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WWII: BEGINNING OF THE END

WWII: BEGINNING OF THE END. DAY 7 (1943-1945). TODAY’S OBJECTIVES. Summarize the Allies’ plan for winning the war in Europe and the Pacific. Identify events in the war in Europe and the Pacific. Describe the Allied offensive against the Nazis in Europe and the Japanese in the Pacific.

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WWII: BEGINNING OF THE END

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  1. WWII: BEGINNING OF THE END DAY 7 (1943-1945)

  2. TODAY’S OBJECTIVES • Summarize the Allies’ plan for winning the war in Europe and the Pacific. • Identify events in the war in Europe and the Pacific. • Describe the Allied offensive against the Nazis in Europe and the Japanese in the Pacific.

  3. INVASION IS COMING!! • Allied air forces begin round-the-clock bombing of German industrial & transportation centers • Problem: Needed to defeat Hitler on ground • Allies plan greatest amphibious attack in history: D-Day • June 6, 1944: 176,000 troops carried on 5,000 vessels invade Normandy, France

  4. PLANNING: OPERATION OVERLORD • 1941: Attack on Pearl • US set sights on defeating “Germany first!” • European Massive invasion • Jan. 1943: Casablanca Conference • FDR, Churchill – Stalin was not invited • Began the planning of “Operation Overlord” • A true second front would be opened • A tentative date was set: May 1944 • Attack across English Channel from England to France • Two locations of invasion were discussed 1. Pas de Calais 2. Normandy

  5. POSSIBILITIES OF TWO CHOICES • Normandy: • Distant was an issue – longer route • Ports also lacked in space • German defense was weaker • Aerial support would have more “dead flying” time • Pas de Calais: • Shortest route • Quickest time • Due to this: Germans had heavily defended this area • Attack would have to be launched from ports that could not handle volume of craft • Normandy was chosen due to the lack of German defenses

  6. PAS DE CALAIS NORMANDY

  7. ENVISION OF COMMANDERS • 5 beach attacks – ea. by a nationality (“amphibious”) • Two American Beaches: Utah and Omaha • 18 divisions (1000+ men) • 2 airborne divisions • 6,000 ships • 13,000 vehicles • Goal: Capture Cherbourg • Date was pushed back to June, 1944 • “D-Day”: Day of Days

  8. PERSON OF INTEREST: DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER • Supreme Allied Commanderof Invasion Force • Along w/ a number of other highly trained, experienced leaders – good mix • Included Gen. Omar Bradley

  9. DECEPTION AND SECURITY • Months before: the US deceived German intelligence • Idea: make Germany think invasion was really coming in somewhere other than Normandy • Operation Fortitude: make the Germans think the invasion was coming at Pas de Calais

  10. JUNE 5TH WEATHER • Full moon required • June 4th had unfavorable weather • High seas, wind, low clouds • June 5th: weather was better • Invasion commenced from s. England • Paratroopers jumped first before beach assault began “You are about to embark upon the Great Crusade, toward which we have striven these many months. The eyes of the world are upon you. The hopes and prayers of liberty-loving people everywhere march with you. In company with our brave Allies and brothers-in-arms on other Fronts, you will bring about the destruction of the German war machine, the elimination of Nazi tyranny over the oppressed peoples of Europe, and security for ourselves in a free world.”—Eisenhower, Letter to U.S. Army

  11. OVERLORD - AIRBORNE ASSAULT • Air assault: early AM 1:00am • Made of 2 divisions • 101st • 82nd • Task: Secure the flanks of the landings in the Cotentin Penn. • Secure 4 exits leaving Utah beach (causeways) • Link up w/ beach forces and create a “united” front

  12. OVERLORD – AMPHIBIOUS ASSAULT • Overlordwas the codename for the d-day invasion • Plan: • British forces take Sword and Gold Beaches • Canadian forces take Juno Beach • US forces - Omaha and Utah Beaches

  13. BEACHES • D-Day: June 6th, 1944 • Beach assault: early morning 4:00am (“H-Hour”) • Omaha: US forces met the German 352nd infantry division (one of the best) • Utah: causalities were the lightest of any beach (197 of 230,000)

  14. ACROSS THE ENGLISH CHANNEL

  15. STORMING THE BEACHES

  16. TAKING COVER ON THE BEACHES

  17. RESULTS • 10,000 Allied soldiers were dead • 100,000 had made it ashore • W/in days and weeks: supplies were being unloaded at Utah and Omaha beaches and transported inland

  18. ISLAND HOPPING • COUNTER OFFENSIVE – CAPTURE KEY ISLANDS AND AIR SPACE • USE ISLANDS AS BASES FOR FUTURE ATTACKS • FOUNDED BY ADMIRAL CHESTER NIMITZ • USED TO CUT JAPANESE SUPPLY LINES BY CAPTURING KEY ISLANDS

  19. BATTLE OF THE GUADALCANAL • FIRST ALLIED OFFENSIVE BEGAN IN AUGUST, 1942 • 19,000 TROOPS STORMED THE SOLOMON ISLANDS • BATTLE LASTED 6 MONTHS – BECAME TO BE KNOWN AS “THE ISLANDS OF DEATH” – FEB. 1943 • UNLIKE ANY FIGHTING U.S. HAD EVER SEEN – DESCRIBED AS “HELL” • GROUND, AIR AND SEA BATTLE

