Modern US History Chapter 26, Section #3 “War in Europe and North Africa”

Churchill and Roosevelt Make War Plans Immediately after Pearl Harbor British prime minister Winston Churchill and US President Franklin Roosevelt spend a few weeks at the White House They agree that Germany and Italy posed a greater overall threat to their interests than did Japan Once the war in Europe was being won, then more resources could be poured into the fight against Japan

Hitler’s Atlantic War Plans After Pearl Harbor Hitler prepared his new war plans Hitler ordered his submarines to conduct raids on ships along America’s east coast He hoped to prevent the US from supplying food and war materials to Great Britain and the Soviet Union In the 7 months immediately after Pearl Harbor, Germany had sunk 681 Allied ships in the Atlantic

Battle of the Atlantic The Allies responded to the German submarine threat by organizing their cargo ships into convoys Convoys of merchant ships were protected by destroyers equipped with sonar to detect the German submarines By 1943 the US was producing 140 ships a month and was able to overwhelm the German naval forces By the spring of 1943 the sea war was effectively over and the German submarine fleet was nearly wiped out

After the Battle of Britain With a victory over Britain denied him Hitler weighs his options What if he had stopped there? Instead, he invades the following: North Africa The Balkans (Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary were persuaded to join the Axis Powers to avoid invasion, while Yugoslavia and Greece did not and were attacked) Soviet Union

Axis Forces Attack North Africa Mussolini and Italy at first neutral Mussolini declares war on France and Britain after German victory September 1940— Mussolini attacks British in North Africa moving from their colony of Libya to Egypt

Italian L3/33 in North Africa

British Fight in North Africa Britain Strikes Back December 1940—British attack and drive Italians back Erwin Rommel, German general, battles British in North Africa In 1942, Rommel first retreats then succeeds against British at Tobruk, Libya Germans begin push back into Egypt in June 1942

German General Erwin Rommel (“The Desert Fox”) with the 15th Panzer Division between Tobruk and Sidi Omar, Libya, January or November 24, 1941.

British General Bernard L. Montgomery watches his tanks move up British General Bernard L. Montgomery watches his tanks move up." North Africa, November 1942.

The North African Campaign Rommel takes Tobruk, June 1942; pushes toward Egypt British General Montgomery attacks at El Alamein, Egypt forces Rommel back American forces land in Morocco, November 1942 General Dwight D. Eisenhower—American commander in Morocco In May 1943, Rommel’s forces defeated by Allies

War in the Balkans Meanwhile, Germany had continued to take over in Eastern Europe Hitler planned to invade the Soviet Union, but moved to take the Balkan countries first Hitler then invaded Yugoslavia and Greece in April 1941; both fell quickly All of this took place prior to Germany’s fighting in North Africa, and prior to the invasion of the Soviet Union

Germany Invades Soviet Union Hitler Invades the Soviet Union Germany invaded an unprepared Soviet Union in June 1941 Hitler decided to split his forces into three groups Germans stopped at Leningrad, forced to undertake long siege Germans almost capture Moscow, but forced to pull back A third army pushed into the southern region rich in oil

Operation Barbarossa: German Invasion of USSR 3 Prong Attack

Russian soldiers prepare to attack German lines outside Leningrad.

A column of Red Army POWs captured near Minsk is marched west.

A group of Soviet POWs, taken to undefined Prison Camp

Russian Advantages Though they are poorly equipped, the Soviet Union has the largest army in the world scorched earth strategy – as Germans move into Russia, Soviet troops burn land as they retreat (taking advantage of the vast land) As German invasion drags on and are bogged down outside of Leningrad and Moscow, it turns to winter

The Battle for Stalingrad German army moves to capture Soviet oil fields (southern prong of Operation Barbarossa) Battle of Stalingrad—Soviets, Germans battle for control of the city German troops capture city in late summer of 1942

The Battle for Stalingrad Marked by constant close quarters combat and disregard for military and civilian casualties, it is among the bloodiest battles in the history of warfare The Soviet Union lost over a million lives in the battle, more than the U.S. loses in the entire war (in Europe and the Pacific)

The Battle for Stalingrad Soviet counter-attack finally surrounds the German 6th army in Stalingrad and cuts them off Hitler refuses to allow them to surrender German troops surrender in February 1943 after a long battle It was a turning point in the European theatre of World War II the German forces never regained the initiative in the East and withdrew a vast military force from the West to reinforce their losses

Second Front in Europe Churchill wanted Britain and the U.S. to strike first at North Africa and southern Europe The strategy angered Stalin, who wanted the Allies to open the second front in France The Soviet Union, therefore, had to hold out on its own against the Germans All Britain and the U.S. could offer in the way of help was supplies Nevertheless, late in 1942, the Allies began to turn the tide of war both in the Mediterranean and on the Eastern Front

The Invasion of Italy After victory in North Africa, Stalin again called for a second front against Germany in France Instead, U.S. and British forces land on and capture Sicily in 1943 Mussolini loses power and Italy surrenders The Germans still keep control of northern Italy The fighting against the Germans there goes on until the war ends

Victory in Europe While the Allies were dealing with issues on the home front, they also were preparing to push toward victory in Europe In 1943, the Allies began secretly building an invasion force in Great Britain Their plan was to launch an attack on German held France across the English Channel (an invasion known as D-Day)

The D-Day Invasion Allies plan invasion of France; use deception to confuse Germans D-Day—June 6, 1944; day of “Operation Overlord” invasion of France Thousands of planes, ships, tanks, and landing craft and 3 million troops took part 5 beaches stormed by British, Canadian, and American forces Allied forces capture Normandy beaches despite heavy casualties

Europe at time of the D-Day invasion

D-Day invasion to cross English Channel to Normandy, France