The World At War
The War for North Africa
and Europe- The Allied
Offensive
Essential Questions
What was the Allies’ overall plan
for winning the war?
What was the US strategy in
Europe and Asia?
What were the key events of the
war in Europe?
How was Europe finally liberated
by the Allies?
The US and Britain Join Forces
Winston Churchill met with FDR to map out
war plans on Dec 22, 1941
Germany and Italy were perceived as the
greater threat so it was decided to
concentrate on Europe first then the Pacific
Axis Gains by 1942
By 1942 Hitler’s forces held
the European continent and
pounded England with aerial
bombardments while driving
deep into Russia and across
Northern Africa to attempt to
take the Suez Canal in Egypt
WW II Mobilization
•61 countries
•3/4 of the world’s pop
•110 million mobilized
WW II Mobilization
Country: Total Mobilized ….At one time
USA:
Germany:
USSR:
UK:
Japan:
16m…. 12.2m
17m…. 10.9m
22-30m. 12.5m
8.7m… 8.7m
7.2m… 7.2m
Allied Hope
The Situation was bleak in 1942 but the
Allies had:
Natural Resources
Skilled Workforce with significant
reserves
Ability to produce massive amounts
of weapons and ammunitions
Determination of millions of antifascists
The capacity of the USSR to endure
Fighting WW II
• Battle for the Atlantic (1942-43)
• North Africa (1942-43)
• Italy (1943-44)
• Europe: E. Front (1941-45)
• Europe: W. Front (1942-45)
• The Pacific (1942-45)
The Battle for the Atlantic
1942 - 1943
• The problem:
3,000 mile supply lines
The “Wolf-packs”…
June, 1942: 172 ships lost
March, 1943: 400 U-boats
• The solution…
The Battle for the Atlantic
German U-boat on patrol
The Battle for the Atlantic
Soviets Halt Nazi Drive
The size of the USSR, resistance from
civilians, and the Russian winter all
contributed to the first Nazi setback of
the war
The Battle of Stalingrad pitted the Red
Army vs. the Germans in bitter house
to house fighting over a city of rubble
100,000 Germans surrendered
The USSR lost more troops in the
battle than the US lost the whole war
2nd defeat outside of Kursk, forced
Nazi retreat
The North African Front
While Stalingrad was pounded
Stalin pressured the US and Britain
to open a second front in Europe
The Allies decided on Operation
Torch the Allied invasion of North
Africa led by General Dwight D.
Eisenhower
In Nov. 1942 107,000 mainly US
troops landed in Casablanca, Oran
and Algiers
Winning North Africa
The US forces attacked from the East, the
British forces from the West in an effort to
pinch the German Afrika Corps led by
General Erwin Rommel “The Desert Fox”
The Afrika Corps surrendered in May 1943,
after the Battle of El Alamein
The Casablanca Conference
 In January 1943 FDR and Churchill met in
Casablanca in French Morocco to agree to
accept only an unconditional surrender from
the Axis Powers
 They also decided after North Africa not to
open an second front in France but to attack
Italy
The Italian Campaign
Summer of 1943 the Allies captured
Sicily
On July 25, 1943 Mussolini was
stripped of power, and Hitler flooded
Italy with troops
The Allies landed near Anzio outside of
Rome
“Bloody Anzio” 25,000 Allied, 30,000
German Causalities
Fighting in Italy raged until early 1945
Mussolini was killed by Italian citizens
Mussolini &
mistress Captured &
executed
April 28,
1945
Famous Allied Generals
 Patton
Montgomery
The Moscow Conference
In October 1943 Sec. of State Cordell
Hull, Anthony Eden of Great Britain,
and Foreign Minister Molotov of the
USSR met in Moscow
They issued The Moscow Declaration
