history, 4/19/24

• Fascism


  A political philosophy that advocates a strong, centralized, nationalistic government headed by a powerful dictator
• Nazi Party


  The National Socialist German Worker's Party, came to power under Adolf Hitler in the 1930s
• Axis


  Germany, Italy, Japan, and their allies during World War II, the "Axis Powers"
• Appeasement


  The granting of concessions to a hostile power in order to keep peace
• Lend-Lease Act


  A 1941 law that allowed the US to ship arms and supplies, without immediate payment, to Nations fighting against the Axis Powers
• Pearl Harbor


  Naval base in Hawaii that was hit by a surprise attack from Japan on 12/7/1941
• 1. D-Day

  6/6/1944, the day the Allis invaded France at Normandy during World War II
• Battle of the Bulge

  Month-long battle of WWII in which the Allies turned back the last major German offensive of the war
• Yalta Conference


  In 1945, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, and Joseph Stalin discussed plans for the end of WWII and the future of Europe near Yalta in the Soviet Union
• Holocaust


  The systematic killing by Germany in WWII of about 6 million Jews as well as members of other ethnic groups
• Bataan Death March


  In 1942, the Japanese marched 70,000 Filipino and American soldiers 60 miles to a prison camp
• Island Hopping


  A WWII strategy in which the Allies invaded islands that the Japanese weakly defended in order to stage further attacks on more heavily defended islands
• Manhattan Project


  A top secret program set up in 1942 to develop an atomic bomb, US scientist J. Robert Oppenheimer was in charge of the operation
• Hiroshima


  The first city in Japan hit by an atomic bomb on 8/6/1945
• War Production Board


  An agency established during WWII to coordinate the production of military supplies by US industries
• Rationing


  Distributing a fixed amount of a certain item
• Rosie the Riveter


  Image of a strong woman hard at work at an arms factory during WWII
• Bracero program


  The US program which hired many Mexicans during WWII to perform much-needed labor
• Japanese-American Interment


  1942 removal of Japanese and Japanese American from the Pacific Coast, putting them into internment camps, where they were held and guarded
• Marshall Plan


  Approved in 1948, the US gave 13 billion in aid to help the nations of Europe after WWII
• G.I Bill of Rights


  Passed in 1944, this bill provided education; and economic help to veterans
• Nuremberg Trials


  Court proceedings held in Nuremberg, Germany after WWII in which many Nazi leaders were tried for war crimes
• United Nations


  International peacekeeping organization to which most nations in the world belong, founded in 1945 to promote world peace, security, and economic development
• Adolf Hitler


  Led Germany's National Socialist German Worker's Party, known as the "Nazi Party". He overturned the constitution and proclaimed himself "der Fuher" or "The Leader", effectively becoming a dictator. Led Germany's aggressive military takeover of much of Europe which led to WWII. Also spearheaded the "Final Solution", the extermination of millions of Jewish people in concentration camps.
• Benito Mussolini


  The Prime Minister of Italy after WWII, then he established himself as a dictator in 1925. Italy also began attacking neighboring countries militarily, first capturing Ethiopia in 1935.
• Joseph Stalin


  The leader of the Communist Party in Russia during WWII. At first, he signed an anti-aggression pact with Hitler and also took over multiple countries near Russia. Eventually, Germany broke the agreement and Russia ended up fighting on the side of the Allies.
• Germany invaded Poland, which is considered the start of WWII, it prompted Great Britain and France to declare war on Germany.


  9/1/1939
• Germany invaded France and defeated them within two weeks, from there they could use their proximity to Great Britain to drop massive bombing attacks on London and other civilian targets.


  June 1940
• Germany invaded the Soviet Union, breaking their agreement. They captured much territory, but became bogged down near Moscow in December 194 during the coldest Russian winter in decades.


  June 1941
• Japan's Military


  They took control of its government and joined with Germany and Italy in 1941. Hideki Tojo, an army general, was their leader. They planned to capture territory in the Dutch East Indies and decided the USA would stand in their way. They launched a sneak attack on Pearl Harbor in Hawaii on 12/7/1941, which drew the US into the war. President Roosevelt declared it a "date which will live in infamy".
• The Tuskegee Airmen


  Or the 99th Fighter Squadron consisted of African-American pilots who served in North Africa and Italy during WWIII.
• Erwin Rommel


  The "Desert Fox" led Germany's Africa Corps, which fought in North Africa during WWII.
• Dwight D. Eisenhower


  The US general who led Allied troops in Northern Africa. The Axis troops in Northern Africa surrendered in May 1943, enabling the Allies to attack Italy in July 1943. The new Italian government, which had rebelled against Mussolini and imprisoned him, surrendered in September 1943. Eisenhower later became President of the US.
• Allied troops landed in Normandy, France to help take France back from the Germans. More than 10,000 Allied soldiers were killed in the attack on the beach, but the victory helped set the stage for the eventual defeat of the Germans.


  6/6/1944
• Germany's last big offensive of the war in Belgium and Luxembourg. However, they lost about 120,000 troops and eventually had to retreat or surrender. After this, it was inevitable that the Allies would win the war in Europe.


  December 1944
• Germany surrendered, five days after Russia captured Berlin. Hitler committed suicide on April 30 rather than be captured.

  5/7/1945
• Harry Truman


  He became President in April 1945 after the death of FDR, who had been in office since 1933.
• Japan


  Were still fighting in the Pacific and taking control of many islands. They battled Allied forces under General Douglas MacArthur in the Philippines, but he was forced to withdraw to Australia in March 1942 to protect the country. However, he vowed, "I will be back". He returned in October 1944 and the Allied forces liberated the Philippines in March 1945, keeping his promise.
• Kamikaze Pilots


  Japanese pilots who would sacrifice their lives by flying directly into ships to attempt to sink them.
• President Truman ordered Japan to surrender or be destroyed. When they refused, he dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima and another on Nagasaki on August 9th. Japan surrendered on April 14. They officially signed a letter of surrender on the battleship Missouri in Tokyo Bay on 9/2/1945. The war was over.

  8/6/1945