Transcript 3. How did Hitler`s life end on April 30, 1945?

Bell Quiz:
1. Hitler used 8 Panzer tank divisions in
the Battle of the Bulge. There were 75
tanks per division. How many tanks
were used in all?
2. What did the Germans do to the 120
captured American soldiers at Malmedy?
3. How did Hitler’s life end on April 30,
1945?
4. What country captured Berlin in April
1945?
5. Why was FDR not able to see the end of
WWII?
Answers
1. 600
2. Massacred the captured GI’s.
3. Hitler shot himself in the head.
4. Soviet Union
5. FDR died of a stroke on April 12,
1945 during his 4th term in office.
Objectives:
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Identify the events in the war in
Europe that led to the liberation
of Europe and the defeat of Nazi
Germany.
The Allies Gain Ground
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Seven days after D-day the allies held
an 80-mile strip of France.
Within a month 1,000,000 allied
troops had landed in France.
On July 25, 1944, General Omar
Bradley launched a massive air and
land bombardment against the
Germans.
Bradley’s attack provided a gap in the
German line of defense.
General George Patton
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General George Patton
and the Third Army
took advantage of his
gap.
On August 23, Patton
and the Third Army
reached the Seine River
south of Paris.
August 25, Patton
liberated Paris.
• Paris had been under
German occupation for
four years.
The Allies
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By September
1944, the allies
had also freed
Belgium and
Luxembourg.
This news led to
the election FDR
for a fourth term.
The Battle of the Bulge
NO
YES
The Battle of the Bulge: 12/44-1/45
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In October 1944 Hitler launched an
offensive in a desperate attempt to
recapture the Belgian port of Antwerp.
Hitler ordered his troops to break through
Allied lines and take Antwerp.
Hitler hoped this move would disrupt the
enemy’s supply lines and demoralize the
Allies.
December 16, 8 German tank divisions
broke through American defenses.
This assault created an 80 mile long 60 mile
deep “bulge” into allied territory.
This last-ditch offensive was named the
Battle of the Bulge (Ardennes Offensive).
German SS troops captured and killed 120
American soldiers (Malmedy Massacre) .
Results of The Battle
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The Sixth Panzer Army, was
to lead the attack and to
capture Antwerp.
The Fifth Panzer Army was
to attack the centre of the
American forces, capture
the strategic road and rail
centre of St Vith and then
drive on to Brussels.
The Seventh Army was to
attack in the southern flank,
as designated by Hitler,
and to create a buffer zone
to prevent American
reinforcements from
attacking the Fifth Panzer
Army.
The Fifteenth Army was to
be held in reserve to
counter any Allied attack
when they took place.
The Battle of the Bulge
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The Allies were surprised by the attack. They had received
little intelligence that such an attack would take place.
Before the attack started, English speaking German soldiers
dressed in American uniforms went behind the lines of the
Allies and caused havoc by spreading misinformation,
changing road signs and cutting telephone lines. Those who
were caught were shot after a court martial.
The weather was also in Hitler’s favor. Low cloud and fog
meant that the superior air force of the Allies could not be
used – especially the tank-busting Typhoons of the RAF or
Mustang fighters from the USAAF which would have been
used against the German tanks. Though the weather was
typical for the Ardennes in winter, the ground was hard
enough for military vehicles to cross and this suited the
armored attack Hitler envisaged.
The Battle of the Bulge
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After a month of fighting the Germans
had been pushed back.
The Germans lost 120,000 troops, 600
tanks, 1,600 planes in the Battle of the
Bulge.
The German offensive had failed: the
German Air Force had been destroyed;
and the German Army in the West was
being pushed back.
The Americans lost 81,000 men of the
600,000 used in the battle.
Video Clip
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“The War” By Ken Burns
8:50-24:30 and 35:22-42:00
Liberation of Concentration Camps
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As the Allied troops pressed eastward, the
Soviet army pushed westward across
Poland.
Soviet troops were the first to come across
the Nazi death camps.
July 1944, the Soviets liberated a camp
near Majdanek Poland.
Within the camp, the Soviets found
thousands of starving prisoners and the
world’s largest crematorium, where SS
troops were attempting to burn all the
evidence of their crimes.
American soldiers later liberated more Nazi
death camps in Germany.
Unconditional Surrender
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April 25, 1945, the
Soviet army captured
Berlin.
April 30, 1945 Hitler,
in his underground
headquarters, shot
himself while his wife
Eva Braun swallowed
poison.
May 7, 1945 General
Eisenhower accepted
the unconditional
surrender of the Third
Reich.
May 8 1945, the Allies
celebrated V-E Day
(Victory in Europe).
Roosevelt’s Death
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President Roosevelt
did not live to see VE Day.
April 12, 1945
Roosevelt had a
stroke and died.
Vice President Harry
S. Truman became
the nations 33rd
president.