World War

II
1939 - 1945

Key
People

Adol
f
Hitl
er

Born April 20, 1889

in Austria

Adolf Hitler believed in an

extreme form of Fascism
known as Nazism (that the
Aryan race is superior to
all others)
After working his way to
the top of Germanys
government, he used his
strong anti-Semitic views
and founded the 3rd Reich,
with his Nazi Party
Ideas of Lebensraum, or living space, for
Germans
Einsatzgruppen Hitlers personal SS police
force/body guards
Began building Germanys military into a
powerful war machine

Jose
ph
Stali
n

Born December 18,

1878 in Gori,
Georgia

Joseph Stalin, in 1924, made his

way into power in Russia under a
Totalitarianism dictatorship with
the Communist Party

Totalitarianism under the Communist

Party controlled every aspect of the
country: government, economy, media,
military, etc.
His Five-Year Plan was to increase
both agricultural economy and
industry. He moved private land to
collective farms, where exports funded
more money for industry
In 1934, Stalin ordered the Great
Purge, arresting and executing other
party officials or anyone else who
opposed him, with millions killed by
1936

Benito
Musso
lini
Born July 29, 1883
in Predappio, Italy

Benito Mussolini had strong

Nationalist beliefs (Fascism), where
the nation came before the people.
He wanted to return Italy to the glory
days of ancient Rome
He encouraged a strong military, with
strong leaders, often using violence to
keep people in his favour
Gaining political power through
powerful speaking skills, the King
eventually asked Mussolini to start a
government, as Prime Minister
A few years later, Italy was turned
into a Fascist Dictatorship, where he
had nearly crushed all individual
liberties and rights

Hideki
Tojo
Born December 30,
1884 in Kojimachi,
Tokyo

After the global depression in the 1930s, Japans government has been ruled
with strong Militaristic views. Hideki Tojo became Prime Minister in 1941
Tojo believes strongly in Militarism, where the military controls much of the
government and plays greater roles in politics. With combined Nationalism,
Japans military grew as they invaded foreign land for resources and living
space.

Winst
on
Churc

Born November 30,

1874 in Woodstock,
England

Winston Churchill was

the British Prime
Minister during the war
from 1941-1945
He was very well
respected by the
public, and had great
speaking skills. He
spoke in Parliament
and boosted morale

Churchill had a strong relationship with President Roosevelt, based on mutual

respect, and they often met to discuss war strategy
He had disagreed with Chamberlains agreement with Hitler before the war
saying: "You were given the choice between war and dishonor. You chose
dishonor and you will have war."

Franklin
D.
Rooseve
lt
Born January 30, 1882
in Hyde Park, New York

Franklin Delano Roosevelt suffered from Polio since 1921, which made him
physically disabled, a fact that was hidden from the public
As the 32nd President of the United States, he served 4 terms, from 1933-1945,
making him the longest running president in office.
Roosevelt was loved by the people and was an excellent speaker, able to move
millions across the country over the radio
He and Churchill created the Lend-Lease Act in 1941 to support Britain with all
aid short of war, while still keeping America neutral

At the start of the war,

Roosevelt declares the
United States as neutral
in a radio broadcast on
September 3, 1939:

(about 2.5 min)

World War II
Begins

After a Nonaggression Pact with Russia, Nazi Germany, led by Adolf Hitler, (after
several invasions and appeasements by the Allied Powers), finally invaded Poland,
France and Britain declared war on Germany on September 3, 1939
World War II has now begun
Using their Blitzkrieg or
lightning warfare strategy,
German planes bombed
Poland while tanks and
infantry fought through
weak spots to surround and
destroy.

Sharing Poland with Russia, Hitler invaded the western countries of Belgium,
Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and France.
In 1940, Hitler took the Scandinavian countries Denmark and Norway to the North
On May 10th, he invaded the lower countries to the South
With their lightning
warfare, the Germans raced
across France, driving the
British to the North, who
were saved by their own
people in the Miracle of
Dunkirk

With Frances fall imminent, Mussolini used the opportunity. Italy joined Germany
and declared war on France and Britain. These 2 became the Axis Powers
France surrendered to Germany on June 22
Hitler now controlled 60% of Europe
With France now run by a
puppet government (Vichy
France), Britain was forced
to fight the Axis Powers
alone
British Prime Minister
Winston Churchill gave his
famous We Shall Fight on
the Beaches speech before
the House of Commons:

(about 1 min excerpt/pg.389)

Aware of the powerful British Navy, Hitler focused on air attacks. Luftwaffe, the
German air force, bombed the British shores, attacking ships, ports, naval bases,
industrial centers, radar stations, etc
Britain sent their Royal Air Force in a counterattack known as the Battle of Britain
After the British launched a
bombing raid over Berlin,
Germany led a bombing over
London that lasted weeks,
called the London Blitz

