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Unit 6
Unit 6 – World War II
World War Looms
I.
Dictators Threaten World Peace
Nationalism Grips Europe and Asia
 For many nations peace had brought not prosperity, but revolution fueled by
economic depression and struggle. What (2) things did this led to?
1.
2.
1. Failures of the WW I Peace Settlement


Treaty of Versailles did not secure peace, but caused anger and resentmentespecially in Germany.
What was the Weimar Republic?
2. Joseph Stalin Transforms the Soviet Union


Russia became the Soviet Union (and communist) in 1922 and after VI Lenin
died, Joe Stalin took control of the USSR and ruled with an iron fist.
Success = he transformed the USSR from a backward, rural nation into a great
industrial power – what was the cost of this?
3. The Rise of Fascism in Italy


Benito “Il Duce” Mussolini established the Fascist Party in 1921
Why was he able to seize absolute power in Italy?
4. The NAZIS Take Over Germany


Adolf Hitler followed a path to power that was similar to Mussolini
In his book Mein Kampf he set forth the (3) basic elements of Nazism:
a. extreme nationalism
b. racial purification
c. national expansion

used the economic condition in Germany to establish the 3rd Reich
 How long was this supposed to last?
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5. Militarists Gain Control in Japan

Japanese military leaders took control in post WW I Japan and seized the rawmaterial rich Chinese province of Manchuria
 What did the League of Nations do?
6. Aggression in Europe and Africa

The failure of the League of Nations in Japan led to aggression by:
 Germany =
 Italy =
7. Civil War Breaks Out in Spain


Francisco Franco led a fascist rebellion backed by military support from Hitler
and Mussolini
Franco, however, did not join the Rome-Berlin Axis.
The United States Responds Cautiously
 Most Americans were alarmed by the international conflicts of the mid 30’s, but
believed that the United States should not get involved
1. Americans Cling to Isolationism


Congress held hearings on war profits made from WW I, and this helped fuel
isolationist feelings.
What were the Neutrality Acts?
2. Neutrality Breaks Down


FDR found it more and more difficult to remain neutral, especially when Japan
attempted to seize all of China
What held FDR back?
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II.
War in Europe
Austria and Czechoslovakia Fall

In 1937, Hitler met secretly with his top military advisers and boldly declared that to
grow and prosper Germany needed the land of its neighbors.
1. Union with Austria


On March 12, 1938, German troops marched into Austria unopposed
This Anschluss was met with silence from the US and the rest of the world.
2. Bargaining for the Sudentenland



3 million Germans were living in this western part of Czechoslovakia.
What did Hitler say was happening to these Germans?
Munich Conference
 Hitler invited the French, British (Neville Chamberlain) to a meeting to
discuss this problem with the Sudentenland.
 What did Hitler promise if he received this part of Czech?

DEFINE appeasement
The German Offensive Begins
 Hitler broke his promise and swept through all of Czechoslovakia (March 1939)
1. The Soviet Union Declares Neutrality

Hitler began to turn his attention to Poland, but the Soviet Union could cause a
problem – WHY?

Non-aggression Pact



Stalin surprised everyone by signing this pact with Hitler
Agreed never to attack one another.
What was the secret provision of this pact?
2. Blitzkrieg in Poland

September 1, 1939 the German Air Force ( Luftwaffe) roared over Poland and at
the same time German tanks (Panzers) raced across the countryside
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
DESCRIBE blitzkrieg =

The attack was successful, Poland fell in 3 weeks
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3. The Phony War



For the next several months after the fall of Poland, French and British troops
waited along the Maignot Line for the German offensive
Germans were poised to attack behind the Siegfried Line, and some newspapers
began calling this the “phony war”
Where did the German offensive strike next?
France and Britain Fight On
 What happened to the Maignot Line?
1. The Fall of France – Operation Case Yellow

The German offensive into France (June 1940) trapped almost 400,000 British
and French soldiers on the beaches of Dunkirk. What happened?

Italy then invaded France from the South and the Germans closed in on Paris from
the north – June 22, 1940 France fell to the German Army
IDENTIFY Charles De Gaulle

2. The Battle of Britain


In the summer of 1940 the Germans began to assemble an invasion fleet along the
French coast. Operation Sea Lion
German launched an air war; the Lutwaffe began making bombing runs over
Britain – What was Hitler’s goal?

MISTAKE by Hitler = at 1st he concentrated attacks on airfields and aircraft but
then switched to civilian targets. Why was this a mistake?

