world war 2 vocab quiz

Rape of Nanjing

Japanese attack on Chinese capital from 1937-1938 when Japanese aggressorts slaughtered 100,000 civilians and raped thousands of women in order to gain control of China.

September 3, 1939

Britain and France declare war on Germany

Munich Conference

1938 conference at which European leaders attempted to appease Hitler by turning over the Sudetenland to him in exchange for promise that Germany would not expand Germany's territory any further

Appeasement

Accepting demands in order to avoid conflict

Nazi-Soviet Nonaggression Pact

Agreement between Hitler and Stalin that said they would both invade Poland and not attack one another

Blitzkrieg

"Lighting war", typed of fast-moving warfare used by German forces against Poland in 1939

"Phony War"

Period of time after the German invasion of Poland that included little military operation in Europe

Neutrality Acts

4 laws passed in the late 1930s that were designed to keep the US out of international incidents

Cash and Carry

Policy adopted by the United States in 1939 to preserve neutrality while aiding the Allies. Britain and France could buy goods from the United States if they paid in full and transported them.

Lend-Lease Act

Allowed sales or loans of war materials to any country whose defense the president deems vital to the defense of the U.S

Atlantic Charter

Declaration of principles issued by Winston Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt in August 1941

December 7, 1941

Attack on Pearl Harbor

Axis Powers

Germany, Italy, Japan

Allied Powers

Britain, France, United States, Russia (Soviet Union)

Holocaust

A methodical plan orchestrated by Hitler to ensure German supremacy. It called for the elimination of Jews, non-conformists, homosexuals, non-Aryans, and mentally and physically disabled.

Anti-Semitism

Hatred of Jews

Final Solution

Hitler's program of systematically killing the entire Jewish people

Operation Barbarossa

Hitler's plan to invade the Soviet Union

Operation Overlord

The code name for the Allied invasion of Europe at Normandy on June 6, 1944; also known as D-Day

Casablanca Conference

A wartime conference held at Casablanca, Morocco that was attended by de Gaulle, Churchill, and FDR. The Allies demanded the unconditional surrender of the axis, agreed to aid the Soviets, agreed on the invasion Italy, and the joint leadership of the Free French by De Gaulle and Giraud.

Yalta Conference

1945 Meeting with US president FDR, British Prime Minister(PM) Winston Churchill, and and Soviet Leader Stalin during WWII to plan for post-war

V-E Day

May 8, 1945; victory in Europe Day when the Germans surrendered

Bataan Death March

Japanese forced about 60,000 of americans and philippines to march 100 miles with little food and water, most died or were killed on the way

Kamikaze

Japanese suicide pilots who loaded their planes with explosives and crashed them into American ships.

Island Hopping

A military strategy used during World War II that involved selectively attacking specific enemy-held islands and bypassing others

Manhattan Project

A secret U.S. project for the construction of the atomic bomb.

V-J Day

"Victory over Japan day" is the celebration of the Surrender of Japan, which was initially announced on August 15, 1945

United Nations

An international organization formed after WWII to promote international peace, security, and cooperation.

Nuremberg Trials

A series of court proceedings held in Nuremberg, Germany, after World War II, in which Nazi leaders were tried for aggression, violations of the rules of war, and crimes against humanity.