Daily Life During the War and the Allied Offensive

21.3 and 21.4

Regulating Wages and Prices

• The war made wages and prices rise– High demand for workers and resources

• FDR feared inflation would occur• Office of Economic Stabilization (OCES)-

regulated wages and farm products• Office of Price Administration (OPA)-

regulated all other prices• War Labor Board (WLB)- mediated wage

disputes to prevent strikes

Rationing• Limiting the purchasing of

goods and resources• Common items: meat,

sugar, gasoline, rubber, coffee, shoes

• Households given monthly ration books

• Blue coupons- needed them to buy processed foods

• Red coupons- controlled meats, fats, and oils

Other Civilian Contributions• Victory Gardens- – Citizens planted gardens to produce more food for

the war effort– Public and private lands everywhere turned into

gardens• Scrap Drives- – The military needed certain raw materials; aluminum,

tin, steel, rubber, fats, oils, etc.– People donated their household items that were

made of these materials– These drives involved the citizens and boosted their

morale

Footing the Bill• During the conflict, the

U.S. spent $300 billion• Taxes were increased but

not to the extent FDR wanted (only covered 45% of cost)

• War bonds– Most common was the E

bond—purchased for $18.75 and redeemed for $25 in 10 years

– Individuals ($50 billion) and financial institutions ($100 billion) bought them

The Allied Powers on the Offensive

• The Allies’ success in North Africa showed them an invasion by sea was possible

• Casablanca Conference (1943)- Churchill and FDR met in Casablanca, Morocco to discuss the next phase of the war

• They decided on two things:– Bomb Germany to destroy “the German military,

industrial, and economic system, and [undermine]…the morale of the German people.”

– Attack the Italian island of Sicily (the “soft underbelly”)

Bombing Germany

• The U.S. and Great Britain bombed Germany before the Casablanca Conference but increased the amount after it

• January 1943-May 1945: British and U.S. air forces dropped 53,000 tons of explosives on Germany every month

• Effects: – Caused severe oil shortage– Wrecked railroad system– Destroyed many German aircraft factories

Invading Sicily

• Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower commanded the attack

• Gen. George Patton (U.S.) and Gen. Bernard Montgomery (G.B.) headed ground forces

• Invaded on July 10, 1943 and Germans evacuated island by August 18

The Axis Response to Invasion

• King Victor Emmanuel of Italy deposed Mussolini and began negotiating the country’s surrender

• Germans take control of northern Italy and return Mussolini to power

• This the stage for brutal fighting between the Allies and the Axis Powers at Cassino and Anzio

• In May 1944, the Germans finally retreated but fighting in Italy continued

Tehran Conference• Before invasion of France, FDR

and Stalin wanted to meet• FDR, Stalin, and Churchill met in

Tehran, Iran in 1943• Several agreements reached:

– Stalin would launch full-scale offensive

– U.S. and U.S.S.R. would split Germany after the war

– U.S.S.R. would help U.S. against Japan once Germany defeated

– International peace-keeping organization after the war

Next Week

• On Monday, we will discuss D-Day