1. The Pacific War

2. Mapping the Pacific War

3. By Dec 1941 Japan an Axis power had conquered or occupied Korea and Indochina
To gain more resources and rid the region of European imperialism – its focus was on destroying American, British, Dutch and Australian bases in Asia
Imperialism is empire building. Expansion occurs when one state is more powerful than are the obstacles to expansion. The obstacles may be other states or peoples, or they may be geographic or physical or technological obstacles.

6. YouTube Videos http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HAnOtWm5OrM – old shot
– modern
- Cartoon

7. Pearl Harbour

8. Why was Pearl Harbour attacked?
The Japanese saw the base as the pinnacle of America’s military supremacy in the Pacific Ocean. If a catastrophic blow could be struck against America at Pearl Harbour, then the Japanese surmised that America would pull out of the region leaving it free for the Japanese to continue their expansion in the Far East.

9. America….
The Americans saw Pearl Harbour as impenetrable. The naval station could only be approached by narrow waterways that were only 40 feet in depth, twisting and fully protected by anti-submarine nets. Such was the confidence of the naval command at Pearl Harbour, that the Pacific Fleet was lined up in what was known as "Battleship Row". This was to prove disastrous when a fleet of planes attacked the base as the pilots would have seen rows of warships in a line and would have only needed to have flown in a straight line over these lines to deliver their deadly payload.

10. Sun 7 Dec 1941
Waves of Japanese planes attacked the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii
The attack came as a complete surprise
Casualties included – 188 American aircraft and 19 warships together with 2500 American personnel who were killed
Attack was designed to destroy the US Pacific fleet (if not for the fact that the aircraft carriers were at sea it would have succeeded)

11. The attack was to bring the United States of America into World War Two.
Franklin D. Roosevelt the US President now had a strong reason to join the war and the American people supported him
Declaration of war on Japan was signed on 8 Dec 1941.

12. The destruction to the Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbour

13. Fortress Singapore Following its attack on Pearl Harbour
Japan continued its aggressive military action in the Asia – Pacific region
Became focused on Royal Australian Air Force base at Sungei Patani in Malaya’s north
Japanese planes swooped on the unsuspecting naval base destroying it within hours

14. Fall of Singapore By Feb 1942 Singapore had fallen
Some Australians were among the Allied troops who surrendered

15. QUIZ Questions What triggered America to join the war
Who was the American President at the time and who was the Australian Prime Minister?
Who were part of the allied forces and who were part of the axis powers?
America at War…again worksheet questions 1-4

16. Kokoda

17. Battle of Kokoda Trail
Japan captured many small but important Pacific islands and took tens of thousands of prisoners
More than 300 of the Australians captured on Amboina island were executed without cause

18. Japan wanted to capture Port Moresby in New Guinea (as a base from which to attack Australia)
They expected little resistance from the Australian force once landing at Buna and Gona on New Guinea’s north – there plan was to travel down the Kokoda trail
Australian losses were high and wounded soldiers were helped by local villages known as the ‘fuzzy wuzzy angels’

19. The period of fighting between the Japanese and Australian soldiers became known as the ‘Battle for Australia’
The Australian’s were exhausted but after extra troops returned from the Middle East to help - they started turning the Japanese back

20. Attack on home soil Fall of Singapore = scared Australians
Australia was now exposed
Feb – Darwin attacked – 243 people dead and hundred injured
(Darwin experienced 64 Japanese air attacks)
3 months later 3 midget submarines entered Sydney Harbour to attack the large naval and merchant fleet but this mission failed

21. Read text pg
Complete questions 1, 2, 3 on pg 83
Humanities Alive 4 students workbook page 27 attitudes and beliefs of Japan mind map.

22. Prisoners of War

23. 993 000 Australian men and women enlisted to fight during WWII
Nearly others were taken as prisoners of war
Australian’s taken as POWs in Europe had a reasonably good chance of survival
Most of the Australian POW who died in captivity were in Japanese POW camps

24. They died either from a lack of food or medical facilities
Or by being brutally punished overworked or executed
Many of those who did survive were left with lifelong physical and mental scars
Most Australians taken as POW by the Japanese were captured with the fall of Singapore
Changi prison in Singapore provided the main holding camp – from there groups were sent to other camps in Asia
The POW were forced to provide labour for the Japanese even if they were weakened by illness

25. The POW were forced to provide labour for the Japanese even if they were weakened by illness
Read text pg
Complete communicate questions 4 and 6 pg 85