1. Allied Victory in World War II

2. Terms and People
D-Day − June 6, 1944, the day Allied forces invaded France bringing them closer to Berlin, Germany; also forced Germans to fight the war on two fronts
Battle of the Bulge − German counterattack that failed, resulting in an Allied victory; Germany used up all its reserves and demoralized its troops in the battle.
Harry S. Truman − President during the end of World War II; decided to use the atomic bomb against Japan
island hopping − American strategy of capturing selected islands in the Pacific in a steady path to Japan

3. Terms and People (continued)
kamikaze − Japanese pilots who deliberately crashed their planes into American ships
Albert Einstein − world-famous scientist who alerted Roosevelt of the need to develop atomic weapons
Manhattan Project − code name for the program to develop an atomic bomb
J. Robert Oppenheimer − key leader of the Manhattan Project

4. How did the Allies defeat the Axis Powers?
It took years of hard fighting to reverse Axis advances and move toward victory in World War II.
A new weapon finally ended the war, changing both warfare and global politics forever.

5. In 1943, Allied leaders met in Teheran, Iran where Roosevelt and Churchill agreed to open a second front by attacking Germany on the Western Front.
American and British troops would cross the English Channel and invade France.
The secret operation was code-named Operation Overlord.
General Dwight D. Eisenhower was the mission’s commander.

6. Operation Overlord was a massive operation.
It required careful planning and involved an elaborate hoax to fool the enemy about where troops would land. Hitler fell for it.
On D-Day, June 6, 1944, the Allies landed at Normandy at 6:30am.
22,000 planes attempted to destroy German communication and transportation networks and soften the beach defenses.

7. Amid intense fighting, the Allies captured the beaches.
Within a month, more than one million troops landed in France.

8. The Allies seized the momentum.
Germany faced a two front war
Soviet soldiers were coming from the east
Mile by mile, Germany lost the lands it had once dominated and
the natural resources it had once plundered.
The Americans and British advanced from the west, liberating Paris in August 1944.
The Soviets advanced from the east, liberating Latvia, Romania, Slovakia, and Hungary.

9. In December 1944, Hitler launched a counterattack, creating a bulge in the American lines.
Allied troops were spread about between the English Channel and the Alps
Hitler order English speaking German troops in US uniforms to cut telephone lines, change road signs, and spread confusion; helping Germans secure communication and transportation hubs.
After reinforcements arrived, the Americans pushed back, forcing a German retreat during the Battle of the Bulge; crippling Germany by using its reserves as well as demoralizing its troops.

10. The Allies soon surrounded Berlin, preparing for an all-out assault on Hitler’s capital
In April 1945, Hitler committed suicide. Germany surrendered on May 7, FDR didn’t see it happen as he died a few weeks earlier. New president: Harry Truman
Hitler had fallen into madness,
Shaken by tremors, paranoid from drugs, and kept alive by made dreams of final victory, he gave orders that were not obeyed and planning attacks that were not carried out.
With the German surrender, the Allies celebrated V-E Day, hailing their hard-fought victory in Europe.

11. World War II in Europe, 1942–1945

12. War still raged in the Pacific, where the Allies were fighting their way toward Japan.
Battles during the American island-hopping campaign were fierce, with high casualties on both sides.
Kamikazes crashed into American ships.
As American forces approached Japan, Japanese troops fought to the death rather than surrender.
An intense bombing campaign leveled much of Tokyo. Still, Japan refused to surrender.

13. American Forces Near Japan
- Iwo Jima – Feb & March 1945
5 mile long island- 650 miles SE of Tokya, US marines fought for 36 days/23,000 killed – but they took the island from Japan
Okinawa – April 1945 – deadlier
340 miles from Japan
Vital air base- necessary for invasion of Japan
Complex & costly – 500,000 troops, 1213 warships – 50,000 casualties
American bombers hit factories, military bases, and cities
One single raid – March 1945 – 83,000 Japanese deaths and 100,000 injuries destruction of 16 square miles of Tokyo

14. Something had to be done.
The program was code-named the Manhattan Project. It was led by J. Robert Oppenheimer.
Early in the war, Albert Einstein convinced FDR of the need to develop an atomic bomb.
The bomb was successfully tested in July 1945.
Now it was up to Truman to decide if and when to use it. 14

15. The Japanese refused to surrender.
An invasion of Japan could cost up to 1,000,000 American lives.
Truman’s chief priority was to save American lives.

16. On August 15, Emperor Hirohito surrendered.
On August 6, 1945, U.S. pilots dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima at 8:15am. Within 2 minutes more than 60,000 of the 334,000 people were missing or dead.
August 9th:
Soviet Union declared war on Japan and invaded Manchuria
America dropped a second bomb on Nagasaki.
On August 15, Emperor Hirohito surrendered. 16

17. The Allies celebrated V-J Day, marking victory in Japan on August 15, 1945.
The most costly war in history was finally over.
Over 60,000,000 deaths – mostly civilians died.