War-time Conferences During the war, the Allied leaders met often to discuss war strategy; they would also discuss what would happen once victory was achieved Of the seven conferences that occurred, there were three that were regarded as being the most important: 1.Tehran, Nov-Dec 1943: Held in Iran It was the time where the big three (Roosevelt, Churchill, & Stalin) met The meeting did not achieve much, but cordial relations were established between the two democratic leaders and the dictator, Stalin Wartime Conferences II Yalta, Feb 1945: Southern Soviet Union Numerous decisions re: Germany were made a.Germany would be divided into zones of occupation once the war ended b.War Crimes court would be est. in Nuremburg c.Stalin promised to hold free elections in the countries he liberated from the Nazis He did not do this Potsdam, July 1945: Held near Berlin Former war Allies (war over) were to make decisions about the future of Germany Supposed to be a planning session for the peace conference Democrats and Communist no longer trusted each other Set the stage for the next war instead, that being the Cold War Canada after WWII: The Effects Economic Effects: Canadas economy grew due to all of its contributions to the war effort Economy boomed, but so to did the national debt = $10 billion Industrial and manufacturing production grew to overtake agriculture as the #1 economic sector in Canada Politics: CAN gained international recognition, est. as a middle player, took on a greater role world-wide CAN played a big role in creation of United Nations CAN troops recognized for action in Dieppe, Hong Kong, Normandy, and the Liberation of Holland PM King averted conscription crisis CAN government became more involved in live of Canadians, social safety net was strengthened Civil Rights improved, contribution of ethnic groups advanced the cause Canada after WWII: Effects II Social Effects: Women gained greater recognition for their contribution to the war effort Canada became a more tolerant nation, as it eventually accepted displaced persons and refugees from Europe. Canada experienced a baby boom, and a significant way of immigrants (included war brides) Canada lost 42,000 to the war WWII Casualties Immigration to CAN post WWII Pier 21: Much like after WWI, Pier 21 in Halifax, NS was a portal for immigrants to Canada after WWII 1947, it officially reopened for processing immigrants Big challenge, processing all of the war brides from England, Scotland, and Wales 48,000 war brides and 22,000 children were processed at Pier 21; 500,000 other newcomers arrived at Pier 21 including displaced people and refugees A quick recap: D-Day June 6/44 Normandy Landing: Operation Overlord: Allied invasion of German-held Europe (Coast of France). Planned to use naval and aerial bombardment to knock out German defences One year in preparation, most complex military operation every attempted Largest CAN military operation of WWII: 14,000 Soldiers, 100 ships, and 36 bomber squadrons from RCAF CAN forces were assigned the beachfront code-named Juno 8 kms of coastline, 1 of 5 targets at Normandy D-Day Recap II Within one week, 300,000 Allied soldiers on the shores of Normandy after one month: 1 million soldiers & 200,000 Allied military vehicles Allies finally had a foothold in Europe from which they could begin pushing back the German armies Casualties: 5,000 CAN, more than 200,000 Allies in total. Germany 200,000 killed, wounded or missing; equal number captured Germany lost similar amount of soldiers, however they were beginning to run low on replacements; Allies seemed to have a limitless supply Liberation of Holland, May 1945 Following D-Day, Canadian troops distinguished themselves in a year long battle with the Allied forces pushing the German armies out of France and Western Europe May 5, 1945, Canadian forces drove the Nazis out of Holland, forcing their retreat & surrender. Important: allowed Allies to keep on moving forward towards Germany Berlin, 1945 Late April 1945, Soviet & American forces met in Germany, south of Berlin. Soviets turned their attention to destroying the city April 30, 1945: Hitler commits suicide or did he? Some say he, along with Eva Braun committed suicide, their bodies then torched, some say he fled to Argentina and lived to 73 years dying in 1962 Only real evidence is dental records from remains that the Russians said they had found in a crater near Hitlers bunker, these remains were destroyed in 1970 (Side note: Stalin really really wanted proof of Hitlers death) Other sources say these records were tested in 2009, and came back as belonging to a female.. V-E Day May 8, 1945 V-E Day was declared when the last German Troops Surrendered End of WWII in Pacific March 1945, Americans began the systematic fire bombing of Tokyo. It was believed that this would urge the Japanese to surrender. There were many losses of life and property, but no surrender Prior to this, the United States had another plan up their sleeve Manhattan Project March 1943, USA had funded a very secret, very expensive project to determine if they could create Atomic Bombs 1945, Pres. Harry S. Truman (Roosevelt died earlier that year) learned of successful Atomic test He now had another option to end the war in the Pacific Top-secret effort cost $2 Billion and employed 120,000 personnel Fat Man & Little Boy Trumans Decision June 1, 1945: US Secretary of War recommended that the bombs should be dropped without warning on Japanese military targets in an Urban Setting US Scientists felt that dropping the bomb over an isolated area, giving the Japanese an example of what could come was best idea Truman rejected this, stating it was impractical and had no trouble making a military decision Felt that this would shorten the war and save American lives Hiroshima, Aug 1945 If USA attempted a conventional attack on Japan, USA military planners could expect 1 to 1.5 million casualties and months of fighting Therefore, Truman elected to drop Little Boy on City of Hiroshima (340,000 inhabitants) Ground Zero: 540,000 degree Fahrenheit; beyond meltdown zone there was an immense firestorm gutted the city, destroying 60,000 of 92,000 buildings Official death count: 78,000 60,000 later died of bomb-related injuries or diseases Nagasaki: August 9, 1945 Since Japan did not surrender immediately, Truman ordered that Fat Man on Nagasaki Of 250,000 inhabitants, 35,000 killed 170,000 people killed as a result of A-bombs V-J Day, August 14, 1945 On August 14, Victory in Japan was established as the Japanese Government sued for peace World War II was officially over