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Turning the Tide in Europe

Turning the Tide in Europe. Allies Battle U-Boats. “Wolf Packs” sunk more than 3500 merchant ships and killed tens of thousands of Allied sailors Convoys protected shipping, just as it did in WWI Radar helped locate U-boats as they surfaced at night

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Turning the Tide in Europe

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  1. Turning the Tide in Europe

  2. Allies Battle U-Boats • “Wolf Packs” sunk more than 3500 merchant ships and killed tens of thousands of Allied sailors • Convoys protected shipping, just as it did in WWI • Radar helped locate U-boats as they surfaced at night • Allied forces sunk U-boats faster than Germany could manufacture them

  3. Soviets Turn Back Nazis • Three Nazi armies invaded the Soviets: One to Leningrad, one toward Moscow, and one to Stalingrad • Soviet resistance and the brutal Russian winter stopped the German advance • Hitler refused to retreat at Stalingrad, so the hungry and cold troops wound up surrendering in January 1943 • This ended any realistic plans Hitler had of conquering the Soviet Union and dominating Europe

  4. Allies Drive Germans out of North Africa • Stalin wanted relief from Nazi attacks, but the Allies felt that a direct attack across the English Channel wouldn’t be successful at this point • Invading North Africa would require less planning and less supplies • In Oct 1942, the British won at El Alamein in Egypt • Allied troops landed in Morocco and Algeria • Dwight “Ike” Eisenhower commanded this invasion

  5. Rommel vs. Patton • In Feb 1943, Erwin Rommel (aka Desert Fox) led his AfrikaKorps against the Americans at Kasserine Pass in Tunisia • The American stopped the assault and forced Rommel to retreat • Eisenhower put American forces in North Africa under the command of Gen. George S. Patton, Jr. (Old Blood & Guts) • In May 1943, German and Italian forces (240,000 troops) surrendered in North Africa

  6. Increasing the Pressure on Germany • The Allies would only accept unconditional surrender (no negotiated peace to keep those in power to remain) • In July 1943, allied armies made separate landings in Sicily in order to join forces again in the north • Italian forces escaped to the Italian mainland, quickly pursued by the Allied forces • On Sept 3, 1943, Italy surrendered to the Allies and five weeks later declared war on Germany

  7. Germany Holds Ground • Mussolini was saved by Hitler and installed as head of the Nazi puppet state in northern Italy • Heavy rains and mountain snows made combat difficult and painful • The fighting continued into 1945, but Germany was still holding on to their defensive strongholds

  8. Bombers Batter Germany • From bases in England, allied bombers launched nonstop bombing raids against Germany • Saturation bombing’s goal was to inflict as much damage as possible • During the day, strategic bombing would attempt to destroy Germany’s capacity to make war • Bomber crew suffered a 20% casualty rate • The bombing relieved the Soviets of Nazi pressure

  9. Tuskegee Airmen • The Tuskegee Airmen escorted bombers during the campaigns • In more than 1500 missions in Europe, the Tuskegee Airmen didn’t lose a single bomber

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