March 13-18

Monday -

Soviet Union
- Stalin
  - Lenin had a stroke in 1922 and died
  - By the time Lenin died, he did not like Stalin
  - After Lenin died, there was a power struggle to see who would take over
  - Stalin won and was in power in 1920s
- Prior to WW2
  - Russia drops out of WW1 to fight Bolsheivik Revolution
  - Russian becomes communist and changed to USSR in 1922
  - Purges and deportations to slave labor camps in SIberia (Gulags)
  - Strengthened the intelligence and secret service
  - Created a "Cult of Personality"
  - Nationalism and Collectivization of the Soviet Union
  - Industrialism of the Soviet economy
  - Five Year Plans
    - Policies that led to famine in Ukraine (50-10 million died, considered a genocide by some)
    - Most plans weren't accomplished for another 10 years
    - Banned religion
- In WW2
  - Made a non-aggression pact with Germany
  - Also invaded Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Finland in 1939
  - Signed Neutrality Pact with Japan in 1941
  - Invaded by Germany in June 1941
  - Stalin instituted his retreat and "scorched earth" policies
  - The Russian winter of 41-42 changed the tide of the war
- Hitler was after 3 cities:
  - Leningrad
  - Stalingrad
  - Moscow

Tuesday -

Review
- Midway
  - US decifered Japanese code and won
- Island Hopping
  - Invade and island, go to the next island, keep on moving until you reach Japan
  - Ones that are not "hopped," they starve because they have no supplies
- Guadacanal
  - The first time we were on the offensive
- Kamikazes
  - Japanese dive bombers that would dive into the ships
  - They would tape explosives onto the men
- Battle of Leyte Gulf
- Island hopping our way back to the Philippines
- Macarthur's return to Philippines (September 1944)
- Iwo Jima (February-March 1945)
  - Bombed it about a week before the attack
  - When the invasion happened, there was no resistance
    - The Japanese was using this as a ploy
  - Let them enter, then Japan attacked
  - 6,821 US deaths
  - There were 2 flag raisings, the first was too small
    - The second was perfect
- After island hopping (Summer of 1945)
  - Operation Downfall
    - Planned for October, 1945
    - Estimated to have over 1 million casualties
    - Estimated to have 267,000 deaths
    - Why did this never take place?
  - The Manhattan Project
    - 1939-1945
    - Trinity Test (July 16th, 1945)
      - In New Mexico - said used as an ammunition dump
      - Hotter than the sun at the center the moment it hits
    - Enola Gay (Paul somebody)
      - Plane that dropped the bomb
      - B29, designed to carry the 10 thousand pound bomb
    - Hiroshima Bombing
      - "Little Boy"
    - Nagasaki Bombing
      - "Fat Man"
      - Bockscar
- VJ Project
  - August 14/15, 1945 (UK official)
  - September 2, 1945 (US official)
    - signed on the USS Missouri

Wednesday -

Potsdam in Germany Conference 1945
- Dismantle the government of Japan (excluding Emperor Hirohito)
- The Allies (US) will occupy Japan
- Japan will only consist only of the major islands (Honsho, Hokkaido, Kyushu, and Shikoku). It will lose all territory gained in WW2 and years leading up to it.
- Japanese military forces will e disarmed and allowed to return home
- There will be war crimes trials for the atrocities committed by Japan throughout WW2
Major Battle Operations vs. Germany
- Battle of the Atlantic (41-45)
- Operation Torch (Invasion of Morrocco) (42)
  - Fought first in North Africa
Germany Westwall-Siegfried Line
- To protect borders from invasion
- Made to slow down intruders
German U-Boats
- After repeated attacked by German U-Boats on US ships in the fall of 1941, FDR announced that he had ordered the US Navy to attack German and Italian war ships in the "waters which we deem necessary for our defense"
- War was emminent
Convoy System
- Go in large groups
Allied Inteligence
- Churchill and Roosevelt knew the important of intelligence in safeguarding Allied commerce to defeat the Axis powers
- The Allies shared information form RADAR and High Frequency Radio Direction Finding
- RADAR provided a means of detecting vessels and aircraft above the surface
- HF/DF was used to locate the sources of enemy radio transmissions such as submarines
- Allied Intelligence leaders began sharing code-breaking secrets, known as "very special intelligence" and classified under cover-ames like "ULTRA and "MAGIC"
Dwight Eisenhower
- General, eventually Supreme Allied Commander
D-Day
- June 6th, 1944
- Cross of the English Channel to France by the Allied Powers
- Invading France because it was in German control
- Eisenhower, Patton, Bradley
- 156,000 troops from all around the world
- Omaha was the costliest beach in terms of Allied casualties
- By June 11th, beachheads were firmly secured
- More than 326,000 troops had crossed with more than 100,000 pounds of equipment
- Paris was liberated on August 25th
- Germany surrendered on May 8th, 1945

Thursday -

Battle of the Bulge
- Coldest, snowiest battle
- 100,000 German causualties
- 81,000 Amercans casualities
- Bloodiest battle for the US in WW2
- Malmedy Massacre
  - Where 86 American soldiers were captured and killed, was the worst atrocity against American troops during the course of war in Europe
- US win
Yalta Conference Feb. 1945
- Last conference with all FDR, Stalin, and Churchill
- They agreed on:
  - The establishment of the United Nations
  - Germany to be divided into 4 zones
  - Free elections allowed in the states of eastern Europe
  - USSR promised to koin the war against Japan
V-E Day-May 8th, 1945
Home Front
- Women in WW2
  - Rosie the Riviter
    - Represented women in WW2
  - Encouraged to work in factories
  - Farm workers
  - Bus drivers
  - Waitresses
  - Laundress'
  - Time keepers
  - Etc.
Native Americans transmitted MAGIC codes so that no one could never listen/comprehend our messages but we understood theirs
African Americans in WW2
- Segregated (all black units)
- Did menial tasks (cleaned, cooked, etc.)
- Tuskegee Institute/Airmen
  - Weren't allowed to fly right away
  - Eventually did air campaigns in Italy
Asian Americans in WW2
- Women worked/men fought
Hollywood in WW2
- Used to help the media
- They made Germany/Japan look terrible but make the US look awesome
- All about propaganda
Bob Hope and the United Service Organization (USO) Tour
- Went and saw troops to help raise morale
OPA and Rationing
- Office of Price Administration was established in 1941
- Food rationing included retrictions on sugar, meat, clothing, silk, nylon
- Gaoline ratioing began in May 1942 limiting to 5 gallons a week
- By the end of 1942, half the nation's automobiles were issued an A sticker, allowing 4 gallons a week
- The other half got a B sticker or C stickers (unlimited)
- Truckers had a T sticker
- A black market developed in stolen or counterfeit stickers
- Got a food ration book each week/full of stamps to get food

Friday -

War Finance Committee and War Bonds
- Give the government money now and you'll eventually get money back later (+ interest)
Japanese Internment Camps
- Seemed segregated, a lot of racism
- Forced to sell their homes and forced to go to relocation centers
- Rights taken away
- Weren't killed nor slave labor

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March 13-18

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