European Theatre ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How were the United States and its Allies able to achieve victory in WWII?

TEKS and Objectives We will… I will… (7B) evaluate the domestic and international leadership of FDR during WWII (7D) analyze major issues of WWII (7E) analyze major event of WWII (7F) evaluate the military contributions of WWII leaders (26F) discuss importance of Congressional Medal of Honor recipients Summarize the United States contributions to WWII on the European front

The War in Europe German success Battle of Britain Soviet Union Hitler in control of most of Europe and North Africa Battle of Britain British able to stop German invasion Soviet Union Hitler violated non-aggression pack Invasion of Soviet Union was a huge disaster Soviet Union switched sides

Who fought in World War II? Allied Powers (2 Words) Axis Powers (JIG) United States Franklin D. Roosevelt (President) Great Britain Winston Churchill (Prime Minister) Soviet Union Joseph Stalin (Dictator) Japan Hideki Tojo (General) Italy Benito Mussolini (Dictator) Germany Adolf Hitler (Dictator)

The Campaign in Africa and Italy General George Patton Senior officer of the U.S. Army Had participated in expedition against Pancho Villa Served in WWI under Pershing American Third Army Regiment under Patton’s command Soldiers must have a “killer instinct” High survival rates Very successful in the war

Allies Invade France and Germany D-Day (June 6, 1944) 156,000 Allied troops under General Dwight Eisenhower Landed on five beaches on the coast of France at Normandy Omar Bradley Lead the first American army into France Paris liberated in August

Battle of the Bulge – December 1944 Last German Offensive Allied troops defeated Germans U.S., British, and French invaded Germany from the west Soviets invaded from the east Germans surrender (May 1945) Soviets captured Berlin Hitler committed suicide

Congressional Medal of Honor Recipient Vernon Baker African-American soldier Slipped through mine fields, barbed wire, and German defenses Single-handedly removed 3 machine gun nests, 2 observation posts, and 2 bunkers Awarded Congressional Medal of Honor 52 years later by President Clinton for heroism in WWII

The Holocaust Genocide “Final Solution” Concentration Camps An effort to murder and entire people or nationality “Final Solution” Hitler’s plan was to exterminate all European Jews Concentration Camps Built across Europe Most Jews killed with poison gas Bodies burned in large ovens Concentration camps liberated by Allied forces