Chapter 35

Douglas MacArthur

(1880-1964), U.S. general. Commander of U.S. (later Allied) forces in the southwestern Pacific during World War II, he accepted Japan's surrender in 1945 and administered the ensuing Allied occupation. He was in charge of UN forces in Korea 1950-51, before being forced to relinquish command by President Truman.

War Labor Board

Acted as a supreme court for labor cases. Did more harm than good when it tried to limit wages, which led to strikes.

El Alamein

Combined German and Italian forces were beaten near Alexandria, which lead to the Allied taking of Morocco and Algeria

Internment Camps

Detention centers where more than 100,000 Japanese Americans were relocated during World War II by order of the President.

Fair Employment Practices Commission

state and local laws governing eeo that are often more comprehensive than federal laws and apply to small employers

Island Hopping

A military strategy used during World War II that involved selectively attacking specific enemy-held islands and bypassing others

Normandy

A region in northwestern France on the English channel

Casablanca

A wartime conference held at Casablanca, Morocco that was attended by de Gaulle, Churchill, and FDR. The Allies demanded the unconditional surrender of the axis, agreed to aid the Soviets, agreed on the invasion Italy, and the joint leadership of the Free French by De Gaulle and Giraud.

Harry S Truman

Became president when FDR died; gave the order to drop the atomic bomb

What economic effects resulted from American participation in the war?

Due to the war, America was lifted from its depression when it entered the war during a depression. The war caused profits to double, and also the Gross National Product to double. However, it left the nation with a terrible debt because of the high costs of the war, and also an inflation occurred It caused America to tax its people heavily, but also relied on credit, thus effectively raising the national debt from $49 billion to over $259 billion.

War Production Board

During WWII, FDR established it to allocated scarce materials, limited or stopped the production of civilian goods, and distributed contracts among competing manufacturers

Nagasaki

Japanese city in which the second atomic bomb was dropped (August 9, 1945).

Bataan Death March

Japanese forced about 60,000 of americans and philippines to march 100 miles with little food and water, most died or were killed on the way

Potsdam

July 26, 1945 - Allied leaders Truman, Stalin and Churchill met in Germany to set up zones of control and to inform the Japanese that if they refused to surrender at once, they would face total destruction.

Axis Powers

The World War II alliance of Germany, Italy, and Japan

Why was the choice of a vice-presidential candidate important and difficult for the democrats in 1944?

The choice for the vice-presidential candidate was important and difficult because there was no extremely viable option for them other than FDR, who was already running as President for his fourth time. The Republicans picked out Thomas Dewey, who was known for being against corruption and also was a liberal. In the end, the Dems chose Harry S Truman as their VP candidate because he had the least amount of enemies in the political scene.

Describe the last six months of war in Europe.

The last six months of war in Europe was a decisive victory for the allies. Hitler saw that the Battle of Berlin was the last chance for the Germany army, and even then it was still unlikely for Germany to win it, so he killed himself and his wife too. The American and British army pushed through the German forces easily, since Hitler called them out to spread out and try to stall the armies so he can prepare his suicide, because he knew that they were going to go down. Russia was also closing in to Berlin from the Eastern front, and also surrounded Germany. They saw the horrors of the holocaust when they entered closer to Berlin.

WAVES

Women Appointed for Volunteer Emergency Service in the Navy

Picture Brides

immigrant workers wives who would gain citizenship by marriage (now modern mail-order bride)

D-Day

175000 Allied troops invading the beaches of Normandy; Also called Operation Overload. The early hours of the day were spent with airborne attacks to break up the German resistance. The beaches of Normandy (which were broken into 5 groups) were stormed by US, British, Canadian, Free French, and Polish forces.

Korematsu v. U.S.

1944 Supreme Court case where the Supreme Court upheld the order providing for the relocation of Japanese Americans. It was not until 1988 that Congress formally apologized and agreed to pay $20,000 2 each survivor

Issei, Nissei

1st generation immigrants from Japan; naturalized or native-born citizens of US . All experienced racial animosity.

Battle of the Bulge

A 1944-1945 battle in which Allied forces turned back the last major German offensive of World War II.

