Exam 1 - World War 2

Stabshelferinnen

woman clerk auxiliary / Meaning Women volunteers (in Germany) that made it possible to release males to be a part of industry in 1942

Blitzkreig

a term used to describe a method of offensive warfare designed to strike a swift, focused blow at an enemy using mobile, maneuverable forces, including armored tanks and air support. Such an attack ideally leads to a quick victory, limiting the loss of soldiers and artillery.

Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact

a non-aggression pact between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union that enabled those two powers to divide-up Poland between them.

V-1 "flying-bomb" and V-2 rocket

(212) The first operational cruise and ballistic missiles German designed

Luftwaffe

(German for air + weapon)

Albert Lebrun

14th and last president (1932-40) of France's Third Republic. During the first year of World War II, he sought to preserve French unity in the face of internal political dissension and the German military threat, but he failed to provide effective leadership. When Germany successfully invaded France early in World War II, Lebrun complied with the cabinet's decisions of June 1940 that led to the armistice with Germany, although he personally would have preferred heading a government-in-exile. In July, Lebrun acquiesced in the constitutional revisions at Vichy through which Marshal Philippe Pétain took over as head of state. Lebrun retired to Vizille near Grenoble and was later interned by the Germans at Itter in Tirol (1943-44). By acknowledging General Charles de Gaulle as head of the provisional government as the Allies liberated France, Lebrun ended his own political career.

Auschwitz

A large concentration camp in southern Poland Nearly half a million (out of the total 6 million deaths of jews) people were killed here

Colonel James Doolittle

Airman who led the raid on Tokyo 16 medium range B-25 bombers Plan to land in Chaing-kai-sheck owned territory in China

Battle of the Coral Sea

Allies won, Japanese lost The Battle _______________, fought from 4-8 May 1942, was a major naval battle between the Imperial Japanese Navy and naval and air forces from the United States and Australia, taking place in the Pacific Theatre of World War II.

Air Chief Marshall Sir Hugh Dowding

British air chief marshal and head of Fighter Command during the Battle of Britain (1940) in World War II; he was largely responsible for defeating the German Air Force in its attempt to gain control of British skies in preparation for a German invasion of England. He vigorously promoted the development of radar and the Spitfire and Hurricane fighters that contributed significantly to the defeat of the Luftwaffe during the Battle of Britain. Although the Fighter Command was outnumbered, Dowding's strategic and tactical skill enabled it to retain air superiority and thwart Germany's aims.

Winston Churchill

British statesman, orator, and author who as prime minister (1940-45, 1951-55) rallied the British people during World War II and led his country from the brink of defeat to victory. On May 13 Churchill faced the House of Commons for the first time as prime minister. He warned members of the hard road ahead—"I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears and sweat"—and committed himself and the nation to all-out war until victory was achieved. Behind this simplicity of aim lay an elaborate strategy to which he adhered with remarkable consistency throughout the war. Hitler's Germany was the enemy; nothing should distract the entire British people from the task of effecting its defeat. Anyone who shared this goal, even a Communist, was an acceptable ally.

Admiral Chester Nimitz

Chester William Nimitz, Sr. was a fleet admiral of the United States Navy. He played a major role in the naval history of World War II as Commander in Chief, U.S. Pacific Fleet and Commander in Chief, Pacific Ocean Areas, commanding Allied air, land, and sea forces during World War II

General Douglas MacArthur

Commanded the Filipino Fleet in the Pacific General of the Army Douglas MacArthur was an American five-star general and Field Marshal of the Philippine Army. He was Chief of Staff of the United States Army during the 1930s and played a prominent role in the Pacific theater during World War II.

