Waging Global War

World War II

Key Questions

1. How did the American people and government respond to the international crises of the 1930’s?

2. What are the major phases of WWII?

Early Stages ofWar Axis Victories Allied Victories

Beginning of theBattle of Britain

Aug 1940

Germany invades PolandSept 1, 1939

UK & France declare waron GermanySept 3, 1939

Japan attacks PearlHarbor

Dec 7, 1941 Yalta ConferenceFeb 4-11, 1945

1939 1940 19421941 1943 1944 1945

German-Soviet Pact of

Non-AgressionAug 23, 1939

Beginning ofGerman

offensive inthe West

May 10, 1940

German ArmyInvasion of

RussiaJune 22, 1941

Ally invasionin Algeria and

Morocco

Allied invasionof South of

FranceAug 15, 1944

Battle ofStalingrad

Feb 2, 1943

AlliedInvasion ofNormandy

June 6, 1944

Atom Bombdropped onHiroshima

Aug 6, 1945

Germanysurrenders

May 7-8, 1945

Japansurrenders

Sept 2,1945

I. Timeline: major phases of World War II

The Expansion of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy in Europe 1939-1942

Liberation of Europe by the Allies 1942-1945

American Mood: No More War• Concerned with rising fascism but

determined not to be pulled into another war

• Viewed involvement in WWI as a mistake

• Congress passes the Neutrality Acts 1935-1937

Neutrality Acts 1935, 1936, 1937

• If there’s a war, restrictions automatically take effect

• Americans could not: – sail on belligerent country’s ships,– sell weapons– lend money (regardless if aggressor or victim nations)

Hesitant Responses to the Fascist Challenge

Stage 1: Axis VictoriesA. Axis offensives in Europe

1938-1939 The Gathering Storm

• 1939 Hitler seizes the remainder of Czechoslovakia

• Threatens to attack Poland• Signs Nazi-Soviet non-aggression pact– ensures Russian neutrality during German

invasion of Poland in exchange for territory in Finland & Baltic states

• Americans grow alarmed, some push for more active American role– FDR agrees but not Congress

War Begins – Hitler’s Belligerency and US’s Neutrality

• September 1, 1939 - Hitler invades Poland–WWII begins

• Britain and France in need of weapons

• US passes Neutrality Act 1939– European democracies can buy weapons

on a Cash & Carry basis– US is no longer truly neutral

Axis Victories continued• France and Great Britain declare war

on Germany but no combat until spring

• After victory Poland, Nazi Germany attacks Northern and Western Europe (April 1940)

• Blitzkrieg (lightning war) enables quick victories over Norway, Denmark, Netherlands, Belgium

The Fall of France• June 1940, France falls

to Hitler• Armistice signed June

22nd

• Demarcation line between Occupied France (north) and “Free” France (south under Vichy)

• England stands alone in Europe

• US begins building its military

• September 6, 1940– 1st Peace-time

conscription law passed in the U.S.

Marshal Petain, head of the French state established at the spa town of Vichy, shaking hands with Hitler.

Charles de Gaulle accompanies King George VI in an inspection of Free French troops, summer 1940.

The English Campaign• August 1940 Germany bombs

England in preparation for an invasion (The Blitz)

• Hitler’s systemic bombing fails to overcome British resistance led by Winston Churchill

• Hitler renounces a land invasion

Bolstering Britain with the Destroyer Deal (1940)

• “Fortress of America” or Help to Britain?• Committee to Defend America– Favors aiding allies (Weapons, money, etc.)

• America First Committee– Against American involvement

• September 1940, Roosevelt gives UK ships from WWI in return for bases

• Most Americans favored any aid necessary, short of war

• Video: London Blitz & US Isolationism

Congress passes the Lend Lease Act

• What was it?– March, 1941– Send supplies to victims of aggression– “Billions not bodies”– FDR: like lending a neighbor a garden hoseVideo: Lend lease, The Roosevelts

• Seen as an economic declaration of war• Officially marked the end of neutrality– Germany begins sinking US ships

B. The War goes Global• Conflict extends to the

Mediterranean• Axis powers attempt to cut off UK

access to Suez Canal and oil supplies in Middle East to isolate India

• Axis push UK out of Egypt• Germans take Yugoslavia & Greece in

April 1941

Hitler’s Assault on the Soviet Union

• June 22, 1941 - Operation Barbarossa

The Russian counterattack of December used troops trained and equipped to operate in the sub-zero conditions. German commanders were badly shaken, and Hitler assumed personal command of the army, ordering his men to hold on regardless of cost.

