabers, and infantry with fixed bayonets, on the protesters. Promoted to lieutenant colonel, Eisenhower also served under MacArthur in the Philippines. In his diaries Eisenhower makes it clear that he did not like MacArthur and in 1939 took up an appointment with the 15th Infantry Regiment at Fort Lewis. In March 1941 he was promoted to colonel and became chief of staff to General Walter Krueger in 3rd Army headquarters at San Antonio, Texas. Eisenhower's career in the US Army had so far being fairly unspectacular but he had impressed General George Marshall, U.S. Chief of Staff, and a week after Pearl Harbor was recruited to help prepare the plans for war with Japan and Germany. In March 1942, Eisenhower was sent to England as head of European Theatre of Operations (ETO). 68 In July, 1942, Franklin D. Roosevelt and Winston Churchill decided that the Allies should open a Second Front to help the Red Army fighting in the Soviet Union. Joseph Stalin favoured an invasion of Europe but Roosevelt and Churchill opted for an invasion of northwest Africa. Given the code-name Operation Torch, Eisenhower was appointed Allied commander of the invasion. Over 100,000 Vichy troops were stationed in Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia. It was hoped that the French troops not to resist the Allied invasion. On 8th November 1942, Allied forces landed in Casablanca, Oran and Algiers. The French troops fought back at Oran and General Mark Clark immediately began negotiations with Admiral Jean-Francois Darlan, overall C-in-C of Vichy forces, in an attempt to negotiate a ceasefire. Adolf Hitler threatened Henri-Philippe Petain that the German Army would invade Vichy if his troops did not resist. When Darlan surrendered on the 11th November, Hitler carried out his threat and occupied the rest of France. French troops in Morocco stopped fighting but some joined the Germans in Tunisia. Eisenhower now controversially appointed Jean-Francois Darlan as the political head of the French North Africa. The decision infuriated General Charles De Gaulle and the French Resistance who claimed that Darlan was a fascist and a Nazi collaborator. However, the decision was endorsed by Winston Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt who both agreed with Eisenhower that the deal with Darlan would assist military operations in the area. In January 1943, General Jurgen von Arnium took control of the German forces in Tunisia. Later that month he was joined by General Erwin Rommel and his army in southern Tunisia. Rommel was in retreat from Egypt and was being chased by General Bernard Montgomery and the 8th Army. Montgomery now spent several weeks in Tripoli building up his supplies. Arnium and Rommel decided to take this opportunity to attack Allied forces led by General Kenneth Anderson at Faid Pass (14th February) and Kasserine Pass (19th February). The Deutsches Afrika Korps then headed for Thala but were forced to retreat after meeting a large Allied force on 22nd February, 1943. General Harold Alexander was now sent to oversee Allied operations in Tunisia whereas General Erwin Rommel was placed in command of the German forces. On 6th March 1943, Rommel attacked the Allies at Medenine. General Bernard Montgomery and the 8th Army fought off the attack and the Germans were forced to withdraw. Rommel now favoured a full retreat but this was rejected by Adolf Hitler. 69 By April 1943 the Allies had over 300,000 men in Tunisia. This gave them a 6-to-1 advantage in troops and a 15-to-1 superiority in tanks. The Allied blockade of the Mediterranean also made it difficult for the German Army to be supplied with adequate amounts of fuel, ammunition and food. Eisenhower now decided to make another effort to take Tunis. General Omar Bradley, who had replaced General George Patton, as commander of the 2nd Corps, joined General Bernard Montgomery for the offensive. On 23rd April the 300,000 man force advanced along a 40 mile front. At the same time there was a diversionary attack by the 8th Army at Enfidaville. On 7th May 1943, British forces took Tunis and the US Army captured Bizerte. By 13th May all Axis forces in Tunisia surrendered and over 150,000 were taken prisoner. After the success of Operation Torch, Eisenhower was promoted to full general and given the task of organizing the invasion of Sicily. General Harold Alexander was commander of ground operations and his 15th Army Group included General George Patton (US 7th Army) and General Bernard Montgomery (8th Army). Admiral Andrew Cunningham was in charge of naval operations and Air Marshal Arthur Tedder was air commander. On 10th July 1943, the 8th Army landed at five points on the south-eastern tip of the island and the US 7th Army at three beaches to the west of the British forces. The Allied troops met little opposition and Patton and his troops quickly took Gela, Licata and Vittoria. The British landings were also unopposed and Syracuse was taken on the the same day. This was followed by Palazzolo (11th July), Augusta (13th July) and Vizzini (14th July), whereas the US troops took the Biscani airfield and Niscemi (14th July). General George Patton now moved to the west of the island and General Omar Bradley headed north and the German Army was forced to retreat to behind the Simeto River. Patton took Palermo on 22nd July cutting off 50,000 Italian troops in the west of the island. Patton now turned east along the northern coast of the island towards the port of Messina. Meanwhile General Bernard Montgomery and the 8th Army were being held up by German forces under Field Marshal Albrecht Kesselring. The Allies carried out several amphibious assaults attempted to cut off the Germans but they were unable to stop the evacuation across the Messina Straits to the Italian mainland. This included 40,000 German and 60,000 Italian troops, as well as 10,000 German vehicles and 47 tanks. On 17th August 1943, General George Patton and his troops marched into Messina. The capture of the island made it possible to clear the way for Allied 70 shipping in the Mediterranean. It also helped to undermine the power of Benito Mussolini and Victor Emmanuel III forced him to resign. Eisenhower was now placed in charge of the invasion of Italy. On 3rd September, 1943, General Bernard Montgomery and the 8th Army landed at Reggio. There was little resistance and later that day British warships landed the 1st Parachute Division at Taranto. Six days later the US 6th Corps arrived at Salerno. These troops faced a heavy bombardment from German troops and the beachhead was not secured until 20th September. On 23rd September 1943, Pietro Badoglio and General Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the Italian surrender aboard Nelson off Malta. The German Army continued to fight ferociously in southern Italy and the Allied armies made only slow progress as the moved north towards Rome. The 5th Army took Naples on 1st October and later that day the 8th Army captured the Foggia airfields. General Albrecht Kesselring now withdrew his forces to what became known as the Gustav Line on the Italian peninsula south of Rome. Organized along the Garigliano and Rapido rivers it included Monte Cassino, a hilltop site of a sixthcentury Benedictine monastery. Defended by 15 German divisions the line was fortified with gun pits, concrete bunkers, turreted machine-gun emplacements, barbed-wire and minefields. In December 1943, the Allied suffered heavy loses while trying to capture the monastery. In January 1944, Eisenhower and General Harold Alexander, Supreme Allied Commander in Italy, ordered a new Cassino offensive combined with an amphibious operation at Anzio, a small port on the west coast of Italy. The main objective of the operation was to cut the communication lines of the German 10th Army and force a withdrawal from the Gustav Line. Attacks on Monte Cassino on 17th January resulted in the Germans reserves moving to the Gustav Line and on 22nd January troops led by General John Lucas landed at Anzio. Lucas decided not to push straight away to the Alban Hills. This enabled General Heinrich Vietinghoff to order the 14th Army to return to the area and contain the 6th Corps on the Anzio bridgehead. On 12th February the exhausted US Army at Cassino were replaced by the New Zealand Corps. Alexander now decided to use these fresh troops in another attempt to capture Cassino. General Bernard Freyberg, who was in charge of the infantry attack, asked for the monastery be bombed. Despite claims by troops on the front-line that no fire had come from the monastery, General Harold Alexander agreed and it was destroyed by the United States Air Force on 15th February, 1944. 71 Eisenhower was criticised by some Allied military leaders as being over cautious during the invasion of Sicily of Italy. However, he had impressed Winston Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt as a man who was able to command soldiers from several different countries. Recognized as an excellent coalition commander, Eisenhower was appointed head of the Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force (SHAEF) and was given responsibility for Operation Overlord, the invasion of Europe. Eisenhower now had the task of organizing around a million combat troops and two million men involved in providing support services. The plan, drawn up by Eisenhower, George Marshall, Bernard Montgomery, Omar Bradley, Bertram Ramsay, Walter Bedell-Smith, Arthur Tedder and Trafford Leigh-Mallory, involved assaults on five beaches west of the Orne River near Caen (codenamed Sword, Juno, Gold, Omaha and Utah) by the British 2nd Army and the American 1st Army. Follow-up forces included the Canadian 1st Army and the American 3rd Army under Lt. General George Patton. The invasion was preceded by a massive aerial bombardment of German communications. This resulted in the destruction of virtually every bridge over the Seine. On 6th June, 1944, 2,727 ships sailed to the Normandy coast and on the first day landed 156,000 men on a front of thirty miles. It was the largest and most powerful armada that has ever sailed. The Allied invasion was faced by 50 divisions of the German Army under General Erwin Rommel. At Omaha, steep cliffs favoured the defenders and the US Army suffered 2,500 casualties. The Allies also sent in three airborne divisions, two American and one British, to prepare for the main assault by taking certain strategic points and by disrupting German communications. Of the 23,000 airborne troops, 15,500 were Americans and of these, 6,000 were killed or seriously wounded. Over the next couple of days 156,215 troops were landed from sea and air in Normandy, at a cost of some 10,300 casualties. The invasion was a great success but he was later criticised by Omar Bradley and George Patton for not fighting a more positive campaign and argued that if he had forced General Bernard Montgomery to have fought more aggressively in Caen the German Army would have been trapped in Normandy. Instead they were able to retreat back to Nazi Germany and the war was able to continue into 1945. After the war Eisenhower served briefly as US member of the Allied Commission governing Germany. In November 1945, Eisenhower took over from General George Marshall, as US Army Chief of Staff. His book, Crusade in Europe, was published in 1948. Eisenhower retired in 1948 and became presidency of Columbia 72 University. In 1951 he returned to Europe as Supreme Commander of NATO. Although Eisenhower had never identified himself with any particular political party, in 1952 he was approached about being the Republican Party candidate for president. He accepted and in November easily defeated the Democratic Party candidate, Adlai Stevenson by 33,936,252 votes to 27,314,922. On 20th January, 1953 Eisenhower became the first soldier-President since Ulysses Grant (1869-77). Eisenhower left party matters to his vice-president, Richard Nixon. His political philosophy was never clearly defined. He was against enlarging the role of government in economic matters but he did support legislation fixing a minimum wage and the extension of social security. Eisenhower also refused to speak out against Joe McCarthy and members of the House of UnAmerican Activities Committee (HUAC) until they began to attack his army commanders in 1954. Eisenhower's government was severely concerned about the success of communism in South East Asia. Between 1950 and 1953 they had lost 142,000 soldiers in attempting to stop communism entering South Korea. The United States feared that their efforts would have been wasted if communism were to spread to South Vietnam. Eisenhower was aware that he would have difficulty in persuading the American public to support another war so quickly after Korea. He therefore decided to rely on a small group of Military Advisers' to prevent South Vietnam becoming a communist state. In 1956 Eisenhower defeated Adlai Stevenson again. This time the margin was even greater with Eisenhower winning 35,585,316 votes to Stevenson's 26,031,322. The following year he controversially sent federal troops to Little Rock to enforce the Supreme Court decision to desegregate schooling. In foreign affairs during this period he relied heavily on Richard Nixon and his secretary of state, John Foster Dulles. During the Suez Crisis President Dwight Eisenhower refused to support the Anglo-French action against Gamal Abdel Nasser in Egypt. Afterwards his Secretary of State, John Foster Dulles, became concerned about the growing influence of the Soviet Union in the Middle East. In January 1957 made a speech in Congress where Eisenhower recommended the use of American forces to protect Middle East states against overt aggression from nations "controlled by international communism". He also urged the provision of economic aid to those countries with anti-communist governments. This new foreign policy became known as the Eisenhower Doctrine. When Eisenhower left office as one of the most popular presidents in American history. He was admired for his integrity, modesty, strength and a flair for conciliation. He retired to his farm in Gettysburg and devoted much of his time to 73 writing his memoirs. Mandate For Change (1963), Waging Peace (1965) and At Ease (1967). Dwight David Eisenhower died on March 28, 1969. Leslie Groves Leslie Groves, the son of a Presbyterian minister, was born in Albany in the United States on 17th August, 1896. He attended the