america during world war ii. december 7, 1941 “a date which will live in infamy”

America During World War II

December 7, 1941

“A date which will live in infamy”

The Effects of Pearl Harbor

Unified Americans “Pearl Harbor Thinking” affects generations of

future foreign policy Justified the crusade – “the noble fight” Japanese Internment Leads indirectly to Korean and Viet Nam

Wars


December 8, 1941: Congress declared war on Japan

January 1, 1942: 26 nations met in Washington and signed the “Declaration of the United Nations”

Pledged to agree to the ideals of the Atlantic Charter, and to remain allies with each other.


Tripartite Pact nations (Germany, Italy, Japan declared war on the United States on December 11, 1941.

US and Great Britain opened “Joint Chiefs of Staff” to coordinate their war effort.

Note that the USSR was NOT included in this joint planning, even though it had also declared war on the Tripartite Pact nations in 1940.


“Home front” mobilization for war was similar to WW I:

War Production Board regulated use of raw materials

Wage and price controls were put in place to curb inflation

Wartime shortages of gas, sugar, rubber, steel, etc. could drive prices high and over-inflate the economy


Revenue Act of 1942 extended the income tax to include most Americans

Tax rates went up also.


Draft now extended to all men age 18-40 The immediate need for a wartime draft took

men out of the job force New PR (“public relations”) move urged

women to “join the war effort” Glorified the image of “Rosie the Riveter.”


“Rosie The Riveter” Women entered

“non-traditional” occupations


Many higher-paying jobs opened to black men

More black migration to northeastern industrial cities making war products

Some racial tensions increased Especially in the “motor cities” of the Midwest


Congress passed Smith-Connolly Act in 1943 Allowing the federal government to take

control of any factory hit by a strike. Similar to what Coolidge had threatened with

the coal strike of 1922 But this time there was little public complaint

because “there’s a war on.”


Issei and Nisei Issei (first generation) were Japanese

immigrants living in AmericaNisei (second generation) were children born

in America of Japanese immigrant parents


1942: FDR issued an executive order to resettle Americans of Japanese descent to “internment camps” in the far west, away from the western seacoast

They remained “relocated” until 1946. There was little complaint in California over

this system California Governor (later Chief Justice) Earl

Warren enforced the order.


Nisei lawsuit Korematsu v. United States challenged FDR’s authority, citing 4th and 14th amendment violations.

1946, Supreme Court upheld FDR’s and Warren’s actions.

The Japanese Garden in Overton Park was destroyed after Pearl Harbor


World War II USA faced a “two front war:” The Atlantic Front (ETO, or “European

Theater of Operations”) was against Germany and Italy

It was fought primarily by the Army. The Pacific Front was against Japan It was fought primarily by the Navy and

Marine Corps


ETO strategy Italy was considered the weak link in the Axis Plans were to invade Europe from the south,

through Italy Then eventually invade Germany itself

through France.


ETO major battles: Axis powers were driven out of Africa by

summer 1943 Italy invaded by US Army July 1943 Italy surrendered by Fall 1943 USSR began invasion of Nazi-held eastern

European countries in March 1944


“Operation Overlord” (code name of invasion of Nazi-occupied France) was being planned as early as 1942.

Stalin urged allies to send assistance directly to Russia

FDR and Churchill both felt too dangerous to do so.

Stalin felt “abandoned by allies” Furiously angry, possibly vowing revenge.


“Big 3 Diplomacy” during the war BIG 3: Churchill, FDR, Stalin


Once France was liberated, it became the “Big 4” with inclusion of Charles de Gaulle

Directed wartime strategy at several conferences

Some conferences were secret, some were not


MOSCOW CONFERENCE 1943 Secretary of State Cordell Hull convinced

Stalin to promise to join the war against Japan, once Hitler was defeated.


TEHERAN CONFERENCE 1943 First time all of the Big 3 met face-to-face Stalin re-stated pledge to fight against Japan But FDR and Churchill didn’t believe him. The three also discussed big strategic moves Stalin insisted on direct support to the

Eastern front FDR and Churchill resisted.


CASABLANCA CONFERENCE, 1943 FDR and Churchill only Pledged to accept nothing less than full

unconditional surrender by Axis Powers.


