Reasons for World War II -Treaty of Versailles -Fascism -Failure of the League of Nations -Japanese imperialism -Economic problems worldwide depression

**Once Hitler realized he could not take Britain he focused on an attack on Russia. -invades Russia in 1941 -wins at first -underestimated the Russian winter -Germans lacked supplies and equipment to deal with the extreme cold **Eventually the Russians began to fight back and started to push the Germans back.

Cornelia Fort -Tennessean flight instructor in Hawaii -in the air when Japanese hit Pearl Harbor -flew military aircraft for the U.S. -died in a mid-air collision when another plane’s landing gear clipped her plane -first American woman to die on active military duty

Cordell Hull -Tennessean -longest serving Secretary of State (1933-1944) -helped establish the United Nations -Japanese ambassadors were waiting to meet with Hull as he gets news of Pearl Harbor attack.

Italy *Soon the Allies began to focus on Italy. -launched from the island of Sicily -Italian government removes Mussolini from power -Allies take the Italian mainland -Stalin gets angry that Allies first went to Italy instead of coming to help him fight against Hitler.

**While the German advance into Russia was slowed down, the Germans were able to take key cities in Soviet Union. *Stalingrad -one of Russia’s largest industrial cities -named after Stalin -one of the most brutal battles of the war -city bombed to rubble -Stalin refuses to surrender the city of his namesake -Russians eventually push back Germans

D-Day -June 6, 1944 -Allies land on shores of Normandy, France -lead by General Dwight B. Eisenhower -American and Allies forces met heavy resistance but pushed back German Army -The “D” doesn’t stand for anything

101st Airborne -Home station Fort Campbell, KY (near Clarksville, TN) -trained at Fort Bragg, NC then in England -first Americans to set foot in occupied France -paratroopers mark drop zones and landing zones -set up radio beacons to guide aircraft

Battle of the Bulge **After D-Day, Allied troops pushed from both the west and east towards Germany. -Hitler orders a last massive assault in Dec. 1944 -German advance creates a “bulge” in Allied lines

V-E Day **With the Soviets and Allied forces pushing on Germany from both sides, Hitler took his own life in a underground bunker in Berlin. **In April of 1945, Soviet and American troops met in Berlin. **Berlin and Germany surrendered that same day. **Finally in May of 1945 Germany officially surrender to the allies. May 8, 1945 was officially called V-E Day. (Victory in Europe Day)

Fighting in the Pacific **It was very difficult for the Allies in the Pacific at first -Japanese better equipped and fighting closer to home -Japanese force U.S. out of Philippines (Bataan Death march)

Battle of Midway **Midway island was a U.S. stronghold in the middle of the Pacific. -allies sank four Japanese carriers and severely weakened the Japanese navy -was turning point for war in Pacific

Iwo Jima **Although the allies had achieved victory in Europe there was still fighting in the Pacific. -regular bombing raids over Japan -America needed bases closer to Japan -Americans land of Iwo Jima (750 miles from Tokyo -Fighting on Iwo Jima was fierce and over 7,000 Americans and 20,000 Japanese died.

The Tuskegee airmen -first black servicemen to serve as military aviators in the U.S. armed forces -flew with distinction during World War II. -successes pave way for the integration of the U.S. armed forces under President Harry Truman in 1948.