1. World War II
German Tiger Tank

2. The Alliances
The Axis Powers: Germany, Italy, Japan, & other minor countries
The Allies: UK & Commonwealth Nations, France, USSR, Netherlands, Belgium, China, later U.S. , & over 30 minor countries

3. Russo-Finnish War (Nov. 1939)
In general, the war was the result of a failure of the League of Nations to deal w/ Hitler
Battle of Poland
Poland defeated in 4 weeks
Germans and Soviets split Poland in ½
Russo-Finnish War (Nov. 1939)
Soviets invaded Finland
USSR expelled from the League of Nations
German invasion of Denmark & Norway (April 1940)
Denmark defeated in one day
Norway fell with in one month
Winston Churchill replaced Chamberlain as PM of GB (May)

4. Very little action between. September and April 1940 – “Sitzkrieg”
Battle of France
May 1940: German invasion of Netherlands, Belgium, & Luxembourg
Germans invaded France through Belgium AGAIN through a 50 mile gap in the Maginot Line
France surrendered in 6 weeks on June 22
France divided in 2
German-occupied France (most of the country
Vichy France – SE France, a puppet government.
General Charles de Gaulle headed Free France from London & organized resistance movements

5. Battle of Britain (Aug – Oct 1940)
Operation Sea Lion: the German plan to invade Britain
Luftwaffe began bombing of English cities: intentional targeting of civilians (The Blitz)
RAF launched attacks against German planes
Germans lost 2375 vs. 800 British
British had advantage of radar
Destruction of cities devastating, but Germans abandoned plans of invasion
First military defeat for the Germans: turning point of the early war
U.S. increasingly giving support w/ weaponry & planes in exchange for bases in Britain
1st peacetime draft & plan to fight Germany & then concentrate on Japan war w/ both

6. Balkan & Italian Front African Campaigns 1940-43
Mussolini invaded Greece in Oct. 1940; Greek resistance was too great
Yugoslavia was resisting joining the Axis: Germany invaded & defeated
Germans invaded Greece to relieve Italians, by April 1941 Greece is under Axis control
African Campaigns
Italians initially invaded to secure a source of oil for the Axis nations
Germans came to help losing Italians
Italian-German forces under Gen. Rommel (the Desert Fox)
British-American forces under Gen. Montgomery
Rommel ran out of supplies b/c Hitler wanted to focus on Stalingrad
Montgomery crushed the Italian-German troops

7. War-torn Europe:
European nations like the Soviet Union suffered extreme hardships during the war.
Towns and roads were destroyed, or blockades kept out vital supplies
Many civilians died during bombings of cities.

8. United States
With the exception of Pearl Harbor, and a few territories in the Pacific, the United States did not suffer an invasion or bombing.
American citizens aided the war effort in many ways.

9. Factories change peacetime operations into wartime efforts.
Total War
Factories change peacetime operations into wartime efforts.
Automobile makers made tanks.
Typewriter companies made bullets
Machine guns, as well as uniforms and boots
By 1944, 17.5 million people had jobs in the war industry

10. Rationing In the U.S. consumer goods were limited.
Rationing of meats, sugar, tires, and gasoline.
Speed limits of 35mph set to save both gasoline and rubber.
In European countries more harshly affected by the war, rationing was much more drastic.

11. Nazi Ideology Germans were descendants of the Aryan race
Not true, Aryans were Indo-Europeans who migrated to Indian subcontinent around 1500 B.C.
All non-Aryans were inferior
Targeted specifically Jewish and Roma (gypsies)
Made targeting these groups government policy
Nuremberg Laws deprived the Jewish of German citizenship and forbid Jewish and Non-Jewish marriages
Later, laws were created to limit the kinds of work Jewish people could do

12. Kristallnacht Night of Broken Glass
Jewish people began fleeing to other countries
Hitler began conquering territories which were heavily populated by Jewish communities
Hitler favored emigration to rid Germany of its Jewish population, but later had trouble getting other countries to accept the hordes of people fleeing Germany

