American History II: Note Set #27: World War II
· Pacific Theater: Attack on Pearl Harbor (December 7, 1941)
o Japan launched a surprise attack against US naval base in Hawaii
o 4 battleships destroyed, 4 more seriously damaged, but Japan failed to destroy US aircraft carriers
o Support vessels and facilities suffered massive damage; 2403 Americans killed, 1178 wounded
o Japanese lost only 29 aircraft and 65 men
· The US Declares War
o Dec. 8, 1941: US and Britain declared war against Japan
o Dec. 11, 1941: Germany and Italy declared war against the US, believing that by helping Japan against the US, Japan would help them against the Soviets
· Pacific Theater: Japan Moves Quickly to Secure Its Empire
o Japan immediately launched successful attacks against US colonies of Guam and the Philippines and the British colonies of Malaya, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Singapore, and the free nation of Thailand
· Pacific Theater: Japanese Actions in the Philippines
o US forces in the Philippines were forced to surrender by May 1942
o US Gen. Douglas MacArthur was ordered to evacuate to Australia, but vowed “I shall return”
o Japanese forced prisoners to march 65 miles in tropical heat without food, water, or medical care, and while enduring physical abuse, to a prison camp – about 18,000 of the 78,000 prisoners died on this “Bataan Death March”
· Pacific Theater: The Doolittle Raid (April 18, 1942)
o American bombers, under the command of Col. James Doolittle, mounted a daring mission to launch from aircraft carrier to bomb Tokyo in retaliation for Pearl Harbor
o Mainly a public relations move to improve morale; bombings did no major damage
· Pacific Theater: The Battle of Coral Sea (May 4 – 8, 1942)
o US Navy had broken Japanese codes and learned of Japan’s intention to stage an attack Australia
o US sent 2 aircraft carriers to intercept the Japanese in the Coral Sea
o First naval battle in history fought entirely with aircraft
o U.S. lost an aircraft carrier, but prevented the Japanese invasion
· Pacific Theater: The Battle of Midway (June 4 – 7, 1942)
o Japanese attack on U.S. island of Midway was intercepted and turned back
o 4 Japanese aircraft carriers were sunk, a loss from which Japan would never recover
o Japan would not be able to mount any offensive attacks for the remainder of the war – they would have to try to defend what they held from US invasion
· European Theater: The Battle of the Atlantic
o US countered German U-boat attacks against shipping by enforcing blackouts along the East Coast (so U-boat commanders couldn’t see activity on the US coast) and by using the convoy system (ships traveling in large groups with naval escort)
o Also used new technologies like sonar and depth charges to combat the U-boat threat
o As the war progressed, the Germans began to lose more U-boats than they could replace and Allied shipping was able to deliver more supplies
· European Theater: The Allies Retake North Africa: Operation Torch (November 1942)
o US troops landed in Algeria and Morocco in North Africa
o Landings were designed to bring relief to British forces in Egypt who had been holding off Germany’s Afrika Korps under the command of the “Desert Fox,” Gen. Erwin Rommel
§ Erwin Rommel (1891 – 1944)
§ Highly decorated hero from WWI, became Germany’s top officer during WWII
§ Commanded German forces in the invasions of France & North Africa
§ Committed suicide after being implicated in an assassination plot against Hitler
o Despite the inexperience of the US forces, Axis troops were forced out of North Africa by May of 1943
· Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower (1890 – 1969)
o Master strategist who helped devise the US plans for winning the war against both Germany and Japan
o Placed in charge of US forces in North Africa and, later, over all Allied forces in Europe
o Would go on to be elected President of the United States in 1952
· Gen. George Patton (1885 – 1945)
o Outlandish and outspoken (but highly effective) US general
o Played a pivotal role in the US invasions of North Africa and Italy, but was removed from command after slapping a soldier for cowardice
o Returned after the D-Day invasion, helping with the final push of Allied forces into Germany
o Died in a car crash shortly after the end of the war
· The Casablanca Conference (Jan. 1943)
o FDR and Churchill met in Morocco to determine the next steps to take in the war
o Decided to increase bombing campaign in Germany and to attack Italy, rather than France
