World War II Lecture Review

Vocabulary flashcards covering key dates, events, military operations, and home front policies of World War II based on the lecture transcript.

World War II

A global conflict spanning from 1939 to 1945.

Sino-Japanese War

A conflict from 1937-1945 that began when China resisted Japanese expansion, eventually becoming part of the Pacific theatre in late 1941.

Non-Aggression Pact

An agreement signed in August 1939 between Hitler and Stalin to avoid a two-front war, promising Stalin the eastern part of Poland.

Blitzkrieg

A military strategy meaning "lightening war" used by Germany to quickly break through and encircle Polish troops in 1939.

Phon(e)y War

A six-month lull from 1939 to 1940 characterized by blockades and sporadic naval action between Germany, France, and Britain.

Vichy Government

The government of France while it was occupied by Axis powers from 1940-1944.

Battle of Britain

A 1940 air battle ending on October 30 after 57 days, where the Luftwaffe failed to gain air superiority over the Royal Air Force.

Operation Barbarossa

The code name for the German invasion of the USSR in June 1941, involving 138 divisions and approximately $3,316,200$ men.

Pearl Harbor

The Japanese bombing of a U.S. naval base on December 7, 1941, resulting in the total loss of the battleships Arizona and Oklahoma.

Lend-Lease Program

A U.S. program from March 1941 to June 1944 that exported goods and machinery to the United Kingdom, USSR, and other Allies.

Battle of Midway

A June 1942 naval battle where Japan lost 4 aircraft carriers and $2,500$ servicemen, while the U.S. lost 1 aircraft carrier.

D-Day (Operation Overlord)

June 6, 1944, the date Allied forces landed in Normandy to liberate France; beaches included Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno, and Sword.

VE Day

Victory in Europe Day, marked on May 8, 1945, following Germany's surrender.

VJ DAY

Victory over Japan Day, marked on August 14, 1945, after Japan's surrender.

Holocaust

The state-sponsored killing of approximately 11 million people, including 6 million Jews, by the Nazis between 1933 and 1945.

Executive Order 9066

A U.S. order that led to the internment of over $100,000$ Japanese-Americans and Japanese aliens in 10 detention camps from 1942-1945.

War Production Board (WPB)

A government agency that directed factory conversion to wartime production and regulated raw materials like scrap iron and nylon.

Women's Army Corp (WACS)

A U.S. Army unit created during WWII to allow more than $150,000$ women to serve in noncombat positions.

Servicemen’s Readjustment Act (G.I. Bill of Rights)

Legislation passed by Congress to help returning veterans, providing education for 7.8 million former servicemen.

Yalta Conference

A February 1945 meeting between Churchill, Roosevelt, and Stalin to plan post-war peace and outline the United Nations.

Potsdam Conference

A conference held in July/August 1945 discussing German reparations, the Oder/Neisse Line, and Russia joining the war in the Far East.