Transcript Defeating Japan and the Aftermath of the War

Defeating Japan and the
Aftermath of the War
21.5
Change in the Presidency
• FDR died on April
12, 1945
• Vice President
Harry Truman took
office
• Truman had to
make some of the
most difficult
decisions of the war
Iwo Jima
• U.S. needed islands
closer to Japan than the
Mariana Islands (planes
could barely make it)
• Iwo Jima perfect
position
• Difficult terrain: dormant
volcano, ash ravines,
caves (also network of
Japanese tunnels)
• 6,800 marines killed but
the island was captured
Devastation by Firebombs
• Gen. LeMay, commander of B29s on Mariana
Islands, begins using bombs filled with
napalm
– Controversial because they caused many civilian
casualties
• These bombs exploded and then started fires
• March 9, 1945- Tokyo firebombed
– Strong winds caused intense fires
– Killed 80,000+ people
– Video
Navajo Code Talkers
• Military sought a more
secure way to speak in
code
• Navajo language perfect
for this: no written
alphabet, language known
by a very small group,
Navajo could develop
their own codes
• Examples: “jay-sho”buzzard (bomber), “lotso”whale (battleship), “nama-si”-potatoes
(grenades)
Trying to Force Japan to
Surrender
• Through strenuous battles, the U.S.
takes Okinawa (June 1945)
• This invasion caused Emperor Hirohito
to seek surrender
• Many Japanese willing to surrender but
they wanted Hirohito to stay in power
– The U.S. blamed him for the war so this
was not an option
Manhattan Project
• FDR started this secret program in 1942;
headed by Gen. Leslie Groves
• Made in response to fear of Germans
developing an atomic weapon
• First nuclear reactor made at University of
Chicago (Szilard and Fermi)
• J. Oppenheimer lead team to develop atomic
bomb in Los Alamos, New Mexico
– U.S. detonates first atomic bomb here (July 1945)
Dropping the A-Bomb
• Much controversy surrounded the
decision to drop the bomb
• Truman decided to drop it
• Allies threatened Japan with “prompt and
utter destruction” if it didn’t surrender, and
it didn’t
• Hiroshima: August 6, 1945, bomb
dropped by Enola Gay, killed 80,000200,00 people instantly
• Nagasaki: August 9, 1945, 35,00074,000 people killed
Japan’s Surrender
• In addition to the
dropping of the atomic
bombs, USSR declared
war on Japan
• This pushed Japan over
the edge and it
surrendered
• Date: August 15, 1945,
called V-J Day
Aftermath of the War--United
Nations
• April 25, 1945--U.N. charter is created in San
Francisco
• Structure:
– General Assembly: composed of member nations, each with
one vote
– Security Council: composed of 11 countries, with permanent
countries (Britain, France, China, Soviet Union, U.S.), has
veto power
• Universal Declaration of Human Rights- based on
many of Eleanor Roosevelt’s ideals (she served as
Chair of Commission on Human Rights
Aftermath of the War-Nuremburg Trials
• International Military Tribunal- U.S.,
U.S.S.R, U.K., France put German and
Japanese officials of trials
• At Nuremburg Trials, 22 Nazi leaders
persecuted (3 acquitted, 7 prison sentences,
12 put to death)
• In Japan, 25 leaders charged with war crimes
• The emperor was not charged (U.S. feared
this would cause further turmoil with
Japan)