Causes of WWII

• The rise of dictators in Europe and Asia, the Great Depression, and the Treaty of Versailles contributed to the start of WWII.
• The Treaty of Versailles created a negative perception of Germany by imposing war guilt and reparations, causing economic instability and tension.
• The Great Depression led to extreme situations, fostering extremist ideals.
• The Soviet Union was established in 1917.
• Italy, under Benito Mussolini, became fascist in 1919.
• Joseph Stalin became the dictator of communist Russia in 1926.
• Adolf Hitler, a Nazi, used fear and intimidation to gain power in 1933.
• Hitler promoted an Aryan ideal for the German people.
• Japan was described as a military dictatorship with Emperor Hirohito and Prime Minister/Army General Tojo.
• In 1935, the U.S. passed the Neutrality Act, making it illegal to sell war supplies to countries at war.
• President Roosevelt supported internationalism, believing trade promotes prosperity and prevents war.
• Hitler violated the Treaty of Versailles by building up his army and remilitarizing the Rhineland in 1936.
• In 1938, Hitler invaded Austria, proclaiming unification with Germany.
• Hitler planned to invade Czechoslovakia (Sudetenland).
• The British and French held the Munich Conference, adopting a policy of appeasement.
• In March 1939, Hitler invaded Czechoslovakia.
• Hitler demanded Poland.
• Britain and France threatened war if Hitler invaded Poland, ending appeasement.
• On August 23, 1939, Germany and the Soviet Union signed a nonaggression treaty to invade and divide Poland.
• On September 1, 1939, Germany and the Soviet Union invaded Poland.
• On September 3, 1939, Britain and France declared war on Germany, starting WWII.

War

• Germany used Blitzkrieg tactics to attack and defeat Poland.
• The Sitzkrieg ("Phony War") was a period of waiting between September and April.
• On April 9, 1940, Germany invaded Norway and Denmark, bypassing the Maginot Line in France.
• Germany also invaded Luxembourg, Belgium, and the Netherlands.
• France surrendered to Germany on June 22, 1940.
• Britain continued to fight under Prime Minister Winston Churchill.
• On June 4, 1940, Churchill delivered a speech to rally the British and call for U.S. aid.
• The Battle of Britain was an air battle between the British and the German Luftwaffe, which the British won.
• The U.S. supplied Britain during the Battle of Britain.
• The Axis Powers were Italy, Germany, and Japan.

U.S. Response

• Roosevelt declared neutrality but aided Britain and China.
• The Neutrality Act of 1939 allowed the sale of weapons to countries at war on a cash and carry basis.
• The Destroyers for Bases deal of 1940 sent 50 destroyers to Britain in exchange for U.S. access to British-controlled island bases.
• The Lend-Lease Act of 1941 allowed the U.S. to lend or lease arms to countries vital to U.S. protection.
• Roosevelt won a third term in 1940.
• In June 1941, Hitler violated the Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact by invading the Soviet Union.
• In August 1941, Britain and the U.S. agreed to the Atlantic Charter, promoting democracy, nonaggression, free trade, economic development, and freedom of the seas.
• Germany resumed unrestricted submarine warfare, leading Roosevelt to establish a "shoot on sight" policy.
• The U.S. imposed the Export Control Act restricting the sale of strategic materials to Japan, including fuel and scrap iron.
• Japan invaded British colonies in Southeast Asia.
• Roosevelt froze Japanese assets in the U.S. and reduced oil shipments to Japan.
• General MacArthur was sent to the Philippines to build up American defenses.
• On December 7, 1941, Japan bombed Pearl Harbor, killing 2,403.

