America IN World War II

1. America IN World War II

2. Introduction • The United States was plunged into the inferno of WWII. In the next coming months the world will teeter on the edge of disaster. • Japan’s radicals forgot that whoever stabs a king must stab to kill. America was determined to avenge the bloody treachery. Get Japan first was the cry that rose from millions of Americans. They regarded this war as a private war in the Pacific, and the European front a kind of a holding operation. • Washington however wisely adopted the strategy of getting Germany first, and if America went to the Pacific first Hitler might crush the Soviets and Britain which would create an unconquerable fortress in Europe. If Germany gets knocked out first then the combined Allied forces could help with Japan. Meanwhile, there were just enough forces in the Pacific to prevent Japan digging in too deeply. • There was much argument from many commanders in the Pacific to get revenge in Japan first but Roosevelt in his own right wisely resisted these pressures.

3. The Allies Trade Space for Time • The United States was the mightiest military power on earth-potentially. These wars however would win with bullets not blueprints. America will come close to losing right from the beginning because they were dealing with well-armed aggressors. • The overwhelming problem now was to retool America for an all-out war production. Haste was all the more imperative because of the highly skilled German scientists might have secret weapons, including rocket bombs and perhaps even atomic arms. • America’s task was now to feed, clothe, and arm itself as well as transport its forces to regions. They also had to send a vast amount of food and munitions to its hard-pressed allies. The question will now be can they measure up to the task.

4. The Shock of War • National unity was not a problem when it came to the war partly because of Pearl Harbor. Even before Hitler attacked Stalin the handful of pro-Hilarites in the United States melted away while millions of Italian and German • Americans were all loyal and supportive to the nation’s program. This was not the case with WWI because of the assimilation of immigrants had not taken place, now that the majority of ethnic groups were now composed to well-settled members who were crucial to FDR’s party. • A painful exception would be some 110,000 Japanese Americans concentrated on the Pacific Coast. Washington’s top command was worried that would be vandals for Japan and they herded them all together in concentration camps, though 2/3’s of them were American-born.

5. The Shock of War • A wave of post-Pearl Harbor hysteria, backed by the long historical swell of anti-Japanese prejudice robbed many Americans of their good sense. The wartime Supreme Court in 1944 upheld the Japanese relocation but more than four decades later the US government will officially apologize for its actions and pay reparations of 20,000 to each camp survivor. • WWII was no unwavering crusade, as was in the previous war, and the government did make some effort to use propaganda at home and abroad. Their efforts revealed that many of them two years later will not know why we were fighting but all Americans knew was to get their hands dirty and move forward.

6. Building a War Machine • The war crisis caused the drooping American economy and snapped it into high gear. Many military orders over 100 billion in 1940 alone. The War Productions Board helped American factories pulled forward an amazing amount of weaponry: 40 billion bullets, 300,000 aircraft, 76,000 ships, 86,000 tanks, and 2.6 million machine guns. The War Productions Board halted the manufacture of nonessential items such as passenger cars.   • Farmers also rolled up their sleeves and increased their output as well. The armed forces drained them of workers, but they made up for it with better machinery and improved fertilizers which will make up the difference.

7. Manpower and Womanpower • The armed services enlisted nearly 15 million men in WWII and some 216,000 women who were employed for noncombat duties. As the draft net was tightened millions of young men were plucked from their homes and clothed in government issued outfits. With this happening it left a lot of our nations’ farms and factories so short of personnel that new workers had to be found. The agreement was to bring thousands of Mexican agricultural workers across the border to harvest the grains of the West. • Even more dramatic was the march of women onto the factory floor. More than 6 million took up jobs during the war and more than half of them had never worked outside of it. When most of the men came back most of the women wanted to keep working. • At wars end 2/3’s of women war workers left the labor force and many of them were forced out of their jobs by employers and unions eager to reemploy returning servicemen. Half of them told the census that they quit their jobs because they had family obligations. Many women rushed into the suburban domesticity and the mothering of the baby boomers that were born by the tens of millions in the decade and a half after 1945.