  20. US CONTINUED TO “LEAPFROG” ACROSS THE PACIFIC FOR THE NEXT YEAR OCTOBER, 1944: ALLIED TROOPS CONVERGED ON PHILIPPINE ISLANDS – LEYTE ISLAND LED BY GENERAL DOUGLAS MACARTHUR AND ADMIRAL CHESTER NIMITZ MACARTHUR STATED, “PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, I HAVE RETURNED.” RETURN OF MACARTHUR

  21. October 1944: Japan threw their entire fleet into the battle Began a new tactic – kamikaze (suicide planes) Pilots would intentionally crash their bomb-laden planes into Allied ships and other targets. Philippines: 424 kamikaze pilots sunk 16 ships and damaged 80 more 3500 Americans were killed but the Allies took back the Philippine Islands Japan lost 49,000 troops and the defense against an Allied invasion – US could launch invasion from Philippine bases Battle of the Leyte Gulf

  22. Island of Leyte

  23. BATTLE OF IWO JIMA • MACARTHUR TURNED HIS SIGHTS ON THE ISLAND OF IWO JIMA – FEB AND MARCH, 1945 • “SULFUR ISLAND” – CRITICAL TO THE US AS A BASE • COULD TAKE OFF HEAVILY LOADED BOMBER FROM THERE TO JAPAN • 4.5 MILES LONG & 2.5 MILES WIDE – MT. SURIBACHI (HIGHEST POINT – SOUTHERN TIP) • MOST DEFENDED SPOT IN THE PACIFIC – 27,000 TROOPS ENTRENCHED IN AN ENDLESS STRING OF CAVES – LT. GEN. KURIBAYASHI • 35 DAYS – “OPERATION DETACHMENT” • GOAL WAS TO TAKE THE TWO AIRFIELDS ON THE ISLAND

  24. 3 DAYS PRE-INVASION: 6 US BATTLESHIPS CONTINUALLY BOMBED THE ISLAND – FIRST WAVE WAS INEFFECTIVE THOUGH. THE MAJORITY OF THE INVADING US TROOPS WERE MARINES FEB. 19TH: FIRST DAY OF LANDINGS DESPITE HEAVY CASUALTIES, THE US TROOPS HAD CUT THE ISLAND IN HALF BY THE END OF THE DAY (2,400) FEB. 20TH: ALLIES ATTACKED MT. SURIBACHI MET “FANATICAL” DEFENSES (SUICIDE TROOPS) TOOK THE MOUNTAIN AFTER 3 DAYS OF FIGHTING: FEB. 23RD RAISED THE AMERICAN FLAG (TWICE) AT THE PEAK MARCH 26TH: LAST JAPANESE TROOPS SURRENDER 6,891 AMERICAN TROOPS WERE KILLED OF 22,000 JAP. TROOPS, ONLY 220 SURRENDERED (THE REST WERE KILLED) IWO JIMA

  25. THE ALLIED INVASION DEPENDED ON CAPTURING MT. SURIBACHI. STANDS 546 FEET AMERICAN MARINES CAPTURED THE PEAK ON FEB. 23, 1945 4 DAYS AFTER THE START OF THE BATTLE AN AMERICAN FLAG WAS RAISED A PICTURE WAS SNAPPED BUT IT WASN’T A HUGE DEAL THE FLAG WAS SMALL AND HARD TO SEE THE FIRST FLAG WAS THEN REPLACED BY A SECOND FLAG BY 6 MARINES A PICTURE WAS SNAPPED BY US PHOTOGRAPHER JOE ROSENTHAL THE PICTURE TURNED INTO AN ICONIC AND ALMOST CELEBRITY IMAGE ROSENTHAL RECEIVED THE PULITZER PRIZE FOR THE PHOTO FLAG IS RAISED AT IWO JIMA!!

  26. Ira Hayes, Franklin Sousley (†), Michael Strank (†), Rene Gagnon, John Bradley, Harlon Block (†) http://youtube.com/watch?v=m9j7dHFbsBU http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BMx_W2XSnhQ

  27. BOTH FLAGS SIT IN THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF THE MARINE CORPS 3 SURVIVING MEN + ROSENTHAL HAVE ALL PASSED IMAGE NOW REPRESENTS THE MARINE CORPS IN A MONUMENT AT ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY IN WASH. D.C. THE MEDAL OF HONOR IS THE HIGHEST MILITARY DECORATION – GIVEN TO SOMEONE WHO TAKES A RISK ABOVE HIS OWN LIFE IN THE CALL OF DUTY USUALLY AWARDED POSTHUMOUSLY IWO JIMA SAW 27 MILITARY PERSONAL RECEIVE THE MEDAL OF HONOR (14 POSTHUMOUSLY) 30% OF THE 82 MEDAL OF HONORS GIVEN OUT!! TODAY Medal of Honor Iwo Jima Video

  28. APRIL 1945: AMERICA TROOPS INVADED THE ISLAND OF OKINAWA 1,900 KAMIKAZE PILOTS SUNK 30 SHIPS AND KILLING ALMOST 5,000 LAND FIGHTING WAS FIERCER THAN IWO JIMA JUNE 21: JAPAN SURRENDERED THE ISLAND 7,600 ALLIED MEN & 110,000 JAP. SOLDIERS DIED CONTROL OF OKINAWA GAVE THE ALLIES A “JUMP OFF” POINT FOR THE INVASION OF JAPAN PRESIDENT TRUMAN WILL DECIDE ON ANOTHER TACTIC BESIDES INVASION… BATTLE OF OKINAWA

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