The Royal Air Force (RAF) fought back brilliantly and by September, Hitler had
called off any hopes of invading England, but the bombing continued.
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III.
5
The Holocaust
The Persecution Begins


When Hitler took control in Germany in 1933, he ordered all “non-Aryans” to be
removed from government jobs – this was just the beginning
Holocaust (program of mass murder) systematic murder of 11 million people across
Europe, more than half of which were Jewish.
1. Jews Targeted
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Anti-Semitism has a long history in many European countries
What did Hitler blame the Jews for?
What were the Nuremberg Laws?
2. Kristallnacht
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The Night of the Broken Glass – November 9,10 1938.
Jewish homes, businesses and synagogues were attacked
3. A Flood of Jewish Refugees
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The Nazis wanted to speed up the emigration of their Jewish population
What was the problem with this plan?
America took some Jews in (Albert Einstein) but was concerned about US
economy and jobs that might be lost to immigrants.
4. The Plight of the St. Louis

German ocean liner that was not allowed to drop off Jewish passengers in the US,
returned to Europe and many were killed in Holocaust.
Hitler’s Final Solution
 The “Final Solution” was Hitler’s answer to the “Jewish Question”; it was a policy of
genocide – killing an entire population – towards the Jews
1. The Condemned


The Nazis believed that the “Aryans” were a superior people and that the strength
and purity of this “master race” must be preserved
IDENTIFY other targets of Germans besides the Jews:
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2. Forced Relocation

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Jews were rounded up and ordered into GHETTOS – segregated Jewish areas in
cities that were sealed off with barbed wire and stone walls.
DESCRIBE life in the ghettos.
3. Concentration Camps


Originally set up to imprison political opponents and protestors.
Later turned over to the SS who turned them into forced labor and extermination
camps
The Final Stage
 At a meeting held in Wannsee, Germany Hitler’s top officials agreed to begin a new
phase of the mass murder of Jews – known as the “Wannsee Conference”
1. Mass Exterminations

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Germans built six death camps in Poland; each camp had several huge gas
chambers in which as many as 12,000 Jews were killed in a day.
Jews were stripped of all valuables, some were exposed to medical experiments
Gas chambers (Zyklon B) were used to kill the Jews and then their bodies were
burned in ovens.
2. The Survivors


Those Jews who served the Holocaust were determined to not let people forger
what had happened.
IDENTIFY Elie Wiesel
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IV.
7
America Moves Towards War
The United States Musters its Forces
 As German tanks thundered across Poland, FDR proclaimed American neutrality; at
the same time he began to prepare the US for war.
1. Moving Cautiously Away from Neutrality

What was the “Cash – and – carry provision of the Neutrality Act?
2. The Axis Threat


September 1940; the Germans, Italians and Japanese signed a mutual defense
treaty, the Tripartite Act and became known as the Axis Powers
How could this keep the United States out of the conflict?
3. Building US Defenses

FDR asked Congress to increase defense spending and pass the nation’s 1st
peacetime draft – the Selective Training and Service Act
4. FDR Runs for a 3rd Term

FDR decided in 1940 to break the precedent set by George Washington and run
for a 3rd term – wins 55% of the votes cast
“The Great Arsenal of Democracy”
 FDR tells the American people that if England falls to Hitler, we would be left alone
in the world, so we need to help defeat the Axis powers.
1. The Lend-Lease Plan

US would lend or lease arms and other supplies to any country whose defense was
vital to the Unites States (England had run out of money)
2. Supporting Stalin

Operation Barbarosa – Hitler invaded the USSR in June 1941 and FDR began
sending Lend-Lease supplies to aid Stalin and the Russians
3. German Wolf Packs

To prevent delivery of lend-lease shipments, Hitler deployed hundreds of German
U-boats to attack supply ships. IDENTIFY wolf pack tactics.
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FDR Plans for War
1. The Atlantic Charter

FDR and Churchill met secretly aboard the USS Augusta where the leaders signed
the Atlantic Charter:
- both countries pledged collective security,
disarmament, self-determination, economic cooperation
and freedom of the seas.
- What was this the basis for?
2. Shoot on Sight


After a German submarine fired on the US destroyer Greer, FDR ordered navy
commanders to respond.
German U-boats began sinking more American ships and destroyers; American
sailors were killed – war seemed inevitable.
Japan Attacks the United States
1. Japan’s Ambitions in the Pacific

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In July of 1937 Hideki Tojo, Japan’s war minister, launched an invasion into
China and threatened European colonies
The British were too busy fighting Hitler in Europe, the US and their navy were
the only ones in Japan’s way in the Pacific
How did the US protest Japanese aggression in the South pacific?
2. Peace Talks are Questioned