Battle of Crete

Crete was a humiliating defeat for the British. Almost 4,000 men were killed and over 11,000 more captured. Enemy air power had been decisive. But the Germans had been badly mauled too, with over 3,000 dead. · The Battle of Crete (German: Luftlandeschlacht um Kreta, also Unternehmen Merkur, "Operation Mercury", Greek: Μάχη της Κρήτης) was fought during the Second World War on the Greek island of Crete. It began on the morning of 20 May 1941, when Nazi Germany began an airborne invasion of Crete. Greek and other Allied forces, along with Cretan civilians, defended the island.[12] After one day of fighting, the Germans had suffered heavy casualties and the Allied troops were confident that they would defeat the invasion. The next day, through communication failures, Allied tactical hesitation and German offensive operations, Maleme Airfield in western Crete fell, enabling the Germans to land reinforcements and overwhelm the defensive positions on the north of the island. Allied forces withdrew to the south coast. More than half were evacuated by the British Royal Navy and the remainder surrendered or joined the Cretan resistance. The defence of Crete evolved into a costly naval engagement; by the end of the campaign the Royal Navy's eastern Mediterranean strength had been reduced to only two battleships and three cruisers.[13] The Battle of Crete was the first occasion where Fallschirmjäger (German paratroops) were used en masse, the first mainly airborne invasion in military history, the first time the Allies made significant use of intelligence from decrypted German messages from the Enigma machine,[14][15] and the first time German troops encountered mass resistance from a civilian population.[16] Due to the number of casualties and the belief that airborne forces no longer had the advantage of surprise, Adolf Hitler became reluctant to authorise further large airborne operations, preferring instead to employ paratroopers as ground troops.[17] In contrast, the Allies were impressed by the potential of paratroopers and started to form airborne-assault and airfield-defence regiments.

Pearl Harbor

Dec. 7th, 1941 Key part of Japanese strategy was to destroy the American Pacific fleet that was based in Pearl Harbor. Surprise was essential.

Nuremberg Laws

Deprived Jews of full German citizenship in 1935

General Edward King

Edward Postell King Jr. was a Major General in the United States Army who gained prominence for leading the defense of the Bataan Peninsula in the Battle of Bataan against the Japanese invasion of the Philippines in World War II.

Collapse in Greece

Following the conquest of Crete, all of Greece was occupied by June 1941. The occupation in the mainland lasted until Germany and its ally Bulgaria were forced to withdraw under Allied pressure in early October 1944. However, German garrisons remained in control of Crete and some other Aegean islands until after the end of World War II in Europe, surrendering these islands in May and June 1945. · The occupation ruined the Greek economy and brought about terrible hardships for the Greek civilian population.[1] Much of Greece was subjected to enormous destruction of its industry (80% of which was destroyed), infrastructure (28% destroyed), ports, roads, railways and bridges (90%), forests and other natural resources (25%)[2][3][4] and loss of civilian life (7.02% - 11.17% of its citizens).[5][6] Over 40,000 civilians died in Athens alone from starvation, and tens of thousands more died from reprisals by Nazis and collaborators.[7] · The Jewish population of Greece was nearly eradicated. Of its pre-war population of 75-77,000, only around 11-12,000 survived, either by joining the resistance or being hidden.[8] Most of those who died were deported to Auschwitz

Surrender in Singapore

February 15th, 1942— single most catastrophic defeat in British military history, over 130,000 troops were taken prisoner The British had a large naval base in Singapore (British, Australian, and Indian troops) City surrounded and suffered much bombardments The POWs were treated brutally, enduring starvation

Hitler's Rise to Chancellorship (35)

Following the failure of the Putsch, Hitler began his political ambitions by making the best of the economic crisis beginning in 1923. From 1930-1932, the Nazi control of parliament increased from 18.3 to 38.3 percent. With a private army of 400,000 and a electorate base over 13,700,000, Hitler was the leader (and Chancellor of Germany) of the most powerful political party Germany had ever seen. Death of Hindenburg (1934) - President + Chancellor = Führer. (Head of gov't and state) Restored economic prosperity with public building projects + deficit budgeting

Allies

France / America / Britain

Chareles de Gaulle

French soldier, writer, statesman, and architect of France's Fifth Republic. Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle was a French army officer and statesman who led the French Resistance against Nazi Germany in World War II, and chaired the Provisional Government of the French Republic from 1944 to 1946 in order to reestablish democracy in France

Erwin Rommel

German field marshal who became the most popular general at home and gained the open respect of his enemies with his spectacular victories as commander of the Afrika Korps in World War II. The deserts of North Africa became the scene of his greatest successes—

