Download Road to War and WWII

Road to War and WWII
Should the United States get
involved in foreign affairs/policies?
Notes #1
• Identify the major characteristics of WWII
(US2A)
• Identify reasons for US involvements in
WWII (US7A)
Legacies of WWI
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WWI had left Russia under Communist rule, Germany
bitter with the Treaty of Versailles and Europe as a
whole in economic ruin.
Following WWI Germany was in financial collapse and
by 1934 no one was repaying their debts to the US.
Many Americans saw WWI as a failure and were
reluctant to get involved in another War.
Dictatorships sprang up to power in key countries such
as Germany, Russia, and Italy. A dictator is a ruler who
wields absolute authority and controls the government.
Mussolini in Italy
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Financial instability caused Communist and Fascist
to battle for political power in Italy.
Benito Mussolini led the Fascist Party which
believed that a military-dominated government
should control all parts of society
In 1922 Mussolini became Prime minister and
quickly limited freedom of speech, restricted voting
rights and arrested his opponents.
Mussolini vowed to make Italy an imperial power
such as it was in the days of the Roman Empire and
invaded Ethiopia in 1935.
Joseph Stalin in Russia
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In 1924 Vladimir Lenin died and Joseph Stalin
emerged as the nation’s leader.
Stalin moved to turn the Soviet Union into a
totalitarian state where the government has
complete control of all parts of society.
Stalin used the Red Army to crush any
opposition sending protesters to labor camps
Some historians estimate that as many as 30
million people died as a result of Stalin (most
were his own Russian people).
Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party
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Adolf Hitler was a German soldier in WWI and
blamed the German defeat on Politicians
Hitler was jailed in 1923 for attempting to
overthrow the German government.
In 1932, Hitler’s Nazi party won 40% of votes
in a national election and Hitler was soon
elected chancellor of Germany.
Hitler called his government the Third Reich
and claimed dictatorial power of Germany
German expansionism into Austria,
Czechoslovakia, and Poland brings Europe into
WWII
Policies and Ideals of Hitler
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While in prison, Hitler wrote Mein Kampf (my
struggle) which outlined his plan to restore
German power and blamed Jews for German
problems
Once in power Hitler prohibited non-Nazis from
holding government positions, outlawed strikes
and made military service mandatory.
Hitler violated the Treaty of Versailles and began
to rearm Germany.
Hitler’s anti-Semitism or hatred of Jews became
official government policy.
Hideki Tojo in Japan
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After WWI Japan became less aggressive,
helped form the League of Nations and signed
the Kellogg-Briand Pact
In the 1930s, the worldwide depression caused
Japan to move toward a policy of militarism
In 1941, General Hideki Tojo became Prime
Minister, continuing to develop the military and
prepare the nation for war
Japan begins a campaign of expansionism into
Manchuria and China
Axis powers become aggressive
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In 1936 Germany and Italy formed a military
alliance known as the axis powers.
As Hitler began to rearm and expand his empire,
European leaders at first gave in to his violations of
the Treaty of Versailles to avoid a larger conflict
aka Appeasement.
British Prime minister Winston Churchill began to
rearm fearing that Hitler would continue to seize
additional territory.
The US began a policy of neutrality.
– After Hitler invades Poland, FDR responds: “I hate war.
This nation will remain a neutral nation”
Notes #2:
WWII Begins
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In 1938 Hitler united Germany and Austria and
invaded part of Czechoslovakia
In 1939 Hitler and Russian dictator Joseph
Stalin signed the Nazi-Soviet Pact agreeing to
peace and to attack and divide Poland.
On September 1, 1939 Nazi forces stormed
Poland; German planes, tanks and troop
transports easily defeated the Poles (aka
Blitzkrieg).
Russia attacked Poland from the east and within
a month Poland ceased to exist.
FDR’s Re-election & War Trade
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The Democratic Party broke Presidential tradition in 1940
and nominated FDR for a third term as President.
