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Chapter 17:
The U.S. in WWII
Section 2:
The War for Europe
and North Africa
Standards
 11.7
Students analyze America's
participation in World War II.
 .2
Explain U.S. and Allied wartime
strategy, including the major battles of
Midway, Normandy, Iwo Jima, Okinawa,
and the Battle of the Bulge.
Objectives
 Following
lecture and reading of
this section, students will be able
to:
1. Summarize
the war.
2. Identify
the Allies’ plans for winning
events in the war in Europe.
3. Describe
the liberation of Europe.
The U.S. & Britain Align

War Plans- U.S. & Britain join in alliance
 Churchill
convinced FDR to go after Hitler first,
then Japan
 Britain
 We

still in danger of falling to Hitler
needed them to stay in the war
The Battle of the Atlantic
 Hitler
ordered U-boat (submarine) attacks against
supply ships to Britain
 Wolf
packs destroyed hundreds of ships in 1942
 Allies
organized convoys of cargo ships with escort
destroyers with sonar; planes with radar
 Construction
of Liberty ships (cargo carriers) increased
Important Reasons for Alliance
FDR always considered Hitler to be the
#1 threat
1.

Hitler pushed for world domination
Stalin, and USSR, who were now allies
needed help from us.
2.

We did not want to allow the USSR to fail they
were keeping Hitler occupied with war
The U.S. needed Britain and USSR in
order to defeat Japan, and for the moment
they were busy with Hitler.
3.

Once Hitler is out those who we are helping
would help us.
The Battle of Stalingrad

Hitler wanted to capture Caucasus oil fields and
destroy Stalingrad
 Stalingrad
was strategically located on the Volga R.
 Germany
could choke out most of Russia by controlling
the flow of supplies on the river (Mississippi R.)
 After
a long struggle, the Soviets defeated the
Germans in bitter winter campaign
 Deaths:
 Germans
 The
230,000
Soviets1,100,000
Battle of Stalingrad was the turning point
 The
Soviet army began to move towards Germany
The North African Front
 Stalin
wanted some aid by the other allies
 Stalin
suggested the U.S. & Britain invade to
Germany’s west (France) to force Hitler to
send troops there
 The
U.S. & British decided to begin the
campaign in North Africa
 Commanded
by General Dwight Eisenhower
 General Erwin Rommel (“Desert Fox”) led
Afrika Korps (Nazis) and surrendered in May
1943
The Italian Campaign
 From
North Africa, the Allies went
northeast toward Italy
 Allies
decided to only accept the unconditional
surrender of the Axis Powers
 Sicily
captured (summer 1943)
 Mussolini
forced to resign
 Hitler re-installs Mussolini as leader
 1944
Allies win “Bloody Anzio”
 Germans
continue strong resistance
Heroes in Combat
 African
Americans
 Tuskegee
Airmen
 Buffalo Soldiers
 Highly
decorated- lots of medals for heroism
 Mexican-Americans
 17
received congressional medal of honor
 Japanese-Americans
 442nd
Regimental Combat Team
 Most
decorated unit in U.S. history
D-Day (Page 575)
 The
first day of the Allied invasion of
Europe
 Allies
set up phantom army
 Sent
fake radio messages to fool Germans
 Real attack cam 150 miles away from the fake
attack
 Eisenhower
directed Allied invasion of
Normandy on D-Day June 6, 1944
 Very
difficult fighting
 Germans held the high ground but lost it
2 Fronts in Western Europe
USSR
North Africa
Paratroopers
Paratroopers
WWII, Sept 1944
USSR
France
Italy
North Africa
Great
Britain
France
Great Britain
Great Britain
France
Normandy, France
World War II Europe, 1942
Axis Powers
Finland
Allied Powers
Neutral
USSR
Britain
Germany
Poland
Occupied
USSR
Occupied
France
Vichy
France
Italy
Turkey
North Africa
Syria
WWII, Early 1943
Axis Powers
Allied Powers
Neutral
North Africa
WWII, 1942-1943
Axis Powers
Allied Powers
Neutral
After the
Battle of
Stalingrad
Germany
North Africa
1944
USSR
WWII, July 1943
Axis Powers
Allied Powers
Neutral
USSR
Italy
North Africa
Great
Britain
France
Normandy, France
WWII, Sept 1944
Axis Powers
Allied Powers
Neutral
D-Day
Invasion
Germany
France
Italy
North Africa
USSR
Yalta
Conference
Yalta Conference
Harry S. Truman
WWII, Sept 1944
Axis Powers
Allied Powers
Neutral
D-Day
Invasion
Germany
France
Italy
North Africa
USSR
The Allies Gain Ground
 General
Omar Bradley bombed to create
gap in enemy defense line
 General George Patton led the Third Army
 They
reached Paris in August
 Taking back of Paris was a big step
 The
tide of the war had now turned
 FDR
was reelected for his 4th term with
running mate Harry S. Truman
 Don’t
change horses mid-race
The Battle of the Bulge

October 1944, Allies capture first German town,
Aachen
 Hitler

had to do something
In December, German tank divisions drove 60
miles into Allied area
 Battle
of the Bulge—Germans pushed back allies
 Formed
 The
a bulge in the allied lines
last German offensive
A
desperate attempt by Hitler to regain control of the
war
 Too many losses to Nazis in this battle to continue
Liberation of the Death Camps
 Allies
move in on Germany
 Soviets
from the east arrive in Poland and
liberate concentration camps
 Soviets
found:
 Starving
prisoners
 Corpses
 Evidence
 Americans
of killing
eventually find similar conditions
in other camps all over Germany
Unconditional Surrender

April 1945 Soviet army stormed Berlin

Hitler committed suicide

Shot himself


Eisenhower (& allies) accepted unconditional
surrender of Germany

May 8, 1945, V-E Day


Orders his body burned
Victory in Europe Day
FDR died April 12, 1945

Vice President Harry S. Truman became president

Had to deal with Japan and aftermath of war
WWII, 1942
Axis Powers

Germany












Italy







Albania
Greece
Yugoslavia
Parts of N. Africa
Japan


Bulgaria
Hungary

1/3 of China
Islands in Pacific
French Indochina
Thailand
Great Britain












Austria
Czech
Poland
Norway
Denmark
Netherlands
Belgium
France
Finland
1/3 of Russia
Romania
Allied Powers

Egypt
Canada
Australia
India
New Zealand
South Africa
Fiji
¾ of USSR
¾ of China
Iran
United States











Mexico
Cuba
Haiti
Brazil
Costa Rica
Dominican Republic
El Salvador
Guatemala
Honduras
Nicaragua
Panama & Peru