Ch. 3 - US Enters WWII
MODERN WORLD HISTORY NOTES
Chapter 3 : U.S. Enters World War II (1941 - 1941)
1. Emperor Hirohito-
-Japanese Emperor who opposed take over of Manchuria and entrance into W.W.II
-powerless after the military took control of government
-influenced the decision to surrender in 1945
-remained as Japan’s Emperor following the war
2. Hideki Tojo-
-prime minister of Japan during World War II
-leading advocate of Japanese military conquest
-approved the attack against U.S.
-became respected with early victories
-forced to resign in 1944
-arrested as a war criminal, found guilty by the International Military Tribunal and was hanged
3. Yamamoto Isoroku-
-in charge of the Japanese attack at Pearl Harbor
-held that Japan would have to destroy the U.S. fleet before its planned conquests could be completed
-chief of Pacific operations until the Allies shot down his plane on Apr. 18, 1943
4. Pearl Harbor, Hawaii-
-Japanese attack on U.S. Pacific Fleet on December 7, 1941
-attack brought the U.S. into WW II
-nearly all US war ships and air craft were destroyed and 2,400 Americans killed
-few loses to the Japanese
-U.S. aircraft carriers were elsewhere on maneuvers
-American losses were rebuilt and returned to fighting, with the exception of the U.S.S. Arizona
5. Franklin Roosevelt-
-President of the United States during World War II
-proclaimed America to be Britain’s “Arsenal of Democracy”
-gave famous “Yesterday, December 7th, a day which will live in infamy” speech to Congress after Pearl Harbor
-died less than a month before the end of the war
The War Continues in Russia and Africa
6. Battle of Stalingrad-
-a critical Soviet victory that reversed Germany's advance to the east
-Hitler wanted to cut off Volga supply route and take over Asia oil supplies
-bitter “house to house” fighting that destroyed the city
-costly to both sides, Soviet losses were 750,000 troops, whereas Germany and its allies lost 850,000
7. Erwin Romme-
-German field marshal assigned to North Africa to lead the German Africa Corps
-became known as the Desert Fox
-transferred to France to defend the coast against Allied invasion in 1943
-participated in the attempted overthrow of Hitler
-given the choice of suicide or execution as a traitor
8. Bernard Montgomery-
-British army commander
-led Dunkirk evacuation, victory at El Alamein led British in D-Day invasion
-argued with Eisenhower over invasion
9. Battle of El Alamein-
-the final battle in Egypt between the British (Montgomery) and Germany (Rommel)
-after a 5-hour, thousand-gun artillery barrage, British troops marched in and took the city
-first German defeat consider a turning points of the war
-30,000 Axis soldiers taken prisoner
-it saved the Suez Canal and North Africa landing sites for the Allies
The War in Europe
10. Dwight D. Eisenhower-
-commander of American forces in North Africa and Italy
-supreme commander of D-Day invasion
-Germany was driven from France in 10 weeks
-shared command during Battle of Bulge
11. Operation Overlord-
-code name for the allied plan for a cross channel assault on German held France
-Normandy was the selected site
-preparations for the invasion took two months
-the largest and most powerful invasion force in history
-British intelligence indicated that Germans believed the landing was at the Channel’s narrowest point
12. D-Day-
-June 6, 1944
-postponed due to the tide and weather conditions
-began previous night by dropping paratroopers behind enemy lines, some in gliders
-at daylight, 5,000 ships, 11,000 aircraft and more than 150,000 troops attacked the beaches of Normandy, France
13. Battle of the Bulge-
-also called the Battle of the Ardennes
-Germany's last major attempt to turn back the Allied invasion of Europe
-German drove a wedge (the Bulge) into Allied lines through the Ardennes on the France-Belgian border
-the German advance was stopped by U.S. troops under Gen. George Patton
-snowstorms and cold weather contributed to the heavy casualties on both sides
14. George Patton-
-his nickname was ”Old Blood and Guts”
-began WW II in Africa then transferred to Italy and later to Europe
-he was outspoken and opinionated which got him in trouble
-relieved of duty prior to D-Day (which made him angry)
