Victory in Europe and the Pacific
Chapter 14
Section 4
End of WWII
In Europe, World War II officially ended on May 8, 1945, or V-E Day (Victory Europe Day)
The Allies were able to defeat the Axis powers for many reasons
Because of their location, the Axis powers had to
fight on several fronts at the same time
Hitler also made some poor military decisions
Example: Hitler underestimated the Soviet Union’s ability to fight
War Ends in Europe
End of WWII
The huge productive capacity of the United States was another factor
At the same time, Allied bombing hindered German production and caused oil to become scarce which
nearly grounded the Luftwaffe (German Air Force)
War in the Pacific
Although Germany was defeated, the Allies still had to defeat the Japanese in the Pacific
By May 1942, the Japanese had gained control of the Philippines, killing thousands of prisoners during the
Bataan Death March
However, after the battles of Midway and the Coral Sea, the United States took the offensive
General Douglas MacArthur began an island-hopping” campaign to recapture islands from the
Japanese
Pacific War
Bataan Death March
The Bataan Death March began at Mariveles on April 10, 1942. Any troops who fell behind were executed. Japanese troops beat soldiers randomly, and denied the POWs food and water for many days. One of their tortures was known as the sun treatment. The Philippines in April is very hot. Therefore, the POWs were forced to sit in the sun without any shade, helmets, or water. Anyone who dared ask for water was executed. On the rare occasion they were given any food, it was only a handful of contaminated rice.When the prisoners were allowed to sleep for a few hours at night, they were packed into enclosures so tight that they couldbarely move. Those who lived collapsed on the dead bodies of their comrades. For only a brief part of the march would POWs bepacked into railroad cars and allowed to ride. Those who did notdie in the suffocating boxcars were forced to march about seven more miles until they reached their camp. It took the POWs over a week to reach their destination.
Route of Bataan
Death March
Bataan Death March
Bataan Death March
Execution of a Prisoner of War (POW)
War in the Pacific
The captured islands served as stepping stones to the next great objective—Japan
The Americans gradually moved north and were able to blockade Japan
Bombers pounded Japanese cities and industries
At the same time, the British pushed Japanese forces
back into the jungles of Burma and Malaya
Burma and Malaya
Jungle
B-29 Bomber
War in the Pacific
In early 1945, bloody battles on Iwo Jima and Okinawa showed that the Japanese would fight to the death rather than surrender
Some young Japanese became kamikaze pilots who
flew their planes purposefully into U.S. ships
Iwo Jima
Mount Suribachi on Iwo Jima
Iwo Jima
Okinawa
Kamikaze Pilots
A kamikaze Attacking USS Columbia
Kamikaze Crashing Into the USS Essex
Building the Atomic Bomb
While Allied military leaders planned to invade, scientists offered another way to end the war
They had conducted research, code-named the Manhattan Project, that led to the building of an
atomic bomb for the United States
The new U.S. President, Harry S. Truman, decided that dropping the bomb would save American lives
The Allies first issued a warning to the Japanese to surrender or face “utter and complete destruction”,
but the warning was ignored
Manhattan Project
President Harry S. Truman
Dropping the Bomb
On August 6, 1945, a U.S. plane dropped an atomic bomb on the city of Hiroshima, instantly killing more than 70,000 people
Many more died from radiation sickness
When the Japanese did not surrender, another bomb
was dropped on Nagasaki on August 9, 1945
The next day, Japan finally surrendered ending World War II
Hiroshima and 1agasaki
As many as 140,000 had died in Hiroshima by the bomb and its associated effects, with the estimate for Nagasaki roughly 74,000.
Atomic Bomb
Atomic Bomb Dropped on Hiroshima
“Little Boy”
Bomb Dropped on 1agasaki
“Fat Man”
Replicas of “Little Boy” and “Fat Man” in a
Museum
Injuries from Atomic Bomb
Powerpoint Questions (13 points)
1. On what date did World War II officially end? What is this day called? (2 points)
2. The Japanese killed thousands of prisoners in a long walk known as the ?
3. Identify the strategy to recapture islands occupied by
the Japanese.
4. Identify the two islands on which bloody battles were fought in early 1945. (2 points)
5. Define kamikaze.
Powerpoint Questions (13 points)
6. What was the name of the plan to build the first atomic bomb?
7. What event occurred on August 6, 1945?
8. What event occurred on August 9, 1945?
9. Identify the names of the two atomic bombs. (2 points)
10. Which President made the decision to drop the
atomic bombs?
The End