that a World Organization for the
maintenance of peace would be set-up
after the war
United Nations
The Bombing of Germany
British bombers flew night missions and US
B-17’s flew day missions over Germany
Bombing missions over the Rhineland and
the Ruhr successfully took out factories
The British began targeting civilian targets
as Germany had done
Hamburg was leveled – 60,000 – 100,000
people were killed ( 60 other cities were
bombed) Munich, Berlin and Cologne
Dresden- 650,000 incendiary bombs were
dropped, 135,000 killed, 8 sq. miles
destroyed
The Dresden Fire Bombings
Feb, 1945 - Operation Thunderclap
• 3,900 tons of bombs
• Bombs + fire-sticks
• Temp. 3,000
• Cold air rushed in at ground
level & people were sucked
into the fire.
The Results of Dresden
• 25 - 35,000 dead
• 25K/ 29K homes destroyed
• 15 sq. km totally destroyed
The
Memphis
Belle
Dresden before…
Dresden
under
attack
Feb.
1945
After…
The Cairo Conference
In Nov. 1943 FDR and Churchill met in Cairo
with Gen. Chaing Kai-shek the political and
military leader of China
They promised to make Japan give up all
territory it had acquired especially in China
The Teheran Conference
In Nov. 1943 FDR, Churchill and Stalin
met for the first time and pledged to work
together to win the war but also the peace
Plans for the opening of a second front were
discussed
D-Day The Battle for France
Under IKE”s command the US, Britain,
and Canada assembled 3 million troops
to attack Normandy in Northern France.
The Allies tricked Hitler to think the
invasion would come at Calais 150
miles away
Operation Overlord the largest land,
sea, and air invasion in history was
launched on June 6th 1944
German resistance was brutal in some
spots like Omaha Beach
U.S. Presidents Dwight D. Eisenhower
Eisenhower Decides on D-Day
D-Day - Normandy Invasion June 6, 1944
D-Day - Normandy Invasion June 6, 1944
The Allies Gain Control
After 7 days of fighting the Allies
held an 80 mile strip of France
Within a month the Allies landed
1million troops, 567,000 tons of
supplies and 170,000 vehicles
August 1944 Paris was liberated
September 1944 Belgium and
Luxembourg were liberated
American Generals
 Patton
Bradley
The Election of 1944
FDR ran for an unprecedented 4th Term
against Thomas E. Dewey Republican
Governor of NY
Senator Harry S. Truman was added to the
ticket as a vice-presidential compromise
candidate
The Battle of the Bulge
In October 1944, the Allies entered
Germany
On December 16 Hitler launched his last
major counterattack of the war (B of the B)
 On Dec. 16th 1944 Eight German tank
divisions broke though US defenses along
an 80 miles front
SS troopers murdered 120 American POW’s
The Germans ran out of gas and without air
cover they lost 120,000 troops, 600 tanks,
1600 planes and were forced to retreat
The Sad Story of Private Eddie
Slovik
*He had various minor run- ins with the
law
• Released from prison in 1943, trained
and sent to the front in 1944.
• Deserted after the Battle of the Bulge
• Only US Soldier since the Civil War to
be executed for desertion.
The Yalta Conference
In February 1945 FDR, Churchill and Stalin
met in the Soviet port of Yalta in the Crimea
Sea
They agreed to call an Allied Conference to
draft the UN Charter in San Francisco
They agreed to divide Germany into
American, Soviet, French, and British
Occupation Zones
They agreed to allow free elections in
Poland and adjust its border
They agreed to ensue the establishment of a
democratic form of government for all
liberated European nations
Rebuilding Begins