Operation Typhoon

German strategic offensive in the battle of moscow. 2 pincer attack. · On October 2, 1941, the Germans begin their surge to Moscow, led by the 1st Army Group and Gen. Fedor von Bock. Russian peasants in the path of Hitler's army employ a "scorched-earth" policy. · Hitler's forces had invaded the Soviet Union in June, and early on it had become one relentless push inside Russian territory. The first setback came in August, when the Red Army's tanks drove the Germans back from the Yelnya salient. Hitler confided to General Bock at the time: "Had I known they had as many tanks as that, I'd have thought twice before invading." But there was no turning back for Hitler—he believed he was destined to succeed where others had failed, and capture Moscow. · Although some German generals had warned Hitler against launching Operation Typhoon as the harsh Russian winter was just beginning, remembering the fate that befell Napoleon—who got bogged down in horrendous conditions, losing serious numbers of men and horses—Bock urged him on. This encouragement, coupled with the fact that the Germany army had taken the city of Kiev in late September, caused Hitler to declare, "The enemy is broken and will never be in a position to rise again." So for 10 days, starting October 2, the 1st Army Group drove east, drawing closer to the Soviet capital each day. But the Russians also remembered Napoleon and began destroying everything as they fled their villages, fields, and farms. Harvested crops were burned, livestock were driven away, and buildings were blown up, leaving nothing of value behind to support exhausted troops. Hitler's army inherited nothing but ruins.

Posen Address

Given by Himmler in 1943, declared, "It is a matter of total indifference how the Russians and Czechs fare, whether the peoples live in plenty or weather they croak from hunger. The only thing that interests me is that we need them as slaves for our culture.

Mein Kampf

Hitler's memorandum/ manifesto "my struggle" dictated to his old military comrade, Rudolph Hess, during his 9 month (not the 5 year sentence) stint in prison.

Joseph Stalin

In July 1941, Stalin completely reorganized the Soviet military, placing himself directly in charge of several military organizations. This gave him complete control of his country's entire war effort; more control than any other leader in World War II.

Herman Goering

In the battle of Britain, Air Marshal Hermann Göring expressed confidence that his planes could check British naval interference and also drive the RAF out of the sky. So it was agreed that Göring would try his preliminary air offensive, which did not commit the other services to anything definite a leader of the Nazi Party and one of the primary architects of the Nazi police state in Germany. He was condemned to hang as a war criminal by the International Military Tribunal at Nürnberg in 1946 but took poison instead and died the night his execution was ordered. he was given command of Hitler's Storm Troopers (the SA, Sturmabteilung). Göring took part in the abortive Beer Hall Putsch of November 1923, in which Hitler tried to seize power prematurely. He occupied 1 of the 12 Reichstag seats that the Nazi Party won in the 1928 election. Thereafter Göring became the acknowledged party leader in the lower house, and, when the Nazis won 230 seats in the election of July 1932, he was elected president of the Reichstag. Göring was the most popular of the Nazi leaders, not only with the German people but also with the ambassadors and diplomats of foreign powers. He used his impregnable position to enrich himself. The more ruthless aspect of his nature was shown in the recorded telephone conversation by means of which he blackmailed the surrender of Austria before the Anschluss (political union) with Germany in 1938. It was Göring who led the economic despoliation of the Jews in Germany and in the various territories that fell under Hitler's power.

British Economy (in general—did it increase or shrink?)

Increased by over 60% (215)

Axis

Japan / Italy / Germany

Chiang Kai-shek

Leader of the Kuomintang (The nationalist government in China) (As opposed to the communists) · soldier and statesman, head of the Nationalist government in China from 1928 to 1949 and subsequently head of the Chinese Nationalist government in exile on Taiwan.

