U.S. History : Great Depression - End of WWII

Civilian conservation corps (CCC)

offered unemployed, young men, the opportunity to work under the direction of the US for system and other agencies, planting trees fighting for fires building, reservoirs and roads

Securities and Exchange Commission

regulates the stock market and stops fraud prevents people with inside information from rigging. The stock monitors if people are speculating or if they are rigging the stock market.

Social Security act

headed by Francis Perkins, old age insurance that gives you money and to retire aid to families with children and the disabled

FDIC

created to restore the public competence and banks by ensuring deposits up to $2500

Works progress administration (WPA)

this employed people to build hospital schools, airports, playgrounds, employed teachers, artists, writers, and actors

What were the main causes of the Great Depression

uneven distribution of income (top 5% on 30% of national income), installment plans, worry about paying off debt, less consuming, cuts in production laid off employees

installment plans

purchased small down payment and they paid remainder in installment plus interest

Speculation

bought stocks on the chance of quick profit ignored risks worked only if the stock prices were up

Buying on margin

paying a small percentage of the stock and borrowing the rest from banks or brokers

Who made up the axis powers

Germany, Italy, and Japan

What aggressive moves did Hitler make in the 1930s

announced claims to Sudetenland takes the rest of Czechoslovakia invaded Australia invaded Poland invaded Dunkirk

Munich conference

Hitler was given Sudetenland, but told he couldn’t take the rest of Czechoslovakia

Cash and carry

foreign nations could buy US arms so long as they paid with cash and transported them with their own ships

Lend lease act

allowed US to lend or lease weapon, weapons or other supplies to any country whose defense was vital to the US

Neutrality acts of 1935

outlawed, arms, sales, or loans to all nations at war

Who first declared war on Germany on September 3, 1939

Britain and France

Briefly described the fall of France

Germans use blitzkrieg battle at Dunkirk miracle anyone survived British civilians in Navy helped save the troops off the Shores northern France was indirect control of Hitler and southern France was in a puppet government

Significance of the battle of Britain

left waft attacked British ships in English channel cities like London were targeted royal. Air Force used radar to detect attacks, both sides, faced major losses, but Hitler was forced to give up.

Who was Charles de Gaulle

leader of the French resistance, fled France, but worked with allies to take it back, a part of the French resistance

Explain the non-aggression pact

a packed signed by Hitler installer that agreed not to fight one another, but they actually split Poland in half Hitler invaded Stalin’s part of Poland and the Soviet Union and Stalin was out for revenge

Atlantic charter

FDR and Churchill met to discuss a post war world of democracy with non-aggression, free trade, economic, advancements, and freedom of the seas,

Who did the Atlantic charter support and was the US at war yet

it supported anyone who fought against fascism in the US was not at war

When was Pearl Harbor

December 7, 1941

Selective service act

drafted soldiers to fight in the war

WAAC

army, chief of staff general George Marshall, pushed for the formation woman filled non-combat position, such as nurses ambulance drivers

Office of price administration (OPA)

for inflation by freezing prices on consumer goods raise an extended tax rates to millions encouraged Americans to buy war bonds

Rationing

established a fixed allotment for goods essential to the military citizens received ration books with coupons for these items

War production board (WPB)

ensure that the Armed Forces and war industries received the resources they needed

G.I. bill

provided education and training for veterans could send them to college and give them loans for homes, farms and businesses all funded by the federal government

Tuskegee airmen

and African-American unit who won honors distinction

Mexican-American contribution

300,000 served 17 were awarded congressional Medal of Honor

African-American contribution

1million served in segregated units and mostly non-combat roles

Native American contribution

the Navajo code talkers 20,000 served in war. Their language is not written and they even had to make up a new language for combat terms and it was never broken their code.

What was FDR in Churchill’s strategy for the European war

to attack the edges of the German empire before invading Europe. It helped troops get trained that continually got harder and to when you have to take it from the outside in.

Battle of Stalingrad

Hitler goes against the non-aggression packed, which was the turning point of the European war. The citizens in the city eventually ran out of food and had to resort to cannibalism.

Operation torch

the start of the push towards Berlin Erwin Rommel also known as the desert fox was a highly successful general in Africa general George Patton with the British was able to force North African German surrender

Casablanca conference

after your and Churchill met during the battle in North Africa, decided they will only accept unconditional surrender from the axis powers who wants to strike Italy, which is the soft underbelly, and American suggest a large European invasion

D-day is also known as as

operation overlord

D-Day

Tehran conference with Churchill FDR Stalin was the planning for it, led by General Dwight D Eisenhower on June 6, 1944 on Normandy France. It was the largest land air and sea battle in history.

Battle of the bulge

Hitler’s last counter attacked now it is a race to Berlin with the British and Americans coming from the west and the Soviets from the east

Dwight D Eisenhower

the commander of all forces in Europe led the D-Day attack

When was Germany defeated

May 8, 1945, also known as VE Day

What was decided at the Yalta conference

FDR, Churchill, and Stalin there, they wanted unconditional surrender a division of Germany into four zones, eastern European nations given free elections the Soviets promised involvement in the Pacific war and an establishment of the UN

The Doolittle raid

Lieutenant Colonel James Doolittle led 16 bombers to attack Tokyo in a pearl harbor style invasion

Battle of Coral Sea

stopped Japanese advanced towards Australia for the first time since Pearl Harbor all fighting done from planes on aircraft carriers

Battle of Midway

Americans launch a surprise attack on this island turning point because now the US is on offense US begin island hopping

Island hopping

taking over island strategically getting closer to Japan

Battle of Iwo Jima

a critical base from which Americans could attack mainland Japan, most heavily defended place on earth with only 20 Japanese surviving fire bombing

Fire bombing

using napalm, a gasoline to attack but controversial because fire spreads and affects civilians

Battle of Okinawa

last island needed before attacking mainland, bloodiest battle in the Pacific from the horrors of this battle. Americans realize the Japan would never unconditionally surrender.

Kamikaze

translated to divine wind they were suicide planes, where pilots purposely crashed into American ships being captured or giving up was worse than death

What was Truman’s justification for using the atomic bombs

he believed that the Japanese would never surrender, and in order to save American lives that would be lost in an invasion. He must strike Japan so severely that they would be forced to surrender.

Hiroshima

Enola Gay dropped little boy

Nagasaki

fat man was dropped

When and why did the Japanese surrender

August 10, 1945 Hirohito forces to surrender despite his advisor, wishing he didn’t

Define genocide

the systematic killing of a certain group

What was the result of the Nuremberg war trials

22 Nazi officials were tried for crimes against humanity 12 sent to death and the rest to prison later trials found 200 Nazis guilty of war crimes first time in history that a nations leaders were held legally responsible for their actions during war time