University of Washington and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology before graduating from West Point Military Academy in 1918. He served in the construction division of the QMG and by the Second World War had reached the rank of colonel. In 1942 he was promoted to brigadier general and placed in charge of the Manhattan Project. Groves arranged the purchase of uranium and selected the Los Alamos site. He also recruited Robert Oppenheimer (USA), David Bohm (USA), Leo Szilard (Hungary), Eugene Wigner (Hungary), Rudolf Peierls (Germany), Otto Frisch (Germany), Felix Bloch (Switzerland), Niels Bohr (Denmark), James Franck (Germany), James Chadwick (Britain), Emilio Segre (Italy), Enrico Fermi (Italy), Klaus Fuchs (Germany) and Edward Teller (Hungary) to the project. By the time the atom bomb was ready to be used Germany had surrendered. Leo Szilard and James Franck circulated a petition among the scientists opposing the use of the bomb on moral grounds. However, Groves strongly disagreed with this view and advised Harry S. Truman, the USA's new president, to use the bomb on Japan. On 6th August 1945, a B29 bomber dropped an atom bomb on Hiroshima. It has been estimated that over the years around 200,000 people have died as a result of this bomb being dropped. Japan did not surrender immediately and a second bomb was dropped on Nagasaki three days later. On 10th August the Japanese surrendered. Groves was promoted to lieutenant general on 24th January, 1948. Soon afterwards he retired and became vice president of Remington Rand. He published his memoirs, Now It Can Be Told, in 1962. Leslie Groves died in Washington on 13th July, 1970. William Halsey 74 William Halsey, the son of a naval captain, was born in New Jersey, United States, on 30th October 1882. He attended the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis and graduated in 1904 (43/62) and joined the United States Navy. Halsey won the Navy Cross during the First World War while commanding destroyer patrol forces in the Atlantic. After the war he served as a naval attach頩n Germany, Norway, Denmark and Sweden. Halsey, who learnt to fly in 1935, became one of the country's leading exponents of naval air power. He commanded the aircraft carrier Saratoga for two years before becoming head of the Pensacola Naval Air Station in 1937. The following year he was given the responsibility of training air squadrons for the new carriers, Enterprise and Yorktown. In June 1940 he was promoted to vice admiral. In January 1941, the Commander in Chief of the Japanese Combined Fleet, Admiral Isoruku Yamamoto began planning for a surprise attack on the US Navy. Yamamoto feared that he did not have the resources to win a long war against the United States. He therefore advocated a surprise attack that would destroy the US Fleet in one crushing blow. On Sunday, 7th December, 1941, 105 high-level bombers, 135 dive-bombers and 81 fighter aircraft attacked the the US Fleet at Pearl Harbor. In their first attack the Japanese sunk the Arizona, Oklahoma, West Virginia and California. The second attack, launched 45 minutes later, hampered by smoke, created less damage. Fortunately for Halsey he was at sea at the time of the Japanese attack. Serving under Admiral Chester Nimitz Halsey led the task force that attacked Japanese positions in the Gilbert Islands. In April 1943 he helped organized the air attacks on Tokyo. A nervous skin disease meant that Halsey missed the battle of Midway and Raymond Spruance led the task force that inflicted considerable damage on the Japanese Navy. Promoted to admiral in November, 1942, Halsey took control of naval operations during the Guadalcana campaign (12th-13th November, 1942) and sunk two Japanese battleships, two destroyers and six transport ships for the loss of two cruisers and four destroyers. The following year he took command of the South Pacific Force. Working closely with General Douglas MacArthur Halsey developed what became known as his island hopping tactics. This strategy involved amphibious landings on vulnerable islands, therefore bypassing Japanese troop concentrations on fortified islands. 75 This had the advantage of avoiding frontal assaults and thus reducing the number of American casualties. In the Leyte Gulf campaign Halsey had the task of supporting the landing of troops and to destroy the main Japanese fleet. On 24th October 1944 Halsey fell into a Japanese trap when he headed north with all 64 ships to attack Admiral Jisaburo Ozawa . He left the San Bernardino Strait unprotected and only the actions of Vice-Admiral Thomas Kinkaid and the 7th Fleet prevented a military disaster. Halsey's fleet were twice hit by typhoons in December 1944 and June 1945 and this led to the loss of several ships and many lives. At the subsequent enquiry he was criticized for taking inappropriate action in both cases. At the end of the Pacific War Halsey's flagship, Missouri, was used for the signing of the Japanese surrender on 2nd September 1945. Three months later Halsey was promoted to admiral of the fleet. After retiring from the US Navy in April 1947, Halsey was a director of several large companies. William Halsey died in Pasadina, California on 16th August 1959. Husband Kimmel Husband Kimmel, the son of an army major, was born in the United States on 14th May 1882. He attended the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis and graduated in 1904 (13/62) and joined the United States Navy. Kimmel, an ordnance specialist, became a rear admiral in 1937. Appointments included being head of Cruiser Division and commander of Cruisers of the Pacific Fleet. In February 1941, Kimmel became the most senior admiral in the US Navy and was appointed Commander in Chief of the US Pacific Fleet. On Sunday, 7th December, 1941, 105 high-level bombers, 135 dive-bombers and 81 fighter aircraft attacked the the US Fleet at Pearl Harbor. In two hours 18 warships, 188 aircraft and 2,403 servicemen were lost in the attack. Ten days after the attack Admiral Chester Nimitz became Commander in Chief of the US Pacific Fleet and Kimmel was removed from office. The subsequent investigations into the attack found Kimmel guilty of errors of judgement and not coordinating army-navy efforts to defend Hawaii. In May 1942, Kimmel decided to take early retirement. 76 During the Second World War Kimmel was employed by Frederick R. Harris Incorporated who did secret work for the navy. Husband Kimmel died at Groton, Connecticut, on 14th May 1968. Douglas MacArthur Douglas MacArthur, the son of the high-ranking military figure, Arthur MacArthur, was born in Little Rock, Arkansas, on 26th January, 1880. Although previously a poor scholar, in 1903 MacArthur graduated first in his 93-man class, at West Point Military Academy. Commissioned in the Corps of the Engineers, MacArthur was sent by the United States Army to the Philippines and by 1904 had been promoted to the rank of first lieutenant. Later that year he joined his father who was serving in Far East before becoming aide-de-camp to President Theodore Roosevelt in 1906. MacArthur was assigned to general staff duty with the War Department and was an official observer with the Vera Cruz Expedition. On the advice of General Leonard Wood, MacArthur was promoted to major. In the First World War MacArthur commanded the 42nd Division on the Western Front and was decorated 13 times and cited seven additional times for bravery. Promoted the the rank of brigadier in August, 1918, three months later he became the youngest divisional commander in France. After the war MacArthur returned to the United States where he became brigadier general and the youngest ever superintendent of West Point in its 117 year history. Over the next three years he doubled its size and modernized the curriculum. In 1922 MacArthur was sent to the Philippines where he commanded the newly established Military District of Manila. At the age of forty-three MacArthur became the army's youngest general and in 1928 was appointed president of the American Olympic Committee. MacArthur was appointed chief of staff of the US Army in 1930. Once again he was the youngest man to hold the office and over the next few years attempted to modernize America's army of 135,000 men. MacArthur developed right-wing political views and at one meeting argued that: "Pacifism and its bedfellow, Communism, are all about us. Day by day this cancer eats deeper into the body politic." 77 In June 1932, MacArthur, controversially used tanks, four troops of cavalry with drawn sabers, and infantry with fixed bayonets, on the Bonus Army in Washington. He justified his attack on former members of the United States Army by claiming that the country was on the verge of a communist revolution. Dwight D. Eisenhower and George Patton also took part in this operation. In 1935 President Franklin D. Roosevelt sent MacArthur to organize the defence of the Philippines. He retired from the army in 1937 but stayed on the island where he became the country's military adviser. When negotiations with the Japanese government broke down in June 1941, Roosevelt recalled MacArthur to active duty as a major general and was granted $10 million to mobilize the Philippine Army. It was also decided to send MacArthur 100 B-17 Flying Fortress to help defend the Philippines. Most of MacArthur's troops were deployed to protect the two main islands of Luzon and Mindanao and by October 1941, MacArthur informed General George Marshall that he now had 135,000 troops, 227 assorted fighters, bombers and reconnaissance aircraft and this provided a "tremendously strong offensive and defensive force" and claimed that the Philippines was now the "key or base point of the US defence line." The Japanese Air Force attacked the US Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor on the 7th December 1941. The following day they carried out air strikes on the Philippines and destroyed half of MacArthur's air force. MacArthur was much criticized for this as he had been told to move his airforce after the raid on Hawaii the previous day. The Japanese Army also invaded the Philippines and they soon held the three air bases in northern Luzon. On 22nd December the 14th Army landed at Lingayen Gulf and quickly gained control of Manila from the inexperienced Filipino troops. Although only 57,000 Japanese soldiers were landed on Luzon it had little difficulty capturing the island. General Douglas MacArthur now ordered a general retreat to the Bataan peninsula. A series of Japanese assaults forced the US defensive lines back and on 22nd February, 1942, MacArthur was ordered to leave Bataan and go to Australia. General Jonathan Wainright remained behind with 11,000 soldiers and managed to hold out until the beginning of May. The American forces were re-organized and MacArthur was appointed Supreme Commander of the Southwest Pacific Area and Admiral Chester Nimitz became Commander in Chief of the US Pacific Fleet. Along with Admiral Ernest King Commander-in-Chief of the US Navy, Macarthur and Nimitz, decided that their first objective should be to establish and protect a line of communications across the 78 South Pacific to Australia. This resulted in the battles of Coral Sea and Midway, where the Japanese Navy lost all four of her carriers. In the summer of 1942 fighting in the Pacific was concentrated around Rabaul, the key Japanese military and air base in the Soloman Islands. On 7th August there was an Allied landings at Guadalcanal. Over the next eight months there were ten major land battles and seven major naval engagements in this area. MacArthur now developed what became known as his island hopping tactics. This strategy involved amphibious landings on vulnerable islands, therefore bypassing Japanese troop concentrations on fortified islands. This had the advantage of avoiding frontal assaults and thus reducing the number of American casualties. By the spring of 1944, 100,000 Japanese soldiers were cut off at Rabaul and the Japanese 18th Army were surrounded in New Guinea. In September US troops took Morotai and all of New Guinea was now in Allied hands. It was not until 1944 that MacArthur was given permission to begin the campaign to recapture the Philippines. The first objective was the capture of Leyte, an island situated between Luzon and Mindanao. After a two day naval bombardment General Walter Krueger and the 6th Army landed on 22nd October, 1944. This was followed by Leyte Gulf, the largest naval engagement in history. It was a decisive victory for the Allies with the Japanese Navy lost four carriers, three battleships and ten cruisers. It was now clear that the US Navy now had control of the Pacific and that further Allied landings in the region were likely to be successful. After bitter fighting the US forces captured the important port of Ormoc on 10th December. By the time Leyte was secured the US Army had lost 3,500 men. It is estimated that over 55,000 Japanese soldiers were killed during the campaign. On 9th January 1945 Allied troops landed on Luzon, the largest of the islands in the Philippines. The Japanese Army, under General Tomoyuki Yamashita, fought a vigorous rearguard action but within a month MacArthur and his troops had crossed the Central Plain and were approaching Manila. Yamashita and his main army now withdrew to the mountains but left enough troops in Manila to make the capture of the city as difficult as possible. An estimated 16,000 Japanese soldiers were killed before it was taken on 4th March 1945. General Robert Eichelberger and the US 8th Army landed on Mindanao on 10th March and began advancing through the southern Philippines. This included the capture of Panay, Cebu, Negros and Bohol. 