Transcript Turning Point of Pacific War

Eastern Front
-initial victories in USSR turn into
stalemate and the Russian winter
stops German advances
-Germany surround key city of
Stalingrad, 1942 industrial
center
-Germany is defeated at
Stalingrad at great cost
turning point of the European
war
Soviets lose a total of 1.1 million
Surrender in Jan 43
-Stalin wants another “front’ to
occupy Germany
Africa/Italy
OPERATION TORCH—
Commanded BY D.
EISENHOWER
-invasion of Northern Africa by
British and American troops to
fight against Germany’s Afrika
Corps led by Erwin Rommel, the
Desert Fox
-Rommel’s forces eventually
defeated at El Alamein
After Operation Torch:
-”Soft underbelly” campaign
attack Germany through Italy
-German troops make Italian
campaign last many months—want
to keep Allies away from Germany
D-Day
-Allies had planned an invasion of the
mainland in Normandy France
-Operation Overlord: D-Day Invasion
-planned by Dwight Eisenhower
-June 6, 1944
-paratroopers invaded behind enemy
lines, thousands stormed beaches of
Normandy France
Omaha Beach
Utah Beach
D-Day is one of the greatest successes
of WWII
-France liberated within weeks
General George Patton
The End is Near
-Battle of the Bulge Dec. 1944
last German counter-offensive:
goal was to split American and
British lines
Germany is now in retreat
Defeat leaves German army
depleted of men and equipment
-massive bombing raids
-Roosevelt wins 4th term with
Harry Truman as Vice President
-Soviet armies pushing into
Germany from the east
V-E Day
-Big 3 Continue to discuss end of war
at the Potsdam Conference
United States, Britain, Russia = Big 3
-U.S. British forces pushing toward
Berlin to meet Soviet forces
-death camps found and Holocaust is
revealed, Allied troops begin
liberating camps
-Roosevelt dies and Truman becomes
President
-Hitler commits suicide as Russians
invade Berlin
-Germany surrenders May 1945
-V-E Day (Victory in Europe):
ends the war in Europe, but
WWII isn’t over
Japanese Victories
-Pearl Harbor: December 7, 1941
US declares war!
-Victories in much of the Pacific,
JAPANESE VICTORIES IN
PACIFIC
When Japanese invade
Philippines,
-MacArthur retreats from the
Philippines – but pledges to
return!
(“I will return!”)
“Bataan Death March” forcible
transfer of 100,000 POW to
Japanese prison camps
America Recovers
-Bombing of Tokyo April 1942
Helps start to turn the tide
-Coral Sea Battle
air power in the navy, 1st battle
ever where neither sides’ ships
saw or fired on one another
-Battle of Midway, 1942
Adm. Chester Nimitz
inflicted great damage to
much larger Japanese fleet
Turning Point of Pacific War
-Japan never recovered its naval
power
Island Hopping
-as the U.S. built its naval and
air advantage the Japanese
fortified every island
-U.S. bypasses many islands,
taking weaker ones for
airfields: island hopping
strategy
-Guadalcanal, 1942 helped stop
Japanese expansion
-Philippines, 1944 although
captured by Japanese,
resistance gave time for
Allies, take back islands
High Costs
-Japanese defending with every
man
kamikaze attacks— suicide
attacks, often into Allied ships
-Iwo Jima, 1945 1200 kilometers
South of Japan
6,000 Marines die
Operation Detachment,
take hold of 2 airfields, greatest
number of casualties other than
D-day
-Roosevelt dies
-Okinawa, 1945 amphibious assault,
preparing for a land invasion, over
150,000 Japanese civilians killed
high death totals
-warnings of what invasion would
cost
Manhattan Project
-about 600,000 people worked on
the project
Development of first nuclear
bomb
-J. Robert Oppenheimer led the
project at Los Alamos, NM
“father of the atomic bomb”
-some scientists urged the gov’t
not to use the weapon
-Truman made the decision to
use the weapon on Japan
because Japan rejected the
Potsdam declaration (terms of
surrender)
Ultimate Weapon
-Before atomic weapon was used,
airdrops of leaflets urged
Japanese to surrender
-Japanese leaders refuse to
unconditionally surrender
After 6 months of air fire:
-August, 1945 the bomber Enola
Gay dropped an atomic bomb
over Hiroshima
-another bomb dropped on
Nagasaki two days later
-Japanese surrender
-V-J Day (Victory over Japan)
Rebuilding the World
-Yalta, 1945 meeting of the Big Three
(US, UK, and USSR)
Post-war World Order
-Creation of the United Nations
stems from the Atlantic Charter,
replaces the League of Nations
-Potsdam, July 1945
division of Germany
The goals of the conference also
included the establishment of postwar order, peace treaties issues,
and countering the effects of war.
-Nuremburg Trials
war crimes
several leaders executed
Occupation of Japan
-General Douglas MacArthur,
accepted surrender, oversaw
occupation of Japan until 1951
(beginning of Korean War)
-reformed Japan’s economy, led
to it being an industrial power
-established democratic
government, renounced war
and emperor as a figure only
-guaranteed basic freedoms
Constitution still exists in
Japan’s government
Review Questions
1. Where did American troops FIRST take
a.
b.
c.
d.
the offensive against Axis forces?
The Philippines
France
Italy
North Africa
2. What action brought about Japan’s
surrender in WWII?
a. The surrender of Germany in Europe
b. The Allies’ capture of the southernmost
island of Japan
c. The dropping of atomic bombs on two
Japanese cities
d. The Soviet Union’s declaration of war on
Japan
3. Why was it critical for the Allies to take the
Japanese-held islands of Iwo Jima and
Okinawa?
a. The islands were highly populated areas with
little military protection
b. The islands were critical as bases from which
Allied bombers could reach Japan
c. The island were centers for Japanese
development of a nuclear bomb
d. The Allies intended to drop atomic bombs on
the islands
4. How did WWII lead to one of the largest
population shifts in U.S. history?
a. Service men and women were forced to
leave their homes for Europe
b. People moved to states with military
bases and factories for better jobs
c. The loss of loved ones led people to
move in with their families
d. People moved to the middle of the
country to escape wars on both coasts
5. How did natural geography contribute to
Germany’s defeat in WWII?
a. Large bodies of water stood between
Germany and its enemies
b. Germany had to fight a war on three
fronts: North Africa, Western Europe, and
Eastern Europe
c. There were too few rivers to be used for
Germany supplies
d. Switzerland pledged to remain neutral
throughout the war
6. Which of the following was a turning point
of the war?
a. Dunkirk
b. Iwo Jima
c. Nagasaki
d. Midway
7. Where did the U.S. drop the atomic
bombs in 1945?
a. Iwo Jima and Okinawa
b. Hiroshima and Nagasaki
c. Stalingrad and Moscow
d. Okinawa and Hiroshima
Significant Events of WWII
Using the provided information on the handout,
place the events with dates in chronological
order and include the answer to each question
with the event (significance/important fact).
Give your timeline a title and include at least 2
pictures.
Be creative and colorful. Extra Credit will be
awarded for going above and beyond!
This is a QUIZ grade!