1. Warm Up – January 7 Answer the following questions on a post it:
What battles are considered turning points in the European and Pacific Theaters? Why are these battles considered turning points?
What is the name of the strategy used in the Pacific Theater by the United States?
Why did the United States think invading Japan would be so difficult?
What was the name given to the project to develop the atomic bombs?

2. Atomic Bomb Debate Activity
1 – you are arguing FOR dropping the atomic bombs
2 – you are arguing AGAINST dropping the atomic bombs

3. Atomic Bomb Debate Activity
Everyone open up a new slide and title it “The opposing argument” Beginning with the “1’s” – go thru each of your reasons – explain the argument behind each one to your partner – while the 1’s are explaining their side – the “2’s” should type the reasons down on this slide Once the 1’s are done, the 2’s will explain their side while the 1’s type the reasons

4. Atomic Bomb Debate Activity
Everyone open up another new slide and title it “What I think” You now have both sides of the argument, write one paragraph where you tell me which side you are on and give three reasons to support your argument

5. The End of World War II and Origins of the Cold War
World History
The End of World War II and Origins of the Cold War

6. Yalta Conference
Feb Yalta Conference – Big Three (FDR, Churchill, Stalin) met in USSR to discuss Germany’s fate when they lost
Joseph Stalin – harsh approach, separate Germany into zones occupied by Allied troops
Prime Minister Winston Churchill disagreed
President FDR acted as mediator
Wanted Soviet army to join in the Pacific
Wanted Stalin’s support of new world peace-keeping organization called the United Nations.

7. Yalta Conference Compromises at Yalta
Division of Germany into 4 temporary zones (US, GB, USSR, France)
Free and unfettered elections in Poland and other Soviet occupied eastern European countries
Stalin joined war against Japan and agreed to participate in an international peace conference in the US (form the UN)

8. Nuremburg War Trials
Discovery of death camps  24 Nazi leaders on trial for…
crimes against humanity – murder, extermination, deportation, or enslavement of citizens
crimes against peace – planning/waging an aggressive war
war crimes – acts against the customs of warfare, such as the killing of hostages and prisoners, the plundering of private property, and the destruction of towns and cities.
Nuremburg Trials ( )
Defendants (the accused): Hitler’s most trusted party officials, gov’t ministers, military leaders, and powerful industrialists
Prosecution led by US Chief Justice Robert Jackson

9. Nuremberg War Trials
12 of 24 sentenced to death (2 committed suicide before execution), most remaining sentenced to prison time
Later, 200 lesser leaders found guilty of war crimes
Many Nazis did go free  some argue the Nuremburg Trials didn’t go far enough in finding and prosecuting Nazis
IMPACT – established the principle that people are responsible for their own actions during war
“following orders” is not an excuse
Model for the Declaration of Human Rights and eventual establishment of the International Criminal Court (ICC)

10. World War II Lasting Impact
World War II is the deadliest military conflict in history
60 million lives were lost (3 % of the world’s population)
Allies would divide and occupy Germany as they attempted to not repeat the failure of the Treaty of Versailles
European countries would be devastated economically as countries would be destroyed by the effects of the war
The United States and Soviet Union would emerge as superpowers following the war and would now oppose each other in the conflict known as the Cold War

11. Former Allies Clash USSR US
Communist dictatorship – state controlled all property and economic activity
Stalin established a totalitarian government with no opposing parties
Stalin resented the western Allies for waiting so long to attack Germany directly
Frustrated that the US kept the atomic bomb development secret US
Capitalism – private citizens controlled almost all economic activity
POTUS and Congress elected by the people from opposing parties
Furious Stalin supported Hitler for a period of time

12. The United Nations
April 25, 1945 – 50 nations met in San Francisco, CA to establish new peace keeping body  June 26, 1945 – United Nations charter signed
Intended to keep peace, but US and USSR used it as a forum to spread influence over others
UN has four goals:
To keep peace throughout the world;
To develop friendly relations among nations;
To help nations work together to improve the lives of poor people, to conquer hunger, disease and illiteracy, and to encourage respect for each other’s rights and freedoms;
To be a center for harmonizing the actions of nations to achieve these goals.

13. The Potsdam Conference
July 1945 – Big Three (US, USSR, Britain) met at final wartime conference in Potsdam, Germany
4 things had changed since Yalta Conference in Feb 1945
USSR occupied eastern Europe
New British Prime Minister - Attlee
New POTUS – Truman
US tested atomic bomb
USSR prevented free elections in Poland (violation of Yalta Conference compromises)  Truman angered
Spread of democracy/self-determination in eastern Europe halted
Hard to sell US goods to eastern European countries

14. Stalin and Eastern Europe
USSR felt justified in dominating eastern Europe
Huge war deaths (20M), many civilians
Physical destruction caused by warfare
Wanted to stop future invasions
Stalin set up communist gov’ts in Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Romania, Yugoslavia, and Poland  satellite nations (countries dominated by USSR)
1946 – Stalin gives speech
Communism and capitalism incompatible
Another war inevitable

15. Goals: US vs. USSR US USSR Self-determination for all nations
Gain access to raw materials and markets for industries (unrestricted trade)
Rebuild European countries and economies  stability and new markets
Reunite Germany and ensure productivity
USSR
Encourage communism
Rebuild economy using satellite nations’ raw materials
Control eastern Europe to balance US influence in western Europe
Keep Germany divided to prevent future threats

16. Containment and the Iron Curtain
Time to stop “babying the Soviets” – Truman
Feb 1946 – policy of containment – taking measures to prevent any extension of communist rule to other countries
West Europe vs. East Europe = “iron curtain”

17. Cold War
Cold War – conflict between the US and USSR between in which neither nation directly confronted the other on a battlefield

18. TOD – January 7
Answer the following questions on the same sheet of paper as the warm up:
1. What was the purpose of the Yalta Conference?
2. How was Germany going to be divided following World War II?
3. What were the Nuremburg Trials? What defense could no longer be used as a result of these trials?
4. What effects did World War II have on European countries?
5. What did the United States and the Soviet Union emerge as following the war? Why?