The Yalta Conference, February 1945
– Ailing FDR, Churchill and Stalin (Big Three) meet on
the Black Sea in the Soviet Union to discuss the future of
Germany and the postwar world
– Stalin wanted Germany divided into occupation zones
– FDR makes concessions for two reasons:
 Wants the Soviets to enter the war against Japan (the
atom bomb is still 5 months from completion)
 Wants Stalin to support and join the United Nations
Rebuilding Begins

Series of compromises between the Big Three
– Four zones of occupation
– FDR and Churchill assumed this was to be
temporary
– Stalin promises “free and unfettered elections” in
Poland and other Soviet-occupied Eastern
European countries
– Stalin agrees to fight Japan
– Lastly, Stalin agrees to participate in the April
1945 meeting in San Francisco
Yalta Conference II
Secretly the USSR agreed to declare war on
Japan after the Germany surrender in
exchange for an occupation zone in
Northern Korea
Liberation of the Concentration CampsThe Holocaust
Both Red Army troops
liberating extermination camps
in Poland and US/British troops
liberating camps in Germany
were horrified at what they had
found
Starving Inmates, Unburied
bodies, and massive
crematoriums
FDR’s Death
While posing for a portrait FDR complained
of a headache and took a nap
He died of a stroke or a cerebral
hemorrhage
Vice-President Harry S. Truman took over
V-E Day
By April 25th the Red Army was
storming Berlin
Hitler blamed the Jews for starting the
war and his Generals for losing it
On April 29th he married Eva Braun
They both committed suicide and had
their bodies burned
On May 8th, Germany surrendered
V-E day was celebrated through the US
and the world
Germany Surrenders!
The War in the Pacific
The Japanese had overrun the
Philippines, Hong Kong, French
Indochina, Malaya, Burma,
Thailand much of China, the
Dutch East Indies, Guam, Wake
Island, the Solomon Islands, and
two of the Aleutian Islands which
were part of Alaska.
Essential Questions:
• What were the key turning points in
the war in the Pacific?
• What was the Allied plan to fight
Japan?
• How was the atomic bomb
developed and why was it used?
• What where the challenges facing
the Allies in building a just and
lasting peace?
The Bataan Death March
Just hours after Pearl Harbor the
Japanese attacked the Philippines,
and drove US forces to the Bataan
Peninsula
“I shall return” General Douglas
MacArthur
Bataan Death March – 80 mile
march of US POW’s and Filipinos
Allies Stem the Japanese Tide
 After Pearl Harbor and Macarthur’ fleeing
the Philippines the US was looking for a
victory
 On April 18th, Lieutenant Colonel James
Doolittle led 16 bombers on a bombing raid
of Tokyo. The Doolittle Raid lifted US spirits
Doolittle’s Raid

April 1942
 Lieutenant Colonel James H. Doolittle
 U.S.S. Hornet
 16 B-25s with 5 man crews
 Crews fly to China
 3 of the 8 captured crew members are
executed
 Leads Japanese to set their sights on
Midway
 Boosts America’s spirits
Doolittle Raid on Tokyo - 1942
Army Air Force B-25B bomber
Douglas MacArthur
Prickly and arrogant
Brilliant strategist
10 Japanese killed for every
American
He took more territory with less loss
of life
Rebuilds Japan after the war
Adapts Japanese traditions to western
political and economic systems
Fails to receive Republican
nomination for president
Admiral Chester A. Nimitz
Admiral Yamamoto
Naval War College and
Harvard University
 Naval Attache to U.S.
 Planned attack on Pearl
Harbor
 Killed by aerial ambush
in 1943

Battle of the Coral Sea
In May 1942 the US and Australians stopped
the Japanese drive to invade Australia in a
5-day carrier battle
The Battle of the Coral Sea
May 1942
 The first of the Pacific War's six fights between
opposing aircraft carrier forces
 Although a Japanese victory on "points", it was
an operational and strategic defeat

The Battle of Midway
The US broke the Japanese Code and
knew that Midway Island northwest of
Hawaii was to be the target
Admiral Chester A. Nimitz commanded
the US fleet
The Japanese lost four carriers, a
cruiser and 250 planes
After Midway the Allies began their
“Island Hopping Campaign” to Japan
Midway was a turning point in the
Pacific
The Battle of Midway

June 4-7, 1942
 Japanese Fleet commander Admiral
Yamamoto
 Yamamoto's intended surprise was thwarted
 Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, the U.S. Pacific
Fleet commander, established an ambush
 Cost Japan four irreplaceable fleet carriers, a
cruiser and 250 airplanes
 Only one U.S. carriers was lost
 War’s turning point
Allies on the Offensive
In August 1942 the Allies launched
their counter offensive on the Solomon
Islands and Papua , near New Guinea
Us Marines engaged in a bitter 6 month
fight on the island of Guadalcanal
In November 1943 1,000 Marines died
fighting for the island of Tarawa
Early in 1944 American forces
occupied Guam, Saipan, and Tinian in
the Marianas Islands
June 1944 the Japanese are defeated
at the Battle of the Philippines Sea
Guadalcanal
August 1942 – February 1943
 Solomon Islands
 24,000 Japanese casualties to 6,000 American
 Island of Death
 1st land defeat for Japanese
 Considered the turning point for the Japanese
Army