· European Theater: The Allied Invasion of Italy
o July – Aug. 1943: Allied forces invaded and captured Sicily
o The Allies easy conquest of Sicily was disheartening to the Italian army and alarming to the King of Italy
o Mussolini overthrown
§ July 25, 1943: Mussolini was fired and ordered arrested by Italian King Victor Emmanuel III
§ Italian people had lost all confidence in Mussolini and rejoiced at his ouster
§ Italy broke its alliance with Germany in September and joined the Allies in October 1943
o Germans Defend Italy
§ The German army seized control of northern Italy, freed Mussolini from prison, and forced the Allies to fight a long and costly campaign in Italy
§ Bloody battles took place at Monte Cassino (Jan. – May 1944) and Anzio (Jan. – June 1944)
§ Took Allies until May 1945 to gain control of Italy and cost them over 300,000 casualties
· The Tehran Conference (Nov. 1943)
o Churchill, Roosevelt, and Stalin met in Tehran, Iran
o US and Britain agreed to invade France, dividing Germany’s troops along several fronts
o Agreed to break up Germany after the war to permanently remove them as a threat to peace
o Stalin agreed to help fight Japan once Germany was beaten
o Stalin agreed to the creation of an international organization to help keep world peace after the war
· European Theater: The Normandy Invasion: Operation Overlord
o Allies created fake camps along one section of the British coast to trick Germany into believing that the Allied attack would be farther north on the French coast than was actually planned
o Allies then had to wait for a perfect combination of weather, tides, and moonlight to launch the real invasion, aimed at Normandy
o D-Day (June 6, 1944)
§ 7000 ships moved over 100,000 troops to Normandy;
§ 23,000 paratroopers were dropped behind the German lines
§ Allied bombers hit critical German defense and communication sites
§ Naval warships began a bombardment of German fortifications along the French coast
§ By the end of the day, the Allies had established a foothold in France
· European Theater: Allies Liberate France
o By July 25, Allied forces had shattered the German defensive positions in Northern France
o August 25: Allies retook Paris, to great celebration by the French population
o By mid-September, Allies were at the German border and ready to begin an invasion of Germany itself
· European Theater: Battle of the Bulge (Dec. 1944 – Jan. 1945)
o Germans made one last effort to beat the Allies by cutting their supply lines
o The initial surge caused a “bulge” in the Allied lines, but the Germans could not maintain the surge, especially after Patton arrived with reinforcements
o The battle cost Germany over 100,000 casualties and used up their remaining war materials
· The Yalta Conference (Feb. 1945)
o Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin met in the Soviet Union to discuss postwar plans
o Agreed to reestablish Poland
o Issued the Declaration of Liberated Europe: agreement to let all the peoples of Europe to choose their own forms of government through free elections
o Agreed to strip Germany of its industrial machinery as war reparations
o Agreed to divide Germany (and its capital of Berlin) into 4 zones (US, France, Britain, and USSR)
· Roosevelt Dies
o After months of noticeably declining health, Roosevelt died of a cerebral hemorrhage on April 12, 1945
o He was replaced by his Vice-President Harry S. Truman
· Benito Mussolini Dies
o Mussolini was captured by Italian communists on April 28, 1945
o He and his entourage were shot, bodies were then hung from meat hooks, stoned by an angry crowd
· Adolf Hitler
o Committed suicide on April 30, 1945
o Took cyanide and shot himself (along with his newlywed wife Eva Braun)
o Body was then burned by his secretary and no verifiable remains have ever been recovered
· European Theater: Germany Falls
o Berlin captured by the Soviets on May 5, 1945
o May 7, 1945: Germany formally surrendered to the Allies; their surrender was unconditional, meaning that they had to accept whatever terms the Allies offered to end the war
o May 8: celebrated as “V-E Day” (Victory in Europe)
· Pacific Theater: “Island-hopping”
o US forces elected to focus on capturing only certain strategic islands in the Pacific – ones that would allow US bombers to get within striking range of Japan and create a safe route for troop and supply movement
· Pacific Theater: Battle of Guadalcanal (Aug. 1942 – Feb. 1943)
