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Lead-up to WW II and WWII Test

Terms in this set (56)

Lend Lease Act
allowed the United States to trade with Great Britain while remaining neutral; it was focused on building an "arsenal for democracy"
Neutrality Acts
declared that the US would not get involved in foreign affairs; isolationist
Pearl Harbor
December 7, 1941 the US naval base in Hawaii was attacked by the Japanese
appeasement
giving in to someone in hopes that they will be satisfied; example being when they "gave in" to Hitler's early invasions hoping he would stop
Munich Conference
appeasement of Adolf Hitler's expansionist policies
Axis Powers
Germany, Italy, Japan
Allied Powers
Great Britain, France (not for long though), Soviet Union, United States
victory gardens
people planted gardens at home so that the men at war could receive the produce produced on the farms
liberty bonds
people lent the government funds by purchasing bonds
Nisei
second generation Japanese who were sent to internment (relocation) camps after the bombing of Pearl Harbor
internment (relocation) camps
designated areas where Japanese Americans were sent after the attack at Pearl Harbor; fear that they may be spies caused this to happen
Tuskegee Airmen
famous African American fighter pilots
Nisei 442nd
most decorated unit from WWII
Navajo Code Talkers
sent messages in their native language in the Pacific front
D-Day invasion
June 6, 1944; invasion of Normandy; major turning point of the war
Hiroshima
first city that the atomic bomb was dropped on; about 75,000 people died on impact
Nagasaki
second Japanese city to be destroyed with an atomic bomb; about 45, 000 people died on impact
Bataan Death March
American POWs were forced to endure a torturous movement from one camp to another; many were killed along the way
Holocaust
the systematic destruction of those people who did not fit into Hitler's perfect race; they included Jews, Gypsies, Roman Catholics, the disabled, Polish and many other groups
genocide
attempting to eliminate an entire group of people
Final Solution
Hitler's planned genocide that resulted in the Holocaustq
Mein Kampf
Hitler's famed book that he wrote detailing his future plans
Battle of Midway Island
a turning point battle for the US in the Pacific
Manhattan Project
secret production of the atomic bomb at Los Almos, New Mexico
VE Day
victory in Europe day (ended the war in Europe); May 8, 1945
VJ Day
August 1945; Victory in Japan day
Nuremberg Trials
trials held after WWII holding German officials responsible for the attrocities of the war (including the Holocaust)
dictator
a ruler with complete authority over their country
totalitarian state
a single party is in control; strict obedience is required; a secret policy is used to enforce obedience
nationalism
having extreme pride in your country
Josef Stalin
communist dictator of the Soviet Union (Russia)
Benito Mussolini
fascist dictator of Italy
Fascism
a government in which the state comes before all else
Adolf Hitler
Nazi dictator of Germany
blitzkrieg
lightning warfare
Battle of Britain
a series of air raids led by the Germans on England; never defeated Britain
ration
a limit on certain items during wartime such as sugar and gasoline in order to preserve these items for the troops
Harry S. Truman
became president when FDR died; used the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki
island hopping
the US strategy in the Pacific that called for attacking some strategic islands while skipping others in the quest to push the Japanese back to their homeland
Potsdam Declaration
warned Japan of "utter destruction" if they did not surrender
Neutrality
4 laws passed in the late 1930s that were designed to keep the US out of international incidents
Isolationism
A policy of remaining apart from the affairs or interests of other groups, especially the political affairs of other countries.
Holocaust
A methodical plan orchestrated by Hitler to ensure German supremacy. It called for the elimination of Jews, non-conformists, homosexuals, non-Aryans, and mentally and physically disabled. Six million Jews were killed during the Holocaust.
Rosie the Riveter
A propaganda character designed to increase production of female workers in the factories. It became a rallying symbol for women to do their part.Addiionally, women's success in non traditional roles during WWII will energize a women's rights movement after the war.
code talkers
Indians who transmitted messages in their native languages; languages which the Germans and Japanese could not understand
coral sea
Crucial naval battle which stopped the Japanese march across the Pacific, first time all fighting was done by carrier based aircraft
cash carry
policy adopted by the United States in 1939 to preserve neutrality while aiding the Allies. Britain and France could buy goods from the United States if they paid in full and transported them.
Iwo Jima
a bloody and prolonged operation on the island of Iwo Jima in which American marines landed and defeated Japanese defenders (February and March 1945)
Stalingrad
City in Russia, site of a Red Army victory over the Germany army in 1942-1943. The Battle of Stalingrad was the turning point in the war between Germany and the Soviet Union. Today Volgograd.
Bracero
Mexican workers that were brought to America to work when so many men and women were gone from home during World War II that there weren't enough workers.
Nye Committee
1934. Senate committee led by South Dakota Senator Gerald Nye to investigate why America became involved in WWI. Theory that big business had conspired to have America enter WWI so that they could make money selling war materials. Called bankers and arms producers "merchants of death."
101st Airborne
A famous paratrooper unit in the American military which had a significant role in the D-Day invasion
Doolittle Raid
Lt. Colonel Doolittle's psychological point was to bomb Tokyo and several other Japanese cities. This did little damage. It was an important psychological point for both Americans and Japanese: Japan was vulnerable to attack. It was the first mainland bombing in Japan, it did little damage but boosted American morale.
Winston Churchill
A noted British statesman who led Britain throughout most of World War II and along with Roosevelt planned many allied campaigns. He predicted an iron curtain that would separate Communist Europe from the rest of the West.
Potsdam Conference
July 26, 1945 - Allied leaders Truman, Stalin and Churchill met in Germany to set up zones of control and to inform the Japanese that if they refused to surrender at once, they would face total destruction.
Yalta Conference
(FDR) 1945, want quick end to war "The Big Three" FDR, Churchill and Stalin met at Yalta. Russia agreed to declare war on Japan after the surrender of Germany and in return FDR and Churchill promised the USSR concession in Manchuria and the territories that it had lost in the Russo-Japanese War, Stalin broke promise on free elections and representative govt.
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