War for Europe and North Africa - Part II

6. What was D-Day?
D-Day, June 6th, 1944, was the Allied invasion of Normandy, France. It was the largest land-sea-air operation in army history.

7. What happened at the Battle of the Bulge?
At the Batlte of the Bulge, Hitler made his last stand. He sent a huge force in an attempt to split up the U.S. and Great Britain, disrupt their supplies, and hurt their morale. In the end, the Germans were just pushed back, and they suffered great losses. After that, they could only retreat.

8. What did Allied troops find in Germany?

Allied troops found the gruesome death camps in Germany, and were horrified by the sight.

9. What happened to Hitler? What happened to F.D. Roosevelt? Who became U.S. President?

Hitler, seeing the end, shot himself while his wife swallowed poison. Then, following his orders, the Nazis soaked the bodies in gasoline and burned them. FDR had a stroke and died on April 12, 1945, vice president Harry S. Truman took over as president.

War for Europe & North Africa

1. To what did Roosevelt and Churchill agree early in the war?
Roosevelt and Churchill agreed to form an alliance and attack Hitler before Japan, because Germany was a greater threat

2. Why was winning the Battle of the Atlantic so crucial to the fortunes of the Allies?
The Battle of the Atlantic was very important because if Germany won it, and cut off American supplies to Britain, then Germany would have starved Britain into submission and defeated it.

3. Why was the Battle of Stalingrad so important?
The Soviets endured the near loss, but when winter came they fought back, and won the battle. It was very important because it was the turning point of the war, when the Allies started to gain the upper hand.

4. What happened in the war in North Africa?

In North Africa, Stalin pressured the Allies to open another front. So about 107,000 men, led by Dwight D. Eisenhower, battles the Afrika Korps, and eventually they were victorious.

5. What happened after the Allies invaded Italy?

After the Allies invaded Italy, the Italian army fell in Sicily, and the Allies forced Mussolini to give up his position, and he was arrested. Then Germany attempted to stop their invasion and attacked them in Italy in the battle called "Bloody Anzio."

Mobilizing for WWII

Read Chapter 25-1: Mobilizing for War and note how each of the following contributed to that effort.

1. Selective Service System

Expanded the draft to increase the size of the army by an additional 10 million

2. Women

Women's Auxiliary Army Corps (WAAC)- passed May 15, 1942- allowed women to serve in non-combat positions in the military

3. Minorities

About 300.000 Mexican Americans enlisted

About 1 million African Americans enlisted

13.000 Chinese Americans

33,000 Japanese Americans

Some 25,000 Native Americans

4. Manufacturers

Stopped manufacturing personal vehicles, and began making only war vehicles

Other factories converted to making war supplies

By the end of 1942, Henry J. Kaiser had built 7 massive shipyards to build ships for the military

5. Office of Scientific Research and Development (OSRD)

Developed new technology to be used in warfare

Developed technology in radar and sonar

Secretly developed the atomic bomb

6 Entertainment industry

7. Office of Price Administration (OPA)

Fought inflation by freezing prices and wages

Increased and expanded income taxes to lower demand by leaving workers less to spend

8. War Production Board (WPB)

Decided which companies would convert to wartime production

Allocated raw materials to industries

Organized drives for cans, paper, rags, and cooking fat to be recycled into manufacturing war materials

9. Rationing

Made life tougher for the civilians, but gave supplies to the soldiers in the war

Japan and U.S. Relations in 1941

Japan and U.S. Relations in 1941

Document A

• If Japan were to move South and take Southern territory in Asia, it would be able to conquer China
• the defeat of China would deal a blow to America's economy
• after taking China, they could then take the Soviet Union
• they planned to help Germany defeat England, and then America

Document B

• The U.S.leaders are studying the Pacific Situation
• Japan is just represented by a tiny bald guy labeled Tojo running in circles around them
• The three just glance at him, but he is no threat to them

Document C

• The United States was too stubborn and unfair to Japan
• Japan refused to negotiate with the U.S.
• Japan doesn't want to reveal to America that they are breaking off the negotiations

Document D

• Japan must continue acting militarily to serve its emperor
• they are on the verge of success and failure
• to satisfy the emperor, Japan must achieve military victory and defeat its enemies

Document E

• Japan has deceived the United States
• they were at peace, making negotiations, when Japan suddenly ended the negotiations and bombed Pearl Harbor
• the attack had obviously been planned days of even weeks ahead
• Japan had deliberately tricked the United States by pretending they were negotiating peace, when truly they were planning an attack
• Roosevelt requested that Congress declare war on Japan

"Isolationism" and FDR (1935 - 1941)

1. What were the goals of the isolationists? Why is "isolationism" a misleading term?

2. What did some isolationists feel that there was no need for Americans to feel threatened by developments in Europe and Asia?

3. What were the purposes of the Nye Committee hearings?
The Nye Committee hearings' purposes were to find out why the U.S. was dragged into the first World War.

4. List two impressions that the Nye Committee hearings created.

One impression that the Nye Committee hearings had created were that Wilson was convinced by businesses that would make a profit off of war to enter World War I. Another is that the bankers and munition-makers were guilty of profiteering, or getting an excess of profit for a necessary product.

5. What were the purposes of the Neutrality Acts?

The purposes of the Neutrality Acts were keep the U.S. out of the war and prevent it from suffering from it.

6. List two reasons that some Americans considered Roosevelt's leadership radical and dangerous.
Some Americans considered Roosevelt's leadership radical and dangerous because he gave the government more power in the economy, and people believed he was giving too much power and involvement to the government. Also, his attempt to "pack" the supreme court angered many people and severely hurt his reputation. Finally, he decided to run for a third term, which no president had ever attempted, and people thought he was over-powerful and dangerous as a president.

7. What was "Cash and Carry"?
"Cash and Carry" allowed the sale of war materials to the warring countries, but it required the countries to pay cash and to pick up the goods themselves instead of have them shipped.

8. Why did President Roosevelt freeze Japanese assets in the United States?

FDR froze Japanese assets in the U.S. because it was spreading through Asia, taking land everywhere. Roosevelt stopped trade with them, and stopped selling them crucial supplies. So Japan occupied French Indochina, where they could get those resources for themselves. Because of that, FDR froze Japanese assets in the U.S.

9. What was the purpose of the America First Committee?

The America First Committee dedicated itself to keeping the United States out of war, so its purpose was to do just that.