Tojo met with the Japanese emperor Hirohito and promised to work for peace
with the US, but he was simultaneously planning an attack on the US.
The US had broken the Japanese military code and figured out an attack was
inevitable, but was not sure of where the attack would take place.
3. The Attack on Pearl Harbor


December 7, 1941 more than 180 Japanese war planes attacked the US naval base
at Pearl Harbor – our largest naval base in the Pacific.
In less than 2 hours, the Japanese had killed 2400 Americans and sunk or
damaged 21 ships; including 8 battleships; 300 airplanes were also lost.
4. Reaction to Pearl Harbor

FDR asked Congress for a declaration of war against Japan, he got it and 3 days
later, Germany and Italy declared war against the US.
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The United States in World War II
I.
Mobilizing for Defense
Americans Join the War Effort
 The day after the Pearl Harbor attack the Japan Times boasted the US was “trembling
in her shoes” – Boy were they wrong!!!
1. Selective Service and the GI


5 million men volunteered for military service, but it was not enough to fight a
war on two fronts (Europe and Pacific)
The Selective Service System expanded the draft and provided another 10 million
men for the armed forces.
2. Expanding the Military


Army Chief of Staff George Marshall pushed for the formation of a Women’s
Auxiliary Army Corps (WAAC)
What jobs did they perform?
3. Recruiting and Discrimination

Why did many minority groups (Blacks, Asians, etc) question the draft?

Despite discrimination, minority groups did serve in the military.
A Production Miracle
1. The Industrial Response
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Factories (automobiles especially) were converted to war production
Shipyards and defense plants expanded with dizzying speed
2. Labor’s Contribution

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Defense contractors were afraid there were not going to be enough workers.
Who filled the holes left by the Selective Service draft?
A. Philip Randolph
- president and founder of Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters
- planned a march on Washington to protest discrimination in military and
war effort industries (July 1941)
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- What happened to this march?
3. Mobilization of Scientists


FDR created the Office of Scientific Research and Development (OSRD) to bring
scientists into the war effort
List some important contributions:
1.
2.
3.
The Federal Government Takes Control
 As war production increased, there were consumer products available for purchase,
which would lead prices to shoot upwards.
1. Economic Controls

What did the Office of Price Administration (OPA) do for prices?

Congress also raised taxes, which reduced consumer demand on scare goods by
leaving workers with less to spend.
Government also encouraged the purchasing of War Bonds
What was the War Production Board (WPB) ?
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2. Rationing
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Defined as establishing fixed allotments of goods deemed essential for the
military
Households received ration books with coupons for scarce goods such as meat,
shoes, sugar, coffee and gasoline
How did most Americans feel about rationing?
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II.
The War for Europe and North Africa
The United States and Britain Join Forces
1. War Plans


Prime Minister Winston Churchill arrived at the White House on December 22,
1941 and met for 3 weeks with FDR to map out war plans.
They agreed on a Europe 1st policy because they felt that Germany and Italy
posed a bigger threat than Japan.
2. The Battle of the Atlantic


Hitler ordered submarine raids against ship’s along America’s East Coast.
What was the German goal?

In the 1st four months of 1942, the Germans sank 87 off the Atlantic coast; in 7
months the total was up to 681
How did the US respond to this?

By mid-1943 the tide of the Battle of the Atlantic had turned.

The Eastern Front and the Mediterranean
1. The Battle of Stalingrad – 1st great turning point of the war

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Summer of 1942, the Germans took the offensive in southern USSR
There was brutal house to house fighting, along with the cold Russian winter.
German commander surrendered on January 31, 1943.
What was the significance of this loss for the Germans?
2. The North African Front

Why did Stalin want another front opened against Hitler?

Allies launched Operation Torch – November 1942
 Invasion of Axis-controlled North Africa commanded by General
Dwight D. Eisenhower.
 By May 1943, the German Afrika Korps led by Gen. Erwin “Desert
Fox” Rommel had surrendered.
3. The Italian Campaign - Operation Torch - Summer 1943

Allies agree to attack Hitler’s “soft underbelly” of Europe.
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Allies easily took Sicily, and then they advanced up the Italian peninsula.
When did the Allies eventually liberate all of Italy?
4. Heroes in Combat

IDENTIFY the Tuskegee Airmen and the Nisei Battalion
The Allies Liberate Europe
 “Operation Overlord”; the Allied invasion of occupied France
1. D-Day
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The Allies gathered a force of nearly 3 million British, US + Canadian troops
Invasion occurred on June 6, 1944; it was successful but very costly
2. The Allies Gain Around

Despite heavy casualties, the Allies held the beachheads.
Who led the advance against the Germans across France?

