WWII 1939-1945

1

I. Origins of World War II

A. Italy after the Great War

– Italian losses high in World War I; economy never recovered

– Mussolini promised national glory, empire

– Annexed Libya; invaded Ethiopia (1935-1936), killed 250,000 Ethiopians

2

B. Germany: deep resentment at Treaty of Versailles;

- 1934: Against the Treaty of Versailles, Hitler he begins a huge naval buildup, Rebuilt military, air force; reinstated draft

- 1936-38 -- Hitler invades Czechoslovakia, the Sudetenland and annexes Austria

–At each step, France and Britain did nothing to stop him

3

C. Japan's war in China

1931 – Japan invades Manchuria

1937 – Japanese forces in Manchuria launched a full-scale attack on China

- Global conflict began with Japanese invasion of Manchuria, 1931

- League of Nations condemned action; Japan simply withdrew from league

- The Rape of Nanjing characterized war waged against civilians

4

II. America and the World

A. America turns to neutrality

Neutrality Act of 1935: made it illegal for Americans to sell arms to any country at war

1939 -- The Rome-Berlin-Tokyo Axis brought together Germany, Italy, Japan.

1939 -- The Russo-German Non-Aggression Pact: was an agreement to divide up Eastern Europe by Russia and Germany. In 1941, Germany broke this by invading Russia.

5

III. The War Begins

A. England and France agreed to let Hitler and Mussolini take over the territories they wanted. The British and French hoped this policy of appeasement would prevent another war.

-- (giving in to the demands of a bully to avoid conflict)

6

B. Sep. 1, 1939 –

Hitler invades Poland

September 3, Britain and France declare war on Germany and

and WWII begins!

7

C. Blitzkrieg in Poland Germany developed new weapons and a technique of warfare called lightning war or blitzkrieg

This included 3 parts:

1. STUKAS

8

2. PANZERS

9

10

3. Followed by – foot soldiers

D. The Fall of France After WW I, the French built a line of concrete

bunkers called the Maginot Line (imaginary line) along the German border – The French are bracing for trench warfare – Rather than risking their troops, they decide to wait for Germany to attack

•Spring 1940, the fall of France

–Nazis swiftly conquered Denmark, Norway, Belgium, Netherlands

–French signed an armistice in June 1940

–To govern the country, Germany installs a puppet gov’t -- Vichy France

11

E. The battle of Britain • When Hitler realizes that the British will not surrender he prepares to invade

• Problems w/ invasion:

– Choppy water of the English Chanel

– Germany has few ships

– British air force would sink them

• Germany needs to defeat the British air force

• The British have one major advantage:

»radar

12

First, the German air force, Luftwaffe, start attacking British shipping in the English Channel –The shift then goes to destroying the British Royal Air Force

13

This air battle is known as the Battle of Britain (Fall 1940): air battle over Britain between the attacking Luftwaffe (German Air Force) AND the defending Royal Air Force (British). The RAF saved Britain from invasion. London is destroyed, but Great Britain stands!

14

F. German invasion of the Soviet Union Operation Barbarossa: German surprise invasion of Soviet Union, June 1941

–This land was the ultimate German target, from which Jews, Slavs, and Bolsheviks could be expelled or exterminated to create more lebensraum (“living space”) fore resettled Germans

15

IV. US Enters the War

•The US wanted to assist the British & French but did not want to go to war

•Neutrality Act of 1939

•FDR wants to replace the ban on selling weapons to countries at war w/ a cash & carry provision

–Lend-Lease Act: The US would be able to lend/lease arms to any country considered “vital to the defense of the US.”

–Countries must pay in cash &

Carry arms on their own ships

16

On Sunday, December 7, 1941, at around 7:49 am . . .

A. Japan Attacks American naval base -- Pearl Harbor, Hawaii

Japanese victories after Pearl Harbor

–Japan advanced swiftly in the Pacific and southeast Asia

–Conquered Philippines, Dutch East Indies, Indochina, Burma, Singapore

–Slogan "Asia for Asia" masked Japanese imperialism against fellow Asians

17

• The next day FDR asks Congress to declare war –The decision is almost unanimous in favor of war

B. US declares War on Japan on Dec 8, 1941;

December 11, Germany and Italy declared war US

18

V. The War Ends in Europe

World War II was fought in many fronts:

THEATERS OF WARFARE

EUROPEAN THEATER

EASTERN THEATER (RUSSIA)

BALKAN THEATER (SE EUROPE)

ITALIAN THEATER

NORTH AFRICAN THEATER

PACIFIC THEATER

19

A. Battle of Midway, June 1942:

This Japanese attempt on Midway failed

–US had a team of code breakers

–Already broken the Japanese code

• The Japanese fleet was heading in to an ambush

20

• turning point of the war in the Pacific -- Japanese lost 4 large carriers and their initiative

21

B. Allied victories came after 1943 Battle of Stalingrad:

- July 23, 1942 – Feb. 2, 1943: Russians defeated the Germans at Stalingrad, pushed them back.