– (a later Constitutional change in 1951, the 22nd Amendment would
restrict Presidents to serving just 2 terms)
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During his campaign Roosevelt held to the popular idea that
the US should remain neutral in WWII and FDR was reelected as President winning 38 States. – Neutrality Act
(1939)
In 1941 the US passed the Lend Lease Act which allowed
some 50 billion dollars of war materials to be sold to the
Allied powers without an immediate cash payment.
– “You don’t ask your neighbor to pay for your hose when his house
is on fire.”
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When Germany attacks its ally – the Soviet Union – in June
1941, we also give lend-lease to them, they become our
allies
Allied
Powers
• Great Britain
• France
• Soviet Union
• United States
Axis
Powers
• Germany
• Italy
• Japan
Axis Powers dominate early
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In June 1940, Germany attacked France from the
North, while Italy attacked from the South
The French were forced to sign surrender in the
same railroad car that Germany had surrendered to
France in 1918.
By 1941 Axis powers controlled most of Western
Europe
In the spring and summer of 1941 German
bombers attacked England daily, but the British
people kept up their morale.
Pearl Harbor
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As war broke out in 1940, Japan took the opportunity
to seize lands in Indonesia and southeast Asia; to try to
stop Japanese aggression the U.S. banned the sale of
war materials to Japan.
By 1941, American pilots (serving as private military
contractors) nicknamed the Flying Tigers joined the
Chinese Air force to defend China from the Japanese.
Japanese aircraft launched a surprise attack on Pearl
Harbor, Hawaii on December 7, 1941.
US forces lost 19 ships, 188 aircraft and nearly 2,400
soldiers; 65 Japanese servicemen were killed.
December 8th, 1941 America officially declared war on
Japan and on December 11th the US declared war on
Germany and Italy.
Attack on Pearl Harbor
Yamamoto
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Celebrated
Japanese
Admiral,
oversaw the
attack on Pearl
Harbor
George Marshall
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Chief of Staff that
coordinated the war
effort from
Washington D.C.
The numbers of military enlistment rose
dramatically after the attack on Pearl
Harbor and the United States formally
entered the war
Executive Order 9066
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Because of distrust of Japanese and general
paranoia after the bombing of Pearl Harbor,
President Roosevelt signed Executive Order
9066, which authorized the military to
remove Japanese – Americans from
America’s West Coast and into internment
camps
Notes # 3
Journal Entry #2
What were the main causes of World War II?
What should have been done to avoid World
War II?
Russia and the US join the Allies
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In the fall of 1941 Germany violated their pact
and invaded Russia with 3 million soldiers.
(Nicknamed operation Barbarossa)
Stalin was now forced to join the Allied
powers to defend against Germany
With America also entering the war, Churchill,
Roosevelt and Stalin became known as the big
three and they met to discuss war strategy.
The allied forces agreed to focus efforts on
Europe before the Pacific.
State of the War as US enters
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Germany and Japan had firm control of the areas
they had already conquered and the axis countries
were better prepared for war.
Axis forces were very spread out, having troops
fighting the French in the West, Russians in the
East and the US in the Pacific
The two most important elements needed for an
allied victory would be the support of the Russian
army and the manufacturing capabilities of the
United States.
Preparing America for War
After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, America
quickly mobilized for War; businesses
increased production and unions did not strike
 By 1943 nearly 400,000 workers were
producing ammunition, cannons and rifles
 Car production was suspended and factories
produced planes, tanks, jeeps and guns.
 Unemployment dropped from 14.6% to 1.2%
and the Great Depression was over.
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Home Front Contributions
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As the country prepared for war the federal
government grew to direct the economy
The War Production Board regulated what and
how much factories would produce.
The Selective Training and Service Act
required all men ages 21 to 30 to register for the
draft and nearly 10 million would be drafted
More than 300,000 women volunteered to serve
as nurses and drive vehicles in the War.
Eleanor Roosevelt worked tirelessly in support
of home front efforts including comforting
wounded soldiers and their families.
Bataan Death March
• In 1942, Japan takes over the Philippine Islands.
• General Douglas MacArthur was appointed commander of US
forces in the far East.
• He was ordered to leave the Philippines with his family and a
select others, leaving behind 70,000 military men.