8. The Rising Sung in the Pacific • Early successes of the Japanese military were breathtaking: they realized that they had to win quickly or lose slowly. Seldom, if ever has so much territory been conquered so rapidly with so little loss. • With the assault on Pearl Harbor, the Japanese launched a full assault on various Far Eastern bases. They included the American outposts in Guam, Wake, and Philippines. In a short time the Japanese captured the British-Chinese port of Hong Kong but also the British Malaya, with its important imports of rubber and tin. • Better news came when the Philippines succeeded in slowing down the warriors for five months. The Japanese landed a small but effective army and General Douglas MacArthur, the America commander, withdrew to a strong defensive position not far from Manila. There were about 20 thousand American troops which were supported by a larger force of Filipinos, which held off the violent Japanese attacks until April 9, 1942. These defenders reduced to eating mules and monkeys, and traded their lives for a time when they face hopeless odds. • America was forced to surrender and General MacArthur was ordered by Washington to depart secretly for Australia, and when he left he said that he shall return. When the army raised the white flag they remaining men were treated with vicious cruelty in the prisoner of war camps. The island of manila held out until May 6, 1942 when it surrendered and left Japanese forces in complete control.

9. Japan’s High Tide at Midway • The Japanese forces moved southward. They invaded New Guinea, and landed on the Samoan Islands, from which they threatened Australia. But finally for the first time in history America will give a big loss to the Japanese in the Coral Sea and the fighting was done by carrier based aircraft, and neither fleet saw or fired a shot directly at each other. • Japan next took the opportunity to seize Midway Island, which was more than 1000 miles from Honolulu. The battle of Midway was fought on June 3-6 in 1942, and all of the fighting was done on aircraft, and the Japanese broke off action after losing four vitally important carriers. • Midway was a pivotal victory, and it was combined with success at Midway halted the Japan’s juggernaut. But it did however let the Japanese into the islands of Kiska and Attu which was not far from Alaska. This event made people fear of an invasion of the United States from the Northwest. Much American strength was diverted to the defense of Alaska; however they overextended themselves in 1942 when their appetites were too big for their stomachs. If they had only consolidated their gains they would have been much more difficult to dislodge once the tide had turned.

10. American Leapfrogging • Following the victory at Midway, the United States for the first time was able to seize some advantage in the Pacific. For weeks the Americans supplies were low and they held on for weeks. After several attempts for naval control, the Japanese losses were 20,000 compared to 1700 for the Americans. The casualty was 10 to 1. • American and Australian forces fought together with General Mac Arthur and the head and hanged on to the southeastern tip of New Guinea, which was the last buffer before getting into Australia. Gradually the war began to tip towards the American navy when General MacArthur had fought his way westward through tropical jungle hell. This victory was the 1st leg of his long return journey to the Philippines.

11. American Leapfrogging • The US Navy with the marines and army divisions were doing the meat-grinding and they were also doing some leapfrogging the Japanese islands. The new strategy of island hopping called for bypassing some of the most heavily fortified Japanese posts, capturing them and setting up naval bases on them. Japans outposts suddenly withered on the vine. • After some resistances and successful American attacks the major islands of the Marianas fell to the US attackers in July and August 1944. With the unsinkable aircraft carriers now available, virtual round the clock bombing of Japan began in November of 1944.

12. The Allied Halting Of Hitler • Early setbacks that happened in the Pacific were also happening in the Atlantic. During the ten months of 1942 more than 500 merchant ships were reported lost 111 in June alone. • Not until the spring of 1943 did the Allies clearly have the upper hand against the U-boats. If they had not won the Battle of the Atlantic, Britain would have been forced under. When the war ended, Hitler was about to mass produce a fearsome new submarine-one that could remain underwater indefinitely and cruise at seven knots when submerged. • The turning point in the war came in late 1942, when the British and the American launched an air strike and were cascading bombs on German cities. The Germans at the time were going east towards North Africa into Egypt, which was close to the Suez Canal. If they would have broken through it would have been disastrous for the Allies. But late in October of 1942 the British met west of Cairo and with the help of American tanks they drove the Germans back to Tunisia more than 1000 miles away. • On the Soviet front the red army gave a new life to the Allied cause. The Russians in 1942 stalled the Germans in Stalingrad, and more invading divisions were caught and forced to surrender. By November of 1942 the Russian unleashed a counteroffensive and more than a year later Stalin had regained about 2/3’s of the blood-soaked Soviet motherland wrested from him by Hitler.