- ** turning point of war in Europe

22

C. Italy surrenders – Sept. 8, 1943

• The invasion of Italy was a success

– Italy surrenders on Sept. 8 1943

• Hitler tried unsuccessfully to hold onto Italy

• After 5 months of fighting the Germans were forced to retreat

• The Italian campaign was one of the bloodiest in the war

** The Germans have retreated out of Russia and the Russian army is close behind. Both armies have entered Berlin.

D. 1944, British-U.S. troops invaded North Africa and then Italy

In Europe Stalin wanted the US and Britain to attack Germany from the West to open a 2nd front

– Egypt

– Suez Canal

The Germans were successful in North Africa under the command of Gen. Erwin Rommel

* US instituted a convoy system, in which groups of cargo ships were escorted by navy warships

24

E. Late 1943, Roosevelt, Stalin, and Churchill (The Big Three) met in Tehran, Iran to discuss the war

-- Stalin promises to launch a full scale attack on the Germans when the Allies invade France

– Stalin also promised to help the US defeat Japan once Germany had been beaten.

– He also accepted Roosevelt’s proposal to create an international organization to help keep the peace after the war.

F. The Allies liberate Europe

* Planning Operation Overlord

-- D-Day, June 6, 1944 (The allied invasion of France)

Knowing that the Allies would eventually invade France, Hitler had fortified the coast.

Allied had one advantage – the element of surprise, the Germans did not know when or where the Allies would land.

26

G. The Battle of the Bulge – Dec. 1944

-- The Germans make one last stand or counterattack in Belgium. The Germans come close, but are defeated.

27

H. April 12, 1945 -- FDR dies and Harry Truman is sworn in.

• April 28-- Italian partisans execute Mussolini near Milan.

• The Allies close in from the West and the Russians close in from the East on the German capital of Berlin.

• April 30 – Hitler commits suicide. The Allies capture what’s left of Berlin on May 2nd! The Germans surrender on May 7

• V-E Day or Victory in Europe is declared!

28

VI. War ends in the Pacific While the buildup for the invasion in France was taking place in Britain, military leaders were also developing a strategy to defeat Japan

–They idea was to hop from island to island & get close to Japan

A. Island-Hopping in the Pacific: U.S. military was convinced that Japan would not surrender

29

• By late 1944 the US bombed Tokyo

– 1st time since the Doolittle Raid

• At first, the bombing did little damage

– Japan was so far away, pilots could do little to adjust for any errors

B. Iwo Jima

Objective: US planes could bomb Japan from there; to capture an island closer to Japan, where the b-29s could refuel

30

Why were civilian populations targeted during bombing raids?

C. The Atomic Bomb Ends the War

After the US captured Okinawa, the Japanese emperor urged his gov’t to find a way to end the war.

The US demanded for unconditional surrender – surrender without any conditions.

31

32

August 6, 1945, an atomic bomb is dropped on Hiroshima, Japan

a B-29 bomber nicknamed the Enola Gay dropped an atomic bomb

– Code named “Little Boy” on Hiroshima

The bomb destroyed:

– 76,000 buildings (63% of the city)

– Killed between 80,000 & 120,000 people instantly

– 1,000s more would die of radiation sickness

The bomb stunned the Japanese, 3 days later on

August 9, 1945, the US dropped another atomic bomb, on Nagasaki, Japan

–Code named “Fat Man”

– Killing between 35,000 and 75,000

Faced with the massive destruction the Japanese surrendered

33

D. War ends on August 15, 1945;

V-J Day (Victory on Japan Day) is declared! Sept 2, 1945, Japan surrenders formally aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay, Japan

• Roosevelt believed that a new international political organization, United Nations, could prevent another world war

34

E. Putting the Enemy on Trial

Nuremberg Trials in Germany:

– International Military Tribunal tried German leaders suspected of committing war crimes

The Allies did not indict the Japanese emperor because they were afraid it would lead to an uprising of the Japanese people

35