IB WW2 European Theater

Anschluss

-Hitler invades Austria and unites it with Germany.

-Violation of the Treaty of Versailles

The Sudetenland & The Munich Conference

-Hitler wanted to annex the Sudetenland, a portion of

Czechoslovakia whose inhabitants were mostly

German-speaking. On September 29, Germany, Italy,

France, and Great Britain signed the Munich Pact,

which gave Germany the Sudetenland.

-British Prime Minister Chamberlain justified the fact

with the belief that appeasing Germany would prevent

war → Appeasement

Invasion of Czechoslovakia

Hitler invades the western portion of Czechoslovakia

and installs a puppet government in the eastern portion.

Kristallnacht

-“Night of Broken Glass”; beginning of Hitler’s Final

Solution and the Holocaust

Italy invades Albania

-Italian forces invade Albania (result of Mussolini’s

imperialist policies and a fear of being upstaged by

Hitler)

Non Aggression Pact/ Nazi Soviet Pact

-Germany and Russia agreed not to attack each other, which allowed Hitler to open up a second front in the West without worrying about defending against Russia. -Granted Western Poland to Germany, but allowed Russia to occupy Finland, Estonia, Latvia, and Eastern Poland. Hitler intended to break the pact.

Germany and Soviet Union invade Poland

-Following non-aggression treaty with Soviet Union,

German troops invade Poland. England and France

declare war on Germany.

-Soviets invade Poland, then the Baltic states & Finland

Phony War

Period of non-combat after declarations of war when

Britain and France mobilized for war against Germany

1939 Neutrality Act with Cash and Carry

-After a fierce debate in Congress, a final Neutrality Act passed. -This Act lifted the arms embargo and put all trade with belligerent nations under the terms of “cash-and-carry.” -The ban on loans remained in effect, and American ships were barred from transporting goods to belligerent ports

America First Committee

-Formed by die-hard isolationists, by Charles Lindbergh and Senator Gerald Nye

Germanys blitzkrieg takes western europe

-Denmark, Norway, Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, and France crushed by German offensive

Fall of France

Germany invaded France and set up the Vichy

government, which lasted until the Allies invaded in

1944.

Smith Act

Set criminal penalties for advocating the overthrow of the U.S. government and required all non-citizen adult residents to register with the government. Approximately 215 people were indicted under the legislation, including alleged communists & fascists.

Battle of Britain

-German bombers ruin British cities in attempt to obtain British surrender before U.S. entry. Britain’s breaking of German code & use of radar help overcome air attacks

Tripartite Pact

-Germany, Italy, and Japan sign a pact creating the

“Berlin-Rome-Tokyo Axis”

Destroyers for Bases Deal

-US agreed to “lend” its older WWI destroyers to Great Britain. Signaled the end of US neutrality in the war.

Selective Training & Service Act

-1st peacetime military draft in US history passed.

Registration of all men between 21 and 35 (later 18 &

64). Limit of 900,000 men in time of peace.

FDR Elected to 3rd Term

Franklin D. Roosevelt (Democrat) defeats Wendell

Willkie (Republican) (lost by almost 5 million votes).

The issue was the New Deal, about which there was a major debate.

Four Freedoms Speech

-FDR’s speech to Congress: Freedom of speech, religion, freedom from want, freedom from fear

Lend Lease Act

-Authorized the president to transfer, lend, or lease any article of defensive equipment to any government whose defense was deemed vital to the defense of the U.S. -Allowed the U.S. to send supplies and ammunition to the Allies without technically becoming a co-belligerent.-Act designed to help Britain who was running out of cash.

-Also extended to France, China, and USSR.

Operation Barbarossa

Germany breaks non-aggression pact and invades

USSR after failure of Battle of Britain.

-Germany begins two-front war with invasion of Russia.

-Germany fails to capture Leningrad (north), Moscow

(central), or Stalingrad (south)

-Turning point of WWII on the Eastern Front.

Atlantic Charter

-Document issued by FDR and Churchill during their secret meeting near Newfoundland. It had these 8 main principles:

1. Renunciation of territorial aggression

2. No territorial changes without the consent of the

peoples concerned

3. Restoration of sovereign rights and self-government

4. Access to raw materials for all nations

5. World economic cooperation

6. Freedom from want and fear

7. Freedom of the seas

8. Disarmament of aggressors

US undeclared naval warfare with germany

4 significant events:

1. In September, a German U-boat fired on US destroyer Greer

2. FDR ordered U.S. ships to fire on German subs “on sight”

3. US destroyer, Reuben James, sunk by Nazi sub killing Americans in October

4. Congress passes a bill allowing merchant ships to be armed and sail into belligerent ports

US Declares War on Germany and Italy

-Declaration made in response to those nations’

declarations of war against the US

Battle of the Atlantic

Sea battles over supply lines between the Allies &

Germany

War Powers Act

-Gave the president emergency authority to create new executive agencies and reorganize existing ones, establish control over trade, provide censorship, take property, establish ration controls to protect consumers’ interests and prevent inflation

Office of Price Administration (OPA

Government agency which successfully combated

inflation by fixing price ceilings on commodities and

introducing rationing programs during WWII.

War Productions Board (WPB)

-Converted factories from civilian to military

production. Manufacturing output tripled

US Home Front

1. Defense jobs begin to draw hundreds of thousands to West.

2. Price freezing and rationing go into effect as

mobilization increases.

3. 2nd Black Migration to industrial cities in the North.