Heinrich Himmler

Leader of the SS, which essentially enslaved or killed millions (particularly Russians) Targeted Jews extensively

"Magic" (250) - Dec. 7th

Longwinded statement of Japanese grievances sent to the Japanese Embassy in Washington intended by Tojo as a declaration of war. Was intercepted by magic, but due to translation delays, it was not presented to the State Department until 2 o'clock, and by that time Pearl Harbor was already well under attack Operation Magic was the cryptonym given to United States efforts to break Japanese military and diplomatic codes during World War II. The United States Army Signals Intelligence Section (SIS) and the Navy Communication Special Unit worked in tandem to monitor, intercept, decode, and translate Japanese messages.

General Hideki Tojo

Manchuria veteran Vice-Minister of War, starting in 1938

Tripartite Pact 1940

Matsuoka committed Japan to the Tripartite pact with Germany and Italy in 1940. This was a clear commitment for Japan to fight Russia if Russia attacked Germany

"Final Solution" (228)

Measure to "institutionalize the massacre of the Jews" Jews relocated to camps in the east and worked to a state of enfeeblement before being sent to gas chambers

Frontkampfer

Men who worked as mercenaries during the European Wars if the early 1900s By 1918, they called themselves "__________" (front fighters) who could never quite fit back into the civilian way of life.

Mirkovic Coup

Mirković led and organised the Yugoslav coup d'état of 27 March 1941 that deposed the regency of Prince Paul, Dr. Radenko Stanković and Dr. Ivo Perović, as well as the government of Prime Minister Dragiša Cvetković. Mirković and his fellow plotters declared the 17-year-old Prince Peter to be of age and brought to power a government of national unity led by Air Force General Dušan Simović. The coup was carried out at British instigation and involved British intelligence operatives.[2] Mirković and the other plotters were all funded by the British.[3] The coup resulted in the German-led invasion of Yugoslavia during which the armed forces of Yugoslavia were defeated within 11 days. On 14 April 1941, Mirković handed command of the air force to Colonel Petar Vukčević, the commander of the 4th Bomber Brigade.[4] On 16 April, he was fleeing the country by air when the aircraft he was travelling in was hit by Greek anti-aircraft fire near Preveza, and crashed. Mirković was seriously injured.[5] He was based in Cairo for a period, where he was involved with a faction of the Yugoslav government-in-exile that was supported by British intelligence in Egypt.[6] He died in London on 21 August 1969.[1]

Nikita Khrushchev

Nikita Khrushchev (1894-1971) led the Soviet Union during the height of the Cold War, serving as premier from 1958 to 1964. Though he largely pursued a policy of peaceful coexistence with the West, the Cuban Missile Crisis began after he positioned nuclear weapons 90 miles from Florida. At home, he initiated a process of "de-Stalinization" that made Soviet society less repressive. Yet Khrushchev could be authoritarian in his own right, crushing a revolt in Hungary and approving the construction of the Berlin Wall. Known for his colorful speeches, he once took off and brandished his shoe at the United Nations.

Rhineland

On March 7, 1936, Adolf Hitler sent over 20,000 troops back into ____________, an area that was supposed to remain a demilitarized zone according to the Treaty of Versailles. The area known as the ___________ was a strip of German land that borders France, Belgium, and the Netherlands. This area was deemed a demilitarized zone to increase the security of France, Belgium, and the Netherlands against future German aggression. This area of Germany was also important for coal, steel, and iron production. When France and the USSR signed a "friendship" pact, Hitler felt emboldened to move into the Rhineland to "Protect Germany" from foreign aggression.

Operation Uranus

Operation Uranus was the codename of the Soviet strategic operation in World War II which led to the encirclement of the German Sixth Army, the Third and Fourth Romanian armies, and portions of the German Fourth Panzer Army. 19-23 November 1942

German war-economic philosophy

Rested on the concept that the country's weapons should and coult outdo the enemy's, particularly in quality (211) Take extractive material from the enemy (210)

Stalingrad Disaster

Stalingrad was one of the most decisive battles on the Eastern Front in the Second World War. The Soviet Union inflicted a catastrophic defeat on the German Army in and around this strategically important city on the Volga river

Second Industrial Revolution in the Soviet Union

Stimulated by operation Barbarossa. 80 Percent of Russian industry moved eastward

Friedrich Ebert

The 1st Chancellor of the new republic (of Germany) who was in office from February 1919-1925 "I hate the social revolution like sin."

