Germany Sparks a New War in Europe

Germany’s Lightning Attack September 1, 1939—Hitler launches invasion

of Poland Britain, France declare war on Germany, but

Poland falls quickly Blitzkrieg—lightning war—Germany’s new

military strategy Planes, tanks, infantry used to surprise enemy

and quickly conquer

Denmark quickly surrenders to the Nazis, and cooperates with the German occupation. However, King Christian X becomes a symbol of Danish resistance when he stays in his capital of Copenhagen and still goes on a daily horseback ride through the capital. This picture taken in 1940 is of one of those rides. He is not accompanied by any armed guard.

King Haakon of Norway (brother of Christian X of Denmark) refused to surrender to the Nazis, and was a symbol of Norwegian resistance. He escaped to London and moved the Norwegian government in exile there.

German infantry attacking through a burning Norwegian village.

German Neubaufahrzeug tanks in Oslo.

The Battle of Britain

Germany plans invasion of Britain; begins with air attacks in 1940

British use air force, radar, code-breaking to resist Germany

Battle of Britain—Air war over Britain that lasted until May 1941

Stunned by British resistance, Hitler calls off attacks

A pair of 264 Squadron Defiants. (PS-V was shot down on 28 August 1940 over Kent by Bf 109s.)

Aircraft spotter on the roof of a building in London. St. Paul's Cathedral is in the background. 306-NT-901B-3.

Standing up gloriously out of the flames and smoke of surrounding buildings, St. Paul's Cathedral is pictured during the great fire raid of Sunday December 29th." 1940. 306-NT-3173V.

Children of an eastern suburb of London, who have been made homeless by the random bombs of the Nazi night raiders, waiting outside the wreckage of what was their home." September 1940. 306-NT-3163V.

89.Life in London during the war. View of a V-1 rocket (flying bomb) in flight, ca. 1944. 306-NT-3157V. The British nickname was a “Doodlebug”

A London bus is submerged in a bomb crater after a German air raid.

Soviet and German invasions, annexations, and spheres of influence in Central and eastern Europe 1939-1940

The Mediterranean and the Eastern Front

The War in the Balkans Hitler plans to invade Soviet Union; moves to

take Balkan countries Hitler invades Yugoslavia and Greece in April

1941; both fall quickly

The Eastern Front

Hitler Invades the Soviet Union Germany invades an unprepared Soviet Union

in June 1941 Soviet troops burn land as they retreat;

Germans move into Russia(Scorched Earth) Coldest winter in decades Germans stopped at Leningrad(Stalingrad),

forced to undertake long siege(200,000 Germans, 1 million Russian)

Germans almost capture Moscow, but forced to pull back

Russian soldiers prepare to attack German lines outside Leningrad.

A column of Red Army POWs captured near Minsk is marched west.

A group of Soviet POWs, taken to undefined Prison Camp

President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs the Lend-Lease bill to give aid to Britain and China (1941)

Allies on the Western Front

Roosevelt and Churchill decided on a “Europe First” strategy. Didn’t want to fight an offensive war on two

fronts-Europe and the Pacific- at the same time

Russia wanted invasion of France so Germany would shift forces away from them

Britain wanted invasion of N. Africa since they were already fighting there

N. Africa and Italy

Allied forces made landing in Morocco and Algeria, and made their way East

After several defeats, British forces stopped Field Marshal Erwin Rommel’s Afrika Korps(tank-based division) and forced them out of Egypt

U.S. forces(U.S. II Corps) helped the combined Allied armies launch a final offensive in May 1943 General George S. Patton/General Omar Bradley

Gen. Erwin Rommel with the 15th Panzer Division between Tobruk and Sidi Omar. Sdf. Zwilling, Libya, January or November 24, 1941. 242-EAPC-6-M713a.

N. Africa and Italy

Using N. Africa as a staging area, the Allies launched an invasion of Sicily followed by S. Italy.

Successful at first, the Germans dug in 60 miles south of Rome

Mussolini resigned under pressure from his Fascist Grand Council, and Italy soon surrendered to the Allies

General Bernard L. Montgomery watches his tanks move up." North Africa, November 1942. 208-PU-138LL-3.

Western Front

Precision Bombing: Daytime bombing favored by the Americans High altitude missions dropping bombs on oil

refineries, rail yards, factories, and U-boat bases

Saturation Bombing: Nighttime raids favored by the British

Rapid release of a large number of bombs over a wide area

Purpose was to destroy civilian morale and force a surrender, maybe get some payback!

Western Front

As the Americans carried out the invasion of France, Russia was chasing the Germans back through Poland towards Germany

Battle of the Bulge Last German offensive on the western front 8 German armored divisions crashed through

the lines, catching Americans by surprise Allied air support and quick action by Patton’s

3rd Army forced Germans to withdrawal from their offensive back to Germany

War in the Pacific Theater

After Pearl Harbor, the strategy of “Europe First” put Allied commanders at a disadvantage in the Pacific

Philippines Americans and Filipinos under General Douglas

MacArthur put up a good fight, but eventually had to withdraw and re-group

Bataan Death March Japanese sent 70,000 American/Filipino prisoners on a

march up the Bataan Peninsula More than 7,000 died from exhaustion and routine

executions by the Japanese soldiers

Pacific Theater

Americans chose a strategy of liberating Japanese territory far away and then using them as stepping-stones to move closer(island hopping)

Navajo code talkers Secret code that helped the U.S. transmit vital

information that was never broken by the Japanese

Americans intercepted a message detailing plans of a major offensive towards Midway islands.(US base)

Pacific Theater

Japanese hoped to destroy the U.S. Pacific Fleet

Americans sat in wait for the Japanese U.S. obtained a crucial victory that stopped

the Japanese offensive, forcing them to focus on defense

Japan never recovered from the loss All 4 Japanese carriers, a cruiser, so many

experienced pilots, and 300 aircraft

Final Push

In October 1944 General MacArthur returned to the Philippines

U.S. forces retook the Mariana Islands Gave Allied forces bases from which to launch long

range B-29s on Japan Japan moved their best army units to Iwo Jima and

Okinawa, which were key islands

Iwo Jima

- Defenders dug caves, tunnels, and bunkers

- Among the bloodiest battles of the war

- 6,800 U.S. dead, 20,000 Japanese dead

Final Push

Battle of Okinawa Army-Marine force of 182,000 men Japanese commander’s orders to fight to the

death More than 100,000 Japanese dead 12,000 U.S. dead

Manhattan Project

Top secret program to develop an atomic weapon capable of devastating a large area

Harnessing the power resulting from the splitting of uranium or plutonium nuclei

Japan rejected Truman’s call for an unconditional surrender, was willing to fight to the last man, woman, and child

On August 6, 1945, B-29 Enola Gay dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima

3 days later, U.S. drops another on Nagasaki 250,000 died(directly, radiation, or cancer)

Outcome

55 million dead(30 million were civilians) Soviet Union: 24 million dead U.S. 418,000 dead Germany: 8 million dead Japan: 3 million dead China: 20 million