• The Death March was the forcible transfer of 75,000 American
and Filipino prisoners of war; infamous for extremely high
fatalities due to physical abuse and murder
• Douglas MacArthur would eventually “return” American
forces in the liberation of the Philippines from Japanese
control in 1944.
D-DAY
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General Dwight Eisenhower was the commander of
Allied forced in Europe for the D-Day invasion
On June 6, 1944, a date known ever since as D-Day, a
mighty armada crossed a narrow strip of sea from
England to Normandy, France, and cracked the Nazi
grip on western Europe.
The D-Day operation of June 6, 1944 brought together
the land, air and sea forces of the allied armies in what
became known as the largest invasion force in human
history.
The operation, given the codename OVERLORD,
delivered five naval assault divisions to the beaches of
Normandy, France.
Battle of the Bulge
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In late 1944, in the wake of the allied forces'
successful D-Day invasion of Normandy, France, it
seemed as if the Second World War was all but
over. But on December 16, with the onset of
winter, the German army launched a
counteroffensive that was intended to cut through
the Allied forces in a manner that would turn the
tide of the war in Hitler's favor. The battle that
ensued is known historically as The Battle of the
Bulge.
The “bloodiest” and “costliest” action ever taken by
the Army
War in the Pacific
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The U.S. was at war with Japan, Germany, and
Italy. The war in Europe was predominately
fought on land both in Europe and Northern
Africa and the war in the Pacific was fought both
at sea and on land.
The US military advancement through the Pacific
Islands became known as “Island Hopping”. The
goal was to win back control of islands
throughout the Pacific and attain a position close
enough to mainland Japan to conduct an attack.
Japan continued a series of victories in the
Pacific after Pearl Harbor.
American forces were often under supplied and
lacked experience fighting in the Pacific
Significant Pacific Battles
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The Battle of Midway is one of the most
significant battles in the Pacific. It is
considered the turning point of the war
against the Japanese in the Pacific.
After the battle, Japan’s shipbuilding and
pilot training programs were unable to keep
pace in replacing their losses, while the US
was able to steadily increase output in both
areas.
Next, the Americans launched a major
offensive on Guadalcanal and after months
of fierce fighting defeated Japanese forces.
Notes # 4
Promoting the War in the US
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The US Office of War Information was created to
coordinate and closely managed news and details
about the war to the public.
Movie stars advertised war bonds and traveled to
entertain the troops; radio stations broadcast war
news and promoted patriotism and volunteerism
American citizens cut back on consumption of
luxuries and necessities, and worked long hours to
produce needed war materials
The Manhattan Project (1942-46) was the highly
top secret joint US and British program that spent
2 billion dollars to create a powerful new weapon
that used atomic energy to annihilate a target city.
Minority Contributions and
Discrimination
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American women were encouraged to work in wartime
industries and Rosie the Riveter became the symbol for
Patriotic female workers.
The first black flying squadron, the Tuskegee Airmen
served as bomber escorts in Italy and North Africa.
200 Navajo Code Talkers were recruited by the Marines to
serve in the Pacific Theater because their language was
undecipherable to the enemy; their 800 coded messages
sent at Iwo Jima were essential to the US victory.
Executive Order 9066 relocated Japanese Americans onto
internment camps in Wyoming and Utah because of
perceived distrust of Japanese Americans.
Beginning in 1990 surviving internees received cash
payments and a letter of apology from the US government.
Wartime life for Minorities
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African American servicemen were
segregated in the military.
A Phillip Randolph – a leader of a
black union – Brotherhood of Sleeping
Car Porters – called for “victory
abroad against fascism and victory at
home against racism”
He even threatened FDR with a march
on Washington if he didn’t
desegregate the military, but FDR
issued an executive order stating that
there would be no discrimination in
defense or government
Tuskegee Airman
• The Tuskegee Airman were an elite group of
African-American pilots in the 1940s.
• They were pioneers in equality and integration of
the Armed Forces. The term "Tuskegee Airmen"
refers to all who were involved in the Army Air
Corps program to train African Americans to fly and
maintain combat aircraft.
