World War II Part 2

WWI vs WWII Tanks, ships, and airplanes Bombs Larger area moved quickly from battle to battle Bombs larger faster planes that could destroy whole cities Larger area almost ½ the world 2 fronts: Europe & Africa and the Pacific

Why Africa? Germany and Italy were there. Allies needed to gain control of North Africa to gain control of the Mediterranean Sea. If they controlled this sea, they could invade Italy.

Taking Italy Several things helped the Allies take Italy: The Italian people were tired of war. Mussolini was hated by his people. As the Allies began taking over, Mussolini was arrested an put into prison. But… Hitler sent more Germany troops to fight in Italy and free Mussolini. It took almost another year to take Italy.

D-Day June 6, 1944 Largest water-to-land invasion in history Normandy, France Allies attacked German forces there Effects: Many died. Success! Allies broke through German lines and began pushing them back. The war now turned in favor of the Allies. Allies began forcing Germany out of conquered countries.

VE Day Axis Powers had lost control in Europe. Allies were closing in on Berlin, Germany’s capital. Mussolini had been captured and killed. Hitler had killed himself. April 12th- Roosevelt dies and Harry Truman becomes the next U.S. president. May 2nd- Berlin is taken by the Allies. May 8th, 1945- The Allies accept Germany’s surrender…Victory in Europe!

The Holocaust As Allies marched across Europe, they freed people in the Nazis’ concentration camps. The largest group was the Jews. Hitler began killing people in concentration camps – “final solution” or mass murder of Jews and “undesirables”. More than 6 million had been killed from 1941 to 1945.

Why? Religious beliefs Political beliefs Race Disabled or ill and could not work “undesirable”- Those Hitler did not desire.

New Technology Antiaircraft guns- special cannons that could shoot large, exploding bullets to hit planes Radar- helped find planes and ships at night, bad weather, or long distances Two-way radios- helped soldiers communicate during battle Medicines- penicillin, sulfa, and DDT

Next target: Japan War was over in Europe, not in the Pacific. Japan had to be defeated, and by 1942 they were winning. 2 battles turned this around: Battle of the Coral Sea: kept Japan from taking Australia Battle of Midway: Island close to Hawaii that would have given Japan a base close enough to launch attack on U.S. Allies won because the U.S. was able to break the Japanese codes with help from Navaho Code Talkers!

Taking Japan Japan was now on the run! Allies began “island hopping” as they pushed them back to Japan. Allies also took back the Philippines which had belonged to the U.S. before the war. This left the southernmost island of Japan unprotected. Iwo Jima: The site of the first major battle of WWII on Japanese homeland. U.S. needed this island for planes and bombers to land/take of while attacking Japan. It was thought that many Japanese soldiers there had been killed during the bombings and that it would be an quick victory. It was not!

Iwo Jima The Japanese had dug tunnels and hiding places all over the island. It took 36 days for the U.S. to take control of the island. Many lives were lost (>25k American Marines and almost all of the 21K Japanese soldiers that were defending it).

Atom or “Atomic” Bomb Albert Einstein’s letter to President Roosevelt in 1939 warned of Germany’s plans to build a new kind of bomb. Explosion made from splitting atoms. It had the force of more than 18,000 tons of dynamite. It had massive explosion, blinding flash, and cloud of smoke that looked like a mushroom. U.S. formed a group of secret scientists to build this type of bomb before Germany. It was called the “Manhattan Project” and was tested in the New Mexico desert.

Hiroshima and Nagasaki July 1945: Allies send Japan a message to surrender or bombing would continue. Japan did not surrender. Truman wanted a quick end to the war and to save American lives. August 6th: 1st atomic bomb was dropped on Japanese city of Hiroshima. More than 70,000 were killed and city destroyed. August 9th: 2nd atomic bomb dropped on city of Nagasaki

VJ Day August 15th, 1945: Japan agrees to surrender and the fighting stops. Victory over Japan is celebrated! September 2nd, 1945: Japan signs surrender papers and WWII is officially over! The Allies win!

The United Nations (UN) During WWII, Allied leaders wanted to establish an international organization to help keep peace in the future. President Roosevelt felt strongly about getting countries together to settle their differences peacefully. He suggested the name. He worked hard to get this started in 1941 and 1942.

The United Nations 1944: A meeting was held in Washington, D.C. to work out the purpose and structure of the UN. 1945: Representatives from 50 countries created the United Nations charter in San Francisco, CA. 1949-1950: The UN headquarters was built in New York City.

United Nations Established Goals: Maintain world peace If fighting breaks out, the UN may be asked to step in to stop it. It may help work out conflicts to prevent future fighting. It seeks out causes of war and works to eliminate them. Maintain human rights It helps provide relief (food, medicine and shelter). It often works with the American Red Cross.

Europe after the War Much of Europe and Asia were destroyed. Germany was divided into Eastern and Western Germany. Eastern Germany was controlled by the Soviet Union. Western Germany was controlled by the Allies. The U.S. offered help to rebuild Europe.

Asia After the War The U.S. and Allies remained in Japan and took control until they recovered from the war. The U.S. and Soviet Union divided Korea until there was a free election for the country. That never happened. China was still in a civil war between the nationalist and communists. The communists won and the nationalists left.

War Crimes After the war, leaders from Germany and Japan were put on trial for war crimes and crimes against humanity. Holocaust Terrible treatment/torture of prisoners of war Many of these leaders were executed for their crimes.