Fala

A Spanish facist party that supported Francisco Franco during the Spanish civil war

Battle of the Coral Sea

A battle between Japanese and American naval forces that stopped the Japanese advance on Australia.

Okinawa

A campaign in the closing days of World War II in the Pacific (April to June 1945)

Matthew Perry

A commodore in the American navy. He forced Japan into opening its doors to trade, thus brining western influence to Japan while showing American might.

Henry Wallace

A former Democratic who ran on the New Progressive Party due to his disagreement on Truman's policy with the Soviets. He caused the Democratic party to split even more during the election season.

Holocaust

A methodical plan orchestrated by Hitler to ensure German supremacy. It called for the elimination of Jews, non-conformists, homosexuals, non-Aryans, and mentally and physically disabled.

Rosie the Riveter

A propaganda character designed to increase production of female workers in the factories. It became a rallying symbol for women to do their part.

Zoot Suit Riots

A series of riots in L.A. California during WW2, soldiers stationed in the city and Mexican youths because of the zoot suits they wore.

George Patton

Allied Commander of the Third Army. Was instrumental in winning the Battle of the Bulge. Considered one of the best military commanders in American history.

"America's task was far more complex and back-breaking [in World War II] than in World War I." Explain.

America's task in WWII was more complex because now they have to fight in a two front war, one against Japan over the Pacific and one against Germany over the Atlantic. America was also torn between which side to focus the war against, because of Pearl Harbor, America wanted to go to war with Japan and defeat them first, however it was more strategic and important to defend Britain against Germany, saving more allies for the war in the European front. America also had to prepare itself for total war, mobilizing its industry and to ship soldiers and create a massive army to use in both sides of the conflicts to help its allies.

Dwight D. Eisenhower

American General who began in North Africa and became the Commander of Allied forces in Europe.

Germany First

American military strategy in spite of Pearl Harbor attack

Guam

Americans secured this remote Pacific island from Spain after the war over Cuba. Americans had captured it earlier, before the residents even knew that there was a war going on.

Midway

An important battle in the Asian part of the war, the Americans sank 4 Japanese aircraft carriers

Sicily

An important invasion that lead to the removal of Mussolini from government, only to have him put back later

A. Philip Randolph

Black leader, who threatens a march to end discrimination in the work place; Roosevelt gives in with companies that get federal grants.

Bernard Montgomery

British General who cut off Rommel from advancing into Africa

Soft Underbelly of Europe

Churchill wanted to hit Germany up from North Africa and through Italy. This attack drew some og Hitler's men and supplies and it did defeat Italy, but it delayed D-day and gave Russia extra time to draw farther into Eastern Europe.

Hiroshima

City in Japan, the first to be destroyed by an atomic bomb, on August 6, 1945. The bombing hastened the end of World War II. (p. 797)

What opportunities were opened to women as a result of the war?

Due to the conscription draft, many men were not a home, and thus women were able to get their first jobs outside of the house. Not only did women work in the industry, but there were also some women served in the military, including the WAACS, WAVES, and SPARS. Only about a fifth of a million women servced in the military. The symbol for a women working was Rosie the Riveter, a girl with her sleeves rolled up and a rivet gun in her hand. After the war though, many women went back to doing their home jobs

Thomas Dewey

Expected winner of the 1948 election. He was the Republican Nominee.

Erwin Rommel

German field marshal noted for brilliant generalship in North Africa during World War II (1891-1944)

Wolf Packs

German submarines that traveled in groups in the North Atlantic Ocean to attack US ships and merchant ships.

What questions concerning WWII have historians attempted to answer?

Historians tried to answer questions such as why did America drop the 2 bombs on Japan even though it seemed that victory was eminent. It was thought that President Truman wanted to scare off and isolate the Soviet Union by showing the power of the bomb, and it would later be the proving point that America was not to be messed with. Could the use of the atomic bombs have been avoided? it was a question that many historians thought of, and it was a deep moral question.

Why could June 6, 1944 be considered THE turning point of the war?

June 6, 1944 was considered the turning point of the war because it was the biggest victory for the Allies since the war has begin, and was also the begin of the decline of Germany. The Tehran Conference was a meeting in which the leaders of the Allied nations would meet up and draw out coordinated attacks against Germany, which would later become known as D-Day. D-Day was an attack on the beach front of Normandy, and was the biggest victory because it helped liberate France from Germany's control, especially Paris, thus recovering the French.