Other Russian Tactics included:• Destroying all resources (burning crops, etc) while

retreating• Dismantling and transporting factories East as

retreated• Trained Partisan groups prepared to enter fighting

Atlantic Charter– Roosevelt and Churchill meet• Stalin not invited

– Outline goals for postwar world– No territorial changes– New League of Nations

Video: Atlantic Charter The Roosevelts

US Destroyers and Hitler’s U-Boat Clash

• July 1941, FDR decides US ships will escort Lend-Lease supplies to Iceland– Roosevelt orders a “shoot on sight”

policy• November 1941–Merchant ships can be legally armed

Surprise Assault on Pearl Harbor

• Late 1940-1941– US enacts embargoes on Japan and

seizes assets in the US• December 7, 1941– “A day that will live in infamy”– 3,000 casualties

• Video: Pearl Harbor The Roosevelts

Stage 2: The Turning Point of the War (1942-1943)

A. Turning Tide in the Pacific & N. Africa• 1942 most of Europe dominated by Nazi

Germany• Pacific front, 1st allied victory – Battle of Midway

June 5 & 6th, 1942• Egypt – Battle of El-Alamein (Nov)• Allies invade North Africa under Gen Eisenhower• Americans take hold of Morocco & Algeria• forces Germans troops to surrender• CFLN created in Algiers led by Gen de Gaulle– French Gov’t in exile

B. USSR• Stalingrad under Nazi control since

1942• Under Soviet resistance, Germans

surrender in Feb 1943• Soviets take ½ million prisoners• Outcome of battle of Stalingrad

decisive turning point• Russians begin their counter-attack

westward

Stage 3 Ally Victories1944-1945

A. Victory in Europe– Allied invasion of Sicily July 10, 1943• Opens new front in southern Europe• Leads to fall of Mussolini July 24, 1943

– Liberation of Europe on 2 fronts• Operation Overlord Normandy invasion• Debarcation in Provence Aug 15• Paris liberated Aug 25• Allied forces cross the Rhine in March 1945

Operation Overlord – The Normandy Invasion

D-Day, the Allied invasion of France on June 6, 1944, was the largest amphibious operation in history.

August 26, 1944 France is Liberated, Charles de Gaulle triumphant

• Soviets progress through Eastern Europe

• Take over territories controlled by Nazis

• April 26, 1945, two armies meet• Soviets capture Berlin April 30th

– Hitler commits suicide• Germany surrenders unconditionally

to allies in Berlin May 8, 1945

VE Day

B. War drags out in Asia• 1944-1945 American forces take

back the Pacific islands occupied by the Japanese– Salomon Islands, Mariana Islands,

Philippines, Iwo Jima, Okinawa• Fierce resistance by the Japanese to

surrender– Emperor Hirohito + kamikazes rather

sacrifice their lives than give up

VJ Day• President Truman decides to drop the

atom bomb – Hiroshima August 6th, 1945– Nagasaki August 9th, 1945

• Japan finally surrenders September 2, 1945

Atomic Bomb• Consequences of the bombs– Hundreds of thousands of casualties from

explosion and from related injuries– As many or more die later from radiation

• US justification for using the bomb on Japan?– To save American lives (prevent a mainland

invasion)– To show US power to Soviet Union– Revenge for Pearl Harbor– Belief that Japanese would fight to the last

man

Interactive Map of Key Military Stages in Europe of WWII

Questions for Review Part I1. Describe the progression of the German

armies in Europe between 1939 and 1941

2. What events in 1941 modify who has the upper hand in the war?

3. In what ways are the years 42-43 the pivotal years of the war?

4. What strategies enable the allies to come out of the war victorious in 1945?

HOMEWORKReading Material

Mastering Modern World HistoryPart I. War and International Relations

Chapter 6 The Second World War, 1939-1945 (pp. 89-120)