79 MacArthur's last amphibious operation was at Okinawa. Lying just 563km (350 miles) from the Japanese mainland, it offered excellent harbour, airfield and troopstaging facilities. It was a perfect base from which to launch a major assault on Japan, consequently it was well-defended, with 120,000 troops under General Mitsuru Ushijima. The Japanese also committed some 10,000 aircraft to defending the island. After a four day bombardment the 1,300 ship invasion forced moved into position off the west coast of Okinawa on 1st April 1945. The landing force, under the leadership of Lieutenant-General Simon Buckner, initially totalled 155,000. However, by the time the battle finished, more than 300,000 soldiers were involved in the fighting. This made it comparable to the Normandy landing in mainland Europe in June, 1944. On the first day 60,000 troops were put ashore against little opposition at Haguushi. The following day two airfields were captured by the Americans. However when the soldiers reached Shuri they came under heavy fire and suffered heavy casualties. Reinforced by the 3rd Amphibious Corps and the 6th Marine Division the Americans were able to repel a ferocious counter-attack by General Mitsuru Ushijima on 4th May. At sea off Okinawa a 700 plane kamikaze raid on 6th April sunk and damaged 13 US destroyers. The giant battleship, Yamato, lacking sufficient fuel for a return journey, was also sent out on a suicide mission and was sunk on 7th May. On 11th May, Lieutenant-General Simon Buckner, ordered another offensive on the Shuri defences, and the Japanese were finally forced to withdraw. Buckner was killed on 18th June and three days later his replacement, General Roy Geiger, announced that the island had finally been taken. When it was clear that he had been defeated, Mitsuru Ushijima committed ritual suicide (hari-kiri). The capture of Okinawa cost the Americans 49,000 in casualties of whom 12,520 died. More than 110,000 Japanese were killed on the island. While the island was being prepared for the invasion of Japan, a B-29 Superfortress bomber dropped an atom bomb on Hiroshima on 6th August 1945. Japan did not surrender immediately and a second bomb was dropped on Nagasaki three days later. On 10th August the Japanese surrendered and the Second World War was over. MacArthur was named Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers (SCAP) and he received the formal surrender and President Harry S. Truman appointed him as head of the Allied occupation of Japan. He was given responsibility of organizing the war crimes tribunal in Japan and was criticized for his treatment of Tomoyuki Yamashita, who was executed 23rd February, 1946. However he was praised for 80 successfully encouraging the creation of democratic institutions, religious freedom, civil liberties, land reform, emancipation of women and the formation of trade unions. On the outbreak of the Korean War in 1950, MacArthur was appointed commander of the United Nations forces. The surprise character of the attack enabled the North Koreans to occupy all the South, except for the area around the port of Pusan. On 15th September, 1950, MacArthur landed American and South Korean marines at Inchon, 200 miles behind the North Korean lines. The following day he launched a counterattack on the North Koreans. When they retreated, MacArthur's forces carried the war northwards, reaching the Yalu River, the frontier between Korea and China on 24th October, 1950. Harry S. Truman and Dean Acheson, the Secretary of State, told MacArthur to limit the war to Korea. MacArthur disagreed, favoring an attack on Chinese forces. Unwilling to accept the views of Truman and Acheson, MacArthur began to make inflammatory statements indicating his disagreements with the United States government. MacArthur gained support from right-wing members of the Senate such as Joe McCarthy who led the attack on Truman's administration: "With half a million Communists in Korea killing American men, Acheson says, 'Now let's be calm, let's do nothing'. It is like advising a man whose family is being killed not to take hasty action for fear he might alienate the affection of the murders." In April 1951, Harry S. Truman removed MacArthur from his command of the United Nations forces in Korea. McCarthy now called for Truman to be impeached and suggested that the president was drunk when he made the decision to fire MacArthur: "Truman is surrounded by the Jessups, the Achesons, the old Hiss crowd. Most of the tragic things are done at 1.30 and 2 o'clock in the morning when they've had time to get the President cheerful." On his arrival back in the United States MacArthur led a campaign against Harry S. Truman and his Democratic Party administration. Soon after Dwight Eisenhower was elected president in 1952 he consulted with MacArthur about the Korean War. MacArthur's advice was the "atomic bombing of enemy military concentrations and installations in North Korea" and an attack on China. He rejected the advice and MacArthur played no role in Eisenhower's new Republican administration. After leaving the United States Army, MacArthur accepted a job as chairman of the board of the Remington Rand Corporation. Douglas MacArthur died in the Water Reed Hospital, Washington, on 5th April, 1964. 81 George Marshall George Marshall was born in Uniontown, Pennsylvania, on 31st December, 1880. He graduated from Virginia Military Institute in 1901. The following year he received a commission as a second lieutenant and was sent to the Philippines. In 1906 Marshall resumed his education at Fort Leavenworth. He graduated top of the class and qualified for the Army Staff College. When he completed the course he was kept on for another two years as an instructor. In the First World War Marshall served on the Western Front and was involved in the planning of the Meuse-Argonne offensive in 1918. Promoted to colonel Marshall served for five years as aide to General John Pershing (1919-24) and had a spell of duty in China (1924-27). This was followed by five years as an instructor at Fort Benning (1927-33). In June 1933 Marshall was given command of the 8th Infantry and became responsible for 34 Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) camps in Georgia, Florida and South Carolina. Marshall was a strong believer in the CCC and argued that the US Army should fully support this social experiment. Marshall was promoted to brigadier general in October, 1936, and was given command of the 5th Brigade at Vancouver Barracks in Washington. He was responsible for the CCC camps in the district. Soon afterwards he became seriously ill and had to have his thyroid gland removed. For a while it was believed that Marshall would have to be retired from the army but he eventually made a full recovery. In August 1938, Marshall was appointed chief of the War Plans Division and three months later he became deputy Chief of Staff. This brought Marshall into contact with President Franklin D. Roosevelt and members of his administration. Harry Hopkins was especially impressed with Marshall and suggested to the president that he should become the new Chief of Staff. Roosevelt agreed and he assumed office in September 1939. Marshall directed the United States armed forces throughout the Second World War. Over the next four years the US Army grew to a force of 8,300,000 men. Unlike his predecessor, Marshall was a strong advocate of air power and therefore got on well with General Henry Arnold. However he clashed with Admiral Ernest King over his policy of using all available resources to defeat Germany before Japan. As a result some critics have claimed that his actions prolonged the Pacific War. 82 In 1944 Marshall was disappointed not to have been given command of the Allied D-Day landings. However, Franklin D. Roosevelt argued that he could not afford to lose him as Chief of Staff. He was involved in the planning of the invasion and Winston Churchill later claimed that Marshall's achievements were monumental and described him as the "organizer of victory". Marshall was given the rank of a five-star general in December 1944. Along with William Leahy he was senior to Ernest King, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Douglas MacArthur and Henry Arnold. Marshall resigned as Chief of Staff on 21st November, 1945, but a few days later Harry S. Truman persuaded him to become U.S. ambassador in China. In January 1947, Truman, who called Marshall "the greatest living American", appointed him as his Secretary of State. While in this position, Marshall devised the European Recovery Program (ERP). Over the first year the ERP spent $5,300,000,000 and played a decisive role in the reconstruction of war-torn Europe. In 1949, ill-health forced Marshall to resign from office and he was replaced by Dean Acheson. However, the following year, aged sixty-nine, Marshall accepted the post as Secretary of Defence and helped organize United States forces in the early stages of the Korean War. In the summer of 1951 Marshall was attacked by Joe McCarthy, the right-wing senator from Wisconsin, as being soft on communism. In a speech that McCarthy gave on 14th June, he accused the Secretary of Defence of making decisions that "aided the Communist drive for world domination" and implied that he was a traitor to his country. Disillusioned by the smear campaign, Marshall retired from politics. However, Marshall's talents were appreciated abroad and in 1953 he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace for his contribution to the recovery of Europe after the Second World War. George Marshall died in Washington on 16th October, 1959. Chester Nimitz Chester Nimitz was born in Fredericksburg, Texas, on 24th February, 1885. He attended the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis and graduated in 1905 (7/144) and joined the United States Navy. 83 He served in the Philippines and in 1909 was assigned to underwater service. Although he initially disliked this move he eventually became the navy's leading authority on submarines. In 1912 he was given command of the Atlantic Submarine Flotilla and the following year spent time with the German Navy studying diesel engines. When he returned to the United States he recommended their use by the United States Navy. During the First World War Nimitz was chief of staff in the Atlantic Submarine Force. He also set up the Reserve Officer Training Corps program at the University of California (1926-29). Afterwards he headed the San Diego destroyer base, was captain of the cruiser Augusta and was assistant chief of the Bureau of Navigation in Washington. Promoted to rear admiral in 1938 Nimitz commanded Cruiser Division and Battleship Division before becoming chief of the Bureau of Navigation. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor Nimitz was was placed in charge of the Pacific Fleet. Urged on by Admiral Ernest King, Commander in Chief of the US Fleet, Nimitz sent William Halsey to attack the Marshall Islands and Frank Fletcher to raid the Gilbert Islands. Nimitz, King and General Douglas MacArthur, Supreme Commander of the Southwest Pacific, decided that their first objective should be to establish and protect a line of communications across the South Pacific to Australia. This resulted in the battles of Coral Sea and Midway, where the Japanese Navy lost all four of her carriers. Throughout the war Nimitz met regularly with Admiral Ernest King and General Douglas MacArthur. King and MacArthur constantly clashed over strategy. Whereas MacArthur favoured an early return to the Philippines King wanted the islands bypassed so that all available resources could be employed to take Formosa. King believed that the island could then be used as a base for invading mainland China. Unable to gain agreement the matter was eventually passed to Franklin D. Roosevelt to make the decision. In December 1944 Nimitz, William Leahy and Ernest King were all given the five star rank of Fleet Admiral. At the end of the Second World War Nimitz was succeeded by Raymond Spruance as commander of the Pacific Fleet. In November 1945 Nimitz replaced King as Commander in Chief of the US Fleet. Nimitz retired from the United States Navy in 1947 and two years later accepted the post as a good will ambassador for the United Nations. Chester Nimitz, who 84 declined to write his memoirs, died at his home in San Francisco Bay on 20th February 1966. George Patton George Patton was born in San Gabriel, California, on 11th November, 1885. He attended the West Point Military Academy but along with his friend, Courtney Hodges, was forced to leave after a year because of poor test results. Patton restarted the course and graduated in 1909 (46/103) and won a commission in the cavalry. Patton, a talented sportsman, finished fifth in the modern pentathlon in the 1912 Olympic Games in Stockholm. As well as being a great horseman and sailor, Patton also qualified as a pilot. During the First World War Patton was sent to the Western Front in France where he served under General John Pershing before being given command of 304th Tank Brigade. Patton, who fought at St Mihiel Offensive was seriously wounded at Meuse Argonne and would have died but for the brave actions of Joe Angelo. During the war won the DSC and DSM in the war. After the war Patton was assigned to the tank centre at Camp Meade where he met and became close friends with Dwight D. Eisenhower. In 1932 Patton joined Eisenhower and Douglas MacArthur in dealing with the Bonus Army in Washington. MacArthur, controversially used tanks, four troops of cavalry with drawn sabers, and infantry with fixed bayonets, on the protesters. He justified his attack on former members of the US Army by claiming that the country was on the verge of a communist revolution. One of the leaders of the demonstration was Joe Angelo, the man who had saved Patton's life at Meuse Argonne. On 1st October 1940 Patton was promoted to brigadier general and given command of the 2nd Armed Division based at Fort Benning. Rated highly by General George Marshall, in January 1942, Patton was placed in charge of the Desert Training Centre at Indio, California. Later that year Patton joined General Dwight D. Eisenhower in organizing Operation Torch. Patton's troops arrived in North Africa in November 1942. After liberating Morocco he worked on planning the invasion of Sicily with Mark Clark before being sent to Tunisia as head of the 2nd Corps. Patton was a strict disciplinarian and he insisted that his men shaved every day and wore a tie in battle. 