Battle of Leyte Gulf
In October 1944 178,000 Allied troop, 738
ships converged on Leyte Island in the
Philippines, the Japanese lost 3 battleships,
4 carriers, 13 cruisers and almost 500
planes
Gen. MacArthur – “People of the
Philippines: I have returned.”
"Gen. Douglas MacArthur returns to the Philippines, October 20, 1944."Wide World Photos, From: Buchanan,
between pp. 412-413, photo # 18
Battle of Leyte Gulf
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Philippine Islands in October 1944
This would be the last major naval action during the
war
Kamikaze (divine wind) attacks sink 16 ships and
damage 80
Largest naval battle ever to take place
The U.S. submarine blockade of Japan
MacArthur fulfills his promise and returns to the
Philippines
Frees the Bataan POWs
Kamikaze
In the Philippines, 424 kamikaze pilots sunk
16 ships and damaging another 80
A Japanese Zero about to hit the USS Missouri
The Battle of Iwo Jima
• In February 1945 the US
launched an attack on Iwo Jima
“Sulfur Island” to secure a
heavy bomber launching base
• 20,700 Japanese troops were
entrenched in tunnels and
caves
• More than 6,000 Marines died
and only 200 Japanese survived
Iwo Jima
February – March 1945
 "No other island received as much preliminary
pounding as did Iwo Jima."
. . . Admiral Nimitz, CINPAC
 Incredibly, this ferocious bombardment had
little effect
 22,000 defenders were burrowed in the
volcanic rock
 200 Japanese survived

It was the largest armada invasion up to that time in the Pacific
War. 70,000 Marines; 7,000 died; and 19,000 casualties
Mt. Suribachi, the 550-foot volcanic cone at the islands southern tip, dominates
both possible landing beaches. From here, Japanese gunners zeroed in on every
inch of the landing beach. Blockhouses and pillboxes flanked the landing areas.
The original photograph by Joe Rosenthal. The pole weighed over 100 lbs.
Four of the Flag Raisers (Bradley, Hayes, Sousley & Strank) appear with their jubilant buddies.
Strank, Sousley and many of these boys would soon be dead. The battle for the island raged on
for another four weeks.
Battle for Okinawa

April 1945
 1,900 kamikaze attacks sinking 30 ships, damaging
300 more, and killing 5,000 seamen
 7,600 Americans die taking the island
 110,000 Japanese die
 150,000 Okinawans perish, 1/3 of the population
 Second only to Stalingrad in loss of life
 Foreshadowed the cost of invading Japan
 Churchill predicted 1 million American and 500,00
British lives
The Battle for Okinawa
In April 1945 US Marines invaded
Okinawa
1,900 Kamikaze attacks sunk 30 ships,
damaging 300, and killing almost 5,000
sailors
By June 21,1945, 7,600 Marines had
died, while 110,000 Japanese perished
some in ritual suicides
Estimates Allied losses for a mainland
Japan invasion were undetermined
A Marine dashes across a draw nicknamed 'Death Valley‘ During heavy fighting in May; in 8 hrs the
Marines took 125 Casualties here (National Archives Photo)
The Manhattan Project
In 1939 Albert Einstein wrote a letter to FDR
stating that a Uranium bomb could be
produced and that Germany might develop
it first
FDR established the Advisory Committee on
Uranium, which became The Manhattan
Project
In 1942 Italian scientist Enrico Fermi
successfully controlled a chain reaction in
Chicago
Plutonium was then needed to mold the
bomb
The Manhattan Project II
The top secret project involved building 37
installations in the US and Canada, it
employed 120,000 people and cost $2 billion
The military leader of the project was
General Leslie Groves and the research
director was J. Robert Oppenheimer
On July 16th 1945 after research tests at Los
Alamos the first atomic bomb was
detonated on the Trinity Test Site in
Alamogordo, NM
Oppenheimer “ Now I am become Death, the
destroyer of worlds.”

The Atomic Bomb Ends the
War
Robert Oppenheimer was
lead scientist
 600,000 Americans
worked on pieces of the
project
 Very few knew the
projects intent
 1st test is on July 16, 1945
in Alamogordo, NM
Decision to Drop the Bomb
A Massive Invasion of Japan was scheduled
President Truman while attending the
Potsdam Conference in Germany with
Churchill and Stalin learned of the test and
issue the Potsdam Declaration that Japan
unconditionally surrender or face “prompt
and utter destruction”
The Interim Committee was made up of
government leaders and scientists they
discussed options besides the bomb, but in
the end decided to advice President Truman
to drop the bomb
Point/Counterpoint
The face of war is
the face of death
 American lives can
be saved
 Not to use the
bomb is a waste of
money
 Leverage against
the Soviets in
shaping the postwar

Japan was ready
to surrender
 Immoral to drop
it without warning
 Demonstrate its
power

Truman’s Decision
Warns Japan that it faced
“prompt and utter
destruction” unless it
surrendered at once
 Japan refuses
 “Let there be no mistake
about it. I regarded the
bomb as a military weapon
and never had any doubt
that it should be used”

