FIGHTING THE WAR:
EUROPEAN THEATER
D-Day, June 6, 1944
• U.S. + British plan to
attack Axis from west
• Dwight D. Eisenhower:
Supreme Allied
Commander in Europe;
led invasion on D-Day
• Aug. 25, 1944: Paris
liberated
•  Allied victory over
Europe, May 8, 1945
US Soldiers landing on
Omaha Beach
Going over the
top D-Day
V-E Day
• By 1945, Soviets
surround Berlin
• Hitler commits suicide
April 30, 1945
• Germany signs an
unconditional surrender
on May 7, 1945
• V-E Day—Victory in
Europe—May 8, 1945
Liberating the Camps
• Disturbing Pictures to follow…
FIGHTING THE WAR:
PACIFIC THEATER
Japanese empire
• By early 1942, Japan
controlled
– Hong Kong, French
Indochina (Vietnam),
Malaya, Burma,
Thailand, parts of China
– Formosa (Taiwan),
Dutch East Indies,
Guam, Wake Island,
Solomon Islands, other
islands
Japan Captures
Philippines
• U.S. surrenders Philippines
to Japan April 1942
• Bataan Death March: forced
march of American and
Filipino POWs to POW camp
– Japanese war atrocities
• Douglas MacArthur:
Supreme Allied Cmdr of
Pacific theater; told Filipinos:
“I shall return”
US/Allied Strategy
• Reclaim the Pacific
• Island-Hopping: conquer one island, clear it,
use it as base of operations for next island
• Why is this the best strategy for the Pacific?
• What problems might arise?
Japanese Strategy
• War of attrition: Bleed the enemy dry
• Dig into island, build underground bunker, use
heavy artillery + suicide attacks
– Jap. use kamikaze (“divine wind”) suicide pilots
loaded with explosives
• Where have you seen this strategy before?
Where will you see it again? Why do you
think?
Kamikaze Aftermath
Key Battles
• Bombing Raid of Tokyo (April 1942)
• Battle of Coral Sea (May 1942):
– Prevented Jap. advance to Australia
• Battle of Midway (June 1942)
– Turning point: prevented Jap. advance to Hawaii,
Jap. on defensive for rest of war
Key Battles
• Guadalcanal (Aug 1942-Feb. 1943): Jap. first
defeat on land
• Leyte Gulf (Oct 1944): US reclaim Philippines;
• Iwo Jima (Feb. –March 1945): Strategic air
access to Japan
• Okinawa (April-June 1945): Last Jap.
defensive spot
MacArthur Returns to
Philippines
US marines raising the flag on Iwo-Jima
Why is this such
an iconic picture?
The End is in Sight…
• May 1945 Allied forces plan
Operation Olympic, the
invasion of Japan itself in
Nov.
• US planners feared casualty
estimates of one million!
• Japan was desperate but
unwilling to surrender!
BTW…
• FDR dead
• Truman sworn in
– Inherits difficult
decision….
Manhattan Project
• Purpose: to build an atomic bomb
• Scientists, military ppl and civilian
policymakers all had doubts on using bomb
• Truman warned Japan: “prompt and utter
destruction” if it doesn’t surrender
• Victory over Japan: Sept. 2, 1945
“Little Boy” and “Fat Man”
Unleashed
• August 6, 1945Hiroshima
• August 9, 1945 - Nagasaki
• Killed approx.
110,000 Japanese
• Injured 130,000
• By 1950, another
230,000 Japanese
had died from
injuries or radiation
VJ Day
• August 14, 1945 - Japan
accepts unconditional
surrender
• Celebration parties
erupt throughout every
allied country!
The End
• September 2, 1945 Formal Japanese
surrender ceremony on
board the USS
MISSOURI
Most Destructive War in
Human History
• European infrastructure
destroyed due to
targeting civilians
• Millions of death, more
than last 300 years of
war combined
• US & USSR are WORLD
Powers
AFTER THE WAR:
REBUILDING THE WORLD
Yalta Conference (Feb.
1945)
• Big Three: (Roosevelt,
Churchill, Stalin) to decide
fate of post-war Ger.
• Estab. United Nations
(international
peacekeeping)
• Discussed strategy for Jap.
defeat
Eleanor Roosevelt
with Universal
Declaration of
Human Rights
Potsdam Conference (JulyAug. 1945)
• Demilitarized, disarmed
Germany under four
zones of Allied
occupation
• Issues ultimatum to Jap.
for unconditional
surrender
• Revision of GermanSoviet-Polish borders
Identify three changes in the map pre- and postWWII.
New Opportunities
• Economy: Industry, farming and wages are all
on the rise.
• Population: War jobs and military allowed
people more social mobility.
Veterans Come Home
• Marriages skyrocket pre-war; divorces rise
post-war.
• GI Bill of Rights: Education and training for
veterans.
• Many women lose jobs.