Main Idea: WWII cost millions of human lives and billions of dollars in damages. It left Europe and Japan in ruins. Why it Matters Now: The U.S. survived WWII undamaged, allowing it to become a world leader Europe & Japan in Ruins Text pg

World War II ends with the surrender of Germany on May 8 th and the surrender of Japan on Sept. 2 nd 1945.

Wartime conferences Attendees: THE BIG 3 –U.S. –Great Britain –Soviet Union British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt, and Soviet leader Joseph Stalin met at Yalta in February 1945 to discuss their joint occupation of Germany and plans for postwar Europe.

Wartime conferences Nov. 1943: Teheran Conference –Allies agree to launch attacks from Russia on the east at the same time as US and Great Britain attack from west –Soviets agreed to enter war against Japan after Germany is defeated –Inconclusive discussion about occupation of Germany

Wartime conferences Feb. 1945: Yalta Conference –Plans for post-war Germany to be disarmed & divided into 4 zones of occupation Soviets would attack Japan within three months of the collapse of Germany –Receive territory in Manchuria and several islands –Poland would have free elections after the war Veto power to be given to Big 5 nations at U. N.

Wartime conferences July 1945: Potsdam –Unconditional surrender of Japan or risk destruction –Set up of a council to administer Germany –Transfer of German people out of Czechoslovakia, Hungary, and Poland into Germany –Stalin announced that there will be no elections in Poland

United Nations April 1945: First Meeting Jan. 1946: First session –London –representatives of 51 nations June 1946: Agreed on a charter –created the General Assembly made up of all member nations expected to function as a “town meeting of the world” –11 member Security Council held the real power Permanent seats: U.S., Great Britain, France, China & Soviet Union –power to veto any council action other six seats rotated united-nations- founded#united-nations- founded

Devastation of WWII Europe was in ruins –40 million Europeans had died – 2/3 of them civilians –Ground war had destroyed much of the countryside Agriculture was disrupted –Most men fought in the war & the women worked in war production, so there were very few to tend to the fields Transportation systems were destroyed –Most available food did not reach the cities »Thousands died of famine & disease spread through the bombed-out cities »August 1945, 4,000 citizens of Berlin died every day! –The first winter people went without shoes & coats

Devastation of WWII –Displaced persons were struggling to get home Millions found themselves in the wrong country when the postwar treaties changed national borders jammed the roads trying to get home, find their families, or find a safe place –Hundreds of cities reduced to rubble London was left in ruins by the German Blitz. Warsaw, Poland, was almost wiped completely wiped out Berlin was 95% demolished –One U.S. officer stationed in Berlin reported, “Wherever we looked, we saw desolation. It was like a city of the dead.”

A City in Great Britain After the war, many civilians stayed where they were & tried to get on with their lives. Some lived in partially destroyed homes or apartments. Others huddled in caves & cellars beneath the rubble. They had no water, no electricity, and very little food. With factories destroyed or damaged, most people had no earnings to buy the food that was available.

Costs of WWII: Allies & Axis United States Great Britain France USSR Germany Japan Direct War Costs $288 billion $117 billion $111.3 billion $93 billion $212.3 billion $41.3 billion Military Killed/Missing 292, , ,707 13,600,000 3,300,000 1,140,429 Civilians Killed 0 60, ,260* 7,720,000 2,893,000* 953,000 Note: * Of the 173,260 French civilians that were killed, 65,000 were murdered Jews. * Of the 2,893,000 German civilians who were killed, about 170,000 were murdered Jews & 56,000 were foreign civilians in Germany.

Nuremberg War Trials Nov. 20, 1945: first trial against the principal war criminals of the “Third Reich“ began –International Military Court in Nuremberg –indictment includes war crimes, “crimes against humanity“ & “crimes against peace” –Not all major Nazis could be brought before the Allies: Hitler, Joseph Goebbels and Heinrich Himmler committed suicide –Lasts over a year

Nuremberg War Trials Oct. 1, 1946: 12 of the 22 accused are condemned to death –Göring escapes the hangman by committing suicide –Seven receive sentences of many years or life –Only three cases were acquitted –In later trials of lesser leaders, nearly 200 more Nazis were found guilty of war crimes –For the first time in history a nation’s leaders had been held legally responsible for their actions during wartime

Occupation of Japan Japan was occupied by U.S. forces for 6 years –under the command of General Douglass MacArthur disbanded Japanese armed forces, leaving only a small police force introduced free-market practices that led to economic recovery worked to transform Japan’s government –called for a new constitution »known as the MacArthur Constitution today »guarantee basic freedoms »women’s suffrage More than 1,100 Japanese were arrested & put on trial –Seven, including former prime minister Hideki Tojo, were sentenced to death by hanging

16.5 Assignment p.517 #3-8; p.519 SBA #1-2