The Bombs in Japan
On August 6th, 1945 the B-29 Bomber Enola
Gay dropped “Little Boy” a uranium bomb
on Hiroshima , 180,000 people were killed or
wounded
On August 9th, “Fat Man” a plutonium bomb
was dropped on Nagasaki, 80,000 people
were killed or
injured
The Manhattan Project
"Little Boy" (uranium bomb) is seen on the left, and
"Fat Man" (plutonium) is seen on the right.
Hiroshima
 Enola
Gay takes off August 6, 1945
 “Little Boy” kills 70,000 on impact
 Another 70,000 will die from injuries
within the next 5 years
 90% of the cities buildings are
destroyed
 3 days later “Fat Man” is dropped
Hiroshima
The hypocenter
seen from they
sky. With Aioi
Bridge between
them, the
Hiroshima Chamber
of Commerce and
Industry (A-bomb
Dome) and
Honkawa
Elementary school
remain standing in
ruin. (Photo by US
Army)
The A-Bomb Dome Today in Hiroshima
at Peace Memorial Park
Nagasaki
August 9, 1945
 Population 240,000
 Only 40% of the city is
destroyed thanks to its
geography
 39,000 killed
 25,000 injured
 Ruins of a Roman
Catholic Cathedral

Aftermath
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The two bombings killed an estimated 110,000
Japanese citizens and injured another 130,000.
By 1950, another 230,000 Japanese had died from
injuries or radiation.
Though the two cities were nominally military targets,
the overwhelming majority of the casualties were
civilian.
Both cities have become centers for peace movements
supporting the ban on nuclear weapons.
Unconditional Surrender V-J Day
On August 14th, 1945 after the
second bomb and a Soviet attack
in Manchuria the Japanese
surrendered
On September 2nd on the USS
Missouri in Tokyo Bay General
Douglas MacArthur presided over
the signing of the formal surrender
President Truman declared
September 2nd, 1945 V-J Day
The Occupation of Japan

Gen. Douglas MacArthur
 1,100 Japanese will be tried including Prime
Minister Hideki Tojo
 7 are sentenced to death
 7 year occupation MacArthur reshapes
Japanese economy by introducing freemarket practices
 Transforms their government with a new
constitution, still known today as the
MacArthur Constitution
Occupation of Japan
During the seven year occupation Allied
Commander General Douglas MacArthur
introduced a free-market economy, changed
the government, guaranteed basic
freedoms, and wrote the Japanese
Constitution
During the Tokyo War Crimes Tribunals
over 1,100 Japanese were arrested, seven
put to death including Hediki Tojo
The Nuremberg Trials
Twenty –Four surviving Nazis leaders were
put on trial for crimes against humanity,
crimes against the peace, and war crimes
12 of the 24 were sentenced to death:
Joachim Von Ribbontrop, Rudolph Hess,
Herman Goering and Albert Speer were
convicted, others went to prison
 The US Supreme Court Justice Robert
Jackson was the prosecuting attorney
Nearly 500,000 Nazis were tried later for
lesser crimes
The Nuremberg War Trials
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24 surviving Nazis on trial for crimes against
humanity, crimes against peace, and war
crimes (defined on page 586)
12 of the 24 will be executed
Lesser trials to follow will convict 200 more
Unfortunately, many go unpunished
Established the principle that individuals are
responsible for their actions is now firmly
entrenched in international law
War Totals
Between 50-60 million deaths, one half the
causalities were women and children
More than 405,000 Americans died, 670,000
were wounded
20-25 million Soviets were killed
6 million Jews were killed during the
Holocaust, 10 million people total
Over 200,000 were killed from the atomic
bombs
Hundreds of thousands were killed in aerial
bombings – London, Tokyo, Dresden
Towards a United Nations
In July 1944 representatives of 44 Allied
Nations met in Bretton Woods, New
Hampshire and established the World Bank,
The International Monetary Fund ( IMF) and
established a foundation for The Global
Agreement on Tariff and Trade ( GATT)
In Late summer and Fall of 1944
representatives of the USSR, Great Britain,
and China met with delegates of the US at
the Dumbarton Oaks Conference outside
Washington to discuss the UN Charter
The United Nations
During April to June 1945, 300
representatives from 51 countries met in
San Francisco to draw up the UN Charter
Seven Bodies of the UN:
General Assembly
Security Council – US, RUS,FRA,GB,CHINA
Secretariat
Economic and Social Council
International Court of Justice
Trusteeship Council
Specialized Agencies (Ex. WHO)