V. The Second World War A.War of Movement 1.Blitzkrieg “Lightning War” Mechanized military -Airplanes, tanks, trucks

V. The Second World War

A. War of Movement1. Blitzkrieg• “Lightning War”• Mechanized military- Airplanes, tanks, trucks


2 .Naval War• The U.S. and Japan developed aircraft carriers• Could launch planes to attack targets

hundreds of miles away


3. Total War• The entire economy mobilized to support the

war effort• Economies became tools of warfare• Civilians became targets


B. War in Europe & North Africa1. Poland• Germany invaded Poland in 1939• Overwhelming combination of air attack, and

fast moving armored strikes• Poland conquered within a month


2. Phony War• Allies decided not to attack Germany• Felt secure behind a defensive barrier on

border with Germany, Maginot Line- “phony war”

Maginot Line

V. The Second World War3. Western Europe Falls• Germany attacked Denmark and

Norway in 1940- fell with little resistance• Invaded Belgium and the

Netherlands on their way to France

- avoiding the Maginot Line• German forces overwhelmed the

French• France captured within a month• Germans set up a loyal

government in Southern France- Vichy France

Vichy France


4. The Battle of Britain • Germans turned attention to Britain• German air force, Luftwaffe, began a bombing

campaign to prepare for invasion- “The Blitz”• Thousands of civilians died in the raids• British air force (RAF) aided by radar- Able to inflict heavy losses on Luftwaffe• By late 1940, bombing stopped and invasion was called

off

The Blitz


5. Invasion of Russia• Hitler violated nonaggression

pact, June 1941• Germany invaded the Soviet

Union• Largest attack in history- 3 million soldiers• Made rapid advances in

summer and fall of 1941• Advance came to halt in

brutal Russian winter


6. Stalingrad• The turning point of the war in the Soviet Union

was the battle of Stalingrad• The Germans repeatedly failed to capture the

city. - 200,000 German soldiers surrender, Feb .1943• After German defeat at Stalingrad, the Soviets

slowly pushed the German army out of the Soviet Union.


7. North Africa• Mussolini dreamed of Mediterranean Empire- Ancient Rome• The British needed to control the Mediterranean to maintain oil

supplies from the Middle East• Italian and German forces fought the British over control of North

Africa• Pushed British out of Libya & into Egypt- Led by General Erwin Rommel• The British defeated the Germans at the Battle of El Alamein (Nov.

1942)• Turning point of the war in North Africa• Germans fled Africa in May 1943


C. War in the Pacific1. Japanese Expansion• Japan saw war in Europe an opportunity to

increase territory - Occupied Indochina (Vietnam) in July 1941• U.S. & Britain responded by ending

shipments of steel to Japan


2. Japanese Options • Accept shame and give up conquests• Economic ruin• War with U.S.


3. Attack on Pearl Harbor• Surprise attack on Pearl Harbor HI, Dec 7, 1941- Home of the American Pacific Fleet• Japanese war planes launched from aircraft carriers - Attacked fleet with torpedoes and bombs• All 8 battleships damaged- 4 sunk• American aircraft carriers at sea, avoided attack• U.S. declared War on Japan- Germany Italy declare war on U.S.


4. Japanese Aggression• Conquered all of South East Asia, Dutch East

Indies & Philippines• Treated conquered people brutally• Confiscated food and raw materials to support

war effort


5. Tide of War Turns• American bombers attack Tokyo April, 1942• American victory at Battle of Coral Sea- Ends Japanese plan to conquer Australia• Battle of Midway- Japan loses 4 of 6 aircraft carriers- Turning point of war in Pacific


D. The End of the War1. Industrial Advantage• Allies had greater industrial capacity than

Axis Powers• Better able to replace losses


2. Allied Invasion of Italy• From N. Africa, Allied troops invaded Sicily

(7/1943)• Italians overthrew Mussolini, Italians

surrendered (9/1943) • German forces continued to fight• Allied troops captured Rome (June 4, 1944)

Fate of Mussolini


3. Allied Invasion of France• D-Day- June 6, 1944• 156,000 Allied soldiers landed on the beaches

of Normandy in Northern France- Involved land, sea and air forces • faced heavy German resistance


4. Victory in Europe• Soviet troops pushed into Germany from East• Allied troops pushed into Germany from West• Hitler commits suicide April 30th, 1945• Germany surrenders May, 7 1945

American & Soviet troops meet at the Elbe River


4. Island Hopping• U.S. forces moved from island moving closer

to Japan• Amphibious invasions characterized by heavy

casualties


5. Winning the War in the Pacific • Allied commanders hoped to force Japan to

surrender• Naval blockade of Japan• Heavy bombing raids• Gen. Curtis Lemay led a air raid over Tokyo- Fire bombing killed 84,000 & destroyed

270,000 buildings

Fire Bombing of Tokyo


6. The Atomic Bomb• Hiroshima- Aug 6, 1945- 80,000 killed instantly- 120,000 killed from burns and radiation- 2/3 of cities buildings destroyed- Japanese leaders took no action to end war• Nagasaki- Aug 9, 1945- Americans decided to drop a second bomb on the city of Nagasaki- 40,000 killed

Hiroshima and Nagasaki destruction


7. Victory in Japan• Aug. 15, 1945 Emperor Hirohito announced

surrender over the radio- First time the Japanese people had ever heard

his voice

Read The Decision to Use the Bomb, pg 849

• Do you think that the use of atomic weapons on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki was justified?

• Write a letter to the editor of the New York Times explaining your position

Work with a partner to answer the following question:

• Why were Communist forces able to defeat the Guomingdang in the Chinese Civil War?

Why did World War II cause so many casualties?

• Find examples to support your answer.

How did WWII affect civilian populations?

Documents

V. The Second World War A.War of Movement 1.Blitzkrieg “Lightning War” Mechanized military -Airplanes, tanks, trucks