13. A Second Front from North Africa to Rome • The Soviet losses up to this point in 1942 were staggering. Millions of soldiers and civilians lay dead and Hitler’s armies had overrun most of the western portion of Russia. By war’s end Russia lost some 20 million Soviets, and much of their land had been destroyed. • Many Americans were eager to get France back from the Germans including FDR. FDR feared that the Soviets would not be able to hold on for long. In 1942, FRD did promise that he would help open a second front by the end of the year, a promise that was going to be hard to keep. • The British were not too happy with an assault on German held France; they thought that it might end in disaster. They wanted to attack Hitler’s fortress, and the Americans reluctantly agreed to postpone a massive invasion of Europe.

14. A Second Front from North Africa to Rome • An assault on French held North Africa was compromise second front, and something that the Soviets did not want. The attack was launched November 1942 and headed by Dwight D. Eisenhower. This operation joined about 400,000 men from all across the Allied nations: it also included 850 ships. After much fighting the German-Italian army was finally trapped and surrender in May 1943 in Tunisia. • Now that the Allies are victorious in Africa now they will turn their sights to Europe. By August of 1943 after Sicily fell, Italy and Mussolini was deposed and Italy surrendered unconditionally. Roosevelt was known to have said one down two to go. • If Italy dropped out of the war, the Germans did not drop out of Italy. Hitler’s troops resisted the Allied invaders that were getting out of Italy. For many months Italy appeared to be at a dead end the Allies could not break through the German front. On May 2, 1945 after the Allies continued to fight Germany surrendered. Many of those who surrendered became prisoners of war.

15. D-Day: June 6, 1944 • The Soviets never backed down when it came to having a second front and Churchill, Roosevelt, and Stalin were going to meet to coordinate this promised effort. Roosevelt seemed confident and could woo the Kremlin from his nasty communist’s ways. • Iran (Tehran) was finally the meeting place. At Tehran the discussion among Stalin, Churchill, and Roosevelt were from November 28 to December 1 were very smooth. The best achievement was by launching Soviet attacks on Germany from the east and an Allied assault coming from the west. • The preparations for this massive movement were enormous. America had to provide for the ammunitions for 3 million men to be ready. They also had to trust General Eisenhower to lead his men, but he had already proven himself as a great mediator for the Allies.

16. D-Day: June 6, 1944 • The French Normandy this was the spot that was less heavily defended than the other parts of the European coast. On June, 6 1944 this operation will involve 46 hundred vessels. Much resistance came from the Germans, who were misled, they thought they were coming more North. • The Allies were able to block supplies coming in and out of the country, and it worsened because the Allies began to bomb the gasoline-producing plants which created shortages for the Germans. • The Allied beaches were eventually consolidated, and reinforced, and the invaders iron ring the enclosed the Normandy landing zone were finally controlled. Many American Generals including General George Patton who was called Blood and Guts and assisted by the French finally in 1944 liberated Paris. • As the Allies roll toward Germany they capture cities Aachen in October 1944 and the days of Hitler were now numbered.

17. FDR: The Fourth-Termite of 1944 • The Presidential campaign of 1944 which was bound to divert energy from the war program with its awkward start was now coming to a big finish. FDR still was the man for the Democrats, and Dewey was the man for the Republicans. The question that was on everyone’s’ mind was who was going to be FDR’s VP. Finally it came to the senator from Missouri Harry S. Truman. He had attained his status from being the head to the Senate committee and was conducting an investigation of wasteful war expenses.

18. Roosevelt Defeats Dewey • FDR was opposed by a lot of newspapers, and they were in most part run by Republicans. However, that did not stop winning again for his fourth terms against Dewey. Roosevelt won primarily because the war was going well. Many voters thought that they needed an experienced hand to deal with the negotiations and world peace. The Republicans were still dealing with the isolationism problem created by Harding.

19. The Last Days of Hitler • After FDR won the presidential race, Hitler and Germany were on their last legs. The German western front seemed to be buckling under the blows of Americans and Allies. The Soviets were also coming from the east and bombing around the clock. • Hitler staked everything on his reserves. He was secretly planning on sending an attack on a powerful force on December 6, 1944 against the Americans. Caught off guard the Americans were driven back creating a deep bulge. The ten day ordeal was finally halted aft the 101st Airborne Division stood firm in Bastogne. German reinforcements were sent and the last gasp of Hitler would be a bloody one in the Battle of the Bulge. • Pressing their towards Berlin in April of 1945 the Americans came across blood-spattered and still stinking concentration camps, where the German-Nazis had engaged in the mass murdering of undesirable including 6 million Jews. Washington had long been informed of Hitler’s genocide of the Jews and had been slow take steps to stop this from continuing. Until war’s end, the full dimension had not been known and when the details were revealed, the whole world was aghast.

