World War II: The War FrontUS History: Spiconardi

The Belligerents

Allied Powers Axis Powers• United States of America

▫ Franklin D. Roosevelt• Great Britain

▫ Winston Churchill (Prime Minister)

• France▫ Charles de Gaulle

• Soviet Union (USSR)▫ Joseph Stalin

• 45 other countries

• Germany▫ Adolf Hitler

• Italy▫ Benito Mussolini

• Japan▫ Emperor Hirohito▫ Tojo Hideki (General &

Prime Minister)• Hungary, Romania,

Bulgaria

Fighting on several fronts• The U.S. faced the difficulty of

fighting on three continents▫ Europe, Africa, and Europe

• FDR & the Allies decided on a “Europe first” plan of attack▫ They would concentrate on

Japan later• U.S. with very little support

fought against the Japanese• US and Great Britain fought in

Northern Africa and attacked German controlled areas in Europe from the air

• Soviets fought a land war against Nazis in Eastern Europe

The Pacific• Island Hopping

▫ The US military decided on establishing a line of military bases

▫ Attack Japanese weak points first, then go after strongholds

▫ The goal was to eventually invade Japan

The Pacific•Bataan Death March

▫In 1942, Japan invades the Philippines and takes American and Filipino prisoners of war POWs

65 mile march Insufficient rations Thousands shot,

clubbed, and starved to death

US would commit many of

the same atrocities

against the Japanese in battles. The racism and

hatred led to unspeakable actions in the

Pacific Theater.

The Pacific

The Pacific

The Pacific

Iwo Jima Okinawa• 6,821 Americans dead

▫ 19,217 wounded• 19,000 Japanese dead

▫ There were 21,000 Japanese soldiers on the island

• 12, 513 Americans killed▫ 38, 916 wounded

• 110,000 Japanese killed▫ Perhaps upwards of

150,000 Japanese civilians killed

Europe and North Africa• A second front?

▫ Stalin wanted Great Britain & the US to invade northern Europe in order to take pressure off the USSR By 1942, Hitler had advanced deep inside the Soviet

Union Soviets had already lost over 1 million lives

▫FDR promises Stalin an invasion of France by the end of 1942, but… Churchill convinces FDR to focus on

Mediterranean and Africa

Europe and North Africa• The Italian Campaign

▫ Allied forces invade Italy in July of 1943

▫ Two weeks later the King of Italy dismisses and arrests Mussolini Hitler later rescues Mussolini

▫ Italy surrenders, but German troops in Italy continue to fight

• Mussolini’s Death▫ In 1945, Italian communists find

Mussolini attempting to flee Italy▫ He and his mistress are shot and

their bodies are displayed in Milan

Europe and North Africa•D-Day (June 6, 1944)

▫ Under the command of Gen. Dwight Eisenhower, Allied forces invade the beaches of Normandy to liberate France from Nazi occupation

▫ This allowed the Allies to take back Belgium and march towards Berlin, Germany

D-Day (June 6, 1944)

D-Day (June 6, 1944)

D-Day (June 6, 1944)

V-E Day (May 8, 1945)• Hitler realizes the end is in

sight as Soviet forces are advancing on Berlin in April of 1945▫ Hitler commits suicide on April

30, 1945▫ Germany surrenders on May 2,

1945▫ Sign instrument of surrender

on May 7, 1945