World War 2 Final

Fingerspitzengefuhl

"Fingertips Feeling:" Battle instinct. Great situational awareness and the ability to respond with the most appropriate and tactful response. Significance: Usually attributed to Erwin Rommel. Rommel was extremely creative and unpredictable. Unlike Hitler who commanded from a bunker, Rommel liked to be either on the front lines or flying above to see the battle clearly and be at the critical areas.

FUSAG

"First United States Army Group" A fake army force created in preparation for D-Day to deceive the Germans about where the Allies would land in France. - Under the command of General George S. Patton - US fed false information to the Germans so they thought the phantom army would attack at Pas de Calais, which was the shortest way across the channel. - Plan involved using film studios and creating inflatable tanks, trucks, etc.

LST

"Landing Ship Tank:" Swimming version of the Sherman Tank. Naval vessels to support amphibious operations by carrying vehicles, landing troops and cargo.

Soviet 588th Night Bombers

"Night Witches:" All female bomber crew in the Soviet Union. - Respected by the German infantry (feared). - Lydia Livak: Fighter pilot in the Soviet 588th Night Bombers division that flew 12 solo victories and 66 total combat missions. She held the record for the greatest number of kills by a female fighter pilot. Result: She was shot down during the Battle of Kursk after the Germans learned what her plane looked like and targeted her.

Soviet subjugation of Eastern Europe

- 1945: Rumania and Bulgaria - 1946: Poland - 1947: Hungary - 1948: Czechoslovakia - 1949: East Germany Pattern: coalition government, then control the ministry of the interior, then gradual intimidation and elimination of non-communist forces, then seize power, then show trials for non-communist leaders then consolidation of people' democracy on soviet model (5-year plans, nationalization, secret police)

Eisenhower

- Grim moment of truth: Britain was worried when Eisenhower was chosen because they though he was too soft (good at negotiations and diplomacy). Britain wanted Montgomery. Significance: Was meticulous but knew when to take a risk → Had a 24 hour window for D-Day because of weather. Had to decide whether to wait for better weather or go → "Ok, let's go." - Planning and Preparing: Particularly good. Good at coordinating with Britain and able to smooth over tensions between the larger powers. - Connecting with men: Pictures of him meeting with soldiers before D-Day. Met with soldiers regularly throughout the war.

American veterans look back

- Peter Bezich (Retired construction worker, Chicago): Talked about winning the war and losing peace. Son was sent to jail for 3 years for refusing to be drafted. - Peggy Terry (Factory worker from Kentucky): Didn't know about the concentration camps or the Japanese detention camps → said it was sad that she had been manipulated half her life and never even knew it.

Vietnam Disillusionment

- Soldiers saw rich kids getting deferments. "I ain't no senator's son." - Nation at home was divided about the war.

"Lili Marleen"

- The unofficial anthem for WW2. - Originally written in 1915 (WW1) as a poem. - Sang by Marlene Dietrich. - 1942: Translated and recorded in multiple languages, originally in German. - It was a German song but both sides loved it. Significance: It was about a common experience. Feelings of separation, missing those at home, the possibility of dying and never seeing those you love again.

Two reasons why Germany's situation after July 1943 was very bad

1) Battle of attrition: Germany wanted to avoid a battle of attrition against a country with more resources. German factories had been taking more aerial attacks and transportation routes were under attack. Meanwhile, Soviet factories were revving up. 2) Now a two front war

Basic dimensions of destruction, August 1945

1) The dead - 45 million dead in Europe, 75 million over the entire world - 60% killed were civilians - 2 million Russians killed in the POW camps - More died in Warsaw than in the US/UK combined 2) The displaced: 14 million expelled, many on foot. 3) The starving and diseased - 50% of babies died of starvation in August in Germany - Radiation deaths in Hiroshima and Nagasaki 4) Ravaged continents: No roads, bridges → no way to bring in food

