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Ch. 16 World War II begins. Ch. 16 – World War II. Two main reasons U.S. entered World War II in December 1941: Growth of dictatorships in Europe & Japan (and their invasion of other countries). Japanese attack on U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor (December 7 th 1941).
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Ch. 16 World War II begins
Ch. 16 – World War II • Two main reasons U.S. entered World War II in December 1941: • Growth of dictatorships in Europe & Japan (and their invasion of other countries). • Japanese attack on U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor (December 7th 1941). • World War II would be a fight between the: • Allies – United States, Great Britain, Soviet Union (and France, China) • Axis Powers – Germany, Japan, Italy
Oppressive Governments (Europe & Japan) • Totalitarian Government • Has complete control of its citizens. Individuals have no rights & govnt suppresses all opposition. • Fascism • Stresses nationalism & places interests of the state above those of individuals. • Nazism • Based on extreme nationalism & racism.
Rise of Dictators • Joseph Stalin • Became leader of Soviet Union in 1924. • Wanted to create a model Communist state. Used ruthless methods to force his people to work, millions of Russians died. • By 1937, Soviet Union world’s second leading industrial power. • U.S.S.R. a totalitarian state.
Rise of Dictators • Benito Mussolini • Seized power in Italy in 1922 as leader of Fascist Party. • Mussolini hoped to restore Italy to the glory of the old Roman Empire (territory in Africa & Mediterranean, power, etc.) • Italy became an totalitarian state. • 1935 – Mussolini invaded Ethiopia in attempt to build his new Roman empire.
Rise of Dictators • Adolf Hitler • After WWI, German economy terrible. Treaty of Versailles seen as unfair to Germany. • Germany desperate – Hitler elected Chancellor of Germany in 1933. • Hitler leader of Nazi Party. Wanted to unite all German-speaking people in a great German empire. • Hitler wanted pure “Aryan” race and German expansion. • Germany became a totalitarian state. • 1938 – Hitler annexed Austria & Czechoslovakia
Rise of Dictators • Hideki Tojo • Led Japanese military. Believed Japan needed to expand its empire. • 1931 -1938 - Invaded province of China known as Manchuria (rich in natural resources) and Indochina (now Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos). • Emperor Hirohito of Japan only a powerless figure head.
WWII Begins • Invasion of Poland • Sept 1, 1939 - Germany invaded and quickly defeated Poland (World War IIbegins) • Sept. 3, 1939 - France & Britain declare war on Germany. • Blitzkreig • Germans used new military strategy called blitzkrieg, or lightening war. Use powerful aircraft first, then quick, mobile armored divisions. Fight one front at at time & quickly crush enemy.
WWII Begins • Germans defeat Western Europe • April – June 1940 – Germans defeated Denmark, Norway, Belgium, Netherlands, France. • Italy entered war on side of Germans. Attacked France from the south.
WWII Begins • Battle of Britain (summer – fall 1940) • Germans attempted to invade Great Britain. Used Luftwaffe (German air force) to bomb British Royal Air Force (RAF) & cities. • Germans unsuccessful. Hitler called off attacks in Nov. 1940. • Brits wounded, but not defeated. Gained U.S. sympathy and supplies.
WWII Begins • Lend-Lease Plan • 1941, FDR felt U.S. had to help defeat Axis Powers by turning itself into “great arsenal of democracy”. • Great Britain had run out of cash to buy war supplies from U.S. Lend-Lease Act allowed FDR to lend or lease supplies to any country whose defense was vital to U.S. • Aided not only Great Britain, but Soviet Union when Hitler invaded it in 1941.
WWII Begins • The Axis Powers • Sept. 1940 – Germany, Italy, and Japan had signed a mutual defense treaty, the Tripartite Pact. • Tripartite Pact designed to keep U.S. out of war. If U.S. were to declare war on any one of the Axis Powers, it would face a two ocean war in Atlantic & Pacific.
U.S. Enters WWII • Attack on Pearl Harbor • U.S. cut off trade with Japan. Embargoed goods included oil – essential for Japan’s war machine. • Either get U.S. to end oil embargo or seize oil fields in Asia. This would mean war. • Dec. 7, 1941 – Japanese attack began early in the morning on the Pearl Harbor naval base in Hawaii. Raid nearly devastated U.S. Pacific fleet. Over 3,000 Americans killed or wounded. • The next day, FDR asked Congress for a declaration of war against Japan. Three days later, Germany & Italy declared war on U.S.
U.S. Homefront During WWII • War & the Depression • In the U.S., WWII did what all of the New Deal programs could not - end the Great Depression. • Defense spending skyrocketed beginning in 1940. Factories came back to life & were retooled to make war products. • Unemployment roles shrunk as many people went back to work.
U.S. Homefront during WWII • United States Office of War Information (OWI) - Operated from June 1942 - September 1945 • U.S.government agency created during World War II • Coordinated release of war news for domestic use and created propagandaposters & radio broadcasts to promote patriotism, warn about foreign spies, & recruit women into war work • Impact:WWII led to an increase in patriotism! Majority of Americans “did their part” to help win the war • Nation saw high levels of military enlistment, volunteerism, the purchase of war bonds, planting of “victory gardens”, etc.
U.S. Homefront during WWII • Labor’s Contribution during WWII • Millions of men were drafted to fight in WWII. Nearly all American civilians filled empty jobs by laboring in war industries. • Over 6 million workers (1/3) in business & industry were women. Govnt urged women to take the place of their husbands & get a war job. • Propaganda posters made “Rosie the Riveter” female ideal during WWII.
U.S. Homefront during WWII • Economic Controls • U.S. govnt took greater control of nation’s economy during wartime to keep prices stable & ensure U.S. had enough goods to fight the war. • Office of Price Administration (OPA) froze prices on most goods and set up a system for rationing. Households received a coupon book to buy scarce goods like gasoline, shoes, coffee, sugar, meat. • War Production Board (WPB) decided which factories would convert from peacetime to wartime production.
Discrimination during WWII • Internment of Japanese-Americans • After attack on Pearl Harbor, many Americans worried Japanese-Americans would try to commit sabotage. • Feb. 1942 - FDR issued Executive Order 9066 – sent 110,000 Japanese-Americans to remote internment camps across U.S. Many lost their homes, businesses, etc. • In 1988, Congress officially apologized to Japanese-Americans & awarded each surviving internee $20,000. • Greatest violation of civil liberties during WWII. No acts of sabotage were ever proven.
Discrimination during WWII • Internment of German-Americans & Italian-Americans • Approx 15,000 Americans of German & Italian ancestry were arrested or held in internment centers across the U.S. • Too many U.S. citizens of German or Italian ancestry to send such massive numbers of people to internment camps – most were recent immigrants and sent on a case- by-case basis. - Unlike the Japanese- Americans, German-Americans and Italian-Americans never received an apology or monetary compensation for their internment by the U.S. government.