85 At the Casablanca Conference held in January 1943, Winston Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt decided to launch an invasion of Sicily. It was hoped that if the island was taken Italy might withdraw from the war. It was also argued that a successful invasion would force Adolf Hitler to send troops from the Eastern Front and help to relieve pressure on the Red Army in the Soviet Union. The operation was placed under the supreme command of General Dwight D. Eisenhower. General Harold Alexander was commander of ground operations and his 15th Army Group and Patton was placed in charge of the 7th Army. On 10th July 1943, General Bernard Montgomery and the 8th Army landed at five points on the south-eastern tip of the island and the US 7th Army at three beaches to the west of the British forces. The Allied troops met little opposition and Patton and his troops quickly took Gela, Licata and Vittoria. The British landings were also unopposed and Syracuse was taken on the the same day. This was followed by Palazzolo (11th July), Augusta (13th July) and Vizzini (14th July), whereas the US troops took the Biscani airfield and Niscemi (14th July). Patton now moved to the west of the island and General Omar Bradley headed north and the German Army was forced to retreat to behind the Simeto River. Patton took Palermo on 22nd July cutting off 50,000 Italian troops in the west of the island. Patton now turned east along the northern coast of the island towards the port of Messina. Meanwhile General Bernard Montgomery and the 8th Army were being held up by German forces under Field Marshal Albrecht Kesselring. The Allies carried out several amphibious assaults attempted to cut off the Germans but they were unable to stop the evacuation across the Messina Straits to the Italian mainland. This included 40,000 German and 60,000 Italian troops, as well as 10,000 German vehicles and 47 tanks. On 17th August 1943, Patton and his troops marched into Messina. The capture of the island made it possible to clear the way for Allied shipping in the Mediterranean. It also helped to undermine the power of Benito Mussolini and Victor Emmanuel III forced him to resign. During the campaign seventy-three Italian prisoners were murdered by soldiers in the 45th Division. General Omar Bradley ordered two men to face a general courtmartial for premeditated murder. The men's main defence was that they were obeying orders issued by Patton in a speech he made to his soldiers on 27th June. Several soldiers said they were willing to give evidence that Patton had told then to take no prisoners. One officer claimed that Patton had said: "The more prisoners we took, the more we'd have to feed, and not to fool with prisoners." In 86 order to protect Patton from the charge of war crimes, Bradley decided to drop the investigation into the murder of the Italian soldiers. Patton also created controversy when he visited the 15th Evacuation Hospital on 3rd August 1943. In the hospital he encountered Private Charles H. Kuhl, who had been admitted suffering from shellshock. When Patton asked him why he had been admitted, Kuhl told him "I guess I can't take it." According to one eyewitness Patton "slapped his face with a glove, raised him to his feet by the collar of his shirt and pushed him out of the tent with a kick in the rear." Kuhl was later to claim that he thought Patton, as well as himself, was suffering from combat fatigue. Two days after the incident at the 15th Evacuation Hospital Patton sent a memo to all commanders in the 7th Army: "It has come to my attention that a very small number of soldiers are going to the hospital on the pretext that they are nervously incapable of combat. Such men are cowards and bring discredit on the army and disgrace to their comrades, whom they heartlessly leave to endure the dangers of battle while they, themselves, use the hospital as a means of escape. You will take measures to see that such cases are not sent to the hospital but are dealt with in their units. Those who are not willing to fight will be tried by court-martial for cowardice in the face of the enemy." On 10th August 1943, Patton visited the 93rd Evacuation Hospital to see if there were any soldiers claiming to be suffering from combat fatigue. He found Private Paul G. Bennett, an artilleryman with the 13th Field Artillery Brigade. When asked what the problem was, Bennett replied, "It's my nerves, I can't stand the shelling anymore." Patton exploded: "Your nerves. Hell, you are just a goddamned coward, you yellow son of a bitch. Shut up that goddamned crying. I won't have these brave men here who have been shot seeing a yellow bastard sitting here crying. You're a disgrace to the Army and you're going back to the front to fight, although that's too good for you. You ought to be lined up against a wall and shot. In fact, I ought to shoot you myself right now, God damn you!" With this Patton pulled his pistol from its holster and waved it in front of Bennett's face. After putting his pistol way he hit the man twice in the head with his fist. The hospital commander, Colonel Donald E. Currier, then intervened and got in between the two men. Colonel Richard T. Arnest, the man's doctor, sent a report of the incident to General Dwight D. Eisenhower. The story was also passed to the four newsmen attached to the Seventh Army. Although Patton had committed a court-martial offence by striking an enlisted man, the reporters agreed not to publish the story. Quentin Reynolds of Collier's Weekly agreed to keep quiet but argued that there were "at least 50,000 American soldiers on Sicily who would shoot Patton if they had the chance." 87 Eisenhower told one of his senior officers: "If this thing ever gets out, they'll be howling for Patton's scalp, and that will be the end of George's service in this war. I simply cannot let that happen. Patton is indispensable to the war effort - one of the guarantors of our victory." Instead he wrote a letter to Patton demanding that he should apologize or make "personal amends to the individuals concerned as may be within your power." Eisenhower now had a meeting with the war correspondents who knew about the incident and told them that he hoped they would keep the "matter quiet in the interests of retaining a commander whose leadership he considered vital." The men agreed to do this but the news of the incident eventually reached Drew Pearson and in November 1943, he told the story on his weekly syndicated radio program. Some politicians demanded that Patton should be sacked but General George Marshall and Henry L. Stimson supported Eisenhower in the way he had dealt with the case. In January 1944, General Mark Clark replaced Patton as commander of the Seventh Army. Patton was now sent to Britain and succeeded General Courtney Hodges as commander of the Third Army, and to help prepare for the Normandy invasion. On 25th April Patton created more controversy when he made a speech using obscene language to an audience that included a large number of women. At the meeting he also said it was the destiny of the United States and Britain to rule the world. This remark upset Allied leaders and Karl Mundt in the House of Representatives complained that Patton had "managed to slap the face of every one of the United Nations except Great Britain." General Dwight D. Eisenhower was furious and cabled General George Marshall that he was "seriously contemplating the most drastic action" in dealing with Patton. Eisenhower initially decided to send Patton home but then changed his mind. He wrote to Patton: "You owe us some victories; pay off and the world will deem me a wise man." Patton did not arrive in France until 1st August, 1944 but his troops quickly overrun Brittany. While General Bernard Montgomery and his forces drew the main strength of the German Army, Patton made spectacular progress and took Le Mans on 8th August before turning north and heading for Argentan. Patton now wanted to head to Germany believing the war could be brought to an end in 1944. He was therefore furious when General Omar Bradley ordered him to return to Brittany to mop up the remaining German troops. As soon as this job was completed he raced eastward across France with the rest of the 3rd Army. On 88 30th August 1944, Patton crossed the Meuse. Metz was well-defended and Patton's troops took heavy casualties and it was not taken until 13th December. Adolf Hitler now ordered Field Marshal Gerd von Rundstedt to launch a counterattack through the Ardennes. On 16th December 25 divisions of the German Army broke through American lines on a 60 mile front from Monschau and Echternach. They were finally halted and Patton's troops began to force the Germans back at what became known as the Battle of the Bulge. Joining up with Alexander Patch and the 7th Army Patton and his troops crossed the Rhine at Oppenheim on 22nd March 1945. He then sent a task force to liberate the Hammelburg Prison Camp, which included his son-in-law, John K. Waters. Patton continued to advance deep into Nazi Germany and eventually crossed into Czechoslovakia and was forced to withdraw after protests from Joseph Stalin and the Red Army. After the war Patton was made governor of Bavaria. He was severely criticized for allowing Nazis to remain in office and at a press conference on 22nd September 1945, Patton created outrage when he said: "This Nazi thing. It's just like a Democratic-Republican election fight." Patton was removed as governor and was given command of the 15th Army. A day before he was due to return to the United States Patton was severely injured in a road accident. Paralyzed from the neck down, George Patton died of an embolism on 21st December 1945. Matthew Ridgway Matthew Ridgway, the son of Colonel Thomas Ridgway, an artillery officer, was born in Virginia, United States on 3rd March, 1895. He attended the West Point Military Academy and graduated in 1917 (56/139) and was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the US Army. In 1918 he returned to West Point as an instructor in Spanish. After completing the officers course at the Infantry School at Fort Benning he was given command of the 15th Infantry in China. This was followed by a posting to Nicaragua where he helped supervise free elections in 1927. Considered to be an expert on foreign affairs, Ridgway sat on a commission that adjudicated on Bolivia and Paraguay before becoming a military adviser to the Governor General of the Philippines in 1930. He also attended the Command and General Staff School at Fort Leavenworth in Kansas (1935-37). 89 General George Marshall was impressed with Ridgway and took him to Brazil on a special assignment and soon after the outbreak of the Second World War he was sent to the War Plans Division in Washington. In August 1942 Ridgway was promoted to brigadier general and given command of the 82nd Infantry Division, one of the Army's two parachute divisions. In the spring of 1943 Ridgway helped to plan the airborne operation that was part of the invasion of Sicily that began on 10th July, 1943. This was the first time in history that the US Army had used paratroopers in battle. Ridgeway was also responsible for planning the airborne operation during the DDay landings on 6th June 1944. This time Ridgeway jumped with his troops. The 82nd fought for 33 days in advancing to St-Sauveur-le-Vicomte. In September 1944 Ridgway took command of the 18th Airborne Corps. He led his troops during the invasion of the Rhineland and Ardennes-Alsace and on 2nd May his troops joined up with the Red Army on the Baltic. On 4th June 1945 he was promoted to lieutenant general. After the war Ridgway was Commander in Chief of the Caribbean Command (1948-49) before becoming Chief of Staff to Joe L. Collins. In 1950 he was given command of the 8th Army in Korea. He launched the counter-offensive on 25th January 1951 and when General Douglas MacArthur was recalled in April he was promoted to full general and became Commander in Chief of the Far East Command. Ridgway replaced General Dwight D. Eisenhower as the Supreme Allied Commander of Europe on 30th May 1952. His decision to surround himself with American personal staff upset other European military leaders and he was brought back to the United States in July 1953 to replace General Joe L. Collins as chief of staff of the United States Army. After retiring from the US Army in June 1955 he published his autobiography, The Memoirs of Matthew B. Ridgway (1956). Matthew Ridgway died in March 1993. Raymond Spruance Raymond Spruance was born in Baltimore, Maryland, on 3rd July, 1886. He attended the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis and graduated in 1907 (24/209) and joined the United States Navy. 90 Spruance specialized in electrical engineering and spent a year seconded to the General Electric Company. After the First World War he commanded destroyers and studied at the Naval War College (1926-27). In 1938 Spruance was given command of the Mississippi and two years later became head of the 10th Naval District based in San Juan. Spruance was promoted to rear admiral in December 1940 and two years later was appointed head of Cruiser Division 5 in the Pacific. After the United States entered the Second World War Spruance served under William Halsey, the head of Task Group 16. A nervous skin disease meant that Halsey missed the battle of Midway and Spruance led the task force that inflicted considerable damage on the Japanese Navy. When Halsey returned to duty in June, 1942, Spruance became chief of staff to Chester Nimitz, commander of the Pacific Fleet. The following year Spruance was promoted to vice admiral and became Nimitz's deputy. In this post he played a major role in the planning of the navy's role in the Pacific War. Spruance became head of the 5th Fleet in September 1943 and held overall command of the assaults on the Gilbert Islands (20th November 1943) and the Marshall Islands (31st January, 1944). In February 1944 he was promoted to full admiral. Spruance was also given the task of planning the assaults of Iwo Jima and Okinawa. After these successful operations Spruance began to organize the invasion of Japan but the dropping of the atom bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki made this unnecessary. In 1948 Spruance retired from the US Navy and served as ambassador to the Philippines (1952-55). Raymond Spruance, who declined to write his memoirs, died in California on 23rd December 1969. Paul Tibbets Paul Tibbets, the son of a prosperous businessman, was born in Quincy, Illinois, in 1915. His parents wanted him to train as a doctor but instead he had a strong desire to become a pilot. After studying medicine at the University of Florida, Tibbets entered the USA Army Air Corps at Fort Thomas, Kentucky, in 1937. Tibbets was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant in 1938. On the outbreak of the Second World War he was sent to England where he became Squadron Commander of the 340th Bomb Squadron Bombardment Group. He flew 25 91 missions in Europe before supporting the Allied invasion of North Africa. During this period he flew the B-17 Flying Fortress. In March 1943, Tibbets returned to the United States where he began testing the new B29 Stratofortress. An outstanding pilot, General Henry H. Arnold, chief of the United States Army Air Force (USAAF), described Tibbets as the "best damned pilot in the Air Force". Brigadier General Leslie Groves, director of the Manhattan Project, selected Tibbets to be the man responsible for organizing and training a team of men to deliver the atom bomb being produced by a group of scientists being led by Robert Oppenheimer. Tibbets requisitioned 15 new B29 Stratofortress and arranged for them to be adapted for the operation. This included fitting fuel injected engines, a reconfigured bombing bay and changes to the aircraft's armour plating. When President Harry S. Truman gave the order to drop the first atom bomb on Japan, Tibbets was selected as the pilot of the adapted B29 called the Enola Gay. On 6th August 1945, the bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. It has been estimated that over the years around 200,000 people have died as a result of this bomb being dropped. Japan did not surrender immediately and a second bomb was dropped on Nagasaki three days later. On 10th August the Japanese surrendered and the Second World War was over. In 1946 Tibbets was also technical adviser during the Bikini Bomb Tests. Brigadier General Tibbets also did a tour of duty with NATO in France. He retired from the United States Army Air Force on 31st August, 1966. A successful businessman, Tibbets was chairman of Executive Jet Aviation (1982-85). British Military Leaders Claude Auchinleck Claude Auchinleck, was born in Ulster on 21st July, 1884. Educated at Wellington College and Sandhurst Military Academy. He graduated in 1904 and was commission into the 62nd Punjab Regiment where he saw action in Egypt, Aden and Mesopotamia. 