The Tide of War Turns to the Allies

Germans want Suez Canal

British under Montgomery win

the Battle at El Alamein against

Rommel and push West

Last stand for the Allies

First defeat of the Germans in

WWII

Allied invasion of N. Africa

Stalin pushing for second front

▪ Took pressure off Russia

Confidence from El Alamein

victory

Land in Morocco and

Algeria

Considered Europe’s Soft

Underbelly

Roosevelt and Churchill meet for Casablanca conference

Two decisions:

Allies increase bombing of Germany

UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER – surrendering without

conditions or guarantees

July 1943 - British and Americans land in Sicily

Chased the Axis powers to the mainland

3 September 1943

ITALY surrendered

when allies get to

Rome

Mussolini flees to

N. Italy w/ Nazi help

• Over a million men land on Normandy beaches • Paratroopers of

82nd and 101st Airborne land behind enemy lines

20 July 1944 –

officer planted

bomb in Hitler’s

headquarters

Rommel was in

on it

Aug 1944 – Allies

liberate Paris

Sept 1944 –

BeNeLux freed

Last ditch effort of

the Germans

Cripples Germany

by using reserves

and demoralizing

what troops are left

Jan. 1945 - Soviets reach

Oder River outside Berlin

April 1945 – US Army

reaches Elbe River

50 miles west of Berlin

30 April – Hitler commits

suicide

7 May – V-E Day, Germany

surrenders

Island Hopping -

skipping islands w/

strong resistance

and take those w/

strategic importance

Douglas MacArthur

– commander of the

Pacific forces

First major US offensive

against Japan

Japanese air base w/ location

to threaten Australia

Japanese lose the island

after heavy casualties

23 October 1944 – Battle of

Leyte Gulf

Japan tries to destroy whole

US fleet by sending whole

Japanese navy (all-in)

▪ Japanese lose whole navy

▪ Only Army and kamikazes left

March 1945 – after

bloody fighting marines

take island of Iwo Jima

Important: US Air

Force can bomb

Japanese mainland

Bloodiest battle yet

Samurai spirit leads

Japanese (even

civilians) to commit

suicide

US victory

Victory allows US to

think about invading

Japan

Secret project at Los Alamos,

New Mexico to develop atomic

bomb

J. Robert Oppenheimer – lead

scientist

Einstein also involved

Potsdam Ultimatum given to

Japan

Called for unconditional surrender

Japan refuses

6 Aug 1945

Hiroshima bombed

9 Aug 1945

Nagasaki bombed

15 Aug 1945 – Japan

surrenders

Peace treaty signed on USS

Missouri on 2 Sept 1945

Bombing and fighting destroyed entire cities Many tried to live in areas not completely destroyed

Others moved

Nuremberg War Crime Trials

Held at Nuremberg

▪ 22 Nazi leaders were put on trial for “crimes against humanity”

▪ 10 were hanged ▪ Bodies of those

executed were burned in Dachau

Demilitarization – disbanding

Japanese army

Democratization – gov’t run by

people

Emperor loses all power

Created Diet – two-house parliament

Rebuilt Japanese economy