Monday- Discussed forum posts.
Soviet Union-
Stalin-
- Lenin suffered a stroke in 1922 and died
- By the time Lenin died, he did not like Stalin
USSR Prior to WWII-
- Russia drops out of WWI to fight Bolshevik Revolution
- Russia became communist and changed name to USSR in 1922
- Purges and deportations to slave labor camps in Siberia
- Strengthened the intelligence and secret service
- Created a "Cult of Personality"
- Nationalization and Collectivization of the Soviet economy
- Industrialization of the Soviet economy
- Five Year Plans
- Policies led to famine in Ukraine (5-10 million died- considered a genocide by some)
- Banned religion
USSR in WWII-
- Signed German- Soviet Non-Aggression Pact in 1939 leading to the invasion of Poland
- 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 1941-1942 changed the tide of the war
Operation Barbarossa-
- Just like every other invasion, Hitler assumed Blitzkrieg would have worked on the Soviet Union as well
- Siege Leningrad, didn't get to Moscow
- The winter helped push back the Germans, Soviets held out and were told not to retreat
Battle of Berlin-
- Soviets reach Berlin in 1945 and forced the Germans to surrender
Post-WWII-Cold War
- As the Soviets were driving the Germans back, they did not liberate a lot of the countries
- The countries were independent but they were controlled by the Germans
United States-
Battle of Coral Sea- First Turning Point in Pacific-
- If Japan would have won, Australia would have been their next goal.
- For the first time, we stopped Japan's advance
- Japan technically didn't win but they didn't lose
Battle of Midway
- Had an airstrip, US won
- Destroyed Japan
- Destroyed aircraft carriers, battle ships, airplanes
- They were never able to make up for everything we destroyed
- We were able to win because we broke their code so we knew what they were doing so we were able to sneak up behind them and blow them up
- We had their "play book"
Tuesday-
Wednesday- Continued powerpoint.
Potsdam Conference-
- On July 26, the US, Great Britain, and China issued the Potsdam Declaration
- Announced the terms for Japan's surrender
- "We will not deviate from them. There are no alternatives."
- Dismantle the current government of Japan
- The Allies will occupy Japan
- Japan will consist of the major islands. It will lose all territory gained in WWII and years leading up to it
- Japanese military forces will be disarmed and allowed to return home
- There will be war crimes trials for the atrocities committed by Japan throughout WWII
- Democracy will be promoted as well as Freedom of speech, religion, and of thought, as well as respect for fundamental human rights
- Japan will be allowed to have industry so they can make money to pay for reparations. World trade will also be enabled at some point
- Allied occupation of Japan will end once Japan accomplishes all above points
WWII Major Battle/ Operations Timeline vs. Germany
- Battle of Atlantic- 1941-1945
- Operation Torch (Invasion Morocco)- 1942
- Operation Avalanche (Invasion of Italy)- 1943
- Battle of Salerno
- Battle of Anzio
- Battle of Monte Cassino
- Operaion Overlord (D-Day)- June 6, 1944
- Operation Dragoon
- Battle of the Bulge
- Oeration Varsity
- Fighting in Germany, Issues with the Siegfried Line
German U-Boats-
- FDR told our navy that if they saw any German U-boats in our waters, shoot them
- War is imminent!
Allied Intelligence-
- Churchill and Roosevelt knew the importance of intelligence in safeguarding Allied commerce to defeat the Axis powers
- The Allies shard information from RADAR and High Frequency Radio Direction Finding (HF/DF or "huff duff")
- 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-names like "ULTRA" and "MAGIC"
Enigma
- Machine Germany used to transmit their information
D-Day
- Dwight Eisenhower was the commander of the US forces. Became president after
- The cross of the English Channel by the US
- 156,000 Allied Troops
- By June 11, with the beachheads firmly secured
- More than 326,000 troops had crossed with more than 100,000 tons of military equipment
- Paris was liberated on August 25
- Germany surrendered on May 8, 1945
Thursday- I was absent
Friday- I was absent
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