1. Identify (2) conditions that encouraged dictatorships to form in Europe.
a. The Great Depression
b. Treaty of Versailles
2. Identify 3 European dictators and the countries they ruled
a. Dictator: Joseph Stalin Country: Soviet Russia
b. Dictator: Benito Mussolini Country: Fascist Italy
c. Dictator: Adolf Hitler Country: Nazi Germany
3. In the book “Mein Kampf, Hitler claimed Germans were the “master race” called Aryans.
4. Hitler’s first move as dictator was to ignore the Treaty of Versailles. Leaders of Great Britain and France then call for a meeting with him to avoid war. This meeting was called the Munich conference.
5. At the Munich conference, Great Britain and France gave into Hitler’s demands to avoid war. This is known as appeasement.
6. Within a year after the Munich conference, Hitler claims the rest of Czechoslovakia and on Sept. 1, 1939 Hitler invades Poland ..WWII begins!
7. Germans used a new type of warfare called blitzkrieg or “lightning war”
8. After taking Poland, Hitler then turns west and conquers France.
9. Now, England was the only country left standing to keep Hitler from conquering all of Europe.
10. The United States, at this time remains isolationist or uninvolved in the war. To ensure neutrality, Congress passed the Neutrality Act of 1935.
11. Define The Neutrality Act of 1935: Made it illegal for US businesses to sell arms to foreign countries
12. Two years later, as the war was heating up, the United States passed the Neutrality Act of 1937 which said: Required foreign country to pay for US goods with cash instead of credit and ship goods themselves.
13. What was Hitler’s mistake/blunder at Dunkirk? Explain...
Hitler's mistake at Dunkirk was ordering a ceasefire, which halted the German advance for three days. This delay allowed the Allies to organize a massive evacuation, using every available boat to rescue over 300,000 troops across the English Channel, saving their forces for future battles.
14. Why was the Battle at Dunkirk was called “a miracle”? Describe what the miracle was in your own words.
The retreating allies had lost hope and then the British pulled through for them and rescued 338,000 men.
15. After conquering Poland and France, Hitler attempted to conquer England. This was known as the Battle of Britain.
16. FDR revises the Neutrality act. The Neutrality Act of 1939 states:
US sells Great Britain warships In exchange for military bases.
17. The Lend-Lease Act of 1941 allowed the U.S. to:
Lend or lease arms to any country that was considered vital to the defense of the US. Us could send weapons to GB if they promised to return or pay rent for them after the war.
18. What did the The NYE Committee Report disclose?
Investigated allegations the US had been tricked into entering WWI by arms manufacturers. Showed huge profits for arms factories; Americans believed businesses influence the decision to go to war (more support for isolationism).
19. Who were the Allies (name them)?
Great Britian, France, Soviet Russia, and the United States.
20. Who were the Axis Powers (name them)?
Nazi Germany, Imperialist Japan, and Fascist Italy.
21. Like Germany, Japans government went from a democrazy to a military controlled form of government.
22. Who was Hideki Tojo?
Former Minister of War to Prime Minister of Japan
23. What happened during the “Rape of Nanking”? Describe...
Tojo invades Nanking killing over 300,000 people
24. Hideki Tojo invades/take Manchuria, China (Indo China). Why does he want it?
Japan needed more natural resources.
25. Why is the U.S. upset with Hideki Tojo (Japan) for invading Manchuria (Indo China)?
The U.S. opposed Japan's invasion of Manchuria and Indochina because it threatened peace and U.S. interests in the Pacific. This led to an oil embargo, pushing Japan to attack Pearl Harbor.
26. How does the United States punish Japan for taking Manchuria (Indo China)?
The U.S. was upset with Hideki Tojo and Japan for invading Manchuria and Indochina because it threatened U.S. interests in the Pacific, disrupted global stability, and was part of Japan's aggressive expansion. In response, the U.S. placed an oil embargo on Japan, which Japan saw as a major obstacle to its expansion, eventually leading to the attack on Pearl Harbor.
27. Why does Japan then attack Pearl Harbor?
The U.S. was upset with Hideki Tojo and Japan for invading Manchuria and Indochina because it threatened U.S. interests in the Pacific, disrupted global stability, and was part of Japan's aggressive expansion. In response, the U.S. placed an oil embargo on Japan, which Japan saw as a major obstacle to its expansion, eventually leading to the attack on Pearl Harbor.
1. Jews were reluctant to leave Germany because they believed that conditions would improve over time.
2. Once the terror began, Jews were trapped in Germany because embassies were backlogged with more than 100,000 applications for visas.
3. Identify 4 factors that affected Jewish Immigration to America.
a. Nazi orders prohibited Jews from taking more than $4 out of Germany
b. U.S. law forbade granting visa’s to anyone “likely to become a public charge” = in need of gov’t relief (No poor people)
c. Jews were forced to leave their wealth behind.
d. Americans weren’t very welcoming to Jews because:
US high unemployment (Great Depression)
Many had anti-Semitic views
No exceptions for refugees or victims of persecution.
