Transcript Pwr_Pt_World_War_2_Major_Battles

Unit 9: World War 2 (1939-45)
Winning the War in Europe and the
Pacific Theaters
Hitler’s Fortress Europe December 31, 1941
Stalingrad, 1942-43
1944
Sicily, July 1943
Tebessa
El Alamein, Oct. 1942
The Battle of Stalingrad
(Sept. 42 – Feb. 43)
• True turning point of
war in Europe!
• Fought deep in Russia
(USSR)
• Brutal house -house;
block -block fighting
• 330,000 Ger dead or
captured; 1 Million
USSR dead
• Germany forced to
retreat!
North Africa Campaign
(1940 – May 1943)
• Two goals: take pressure off U.S.S.R. &
establish base to attack Italy!
• Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower or “Ike” leads
the U.S. invasion in Nov. 1942 to join
British.
• US and Gen. George S. Patton (aka. Blood
& Guts) helped British force Axis
surrender in Tunisia. Meet in Casablanca,
Morocco in Jan. 1943 to plan next step.
• 240,000 Axis troops captured and Allies
were in control of N. Africa!
Invasions of Sicily and Italy
(July 1943 – April 1945)
• Gen. Patton and Gen Dwight D.
Eisenhower with British invade island
amphibiously and Sicily surrendered
in 38 days; Mussolini rescued and sent
to Milan, Italy to rule “puppet state”
• Allied advance was slow and hard up
the “bloody boot.”
• Italy surrendered Sept. 3, 1943, but
Hitler would not give up Italy easily!
• Battle of Anzio (May 44) led to capture
of Rome
• Mussolini killed in April 28, 1945 by
Italian mob
• 190,000 US; 500,000 Germans died!
D-Day Invasion of Normandy (France)
June 6, 1944)
60 Miles Wide – 150,000 troops began to
wade ashore at dawn.
• Deception was key for invasion to
work
• Ike said 85% may die
• 23,000 Airborne troops and gliders
dropped behind lines
• 47 Divisions (21 US, 26 UK &
Canada + others) & 4400 ships hit
5 beaches at dawn on D-Day 150,000 troops.
• 2,000 US casualties on Omaha and
Utah beaches (4200 Allies)
• 500,000 by week’s end & 1 Million
Allies in France by end of June!
• Paris liberated Aug. 24, 1944 and
its on to Berlin, Germany!
The Battle of the Bulge
(Dec. 1944 – Jan. 1945)
• A German surprise counter attack in
Belgium to break Allied lines.
• Gen. Patton moved his 250,000 army in
3 days from W. France to help stop the
“bulge!”
• US held at Bastogne, Belgium and by
Christmas Day the skies had cleared
and airborne troops and bombs
stopped the advance.
• Greatest battle in W. Eur. 80,000 US;
100,000 Ger casualties
• Germany would never again mount
another offensive in the war.
V-E Day! May 8, 1945
• FDR died April 12, 1945
• Germany surrendered to
Allies!
• US, Br, and USSR in
Berlin (USSR 1st in)
• Hitler (Apr. 30, 1945)
suicide
• Harry Truman US
President
December 7, 1941: A Day of Infamy!
 7:55 AM – Pearl Harbor,
Hawaii
 18 warships (8
battleships); USS
Arizona 1177 died on
one ship!
 400 planes
 2400 dead and 1200
wounded
 America was awakened
and vowed revenge!
The Battle of Midway (June 4-6, 1942)
 May 7-8, 42 – The Battle of
Coral Sea –US lost one
carrier, Jap. drive to Port
Morseby and Australia
stopped!
 June 4-6, 1942 – The Battle
of Midway –Adm. Chester
Nimitz sunk 4 carriers
 Japan abandoned plans
for attacking Fiji, Samoa,
and Midway and goes on
defensive.
 Midway was turning point
of Pacific War.
The Battle of Guadalcanal and Island
Hopping Campaign
 Aug 7, 1942 – Feb 9, 1943
in the Solomon Islands
 20,000 marines invaded to
stop another Jap. attempt
to capture Port Moresby
 Brutal Jungle Warfare
 Beginning of Island
Hopping – to capture key
islands to allow us to
eventually bomb Japan
 The Jap. withdrew on the
night of Feb 9, 43.
The Battle of Leyte Gulf and Reconquest of the Philippines
 Oct 20, 1944 –US forces wade
ashore at Leyte Island to
reclaim the Philippines.
 General Douglas MacArthur – “I
shall return!”
 Jap. Imperial Navy crippled in
the Battle of Leyte Gulf (Oct 2325, 1944). 280 ships engaged +
kamikazes used for 1st time.
 Greatest naval battle of war and
probably in all of history!
 Mar 9, 1945 Philippines freed 80,000 Jap killed (less than 1000
surrendered). 100,000 Filipinos
also died.
Bloody Iwo Jima and Okinawa (Feb - June 1945)
 14 –square-mile island less than 700 miles
from Jap. was one of the bloodiest of WW 2
 110,000 US Marines were opposed by
fewer than 25,000 Jap.
 1 month for the USMC to take the Island
 US suffered 25,000 casualties in 35 days
 216 Jap. POW’s taken by US!: Get the idea?
 Apr-Jun 45 – The Battle of Okinawa (350
miles from Japan) - 180,000 US and Br
forces vs.100,000 Jap. who vowed to fight
to the death
 Jap. pilots flew 2000 kamikaze missions.
Only 7200 Jap. surrendered !
 US suffered 50,000 casualties and 100,000
Okinawan civilians perished (many commit
ted suicide b/c Jap. forces) urged them to.
 Extremely costly victories for U.S.
Manhattan Project Ends War
 1941-46 Gen. Leslie Groves
and Sci. J. Robert
Oppenheimer lead project
 Jul 16, 45 – Los Alamos, NM =
successful test
 Pres. Truman – Aug 6, 45
Hiroshima – 60 K dead; Aug 9,
45 Nagasaki – 35 K
 Some estimates as high as
135,000 dead; 64,000 injured
 VJ-Day- Aug 15 & Jap. Formally
surrenders Sep 2, 1945