ww2 vocab

air raid precautions

• measures taken against air attack on British cities

• also the name of the gov. dept. in charge of air defense

allies

USA, Britain, & their allies in WW2

artillery

heavy guns

atomic bomb

powerful bomb that could destroy cities

used by USA against Japan in 1945

auschwitz

death camp where many thousands of Jews, gypsies, & other groups were murdered by Naxis from 1942-45

axis

Germany, italy, japan

barbarossa

codename for german invasion of ussr in 1941

battle of britain

campaign in 1940 to prevent german invasion of britain that involved the RAF, royal navy, & army

belsen

concentration camp in germany that was liberated by the british in 1945

blitz

heavy & frequent bombing raids carried out over british cities, ports, & industrial areas from 1940-41

blitzkrieg

“lighting war”

swift, sudden military attack using bomber aircraft to support fast moving tanks & motor vehicles

boycott

avoid, reject, blacklist

british expeditionary force (bef)

british forces which fought against the germans in france in 1940

camouflage

covering up weapons, building, troops, or equipment so that they are difficult to see

casualties

people killed and/or wounded in war

caucasus

region in ussr rich in oil

censorship

banning or deleting any info or value to the enemy

churchill, winston

british prime minister from 1940-45

civilian

people not belonging to the armed forces

cold war

state of political tension & military rivalry between nations that stops short of full-scale war, especially that which existed between the US and soviet union following WW2

collaborate

to work or cooperate with, usually referring to people who cooperated w/ forces who had taken over their countries

colossus

british machine designed to break secret german codes

commonwealth

countries that were formerly part of the british empire i.e. canada, new zealand

communism

political system that believes in the importance of the working classes & regards individual freedom as less important than the good of society as a whole

concentration camp

camps in germany used by the nazis to hold & torture their opponents

convoy

ship, fleet, or group of vehicles accompanied by a protecting escort

d-day

allied invasion of german held france in june 1944

de gaulle, charles

leader of the free french forces that were based in britain after the fall of france in 1940

death/extermination camp

camps for killing racial groups, especially jews, which the nazis considered to be inferior

democracy

system of government based on people voting for their leaders w/ a strong emphasis on the freedom of the individual

dowding, sir hugh

head of the royal air force

dunkirk

seaport in northern france

site of the evacuation of british forces from may 29-june 4, 1940

dysentery

serious illness usually caused by poor food or infected water supplies

enigma

machine used by german forces to turn their messages into code

supposed to be unbreakable but cracked by british intelligence

evacuation

withdrawal or removal of troops or civilians

fascism

used by political movement that ruled italy from 1922 to 1943 under benito mussolini

system of government that opposed individual freedom & democracy, is anti-communist, & favors extreme nationalism

fifth column

people willing to cooperate w/ the enemy against their own country

final solution

nazi plan to kill entire jewish population in europe dating from spring 1942

fock-wulf

type of german aircraft

free french

french forces who did not surrender to germans in 1940 & escaped to britain

george cross

medal for individual acts of outstanding bravery carried out by civilians

gestapo

german secret police

ghetto

poor section of a city that is inhabited by people mainly of the same race, religion, or social background due to discrimination

goering, hermann

head of hte german air force & high-ranking nazi leader

himmler, heinrich

head of the ss

hitler adolf

leader of germany during ww2 & head of nazi party

holocaust

mass murder of around 6 million jews & other racial groups by the nazis in ww2

hurricane

british fighter plane

infiltrate

to move into an org, country, or territory secretly

internment

practice of detaining persons considered dangerous during a war

i.e. americans of japanese descent were held in internment camps in the us

iron curtain

phrase used by winston churchill to describe the division of europe after ww2 into communist east & non-communist wedst

juno

codename for one of the beaches in the d-day landings of 1944

also known as canadian beach as canadian forces used it

lebensraum

name given to hitler’s policy to provide extra “living space” for the german population by conquest of the lands of eastern europe & the ussr

lend lease

scheme introduced by FDR in 1941 to give britain military equipment in ww2 on very easy terms

logbook

book in which details of a trip made by a ship or aircraft are recorded

luftwaffe

german air force

maquis

french underground movement (Resistance) that fought the germans while they controlled france 1940-44

memorandum

official note or statement

messerschmitt

type of german aircraft

m15

military intelligence dept. 5

security service for the UK

has played a secret role over the past century in countering the activities of terrorists & spies

m16

military intelligence dept. 6

secret intelligence service

undertakes spy missions overseas

midway

decisive naval battle in 1942 in which the US destroyed several japanese aircraft carriers

ministry of information

british gov. dept. that controlled info & propaganda

montgomery, bernard

leading british general in ww2

morale

spirits, mood, of confidence of a person or group

mulberry harbor

artificial floating harbor built to supply the d-day landing forces in 1944

mussolini, benito

leader of italy in ww2 & head of italian fascist party

national government

british gov. made up of politicians from conservative, labor, & liberal parties

nazi party

ruling political party in Germany 1933-1945, headed by adolf hitler

nuremberg

german city famous for nazi rallies & chosen as the site for trials of nazi war criminals after ww2

omaha

codename for one of the beaches in d-day landings of 1944

operation dynamo

codename for the evacuation of british & french forces from dunkirk in 1940

operation PLUTO

Pipe-Lines Under The Ocean

plan to build undersea oil pipelines between britain & france to keep allied forces supplied w/ fuel after d-day landings in 1944

operation sea lion

codename for the planned invasion of britain by german forces in 1940-41

operation torch

codename for the british & US advance to drive German & Italian forces out of north africa

panzer

german tank

paratroopers

specially trained soldiers who could be dropped by parachute into enemy territory

pearl harbor

main US naval base attacked by japanese forces in dec 1941

potsdam

suburb of berlin

location for the conference between britain, US, & USSR towards end of WW2

pogrom

riot that is directed against a particular ethnic/religious group

usually involves destruction of homes, businesses, or religious centers

propaganda

spreading a particular message in order to influence public opinion

radar

“radio detection & ranging”

electronic system for detecting aircraft, ships, motor vehicles, or weather formations

RDF

radio directional finder

device for findgina the direction to a radio source

called radar after 1941 in britain

Red Army

army of USSR

officially renamed soviet army in 1946

refugee

person who seeks shelter especially in another country, from war, disaster, or persecution

resistance

describes underground forces who fought against german occupation of their countries in ww2

rommel, erwin

leading german commander

roosevelt, franklin delano

american president for almost all of ww2 who died in apr. 1945

royal air force (RAF)

british air force

royal navy (RN)

british navy

russia

largest republic in USSR

sabotage

deliberate action to weaken the enemy by destroying equipment in secret raids rather than open attacks

singapore

large british naval base in malaya

soviet

workers councils which gave their name to USSR

special operations executive (SOE)

special unit formed by British to carry out attacks on german-occupied europe in ww2

spitfire

british fighter plane

ss

huge org. in nazi germany which controlled many areas i.e. security, persecution of jews

had its own armed forces (Waffen-SS)

staff officer

officer responsible for planning & organizing campaigns

stalin, joseph

leader of USSR in WW2

stalingrad

large industrial city in southern USSR

key battleground w/ germany in 1942-43