During the Battle of Britain, Churchill and Roosevelt adopted a plan for the US to
aid Britain in war, while staying neutral. The Lend-Lease Act was passed in 1941
Hitler, giving up on Britain, broke his Nonaggression Pact with the Soviet Union
and sent troops to invade Russia. Russia then joined the Allies against Germany

Churchill and Roosevelt

later met to discuss the
Atlantic Charter, a plan for
postwar
Meanwhile, in the Pacific,
Japans military and territory
are growing, and ever since
they joined the Axis Powers
in 1940 with the Tripartite
Pact, there were plans of
attack

America
Enters the
War

On December 7, 1941,
Japan led an air raid on
Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, a
naval base for the US
Pacific fleet
Japanese planes
bombed over 18
American ships and
countless more military
vehicles. Thousands of
Americans were killed or
wounded, and the next
day, we were at war

Almost by mistake, Germany and Italy also declared

war on the US, putting us at war with the Axis Powers
With the US now a part of the Allied Powers, we
faced an even greater challenge back home

On the home front,

those who weren't
drafted had to face
drastic changes for the
war effort
Propaganda swept the
nation, and not only
hardships, but
opportunities, came too

People accepted rationing (a system for limiting the

distribution of goods). Americans grew their own
gardens, saved gasoline, and wore simpler clothes with
less materials to save everything they could for the
growing war cause

Roosevelt set up the

War Production Board
to turn American
industry into military
production
This huge increase in
wartime production
bounced us out of the
Great Depression, and
the economy flourished
The National War
Labour Board was set
up to mobilize labour

To finance the war, the government raised taxes and

also created a system of withholding
The government borrowed from banks and through the
sale of war bonds, which helped fund the war and
showed patriotic pride

Over 16 million men were registered in 1940, and because of their government
issued equipment, were called the G.I.s
Many of these men had little to no experience and were not prepared for combat.
When they would return home, they would be physically, mentally, or emotionally
scarred by their experiences
Japanese-Americans often had not fully assimilated and faced much discrimination.
Executive Order 9066 set up large military complexes that held thousands of
citizens believed to be possible threats
African Americans also faced strong segregation
Many took part in Double V Campaigns, which
supported democracy both at home and abroad
Millions of black soldiers served, but many were not
allowed in combat. Leaders often pressed to end
military discrimination
In 1941, the first black combat unit, the Tuskegee
Airmen, was established. This air unit earned a
reputation of courage, and showed the equality of men
at war. They were the only unit to never lose a pilot

As men went off to war, many open

jobs were offered to women
Most women jumped at the chance to
work outside the home and prove to
society what they're capable of
Women also faced strong hostility in the workplace and were denied equal pay,
but were still expected to work their other shift at home, providing for the family
The Women's Army Corps gave women the right to serve, usually as nurses

War in
Europe

Roosevelt and Churchill met to discuss

strategies for war
Knowing they could not fight a war on 2 fronts
(Germany in Europe and Japan in the Pacific),
They decided to fight defensively with Japan
and put their current efforts in Europe

Hitler sent Erwin Rommel and

his Afrika Korps to assist
Italy's forces in North Africa
The Allies had many choices:
Invade France, who was
heavily guarded but willing to
help; attack Italy, by crossing
the Mediterranean; send
troops to Russia; or launch an
offensive in North Africa
If you were wondering: Switzerland was able to remain neutral because they held the Germans supplies

With the Allies decision to go up from

North Africa, the Soviets were left to
fight alone on the Western front
Hitler saw a chance for a crushing
blow, sending troops further into
Russian territory in 1942
He wanted to cut off their resources
along the Volga river and capture the
city of Stalingrad
After intense German air
bombings, Stalins Red Army
held off against the German
forces at Stalingrad
The first turning point came
during the harsh winter. With
little resources, the German
fighting slowed until they
finally surrendered to the
Soviets in January, 1943

American General Dwight D.

Eisenhower led our first sea
landings in North Africa in 1942
From 42-43, US troops fought
the German reinforcements from
Morocco and Algeria, east to
Tunisia. Under George Patton and
Omar Bradley, we managed to
drive the German forces back
across the Mediterranean
In 1940, Hitler had sent Field Marshal Erwin Rommel,
the Desert Fox", who had to make up for Italys mistake,
to North Africa
2 years later, British forces, led by General Montgomery,
stopped the German advance on the Suez Canal forcing
them to surrender at El Alamein, Egypt
This victory was considered one of the great turning
points in the war, giving the Allies the upper hand

Operation Overlord was the Allies

invasion of Northern France
On June 6, 1944 (D-Day), Gen.
Eisenhower led over 150,000
troops onto the shores of
Normandy, Upper France.
They had to hold 2 miles for 2
weeks
Then under Gen. Montgomery
and Bradley, the Allies swept
across France
By August, the Allies had liberated
Paris. A month later, the first
American soldiers crossed the
borders of Germany
FDRs D-Day prayer:

