HW 19

1. Death Tolls:

• Russia: over 20 million
  
• Poland: 6 million
  
• Germany: 4.2 million
  
• Great Britain: 388,000
  
• China: 2.2 million
  
• Japan: 2 million
  
• France: 600,000
  
• USA: 406,000

2. The USA benefited greatly from the war in terms of economy, since it provided the other Allies with supplies. This helped it become one of the world's new superpowers. Meanwhile, Britain was left with over £3000 million of debt.

3. Many millions of people were forced out of their homes after the war, particularly in Eastern Europe, where the USSR took over German-controlled areas. There was also a large amount of urban redevelopment, as cities that were destroyed in the war had to be rebuilt.

4. The United Nations was formed with the goal of maintaining world peace, and Russia and the United States became competing superpowers.

Why did the Allies win WWII? (Continued)

War Strategies in WWII

United States, Great Britain, Canada, New Zealand, Australia

• Defeat Germany first
• At the same time, the US will fight Japan in the Pacific
• Give aid to USSR to help against the Germans in the East (some debate on how much this helped)
  
• Attack through North Africa and move up through Italy
• US/GB launch an invasion into France, opening a second front
• Weakening Germany through bombing
• Securing N. Atlantic
  

Italy, Germany

• Germany conquers Europe + invades Great Britain
• Germany tries to make Great Britain surrender
• German army hopes to defeat USSR by Fall 1941 and begin colonizing it
• Italy and Germany try to go through North Africa to take the Middle East
• Germany tried to secure oil in the Caucusus Mountains

Japan

• Japan wanted to gain control of SE Asia
• Japan tried to avoid fighting both US and GB at the same time
• Preemptive strike in Hawaii
• Get resources in the Pacific
  

USSR

• Scorched Earth tactics
• Move the factories to safety
• Build up weapons
• Hold off until winter, counterattack

Turning Points

• Stalingrad (USSR vs. Germany)
  
• El Alamein (GB vs. Germany)
  
• Midway (US vs. Japan- Navy, intelligence)
  
• Battle of the Atlantic (US/GB vs. Germany- U-boats, Convoys)
  
• Kursk (Russia vs. Germany- Tanks)
  
• D-Day (US/GB vs. Germany- Largest amphibious assault in history- 9,500 planes, 4,600 ships, 176,000 soldiers)
  

Use of tanks, naval power and air power all changed dramatically since WWI and were all very important factors in the Allied victory in WWII.

HW 18

1. The Allies were able to gain a naval advantage over Japan by breaking Japanese codes, which allowed the Allies to be prepared for battles like the one at Midway. As a result, the Allies won the battle of Midway, which was a turning point in the war.
   
2. Like in the Western front, there was a large amount of aerial bombing in the East. Much of this bombing targeted civilian and industrial areas. The firebombing of various Japanese cities caused terrible damage and left many civilians dead.
   
3. A third reason is the use of the atomic bomb on Japan. The war was ended after the US dropped two atomic bombs targeting the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. It is often argued that this method of winning the war was immoral and unnecessary, with some people saying that it was a war crime.
   

Why did the Allies win WWII?

Battle of North Atlantic (1940-1943, Allies win)
Air:

• Air cover for convoys
• Planes could sink submarines
• "Huff Duff"

Sea:

• Use of convoys
• Breaking the "Enigma" code
  

El Alamein/Operation Torch (1942, Allies win)
Air:

• British air bases in Egypt and Palestine
• Sank German supply ships
  

Land:

• Tank warfare
• Helped set up invasion of Italy
• Saved Middle East oil from Germans
  

Sea:

• Saved Suez Canal from Germans

Battle of Stalingrad (1942, Allies win)
Air:

• German effort to supply by air fails
  

Land:

• Very close house-to-house, room-to-room fighting
• Tank battle (USSR tanks encrcle the Germans)
  

Battle of the Coral Sea/Midway/Guadalcanal (1942, Allies win)
Air:

• Use of aircraft carriers
  

Land:

• Fighting took place on the islands
  

Sea:

• US breaks Japanese secret codes
• Allies fought to take back Pacific islands
  

HW 17

1. Germany was fighting in too many different areas at once. Because it was not able to effectively focus its efforts on one front, it was forced to divide its power and fight in various places, including Italy, France, Russia, and Egypt.
2. Declaring war on America seems to have been a terrible mistake for Germany. Once America entered the war, it assisted Britain in the Battle of the Atlantic and the invasions of France and Italy.
   