7 Flieger

The 7. Flieger-Division was formed in 1938 to command all the parachute forces of the Luftwaffe and was reported as combat ready on 1 September 1938 in time for Operation Grün, the planned invasion of Czechoslovakia but that operation was cancelled following the Munich agreement. Elements of the division took part in the fighting in Poland though only as motorized infantry in the middle of September 1939. // Also in Denmark

Sudetenland

The German name for the Northwestern part of Czechoslovakia Was annexed by Germany in 1938 - "the Munich Crisis." Germany and USSR (Stalin) signed a non-aggression pact 1st demonstration of Blitzkrieg tactics. Germany invaded from around all of the western sides of Poland, converging around the capitol, Warsaw.

Battle of Cape Matapan

The Battle of Cape Matapan (Greek: Ναυμαχία του Ταινάρου) was a Second World War naval engagement between British Imperial and Axis forces, fought from 27-29 March 1941. The cape is on the south-west coast of the Peloponnesian peninsula of Greece. Following the interception of Italian signals by the Government Code and Cypher School (GC&CS) at Bletchley Park,[1] ships of the Royal Navy and Royal Australian Navy, under the command of the Royal Navy's Admiral Sir Andrew Cunningham, intercepted and sank or severely damaged several ships of the Italian Regia Marina under Squadron-Vice-Admiral Angelo Iachino. The opening actions of the battle are also known in Italy as the Battle of Gaudo.

Battle of Moscow

The Battle of Moscow was a military campaign that consisted of two periods of strategically significant fighting on a 600 km sector of the Eastern Front during World War II. It took place between October 1941 and January 1942. Soviet victory, End of Operation Barbarossa, Beginning of Soviet counter-offensives

Operation Marita

The German reinforcement of Italy's attack on Greece. German win. Following the Italian invasion on 28 October 1940, Greece repelled the initial Italian attack and a counter-attack in March 1941. When the German invasion, known as Operation Marita, began on 6 April, the bulk of the Greek Army was on the Greek border with Albania, then a vassal of Italy, from which the Italian troops had attacked. German troops invaded from Bulgaria, creating a second front. Greece received a small reinforcement from British, Australian and New Zealand forces in anticipation of the German attack. The Greek army found itself outnumbered in its effort to defend against both Italian and German troops. As a result, the Metaxas defensive line did not receive adequate troop reinforcements and was quickly overrun by the Germans, who then outflanked the Greek forces at the Albanian border, forcing their surrender. British, Australian and New Zealand forces were overwhelmed and forced to retreat, with the ultimate goal of evacuation. For several days, Allied troops played an important part in containing the German advance on the Thermopylae position, allowing ships to be prepared to evacuate the units defending Greece.[14] The German Army reached the capital, Athens, on 27 April[a] and Greece's southern shore on 30 April, capturing 7,000 British, Australian and New Zealand personnel and ending the battle with a decisive victory. The conquest of Greece was completed with the capture of Crete a month later. Following its fall, Greece was occupied by the military forces of Germany, Italy and Bulgaria.[15]

Stalin's "Purge"

The Great Purge, also known as the "Great Terror," was a brutal political campaign led by Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin to eliminate dissenting members of the Communist Party and anyone else he considered a threat. Although estimates vary, most experts believe at least 750,000 people were executed during the Great Purge, which took place between about 1936 and 1938. More than a million other people were sent to forced labor camps, known as Gulags. This ruthless and bloody operation caused rampant terror throughout the U.S.S.R. and impacted the country for many years.

Lend-Lease Law

The Lend-Lease policy, formally titled An Act to Promote the Defense of the United States, was a program under which the United States supplied the United Kingdom, Free France, the Republic of China, and later the Soviet Union and other Allied nations with food, oil, and materiel between 1941 and August 1945. Still remained officially neutral

"General Plan" of Fuhrer Directive No. 41 (221)

The purpose was to occupy the Caucasus front by decisively attacking and destroying Russian forces stationed in the Voronezh area to the south, west, or north of the Don River. Desired to reach Baku, the center of the Soviet oil industry

Guadalcanal

The World War II Battle of _____________ was the first major offensive and a decisive victory for the Allies in the Pacific theater. ... Strategically, possession of a ____________ air base was important to control of the sea lines of communication between the United States and Australia. The allies with the objective of using _________l and Tulagi as bases in supporting a campaign to eventually capture or neutralize the major Japanese base at Rabaul on New Britain. The Japanese defenders, who had occupied those islands since May 1942, were outnumbered and overwhelmed by the Allies JP badly in need of supplies and reinforcements // US's "island hopping" strategy.