92 In 1933 Auchinleck joined with General Harold Alexander in repelling invading tribesmen and pacifying large regions of India. Promoted to the rank of major general he was given control of the Meerut District in 1938. Auchinleck returned to Britain on the outbreak of the Second World War and on 7th May, 1940, he was sent to command 25,000 British, French and Polish troops in Norway. The Allies took Narvik on 28th May but when German reinforcements arrived in June 1940 Auchinleck was ordered to withdraw from Norway. Promoted to full general he returned to India before in July, 1941, replacing General Archibald Wavell as commander in chief of British troops in the Middle East. A soon clashed with Winston Churchill who demanded the he should immediate organize an offensive against General Erwin Rommel and the Deutsches Afrika Korps. Auchinleck insisted on having time to prepare and he did not launch Operation Crusader until 18th November, 1941. Initially this was very successful and Erwin Rommel was forced to abandon his siege of Tobruk on 4th December, and the following month had moved as far west as Archibald Wavell had achieved a year previously. Aware that Wavell's supply lines were now overextended, and after Rommel gained obtained reinforcements from Tripoli he launched a counterattack It was now the turn of the British Army to retreat. After losing Benghazi on 29th January, Auchinleck ordered his troops to retreat to Gazala. Over the next few months the Eighth Army, under Lieutenant General Neil Richie, established a line of fortifications and minefields. Erwin Rommel launched his offensive on 26th May. The Italian infantry attacked at the front while Rommel led his panzers round the edge of the fortifications to cut off the supply routes. Ritchie outnumbered Rommel by two to one but he wasted his advantage by not using his tanks together. After defeating a series of small counter-attacks Rommel was able to capture Sidi Muftah. On 12th June, two of the three British armoured brigades were caught in a pincer movement and were badly defeated. Two days later Neil Richie, with only 100 tanks left, abandoned Gazala. Rommel returned to Tobruk and took the port on 21st June, 1942. This included the capture of over 35,000 British troops. However, Rommel now only had 57 tanks left and was forced to wait for new supplies to arrive before heading into Egypt. The following month Erwin Rommel and the Deutsches Afrika Korps were only 113km (70 miles) from Alexandria. The situation was so serious that Winston Churchill made the long journey to Egypt to discover for himself what needed to 93 be done. Churchill decided to make changes to the command structure. On 8th August, 1942, Auchinleck was replaced by General Harold Alexander. Auchinleck was unassigned for almost a year but on 20th June, 1943, he replaced Archibald Wavell as commander in chief of the British Army in India. He was knighted and made a field marshal in June, 1945. After the war Auchinleck was given the task of splitting the Indian Army into the new armies of India and Pakistan. He was accused of being partial to the Pakistanis and in August 1947 Lord Mountbatten forced him to resign. Auchinleck left India before it became independent and returned to London where he held several administrative posts until he retired in 1968 to Marrakech. Claude Auchinleck died in 1981. Alan Brooke Alan Brooke, the son of the wealthy Victor Brooke of Ulster, was born in France on 23rd July, 1883. He joined the British Army and served in Ireland and India before going to France in 1914. Brooke served on the Western Front during the First World War. An expert on artillery tactics, Brooke was mentioned six times in dispatches and became chief artillery officer in the 1st British Army. In 1923 Brooke was promoted to colonel and lectured at Camberley Military College and the Imperial Defense College. In 1937 he was given the command of Britain's first mobile division and the following year he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant general and became head of the Territorial Anti-Aircraft Corps. In August 1939 Brooke was appointed head of Southern Command and on the outbreak of the Second World War went to France as a member of the British Expeditionary Force under General John Gort. In June 1940 Brooke played a leading role in the evacuation of British troops at Dunkirk. Brooke returned to Britain and in July 1940 he replacedEdmund Ironside as commander of the Home Forces. In this post Brooke had several major disagreements with Winston Churchill about military strategy. It therefore came as a surprise when Churchill appointed him Chief of Imperial Staff in December 1941. Although the two men continued to disagree about a large number of issues, for example, Brooke favoured an early invasion of Europe on order to take pressure 94 off the Red Army on the Eastern Front, he gradually became Churchill's most important military adviser in the war. Brooke was offered command of the British troops in the Middle East in August 1942 but turned it down suggesting General Harold Alexander for the post. In his diary Brooke recorded that it was more important for him to remain in Britain in order to stop Churchill making any major military mistakes. Churchill had promised Brooke command of Operation Overlord in 1944. However, President Franklin D. Roosevelt insisted that General Dwight Eisenhower should be given this important task. Promoted to field marshal in January 1944 he was created Baron Alanbrooke of Brookeborough in September 1945. After retiring from the British Army he was a director of Midland Bank. Alan Brooke died on 17th June 1963. William Sholt Douglas William Sholto Douglas was born in Headington, Oxfordshire, on 23rd December, 1893. Educated at Lincoln College in Oxford, Douglas joined the Royal Field Artillery at the outbreak of the First World War. In 1915 Douglas transferred to the Royal Flying Corps for observer training but later qualified as a fighter pilot. He eventually became a squadron commander and on one occasion duelled with Hermann Goering. During the First World War Douglas won both the Military Cross (1916) and the Distinguished Flying Cross (1917). After the war Douglas became chief test pilot for the Handley Page Company before joining the Royal Air Force in 1920. He later became an RAF instructor at the Imperial Defence College. In 1936 Douglas was appointed as director of staff studies in the Air Ministry. Two years later he was promoted to Vice Marshal and became assistant chief of air staff with responsibility for training and purchasing new equipment. During the Battle of Britain Douglas was highly critical of the strategy promoted by the head of Fighter Command, Hugh Dowding and Vice Marshal Keith Park, the commander of No. 11 Fighter Group. Douglas, who was supported by Trafford Leigh-Mallory and Douglas Bader, argued that RAF fighters should be sent out to meet the German planes before they reached Britain. Park and Dowding rejected this strategy as being too dangerous and argued it would increase the number of pilots being killed. 95 Air Chief Marshal Charles Portal, the new chief of the air staff, agreed with Douglas and in November 1941, he removed Keith Park and Hugh Dowding from their posts. Douglas had the added satisfaction of taking over from Dowding as head of Fighter Command. Douglas now developed what became known as the Big Wing strategy. This involved large formations of fighter aircraft deployed in mass sweeps against the Luftwaffe over the English Channel and northern Europe. Although RAF pilots were able to bring down a large number of German planes, critics claimed that they were not always available during emergencies and prime targets became more vulnerable to bombing attacks. In 1942 Douglas was sent to Egypt to serve under Arthur Tedder. The following year he was appointed as Commander in Chief of the RAF in the Middle East. In 1944 Douglas was Commander in Chief of Coastal Command during the invasion of Normandy, where his main objective was to clear the English Channel of German naval opposition After the Second World War Douglas became Commander in Chief and Military Governor of the British Occupation Zone in Germany and in January 1946 was knighted and promoted to marshal of the RAF. Douglas retired from active duty in 1948 and was awarded a peerage as 1st Baron Douglas of Kirtleside. He served as chairman of British European Airways (194964) and in the House of Lords he supported the Labour Party. William Sholto Douglas wrote two volumes of memoirs, Years of Combat (1963) and Years of Command (1966), before he died on 29th October, 1969. Hugh Dowding Hugh Dowding, the son of a schoolmaster, was born in Moffat, Scotland, on 24th April, 1882. He was educated at Winchester School and the Royal Military Academy in Woolwich. He joined the Royal Artillery Garrison he served as a subaltern at Gibralter, Ceylon and Hong Kong before spending six years in India with mountain artillery troops. On his return to Britain he learnt to fly. After obtaining his pilot's license in December 1913, he joined the Royal Flying Corps. He was sent to France and in 1915 was promoted to commander of 16 Squadron. After the Battle of the Somme, Dowding clashed with General Hugh Trenchard, the commander of the RFC, over the need to rest pilots exhausted by non-stop duty. 96 As a result Dowding was sent back to Britain and although promoted to the rank of brigadier general, saw no more active service during the First World War. Dowding now joined the recently created Royal Air Force and in 1929 was promoted to vice marshal and the following year joined the Air Council. In 1933 Dowding was promoted to air marshal and was knighted the following year. As a member of the Air Council for Supply and Research, he concentrated on research and development and helped prepare the RAF for war. This included a design competition that led to the production of the Hawker Hurricane and the Supermarine Spitfire. He was also responsible for encouraging the development of radar that became operational in 1937. Dowding took command of Fighter Command where he argued that the Air Ministry should concentrate on development of aircraft for the defence of Britain rather than producing a fleet of bombers. Aware that the RAF would struggle against the Luftwaffe, Dowding advised Neville Chamberlain to appease Adolf Hitler in an attempt to gain time to prepare the country for war. In 1940 Dowding worked closely with Air Vice Marshal Keith Park, the commander of No. 11 Fighter Group, in covering the evacuation at Dunkirk. Although Dowding only had 200 planes at his disposal he managed to gain air superiority over the Luftwaffe. However, he was unwilling to sacrifice his pilots in what he considered to be a futile attempt to help Allied troops during the Western Offensive. During the Battle of Britain Dowding was criticized by Air Vice Marshal William Sholto Douglas, assistant chief of air staff, and Air Vice Marshal Trafford LeighMallory, for not being aggressive enough. Douglas took the view that RAF fighters should be sent out to meet the German planes before they reached Britain. Dowding rejected this strategy as being too dangerous and argued it would increase the number of pilots being killed. Dowding was credited with winning the Battle of Britain and was awarded the Knight Grand Cross. His old adversary, Hugh Trenchard, also told him that he had been guilty of gravely underestimating him for 26 years. However, Air Chief Marshal Charles Portal, the new chief of the air staff, had agreed with William Sholto Douglas in the dispute over tactics and in November 1941, and Dowding was encouraged to retire from his post. Douglas had the added satisfaction of taking over from Dowding as head of Fighter Command. Dowding was now sent on special duty in the United States for the Ministry of Aircraft Production before retiring from the Royal Air Force in July, 1942. The following year he was honoured with a baronetcy. 