4. The Nazi Nuremburg Laws were put in place to protect German blood and German honor.
5. Identify restrictions that were placed on Jews under the Nuremburg laws.
a. Took citizenship away from Jews
b. Banned marriage btwn Jews & other Germans
c. Barred from holding public office or voting
d. Jews w/German sounding names must adopt “Jewish” names
e. Jewish passports marked with a red “J” to identify them
f. Banned from practicing law & medicine & operating businesses
6. In your own words, briefly describe Kristallnacht, “the night of broken glass”. What happened and Why did it happen?
Hitler destroyed Jewish properties, burned synagogues & terrorized Jewish families making the “night of broken glass” because glass littered the streets afterwards.
7. Identify 3 famous Jewish refugees that fled Germany
a. Frederic Morton’s family (Morton Salt)
b. Otto Frank’s Family (Anne Frank)
c. Albert Einstein (Scientist)
8. The S.S. St. Louis entered the harbor in Havana, Cuba with Jewish on board. Cuba’s gov’t as well as U.S. refused to let them come ashore. They are sent back to Europe, disembarking in France, Holland, Belgium and GB. Within 3yrs the 1st three countries fell to Nazi domination and the Jews were killed in the Nazi Final Solution.
9. The Selective Services Act – 1st Peace time draft in American history. *(after Hitler takes Poland)
10. The 99th Pursuit Squadron was the 1st African American unit in WWII. They were also known as the 99th Pursuit Squadron and the Tuskegee Airmen. They flew over 200 missions w/out losing a single member to enemy aircraft.
11. The “Double V” Campaign urged African Americans to- support the war to win a victory over Hitler's racism abroad “and” racism at home.
12. The Navajo Code Talkers were U.S. Marines of Native American descent who used their native language as code during the war.
13. Women’s Army Corp (WAC) were the 1st women other than nurses to serve in the U.S. Army
14. Rosie the Riveter was the symbol of the campaign to hire women to do industrial jobs during the war.
15. A. Phillip Randolph was the founder of the brotherhood of the sleeping car porters. A major union for African American railroad workers. Led the first organized African American labor movement
16. Korematsu-v-the United States ruled that: internment was legal because it has based on military urgency, not race.
17. Beside the Japanese, Germans and Italians were also placed in internment camps.
1. The selective services training Act sent recruits to basic training for 8 weeks to prepare them for how to fight in a war.
2. Japan’s objective was expansion.
3. American leaders in WWII, the war in the Pacific were: General Douglas Mc Arthur, Commander of the US Army in the Pacific Theater. Administer, Chester Nimitz, Commander-in-Chief of the US Naval Fleet in the Pacific during WWII. President Harry S Truman that made the decision to drop the A-bomb on the Japanese
4. The War in the Pacific was also known as the Pacific Theater.
5. Four months after the attack on Pearl Harbor, the Japanese completes the conquest the Phillipenes.
6. Before being forced to evacuate his command-center in the Philippines, American Commander Douglas McArthur vows that “I Shall Return”
7. The Japanese captured 75,000 allied soldiers after their victory in the Philippines. The Japanese marched those soldiers’ 60 miles w/no food or water. Over 6,000 died or were executed. This tragedy was known as the Bataan Death March.
8. The Doolittle Raid was an American raid on Tokyo, the capital of Japan. The impact of the raid was that it gave a massive boost to the American morale. It showed the Japanese that the U.S. had the capability to attack their mainland at any time.
9. Why did the Japanese plan an attack on the U.S base on the island of Midway?
Japan was planning on invading the US (needed island of Midway for base). The US broke Japanese code and knew about the plan to attack midway; US leaders set a trap.
10. At Midway, the U.S. broke the Japanese code and knew about their planned attack; U.S. leaders set a trap for the Japanese. The U.S. ambushed the Japanese fleet, sinking 4 of their aircraft carriers. This was a resounding victory for the Americans.
11. Midway was the turning point of the war in the Pacific because Japan was on the defensive for the remainder of the war.
12. In a Kamikaze attack, a Japanese pilot would crash his plane into an American ship.
13. As the U.S. began taking back islands that Japan had conquered. They used the strategy called island-hopping, Which involved the U.S recaptured strategic islands and by-passed others leaving the Japanese troops cut-off.
14. One of the key victories in the “island hopping” strategy was retaking the Phillipenes.
15. To take back the Phillipenes, the U.S. put together a large invasion force. In 1945, U.S. troops recaptured the capital city of Manila. As he had promised, Commander Douglas McArthur had returned to lead the U.S. forces to victory.
16. As Americans move closer to the Japanese mainland, each island becomes tougher to take. Thousands die taking the islands of Iwo Jima and Okinawa
17. The Significance of the U.S. capturing the island of Iwo Jima was that ..it was critical to the allies to have a base for an attack on Japan. With the conquering of Iwo Jima the U.S. is now close enough to fire bomb them.
18. Having a base at Okinawa, which was only 350 mi from Japan was important to the Allies because they needed a base to stockpile supplies.
19. The Manhattan Project –the project to develop the first nuclear weapon (atomic bomb)
20. President Harry Truman made the decision to drop the Atomic bomb on Japan. Because:
a. Japanese soldiers wre fighting to dearth
b. Japan would not surrender
21. The Potsdam Declaration- Truman warned Japan in late July 1945 that without a immediate Japanese surrender, it faced “prompt and utter destruction”
22. The first Atomic bomb was dropped on hiroshima on August 6th, 1945. Three days later another bomb was dropped on the Japanese city of nagasaki
23.”V-J” Day stands for: victory over japan