(about 5 min)

As the Allies closed in on

Germany, Hitler sent out his last
offensive strike.
German troops burst through
the Ardennes forest creating the
Battle of the Bulge. it was the
largest US battle in WWII

The Americans pushed back the German

troops on the West, as the Soviets fought
through Poland and reached the outskirts of
Berlin
Before he could be reached, Hitler killed
himself on April 30, and the Germans quickly
began surrendering
With Berlin captured, the Germans
surrendered on May 8, 1945. The war in Europe
was now over

This victory in Europe, or V-E Day, on May 8th celebrated the end of the war with
Germany
Unfortunately, Roosevelt died on April 12, so the next President, Harry Truman,
dedicated the end of the war to FDR

But the war was not totally over. As

millions were celebrating in the streets, the
Americans were still fighting a war with
Japan in the Pacific

War in the
Pacific

The Japanese military has taken over much of East Asia

and the South Pacific
US Gen. Douglas MacArthur was forced to retreat from
the Philippines after a fierce attack, promising I shall
return in 1942
After conquering the Philippines, Japanese soldiers
rounded up 70,000 GIs on a 63 mile walk to a prison
camp. The Bataan Death March killed over 7,000 people
The Doolittle Raids led by US Lt. Col. James
Doolittle used carpet bombing to attack Tokyo
and other Japanese cities
The Battle of the Coral Sea was an all naval
air battle. US and Japanese aircraft carriers
in the Coral Sea launched hundreds of attack
planes in a 5 day battle
These attacks showed that not only could
the Japanese be beaten, but we had pushed
them back as well
Saturation or Carpet Bombing was a method in which planes dropped endless
bombs across an area, like a carpet of bombs in the sky

Using a method of island hopping (or

leapfrogging), US and the Allies would
move from one small island to the next,
gaining land and resources
We had used the Navajo language as
code because it was not a written
language, and few knew it. It was one of
the keys to our success

The Americans intercepted a Japanese

transmission of an attack on the Midway
Islands, a US naval base
Well prepared, we sent planes and
aircraft carriers to intercept the oncoming
fleet
The Battle of Midway was a huge
victory, crushing the Japanese forces.
That would be their last offensive attack

2 key islands were Iwo Jima and Okinawa

Iwo Jima would make excellent air bases for
bombers, and Okinawa would provide easy
invasions of Japan
At Iwo Jima, the enemies dug caves and
bunkers underground, where they hid from our
bombers and then used the element of surprise
After a month long battle, we were victorious
On Okinawa, US and British forces launched a
massive amphibious sea-to-land attack
We claimed another victory
The Japanese also began using a new method
of warfare, Kamikazes
Kamikaze pilots flew their explosive-filled planes
straight into our ships, causing massive damage
It showed the desperation of Japan and their
soldiers

First proposed by Albert Einstein, he believed that the Nazis were attempting to
create a powerful weapon, so we tried to build it first
The Manhattan Project was the secret government program of the design and
construction of the new weapon, the Atomic Bomb
At war with Japan and countless warnings, President Truman claimed he had no
hesitation making the decision to use it

On August 6, 1945, the bomber plane, Enola

Gay, dropped the first Atomic bomb on
Hiroshima, Japan
3 days later, another was dropped on
Nagasaki
With devastating effects, Japan informally
surrendered soon after on August 14, 1945
On September 2, 1945, Japans formal
surrender marked the end of World War II, or
V-J Day

Costs and
Casualties

Since before the war, Hitler and

his Nazi Party were secretly
exterminating large amounts of
people that he saw as inferior
This mass killing is known as
the Holocaust
In late 1938, Hitlers SS
soldiers/Einsatzgruppen
smashed so many Jewish
peoples windows, that it was
called the night of broken glass
or Kristallnacht
Hitler had felt that their current system of extermination wasnt efficient enough,
so the Wannsee Conference was set, creating their Final Solution
SS Heinrich Himmler oversaw the new concentration camps
Millions of sub humans were moved from ghettos to labour or death camps. It
was here that the Nazis used gas chambers to kill any undesirables and make
the rest work under extremely harsh conditions
Many perished from starvation, disease, torture, or human experiments

An estimated 55
million people died
during the length of
WWII, 30 million of
them were civilians

Normandy American Cemetery

and Memorial

The Atom Bomb

Estimated 250,000 killed from either
the detonation or the aftereffects of
burns, radiation, or cancer

The Holocaust
Estimated 11 million killed, 6 million
of them were Polish citizens

(Click to move through the years)

Germany invades the

Soviet Union, breaking
their Nonaggression Pact.
Russia joins the Allies

(Hitler made a
Neutrality pact
with Stalin)

1939
1940
1941
1943
1942
1944
1945

The US launches the Doolittle

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of the Coral Sea (a double loss)
against Japan in the Pacific

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