97 In his retirement he published Many Mansions (1943), Lynchgate (1945), Twelve Legions of Angels (1946), God's Magic (1946) and The Dark Star (1951). Hugh Dowding died on 15th February, 1970. John Gort John Gort, the son of 5th Viscount Gort, was born in County Durham in 1886. He succeeded his father as 6th Viscount Gort in 1902. Educated at Harrow and the Royal Military College, Woolwich, he was commissioned into the Grenadier Guards in 1905. During the First World War Gort was mentioned in dispatches nine times and won the Military Cross. On 27th September 1918, Gort won the Victoria Cross at Canal du Nord. After the war Gort taught at the Staff College and was promoted to the rank of colonel in 1925. He also served as Commander of the Guards Brigade (1930-32), Director of Military Training in India (1932-36) and Commander of the Staff College (1936-39). Gort was made a full general in 1937 and later that year was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial General Staff. In 1939 Gort was Commander-in-Chief of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) that went to France. The German offensive through the Ardennes during the invasion of France in May, 1940, left 10 divisions of the BEF caught and gradually squeezed onto the beaches of Dunkirk. On his return to England he became A.D.C. to George VI. He also served as Governor of Gibraltar (1941-42), Governor of Malta (1942-44) and High Commissioner of Palestine (1944-45). John Gort died in March, 1946. Bernard Montgomery Bernard Montgomery, the son of a bishop, was born in London on 17th November 1887. He was educated at St Paul's School and Sandhurst Military Academy and after graduating in 1908 joined the Royal Warwickshire Regiment. Montgomery served in India before being sent to France at the beginning of the First World War. He was seriously wounded when he was shot in the chest in 98 October 1914 and was hospitalized in England. He returned to the Western Front in 1916 and by 1918 was chief of staff of the 47th London Division. Montgomery remained in the British Army and in 1926 became an instructor at Camberley. Promoted to the rank of major general he was sent to command British forces Palestine in October, 1938. On the outbreak of the Second World War Montgomery was sent to France with the British Expeditionary Force. He led the 2nd Corps but was forced to retreat to Dunkirk during Germany's Western Offensive and arrived back in England on 1st June, 1940. Montgomery was placed in command of the 5th Corps (July 1940-April 1941), the 12th Corps (April 1941-December 1941) and the South-Eastern Army (December 1941-August 1942). In July 1942 Erwin Rommel and the Deutsches Afrika Korps were only 113km (70 miles) from Alexandria. The situation was so serious that Winston Churchill made the long journey to Egypt to discover for himself what needed to be done. Churchill decided to make changes to the command structure. General Harold Alexander was placed in charge of British land forces in the Middle East and Montgomery was chosen to become commander of the Eighth Army. On 30th August, 1942, Erwin Rommel attacked at Alam el Halfa but was repulsed by the Eighth Army. Montgomery responded to this attack by ordering his troops to reinforce the defensive line from the coast to the impassable Qattara Depression. Montgomery was now able to make sure that Rommel and the German Army was unable to make any further advances into Egypt. Over the next six weeks Montgomery began to stockpile vast quantities of weapons and ammunition to make sure that by the time he attacked he possessed overwhelming firepower. By the middle of October the Eighth Army totalled 195,000 men, 1,351 tanks and 1,900 pieces of artillery. This included large numbers of recently delivered Sherman M4 and Grant M3 tanks. On 23rd October Montgomery launched Operation Lightfoot with the largest artillery bombardment since the First World War. The attack came at the worst time for the Deutsches Afrika Korps as Erwin Rommel was on sick leave in Austria. His replacement, General George Stumme, died of a heart-attack the day after the 900 gun bombardment of the German lines. Stume was replaced by General Ritter von Thoma and Adolf Hitler phoned Rommel to order him to return to Egypt immediately. The Germans defended their positions well and after two days the Eighth Army had made little progress and Montgomery ordered an end to the attack. When 99 Erwin Rommel returned he launched a counterattack at Kidney Depression (27th October). Montgomery now returned to the offensive and the 9th Australian Division created a salient in the enemy positions. Winston Churchill was disappointed by the Eighth Army's lack of success and accused Montgomery of fighting a "half-hearted" battle. Montgomery ignored these criticisms and instead made plans for a new offensive, Operation Supercharge. On 1st November 1942, Montgomery launched an attack on the Deutsches Afrika Korps at Kidney Ridge. After initially resisting the attack, Rommel decided he no longer had the resources to hold his line and on the 3rd November he ordered his troops to withdraw. However, Adolf Hitler overruled his commander and the Germans were forced to stand and fight. The next day Montgomery ordered his men forward. The Eighth Army broke through the German lines and Erwin Rommel, in danger of being surrounded, was forced to retreat. Those soldiers on foot, including large numbers of Italian soldiers, were unable to move fast enough and were taken prisoner. For a while it looked like the the British would cut off Rommel's army but a sudden rain storm on 6th November turned the desert into a quagmire and the chasing army was slowed down. Rommel, now with only twenty tanks left, managed to get to Sollum on the Egypt-Libya border. On 8th November Erwin Rommel learned of the Allied invasion of Morocco and Algeria that was under the command of General Dwight D. Eisenhower. His depleted army now faced a war on two front. The British Army recaptured Tobruk on 12th November, 1942. During the El Alamein campaign half of Rommel's 100,000 man army was killed, wounded or taken prisoner. He also lost over 450 tanks and 1,000 guns. The British and Commonwealth forces suffered 13,500 casualties and 500 of their tanks were damaged. However, of these, 350 were repaired and were able to take part in future battles. Winston Churchill was convinced that the battle of El Alamein marked the turning point in the war and ordered the ringing of church bells all over Britain. As he said later: "Before Alamein we never had a victory, after Alamein we never had a defeat." Montgomery and the Eighth Army continued to move forward and captured Tripoli on 23rd January, 1943. Rommel was unable to mount a successful counterattack and on 9th March he was replaced by Jurgen von Arnium as commander in chief of Axis forces in Africa. This change failed to halt the Allied advance in Africa and on 11th May, 1943, the Axis forces surrendered Tunisia. 100 At the Casablanca Conference held in January 1943, Winston Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt decided to launch an invasion of Sicily. It was hoped that if the island was taken Italy might withdraw from the war. It was also argued that a successful invasion would force Adolf Hitler to send troops from the Eastern Front and help to relieve pressure on the Red Army in the Soviet Union. The operation was placed under the supreme command of General Dwight D. Eisenhower. General Harold Alexander was commander of ground operations and his 15th Army Group included Montgomery (8th Army) and General George Patton (US 7th Army). Admiral Andrew Cunningham was in charge of naval operations and Air Marshal Arthur Tedder was air commander. On 10th July 1943, the 8th Army landed at five points on the south-eastern tip of the island and the US 7th Army at three beaches to the west of the British forces. The Allied troops met little opposition and Patton and his troops quickly took Gela, Licata and Vittoria. The British landings were also unopposed and Syracuse was taken on the the same day. This was followed by Palazzolo (11th July), Augusta (13th July) and Vizzini (14th July), whereas the US troops took the Biscani airfield and Niscemi (14th July). General George Patton now moved to the west of the island and General Omar Bradley headed north and the German Army was forced to retreat to behind the Simeto River. Patton took Palermo on 22nd July cutting off 50,000 Italian troops in the west of the island. Patton now turned east along the northern coast of the island towards the port of Messina. Meanwhile Montgomery and the 8th Army were being held up by German forces under Field Marshal Albrecht Kesselring. The Allies carried out several amphibious assaults attempted to cut off the Germans but they were unable to stop the evacuation across the Messina Straits to the Italian mainland. This included 40,000 German and 60,000 Italian troops, as well as 10,000 German vehicles and 47 tanks. On 17th August 1943, General George Patton and his troops marched into Messina. The capture of Sicily made it possible to clear the way for Allied shipping in the Mediterranean. It also helped to undermine the power of Benito Mussolini and Victor Emmanuel III forced him to resign. Montgomery, as commander of the 8th Army, led the invasion of Italy on 3rd September, 1943. When he landed at Reggio he experienced little resistance and later that day British warships landed the 1st Parachute Division at Taranto. Six days later the US 6th Corps arrived at Salerno. These troops faced a heavy bombardment from German troops and the beachhead was not secured until 20th September. 101 The German Army fought ferociously in southern Italy and the Allied armies made only slow progress as the moved north towards Rome. The 5th Army took Naples on 1st October and later that day the 8th Army captured the Foggia airfields. In December 1943, Montgomery was appointed head of the 2nd Army and commander of all ground forces in the proposed invasion of Europe. Montgomery believed he was better qualified than General Dwight Eisenhower to have been given overall control of Operation Overlord. However, as the United States provided most of the men, material and logistical support, Winston Churchill was unable to get the decision changed. Soon after the D-Day invasion Montgomery ptoposed Operation Market-Garden. The combined ground and airborne attack was designed to gain crossings over the large Dutch rivers, the Mass, Waal and Neder Rijn, to aid the armoured advance of the British 2nd Army. On 17th September 1944, three divisions of the 1st Allied Airbourne Corps landed in Holland. At the same time the British 30th Corps advanced from the Meuse-Escaut Canal. The bridges at Nijmegen and Eindhoven were taken but a German counter-attack created problems at Arnhem. Of the 9,000 Allied troops at Arnhem, only 2,000 were left when they were ordered to withdraw across the Rhine on 25th September. After the failure of O Montgomery began to question the strategy developed by Eisenhower and as a result of comments made at a press conference he gave on 7th January, 1945, he was severely rebuked by Winston Churchill and General Alan Brooke, the head of the British Army. Although he came close to being sacked Montgomery was allowed to remain in Europe and the end of the war was appointed Commander in Chief of the British Army of Occupation. In 1946 Montgomery was granted a peerage and he took the title Viscount Montgomery of Alamein. He also served under General Dwight Eisenhower as deputy supreme commander of the Allied forces in Europe. Montgomery wrote several books on his war experiences including El Alamein (1948), The Memoirs of Field Marshal Montgomery (1958) and Normandy to the Baltic (1968). Bernard Montgomery died on 25th March 1976. Lord Mountbatten Louis of Battenberg, the great grandson of Queen Victoria, and second cousin of George V, was born in Windsor, England, on 25th June, 1900. His father, Prince Louis of Battenberg, had been born in Austria. As a result of the anti-German 102 feelings in Britain during the First World War the family changed its name from Battenberg to Mountbatten. Mountbatten was educated at Osborne and Dartmouth Royal Naval College (191316). He joined the Royal Navy and during the war he served on board Lion and Elizabeth. Mountbatten remained in the Royal Navy and on the outbreak of the Second World War was captain of the destroyer Kelly. He saw action during the Norwegian campaign and the ship was sunk off Crete on 23rd May 1940 with the loss of 130 men. Winston Churchill appointed Mountbatten head of Combined Operations Command on 27th October 1941. He launched a series of commando raids including the disastrous Dieppe Raid in August 1942. The decision by Churchill to promote Mountbatten to vice admiral, lieutenant general and air marshall ahead of older and more experienced men upset senior officers in the military establishment. In October 1943 Churchill appointed Mountbatten as head of the Southeast Asia Command (SEAC). Working closely with General William Slim Mountbatten directed the liberation of Burma and Singapore. In 1947 Clement Attlee selected Mountbatten as Viceroy of India and he oversaw the creation of the independent states of India and Pakistan. Mountbatten returned to service at sea and as Fourth sea Lord was commander of the Mediterranean Fleet (1952-55). He was also First Sea Lord (1955-59) and Chief of Defence Staff (1959-65). Louis Mountbatten was murdered by an IRA bomb while sailing near his holiday home in County Sligo, Ireland, on 27th August, 1979. German Military Leaders Adolf Eichmann Adolf Eichmann was born in Solingen, Germany on 19th March, 1906. When he was a child the family moved to Linz in Austria where his father became head of the city's streetcar company. At school he was bullied by the other children and accused of being Jewish. 