1. The Aftermath of World War II
* US History

2. After the smoke cleared...
Deaths related to World War II are staggering
Allies
US – 420,000
UK – 450,000
Soviet Union – 28,000,000
Axis
German – 9,000,000
Italy – 454,000
Japan – 3,100,000
Total – 60 – 80 million (4% world population)

3. Destruction Across the Continent
Much of Europe is decimated
The cost of the war is incalculable
Much of the world is involved in the war in some way
The Allies (The US) now has to deal with what to do next.
The US is left virtually unimpacted by the war
We are poised to become the lone world superpower
How do we help Europe?

4. The Spread of the Soviet Union
As the Soviet Union advanced west they began to annex (take over) lands
They installed communist governments to fill the vacuum left by Germany.
The Soviet invasion of Germany was problematic for the Allies
The Allies finally settled on a division of the region that represented each nation
These divisions set the stage for the Cold War to come

5. The GIs Return Home
Millions of American men served in WWII in both Europe and Asia
The end of the wars was a time of euphoria in America
Soldiers were nicknamed “G.I.s”
Meaning “Government Issue”
These were young men most less than 25 years old
The US wanted to provide for them
The Bonus Army scandal was only 13 years previous

6. The GI Bill
The government created a law popularly called the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act or “GI Bill”
Provided for returning veterans
College tuition assistance
Mortgage assistance
This law did two things for GIs
Allowed them to get a college education (rare at the time)
Afford to start a family

7. The Baby Boom After World War II the US experienced a baby boom
By the end of the 1940’s 32 million babies were born in the US.
24 million in the 1930’s
This has a huge rippling impact throughout the rest of the 20th century
Many of your grandparents are part of this generation

8. The US is Impacted The GIs come home to start families (Baby Boom)
They buy new homes (Housing Boom)
New cities, the suburbs (City Boom)
New highways to connect us (Infrastructure Boom)
New schools for all those kids (Education Boom)
The US is fundamentally transformed in the post- war years

9. The United States the Superpower
Most of Europe is devastated by the war
Industries are destroyed
Million killed
The US is left as one of the few functioning economic powers and certainly the strongest
The US experiences a period of unrivaled power that stretched into this century.