20. The Last days of Hitler • After the Soviets made their way through Berlin in April 1945, and Hitler’s hasty marriage to his mistress, he committed suicide in an underground bunker in April 30, 1945. • Another tragedy struck the United States when President Roosevelt while relaxing in Warm Springs, Georgia, died of a cerebral hemorrhage on April 12, 1945. The crushing burden of 12 years of the depression and war years in the White House and taken its toll. Vice President Truman now will take the helm. • On May 7, 1945 what was left of the German government surrendered, and on May 8 was officially V-E Day and was greeted with frenzied rejoicing in the Allied countries.

21. Japan Dies Hard • Japan’s sea power had lost about 60 ships in the greatest naval battle of all time. American fleets were numbering more than 4 thousand vessels were now commanding the western Pacific. Several of the battleships raised from Pearl Harbor were now having some sweet revenge. • In January of 1945 the Philippines was not conquered until July of 1945, and victory came with a price which took a toll of over 60 thousand American casualties. The tiny island of Iwo Jima was captured in March of 1945 and the desperate 25 day assault cost over 4 thousand American dead. • Okinawa was next on the list: it was needed for closer bases from which to blast and burn enemy cities and industries. Japanese soldiers fought with incredible courage and finally sold Okinawa for 50 thousand American casualties, while suffering far heavier losses themselves.

22. The Atomic Bombs • Meanwhile in Washington were planning an all-out invasion of the main islands of Japan. Japan still showed no outward willingness to surrender unconditionally to the Allies. • The Potsdam Conference was held near Berlin in July 1945. President Truman met with Stalin and British leaders and they issued a stern warning to Japan to surrender or be destroyed. But there was no encouraging response was forthcoming. • America had a fantastic ace up their sleeve and in 1940 Roosevelt was persuaded by American exiled scientists Albert Einstein to push with preparations for unlocking the secret of an atomic bomb. With Roosevelt and a blank check worth 2 billion made this request now a possibility. The Germans will eventually ended the project because it was too costly however the bomb was not ready when the war against Germany ended.

23. The Atomic Bombs • Japan not Germany was now going to be the target for the first atomic bombardment. The Manhattan Project was now pushed forward and with Japan still refusing to surrender. On August 6, 1945 a lone American bomber dropped one atomic bomb on the city of Hiroshima Japan. In one blinding flash and a funnel shaped cloud 180,000 people were killed, wounded and missing. Some 70,000 died instantly, and 60.000 were killed from radiation and burns received from the bomb. • Afterwards, Stalin entered the war against Japan. Still after the first atomic bomb Japan still did not surrender, and on August 9 dropped as second bomb on the city of Nagasaki. Over 80,000 people were killed or missing. On August 10, 1945, Tokyo sued for peace on one condition: that they get to keep their emperor on the throne. • The final end came September 2, 1945 and the ceremonies were conducted by General MacArthur on the battleship Missouri in Tokyo Bay. Americans at the same time celebrated after the most horrible war in history had ended in mushroom atomic clouds.

24. The Allies Triumphant • Democracy was now given its answer, as the dictators, despite long preparations were over thrown a discredited, and the American people preserved their precious liberties without serious impairment. • World War II proved to be costly and American forces suffered some 1 million casualties, more than 1/3 of which were deaths. The reduction of death were great because of blood plasma and miracle drugs notably penicillin. The American and Soviet losses were more than 25 million. • America was virtually untouched, as the rest of the world was destroyed and destitute. American military leadership proved to be of the highest order. New generals such as MacArthur, Eisenhower, and Marshall emerged as heroes. • Industrial leaders were no less skilled for marvels of production were performed on a daily basis. The enemy was smothered by bayonets, bullets, bazookas, and bombs. The American way of war was simply more and more men, and more weapons, more machines, more technology and more money than any enemy could hope to match.