103 Eichman attended the Linz Higher Institute for Electro-Technical Studies before finding work as a salesman for a electrical firm. He began to take an interest in politics and in April, 1932 joined the Austrian Nazi Party. In September 1934 Eichman was recruited into the Schutzstaffel (SS) where he became the Nazi authority on Jewish affairs. This included a visit to Palestine where he met Arab leaders of racist organizations. At first Eichmann supported the Zionist policy of Jewish emigration to Palestine but this became impracticable as Palestine immigration quotas filled up. After Anschluss Eichman became head of the SS office for Jewish Emigration. In 1939 Adolf Hitler appointed Eichman as chief of the Reich Central Office for Jewish Emigration. On 21st September, 1939, Reinhard Heydrich told several Schutzstaffel (SS) commanders in Poland that all Jews were to be confined to special areas in cities and towns. These ghettos were to be surrounded by barbed wire, brick walls and armed guards. The first ghetto was set up in Piotrkow on 28th October 1939. Jews living in rural areas had their property confiscated and they were rounded up and sent to ghettos in towns and cities. The two largest ghettos were established in Warsaw and Lodz. Eichman was put in charge of this operation. In October 1939, he arranged the deportation of Jews living in Austria and Czechoslovakia to Poland. Transported in locked passenger trains, large numbers died on the journey. Those that survived the journey were told by Eichman: "There are no apartments and no houses - if you build your homes you will have a roof over your head." In July 1942, Eichman joined Reinhard Heydrich, Heinrich Muller and Roland Friesler attended the Wannsee Conference where they discussed the issue of the large number of inmates in Germany's concentration camps. At the meeting it was decided to make the extermination of the Jews a systematically organized operation. Eichman was placed in charge of what became known as the Final Solution. After this date extermination camps were established in the east that had the capacity to kill large numbers including Belzec (15,000 a day), Sobibor (20,000), Treblinka (25,000) and Majdanek (25,000). For a while he took personal charge of the Auschwitz camp to see the Final Solution in operation.. In 1944 Eichman told Heinrich Himmler that about six million Jews had been disposed of, four million of these having died of "natural causes" in the camps and 104 another two million being killed in the gas chambers. He told one of his officers that: "I'll die happily with the certainty of having killed almost six million Jews." In February, 1945, Eichman escaped from Germany. He changed his name to Ricardo Klement and worked for a water company in Argentina. Israeli secret agents found Eichman in 1960. He was kidnapped and removed to Israel where he was put on trial for his actions during the Second World War. At his trial he argued he was only following orders. Adolf Eichmann was found guilty of "crimes against the Jewish people, crimes against humanity, and war crimes" and was executed on 31st May, 1962. Erich Fromm Erich Fromm was born in Berlin on 8th October, 1888. He joined the German Army and by the end of the First World War had reached the rank of lieutenant. Fromm remained in the army and worked under General Ludwig Beck the chief of general staff. In 1937 he was made commander of the Replacement Army and during the Second World War was chief of armaments (1939-44). An early supporter of Adolf Hitler, Fromm became disillusioned with his management of the war and by 1942 Fromm favoured a negotiated peace with the Soviet Union. Fromm was suspected of being involved in the July Plot. He attempted to cover his tracks by executing Claus von Stauffenberg, Friedrich Olbricht and Werner von Haeften. He also arranged the suicide of Ludwig Beck. When Joseph Goebbels arrived on the scene he told Fromm: "You've been in a damned hurry to get your witnesses below ground." Arrested by Heinrich Himmler on 21st July, 1944, he was brought before the People's Court and charged with not reporting the conspiracy. Erich Fromm was found guilty and executed on 12th March, 1945. Hermann Goering Hermann Goering was born in Rosenheim, Bavaria on 12th January 1893. The son of a senior army officer, he was educated at a military school and became a member of the Prussian Cadet Corps. 105 Goering joined the German Army in June, 1912. He served with the infantry during the first few months of the First World War but was hospitalized with rheumatoid arthritis of the knees. After recovering, he transferred to the German Army Air Service. At first Goering was an observer for his friend and war ace, Bruno Loerzer, but eventually became a fighter pilot and scored his first victory on 16th November 1915. After the death of Manfred von Richthofen Goering became the leader of his JG 1 squadron. By the end of the war Goering had achieved 22 victories and had been awarded the Iron Cross and the Pour le Merite for bravery. After the war, Goering earned his living as a pilot working for the Fokker company based in Holland. While there he met and married Baroness Karen von FockKantzow. Goering returned in 1923 and after hearing Adolf Hitler speak joined the National Socialist German Workers Party (NSDAP). He later admitted: "it was political love at first sight". Hitler also admired Goering and appointed him as head of Sturm Abteilung (Storm Section). The SA (also known as stormtroopers or brownshirts) were instructed to disrupt the meetings of political opponents and to protect Hitler from revenge attacks. Captain Ernst Roehm of the Bavarian Army played an important role in recruiting these men. On 8th November, 1923, the Bavarian government held a meeting of about 3,000 officials. While Gustav von Kahr, the leader of the Bavarian government was making a speech, Goering, Hitler and the SA entered the building. Hitler jumped onto a table, fired two shots in the air and told the audience that the Munich Putsch was taking place and the National Revolution had began. Leaving Goering and the SA to guard the 3,000 officials, Adolf Hitler took Gustav von Kahr, Otto von Lossow, the commander of the Bavarian Army and Hans von Seisser, the commandant of the Bavarian State Police into an adjoining room. Hitler told the men that he was to be the new leader of Germany and offered them posts in his new government. Aware that this would be an act of high treason, the three men were initially reluctant to agree to this offer. Hitler was furious and threatened to shoot them and then commit suicide: "I have three bullets for you, gentlemen, and one for me!" After this the three men agreed. Soon afterwards Eric Ludendorff arrived. Ludendorff had been leader of the German Army at the end of the First World War. He had therefore found Hitler's claim that the war had not been lost by the army but by Jews, Socialists, Communists and the German government, attractive, and was a strong supporter of the Nazi Party. Ludendorff agreed to become head of the the German Army in Hitler's government. 106 While Hitler had been appointing government ministers, Ernst Roehm, leading a group of stormtroopers, had seized the War Ministry and Rudolf Hess was arranging the arrest of Jews and left-wing political leaders in Bavaria. Hitler now planned to march on Berlin and remove the national government. Surprisingly, Hitler had not arranged for the stormtroopers to take control of the radio stations and the telegraph offices. This meant that the national government in Berlin soon heard about Hitler's putsch and gave orders for it to be crushed. The next day Goering, Adolf Hitler, Eric Ludendorff, and 3,000 armed supporters of the Nazi Party marched through Munich in an attempt to join up with Roehm's forces at the War Ministry. At Odensplatz they found the road blocked by the Munich police. As they refused to stop, the police fired into the ground in front of the marchers. The stormtroopers returned the fire and during the next few minutes 21 people were killed and another hundred were wounded, included Goering, who had two granite splinters (from a building) in his groin. To avoid arrest Goering fled to Sweden. Goering, who lived in Stockholm for the next four years, was in a poor physical state because of his morphine addiction. He also suffered from obesity and weighed 280 pounds. In 1927 President Paul von Hindenburg granted Goering an amnesty and he returned to Berlin. The following year he was one of the twelve members of the Nazi Party elected to the Reichstag and on 30th August, 1932, became its president. When Adolf Hitler became chancellor in January, 1933, he made Goering a cabinet minister without portfolio. Later he became minister of the interior and prime minister of Prussia. He immediately replaced 22 of Germany's 32 police chiefs with SA and SS officers. He also appointed Rudolf Diels as chief of the political police, the Gestapo. After the Reichstag Fire on 27th February, 1933, Goering launched a wave of violence against members of the German Communist Party and other left-wing opponents of the regime. He also joined with Heinrich Himmler, head of the Schutz Staffeinel, in setting up Germany's concentration camps. Goering agreed that the Sturm Abteilung (SA) posed a threat to the German Army and in June 1934 arranged the Night of the Long Knives. He also purged Werner von Blomberg and Werner von Fitsch from the high command of the army. In February, 1938, Goering became head of Germany's armed forces,. The following year he officially became Hitler's deputy and legal heir. He obtained a vast income from his various official posts and converted an old Berlin palace into 107 his official residence. Goering also made money from his own newspaper, Essener National Zeitung and from stock in the aircraft industry. After the outbreak of the Second World War Goering was placed in charge of the Luftwaffe and took credit for the quick defeat of France, Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg in the summer of 1940. However, he failed to stop the British evacuation of Dunkirk. Goering organized the German war effort during the Battle of Britain and made the crucial mistake of changing his tactics and launching the Blitz in September, 1940. He was criticized for the failings of the Luftwaffe during Operation Barbarossa. When the Red Army made advances into Germany, Goering moved his headquarters to Berchesgaden. After the suicide of Adolf Hitler Goering surrendered to the US Army in Austria on 8th May, 1945. Hermann Goering was found guilty at Nuremberg War Crimes Trial but avoided execution by swallowing potassium cyanide on 15th October, 1946. Erich Hartmann Erich Hartmann, the son of a doctor, was born in Weissach, Germany, on 19th April, 1922. He joined the Luftwaffe and was sent to the Eastern Front in the autumn in 1942. An outstanding pilot he was appointed Squadron Commander of Fighter Group 53 in 1944. Flying a ME 109 it is claimed he made 352 kills during the Second World War. In 30 months of fighting he flew 1,425 combat missions and was shot down sixteen times but was never wounded. Hartmann was captured by the Red Army in 1945 and held in a prison camp for ten years. After his release in 1955 he joined the West German Airforce. His authorized biography, The Blond Knight of Germany, was published in 1970. Erich Hartmann died in Stuttgart in 1995. Erwin Rommel 108 Erwin Rommel was born in Heidenheim, Germany, on 15th November, 1891. He wanted to study engineering but his father disapproved so in 1910 he joined the German Army. By the outbreak of the First World War Rommel had reached the rank of lieutenant. He fought on the Western Front and in January 1915 won the Iron Cross. In 1917 Rommel served on the Italian Front and after leading the attack on Monte Matajur, was promoted to captain. Soon afterwards Rommel and a small group of men swam the Piave River in order to capture the Italian garrison at Lognaroni. After the war Rommel remained in the German Army and in 1929 he was appointed an instructor at the Infantry School in Dresden. In October 1935 he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel and began teaching at the Potsdam War Academy. An excellent teacher, Rommel's lectures were published as a book on infantry tactics in 1937. The book was read by Adolf Hitler. Greatly impressed by Rommel's ideas Hitler arranged for him to command his HQ staff in Austria and Czechoslovakia. The following year he did the same job in Poland. Rommel was given command of the 7th Panzer Division that invaded France in May, 1940. Rommel's troops moved faster and farther than any other army in military history. After reaching the Channel he turned south and raced along the coast until he reached the Spanish border. As a result of his exploits in France he was promoted to the rank of general. When Benito Mussolini asked for help in North Africa Adolf Hitler sent Rommel to command the new Deutsches Afrika Korps and successfully drove the British 8th Army out of Libya. He moved into Egypt but was defeated at El Alamein. With the USA Army landing in Morocco and Algeria, his troops were forced to leave Tunisia. In the early months 1944 Rommel was approached by Ludwig Beck and Carl Goerdeler about joining the July Plot. Rommel refused, criticising the tactic of assassination claiming that it would turn Adolf Hitler into a martyr. Instead he suggested that he should be arrested and brought to trial. Rommel was now sent to head the German Army in France that was preparing for the Allied invasion. Unable to halt the Allied troops during Operation Overlord, on 15th July, 1944, Rommel warned Hitler that Germany was on the verge of defeat and encouraged him to bring the war to an end. In the summer of 1944 Rommel was approached about joining the July Plot. He refused, criticising the tactic of assassination claiming that it would turn Adolf 109 Hitler into a martyr. Instead he suggested that he should be arrested and brought to trial. In the autumn of 1944 Hitler discovered that Rommel was plotting against him. On 14th October, 1944, Rommel was visited by two generals who had been sent by Hitler with an ultimatum: suicide with a state funeral and protection for his family and staff, or trial for high treason. Erwin Rommel took poison and officially it was stated that he had died of a brain seizure. Japanese Military Leaders Mineichi Koga Mineichi Koga was born in Japan in 1885. He joined the Japanese Navy and served as a naval attach頩n Paris before being given command of the Yokosuka Naval Station. Koga was appointed vice chief of the Naval Staff Board in December 1937 and after the bombing of Pearl Harbor he took part in the capture of Hong Kong. In April 1943, Admiral Kogo replaced Isoruku Yamamoto as commander in chief of the Combined Fleet. He was unable to halt the decline in the country's fortunes and presided over the start of Japanese withdrawals from the Gilbert Islands and the Philippines. Mineichi Koga was killed when on 31st March 1944 his aircraft crashed into the sea. His death was not announced until May 1944 when he was replaced as commander in chief by Soemu Toyoda. French Military Leaders Charles De Gaulle 110 Charles de Gaulle was born in Lille, France, on 22nd November, 1890. The son of a headmaster of a Jesuit school, he was educated in Paris. He was a good student and at the Military Academy St. Cyr, he graduated 13th in the class of 1912. Commissioned as a second