Victory in Europe and the Pacific Practice Flashcards

A set of vocabulary flashcards based on the lecture notes covering key figures, military strategies, and major events leading to the end of World War II in both the European and Pacific theaters.

Audie Murphy

An American hero who received more medals than any other American in World War II, including the Medal of Honor for his actions in January 1945.

Teheran Conference

The first face-to-face meeting between Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin in November 1943 where they agreed to open a second front in France.

Operation Overlord

The code name for the massive Allied invasion of France at Normandy.

Dwight D. Eisenhower

The American General who served as Supreme Commander of Allied Forces in Europe and planned the D-Day invasion.

D-Day

June 6, 1944, the day Allied forces hit German territory in Normandy across a 50-mile stretch of beaches.

Omaha

The code-named beach in Normandy where American forces faced the stiffest German opposition, including trenches, pillboxes, and heavy artillery.

Battle of the Bulge

A desperate German counterattack in December 1944 in the Ardennes that created a bulge in the American line but ultimately crippled Germany's reserves.

V-E Day

May 7, 1945, the day Germany surrendered in a French schoolhouse, celebrated as Victory in Europe Day.

Harry S. Truman

The U.S. President who succeeded Franklin D. Roosevelt and made the decision to use the atomic bomb against Japan.

island hopping

An American military strategy in the Pacific that involved capturing certain Japanese-held islands while ignoring others in a path toward Japan.

kamikaze

Japanese pilots who deliberately crashed their planes into American ships, with more than 3,000 dying by the end of the war.

Iwo Jima

A 5-mile-long island southeast of Tokyo where U.S. Marines fought for 36 days to take a dug-in enemy position in early 1945.

Okinawa

A deadly battle in April 1945 for a vital air base 340 miles from Japan, involving half a million troops and 1,213 warships.

Manhattan Project

The several billion dollar, code-named program established by FDR to develop the atomic bomb.

J. Robert Oppenheimer

The physicist who ran the scientific aspect of the Manhattan Project from the construction site in Los Alamos, New Mexico.

Albert Einstein

The world's most famous scientist who signed a letter alerting President Roosevelt to the necessity of proceeding with atomic development.

Hiroshima

The first Japanese city targeted with an atomic bomb on August 6, 1945, resulting in over 60,000 dead or missing within two minutes.

Nagasaki

The second Japanese city hit by an atomic bomb on August 9, 1945, which killed 35,000 residents.

V-J Day

August 15, 1945, the day the Allies celebrated Victory in Japan following Emperor Hirohito's decision to surrender.

Navajo Code Talkers

Navajo troops who used a code based on their own language to send critical radio messages during the Pacific island-hopping campaign.