Three ingredients of historical process

1. Causality: chains of cause and effect 2. Chance: Random events 3. Human choice: Decisions, mistakes and omissions

Four factors in the equation of effective force

1. Resources 2. Tactics 3. Morale 4. Strategy

7 Preconditions for D-Day

1. Surprise: Tricked the Germans into thinking that the main landing site would be in Pas de Calais under General Patton with FUSAG. British agents like GARBO fed the Germans false information. 2. Hamper enemy transport: Allied bombers attacked transport lines (roads, railways, etc.), especially around Pas de Calais to maintain the fake plan. Were worried about how the French would feel about carpet bombing, but the general gave consent/blessing to bomb. 3. Launch major offenses simultaneously on multiple fronts: Force the Germans to thin out to cover multiple fronts. Eastern front, Italy and Southern France. 4. Control the air: Critical, not optional. 5. Effective amphibious tactics: Swimming Sherman tanks (LSTs) and other new technology (like mulberries: temporary harbors). Gasoline pipeline across the Channel. 6. Leadership: Britain wanted Montgomery because they thought Eisenhower would be too soft → Eisenhower took a risk and approved D-Day for June 6 during a short window with good weather. 7. Overwhelming force

American-imposed reforms in postwar Japan

After the war, the US imposed changes such as civil liberties and parliamentary democracy that Japan then kept on its own volition after the US left. - Simpler situation because there was no influence from the Russians. A purely American affair. - US treated the Japanese relatively humanely: gave them food, aid, etc. - Changes: New constitution, women's suffrage, land reform to break up large estates, educational system based on the US model, broke up corporate monopolies and a parliamentary democracy.

Occupation zones of Germany

Allied powers (US, Great Britain, France and Russia) asserted authority over all territory of the German Reich which was west of the Oder-Neisse line. Result: Divided Germany into four occupation zones for administrative purposes. Division was ratified at the Potsdam Conference (July 12 to August 2, 1945). - Berlin was located in the Soviet zone, but it was jointly occupied due to its symbolic importance as the capital and former Nazi government. Berlin was not considered part of the Soviet zone. - The Soviets demanded reparations from the Germans, however the other powers delivered food and aid to the Germans. - Berlin Blockade (June 24, 1948 - May 12, 1949): The Soviet Union blocked Western Allies' railway, road, and canal access to Berlin. The Soviets offered to drop the blockade if the Western Allies withdrew the newly introduced Deutschmark (the new currency was circulating at a more valuable price than the Soviet currency). Berlin Airlift: Allies flew in supplies rather than getting into a military altercation. No one wanted another war.

Berlin Airlift

Blockade: June 24, 1948 - May 12, 1949 (In the lecture Bess just put 1948) Background: Germany had been divided into four occupied zones after the war. Even though Berlin was in the Soviet portion, Berlin was divided into four sectors due to its symbolism. The Soviet Union blocked Western Allies' railway, road, and canal access to Berlin. The Soviets offered to drop the blockade if the Western Allies withdrew the newly introduced Deutschmark (the new currency was circulating at a more valuable price than the Soviet currency). - Threatened to starve the city unless the allies backed off - Problem: No one wanted another war. So, couldn't use a military tactic. Result: Flew supplies in. The SU didn't shoot planes down because it didn't want another war. Result: Stalin ended the blockade in 1948 when he realized it wasn't working.

Marlene Dietrich

Born: 1901 in Berlin Died: 1992 - German actress and singer that sang "Lili Marleen." - Moved to the US (anti—Nazism) - 1937: Became a US citizen - Helped to sell war bonds and performed overseas to keep morale up.

Dmitri Shostakovich

Born: 1906 in St. Petersburg Died: 1975 Russian composer and pianist that composed Symphony No. 7 ("Leningrad") - Siege of Leningrad: September 8, 1941 to January 8, 1944 (900 Days). The Germans surrounded the city and relentlessly bombed it, but the Russians refused to surrender. In the winter they didn't have food or gas, so people lived on 400 calories for non-workers and 700 for workers. - Wanted to compose a symphony that would be about and for the Russians, not the Germans. Had a 12 minute crescendo to pay tribute to the city.

Isoroku Yamamoto

Born: April 4, 1884 Died: April 18, 1943 (American code breakers identified his flight plans and shot his plane down) Japanese Marshal Admiral and commander-in-chief of the Combined Fleet. Responsible for major battles such as Pearl Harbor and Midway.

Leslie Groves

Born: August 17, 1896 Died: July 13, 1970 United States Army Corps of Engineers officer that directed the Manhattan Project. - September 1942: Took charge of the Manhattan Project. - Picked sites and oversaw construction. Also helped pick the Japanese cities to be bombed.