13. After admitting thousands of Jewish immigrants, France, Britain, and the USA closed their doors to immigrants
Hitler ordered all Jewish people under German control to be moved to specific areas
Herded into ghettos- segregated Jewish neighborhoods
Areas sealed off
with gates and
barbed wire

14. “Final Solution” Plan of genocide
Units from the SS rounded up men, women, children and babies and sent them to isolated spots to be killed and placed into mass graves
Others were taken to concentration camps or slave-labor prisons in Germany and Poland
Worked seven days a week
Often were beaten by guards
Received little food and rest

15. Extermination camps were built by 1942
SS doctors separated the Jewish into groups by gender, age, and health conditions
Those deemed able to work were sent to concentration camps, the rest were sent to extermination camps
“showers” were actually cyanide chambers that could kill thousands within minutes
Six million Jewish people were killed in death camps and massacres

16. Attack on Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl Harbor occurred on December 7, 1941 without warning.
The attack lasted 110 minutes, from 7:55 a.m. until 9:45 a.m.
2,335 U.S. servicemen were killed
1,143 were wounded.
68 civilians were killed/35 were wounded.
The Japanese lost 65 men, with an additional soldier being captured.

17. Japan and the Attack on Pearl Harbor
Plans begun as early as January of 1941.
The Japanese used the codename "Operation Hawaii" -- later changed to "Operation Z."
The Japanese specifically chose to attack on a Sunday.
The Japanese attack force stationed itself approximately 230 miles north of the Hawaiian island of Oahu.

18. Japanese sent airplanes in two waves, approximately 45 minutes apart.
The first wave of Japanese planes struck Pearl Harbor at 7:55 a.m. The second wave at 8:40 a.m.
When Japanese Commander Mitsuo Fuchida called out, "Tora! Tora! Tora!" ("Tiger! Tiger! Tiger!") upon flying over Pearl Harbor, it was a message to the Japanese navy that they had caught the Americans by surprise.

19. Target was Aircraft Carriers. Battleships hit instead.
8 battleships docked; all except for the Colorado
7 battleships were lined up in "Battleship Row."

20. Japanese midget subs.
4/5 sank; 1 captured.
All eight U.S. battleships were either sunk or damaged during the attack.
Amazingly, all but two (the Arizona and the Oklahoma) were eventually able to return to active duty.

21. The day following the attack on Pearl Harbor, U. S
The day following the attack on Pearl Harbor, U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt declared that December 7, 1941 would be "a date that will live in infamy."
The United States declared war on Japan on December 8, 1941.

22. Three Biggest Mistakes an Attack Force Ever Made
Admiral Chester A. Nimitz
“On Sunday, December 7th, 1941, Admiral Chester Nimitz was attending a concert in Washington D.C. He was paged and told there was a phone call for him. When he answered the phone, it was President Franklin Delano Roosevelt on the phone. He told Admiral Nimitz that he (Nimitz) would now be the Commander of the Pacific Fleet. 

23. Admiral Nimitz flew to Hawaii to assume command of the Pacific Fleet.
He landed at Pearl Harbor on Christmas Eve, 1941.

24. “The Japanese made three of the biggest mistakes an attack force could make or God was looking out for America.” - Admiral Nimitz

25. Japan’s Mistakes: Mistake number one: The Japanese attacked on Sunday morning. Nine out of every ten crewmen of those ships were ashore on leave. If those same ships had been lured to sea and been sunk–we would have lost 38,000 men instead of 3,800.

26. Mistake number two: Dry docks. Mistake number three: Fuel.

27. Prejudice against Japanese-Americans
Fueled by fear and anti-Japan propaganda
Seen as enemies
Roosevelt ordered all “aliens” to be relocated to internment camps to resolve any threats
2/3 of these were American-born Japanese
Some were family members of Japanese-Americans fighting for the Allies!

