Download Progression of WWII

Progression of WWII
SS10 Arnold
Early Battles in the Pacific
 Philippines attacked hours after PH
 Outnumbered by Japanese
 Shortages and disease required McArthur to
evacuate to Australia and surrender the Battan
Peninsula
 78,000 POWs marched 65 miles to Japanese
prison camp, thousands died
 Code Breakers cracked Japans codes and
anticipated coming battles in New Guinea and
Midway Island
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Sunk 4 Japanese ships
major blow to Japanese capabilities in the Pacific
Early Battles against Germany
 Invaded Algeria and Morocco (French
territories under German Control)
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Fewer troops
Good strategic position to help British in
Egypt
 Moved into Tunisia
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Many losses (7,000 troops and 200 tanks)
Finally won, German troops in North Africa
surrendered.
Battle of the Atlantic
 German Subs sunk ships near the
American Coast
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Cities dimmed lights to make it hard to see
ships
360 ships sunk 9/42 (many oil and gas,
had to build a pipeline)
 New tech like sonar, radar helped turn
the tide against subs.
Turning Point in Europe
 May 1942 Hitler was confident about defeating
US(Atlantic) and UK (Egypt), needed to attack
USSR
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Targeted Stalingrad: strategic supply lines
between north and south
 Stalin refused to retreat
 House to house combat, major losses for
Germans.
 250,000 troops trapped- surrendered 2/43
 91,000 sent to Soviet prison camps
 5,000 survived
Defeating Germany
 Jan 1943: Roosavelt and Churchill
agree to step up bombing of German
towns (20x explosives)
 Goal to destroy
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military
industry
morale
economy
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Italy Surrenders
 US and UK strike the “soft underbelly” of
Europe
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Invade and capture Sicily (island)
Sept 194: Italy surrenders, but Hitler won’t
give up Italy.
 FIghting continues between Allies and
Germans in Italy through May,1945
 300,000 Allied deaths
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Retaking France:
D-Day Invasion of Normandy
 Allies needed to retake mainland France
 Had to land at dawn at low tide with a full moon to carry out operation:
June 6 1944
 7,000 ships and 100,000 American soldiers + 75,000 British and
Canadian soldiers, 23,000 paratroopers
 5 main beaches: Omaha Beach suffered most casualties (2,500)
 Eventually pushed through and retook Paris with the help of French
Resistance
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 Simultaneos attack on Germany by Soviets
War Ends in Europe
 Germany made one last surprise attack
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Battle of the Bulge: Antwerp, Belgium
Strategic importance (supply lines)
Temporary success, but ultimately failed
 Soviets advanced through Poland
 Americans attacked Western Border
 Both sides approached Berlin
 Hitler commits suicide April 30th ’45
 Surrender May 8, 1945
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Increasing Conflict in Japan
 “Island Hoping”: retaking strategic islands in the
Pacific to get closer to Japan to launch bombers
 Assisted by Navajo Code Talkers
 Battle to retake Philippines lasted 6 months,
eventually US troops retook Manila
 In naval battles Japanese used kamikaze 10
attacks
for the first time
 Americans take Iwo Jima (needed for B-29 Bomber
runs), heavy losses
 Began firebombing: bombs filled with napalm (In Tokyo
alone 100,000 + casualties)
 By the end of the war we had firebombed 67 cities
 Americans take Okinawa: another strategic location to
carry out mainland invasion
 12,000 US casualties but eventual victory
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Americans demanded unconditional surrender
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Some believed that this would require massive
mobilization (5 million troops)
Others believed that when USSR entered the war in
August ’45 the Japanese would surrender.
July 1945: First Atomic bomb was tested in New
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