Lydia Livak

Born: August 18, 1921 Died: August 1, 1943 (Shot down in the Battle of Kursk) Soviet fighter pilot in the Soviet 588th Night Bombers division that had 12 solo victories and held the record for the most kills by a female fighter pilot. Result: Was shot down during the Battle of Kursk when the Germans specifically targeted her.

Nancy Wake

Born: August 30, 1912 Died: August 7, 2011 French resistance fighter that served as a British SOE agent, during which time she parachuted into occupied France to become a liaison between London and the local group. - Trained with pistols, grenades, etc. - One of 39 women in that role.

Georgi Zhukov

Born: December 1, 1896 Died: June 18, 1974 Soviet officer who became the most decorated general officer in the history of the Soviet Union and Russia. Had a pivotal role in driving the Red Army through Eastern Europe and conquered Berlin. - Organized the Soviet counter-trap for the Battle of Kursk. - Knew a big attack was coming and understood German intentions → Soviet Army was able to prepare massive defenses at Kursk (Built fortifications, organized a reserve army, planned a diversion and brought in more men).

Nikolai Vatutin

Born: December 16, 1901 Died: April 15, 1944 Soviet commander who fought in the south (Voronezh Front) at the Battle of Kursk.

Konstantin Rokossovsky

Born: December 21, 1896 Died: August 3, 1968 Soviet officer who was one of the three commanders at the Battle of Kursk who fought in the north (other two were Nikolai Vatutin and Ivan Knoev). - Was a Marshal of the SU, Marshal of Poland and Poland's Defense Minister.

Ivan Konev

Born: December 28, 1897 Died: May 21, 1973 Soviet commander who oversaw the reserve army at the Battle of Kursk. - Retook much of Eastern Europe during the war and helped capture Berlin.

George C. Marshall

Born: December 31, 1880 Died: October 16, 1959 Chief of Staff during the war and chief military advisor to President Roosevelt. Did not lead troops in combat. - Chief of Staff of the United States Army, Secretary of State, and the third Secretary of Defense. - Marshall Plan: American aid program to help rebuild Western Europe after WW2. US gave 13 billion to rebuild the war-devastated region and prevent the spread of Communism. - Preparing and Planning: Marshall didn't talk much (when he did he was blunt and plain). He loved routines, didn't drink and came off as being serious/intimidating.

Leo Szilard

Born: February 11, 1898 Died: May 30, 1964 Hungarian-American physicist and inventor who conceived of the nuclear chain reaction in 1933, patented the idea of the nuclear reactor with Enrico Fermi and wrote the letter for Einstein's signature that resulted in the Manhattan Project. Significance: Worked for the Manhattan Project and was effectively a pacifist that launched the project. - Szilard Petition: Advocated for a demonstration of the atomic bomb but the Interim Committee chose to use them against Hiroshima and Nagasaki without warning. - 1933: Conceived of the idea of neutron chain reactions - 1934: Filed a patent for the idea

Omar Bradley

Born: February 12, 1893 Died: April 8, 1981 Senior officer of the US Army who fought in North Africa and Western Europe in the war. Commanded troops at the Normandy landings. Commanded all ground forces invading Germany from the west. - Last of only nine people to hold a five-star rank in the US Armed Forces. - Connecting with your men: Connected well with his men. Tried to spare them from unnecessary danger. Held them back except when absolutely necessary, and his men knew that.

Ansel Adams

Born: February 20, 1902 Died: April 22, 1984 American photographer who took black-and-white photographs of landscapes. - Took secret pictures in Alaska of Japanese bases. - Nature photos: Bess showed that life was still going on despite the war. Life goes on. Puts the war in perspective. Step back to get the bigger picture.

Paul Tibbets

Born: February 23, 1915 Died: November 1, 2007 Pilot who flew the Enola Gay to drop the first atomic bomb, Little Boy, on Hiroshima.

Walter Model

Born: January 24, 1891 Died: April 21, 1945 (committed suicide to avoid being captured) German field marshal that fought in the north (Manstein was in the south) at the Battle of Kursk. Called the best defensive tactical commander for the Third Reich.

