2.  Roosevelt Dies  April 12, 1945 President Roosevelt dies unexpectedly from a cerebral hemorrhage.  Vice Pres. Harry S. Truman takes the oath of office.  Germany Crumbles  Even as allied troops advance into Germany, Hitter declares, “We shall never capitulate-never.”

5.  War in Europe Ends  On April 30th as Soviet tanks stood outside Berlin, Hitler commits suicide.  May 8, 1945 Germany surrendered, ending the war in Europe  Proclaimed V-E Day (Victory in Europe)

7.  Bataan Death March  May 1942 Japan takes control of Philippines  American & British soldiers forced to march 65 miles across Philippines  Major turning points  Coral Sea and Midway  Coral Sea is a “push” but stops Japan’s advancement in to Australia  Allies begin Island hoping after Midway to win back territory from the Japanese  Feb. 1945 Philippines were taken back by the Allies

8.  Iwo Jima  Feb. 1945, 750 Miles from Tokyo  After one month of fighting was also taken  Ryku Islands & Okinawa  took one month & 45,000 American lives  Invasion of Japan was now open  would involve huge casualties be a desperate struggle

9.  Atomic Bomb  Secret weapon: U.S. warns Japan to surrender or face “prompt and utter destruction”.  Japan refuses to surrender  August 6, 1945 U.S. drops bomb on Hiroshima (2/3 city was destroyed, 70,000+ killed, 40,000 injured seriously).  August 9, 1945 second bomb is dropped on Nagasaki (40,000 killed)  September 2, 1945 Japan signed for surrender.

11.  Alliance breaks apart  Differences grow between the Allies  Differences over reparations & fate of governments in E. Europe  Allies favor free elections  1948 pro-Soviet governments est. in E. Europe.  Stalin wants to spread communism & create a buffer  Cold War begins

12.  Establishing the United Nations  Established after the war to help keep peace among nations.  The Security Council has the power to apply sanctions or send peace-keepers to try to resolve disputes.  The UN has also worked to improve health and offer relief aid around the world

14.  Truman Doctrine  President Truman outlined a policy of resisting Soviet expansion  Gave Military and economic aid to countries fighting communism  Policy of “containment”  Marshall Plan  To help keep communism from taking hold in Western Europe, the U.S. sent billions of dollars in aid to help rebuild  Stalin declined aid for both U.S.S.R & E. Europe  NATO and the Warsaw Pact  Tensions grew over the split within Germany, and distrust fueled the establishment of two alliances: