History Test 3

Mein Kampf

 Hitlers autobiography where he blames commies and Jews for all of germanys misery and defeat in WWI

    Battle of midway

 Showed what decisive weapons aircraft carriers had become. U.S. navy stopped Japans momentum into the pacific. Eliminated threat to hawaii, and ended Japans hope for a quick and decisive war against U.S

Battle of Guadalcanal

6 month “meat grinder” battle for a small island. First sustained U.S. offensive in the pacific. Marines held on to “Henderson Field” thanks to air support (first defeat of Japans army.

Allied Air Campaign against Germany

1942-45, Killed 600,000 German civilians, Caused enormous damage yet failed to destroy German industry. U.S. pilots destroyed German air force, gave allies complete control of skies over Europe

Operation OVERLOAD

(Dday) U.S. Army, british, and canadian forces invaded France along Normandy coast. U.S. Army suffered horrible casualties at Omaha beach. Normandy invasion was the turning point of the war in Europe.

Battle of Iwo Jima

(Feb, 1945) bloodiest battle in USMC history. Iwo jima (Sulfur island) provided an airfield for American escort fighters and an emergency “safe haven” airfield for damaged B-29 bombers

    Postdam Declaration

(‘45) Truman’s warning to Japan to accept unconditional surrender or face prompt and utter destruction

Hiroshima

site of the first nuclear strike on Japanese industrial

Nagasaki

site of second nuclear strike on Japanese industrial city use of nuclear weapons made it possible for U.S. to avoid bloody invasion of Japan itself

Holocaust

 was only after WWII and Nazi extermination that the world learned profoundly shocking realization of full extent of horrors of the death camps

Truman Doctrine ‘47

Truman’s stance against Stalin’s Russia; U.S. would support any country resisting armed takeover by communist agents or forces

Containment

 using U.S. political influence to counter Russian (later, Chinese) Communism the world over; basis for every U.S. foreign policy decision until 9/11

    Marshall Plan

the economic side of “containment”; U.S. spent $13 billion ($175 billion 2023*) to rebuild Western Europe destroyed by WWII

Berlin Airlift

(1948) Russians surrounded/cut off all supplies into Berlin; USAF/RAF supplied 13,000 tons and 840 flights per day; Russians gave up after one year; first “victory” of Cold War for U.S.

38th Parallel

 Korea was divided in half right after WWII by the big three into North and South Korea

Inchon landing

U.S. Marines surprise amphibious flank attack hit North Koreans from behind; triggered North Korean retreat

Chinese Counterattack

 massive surprise counterattack by the Chinese Communist Army against McArthur’s forces

    VEONA Project

FBI counterintelligence operation begun 1943 uncovered Communist spying in FDR’s New Deal government and WWII nuclear program; taken over by NSA

Election of 1960

Saw America’s first ever televised presidential debate; JFK won a very narrow victory over Nixon; Nixon actually won popular vote

Peace Corps

JFK’s plan to use college youths to assist 3rd world countries and promote U.S. interests

Bay of Pigs Invasion (Operation Trinidad)

badly bungled; ill-conceived attempted invasion of Castro’s Cuba using the CIA’s 2506 Brigade; failed miserably; Approved by JFK

Cuban Missile Crisis

WWII was adverted by mutual consent; Soviets removed nukes from Cuba in exchange for U.S. removing nukes from Turkey

Warren Commission –

LBJ commisioned special investigation into JFK assasination; Report concluded both oswald and ruby acted alone

Adolf Hitler

Nazi Dictator of Germany during WWII, German Nazis were called “brown shirts”

Winston Churchill

Prime Minister of Great Britain during WWII

Dwight D. Eisenhower

U.S. Supreme Allied Commander in Europe

    Harry Truman

Vice president that replaced FDR; Authorized nuclear attacks on Japan

George F. Kennan

 U.S. State department official who invented the “containment” strategy for Truman

George C. Marshall

Former U.S. Army Chief of Staff; Architect of U.S. victory in WWII; Truman’s secretary of state, devised the Marshall Plan

Douglas MacArthur

Senior commander of U.S. Forces in Korea, also senior commander of U.N. Forces in Korea

Matthew B. Ridgway

Replaced MacArthur as senior U.S./U.N. commander in Korea

John F. Kennedy

Won election of 1960 Democrat tough on Communism, assassinated by Lee Harvey Oswald in Dallas

Nikita Khrushchev

Russian Soviet Premier during JFK admin., pledged to U.S. “we will bury you