4. Race riots occur throughout the war in 41 cities.

5. Women played an active role in the war effort. (ie.

Rosie the Riveter)

Fair Employment Practices Commission

In 1941, A. Philip Randolph, president of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, demanded the gov’t require companies receiving defense contracts to integrate the work forces.

-He planned a march on Washington, but it was cancelled in return for FDR creating this commission, which would investigate discrimination against blacks in war industries.

CORE

-Congress of Racial Equality (C.O.R.E.) established to implement aggressive tactics, such as sit-ins and demonstrations against discrimination.

FDRs Promise to Stalin

-FDR promises USSR diplomat that the US would create a second front in Europe by the end of the year. Why? USSR had been fighting Germany alone.

This will not be fulfilled until D-Day

North Africa Campaign

Huge Allied landing forces Germany to retreat to Tunisia, where they are surrounded by British and American forces

-Germans Surrender at Tunisia. Over 250,000 German and Italian troops are captured and Allies prepare to invade Sicily and Italy.

Casablanca Conference

-FDR and Churchill met to settle future strategy of the Allies following the success of the North African campaign. They decided to launch an attack on Italy through Sicily before initiating an invasion into France over the English Channel.

-Also announced that the war would continue until the “unconditional surrender” of all Axis enemies.

Stalingrad

-Germans surrender after fierce hand-to-hand fighting and huge casualties for each side

-Turning point in the war in the East: Germans lose the Eastern Front

Allies Invade Sicily

-In largest amphibious invasion in history, over 250,000 American and British troops land.

-Germans and Italians escape to maintain of Italy

Allies Invade Italy

Italy Surrenders. Although Italian troops quit fighting Allies, Germans continue in fierce fighting.

-Rome finally surrenders on June 4, 1944

Cairo Conference

-A meeting of Allied leaders Roosevelt, Churchill, and Chiang Kai-shek in Egypt to define the Allies’ goals with respect to the war against Japan; they announced their intention to seek Japan’s unconditional surrender and to strip Japan of all territory it had gained since WWI.

Tehran Conference

-FDR, Stalin, and Churchill (“the big three”) agreed to a second front in the west to relieve the Russians within 6 months.

-USSR pledged to enter the war against Japan when Germany was defeated

-An international organization for peace was planned (future United Nations)

D-Day Normandy Invasion

Largest amphibious attack. Led by Eisenhower, over a million troops (the largest invasion force in history) stormed the beaches at Normandy and began the process of re-taking France.

-The turning point of WWII.

-Allies use 4,600 ships to invade German-held France. Suffering heavy casualties, the Allies were able to retake Paris in August.

-Fulfills FDR’s obligation to Soviets of creating a second frontal attack on Germany

GI Bill of Rights

-Provided education, medical care, job training, unemployment pensions, compensation, and offered mortgage loans to male and female war veterans.

Dumbarton Oaks Conference

-(Washington Conversations on International Peace and Security Organization)

-Representative of the US, USSR, UK, and China formulated a plan to create the United Nations (UN):

-Every nation would be represented in the General Assembly.

-5 permanent members (US, USSR, UK, China, and France) would be the Security Council (SC), along with temporary delegates from other nations.

-Each major power could veto SC decisions*These agreements were the basis for the drafting of the UN charter at a conference of 50 nations in San Francisco in April 1945. The UN charter is ratified by the US Senate, August 8, 1945

Operation Market Garden

-Goal was to circumvent the German defenses by landing behind enemy lines and capturing the bridges leading into Germany

-Failure of this meant the war would not be over by Christmas

FDR Elected to 4th Term

FDR defeats Thomas E. Dewey, Republican Governor of NY

-FDR won on promise to begin postwar planning

Battle of the Bulge

-After recapturing France, the Allied advance became stalled along the German border.

-In the winter of 1944, Germany staged a massive counterattack in Belgium and Luxembourg which pushed a 30 mile “bulge” into the Allied lines.

-The Germans almost won, but the Allies stopped the German advance and threw them back across the Rhine with heavy losses.

Yalta Conference

-Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin met to make final war plans, arrange the post-war fate of Germany, and discuss the proposal for creation of the United Nations as a successor to the League of Nations.

-They announced the decision to divide Germany into three post-war zones of occupation, although a fourth zone was later created for France.

-Russia also agreed to enter the war against Japan, in exchange for the Kuril Islands and half of the Sakhalin Peninsula. The USSR was given half of Poland and an occupation zone in Korea.

-The plan for the UN was ratified.

-Stalin gets a lot from this meeting (FDR doesn’t know how long it will take to defeat Japan; counting on support from USSR to do so); sets the stage for future Cold War clashes

FDR Dies; Truman Becomes president

-Truman becomes president and must end the war.

-Learns about the Manhattan Project for the first time

Battle of Berlin

-Soviets take German capital after house-to-house

fighting. -Hitler commits suicide.

VE Day

-Victory in Europe Day

-German government issues unconditional surrender to Allied forces.

Potsdam Conference

Allied leaders Truman, Stalin, and Churchill met in Germany to set up zones of control in Europe and to inform the Japanese that if they refused to surrender unconditionally at once, they would face total destruction.

UN Charter

-President Truman signs the UN charter, US joins UN

Nuremberg War Crime Trials / Tokyo War Crimes

Trials

International military tribunal tried major war criminals at Nuremberg, Germany (1945-46) and in Tokyo, Japan (1946-48). In Germany, 12 criminals were sentenced to be hanged; in Japan, 7.