Chapter 16 World War II ( 1939 - 1945 )

Nonaggression Pact

1939-Secret agreement between German leader Hitler and Soviet Leader Stalin not to attack one another and to divide Poland

Atlantic Charter

1941-Pledge signed by US president FDR and British prime minister Winston Churchill not to acquire new territory as a result of WWII and to work for peace after the war.

Battle of Stalingrad

A 1942-1943 battle of World War II, in which German forces were defeated in their attempt to capture the city of Stalingrad in the Soviet Union (thanks to a harsh winter); it was the furthest extent of German advance and a turning point of the war in Eastern Europe.

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.

demilitarization

A reduction in a country's ability to wage war, achieved by disbanding its armed forces and prohibiting it form acquiring weapons.

Battle of Guadalcanal

A six month battle that place in the Pacific Ocean where U.S. forces were attempting to invade their airfield. These battles lead to savage risks on both land/sea. After Japan lost more than 24,000 of 36,000 soldiers, they abandoned the island and dubbed it "Island of Death."

The Phony War

After the fall of Poland, the Allies mobilized their armies and waited for the German attack. Nothing happened, only limited military action along the border between France and Germany. Ended on April 9th 1940 when Hitler launched a surprise invasion of Denmark and Norway. Known to the Germans as: Sitzkrieg.

Atomic Bomb

Bombs dropped on Nagasaki and Hiroshima Japan to bring a surrender and end to WWII.

Winston Churchill

British statesman and leader during World War II. Said the British were making a mistake to appease Hitler at the Munich Conference. He was right!

Douglas MacArthur

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.

Battle of the Bulge

December, 1944-January, 1945 - After recapturing France, the Allied advance became stalled along the German border. In the winter of 1944, Germany staged a massive counterattack in Belgium and Luxembourg which pushed a 30 mile "bulge" into the Allied lines. The Allies stopped the German advance and threw them back across the Rhine River with heavy losses.

Charles de Gaulle

French general and statesman who became very popular during World War II as the leader of the Free French forces in exile (1890-1970)

Erwin Rommel

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

Aryans

German people who Hilter saw as the master race

"Final Solution"

Hitler's program of systematically killing the entire Jewish people

Isoroku Yamamoto

Japanese admiral who planned the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 (1884-1943)

Kamikaze

Japanese suicide pilots who loaded their planes with explosives and crashed them into American ships.

D - Day

June 6, 1944 - Led by Eisenhower, over a million troops (the largest invasion force in history) stormed the beaches at Normandy and began the process of re-taking France by pushing the German army out of France. The turning point of World War II.

Dwight D. Eisenhower

Leader of the Allied forces in Europe during WW2, leader of troops in Africa and commander in D-Day invasion. Elected president during integration of Little Rock Central High School.

Rescue at Dunkirk

May 1940, Germans trapped Allied forces, forced Belgium to surrender, British troops evacuated to Dunkirk, Great Britain sent 850 ships to save the troops

Ghettos

Sections of towns and cities in which Jews were forced to live.

Genocide

Systematic killing of a racial or cultural group.

democratization

The process of creating a government elected by the people.

Battle of Britain

The prolonged bombardment of British cities by the German Luftwaffe during World War II and the aerial combat that accompanied it. Outnumbered 2 to 1 the British Royal Air Force fought bravely and won!

Nuremberg trials

Trials held for the German officers convicted of war crimes.

Battle of Midway

U.S. naval victory over the Japanese fleet in June 1942, in which the Japanese lost four of their best aircraft carriers. It marked a turning point in World War II.

Pearl Harbor

United States military base on Hawaii that was bombed by Japan, bringing the United States into World War II. Pearl Harbor was attacked on December 7, 1941.

Blitzkrieg

"Lighting war", typed of fast-moving warfare used by German forces against Poland in 1939

Kristallnacht

"Night of Broken Glass" -the night of November 9, 1938, on which Nazi troopers attacked Jewish homes, businesses, and synagogues throughout Germany