o U.S. amphibious attack on Japanese fortifications
o Land, sea, & air battle
o Eventually 31,000 of the 36,000 Japanese on the island were killed
· Pacific Theater: Other Major Pacific Battles
o Tarawa (Nov. 1943), Kwajalein (Feb. 1944), Saipan, Tinian, & Guam (Jun. – Aug. 1944)
o US Marines took heavy losses unseating Japanese defenders, but US B-29 bombers could reach Japan once these islands were secured
· Gen. Douglas MacArthur (1880 – 1964)
o Seasoned veteran of WWI, highly decorated soldier who had won the Medal of Honor
o Had vowed to return to the Philippines when forced to evacuate in 1942
o Led US effort to retake the Philippines and proclaimed “I have returned” when he finally landed in Oct. 1944
o Later was US commander of occupied Japan after WWII and led UN forces in the Korean War
· Pacific Theater: The Philippines
o US forces landed at Leyte in Oct. 1944 to begin the retaking of the Philippines, but relied entirely on the US Navy for air cover for protection
o Japanese navy counterattacked, drawing the US Navy into a major naval battle that left MacArthur’s forces unprotected and nearly led to disaster
o US forces would not gain full control of the Philippines until July 1945, just weeks before the war ended
· Pacific Theater: Kamikaze Attacks
o The Battle of Leyte Gulf marked the first coordinated use of suicide attacks by Japanese pilots known as kamikaze (“divine wind”)
o Japanese high command was now resorting to desperate tactics as Japan ran out of experienced pilots and the industrial capacity to continue making new weaponry
· Pacific Theater: Battle of Iwo Jima (Feb./Mar. 1945)
o First Japanese “home-island” captured by the US
o 20,700 of the 22,000 Japanese soldiers on the island were killed; about 6800 of the 60,000 US Marines who landed on Iwo Jima were killed
o Badly damaged Japanese morale; placed Japan within easy bombing range for US bombers
· Pacific Theater: The Firebombing of Japan
o Gen. Curtis LeMay ordered the use of napalm (jellied gasoline) bombs on Japanese cities because his bombers were having trouble hitting their targets
o The napalm was designed to start massive fires, which would ensure the destruction of the desired military targets, but would also lead to heavy losses of civilian life
o Mar. 9, 1945: firebombing of Tokyo killed over 80,000; by the war’s end, 67 Japanese cities had been destroyed using napalm
· Pacific Theater: The Battle of Okinawa (Apr.-June 1945)
o Most brutal battle of the Pacific war: about 125,000 Japanese killed and 12,500 Americans
o Nearly 700,000 men fought in this battle (550,000 Americans)
o Okinawa was needed to set up a base of operations for an invasion of Japan itself
· The Manhattan Project
o US effort to build a new type of weapon that would unleash tremendous destructive energy by splitting uranium atoms – an “atomic bomb”
o Led by Gen. Leslie Groves and researcher J. Robert Oppenheimer, the team produced 3 bombs
o 1 bomb was tested in the New Mexico desert, leaving just 2 bombs for military use
o Bombs were code-named “Fat Man” and “Little Boy”
· Harry S. Truman (1884 – 1972), (President from 1945 - 1953)
o Became president upon FDR’s death
o Truman now had to decide how to end the war – should the US mount an invasion of Japan, which would cost an estimated 1 million American lives or should it use the new atomic bomb, which would kill an unknown number of Japanese civilians and whose after-effects were still unknown?
· Pacific Theater: Hiroshima
o Japan was warned that unless they surrendered immediately and without conditions, they faced “prompt and utter destruction”
o When the Japanese did not reply, orders were given to destroy the industrial city of Hiroshima
o August 6, 1945: The B-29 Enola Gay dropped “Little Boy” on the city, destroying 76,000 buildings and killing over 120,000 people
· Pacific Theater: Nagasaki
o When the Japanese still did not surrender, the B-29 Bock’s Car dropped “Fat Man” on the port of Nagasaki, killing over 50,000 on August 9, 1945
o On the same day, the Soviets declared war on Japan and began to prepare to enter the war in the Pacific
· Pacific Theater: Japan Surrenders
o Faced with destruction on an unforeseen scale (and unaware that the US had no more atomic bombs to use), Emperor Hirohito ordered his government to surrender unconditionally
o Fighting stopped August 15, 1945 (“V-J Day”)
o Formal surrender took place on September 2, 1945
o As part of the terms of surrender, Japan was occupied by U.S. forces until Apr. 1952