CAIRO CONFERENCE 1943 FDR met with Chinese president Chiang Kai-

Shek China pledged whatever assistance it could

give against Japanese FDR pledged that all Chinese lands taken by

Japan would be returned, not held by the Allies


Allied invasion of Europe was in the planning stages for some time

Operation Overlord finally began June 6, 1944

“D-Day,” for “debarkation day” American, British, and other troops made an

amphibious landing on the beaches of Normandy


US Army freed France from German control by winter 1944

Invaded Germany immediately after. Germans fought fiercely at the “Battle of the

Bulge” in January 1945 But this was last major German effort


YALTA CONFERENCE 1945 By early spring 1945, war was all but over Allies discussed how to run the peace, what

do to with countries liberated from Nazi control

Agreed to administer them jointly Stalin insisted that USSR get “charge” of

those countries in Eastern Europe FDR and Churchill reluctantly agreed.


Allied forces had already invaded Italy and were moving up from the south

Now, after “Operation Overlord,” (6/44) the Allies are moving in from the north and west

With USA and Great Britain pushing from the north, west and south . . .

And the USSR pushing from the east . . . Nazi Germany was being squeezed


Hitler and his staff insisted on continued resistance until the end

But knew victory was a hopeless cause With the Allies closing in on his bunker in

Berlin, Hitler committed suicide on April 30, 1945

Berlin captured by the Allies Germany surrendered May 7, 1945 (V-E Day)


Pacific Theater strategy: re-claim the islands that Japan had seized, one-by-one

If necessary, an actual invasion of Japan would take place

IF that country could not be forced to surrender.

This strategy called was “Island-Hopping”


Pacific Theater operations (ATO): Most Pacific Theater battles were naval

engagements and amphibious landings by the Marines, followed by ground fighting

War went badly through most of 1942 USA lost Guam and Wake Island to

Japanese in 1941 Lost the Philippines in 1942


Big victories for US Navy at the Battle of the Coral Sea and Midway in late 1942 kept Japanese from taking Australia

“The tide has turned”


In the Pacific, fierce fighting continued Battle of Leyte Gulf in the Philippines cost

Japan most of its naval power. Kamikaze flights began by Japanese after

this loss. By Summer 1945, it was obvious that Japan

would never surrender.


FDR re-elected to unprecedented 4th term in November, 1944

No president had ever served more than two terms before

FDR died in April 1945 Vice-President Harry S Truman succeeded to

the presidency


ATO battle at Iwo Jima showed that Japan would fight to last man.

Japanese attitude: We will not win, we will all be killed, but each of us will kill ten of them before we die

“Letters from Iwo Jima” (excellent motion picture by Clint Eastwood)

By this time, FDR had died and Truman was President


POTSDAM CONFERENCE August 1945 Truman now in the “Big 3” due to FDR’s

death Churchill had been voted out of office Great Britain now represented by Prime

Minister Clement Atlee


Stalin the only “old hand.” Had contempt for others. Stalin full of rumors about atomic bomb Truman wouldn’t discuss. “Big 3” planned war crimes trials of Nazis


By summer 1945, it was apparent to Truman that:

Great Britain and France were too weakened to assist with defeat of Japan

USSR was unwilling to commit to any assistance, as the threat to the USSR was now over

And Stalin was still angry over being kept “in the dark” by FDR and Churchill


It was obvious to Truman that Japan would have to be invaded

This was likely to make war last about 1 more year (after V-E Day)

Joint Chiefs estimated that the invasion would cost over 1 million American lives.

Unreasonable delay and risk for Truman


USA, Great Britain and captured rocket scientists from Nazi Germany had been perfecting the atomic bomb

Code name: Manhattan Project Stalin was suspicious that there was such a

weapon under development But was never told this formally by FDR,

Churchill, or Truman


Weapon tested in July 1945, above ground in Los Alamos, New Mexico.

Destructive power confirmed. Truman approved use of weapon against

Japan


First bomb August 6,

1945 Hiroshima


Second bomb August 9,

1945 Nagasaki

Effects of the Atom bombs

“Little Boy” and “Fat Man” devastated Japan 80,000+ died instantly in Hiroshima Radiation gets in food, soil Military refuses to surrender Emperor Hirohito seizes control and

surrenders


Japanese surrender August 15, 1945 (V-J Day)

Signed aboard the USS MissouriDocked at Pearl Harbor, September 2, 1945


Huge numbers of casualties Leningrad: 850,000 Stalingrad: 750,000 Berlin: 250,000 in three weeks Okinawa: 148,000 (35,126 on a single day)

america during world war ii. december 7, 1941 “a date which will live in infamy”

Documents

world war

war effort

war products

america nisei

midwest slide

infamy slide

pearl harbor slide

viet nam wars slide