Douglas MacArthur

Born: January 26, 1880 Died: April 5, 1964 American five-star general who was the Chief of Staff in the 1930s and important in the Pacific theater. Received a Medal of Honor for his services in the Philippines. - Planning and preparing: Had a huge ego and lacked planning skills. He had 10 hours to prepare for the attack on the Philippines but didn't do anything → He didn't launch any aircraft or mobilize troops. They were all conveniently bunched together so when the Japanese did attack they easily destroyed everything.

Anthony McAuliffe

Born: July 2, 1898 Died: August 11, 1975 American general who commanded the American forces defending Bastogne, Belgium during the Battle of the Bulge. Background: All of the seven main roads in the Ardennes highlands converged in Bastogne, so it was critical to control the city during the Battle of the Bulge. Germans surrounded the American forces and demanded that Gen. McAuliffe surrender. Result: Responded saying "nuts!" Refused to surrender and continued to hang tough.

Mohammad Mossadegh

Born: June 16, 1882 Died: March 5, 1967 Iranian politician that had been the democratically elected Prime Minister of Iran from 1951 to 1953 when he was overthrown in a coup d'état by the CIA and British Secret Intelligence Service. - August 19, 1953: Overthrown by the CIA → Imprisoned for three years → house arrest → died and buried in his home. - Elected in 1950 - Didn't like the US and UK taking Iran's oil and not giving Iran much money from it → wanted to nationalize the assets → removed.

Salvador Allende

Born: June 26, 1908 Died: September 11, 1973 (Killed himself in the coup d'état) Chilean politician who was the first Marxist to become president of a Latin American country through open elections. - Elected in 1970 in a free election. - Adopted a policy of nationalization of industries and collectivization. - Center-right majority denounced his rule as unconstitutional → CIA helped to overthrown Allende on September 11, 1973 to install Pinochet.

Albert Einstein

Born: March 14, 1879 Died: April 18, 1955 German theoretical physicist who developed the general theory of relativity and the mass-energy equivalence formula E=mc2. - Was visiting the US when Hitler came to power in 1933 → Had been a professor in Berlin but couldn't go back. - Wrote a letter to FDR warning him to the potential development of a new powerful bomb and suggested the US begin researching. - Wrote a letter with Leo Szilard to FDR warning about Germany possibly researching atomic weapons.

Erwin Rommel

Born: November 15, 1891 Died: October 14, 1944 (Hitler forced him to commit suicide with cyanide) German field marshal that was important as the commander of the 7th Panzer Division in the 1940 invasion of France. He led the North African campaign (Afrika Korps) and later commanded the German forces opposing the Allied cross-channel invasion of Normandy. - Rommel's Modus Operandi: Rommel was an aggressive and bold leader that was extremely creative and unpredictable. Commanded from the front to be at the critical points of battle and would sometimes fly above the battle to get a better view. He was said to have a battle instinct. Significance: He wanted to be in the battle front whereas Hitler wanted to control everything from a bunker.

Bernard Montgomery

Born: November 17, 1887 Died: March 24, 1976 British Field Marshal that commanded the British 8th Army at the Battle of El Alamein and the Allied ground forces during Operation Overlord and the Battle of Normandy. - British had wanted Montgomery instead of Eisenhower to oversee Operation Overlord because they thought Eisenhower was too soft.

Erich von Manstein

Born: November 24, 1887 Died: June 9, 1973 German commander/field marshal that oversaw the Battle of Kursk. - Had ongoing disagreements with Hitler over the conduct of the war → dismissed in March 1944. - Counteroffensives at Kharkov and Belgorod: Lured Soviets into a trap on February 20 that he then encircled. - Rejected Plan: Wanted to have a tactical retreat down to Crimea as if they wanted to flee. Would divide into 2 groups and create a channel that would then encircle the Soviets. Significance: Hitler rejected the idea in favor of Operation Citadel (Battle of Kursk). Hitler said that Germany did not flee and would not retreat, even if it was a tactical retreat.

Augusto Pinochet

Born: November 25, 1915 Died: December 10, 2006 Dictator of Chile between 1973 and 1990 and Commander-in-Chief of the Chilean Army from 1973 to 1998. - Assumed power in Chile following the US-backed coup d'état on September 11, 1973 that removed the elected president Allende. - Had been promoted to Commander-in-Chief of the Army by Allende in August.