-stopped Germans advance during the Battle of Bulge
-led the U.S. 3ed Army into Germany
-angry when told he would not be allowed to take Berlin
-died in auto accident the day before he was to return to the U.S. following the war
15. Yalta Conference-
-Feb. 4-11, 1945
-meeting between Churchill, Roosevelt, and Stalin
-designed to plan final months of the war and organization of the postwar world
-agreed to create United Nations
-negotiated for territories liberated by the allies
16. V-E Day-
-victory in Europe May 8, 1945
The Holocaust (pp. 801-803)
17. New Order-
-Hitler’s plan for Europe after Germany conquered the continent
-Germany’s master race would be in control, inferior races would serve them and/or be exterminated
18. Nuremberg Laws-
-developed at Nazi Party Rally in 1935
-basis for Nazi’s anti-Semitic discrimination
-defined who was a Jew
-prohibited marriage or other relations between Jews and non-Jews
-did not allow German’s work for Jews
19. Kristallnacht-
-"night of broken glass" Nov. 9-10, 1938
-a minor German diplomat in Paris, was killed by a German Jew
-many Jewish homes and businesses were destroyed
-storm troopers burned 267 synagogues and arrested 20,000 people
20. Heinrich Himmler-
-head of the German SS (Gestapo)
-his soldiers were in charge of the capture, confinement, and death of Jews and other dissidents
-captured trying to escape Germany after the war and committed suicide
21. Warsaw Ghetto-
-in 1940 the German conquerors of Poland had confined more than 400,000 Jews in the crowded Warsaw Ghetto
-many Jews died from starvation and disease, 300,000 more were sent away to concentration camps
-when Jews fought back, German soldiers set the area on fire killing all those remaining there
22. Concentration Camps-
-forced labor camps where Jews and others were forced to make war munitions were made
-terrible conditions, torture, disease, and starvation killed thousands held in these camps
23. Wanness Conference-
-Nazi officials determine the fate of prisoners held in German concentration camps
-thousands of prisoners were moved to extermination camps as a result
24. Final Solution-
-Hitler’s order, early in 1941 to exterminate all Jews
-German concentration camps were turned into death camps
25. Death Camps-
-gas chambers were used to kill large numbers and crematories used to burn the bodies
-the worse of the death included Dachau, Flossenburg, Buchenwald but the worse were Auschwitz and Treblinka
26. Holocaust-
-Nazi genocide of the 1930’s and 40’s
-Hitler’s massacre of 5-7 million Jews and others during World War II
27. Anne Frank-
-young Jewish girl who kept a diary while hiding from Nazi persecution in the Netherlands
-she and her family lived in a secret apartment in Amsterdam for two years before being discovered
-she died in a German concentration camp
Aftermath of War (pp. 280-284)
44. Occupied Germany-
-Britain, France, United States, and the Soviet Union military forces all remained in Germany after the war
-political problems began to develop between the Soviet Union and the other nations
-because of that, no formal peace agreement was ever reached with Germany
45. War Crimes-
-violations of international law
-includes crimes against peace and against humanity
-crimes against the civilian population
46. Nuremberg Trial-
-an international military court of allied nations to put on trial Axis leaders for war crimes
-trials took place from November 1945 to October 1946 in Nuremberg, Germany
-first trial included 22 German Nazi leaders (12 sentenced to death, 3 given life sentences, 4 twenty years, 3 acquitted
-twelve subsequent trials were held for other lesser offenders
47. Herman Goering-
-leading member of the Nazi military
-designated by Hitler to be his successor
-convicted of war crimes at Nuremberg and sentenced to death
-committed suicide just hours before he was to be hanged
48. Rudolf Hess-
-with Hitler during the Munich Putsch
-transcribed most of Hitler’s writings in Mein Kampf
-third in command of the Nazi party during the war
-flew to Scotland to try and secure a peace for Germany
-tried at Nuremberg and sentenced to life in prison
-committed suicide at Spandau prison in 1987 at age 93