• The Tuskegee Airmen included pilots, navigators,
bombardiers, maintenance and support staff,
instructors, and all the personnel who kept the
planes in the air.
Navajo Code Talkers
• Navaho "Code Talkers" were able to come
up with a code that Japan was unable to
break; however Native Americans were
ineligible for GI benefits after the war
The “Flying Tigers”
• The Flying Tigers were officially called
the American Volunteer Group, and were
known for their planes with iconic shark
faces on them. They were equipped and
recruited in the spring and summer of
1941, with the express purposed of aiding
the Chinese in theater against the
Japanese.
The Holocaust
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Hitler saw Slavs, Gypsies, and particularly Jews as
inferior races and devised a plan for a “final
solution” to the Jewish problem.
The young, old and sick were targeted for
immediate killing in gas chambers.
By 1945, Nazi’s had massacred some six million
Jews and nearly as many other “undesirable”
people were also killed.
As American soldiers entered the camps they were
horrified and General Eisenhower insisted the
camps be photographed.
The Manhattan Project
1939
In 1939, Albert Einstein sent a letter to FDR about
starting a research team regarding nuclear
(atomic) weapons
1942
In 1942 Enrico Fermi, a physicist, successfully
controlled a nuclear reaction in his reactor called
CP-1 (Chicago Pile 1). CP-1 was located at the
University of Chicago.
1945
Later in the project the first atomic bomb was
exploded at Los Alamos. This was on July 6, 1945.
Harry Truman becomes president after FDR’s
death
Axis Defeated
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After taking Paris, Allied powers pushed on
toward Germany; Hitler’s army made a final
stand at the Battle of the Bulge.
In Italy Mussolini was captured and executed by
guerrilla soldiers.
Hitler committed suicide in his bunker and on
May 7, 1945 Germany surrendered.
Japan refused to surrender, on August 6 America
dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, on
August 9th another atomic bomb was dropped on
Nagasaki, finally on August 10 Japan surrendered.
War Notables
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Omar Bradley and George Patton led American forces first in
Northern Africa.
Bradley would later lead American forces onto the Beaches of
Normandy on D-Day.
Chester W. Nimitz commanded the US Navy in the Pacific and
formally accepted surrender of the Japanese in 1945.
Bernard Montgomery – British military commander who drove
the Germans out of North Africa and fought in Europe
Erwin Rommel – celebrated German General; nicknamed the
“Desert Fox” due to his victories in North Africa
Vernon Baker – he fought in Italy, earned a Purple Heart, a
Bronze Star, and the distinguished Service Cross.
Audie Murphy – a Texas, the most decorated American
soldier of WWII and a celebrated movie star post WWII
Effects of WWII
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In terms of deaths the US loss of soldiers was
relatively light, Russia lost nearly 30 million
people while the US less than 200,000.
In economic terms the War cost over 1 trillion
dollars worldwide but from an American
viewpoint WWII help end the depression.
To Europe WWII was the most devastating war
ever, hundreds of cities were ruined; millions
lacked heat, electricity or running water; and
some 50 million people died.
Effects of WWII
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Harry Truman proposed his “Fair Deal” which included the development
of natural resources, full-employment and fair-employment-practices bills,
federal control of the unemployment compensation program, and a large
housing program
While attending the Potsdam conference at the end of WWII, Truman
became suspicious of the Soviet intentions under Stalin
The development of conventional weapons developed including the
Higgins boat, tanks, bombers, torpedoes, improved submarines, the
M1rifle
The development of atomic weapon changed the landscape of war by
allowing massive enemy casualties without the need for large numbers of
soldiers on the ground. The threat of deployment became a powerful
component to modern warfare
Nuremberg Trials: “Crimes against Peace”, “War Crimes”, “Crimes Against
Humanity”, “Conspiracy to Commit Crimes”
Forest through the
woods…
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Should the United Stated get involved
in foreign policies and affairs?
President Roosevelt knew about the
Holocaust in 1942, still only 21,000
Jews were allowed to immigrate to the
U.S.
Monsters? Or Humans?
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Stanley Milgram Study (1961)
Stanford Prison Study (1971)