WORLD WAR II

CAUSES OF THE WAR

• EUROPE:– Harsh treatment of Germany after WWI– New alliances (fascist countries)– Hitler’s unification with Austria– Signing of the Nazi-Soviet Non-aggression

Pact– Germany’s invasion of Poland in 1939

CAUSES OF THE WAR CONTINUED

• ASIA:– Japan’s invasion of Manchuria– Clashes with China (war)– U.S. placed economic sanctions on Japan– Japan’s retaliation of U.S. sanctions by

attacking U.S. and European colonies in Southeast Asia

ALLIANCES

• AXIS POWERS: Germany (Hitler), Italy (Mussolini), Japan (Hirohito)

• ALLIED POWERS: Britain (Winston

Churchill), Soviet Union (Stalin), United States (F.D. Roosevelt)

FAMOUS QUOTES FromAllied Leaders:

• Franklin Roosevelt : “Yesterday, December 7, 1941, a date which will live in infamy – the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan.”

• Winston Churchill (British Prime Minister) – considered Italy the “soft underbelly” of Europe: “We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds in the fields, in the streets, and in the hills. We shall never surrender.”

THE COURSE OF THE WAR• EUROPE: 1939-1940

– 1939 – Invasion of Poland– Blitzkrieg (lightening war) using armored

columns and panzer units supported by airplanes

– April 1940 – Invasion of Denmark & Norway– May 1940 – Invasion of the Netherlands, Belgium, &

France– June 1940 – France signs armistice & 3/5 is occupied

by Germany– Britain appealed to the U.S. for help, but U.S.

maintained its neutrality– August 1940 – Battle of Britain (attack by German air

force the Luftwaffe)

cont. 1941-1943• June 1941 – Germany’s invasion of Soviet

Union

• German victories:– 1942 – Africa and the Crimea

• Allied victories:– 1943 – German and Italian troops surrender

in North Africa and Russia wins Battle of Stalingrad in Russia (defeated the German 6th Army)

– July 1943 – Battle of Kursk

Cont. 1944-1945• June 1944 - allies capture Tunisia and

Italy falls to allies• June 6 1944 – D-Day invasion of

Normandy• August 1944 – Paris is liberated by allies• March 1945 – allies advance into

Germany• April 1945 – Hitler commits suicide and

Mussolini is shot by Italian rebels• May 7, 1945 – Germany surrenders

THE COURSE OF THE WAR• ASIA:

– December 7, 1941 – the Japanese launched a surprise attack on the U.S. Pacific fleet at Pearl Harbor

– May 1942 - U.S. victory in the Battle of Coral Sea

– June 1942 – U.S. victory of Midway. This was the turning point of the war in the Pacific

RECLAIMING THE PACIFIC

– Fall of 1942 – dual operations:• McArthur takes Philippines, New Guinea and the

South Pacific• Joint Army, Navy, and Marines attack various

islands (island hopping) up to Japan, turning the tide after fighting in the Solomon Islands from Aug. to Nov.

End of the War

• August 6 & 14th of 1945 – atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki

• Decision was made by President Harry S. Truman in order to save thousands of American lives

RESULTS OF THE WAR

17 million died in battle

20 million civilians died

Holocaust (genocide of the Jews – Hitler’s final solution to the Jewish problem)

Large movements of people in the U.S.

Changing social roles

The Cold War