lieutenant, the 6 feet 5 tall de Gaulle joined an infantry regiment commanded by Colonel Henri-Philippe Petain in 1913. In the First World War de Gaulle was wounded twice in the first few months of the conflict. Promoted to the rank of captain in February, 1915, de Gaulle fought at Verdun where he was wounded again and on 2nd March, 1916 was captured by the German Army. Over the next 32 months he was held in several prisoner of war camps and made five unsuccessful attempts to escape. After the Armistice de Gaulle was assigned to a Polish division being formed in France where he served under Maxime Weygand. He fought against the Red Army during the Civil War and won Poland's highest military decoration, Virtuti Militari. De Gaulle lectured at the French War College where he worked closely with HenriPhilippe Petain. Over the next few years the two men demanding a small, mobile, highly mechanized army of professionals. De Gaulle's military ideas appeared in his book, The Army of the Future (1934). In the book he also criticized the static theories of war that was exemplified by the Maginot Line. The book was unpopular with the politicians and the military who favoured the idea of a mass army of conscripts during war. In 1936 de Gaulle was punished for his views by having his name taken of the promotion list. In 1938 de Gaulle published France and Her Army. This book caused a disagreement with Henri-Philippe Petain who accused de Gaulle of taking credit for work done by the staff of the French War College. On the outbreak of the Second World War de Gaulle took over command of the 5th Army's tank force in Alsace. He soon became frustrated with the military hierarchy who had failed to grasp the importance of using tanks in mass-attacks with air support. When the German Army broke through at Sedan he was given command of the recently formed 4th Armoured Division. With 200 tanks, de Gaulle attacked the German panzers at Montcornet on 17th May, 1940. Lacking air support, de Gaulle made little impact on halting the German advance. De Gaulle was more successful at Caumont (28th May) when he became the only French commanding officer to force the Germans to retreat during the German Invasion of France. 111 On the 5th June, 1940, the French prime minister, Paul Reynaud, sacked Edouard Daladier and appointed de Gaulle as his minister of war. De Gaulle also visited London but when he returned to France on 16th June he discovered the HenriPhilippe Petain had ousted Paul Reynaud as premier and was forming a government that would seek an armistice with Germany. In danger of being arrested by the new French government, de Gaulle returned to England. The following day he made a radio broadcast calling for French people to continue fighting against the German Army. Whereas as President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the USA recognized Vichy France Winston Churchill refused and backed de Gaulle as leader of the "Free French". Henri-Philippe Petain responded by denouncing de Gaulle. On 4th July, 1940, a court-martial in Toulouse sentenced him in absentia to four years in prison. At a second court-martial on 2nd August, 1940, sentenced him to death. De Gaulle made attempts to unify the resistance movements in France. In March 1943 Jean Moulin, Charles Delestraint and Andre Dewavrin managed to unite eight major resistance movements under de Gaulle's leadership. However, this good work was undermined when in June, 1943, both Delestraint and Moulin were both arrested by the Gestapo. On 30th May 1943, de Gaulle moved to Algeria. The following month the French Committee of National Liberation (FCNL) was established with de Gaulle and Henri Giraud as co-presidents. De Gaulle had difficulty working with his co-president and by July, 1943, had limited Giraud's power to command of the armed forces. Franklin D. Roosevelt and Winston Churchill were furious when de Gaulle's announced on 26 May, 1944, that the FCNL will now be known as the Provisional Government of the French Republic. Roosevelt and Churchill refused to recognize de Gaulle's action and decided to exclude him from the planning of Operation Overlord. Despite objections from Britain and the USA, De Gaulle's Provisional Government was recognized by Czechoslovakia, Poland, Belgium, Luxembourg, Yugoslavia and Norway. On 13th July, 1944, the governments of Britain and the USA also agreed that de Gaulle could help administer the liberated portions of France. De Gaulle reached France from Algiers on 20th August 1944. De Gaulle and his 2nd Armoured Division was allowed to join the USA Army when it entered Paris on 25th August. At a public speech later that day he announced that the French Forces of the Interior (FFI) would be integrated into the French Army and the militia would be dissolved. He also offered posts in his government to leaders of the resistance. Those who took office included Georges Bidault, Henry Frenay and Charles Tillon. 112 De Gaulle was upset by not being invited to the Yalta Conference but he was allowed to represent France as one of the four countries to sign the final instrument of surrender with Germany. France was also given one of the four occupation zones in Germany. On 13th November, 1945, the first Constituent Assembly unanimously elected de Gaulle as head of the French government. He held the post until resigning on 20th January, 1946. He then formed the right-wing group, the Rally of the French People (RFP). After initial success it declined in popularity and de Gaulle left it in 1953 and it was disbanded two years later. After his retirement from politics de Gaulle wrote the first three volumes of his memoirs. He returned to politics in 1958 when he was elected president during the Algerian crisis. He granted independence to all 13 French African colonies but the Algerian War continued until 1962. De Gaulle decided that France should have its own atom bomb and repeatedly blocked Britain's attempts to join the European Economic Community. In 1966 de Gaulle withdrew France from the integrated military command of NATO. Following student riots against his government and negative results in a referendum, de Gaulle resigned from office in April, 1969. In retirement he completed his memoirs. Charles De Gaulle died on 9th November, 1970. Henri-Philippe Petain Henri-Philippe Petain was born in Cauch-a-la-Tour in 1856. He joined the French Army in 1876 and attending the St Cyr Military School and spent many years as an infantry officer and an army instructor. After studying the Russo-Japanese War (1904-05) Petain became convinced that the increased fire-power of modern weapons strongly favoured the defensive. Others in the French Army, for example, Ferdinand Foch, believed the opposite to be true. On the outbreak of the First World War Petain was due to retire from the army. Instead he was promoted to brigadier and took part in the Artois Offensive. In 1915 Joseph Joffre sent Petain to command the French troops at Verdun. Afterwards Petain was praised for his artillery-based defensive operations and his organisation of manpower resources. After the disastrous Nivelle Offensive in the spring of 1917, the French Army suffered widespread mutinies on the Western Front. Petain replaced Robert Nivelle 113 as Commander-in-Chief. This was a popular choice as Petain, unlike Nivelle, had a reputation for having a deep concern for the lives of his soldiers. By improving the living conditions of the soldiers at the front and restricting the French Army to defensive operations, Petain gradually improved the morale of his troops. Considered to be too defensively minded, it was Ferdinand Foch rather than Petain who was given the main role in the Allied offensive in the autumn of 1918. Promoted to Field Marshal two weeks after the Armistice, Petain remained active in French military affairs and served as War Minister in 1934. In 1940, aged 83, Petain agreed to head the Vichy government in occupied France. Petain fed to Switzerland after the Normandy landings but when he returned in April, 1945, he was arrested and charged with treason. Petain was found guilty of and sentenced to death for aiding the German enemy. The sentence was later commuted to life imprisonment. Henri-Philippe Petain died in prison in 1951. Isoruku Yamamoto Isokoru Yamamoto, the son of a schoolmaster, was born in Japan on 4th April 1884. He attended the Japanese Naval Academy and graduated as seventh in his class. He joined the Japanese Navy and as an ensign he took part in the RussoJapanese War. Yamamoto was on board a cruiser during the destruction of the Russian Fleet at Tshushima in 1905. In 1914 Yamamoto was promoted to lieutenant commander and assigned to the Imperial Navy Headquarters in Tokyo. Two years later he was sent to the United States where he studied economics at Harvard University. While in America he also took a keen interest in military aviation. After his return to Japan Yamamoto became director of the new air training base at Kasumigaura (1923-25) before being appointed as a naval attach頩n Washington (1925-27). In 1930 Yamamoto took command of the 1st Air Fleet and the following year was promoted to rear admiral in charge of the navy's technical service. Yamamoto, who had learnt to fly, became convinced that future wars would be decided by air power and embarked on a massive new building programme. 114 In 1934 the Japanese built around 445 aircraft. This increased to 952 (1935), 1,181 (1936), 1,511 (1937), 3,201 (1938), 4,467 (1939) and 4,768 (1940). This included fighters, torpedo-bombers and dive-bombers. The most important of these were the fighters Mitsubishi A5M, Nakajima Ki-27, and the Mitsubishi A6M and the bombers Mitsubishi ki-21 and Mitsubishi G3M. As vice minister of the Japanese Navy Yamamoto arranged for the building of two modern aircraft carriers, Shokaku and the Zuikaku. In 1938 Yamamoto was appointed a Minister of the Navy and the following year Yamamoto was promoted to admiral and became commander in chief of the Combined Fleet. In this position he attempted to improve the training of men in the Japanese Navy. However, he made a crucial mistake of not fitting Japanese ships with radar. Yamamoto was opposed the signing of the Tripartite Pact with Nazi Germany as he feared it would lead to war with the United States. He told the Japanese prime minister, Fumimaro Kondoye, that the navy would do well during the first six months but did not believe the country could win a long-term war. In the early months of 1941, Yamamoto, under instructions from his government, began planning the war with the United States. Yamamoto feared that he did not have the resources to win a long war and therefore advocated a surprise attack on the US Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor. Yamamoto's plan was eventually agreed by the Japanese Imperial Staff and the strike force under the command of Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo sailed from the Kurile Islands on 26th November, 1941. Nagumo's fleet was positioned 275 miles north of Oahu. On Sunday, 7th December, 1941, 105 high-level bombers, 135 dive-bombers and 81 fighter aircraft attacked the the US Fleet at Pearl Harbor. In their first attack the Japanese sunk the Arizona, Oklahoma, West Virginia and California. The second attack, launched 45 minutes later, hampered by smoke, created less damage. In two hours 18 warships, 188 aircraft and 2,403 servicemen were lost in the attack. Luckily, the navy's three aircraft carriers, Enterprise, Lexington and Saratoga, were all at sea at the time. The following day, President Franklin D. Roosevelt and a united US Congress declared war on Japan. Yamamoto then organized the invasion of the Soloman Islands and New Guinea. He also made raids into British colonies such as Ceylon. In the summer of 1942 Yamamoto decided to try and capture the US base on Midway Island. He believed that the Japanese Air Force would be able to launch air attacks on the US Fleet at Pearl Harbor. Yamamoto devised a complex plan where the Combined Fleet was split into eight task groups. Two of these groups made a 115 diversionary attack on the Aleutian Islands. The rest of the fleet led by Yamamoto, Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo and Vice Admiral Nobutake Kondo, would head for Midway. Unknown to Yamamoto the US intelligence service and broken the Japanese communication code and informed Admiral Chester Nimitz of the Japanese plans. Nimitz was able to assemble two task forces under Admiral Frank Fletcher and Rear Admiral Raymond Spruance. With the carriers Yorktown, Enterprise and Hornet, eight cruisers, and fifteen destroyers, they also headed for Midway. On 3rd June, 1942, 100 aircraft from Nagumo's carrier force bombed Midway. The US Marine fighters were outnumbered and were unable to stop extensive damage being caused. While the Japanese aircraft were being rearmed they were attacked by carrier planes from Spruance's Task Force. While this was taking place Yorktown and Enterprise arrived and scored hits on the Japanese ships, Akagi, Soryu and Kaga. The Hirpu managed to sink the Yorktown before it was set afire by the Enterprise. The Japanese Navy had now lost all four of her aircraft carriers and Yamamoto was forced to order a withdrawal. Yamamoto now had to organize what was left of his forces to support the 15,000 Japanese troops blockaded on Guadalcanal. Attempts to land large numbers of Japanese troops ended in failure in October 1942. The naval battle at Guadalcanal (12-14 November) ended Japanese efforts to recapture the island. Yamamoto made plans to visit the Japanese controlled Bougainville on 18th April. He sent out details of his itinerary and this information was intercepted by US intelligence. When Admiral Chester Nimitz heard the news he consulted with William Knox, the Navy Secretary, and Admiral William Halsey, and it was decided to try an assassinate the man responsible for Pearl Harbor. Operation Vengeance began on 18th April 1942, when 18 aircraft led by Major John W. Mitchell, went out to find the plane carrying Yamamoto. At 9.30 am the US pilot, Thomas G. Lamphier, identified Yamamoto's aircraft approaching Kahili Field on Bougainville. Two bursts from his guns hit the target and the aircraft crashed into the jungle. The Japanese government did not announce the death of Isokoru Yamamoto until 21st May 1943. He was replaced as commander in chief of the Combined Fleet by Mineichi Koga. 116
