Download World War II Notes

The Rise of the Dictators and Militarism
Mussolini in Italy (1922)
Fascism -stresses importance of the nation or ethnic group, extreme pride and total control by
the supreme leader
Stalin in the Soviet Union (1924)
Communism – similar to fascism, but no capitalism – government controls all elements of
society
Hitler in Germany (1933)
Nazism – Fascism that stresses German nationalism and Aryan superiority
In Japan – (early 1930s)
Increasing strength of nationalists and the military
Major Events 1931-1941
1931 Japan invades Manchuria
1933 Hitler becomes head of Germany’s government
1934 Hitler declares himself Fuhrer
1935 Mussolini invades Ethiopia
U.S. Neutrality Act bans U.S. from selling weapons to nations at war
1936 Hitler and Mussolini sign pact – the Axis
Germany invades the Rhineland
Spanish Civil War begins (Republicans v. Nationalists)
U.S. Neutrality Act bans loans to nations at war
1937 U.S. Neutrality Act forbids supplying arms to Loyalists (Republicans) in Spanish Civil War
Japan invades China
1938 Germany and Austria reunited
Germany invades the Sudetenland/Czechoslovakia
PM Chamberlain declares “peace in our time”
1939 Hitler signs non-aggression pact with Stalin
Germany invades Poland
Britain and France declare war on Germany
U.S. declares Cash and Carry policy
1940 Germany attacks Denmark, Norway, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Belgium
Fall of France
Battle of Britain begins
U.S. announces Destroyers for Bases Deal with Great Britain
Japan signs alliance with Germany and Italy
1941 U.S. announces Lend-Lease policy
Germany invades the Soviet Union
FDR and Churchill sign Atlantic Charter
Japan attacks Pearl Harbor (Dec. 7)
U.S. declares war on Japan (Dec. 8)
Germany and Italy declare war on U.S. (Dec. 11)
Questions…
1. What actions did the U.S. take that led the Japanese to attack Pearl Harbor?
Trade restrictions/sanctions
1940 - Limits supplies being sold to Japan (scrap iron and steel)
1941 - Freezes assets in the U.S. and limits oil sales
Japan needs resources
2. What were the goals of the Japanese in attacking Pearl Harbor?
Destroy the U.S. Pacific fleet so they could freely expand in Asia and exploit much needed
natural resources
3. Did U.S. forces have any prior indication that the Japanese were likely to attack?
Americans had broken Japanese code
Knew Japanese were planning an attack and were on the move
Did not know exact location
Mobilizing for War
Selective Service and Training Act
First peacetime draft in nation’s history
All men age 21-35, later 18-45 were eligible
More than 10 million served during the war
War Production Board
Halted production of non-essential items
Converted factories to produce war supplies
40 billion bullets, 300,000 aircraft, 76,000 ships, 86,000 tanks
Office of War Mobilization
Created by FDR to manage all aspects of the war
Coordinated all war agencies
Facts and Figures
1939 – national debt is $40 billion
1945 – national debt is $258 billion
Between 1941-1945, over $300 billion spent on the war effort
Wartime migrations – West and South booming
Los Angeles, Seattle, Detroit, Baton Rouge
Other ways of saving…
Victory Gardens
Rationing
And making money…
War bonds
Women in the War
WAVES, WACS, SPARS
Rosie the Riveter
Japanese Internment
1942 – Over 100,000 Japanese-Americans sent to holding facilities
Korematsu v. U.S. (1944) – Supreme Court affirms right to relocate
Atlantic Charter – August 1941
FDR and Churchill agree to:
No territorial changes without consent of people
Right of people to choose government
Disarmament
New league of nations - collective security
Basis for United Nations
Fighting the War…
Europe first, then Japan
AGAINST GERMANY and ITALY
Battle of the Atlantic
German subs sinking ships
Use of convoys and sonar help U.S.
North Africa (Nov. 1942-May 1943)
First combat experience for Americans in WWII
Allied troops commanded by Eisenhower
Mixed results at first
Finally trap Gen. Rommel in May 1943
Huge German/Italian surrender
Italy (July 1943-May 1945)
N. Africa now a springboard to Italy
Invasion of Sicily under Gen. George Patton
Italians surrender, Mussolini deposed
German army fights on, heavy casualties
Italy not conquered until April 1945
Western Europe (June 6, 1944-May 8, 1945)
American bombing raids on German cities begin in ‘43
Preparations for major invasion of Western Europe
Operation Overlord commanded by Eisenhower
D-Day Invasion of Normandy on the coast of France
After invasion of Normandy, Allied troops under George Patton fighting their way eastward.
In August ‘44, Paris is freed from German control
By September ‘44, American forces now in western Germany
Battle of the Bulge (December 1944 – January 1945)
German offensive in Belgium and Luxembourg
Temporarily knocks Allied troops back
More Allied troops sent to help
Within a few weeks, it’s been repelled
Allies again moving deeper into Germany
Yalta Conference - February 1945
Roosevelt, Churchill and Stalin meet to discuss post war
Agree to divide Germany into 4 zones, Berlin as well
Stalin agrees to free elections in Eastern Europe
Future Soviet Block/Satellite Nations
(Poland, Romania, Hungary, East Germany, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia)
And to help with war against Japan
In Europe, the end is near… (March - April 1945)
American forces closing in on Berlin from west
Soviet forces attacking from the east
Hitler commits suicide on April 30
German troops surrender on May 8 V-E Day
The War against Japan
The Philippines (March-May 1942)
After Pearl Harbor, Japan attacks the Philippines
U.S. troops are trapped on Bataan Peninsula
Gen. Douglas MacArthur forced to escape… “I will return”
American and Filipino forces surrender in May of ‘42
Bataan Death March
Midway (June 1942)
Japanese trying to lure American navy into major battle
Ends up being a major defeat for Japanese navy
Japanese lose 4 aircraft carriers and hundreds of planes
No longer able to launch offensives in Pacific
Guadalcanal (August 1942)
Americans trying to stop Japanese from building airstrip
First jungle/guerilla warfare experienced by U.S. troops
Eventually, American navy shuts off supplies
Japanese abandon Guadalcanal in February ‘43
The Philippines (October 1944-July 1945)
In October of ’44, MacArthur returns with over 150,000 troops
Fighting on land and sea
Battle of Leyte Gulf results in major American victory at sea
First use of kamikaze pilots
Hard fighting continues on land for control of Philippines
Not fully liberated until June ‘45
Island Hopping in the Pacific
Iwo Jima (March 1945)
Heavily fortified Japanese-controlled island
700 miles from Japanese mainland
After heavy bombing, U.S. marines come ashore
Over 100,000 U.S. marines would fight
Japanese resisting to the last man
Less than 300 left to surrender – crucial factor
Okinawa (April-June 1945)
Only 350 miles from Japan
Japanese putting up a tremendous fight
Significant use of kamikaze pilots and troops
Japanese refusing to surrender (civilians, too)
Heavy losses, U.S. has over 50,000 casualties
Island finally taken in June
What now?
FDR dies in April ‘45
Harry Truman is now President
By late July Truman knows about the atomic bomb - Manhattan Project
Truman’s options
Full scale invasion of Japan:
tremendous loss of life, cost
could take years
Other, less formidable options (p.852)
Drop the bomb
Rationale for dropping the bomb
Pearl Harbor
Treatment of POWs
Refusal to surrender/Kamikazes
Atomic Bombs dropped on Japan
August 6 – Hiroshima (approx. 80,000 killed)
August 9 – Nagasaki (approx. 70,000 killed)
August 14 – Japan surrenders V-J Day