World War II Chapter 15

Section 1: The Allies Turn the Tide The Axis powers do not have a coordinated strategy to defeat the Allies Hitler wanted to dominate Europe and eliminate “inferior” peoples Mussolini harbored dreams of an Italian empire from the eastern Adriatic Sea to East Africa Tojo wanted Japanese control of the Western Pacific and Asia The Allies unify their strategy and decide to take a “Europe First” approach, making sure that until Hitler was defeated, the Pacific would be a secondary priority

Section 1: The Allies Turn the Tide The Battle of Stalingrad: The starting point of Hitler’s plan invade the Soviet Union and then take over all of Europe Soviet forces trapped Nazi troops and the Nazi armies were forced to retreat https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qd_Wt4N1Sss Photo on page 467 in textbook Allies then go to North Africa to force the Germans out of this area American officer General Dwight Eisenhower (known as Ike), commanded the Allied invasion of North Africa

Section 1: The Allies Turn the Tide Allied forces struggled fighting in desert conditions and needed aggressive officers and troops better trained for desert fighting Read “Focus on Geography” on page 468 Eisenhower put American forces in North Africa under the command of George S. Patton, Jr. Patton was known as “Blood and Guts Patton” Read quote from Patton on page 469 “You usually will know where the front is by the sound of gunfire, and that’s the direction you should proceed. Now, suppose you lose a hand or an ear is shot off, or perhaps a piece of your nose, and you think you should walk back to get first aid. If I see you, it will be the last…..walk you’ll ever take” –George S. Patton, Jr. 1943

George S. Patton Video Clips http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/george-smith- patton/videos/george-s-patton

Section 1: The Allies Turn the Tide Germany was now on the defensive and the Allies wanted to keep it that way Roosevelt and Churchill met in Casablanca, Morocco to plan their next move Two important decisions were made: To increase the bombing of Germany and to invade Italy The Allies invaded Sicily and then moved on to mainland Italy After 38 days, Italy surrendered and the rule of Benito Mussolini came to an end However, Hitler was not through with Italy

Section 1: The Allies Turn the Tide Hitler rescued Mussolini from a mountain top fortress in Italy Hitler then installed Mussolini as head of a puppet state in Northern Italy In the southern part of Italy, German forces continued to fight against the Allies Although the fighting continued in Italy until 1945, neither side gained ground due to heavy rains, mountain snow, and the criss-crossing rivers which made combat extremely difficult

Section 1: The Allies Turn the Tide In early 1942 nonstop bombing attacks were launched on German cities The attacks took place at night in order for the British planes to avoid being shot down The goal of this “saturation bombing” was to inflict maximum damage on the Germans During the day, American bombers targeted Germany’s key political and industrial centers This was known as “strategic bombing” An African-American fighter squadron, known as the Tuskegee Airmen, played a key role in this bombing campaign

Section 1: The Allies Turn the Tide The Tuskegee Airmen escorted bombers and protected them from enemy fighter planes They flew more than 1,500 missions over enemy territory in Europe, and they never lost a single bomber This bombing mission cost the Allied forces dearly Bomber crews suffered an incredibly high 20% casualty rate This bombing campaign paved the way for an all-out Allied offensive Infographic on pages 470-471

Bombing Campaign in Germany http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=bombing%20of%20german y%20wwii&qs=n&form=QBVR&pq=bombing%20of%20germany%20w wii&sc=2-23&sp=- 1&sk=#view=detail&mid=68692E8D71E42DA0938C68692E8D71E42DA 0938C https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l_RctYbl1v8

Section 1: The Allies Turn the Tide Although the Allies were pursuing their “Europe First” strategy, they did not forget about what was going on in the Pacific The Japanese continued to have unstoppable momentum They had attacked American, British and Dutch colonies, winning control of several areas including The Philippines, Hong Kong and Guam Admiral Yamamoto, commander of the Japanese naval forces in the Pacific had a plan to take over Midway, an American naval base in the Central Pacific that was the vital defense to Hawaii Losing Midway would then force American defenses back to the California coast Yamamoto also planned to establish a Japanese military presence in the Aleutians, a string of Islands in Alaska

Section 1: The Allies Turn the Tide Luckily, US Navy code breakers intercepted the Japanese plan and the US Navy was ready! The Japanese launched their attack on June 4, 1942; however, they lost the battle, as well as many of its most experienced pilots and aircraft The US lost only one aircraft carrier The battle of Midway was the turning point of the war in the Pacific, as it stopped the Japanese advance Although Japan maintained a powerful navy, never again would they threaten Hawaii or dominate the Pacific Japan was now on the defensive

The Battle of Midway http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=battle+of+midway+video& FORM=VIRE9#view=detail&mid=F8DE54E59801C78E7591F8DE54E598 01C78E7591

Section 1: The Allies Turn the Tide The US was now on the offensive They first American offensive strike took place with an assault on Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands Read “Witness to History” on page 466 After 3 months of fighting, US Marines drove the Japanese off the Island Guadalcanal was the first leg in a US strategy to approach Japan on two fronts In the jungles, during monsoons and in the blistering sun, American servicemen began their slow painful trek toward Japan