Battle of Midway

The carrier battle ___________________, fought in World War II, took place on June 5, 1942 (June 4-June 7 in US time zones). The United States Navy defeated a Japanese attack against _________ Atoll, marking a turning point in the war in the Pacific theatre. The U.S. Navy's decisive victory in the air-sea battle (June 3-6, 1942) and its successful defense of the major base located at ________Island dashed Japan's hopes of neutralizing the United States as a naval power and effectively turned the tide of World War II in the Pacific

U-boat (Unterseeboot)

The first phase, during which the U-boats generally operated singly, ended in March 1941, by which time many merchant ships were sailing in convoy, trained escort groups were becoming available, and aircraft were proving their effectiveness as anti-U-boat weapons. In the next phase the Germans, having acquired air and U-boat bases in Norway and western France, were able to reach much farther out into the Atlantic, and their U-boats began to operate in groups (called wolf packs by the British). One U-boat would shadow a convoy and summon others by radio, and then the group would attack, generally on the surface at night. These tactics succeeded until radar came to the aid of the escorts and until convoys could be given continuous sea and air escort all the way across the Atlantic in both directions. In March 1943, as in April 1917, the Germans nearly succeeded in cutting Britain's Atlantic lifeline, but by May escort carriers and very-long-range reconnaissance bombers became available.

German Invasion of Poland

Upon Hitler's invasion in 1939, England and France made a joint declaration guaranteeing the independence of Poland

"Fridericus" (223)

Was met with a Russian counter-attack towards Khartov Hitler believed that it was only a "minor blemish" The Germans, as Hitler suggested, waited a day and "Fredericus" gathered momentum. Encircled the Red Army and captured 1240 tanks and 239,000 prisoners

J.P. Taylor, Origins of the Second World War

Wrote the classic of modern history (1961) that explained how the first world war is the cause/explanation of the second. As true as this is, Keegan explains that the cause of each of the world wars is not simply the other world wars.

Air Battle of Britain

against unremitting and destructive air raids conducted by the German air force (Luftwaffe) from July through September 1940, after the fall of France. Victory for the Luftwaffe in the air battle would have exposed Great Britain to invasion by the German army, which was then in control of the ports of France only a few miles away across the English Channel. In the event, the battle was won by the Royal Air Force (RAF) Fighter Command, whose victory not only blocked the possibility of invasion but also created the conditions for Great Britain's survival, for the extension of the war, and for the eventual defeat of Nazi Germany.

Tripartite Pact

also known as the Berlin Pact, was an agreement between Germany, Italy and Japan signed in Berlin on 27 September 1940 by, respectively, Joachim von Ribbentrop, Galeazzo Ciano and Saburō Kurusu. The agreement concluded by Germany, Italy, and Japan on September 27, 1940, one year after the start of World War II. It created a defense alliance between the countries and was largely intended to deter the United States from entering the conflict.

Putsch

an attempted military coup d'eta

The Fall of France

began in 1940 and consisted of two operations. The first one was Case Yellow or Fall Gelb and is when the armored units of Germany cut off allied units which had advanced into the country of Belgium at the Ardennes. When the British and the French saw themselves pushed back by the operation, the British evacuated their BEF or British Expeditionary Force with other French divisions in Operation Dynamo. The Battle of France Begins After the British left and France was left to fight for itself, the Germans launched Case Red or Fall Rot which started on June the 5th. During this operation, the French government saw itself split on the best action to take as many of the political representatives were looking for peace with Germany. Because of that, the French military forces that defended during Case Red were only partial at best. By June 22nd, France and Germany signed an armistice and the result was a split of the country of France where Germany got control of the west and the north plus part of the southeast and Zone Libra or unoccupied zone. Until the allied landings, French remained under control of the Axis.