28. The Invasion of the USSR
Called “Operation Barbarossa”
A surprise invasion & Hitler’s greatest mistake
3 million troops attack a 3 points (Leningrad, Stalingrad, Moscow) along a 2000 mile front
Initially successful, but offensive was stopped by
Soviet “Scorched Earth” Policy
over-extended supply lines
poor roads
Russian WINTER!!
Russian Counter-Offensive (42-45)
17 month siege broken at Leningrad
Entire German army of 330,000 surrendered at Stalingrad
Considered the turning point of the war
4 million Axis dead, 30 million Soviet

29. The Defeat of the Axis in Europe
Defeat of Rommel in Africa eliminated that front
Russian Counter-offensive knocked Romania, Bulgaria, & Finland out of the war
U.S. now involved in the war
The Collapse of Italy
Americans invaded Sicily in July 43
Mussolini dismissed by the king
Italy surrendered in Sept
Germans attempted to regain Italy – failed after several major, deadly battles
Mussolini seized & executed w/out a trial by Italians in April 45

30. Operation Overlord & the creation of a Second Front
Stalin had been asking for a real western front to relieve some pressure in the east
Churchill & Roosevelt wanted to avoid casualties
Eisenhower named Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces in Western Europe – Jan. 44
D-Day – June 6, 1944
Invasion of Normandy, France by American, British, Canadians
1 million troops landed in France w/in 1 month
Paris liberated – Aug. 24

31. Battle of the Bulge Battle of Germany (1945)
Hitler’s last major offensive – winter ’44
Fought in the Ardennes Forest of Belgium & France
Hoped to recapture France
Allies caught off-guard, but stopped Germans at Bastogne
Germans on the retreat from this point on
Battle of Germany (1945)
Soviets advancing from the east, US/British from the west
Soviets reached Berlin 1st - April 20
April 30 – Hitler kills himself in his underground bunker
Berlin falls – May 2nd w/ official surrender on May 7th
V-E Day – May 8, 1945

32. Victory!
May 7, 1945 General Dwight D. Eisenhower accepted the unconditional surrender of Germany
President Truman accepted the surrender
V-E Day (Victory in Europe) on May 9,1945 when the official surrender was signed

33. Japan surrendered to General Douglas MacArthur on the battleship Missouri on September 2, 1945.
Almost one month after the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in early August.

34. Devastation in Europe
London: huge areas of destroyed buildings, ash, and rubble.
Warsaw: almost complete destruction, loss of over 1 million people
Berlin: 95% demolished by Allied bombings
Destruction was widespread, no running water, no electricity, and very little food!
People displaced by the war, or survivors of concentration camps wandered across Europe in search of family.

35. The Pacific Campaign
At almost the same time as the Pearl Harbor attack, the Japanese attacked Hong Kong, Guam and Wake Island, and invaded Thailand.
Guam and Wake Island fell easily and then the Japanese attacked the Philippines
After seizing Hong Kong, they continued to strike against British possessions with the goal of a strike against India, Britain’s largest colony.

36. Allies Strike Back
April, 1942 Colonel James Doolittle and 16 B-25 Bombers bombed Tokyo
Did little damage but improved morale
Slowly the Allies began to stop the advance at the Battle of the Coral Sea
Japan next tried to attack Midway Island. The Allies defeated the Japanese and crippled their fleet. The Battle at Midway turned the tide of the War in the Pacific.

37. The Allies go on the Attack
Douglas MacArthur (commander of the Allied forces) developed a strategy to “island hop” instead of storming each island on the way to Japan. Allied victories:
Guadalcanal – allies strike before Japan can complete an air base
Battle of Leyte Gulf –Japanese navy lost disastrously leaving only the Japanese army and kamikazes (pilots who would crash their planes into Allied ships) to affect the war

38. March, 1945 – American Marines took Iwo Jima
April, 1945 – Americans took Okinawa (only 350 miles from Japan)
Americans warned Japan unless they surrendered they could expect a “rain of ruin from the sky.”
August 6 – The Atomic Bomb was dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki
The Japanese surrendered September 2, 1945.

39. Post War Governments
Belgium, Holland, Denmark, and Norway returned to their pre-war governments
France, Italy, and Germany’s old regimes were disgraced by the war.
In both France and Italy, the popularity of the communist party grew after the war, but declined as the economies began to recover from the war.

