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World War II key terms
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Adolf Hitler
dictator of Germany. Hitler began the Nazi political party and wiped out any other opposing political views very quickly. he gained popularity with the German people through his charismatic speaking and by promising them a better future. Hitler started the Holocaust to "get rid" of anyone that was different, including Jews, homosexuals, disabled people, those with different skin color, and gypsies. -
FDR
when the war started, Roosevelt declared the U.S. in a state of neutrality, but sent war supplies to Great Britain and the Allies on the side. when Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, Roosevelt entered the war very quickly and signed an Executive Order for Japanese-American internment camps. -
Dictator
someone who has absolute power over a group of people or country, and has usually taken that power by force. the World War II era was characterized by a rise in dictators. -
Fascism
political party created by Mussolini. it meant that the leader had complete control over pretty much everything, and encouraged nationalism, militarism, and sometimes racism. -
Nazism
a type of socialism that includes racism and expansionism. nazism also requires obedience to a strong or powerful leader. -
Rape of Nanking
the Japanese sort of "herded" Chinese people to their capital city, Nanjing, and took land along the way. then they started a brutal mass murder, and did all sorts of cruel things to the Chinese, such as rape young girls and make sons rape their mothers and fathers rape their daughters. they killed ceaselessly and without any regard for human life, because that is how the Japanese were raised: to think of Chinese people as beneath them. China lost between 10 and 30 million people in the massacre -
U.S. Declares Neutrality
at the start of the war, and up until they entered the war in 1941, the U.S. declared neutrality during WWII, which means not taking a side during a conflict. however, the U.S. was sending Great Britain war supplies to help them out during this time. -
Winston Churchill
was prime minister of Great Britain from 1940 to 1945. he allied with the United States when they entered the war, but was receiving war supplies throughout the war. -
Lend Lease Act
this was a program that Roosevelt initaited to be able to aid Great Britain against Germany without going to war. it allowed the U.S. to provide "defense articles" to Great Britain with the intent of either receiving that article back or the monetary value of it. this act helped give the Allies some sort of way to fight back while in essence keeping the U.S. neutral. -
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor, Hawaii was a United States naval base, protruding American naval dominance through Battleship Row, which was where all of the ships were lined up on the day of the attack. Japan attacked this base on December 7, 1941, and crippled the U.S. naval power. this caused the U.S. to immediately declare war on Japan, thus entering WWII. it also turned out to help, in a way, because it made the American military use more aircraft carriers. -
Audie Murphy
a distinguished World War II soldier with at least 39 medals from his srvice. he also became a liaison officer during the war, and when he came back to the U.S. he was made into a movie star and celebrity. he used this popularity to inform the populaton about PTSD, which he had. -
Japanese-American Internment Camps
after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor, President Roosevelt signed an Executive Order to relocate Japanese-Americans to internment camps for the duration of the war. Japanese-Americans were thought of as inside threats and Americans did not want to risk it. the Japanese-Americans, however, were very cooperative, selling their belongings, moving, and trying to help the war effort as much as possible. these camps are thought of as the worst American mistake during the war. -
Propaganda
propaganda is a way that the government influences and manipulates public opinion through the use of media. for example, the U.S. used propaganda to promote joining the war efforts and optimizing the need for Japanese-American internment camps. -
Women's Roles in WWII
when men went off to fight in the war, women stepped up to fill in their jobs in factories, schools, and even helping out in the military as pilots and nurses. after the war, women were asked to step down and return to their housekeeping roles, but many refused, enjoying the new freedom. -
War Bonds
these bonds were issued to citizens in order to get immediate money to help with war costs such as artillery and supplies. this guaranteed that people with war bonds would get their money back, which made them feel safe in "lending" it to the government. -
Rationing
a way for the government to conserve needed war materials. as an example, the U.S. rationed rubber and tin for the citizens. -
Office of War Information
also OWI, this is a U.S. government propaganda organization that used the media in order to encourage certain people to join the war effort, such as young to middle-aged women and men. it also helped portray any message that the government wanted to get across, such as secrecy about American tactics. -
Benito Mussolini
the dictator of Italy and the creator of the Fascist party. Mussolini was an ally of Hitler during WWII and supported many of Hitler's ideas in his own country. he was overthrown in 1943 with the Allies invaded Italy and defeated them. -
Victory Gardens
these gardens were a way that anyone, regardless of their age, weight, race, gender, or anything else that kept them from fighting in the war, could help with the war efforts. people would grow vegetables and fruits to send overseas. they became popular enough to produce 8 million tons of food in 1943 -
Vernon Baker
Baker was a "Medal of Honor" hero during World War II, but as African Americans were still segregated during this time period, he got very litle recognition. He did receive a few awards after the war, and was one of seven African-American soldiers to receive the Medal of Honor (he had to wait until 1997, though, and was the only one alive.) -
Fire Bombing of Dresden
Dresden was essentially a city in Nazi territory for German refugees during the war. it was unaffected by bombing, and therefore seemed pretty safe, until the Allies bombed it in 1945. the estimated deaths are between 35,000 and 135,000 people. Dresden was the center of German culture and a large producer of war supplies for the Nazis, so it was a pretty big blow. -
Harry S. Truman
when FDR died in 1945, Truman became president of the United States. President Truman was the person that "okay-ed" the drop of 2 bombs on Japan cities, causing the Japanese to surrender. he did not really want to be president, though, and had a lack of experience in political affairs.