V-E Day

May 8, 1945; victory in Europe Day when the Germans surrendered

Teheran

Meeting in 1943; Stalin, Roosevelt, Churchill; confirmed their defense to crush Hitler.

Braceros

Mexican workers that were brought to America to work when so many men and women were gone from home during World War II that there weren't enough workers.

Elbe River

Part of the iron curtain between East and West Germany

What factors led to Roosevelt's victory over Dewey?

Roosevelt's victory over Dewey was attributed mostly because the war was going well for the US and FDR was already in the presidency when Americans were winning the war, causing a rush of good feelings that benefited FDR. If he were to be losing, then he would have easily lost the election. Dewey's campaign mostly focused on attacking FDR and tried to make him look like the bad guy, who has been in the office for 12 yaers. Also, Roosevelt was also funded by the PAC, an organization that was set up to avoid the ban of giving politicians money through a group.

WAACS

The "Women's Army Axillary Corps", an acronym given to reference women in the army. Women being in the army changed their roles in society and gained them new respect.

What strategy did the United States use to defeat the Japanese?

The American strategy to defeat the Japanese was to island hop around Japan, not to attack their country directly but to take over all the islands around it and surround them and hopefully starve them to surrender. It was led General MacArthur and also Admiral Chester Nimitz. They took over many of the surrounding islands, including the Marianas Islands, which would later be the launch point for the 2 atomic bombs. The island hopping was a slow and steady idea that sacrificed the lives of many, because it required heavy navy shelling from offshore and then marines going up the island to capture it, while it was being shelled.

Describe Japanese victories in the Pacific in the months following Pearl Harbor.

The Japanese victories over in the Pacific were concise and precise, taking over an island after island, or country by country. They took over Guam, Wake Island, the Philippines, Hong Kong and also mainland China and many other islands. The loss of Philippines for America was embarrassing, having General MacArthur flee the island and soon surrendering Corregidor, a fort in Manila and also having Americans march the Bataan Death March, a march of 85 miles in which if you stumbled, the Japanese soldiers would kill you.

In what way can it be said that the reason's for Japanese immigrants' success also caused them trouble?

The Japanese were extremely successful in America because after Matthew Perry came to Japan and opened its ports, the Meiji government was very selective of its people they sent overseas because they were representatives of the Japanese nation. They came to America with more money, better education and also more women. The Japanese excelled at farming, and came to California, and soon became the most successful farmers in the area. White farmers became jealous and it was easier for them to attack the Japanese due to that, causing them problems.

Explain the meaning of the title of this section.

The meaning of the title is that Japan was pretty much killing themselves and dying nearing the end of the war. American submarines were devastating Japanese merchant ships and also Japan was losing an island by island, as American troops took over the lands, and General MacArthur was obsessed with winning the Philippines back. Americans soon took over Iwo Jima, a strategic airstrip that was located near Japan, and also later Okinawa, another island that was right in front of Japan's main islands. Japan soon was desperate and began using kamikaze pilots, thus showing how Japan was dying hard.

What was the military impact of the atomic bomb?

The military impact of the Atomic Bomb was that it would soon revolutionize the bomb. The atomic bomb was approved solely because of the fear that Germany would produce one before them, and it was all carried out in secret. The Manhattan Project had many Germany scientists that escaped Nazi Germany. When the first bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, it ended up with up to 180,000 casualties, and seriously weakened Japan's morale, but yet still no surrenders. However, Nagasaki did the job and the Emperor Hirohito finally surrendered to America.

Describe the purpose and outcome of the Invasion of North Africa.

The purpose of the Invasion of North Africa was to open a new front so that Germany did not have to focus its military efforts on Russia only, which was causing many Russian casualties. The US and Britain agreed to opening a second front, but had different approaches to how it should be done, and finally agreed on the soft underbelly approach. Having General Dwight D. Eisenhower lead the charge in North Africa, it did distract Germany to focus her efforts to help out Italy and also protect its own land in Africa.

"The war against Hitler looked much better at the end of 1942 than it had in the beginning." Explain.