Winston Churchill

Born: November 30, 1874 Died: January 24, 1965 British statesman who was the Prime Minister of the UK from 1940 to 1945 and again from 1951 to 1955. Significance: Refused to surrender when Britain stood alone against Nazi Germany.

Vaclav Havel

Born: October 5, 1936 Died: December 18, 2011 Czhech playwright and statesman that was the president from 1989 to 1992. Then served as the first president of the Czech Republic from 1993 to 2003 after the Czech-Slovak split. - Havel was inspired by the Prague Spring even though people were killed or arrested. - Protested, wrote critical plays, organized meetings → arrested and detained for years → when he was released, did it all again. - November 1989: Huge protest → released → elected president in December.

Niels Bohr

Born: October 7, 1885 Died: November 18, 1652 Danish physicist who contributed to understanding atomic structure and quantum theory. - September 1941: Met with Heisenberg, who had become the head of the German nuclear energy project. - September 1943: Found out he was going to be arrested → fled to Sweden to be flown to Britain → Joined the British Tube Alloys program.

H.G. Wells

Born: September 21, 1866 Died: August 13, 1946 English writer particularly remembered for his science fiction novels. Significance: Leo Szilard read The World Set Free → made a great impression on him.

Kharkov

Counteroffensive after Stalingrad under Erich von Manstein. Lured the Soviets into a trap on February 20 → encircled the army. Background: The Germans had been defeated at Stalingrad on February 2, 1943. But, Germany had not been knocked out of the war entirely so wanted to have counteroffensives.

Rosie the Riveter

Cultural icon in the US representing the American woman who worked in factories and shipyards during WW2. - During the war, women started to work in factories to produce ammunitions and war supplies. - Symbol for feminism and women's economic power. - WW2 being a total war meant that women had to start filling in for typically male jobs when the men were deployed.

Bletchley Park

Date: 1938 Central site for Britain's code breakers run by the Government Code and Cypher School. - Worked with communications and the German Enigma. - "ULTRA:" Intelligence. - Women outnumbered men at Bletchley Park. The most important jobs were usually only for men, however there were some exceptions.

Manhattan Project

Date: 1942 to 1946 Research program led by the United States, supported by the UK and Canada, which produced the first nuclear weapons. - Under the direction of Major General Leslie Groves of the US Army Corps of Engineers. - J. Robert Oppenheimer was the director the Los Alamos National Laboratory that designed the actual bombs. - Absorbed the British Tube Alloys program. - Trinity Test: First atomic test conducted at New Mexico's Alamogordo Bombing and Gunnery Range on July 16, 1945.

Warsaw Pact

Date: 1953 Collective defense treaty among eight communist states during the Cold War and led by the SU. - Members: USSR, East Germany, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Rumania, Bulgaria and Albania. - Soviet response was to create a mirror image of NATO but for its satellite countries. But, put in an extra clause that made it a duty to intervene to protect Communism.

SAVAK

Date: 1957 to 1979 Secret police, domestic security and intelligence service established by the Shah of Iran and CIA. - Trained by the CIA. - Tortured children and made the parents watch to force them to talk. - "Most hated and feared institution."

Sophie's Choice by William Styron

Date: 1979 Novel by William Styron about how a woman was forced to decide between her two children to determine who would live and who would die when she went to a concentration camp. - Mother is told at the concentration camp that either she chooses one to live and one to go to the crematorium, or both will be shot. - Story of her life after the war having had to make that choice. Significance: The Nazis called the Jews vermin, but you don't torture vermin before killing them. Effectively, the "master race" treated an entire group of people worse than vermin. Systematic desire to cause suffering.

Truman Doctrine

Date: Announced on March 12, 1947 American foreign policy to stop Soviet imperialism during the Cold War. President Truman pledged to contain Soviet threats to Greece and Turkey. US would provide political, military and economic assistance to all democratic nations under threat from external or internal authoritarian forces. - "Two halves of the same walnut." (Truman Doctrine - Military and Marshall Plan - Economic) - Greece 1946: Greek communists rose up again aided by communist movements in Bulgaria. UK sent in troops but realized they couldn't afford to enforce rule when they were still struggling (rationing) back in the UK → February 21, 1947 announced they couldn't fight communism so the US needed to. - March 12, 1947: Speech. US would go anywhere with a Communist infiltration, not just Greece.