Anschluss

the annexation of Austria by Germany in 1938. Hitler forced the resignation of the Austrian chancellor by demanding that he admit Nazis to his cabinet. The new chancellor, a pro-Nazi, invited German troops to enter the country under the pretext of restoring law and order.

Tarawa

the first American offensive in the critical central Pacific region. It was also the first time in the Pacific War that the United States had faced serious Japanese opposition to an amphibious landing.[5] Previous landings met little or no initial resistance,[6][N 1] but on _______ the 4,500 Japanese defenders were well-supplied and well-prepared, and they fought almost to the last man, exacting a heavy toll on the United States Marine Corps. The losses on _______ were incurred within 76 hours. Extremely bloody, high casualties on both sides Heavily garrisoned Allied Victory (way to go US!)

Battle of the Atlantic (results)

was a strategic victory for the Allies—the German blockade failed—but at great cost: 3,500 merchant ships and 175 warships were sunk in the Atlantic for the loss of 783 U-boats (the majority of them Type VII submarines) and 47 German surface warships, including 4 battleships The Battle of the Atlantic was the struggle between the Allied and German forces for control of the Atlantic Ocean. The Allies needed to keep the vital flow of men and supplies going between North America and Europe, where they could be used in the fighting, while the Germans wanted to cut these supply lines.

Anti-Comintern Pact

was an anti-Communist pact concluded between Germany and Japan on November 25, 1936, and was directed against the Communist International (Comintern). It was signed by German foreign minister Joachim von Ribbentrop and Japanese ambassador to Germany Kintomo Mushakoji.[1]:188-189 Italy, Spain and other countries joined it until November 1941.[2]:49

Barbarossa

was the code name for the Axis invasion of the Soviet Union, which started on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during World War II. The operation put into action Nazi Germany's ideological goal of conquering the western Soviet Union so as to repopulate it with Germans. _______________ had clearly failed. Despite the serious losses inflicted on the Red Army and extensive territorial gains, the mission to completely destroy Soviet fighting power and force a capitulation was not achieved. One of the most important reasons for this was poor strategic planning.

Marianas

· May-November 1944 · In June 1944, Admiral Raymond A. Spruance's 500-ship fleet, carrying about 125,000 Marines and Sailors steamed 1,000 miles from the Western Marshall Islands to the South Mariana Islands. This fleet included most of the Navy's carriers and battleships, along with many of its transports of the Pacific Fleet. The Mariana Islands were the last bastion of Japan's Central Pacific perimeter. Their capture by American Forces severed the Japanese supply lines with the Caroline Islands territories further south and pushed the defense west to the Philippines while opening the Japanese homelands for aerial assaults. Spruance's Task Force 58 launched the first of many pre-invasion air sorties on June 11 on Japanese positions, airplanes, and ships. Both fast and escort carriers participated in these attacks that lasted until the capture of Guam on August 10.

