WW 2

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Isolationism

Depression shifts focus to domestic affairs

Rise of militaristic regimes threatens war– Germany– Italy– Japan

The Lure of Pacifism and Neutrality

Most Americans resolved against another meaningless war

1935--passage of neutrality legislation – U.S. trade with nations at war prohibited– U.S. loans to nations at war prohibited

1937--Japan invades ChinaFDR permits sale of arms to China

The Neutrality Acts Laws passed by Congress in the 1930s, in response to the

growing turmoil in Europe and Asia that eventually led to World War 2. They were spurred by the growth in isolationism and non-interventionism in the US following its costly involvement in World War I, and sought to ensure that the US would not become entangled again in foreign conflicts.

The legacy of the Neutrality Acts in the 1930s was widely regarded as having been generally negative: they made no distinction between aggressor and victim, treating both equally as "belligerents"; and they limited the US government's ability to aid Britain against Nazi Germany. The acts were largely repealed in 1941, in the face of German submarine attacks on U.S. vessels and the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

War in Europe

FDR approves appeasement of Hitler

1938--Hitler seizes Czechoslovakia

July, 1939--FDR attacks neutrality acts

September 1939--W.W.II begins, Roosevelt declares the acts in force

The Road to War

U.S. remains at peace 1939-1941

Popular sympathy for Allies, distaste for Germany and Japan

Roosevelt openly expresses favor for Allies, moves cautiously to avoid isolationist outcry

From Neutrality to Undeclared War

1939-41--FDR seeks help for England without actually entering the war

November, 1939--belligerents may buy U.S. goods on "cash and carry" basis

1940--German occupation of France

From Neutrality to Undeclared War: Increased Aid to England

U.S. gives or loans war supplies

U.S. ships transport war supplies

Eventual consensus that a Nazi victory in Europe would threaten western civilization

Showdown in the Pacific

1937--Japanese occupation of coastal China

U.S. limits exports to Japan

1940--Japan allies with Germany, Italy

Japanese invasion of Indochina prompts U.S. to end all trade

Showdown in the Pacific:Pearl Harbor

1941--U.S.-Japanese negotiations Japan’s demands

– free hand in China – restoration of normal trade relations

U.S. demands Japanese troops out of China

December 7, 1941--Pearl Harbor attackedDecember 8, 1941--War declared

Turning the Tide Against the Axis

December, 1941--Axis on the offensive 1942-43--U.S., England, Russia fight to

seize the initiative

1944-45--offensive to crush Axis

Wartime Partnerships

U.S.-English alliance cemented by personal friendship between FDR and Churchill

Soviet Union unsatisfied with alliance

Soviet Union often feels alone in conflict

Wartime tensions persist after victory

Halting the German Blitz

November 1942--U.S. invades North Africa

May 1943--U.S., England invade Italy– Mussolini falls from power– slow advance up the Italian peninsula

Summer, 1943--Battle of Stalingrad – Russia defeats Germans– begins advance into eastern Europe

Checking Japan in the Pacific

Two-pronged drive against Japan– Douglas MacArthur leads drive through

New Guinea to the Philippines– Chester Nimitz leads navy westward from

Pearl Harbor to the Philippines

June, 1942--victory at Midway launches advance into Japanese-held territories

The Home Front

War ends depression

Economy geared for military output

Automobile factories converted to tank and airplane production

Women moved into the workplace

The Arsenal of Democracy

Goods rationed

Income of lowest-paid laborers increases faster than the rich

High savings rate lays basis for postwar

prosperity

A Nation on the Move

Wartime migration South and West

Early marriages, increased birth rates

Family-related social problems– housing shortages– more divorces– neglected children

A Nation on the Move: Improving Conditions

Women’s income increases 50%

African Americans– equal opportunities in war-related industry– surging migration from the rural South

Mexican-Americans take urban factory jobs

A Nation on the Move: Japanese Internment

120,000 Japanese moved from the West Coast to detention camps

1944--Supreme Court rejects appeal for release

1988--Congress votes indemnity of $1.2 billion for survivors

Japanese American Internment Camps

Win-the-War Politics

1942--Republican-Southern Democrat coalition controls Congress

November, 1944--Truman attracts moderates, FDR wins fourth term

Victory

June 6, 1944--Normandy Invasion

April 25, 1945--U.S., Russian forces meet

May 7, 1945--unconditional German surrender

War Aims and Wartime Diplomacy

Russia claims eastern Europe as prize for conquest of Germany

U.S. seeks collective security arrangement including the United Nations

Yalta, Potsdam conferences clarify U.S., Soviet differences

April 12, 1945--FDR dies

World War II in Europe and North Africa

Triumph and Tragedy in the Pacific

June 21, 1945--U.S. capture Okinawa, complete control of Pacific

May-August--intense air attacks on JapanAugust 6--atom bomb destroys HiroshimaAugust 9--atom bomb destroys NagasakiAugust 14--Japan surrenders

The Transforming Power of War

U.S. the most powerful nation on earth

Unprecedented economic prosperity

Federal government a permanent force in daily life