Marshall Plan

Date: April 3, 1948 American initiative to aid Western Europe by giving it $13 billion to help rebuild the economies, rebuild the region and remove trade barriers. - June 1947: General George Marshall gave a speech where he pledged no-strings attached money to rebuild the countries. Logic: People had literally been starving and rationing. Political institutions are weak in those types of conditions, which makes it extremely likely that people will turn to more extremist ideologies. "Fertile ground" for Communism to set in. Moderates could seem inadequate in an emergency. - Congress approved 5.4 billion at first, 12 billion by 1952 and then gradually phased out. - Impact: The US got lasting friendships with the world's most powerful region.

Iran, 1953

Date: August 1953 Coup d'état in which the CIA overthrew the democratically elected Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh. - Mossadegh wanted to change the terms in how Iranian oil was being sold. When the company refused to negotiate and decided to nationalize the assets. - CIA removed him and installed the Shah of Iran. - 2013: CIA admitted that it had been involved in the planning and execution of the coup d'état.

Bastogne

Date: December 1944 Battle between American and German forces at Bastogne during the Battle of the Bulge. Significance: All of the seven main roads in the Ardennes highlands converged in Bastogne, so it was critical to control the city during the Battle of the Bulge. - General Anthony McAuliffe held the city. - The Germans surrounded the city with 19 Panzer divisions and ordered the American forces to surrender → McAuliffe said "nuts!" in response to the demand.

"Nuts!"

Date: December 22, 1944 Phrase said by General McAuliffe in response to German demands to surrender at the Battle of Bastogne (during the Battle of the Bulge). Background: All of the seven main roads in the Ardennes highlands converged in Bastogne, so it was critical to control the city during the Battle of the Bulge. Germans surrounded the American forces and demanded that Gen. McAuliffe surrender.

Little Boy

Date: Detonated August 6, 1945 over Hiroshima - First atomic bomb dropped over Hiroshima by the Enola Gay (Pilot: Paul Tibbet). - Developed as part of the Manhattan Project to develop atomic weapons. - First of two atomic bombs used in warfare. Second one, Fat Man, was detonated over Hiroshima. - Goal was to detonate it at the "hypocenter" above the ground to have the biggest impact.

Enola Gay

Date: Dropped Little Boy on Hiroshima on August 6, 1945 Boeing B-29 bomber that was used to drop the first atomic bomb, Little Boy, on Hiroshima. - Loaded the plane on August 5. - Pilot: Paul Tibbets. - The entire crew was not briefed, but Tibbets was. Someone on the crew guessed what they were about to do. - Was a weather reconnaissance aircraft for the second atomic attack.

Prokhorovka Station

Date: July 12, 1943 Part of the wider Battle of Kursk in which the Soviet Red Army attacked German tanks → one of the largest tank battles in history. Significance: Climactic encounter. - April 1943: Germans were preparing for Operation Citadel with the goal of enveloping and destroying the Soviet forces in the Kursk salient. - Soviets sent in the reserve forces at P. Station. Decisive battle in which Germany had been close to breaking through until the Russian reserve forces were sent in.

WAVEs

Date: July 21, 1942 "Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service:" Women's branch of the US Naval Reserve. - Idea was to release officers and men for sea duty and replace them with women in shore stations. - JAGs, etc.

SOE

Date: July 22, 1940 - January 15, 1946 "Special Operations Executive:" British organization that was to conduct espionage, sabotage and reconnaissance in occupied Europe. - Nancy Wake: French resistance fighter that served as a British SOE agent, during which time she parachuted into occupied France to become a liaison between London and the local group. - 39 women in (Nancy's) role.

