Transcript World War II

World War II
 World War II would be a fight between the:
– Allies – United States, Great Britain, Soviet
Union (and France, China)
– Axis Powers – Germany, Japan, Italy
Rise of Dictators
 Adolf Hitler
Hitler leader of Nazi Party. Wanted
to unite all German-speaking
people in a great German empire.
 Benito Mussolini
– Seized power in Italy in 1922 as
leader of Fascist Party
 Joseph Stalin
– Became leader of Soviet Union in
1924.
– Wanted to create a model
Communist state.
Hideki Tojo
Leader of Japanese military
WWII Begins
 Invasion of Poland
– Sept 1, 1939 - Germany
invaded and quickly defeated
Poland (World War II begins)
– Sept. 3, 1939 - France & Britain
declare war on Germany.
 Blitzkreig
– Germans used new military
strategy called blitzkrieg, or
lightening war. Use powerful
aircraft first, then quick, mobile
armored divisions. Fight one
front at at time & quickly crush
enemy.
WWII Begins
 Lend-Lease Plan
– 1941, FDR felt U.S. had to help
defeat Axis Powers by turning itself
into “great arsenal of democracy”.
– Great Britain had run out of cash to
buy war supplies from U.S. LendLease Act allowed FDR to lend or
lease supplies to any country whose
defense was vital to U.S.
– Aided not only Great Britain, but
Soviet Union when Hitler invaded it
in 1941.
WWII Begins
 The Axis Powers
– Sept. 1940 –
Germany, Italy, and
Japan had signed a
mutual defense treaty,
the Tripartite Pact.
– Tripartite Pact
designed to keep U.S.
out of war. If U.S.
were to declare war
on any one of the
Axis Powers, it would
face a two ocean war
in Atlantic & Pacific.
U.S. Enters WWII
 Attack on Pearl Harbor
– U.S. cut off trade with Japan. Embargoed goods
included oil – essential for Japan’s war machine.
– Either get U.S. to end oil embargo or seize oil
fields in Asia. This would mean war.
– Dec. 7, 1941 – Japanese attack began early in
the morning on the Pearl Harbor naval base in
Hawaii. Raid nearly devastated U.S. Pacific fleet.
Over 3,000 Americans killed or wounded.
– The next day, FDR asked Congress for a
declaration of war against Japan. Three days
later, Germany & Italy declared war on U.S.
Pearl Harbor
Dec. 7th, 1941
Fighting in WWII - Europe
 D-Day - June 6, 1944
– Code named Operation Overlord, Allied plan to send
3 million British, American, Canadian troops to invade
Nazi-controlled France across the English Channel.
– D- Day opened second major front in Europe.
– General Dwight Eisenhower would lead Allied
invasion of Europe.
Fighting in WWII - Europe
 D-Day - June 6, 1944 (cont)
– June 6, 1944, Allied troops began largest
land-sea-air invasion in history when they
landed on the beaches of Normandy,
France.
Fighting in WWII - Europe
 D-Day - June 6, 1944 (cont)
– By Sept., 1944, Allies had freed France and other
countries on their way toward Germany.
– Allies needed clear weather, complete secrecy, and
massive supplies. Spent months building floating
harbors called Mulberries to carry troops & supplies
across Eng. Channel
Fighting in WWII - Europe
 Holocaust
– Six million Jews were murdered as part
U.S. Ninth Army liberated
this group of prisoners at the
German concentration camp
at Wobbelin
of Hitler's "Final Solution"
– Six million others also killed including
gypsies, homosexuals, physically
handicapped, and political opponents
– Allied soldiers first began to liberate
concentration & death camps in July of
1944 (most camps were located in
Poland and liberated by Soviet soldiers)
• Soldiers found thousands of starving
prisoners, mass graves filled with the
dead, and crematoriums…..news of
the true horrors of the Holocaust
soon began to spread to the rest of
the world…
Fighting in WWII- Germany Surrenders – May
1945
Europe
– April 1945, Soviet armies were
closing in on Berlin. Hitler, in
his underground bunker,
committed suicide. Germany
was nearly defeated, and had
struggled to fight a two-front
war.
– May 8, 1945 Germany
surrendered. Celebrated as
V-E Day (Victory in Europe
Day).
– FDR did not live to see V-E
Day. April 12, 1945 FDR had a
stroke and died. Harry Truman
(vice-president) was now in
charge.
President Harry S. Truman
Fighting in WWII - Pacific
 Japanese Victories in the Pacific
– After Pearl Harbor, Japan had a number of
victories. Seized much of China, Guam, Wake
Islands, some Aleutian islands, and others.
Fighting in
WWII - Pacific
 Battle of Midway June 1942
– Americans had broken
Japanese ship under
attack by U.S. planes
Japanese code, knew Midway
Islands (northwest of Hawaii)
were next target.
– Battle fought by air. U.S.
planes found and destroyed
large Japanese fleet. Turning
point in Pacific War & halted
Japanese advance.
– Americans began
“leapfrogging” – island by
island winning territory back
from Japan.
 Manhattan Project
– Led by scientist J. Robert
J. Robert
Oppenheimer
Oppenheimer, it was the top secret
project to develop the atomic bomb.
Almost completely funded by U.S.
– July 16, 1945. A-bomb first tested in
New Mexico desert. July 25,
President Truman made decision to
drop bombs on Japan to end WWII
and save American lives.
– Aug. 6, 1945 – first A-bomb (“Fat
Man”) dropped on Hiroshima .
– Aug. 9 – second bomb (“Little Boy”)
dropped on Nagasaki. Over 200,000
people dead. Japan surrendered
September 2, 1945.
Hiroshima, after the bomb
Atomic bombs, “Fat Man”
& “Little Boy”
End of WWII
 Conclusion….
– World War II most costly, destructive war in
history. Approx. 60 million people died
(400,000 were Americans).
– United States had abandoned its policy of
isolationism by entering WWII, and was now
the reigning world superpower (victorious in
war & only nation to have atomic weapons).
– U.S. would assume position as world leader
in international affairs.
COLD WAR BEGINS