40. Nuremberg Trials
International Military Tribunal from 23 nations put Nazi war criminals on trial in Nuremberg, Germany.
“crimes against humanity” – the death of 11 million people
Hitler had committed suicide long before the trial had begun.
The commander of the German Luftwaffe and other high ranking officials faced trial.

41. Occupied Japan Lost over 2 million people in WWII
General MacArthur in charge of US forces in Japan
Demilitarization- disbanding the Japanese military
Placed 25 Japanese war criminals on trial for war crimes
Democratization- creating a government of Japan elected by the people
Constitutional monarchy – emperor still in charge

42. Two house parliament, called the Diet established
All citizens over the age of 20 could vote
Bill of rights
Article 9- the Japanese could no longer be involved in a war, unless attacked first

43. Our Soviet Allies
The United States and the Soviet Union had joined with the British and French forces to fight against the Germans
Tensions still remained:
US upset about the non-aggression pact
Stalin later blamed the Allies for not invading German-occupied Europe until 1944

44. Yalta Conference February 1945
Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin met at the Black Sea resort of Yalta
Agreed to divide Germany into zones of occupation controlled by Allied forces
Germany would also have to pay for the Soviet’s loss of life and property
Stalin agreed to enter the war against Japan
And promised free elections in Eastern Europe

45. United Nations
International organization to protect its members against aggression
Based in New York
General Assembly – allowed nations to vote on issues
Security Council- investigates and settles disputes
Five permanent members are the US, Great Britain, Soviet Union, China, and France
Any member can veto any security council action

46. U.S. and Soviet Split
WWII had very different effects on the two nations
US had lost 400,000 deaths
The Soviet Union had suffered 50 times that amount
Many Soviet cities were demolished

47. Different Goals United States Soviet Union Encourage democracy
Rebuild European governments to promote stability and a market for US goods
Reunite Germany
Gain access to raw materials and markets to fuel booming industries
Encourage communism
Rebuild the Soviet Union’s economy using Eastern Europe’s industrial equipment and raw materials
Control Eastern Europe to protect Soviet borders and balance U.S. influence in Europe
Keep Germany divided to prevent it from ever waging war again

48. Iron Curtain Russia had a history of being attacked
Polish, Swedish, Napoleon, and Germany had attacked in the last three centuries
No natural barriers to keep invaders out
Stalin ignored his agreements at Yalta and set up communist governments in Albania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Romania, Poland, and Yugoslavia
Buffer zone of protection for the Soviet Union

49. Europe was now divided into Eastern and Western zones
President Truman, Winston Churchill, and Stalin met at Potsdam, Germany in July 1945
Truman felt that Stalin had violated the Yalta agreement and violated the promise of free elections
Stalin refused to allow free elections in Eastern Europe and declared that capitalism and communism could not exist in the same world
Europe was now divided into Eastern and Western zones
Germany was split between the two zones, including Berlin
East Germany- “German Democratic Republic”
West Germany- “Federal Republic of Germany”
Churchill used the term “iron curtain” to describe the split

50. Containment
US policy directed at blocking Soviet influence and stopping the expansion of communism
Through alliances and providing aid to weak countries
Truman Doctrine-
US should support free people who are resisting control by armed minorities or outside pressures
Some upset because they felt as though this policy interfered with other nations’ affairs
Congress immediately authorized $400 million in aid to Turkey and Greece

51. Marshall Plan
Much of Europe faced economic problems, as well as damage and ruin from WWII
US Secretary of State George Marshall developed a plan to aid needy European countries
Marshal Plan provided food, machinery, and other materials needed to rebuild
Soviet Union advised nations not to take the money; several nations received aid after breaking with the Soviet Union

52. Berlin Airlift Soviet Union wanted to keep Germany divided
France, Britain, and the United States decided to withdraw from Germany in 1948
Soviet Union responded by holding west Berlin hostage
Cut off water, highway, and railways into west Berlin
City faced starvation
American and British officials flew food and supplies into West Berlin for 11 months
Blockade was finally lifted in May of 1949