1. Standard and Objective
SSHS-S1C8-01-d
Strand 1: American History
Concept 8: Great Depression and World War II
PO 2. Describe the impact of American involvement in World War II:
f. turning points such as Pearl Harbor, D-Day, Hiroshima/Nagasaki
Students will analyze the War in Europe by inspecting the the major battles and strategies of World War II.

2. The War in Europe

3. Battle for North Africa
FDR wanted to invade Europe right away, but Churchill thought it would be more effective to fight Germany on the periphery first
Dwight D Eisenhower commanded the army in North Africa against German general, Erwin Rommel
Americans lost the first battle badly.
Eisenhower fired the general who had led the attack and put General Patton in command
May 13, 1943, the last German in Africa Surrendered

4. Erwin Rommel Commanded the Afrika Korps Desert Fox
He was not an awful human being
Germany’s favorite commander
He treated war prisoners humanely and ignored orders to kill Jewish soldiers and civilians
Was erroneously suspected in an assassination plot and given the option to commit suicide rather than be tried for treason

5. The Battle of the Atlantic
German U-boats entered American waters
Cargo ships were easy targets especially at night when city lights silhouetted the ships for the U-boats
Citizens dimmed their lights at night and used blackout curtains and didn’t use headlights if they had to drive
Still losing a lot of ships so the U.S. started using the convoy system

6. The Battle of Stalingrad
Hitler really wanted to take Stalingrad because it controlled a major river and railroad junction and was the city that bore Stalin’s name
German soldiers attacked Stalingrad in mid-September
Stalin ordered his troops to hold the city at all costs and wouldn’t let civilians leave
Germans were forced to to fight from house to house

7. Russian Winter
Battle was drawn out and the Germans were not prepared to fight during the winter
Soviet reinforcements arrived and surrounded Stalingrad trapping about 250,000 German troops
91,000 Germans surrendered but only 5,000 of them survived the Soviet prison camps

8. Strategic Bombing
Britain’s Royal Air Force dropped an average of 2,300 tons of explosives on Germany every month for more than three years
From January 1943 to May 1945 the Royal Air Force and the U.S. Air Force dropped approximately 53,000 tons of explosives on Germany every month
Destroyed Germany’s airplane factories and oil reserves, leaving the skies free

9. Firestorms Old German cities were made mostly out of wood
everything caught fire creating firestorms
Firestorms get up to 1,800 degrees
Bombing of Hamburg - killed 42,000 civilians and completely destroyed the city
German civilian deaths on the low end: 1,067,000

10. Striking the Soft Underbelly
The Allies thought of Italy as the soft underbelly of the Axis Powers
Invaded Sicily
Were able to take the island pretty quickly
The Italian government decided to depose Mussolini
They then surrendered to the Allies but Germany seized control of Northern Italy releasing Mussolini and putting him back in power
Very bloody war in Italy but it was eventually retaken by the Allies

11. The Tehran Conference
Before invading France, FDR and Churchill met with Stalin in Tehran, Iran
Stalin promised to to launch a full- scale offensive against the Germans when the Allies invaded France -War on two fronts again
FDR and Stalin agreed to divide Germany after the war was over
Stalin then promised to help the U.S. in its fight against Japan

12. D-Day Invasion Operation Overlord
American, Canadian, and British troops would land in Normandy
June 6, 1944
Nearly 7,000 ships carrying 100,000 soldiers headed for the coast and 23,000 paratroopers were dropped inland
“Utah,” “Omaha,” “Gold,” “Sword,” and “Juno”
Omaha had some problems because the Germans had the high ground

13. Let’s Review
What were the goals of strategic bombing in Germany and the invasion of Sicily?
Why did Churchill and Roosevelt want to attack German-controlled areas in North Africa before areas in Europe?