The United States at War

The United States at WarSection II Europe, North Africa, and the PacificGuided Reading Activity Answer Guide

Total War

Total war is a conflict involving not just armies, but entire nations soldiers and civilians alike. In most instances, total war requires sacrifices economically and in terms of individual liberties. These sacrifices are made for the greater good winning the war. Total was usually results in the civilian workforce being used to manufactures weapons and supplies throughout the war, and can result in civilians becoming the targets of military action as when the Nazis bombed London during the Battle of Britain, or, on the other side, the USA and Britain bombed Dresden, Germany.

The Battle for Moscow, 1941

Stalingrad

El Alamein

The North Africa Campaign

In North Africa, British and American forces combined to confront German forces under the leadership of Erwin Rommel, The Desert Fox. Germany hoped to control North Africa and the Suez Canal region in order to maintain oil and petroleum products for its supply lines. British soldiers did most of the heavy lifting here particularly at the Battle of El Alamein in Egypt. But Dwight Eisenhower and the American forces were there in time to capture Rommel and secure victory in North Africa.

6Hong Kong, Malaya, Guam, Wake Island, the Philippines, Thailand, Burma

General Douglas MacArthur

General Douglas MacArthur was in charge of American forces in the Philippines. His forces were a combination of American and Filipino soldiers, and they were terribly outnumbered and fearfully undersupplied. Japan was intent upon launching a massive attack on the Philippine Islands, and the United States knew it had little hope of defending the islands but we knew that we must make a legitimate defense of the archipelago because our allies were watching. When he was eventually forced to retreat from the island evacuating all the way to Australia his final words to the Filipinos were I Shall Return.

Corregidor and the Bataan Death March

When MacArthur and his troops were forced to flee the islands, close to 75,000 American and Filipino soldiers were left behind. After a prolonged struggle, these men were captured. The Japanese then forced the men on a brutal 60 mile march, during which the men received no food or water they were physically assaulted along the march, and any man who stepped out of line was executed on the spot. By the end of the Bataan Death March, over 10,000 men had been murdered at the hands of the Japanese. Americans were outraged and vowed revenge for the atrocity.

The Battle of the Coral Sea

By the end of 1942, the United States had been unable to mount any important offensives against Japan in the Pacific. And the aggressive militaristic behavior of Japan had paid off in acquisition of land and military victories. Japan controlled all of the Philippines, had invaded portions of Southeast Asia and the major islands in the Pacific between the Philippines and Australia. It appeared that the Japanese sought to lash out even at Aussies. But at the Battle of the Coral Sea, the combined navy of the United States and Australia was able to put a halt to the Japanese advance. The Battle was really a draw, but Americans viewed it as a success we had finally stopped the enemy!

The USS Lexington perished during the Battle of the Coral Sea.

Battle of Midway

The Midway Islands were of no special importance to either the United States or Japan during World War II. There was (and is) a small landing strip on the island and a couple of military buildings very small, insignificant structures. But it was near Midway Islands that an American pilot on reconnaissance mission looked down to discover four (4) Japanese aircraft carriers unbeknownst to the carriers. Americans launched a massive air attack consisting of high flying aircrafts of our own and speedy dive-bombers. When the Japanese trained their guns on the larger bombers, the dive-bombers swept in and devastated four of the Japanese carriers the Japanese Navy would never recover. The Battle of the Midway is still considered the turning point in the war in the Pacific.