Mobilizing for War

• The U.S. was economically and militarily prepared for the war.
• The cost-plus system paid companies manufacturing costs plus a percentage of profit.
• The Reconstruction Finance Corporation provided loans to companies converting to war production.
• Major American corporations switched to war production, including the automobile industry.
• Assembly lines were used to make bombers and Liberty ships.
• The War Production Board set priorities and production goals to control the distribution of raw materials.
• The Office of War Mobilization settled disputes between agencies.
• The Selective Service and Training Act was the first peacetime draft in American history.
• The Double V Campaign encouraged African Americans to fight for victory over racism abroad and at home.
• The Tuskegee Airmen were African American pilots who trained and fought in the war.
• Chester Nimitz commanded the Pacific Navy.
• The U.S. was unable to stop the Japanese advance initially and Japan attacked the Philippines.
• General MacArthur retreated his troops to the Bataan Peninsula (Bataan Death March).
• Roosevelt evacuated MacArthur to Australia.
• The Battle of Midway was a turning point in the Pacific war; it was the last American base in the North Pacific.
• U.S. codebreakers broke the Japanese Navy's secret code.
• The battle stopped Japanese advance and put them on the defensive.

European Theater

• A second front was established in North Africa in July 1942.
• General Dwight D. Eisenhower was the overall commander of American troops in North Africa.
• The Battle of Kasserine Pass resulted in an American loss.
• General George Patton led troops to capture Casablanca in Morocco.
• German forces in North Africa surrendered on May 13, 1943.
• The U.S. Navy set up a convoy system to counter Germany's unrestricted submarine warfare.
• American shipyards produced more ships than German submarines due to mass production.

Eastern Front

• Hitler's attempt to destroy the Soviet economy led to the Battle of Stalingrad.
• Hitler invaded the Soviet Union in winter, leading to his forces being trapped.
• The Battle of Stalingrad became the turning point for the Western European front.

Life on the Homefront

• Women worked in factories.
• Citizens participated in rationing, recycling, buying e-bonds, and planting victory gardens.
• Government took more direct control of the economy to ensure efficient production.
• The Office of Price Administration regulated wages and prices on farm products.
• The Office of Economic Administration regulated other prices.
• The War Labor Board worked to prevent strikes.

Social Tragedies

• Japanese Americans were sent to internment camps.
• The West Coast was declared a military zone allowing the government to remove people.
• Korematsu v. United States (1944) addressed the legality of internment.
• The Holocaust involved the killing of more than 6 million Jews.
• The Nuremberg Laws of 1935 took away citizenship and banned marriage between Jews and Germans.
• Kristallnacht involved violence against Jews and Jewish property.
• The Wannsee Conference resulted in the "Final Solution" to exterminate Jews in concentration camps.

Pushing Back the Axis

• The Casablanca Conference involved Churchill and Roosevelt deciding on unconditional surrender ideals.
• Allied forces attacked the Axis powers in Sicily.
• Eisenhower commanded the invasion, with Patton and British Montgomery in charge of ground forces.
• Mussolini was arrested, and King Victor Emmanuel was reinstated.
• Italy surrendered on September 8, 1943.
• Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin had the Tehran Conference in Iran to discuss dividing Germany.
• The Soviet Union agreed to help the U.S. defeat Japan.

Liberating France

• The Invasion of Normandy was codenamed Operation Overlord.
• Eisenhower was the commander of the invasion.
• Success was achieved through surprise, including a fake surprise in Pas de Calais.
• D-Day occurred on June 6, 1944.

Post War Planning

• Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin met at the Yalta Conference to decide postwar Europe.
• Germany was divided into 4 zones.
• Stalin promised free elections in Eastern Europe.
• The Soviets would join the Pacific Front.

War Ends In Europe

• The Battle of the Bulge was Hitler’s last offensive.
• Hitler killed himself.
• Grand Admiral Karl Doenitz surrendered unconditionally.
• May 8, 1945, was V-E Day (Victory in Europe).

Pacific Campaign

• Island hopping was a key tactic.
• General MacArthur led the invasion to retake the Philippines.
• The Battle of Leyte Gulf was the first time Americans encountered kamikaze pilots.
• Roosevelt died, and Truman became president.

Surrender of Japan

• The Battle of Iwo Jima was a strategic island for bombings.
• The Battle of Okinawa provided a place to stockpile supplies and build up troops.
• The Manhattan Project was the code name for the atomic bomb.
• On August 6, 1945, the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima.
• On August 9, 1945, the Soviet Union declared war on Japan, and the U.S. dropped a second bomb on Nagasaki.
• August 15, 1945, was V-J Day (Victory in Japan).