The war against Hitler looked much better later in 1942 than in the beginning because there were many turning points in the war during the middle of the year. One of which was the sacrifice of many American spies to obtain the Enigma Machine, a machine which broke the codes of the German U-Subs, and revealed much of their locations allowing them to win the war on the sea. After that, Britain and America began to bomb Germany together, with Britain attacking Cologne, France, where Germany took over, and America bombing Germany itself. Also, Russia at Stalingrad pushed the German forces back after the winter, gaining about two-thirds of what they lost back.

What effects did the war have on manufacturing, agriculture and labor?

The war changed America industrially because it allowed America to enter total war, and have the government take control over much of the aspects of industry in America. It also ended the Great Depression. The War Production Board took over the industry, and stopped production of many products that were not necessary for war. Rubber was also conserved more, because it was needed in the war but much of the rubber shipments were taken over by Japanese soldiers. There was also the War Labor Board which reduced the wages so that the prices of products can be lower, and also made an agreement with many of the labor unions so that they wouldn't strike.

How did the war affect liberal ideals and goals at home?

The war ended some of the liberal ideas during the time at home, stopping many of the New Deal programs and also focused all the jobs on the war effort. Most notably, America was once again united in race, except for the Japanese, who were sent to Internment Camps along the west coast. The government's reasoning for such actions was to protect the Japanese people from angry Americans on the streets but it was actually because they were afraid of spies within the people. The internment camps were made legal for the moment by the Korematsu v. US case, in which the court upheld the camps.

What effect did the war have on the nation's minorities?

The war had a rioting effect on the nation's minorities, encouraging them to move from the South, especially the blacks, so that they could start new lives. Cotton picking was mechanized, thus many of the blacks moved West and North in search of new jobs. A. Philip Randolph led a protest in hopes to get colored people into the defence, in which FDR responded by letting them. He also passed the Fair Employment Practices Commission, so that now businesses cannot really discriminate based on color. Some were allowed to join the defences, in separate regiments thus starting the Double V, a victory overseas and a victory at home. Native-Americans were also given jobs in the defence as code talkers, which used their native language as a code to relay a message.

"This complex conflict was the best fought war in America's history." Explain

This war was best fought in America's history because America suffered the least total casualties, compared to other nations, and also had nothing in its homeland touched, due to its distance from Europe and Asia. It also boosted America's industry and America soon became a world super power, having saved Europe again after joining the war. America soon was the only country that actually benefited from the war, and emerged as a stronger nation as opposed to the other nations.

Why was Midway an important battle?

US and Japan fought in battles overseas, and the first major one was the Battle of the Coral Sea, in which both sides suffered heavy casualties, and was a war in which none of the boats ever saw each other and fought with planes. without ever being in the line of sight with each other. The Battle of Midway was supposed to be a surprise attack by the Japanese on the Americans at Midway, but it was intercepted and America sent ships there to defend, and surprised the Japanese, sinking 4 of their carriers and winning the battle. It was the battle that stopped Japanese expansion.

Chester Nimitz

United States admiral of the Pacific fleet during World War II who used aircraft carriers to destroy the Japanese navy (1885-1966)

George Marshall

United States general and statesman who as Secretary of State organized the European Recovery Program (1880-1959)

Battle of Stalingrad

Unsuccessful German attack on the city of Stalingrad during World War II from 1942 to 1943, that was the furthest extent of German advance into the Soviet Union.

"Nuts"

When Germans asked Americans to surrender at Bastogne how did the American commander respond?

Iwo Jima

a bloody and prolonged operation on the island of Iwo Jima in which American marines landed and defeated Japanese defenders (February and March 1945)

Gentleman's Agreement

an informal agreement between the United States and the Empire of Japan whereby the U.S. would not impose restriction on Japanese immigration or students, and Japan would not allow further immigration to the U.S.

Hirohito

emperor of Japan who renounced his divinity and became a constitutional monarch after Japan surrendered at the end of World War II (1901-1989)

Kamikazes

in World War II, Japanese pilots who loaded their aircraft with bombs and crashed them into enemy ships

Guadalcanal

one of the Solomon Islands in southwest Pacific, Japanese building airstrip, August 1942 battle, Allies won

Meiji Government

the name for Japan's new government that launched the country into ambitious industrialization and militarization