Operation Citadel

Date: July 5 - 12, 1943 (Online says it ended on August 23rd) German operation name for the attack on Kursk. Background: The Germans had just lost at Stalingrad so Manstein wanted a counteroffensive. - Plan A: Manstein had originally wanted to have a tactical retreat down to Crimea where the German forces would divided into two groups to encircle the Soviets. - Plan B: Hitler rejected the tactical retreat because of German pride → came up with Operation Citadel

Battle of Kursk

Date: July 5 - 12, 1943 (Online says it ended on August 23rd) Battle between the Germans and Soviets on the Eastern front near Kursk. Significance: Battle in which Germany really lost the war. The Germans had wanted to avoid a war of attrition with a country with greater resources, especially if they had to fight on two fronts. It also gave the Soviets momentum for the rest of the war. - The German offensive was code-named Operation Citadel. Operation Citadel was Plan B after Hitler rejected Manstein's proposed trap for the Red Army in Crimea. - The largest battle in history. - Climax on July 11 and 12 at Prokhorovka Station.

Operation Overlord

Date: June 6, 1944 Codename for the Battle of Normandy (D-Day - Normandy landings). - General Eisenhower was chosen as the commander and General Montgomery was named as commander of the 21st Army Group. - Preparation: Prepared for the landings for months. Involved feeding the Germans false information, controling the airspace, building artificial harbors (mulberries), tricking the Germans into thinking the real attack was happening at Pas de Calais under Patton with FUSAG (First United States Army Group). Result: Decisive Allied Victory

U.S.S. Indianapolis

Date: Little Boy loaded on the ship on July 16, 1945. Sank July 29, 1945. Heavy cruiser that carried the first atomic bomb (Little Boy) on a ten-day voyage to the air base at Tinian. Weird: It was top-heavy, didn't have sonar and it often sailed without being guarded. Why use it for the atomic bomb if the bomb was so crucial to ending the war? Fate: The Imperial Japanese Navy' submarine I-58 mistook it for a battleship → torpedoed the ship. 850 men managed to get off the ship, however they floated for days, went mad drinking seawater and died in shark attacks → Only 318 men survived.

WACs

Date: May 15, 1942 - 1978 "Women's Army Corps:" Women's branch of the United States Army. Any duty short of shooting a gun (radio communications, mechanics, bomb specialists, air control, translators, etc.)

USS Juneau

Date: Sank November 13, 1942 US Navy light cruiser that sank at the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal killing 687 men, including the five Sullivan brothers.

Alamogordo

Date: Selected in November 1944 for the Trinity nuclear test conducted on July 16, 1945. United States Army rocket range that was used for the first atomic bomb test, codenamed Trinity.

Chile, 1973

Date: September 11, 1973 Chilean coup d'état in which the CIA overthrew elected president Allende to install Augusto Pinochet. - Established a junta that suspended all political activity in the country. - Augusto Pinochet: Allende's appointed army chief. Rose to power within a year of the coup. - 3,000 persons were murdered by the regime in the first years due to their association with Allende.

Siege of Leningrad

Date: September 8, 1941 - January 8, 1944 (Online says January 27, 1944) Prolonged military blockade by the German army against Leningrad. - The Germans maintained the blockade for 900 days and bombed the city, but the Russians refused to surrender. - Winter: Had no food or gas. Burned furniture and documents to stay warm and rationed food (400 calories for non-workers and 700 calories for workers).

NATO

Date: Signed April 4, 1949 "North Atlantic Treaty Organization" is an intergovernmental military alliance based on the North Atlantic Treaty signed on April 4, 1949. System of collective defense whereby its member states agree to mutual defense in response to an attack by an external party. - Members: USA, Canada, France, Luxembourg, Britain, Netherlands, Belgium, Italy, Denmark, Norway, Portugal and Iceland.

The Sullivan Brothers

Five brothers who insisted on serving together on the same ship (USS Juneau) and died when it was torpedoed. The parents lost their entire family in one attack. - Brothers: Albert, Madison, Joseph, Francis and George. - Wanted to serve together even though it wasn't protocol. - November 13, 1942: USS Juneau was torpedoed off the coast of Guadalcanal. - 3 of the 5 died immediately, but the youngest and oldest (Al and George) survived. - The nearby ships and planes did not save the floating men because they all thought someone else was going to. Al died. - George survived and made it on a raft, but went mad and let himself drown.