3. The air war was another reason for Germany's defeat in World War II. Allied bombing had a great effect on Germany's ability to fight the war, causing civilian casualties, damaging Germany's trade and production, and eliminating its resources.
   

HW 16

A.

• Total war: large scale war and destruction, often targeting civilians as well as military forces
  
• Forced labor: People from German-occupied parts of Europe were used by the Germans for slave labor.
  
• Concentration camp: "Enemies of the state" in Germany were forced to live in terrible conditions in concentration camps.
  
• "The final solution": the Nazis' decision to exterminate all the Jews in Europe
  
• Ghettoes: sections of towns in which Jews were forced to live
  
• Extermination camps: Camps designed for the mass murder of Jews
  
• Partisans: armed resistance groups that fought against the Axis
  
• Guerrilla warfare: methods used by resistance groups to make Axis occupation difficult

B.

1. Chinese families in Sunkiang would have been forced to leave their homes because of the Japanese invasion.
   
2. French families would have had to flee from the Germans or live under their rule. They also had the option of participating in the Resistance.
   
3. A soviet aircraft factory worker would have been required to do much more work after the start of the war, building aircraft and bombs.
4. A Jewish person in Germany would have been put in a concentration camp by the Nazis and probably would have been killed as a part of the "final solution."
5. The son of a captured Yugoslav partisan would have likely been taken from his home and placed in a labor camp or children's camp.
   

HW 15

1. The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor brought America into World War II and gave Japan control of the Pacific. Also, when America declared war on Japan, Germany declared war on America.
2. Midway Island saw a major naval battle between America and Japan in 1942. This battle exhibited a number of naval tactics as well as the use of aircraft carriers. It also showed how codes could be broken and used against those who created them. The American victory resulted in the destruction of much of Japan's navy, allowing the Allies to take back the Pacific.
3. The Allied victory at El Alamein in 1942 kept Germany out of Egypt and the Suez Canal, pushing it out of North Africa. It also prevented the Axis forces in Ukraine and the Middle East from joining, strengthening the grip of the Allies in that area.
4. The Russian victory at Stalingrad (1942-1943) stopped Germany's plans for the rest of its invasion of Russia and destroyed much of the Nazis' ideology, greatly boosting Russian morale, encouraging them to take back more territory, such as the city of Leningrad.
5. If Britain had continued to lose ships at such a high rate due to U-boats in the Battle of the Atlantic (1942-1943), it may not have been able to stay in the war.
6. The Allied bombing of German and Japanese cities caused large numbers of civilian casualties and made production difficult for the Axis. It also drew German aircraft away from the East, making it easier for Russia to invade Germany.

A.

• Second front: The war in the east, as opposed to the war in Europe.
• Area bombing: The tactic of bombing everything in a target area.
• The Allies: Countries that opposed the Axis. Included Britain, France, the United States, Russia, Australia, and Canada.
• Operation Torch: The British and American invasion of Morocco and Algeria.

B.

• Similar: It was likely hot and uncomfortable in both places. Both battles were Allied attacks on the Axis forces. Both battles involved brutal fighting.
  
• Different: El Alamein was in Egypt, where it was probably dry and flat, while New Guinea was probably humid and mountainous. Fighting in New Guinea probably involved a lot of guerrilla warfare, while the Battle of El Alamein was largely based around tanks.