1. The End of World War II

2. I. Important Dates to Remember…
Hitler is elected into office in 1933
Hitler passes the Nuremberg Laws in 1935, Nuremberg, Germany
He also stages rallies for the Nazi Party here
Anschluss between Austria and Germany, March 1938
Sudetenland is taken by Hitler, September 1938
Kristallnacht occurs on Nov. 9th & 10th 1938
Poland is attacked September 1, 1939
WWII officially begins
Wannsee Conference occurs in late 1941/ early 1942
Final Solution

3. I. Important Dates to Remember
December 7, 1941: Pearl Harbor is bombed
June 6, 1944: D-Day, Allied Forces storm Frances’ beaches
February 1945: Yalta Conference- how do we make the war end faster?
April 12th 1945: FDR dies from a stroke
April 30th 1945: Hitler commits suicide
May 8th 1945: VE Day

4. I. Important Dates to Remember…
August 6th 1945: Atomic bombing of Hiroshima
August 9th 1945: Atomic bombing of Nagasaki
August 15th 1945: VJ Day
Sept. 2nd 1945: Official surrender of the Japanese and the end of WWII!

5. II. Nuremberg Trials
Allied leaders believed that after learning about the Holocaust and other war crimes, the Axis leaders would be charged with “crimes against humanity”
Trials occurred between Nov & Oct. 1946
177 Germans and Austrians tried
142 found guilty
12 were sentenced to death
The United States, England, France and the Soviet Union all had legal representation for the trials

7. III. Tokyo Trials
These are trials that were led by the United States in Japan against the Japanese people
There were 3 classifications that you could be charged under
Class A: Crimes against Peace (25 people charged)
Class B: War Crimes
(5,700 people charged for both B & C)
Class C: Crimes against Humanity
Trial outcomes
984 condemned to death (only 920 executed)
475 received life sentences
2,944 received some prison sentences
1,018 were acquitted

9. IV. United Nations (UN)
International peace keeping body that would be more powerful than the League of Nations
50 nations joined in 1945
5 permanent members were the US, UK, France, Russia and China
Goes beyond peacekeeping
Preventing the outbreak of disease
Improving education
Protecting refugees
Helping nations develop economically
Currently there are 192 nations that participate in the UN, with only a handful of nations that don’t belong

11. V. The Cold War
“Peaceful” conflict from 1945 until 1991 between the United States and the Soviet Union, or any country that the Soviet Union and Communism befriended.
Communism vs. Democracy
Leads to many actual armed conflicts
Korean War
Vietnam War
Cuban conflicts in 1961, 1962
China
East Germany (Berlin Wall)

14. VI. Marshall Plan Massive aid package
The United States offered money to European countries in need to prevent them from becoming Communist states
Billions of dollars was funneled into Europe

15. VII. Truman Doctrine Policy of containment for communist nations
The basic goal is to NOT have any other countries accept Communism as a legitimate form of government
Truman gave a speech to Congress in 1947 that was basically named the “Truman Doctrine”

16. VIII. Fate of Germany Split in four pieces after the war Berlin Wall
Soviet Union, France, UK, US
East Germany (Communist)
West Germany (Democracy)
Berlin Wall
Literal wall used to separate the parts of the city
Put in place 1961 and torn down in 1991
Families were literally separated and could not be in contact with each other
Only 63 official deaths are recognized for those who attempted to climb the wall

19. VIII. Fate of Germany
Stalin was upset with the success of Western Berlin (and West Germany)
Blockaded railroads that went into the Western portion
Hoped that he could starve the West out of Berlin
Berlin Airlift
Allied forces flew in food and fuel for a year to keep Western Germany functioning
Caused the increase in tensions during the Cold War

20. IX. New Alliance Systems
North Atlantic Treaty Organization
NATO
US, Canada and 9 other Atlantic nations agreed to protect each other if necessary
Warsaw Pact
Communist version of NATO
Soviet Union and 7 satellite nations agreed to protect each other if necessary

22. CFU: End of the War
Write both the question and your answer. You have 15 minutes to complete.
Which event causes WWII to start?
Which event causes the U.S. to enter WWII?
What is the name of the trials of the war criminals in Germany?
What is the name of the trials of the war criminals in Japan?
What is the United Nations?
What is the Cold War?
What is the Marshall Plan?
What was the goal of the Truman Doctrine?
What was the Berlin Wall?
What happened during the Berlin Airlift?
What was the purpose of NATO?
What was the purpose of the Warsaw Pact?