August 25, 1944 – Paris was liberated

3. The Battle of the Bulge
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Last major German offensive of WW II – German defeat
Why was it called the Battle of the Bulge?
4. Unconditional Surrender
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By April 25 ,1945 the Soviets had stormed Berlin and Hitler eventually
committed suicide (April 20, 1945)
V-E Day = May 8, 1945 the Germans unconditional surrender to Ike.
5. Roosevelt’s Death

FDR did not live to see VE day; he died April 12, 1945 and Vice-President Harry
S. Truman became the nation’s 33rd President.
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III.
The War in the Pacific
The Allies Stem the Japanese Tide
1. Japanese Advances


In the 1st 6 months after Pearl Harbor, the Japanese conquered an empire that
dwarfed Hitler’s 3rd Reich
Who led the Americans in the Philippines and stated “I shall return!” ?
2. Doolittle’s Raid – April 18, 1942

Lt. Col. James Doolittle led 16 bombers in a daring raid on Tokyo and other
Japanese cities. What was the importance of this raid?
3. Battle of the Coral Sea – May 1942


5 – day battle that halted the Japanese drive towards Australia
Fought by airplanes from aircraft carriers
4. The Battle of Midway
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Japan’s next target were the Midway Islands
Led by Admiral Chester Nimitz; the islands were defended and the Japanese lost
4 aircraft carriers and 250 airplanes.
What was the importance of Midway?
The Allies Go on the Offensive
 The 1st Allied offensive and victory began in August 1942 when 19,000 troops
stormed Guadacanal in the Solomon Islands
1. The Japanese Defense


The Kamikaze was first used by the Japanese during the Battle of Leyte Gulf
The attacks were deadly, but not enough to turn the tide of the battle; Japanese
navy lost 3 battleships, 4 aircraft carriers (basically finished)
2. Iwo Jima – February 1945


Why was this island a key for the Americans?
Mt. Suribachi and raising the American flag.
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3. The Battle for Okinawa – April 1945


US wins a costly victory = 7600 Americans died; 110,000 Japanese dead
What was this battle an indicator of?
The Atomic Bomb Ends the War
 The raking of Iwo Jima and Okinawa opened the way for an invasion of Japan.
 What was the problem Allied leaders faced?
1. The Manhattan Project



IDENTIFY J. Robert Oppenheimer
The 1st test of the new bomb took place on the morning of July 16, 1945 in the
desert of Alamogordo, New Mexico
President Truman now faced the dilemma of whether to use this new weapon
against the Japanese or not; he did not hesitate and ordered the final plans.
2. Hiroshima and Nagasaki


Hiroshima = August 6 ,1945; Enola Gay dropped “little boy” on this Japanese
industrial city
Nagasaki = August 9, 1945; Box Car dropped “fat man” and leveled half of the
city
***** about 200,000 people died by the end of the year*****
Rebuilding Begins
 The Japanese surrender on September 2, 1945 on the USS Missouri
1. The Yalta Conference

In February 1945 FDR, Stalin, and Churchill (the Big Three) met in the resort city
of Yalta in the Soviet Union. What were the key issues?
1.
2.
2. The Nuremberg War Trials

War crimes tribunal in Nuremberg, Germany where 24 of the top remaining
NAZI were charged with various war crimes. (12 were sentenced to death)
3. The Occupation of Japan
 Gen. MacArthur ruled Japan for 7 years and made many positive reforms.
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IV.
The Home Front
Opportunity and Adjustment
 WW II was a time of opportunity for millions of Americans; jobs were everywhere
and people had money to spend.
1. Economic Gains



Unemployment was down to a low of 1.2%
Farmers were prospering – improvements to farm machinery and fertilizers
What role did women play?
2. Population Shifts


More than a 1,000,000 newcomers poured into California
Where did many African-Americans migrate to?
3. Social Adjustments


Families often went years with no father figures (overseas)
IDENTIFY the GI Bill of Rights
Internment of Japanese Americans
 when WW II began there were about 120,000 Japanese-Americans were living in the
United States – mostly California
 After the Pearl Harbor attack, many American became wrongfully suspicious of
Japanese-Americans
Internment
 The confinement of the Japanese-Americans
 Where did this take place?
 Japanese were relocated to Washington, Arizona, Oregon under an executive order
from FDR in February 1942.
 Supreme Court case Korematsu v. United States

It was legal to intern the Japanese for reasons of national security