Tiger Tank

German heavy tank (Tiger I and Tiger II). - 56 tons: Harder to maneuver. - 88 mm gun: accurate and the tank was the best anti-aircraft tank. - Range: 3,600 feet (3/5) of a mile

Spheres of Influence

Idea that after WW2 a short-term root of the CW was an issue with spheres of influence in which major countries want to have control or influence over the rest of the war. - After the war Stalin wanted to create the "Percentages Agreement" with Churchill in October 1944. Churchill went to Moscow (bypassed FDR) to negotiate → Would give Russia 90% of control in Romania and Britain would have 90% of Greece while they would split 50-50 in another country. - Contradictions of the Monroe Doctrine: Stalin said that the US was hypocritical. The US said that Russia can't have a sphere of influence in Europe, yet the US had a sphere of influence in Latin America. So, why can't Russia do the same? - Greece Example: Stalin and Churchill agreed that Britain would retain influence over Greece. A Communist resistance group rose up and thought that Stalin would help them, but he didn't do anything and Britain sent in troops to quell the rebellion.

WWI Disillusionment

Idealistic: Went off to war with excitement and pride (team spirit, nationalism, etc.) Disillusionment: Ignorant of what the war would really be like → bitterness. World is insane and the men felt like they were cannon fodder.

Tinian

Island in the Pacific that was seized by the Allies in July/August 1944 and used as the airbase for the Enola Gay to takeoff before dropping Little Boy. - 6 runways - Looked like a giant aircraft carrier - Planes took off every 15 seconds

The World Set Free

Novel written by H. G. Wells in 1914 about an invention that accelerates the process of radioactive decay, producing bombs that explode with no more than the force of ordinary high explosives. Significance: Seed for the idea of the atomic bomb

"Kilroy was here"

Origin: In the shipyards inspectors would write in chalk to say that the part had been inspected. Soldiers saw "Kilroy was here" and continued to write it in other places, such as on planes and tanks. - Cartoon "Chad:" Bald-headed man peaking over a wall and usually complaining about something. "Wot, no sugar?" - Story that Stalin saw it in a bathroom.

Nuclear Chain Reaction

Reaction in which a single nuclear reaction causes an average of one or more subsequent reactions, thus leading to the possibility of a self-propagating series of reactions.

Pas de Calais

Region in France that was the shortest distance across the channel from England and where the Germans thought armies would land for D-Day. - In preparation for D-Day, the US and Britain fed the Germans false information so they thought that the main landing would be in Pas de Calais under General Patton's FUSAG. - Pas de Calais was the most fortified and defended because it was the closest to England.

Red Army rapes in Germany, 1945

Russian soldiers systematically raped women (all ages). - Approximately 2 million. - Russian government denied it for years.

Mulberry

Temporary docks to facilitate offloading of cargo onto the beaches for the Normandy landings. 2 were installed in June near Normandy. Problem: How do you offload your supplies? One option would be to take control of a French harbor. Better Solution: Create floating docks that could be towed over and sunk off the coast to create a temporary harbor.

The Long Shadow

The idea that there is a long shadow cast on the world that is a wound that festers even if you rebuild. WW2 was more than a physical wound. It showed us what people are really capable of. Showed what humans can and will do. Needless violence. - Holocaust: Factories of death. Systematic slaughter of a targeted group of people. - Spiritual, philosophical shadow over society Significance: The Nazis called the Jews vermin, but you don't torture vermin before killing them. Effectively, the "master race" treated an entire group of people worse than vermin. Systematic desire to cause suffering.

Tocqueville's prophecy of 1830

Tocqueville: French political thinker and historian that wrote Democracy in America, in which he analyzed the improved living standards and social conditions with the relationship to the state. - He said that the US and Russia were both powers and progressing while the other countries were stagnant. - Said that the US had freedom and that Russia had servitude, but both wanted sway over the world. Significance: Geo-political roots of the Cold War. Idea that Tocqueville saw the roots of the CW a century before it happened.

Comfort Women

Women and girls who were forced into sexual slavery by the Imperial Japanese Army in occupied territories. - Estimates range from 20,000 to 410,000. - Many of the girls had been abducted from their homes or lured in with promises of work in factories. - Kept at "comfort stations."

Existential hope

You need to work for the world that you want. On an individual level, you have to want to be a better person today than you were yesterday. On a societal level, you have to want your society to be better today than it was yesterday. Conflicts are inevitable, but it is all about how you handle it. Do you choose to handle it with violence or with diplomacy?