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General causes of WWII- Treaty of Versailles
ended World War I between Germany and the Allied Powers. Due to Germany losing the war, the treaty was very harsh against Germany. Germany was forced to accept the responsibility of the war damages suffered by the Allies. The treaty required that Germany pay a huge amount of money called reparations. -
General causes of World War II- Great Depression
The Great Depression removed a large percentage of the economies of Europe and the United States. This was fertile ground for the start of the Nazis to power in Germany, and a military group to take power in Japan. Having being the biggest political party in Germany, Hitler could start the world war he so wanted. -
American Action from the start to U.S Entry into WWII- Neutrality act
The neutrality act was when laws were passes in 1935, 1936, 1937, and 1939 to restrict the U.S from entering future wars. They were written due to the effects of WWI, and how the U.S got forced into the war due to loans and the trades with the allies. U.S went into war to defend our allies against Hitler and his nazi party -
American Home Front- War Production Board
War production profoundly changed American industry. Companies already engaged in defense work expanded. Others, like the automobile industry, were transformed completely. In 1941, more than three million cars were manufactured in the United States. Only 139 more were made during the entire war. All of these methods served to provide the government with revenue and at the same time keep inflation under control. -
American Action from the Start to U.S. Entry into WWII- Part one
The United States joined World War II after the bombing of Pearl Harbor in Hawaii by the Japanese on Dec. 7, 1941. The country had been keeping itself isolated from the global war, however they declared war on Japan on Dec. 8, 1941. -
American Home Front- Rationing
Rationing is a system for limiting the distribution of food, gasoline, and other goods. This provided the military with weapons, equipment, and supplies they needed. Many needed to make sacrifices to support the armed forces. In March of 1942, the armed forces needed fabric for uniforms. So the government made rules to be able to save 40 million pounds of wool a year. The new rules restricted the type and amount of fabric women could use and wear. -
War in the Pacific- Battle of the Midway
WHO? United States and Japan
WHERE?north-central Pacific Ocean
WHEN?June 5, 1942
FIGHTING STYLE? Japanese naval strategists hoped to destroy the U.S. Pacific Fleet.
WINNER? U.S. Navy
CASUALTIES? 307 Casualties
SIGNIFICANCE? This battle had a turning point in WW2. -
War in Europe- D-Day
Who? allied nations and German forces
Where? Normandy
When? June 6, 1944
Fighting style- It was the largest seaborne invasion
Who won? Allied powers
Casualties- 83,045 deaths were from 21st Army Group (British, Canadian and Polish ground forces), 125,847 from the US ground forces, roughly 200,000 German troops were killed or wounded
Significance- It shortened the war and gave the allies momentum on the continent of Europe. -
Greatest Generation oral interview- D-day: William R. Carl
They were attacking on japan by water and the chief in command said “this is as far as I can get you” “of course that’s when we starting evacuating, coming off the ship. The jeep went in the water, it was out of site. The jeep never came up.” “All my thoughts were, was forward I knew I had to keep swimming.” -
War in Europe- Battle of the Bulge
WHO? United States and Germany
WHERE? The Ardennes, Belgium, Luxembourg, and Germany
WHEN? December 16, 1944- January 16th 1945
FIGHTING STYLE? Tried to split the Allied Armies in northwest Europe
WINNER? Allied Victory
CASUALTIES? 90,000 Allies and 100,000 German
SIGNIFICANCE? The Battle of the Bulge was an attempt to push the Allied front line west from northern France to northwestern Belgium -
War in the Pacific- Battle of Okinawa
Who? Japan and Allies
Where? Okinawa Island, Ginoza, Okinawa, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan
When? April 1,1945- June 22,1945
Fighting style- one of the largest sea/land/air battles
Who won? Allies
Casualties- 100,000 for Japanese and 50,000 for the allies
Significance- it served as an example of how deadly the invasion of mainland Japan would be. It was the largest invasion of the Pacific campaign and the last major campaign of the Pacific War. -
Civil Liberties during the war- Code- talkers
For the US, communications, which had always been a complex issue, had now become a big problem. Japanese cryptographers were breaking top secret military codes very rapidly. Many of the Japanese code breakers had been educated in the United States where they had learned to speak English and had become familiar with American slang terms and profanity. As a result, American battle plans became known to the enemy almost immediately. The result was an appalling loss of American lives. -
Civil Liberties during the war- Tuskegee Airmen
Not many African Americans were in the United States military, they were struggling with the many laws in “the world’s greatest democracy” regarding “separate but equal” treatment limiting their rights. Although the United States Armed Forces were officially segregated until 1948, WWII laid the foundation for post-war equal treatment of the military. In 1941 fewer than 4,000 African Americans were serving in the military and only twelve African Americans had become officers. -
Greatest Generation Oral Interview- Once upon a tank in the Batte of the Bulge
" We were in the No. 1 tank. We wound up in the town of Kirschnaumen in Belgium. He had draped the tank in white sheets so we would have camouflage because there was snow all over the ground."
"You know, I’d rather lose an arm or a leg than lose my eyesight." He said, "There’s too much to see in this world." And the next day when he got hit, he got hit in the eye.
"I had Warren shoot into the back of our tank because the Germans were stealing the tanks. They’d use them against us. "