Mussolini's Greek Venture

· The Greco-Italian War (Italo-Greek War, Italian Campaign in Greece; in Greece: War of '40) took place between the kingdoms of Italy and Greece from 28 October 1940 to 23 April 1941. This local war began the Balkans Campaign of World War II between the Axis powers and the Allies. It turned into the Battle of Greece when British and German ground forces intervened early in 1941. · In the mid-1930s, the Italian Prime Minister Benito Mussolini began an aggressive foreign policy and annexed Albania in the spring of 1939. World War II began on 1 September 1939 and on 10 June 1940, Italy declared war on the Allies. By September 1940, the Italians had invaded France, British Somaliland and Egypt; preparations had also begun to occupy Greece.[citation needed] In the late 1930s, the Greeks had begun to build the Metaxas Line opposite Bulgaria and from 1939 accelerated their defensive preparations against an Italian attack from Albania. In 1940, there was a hostile press campaign in Italy and other provocations, culminating in the sinking of the Greek light cruiser Elli by the Italians on 15 August (the Christian Dormition of the Mother of God festival). On 28 October, Mussolini issued an ultimatum to Greece demanding the cession of Greek territory, which the Prime Minister of Greece, Ioannis Metaxas, rejected. · The Italian army invaded Greece on 28 October, before the Italian ultimatum had expired. The invasion was a disaster, the 140,000 troops of the Italian Army in Albania encountering an entrenched and determined enemy. The Italians had to contend with the mountainous terrain on the Albanian-Greek border and unexpectedly tenacious resistance by the Greek Army. By mid-November, the Greeks had stopped the Italian invasion just inside Greek territory. After completing their mobilization, the Greeks counter-attacked with the bulk of their army and pushed the Italians back into Albania - an advance which culminated in the Capture of Klisura Pass in January 1941, a few dozen kilometers inside the Albanian border. The defeat of the Italian invasion and the Greek counter-offensive of 1940 have been called the "first Axis setback of the entire war" by Mark Mazower, the Greeks "surprising everyone with the tenacity of their resistance". The front stabilized in February 1941, by which time the Italians had reinforced the Albanian front to 28 divisions against the Greeks' 14 divisions (though Greek divisions were larger). In March, the Italians conducted the unsuccessful Spring Offensive. At this point, losses were mutually costly, but the Greeks had far less ability than the Italians to replenish their losses in both men and materiel, and they were dangerously low on ammunition and other supplies. They also lacked the ability to rotate out their men and equipment, unlike the Italians.[4] Requests by the Greeks to the British for material aid only partly alleviated the situation, and by April 1941 the Greek Army only possessed 1 more month's worth of heavy artillery ammunition and was unable to properly equip and mobilize the bulk of its 200,000-300,000 strong reserves.[5] · While originally content to simply let the Italians wear the Greeks down and (he predicted) finish the war in the summer of 1941, Adolf Hitler decided in December 1940 that potential British intervention in the conflict represented a threat to Germany's rear. This caused him to come to the aid of his Axis ally. German build-up in the Balkans accelerated after Bulgaria joined the Axis on 1 March 1941. British ground forces began arriving in Greece the next day. On 6 April, the Germans invaded northern Greece ("Operation Marita"). The Greeks had deployed the vast majority of their men into a mutually costly stalemate with the Italians on the Albanian front, leaving the fortified Metaxas Line with only a third of its authorized strength.[6] During the Battle of Greece, Greek and British forces in northern Greece were overwhelmed and the Germans advanced rapidly west and south. In Albania, the Greek army made a belated withdrawal to avoid being cut off by the Germans but was followed up slowly by the Italians. Greece surrendered to German troops on 20 April 1941, under the condition that they would not have to surrender to the Italians; this condition was agreed to but revoked several days later after protests from Mussolini, and the Greek army surrendered to Italy as well. Greece was subsequently occupied by Bulgarian, German and Italian troops. The Italian army suffered 102,064 combat casualties (with 13,700 dead and 3,900 missing) and fifty thousand sick; the Greeks suffered over 90,000 combat casualties (including 14,000 killed and 5,000 missing) and an unknown number of sick.[7] The economic and military failings of the Italian fascist regime were exposed by the Greek debacle and simultaneous defeats against the British in North Africa, which reduced the Italian fascist regime to dependence on Germany.

Fall of the Marshalls

· by contrast, were a much easier landing. The Americans used the lessons learned at Tarawa by outnumbering the enemy defenders nearly 6 to 1 with heavier firepower (including use of armor-piercing shells) after the islands took nearly a month of heavy air and naval bombardment.[6] In the Marshalls, the Americans lost 611 men, suffered 2,341 wounded, and 260 missing, while the Japanese lost over 11,000 men and had 358 captured.[11] · After the Gilberts and Marshalls were taken, the Allies built naval bases, fortifications, and airfields on the islands to prepare for an assault on the Marianas.[2] The Japanese defeat forced military leaders to draw back to a new defensive perimeter, the Absolute National Defense Zone, which included the Marianas and Palau. These islands were heavily fortified for an upcoming assault because if captured, they would put American heavy bombers within range of Tokyo.[3]