Transcript Early Battles of WWII

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Longest campaign in WWII: German U-boats
against American warships (1939-1945)
U.S. used convoy system to protect cargo ships
Cities on the East Coast had to dim lights at
night to protect U.S. ship positions
In the end U.S. produced more ships than
Germany could sink!
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Stalin desperate for a 2nd front in Europe
Churchill decides it is better to attack the
periphery of Germany
◦ Invasion of North Africa will be next stage of European
war
◦ troops would then move into Sicily and up through Italy
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1942 FDR orders invasion of Morocco and
Algeria—both French territories
◦ troops under command of Dwight D. Eisenhower
◦ invasion would give experience to U.S. troops
◦ would help British troops in Egypt
The North Africa Campaign:
The Battle of El Alamein, 1942
Gen. Ernst Rommel,
The “Desert Fox”
Gen. Bernard
Law
Montgomery
(“Monty”)
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Operation Torch
◦ General Patton able to take control of Casablanca in
November 1942
◦ Jan-Feb 1943: Battle of Kasserine Pass
 Amateurs vs. professionals
 Loss for the U.S.—7,000 deaths, lost 200 tanks
 Poor leadership blamed for loss and officers let go,
replaced by Patton
◦ Victory in North Africa
 Germans surrender on May 13, 1943
 150,000 taken prisoner
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Hitler decides to target Soviet economy
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Key location: Stalingrad
◦ Wants to launch attacks on industrial, economic and
military locations
◦ Major RR junction, would cut off supplies to the
Soviet Union
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Hitler forbade retreat, didn’t realize USSR would
be hit with coldest winter in 30 years
Nov. 23, 1942 Soviet troops get reinforcements
◦ 250,000 Germans trapped—91,000 surrender—5,000
survive POW camps
Turning point in European war, Germany would
now be on the defensive
Battle of Stalingrad:
Winter of 1942-1943
German Army
Russian Army
1,011,500 men
1,000,500 men
10,290 artillery guns
13,541 artillery guns
675 tanks
894 tanks
1,216 planes
1,115 planes
The Italian Campaign
[“Operation Torch”] :
Europe’s “Soft Underbelly”
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Invasion of Sicily-June 1943
◦ Allied Commander: D. Eisenhower
◦ Ground troops Commanders: Patton and British
Commander Montgomery
Allied troops forced German evacuation of
island in August 1943
Fearful of Allied invasion Italian King puts
Mussolini under arrest
◦ September 8, 1943, the Italian government
announced Italy’s surrender.
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Angered by surrender Hitler moves German
troops into N. Italy
◦ Places Mussolini back in power
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Germans retreat from Italy—May 1944
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German stronghold finally falls after three month
siege
Few weeks later troops trapped at Anzio beach break
through German lines
Audie Murphy – most decorated American soldier in
WW II
The Allies Liberate Rome:
June 5, 1944
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Rome is 1st Axis capital to be taken
American commander of the 5th Army,
Lieutenant General Mark Clark, chose to strike
for Rome from the Anzio beachhead
◦ rather than chase after the retreating German forces as
he had been ordered
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After the fall of Rome German forces fell back to
Gothic Line of defense—just north of Florence.
Allied campaign in Italy not a decisive blow to
German troops
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Code name for Allied invasion of France
Eisenhower commander of invasion
Allies needed the element of surprise
◦ made it look like attack would come at Pas-deCalais
Invasion had to have almost perfect weather to
be successful
◦ Had to be at night to hide ships
◦ Ships had to come in at low tide
◦ Moonlight had to be bright enough for paratroopers
to land
◦ Bad weather halted invasion for a day until June 6,
1944
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U.S. landing at Utah Beach
◦ Weak German defenses, took 3hrs to seize beach
and move inland
◦ Less than 200 U.S. deaths
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U.S. landing at Omaha Beach
◦ Troops led by Omar Bradley
◦ Heavy fire causes Bradley to consider retreat
◦ Troops finally break German lines and move inland
 The total number of troops landed on D-Day
was around 130,000-156,000
 By the end of 11 June (D + 5), 326,547 troops,
54,186 vehicles and 104,428 tons of supplies.
 By June 30th (D+24) over 850,000 men,
148,000 vehicles, and 570,000 tons of
supplies.
 By July 4th one million men had been landed.
 About 2,300 deaths/wounded (U.S., British,
Canadian)
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French capital had been occupied for 4
years
Vichy government had helped send
thousands of Jews to concentration camps
Hitler ordered the city be destroyed
◦ Allied powers moved in before mass demolition
Paris relatively untouched by war
Frenchwomen suspected of sleeping with
Germans are dragged into the streets to
have their heads shaved
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Montgomery has a plan to drive quickly to the
Rhine. Capture bridgeheads with
paratroopers and glider rangers. Largest
airborne assault in history.
Fails – too ambitious
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Hitler’s last desperate offensive
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December 16, 1944—battle begins
◦ Goal to cut off Allied supplies through port of
Antwerp, Belgium
◦ Germans catch Americans by surprise
◦ Advancing German troops in West made their lines
bulge “Battle of the Bulge”
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Germans surround Allies at Bastogone
◦ Germans call for American surrender
 American general’s response “Nuts”
◦ Patton’s troops race to Bastogone and slam German
lines
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Fighting lasts for 3 weeks
◦ Jan. 8 German troops withdraw, suffering 100,000
deaths
Yalta: February, 1945
 FDR wants quick Soviet entry into Pacific
war.
 FDR & Churchill concede Stalin needs
buffer, FDR & Stalin want spheres of
influence and a weak Germany.
 Churchill wants
strong Germany
as buffer
against Stalin.
 FDR argues
for a ‘United
Nations’.
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April 12, 1945
◦ FDR suffers
massive cerebral
hemorrhage
◦ VP Harry Truman
is sworn in as
President
Mussolini & His Mistress, Claretta
Petacci Are Hung in Milan, 1945
Hitler and his
wife (married the
day before)
commit suicide
using cyanide
and pistols
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May 7th Germans formally surrender to
General Eisenhower at Rheims, France & to
Soviets at Berlin
◦ Unconditional surrender of Nazi Regime
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Truman announces victory on May 8th
June 5th—U.S., Russia, England & France agree
to split occupied Germany into E. and W.
Germany
◦ Also agree to divide up Berlin (in E. part)