The Second World War- FDRs Foreign Policy

Recognition of the Soviet Union

1933- Granted diplomatic recognition of the Soviet Union

US desired foreign trade

Philippine Independence

Tydings- McDuffie Act- (1934)- Promised the Philippines complete

independence within a decade

The Good Neighbor Policy

US- Would be the neighbor who respects himself and the rights of
others
Became the label for his Latin American Policy

Totalitarian Aggression
Totalitarianism: centralized control by an autocratic authority
the political concept that the citizen should be totally subject to an
absolute state authority
Japanese in China

1931- Seized Manchuria

1937- Attacked China; Rape of Nanking
December 12, 1937: US gunboat Panay- Sunk by Japanese bombs on
Jangtze River (3 dead, 43 injured)

Italians in Africa

1935- Italy invaded Ethiopia

Dreamed of another Italian empire
Leader- Benito Mussolini- A.K.A. Il Duce
Abolished democracy, destroyed liberty all on the promise of jobs and
glory

German Expansion
Germany- Building an enormous new army, making weapons at a
frightening speeds, and menacing neighbors
March 1936- Militarization of Rhineland
March 1938- Seized Austria
September 1938- Munich Pact- An attempt to appease Hitler:
Dismember Czech. and give a piece to Germany (Sudetenland).

March 1939- Hitler seized the rest of Czech.; appeasement was a

failure
Sept. 1, 1939- Germany invaded Poland- WWII BEGINS!!!
Sept. 3, 1939- Great Britain and France declare war on Germany

Rise of Isolationism in the United States

Most government officials and citizens in the 1920s were isolationists.

Felt U.S. should avoid alliances and agreements with other nations.
Nye Committee- Investigated US entry into WWI.
o Findings:
International bankers drew US into WWI.
Munitions Industry- Pressed for American entry into war.

Isolation dominated US foreign policy in 1930s.

Neutrality Legislation

Neutrality Act, 1935- Authorized the Pres. to bar arms sales to warring
nations.
1936- Extended neutrality legislation- Put limits on sale of arms to
belligerents.
Cash & Carry- A country had to pay cash for goods before they left our
shores
o The country at war had to carry the goods on its own ships

Destroyer-Base Deal

FDR- Traded 50 old destroyers for the use of 8 British naval bases.
Legally tried to help allies secure supplies.

Lend-Lease

US would lend or lease whatever war supplies we could make

Supplies sent to any nation that president considered vital to defense
of the US

Atlantic Charter

FDR and Churchill met- Wanted a better future for the world
US and GB- were seeking no territorial gain
o Real reason for the meeting- Churchill wanted American troops to
join. FDRs answer is no.

Effects of the war on 1940 Election

Republican Nominee- Wendell L. Willkie

Opposed the New Deal

Democratic Nominee- FDR.

Both wanted to aid GB
FDR won
First and only person elected President for a third term

The battlefield is everywhere

New Warfare: Blitzkrieg- lightning war- Adolf Hitlers new strategy

Depended heavily on air power; Struck like lightning from the sky
Used fastest new vehicles
o Airplanes, tanks, trucks, motorcycles
Struck quickly at the heart of enemy territory, overwhelming them

1940- In England- Winston Churchill became Prime Minister

US Prepares For War

FDR warned the US to rearm

Wanted billions of dollars to create a two-ocean navy
Also, size of the air force greatly increased

Battle of Atlantic

German submarine wolf packs sunk tons of allied supplies

o Main years: 1942-1943
Subs had to be beaten, and soon
Radar and sonar were invented; both could destroy subs

Japanese American relations

1931-1940- Jap military aggression was militarily unopposed by the US

1940- Japan became a partner of Germany and Italy
Japan attacked and expanded through China-July 1941
US Response: Embargo on all trade with Japan
US and Japan Met; Sticking Point: China.
Japan- Wanted US to cut off aid to Chinese
US- Demanded Jap. withdraw from China
Japan had a choice: Give up dream of an empire or go to war, they
chose war

America at War- Attack on Pearl Harbor

Sunday December 7, 1941: Japan attacked the airfield naval base at

Pearl Harbor
Surprise Attack- 180 American warplanes destroyed (120 crippled), 18
naval vessels were sunk or heavily damaged
More than 70 civilians and 2403 servicemen were killed
1177 crewmen of the USS Arizona died in the attack
Next Day- FDR- Japans Day of Infamy plunged the US into war

War on the Home Front

Selective Service
o Draft was started in 1940
o By Pearl Harbor- 1.6 million in army.
o Millions more volunteered as a result of attack.

Internment of Japanese Americans

March 1942- Close to 120,000 Jap. Americans were rounded up and

confined to camps
Were placed in camps because of the threat of possible acts of
espionage and sabotage

Wartime Agencies

1940- Industry: Just emerging from depression

1942- American production: Equal to Ger., It., and Jap. Combined
1944- Production was double of Ger., It., and Jap. combined.
During WWII, the govt. regulated industry and controlled the econ. to
achieve maximum production and efficiency.
Full employment- Inflation occurred

Role of Women and Minorities

Women
o 1945- 258,000 women were serving in the armed forces
o 18,000,000 were part of the American work force
o Women were needed as workers
o Took a wide variety of jobs in industry
o Examples: shipyards, airplane factories, ammunition factories,
rail yards, truck drivers, etc.

Minorities

About 1 million African-Americans served in WWI

African-American served in segregated units in the early stages of
WWII
Many African- Americans migrated to industrial areas (cities) for jobs
Over 500,000 Latino-Americans served and were not segregated

Conservation and Rationing

Rationing was used to assure availability of scarce items to all citizens

Individuals received coupons for a share of the rationed items
The US and allies needed everything the US could produce

American Strategy

Get Hitler First

If Germany won in Europe, US would face aggressor nations alone
Second Front
Russians wanted a second front in Europe
Wanted allies to invade lands held by Axis powers
Instead, July 1942, Allies decided to invade North Africa

Invasion of North Africa

Germany- Led by Desert Fox General Erwin Rommel

British- Led by Gen. Bernard Montgomery
Montgomerys army broke through Rommels Africa Korps: Nov. 4, 1942
US and British Force struck from west and north- Nov. 8, 1942.

Invasion of Italy

July 10, 1943- 250,000 US & British troops land on Sicilian coastlines
Germans- Escaped to the Italian Mainland
Italians- Sick of war; Mussolini- forced to resign
Allied troops- Tied up thousands of German troops; weakened them
elsewhere

Control of the Air

British and US forces heavily bombed Germany, but used different

strategies
Us- Pinpoint bombing- Attacked in daylight; could focus bombs on
crucial factories

Attack on the European Continent

D-Day:

US & Great Britains Invasion of France

Objective: 2nd Front in Europe
Directed by American General Dwight D. Eisenhower, Supreme
Commander of Allied Forces in Western Europe
June 6, 1944- D-Day invasion began

Conditions needed: low tide, half moon, good weather, morning

invasion
D-Day Code Name: Operation Overload
Allies achieved a tactical surprise; landings were a success
Secure beachhead- one of the greatest Allied achievements of the war
Generals Montgomery (Britain) and Eisenhower lead Allied forces
through Europe towards Germany

Re-conquest of France

By the end of July, 1944 the allies controlled 1500 square miles of
France
Paris- liberated on August 25, 1944
By mid-September, all of France had been cleared of Germans

FDR elected 4th term

WWII- Taking its toll on FDRs health

Battle of Germany

Dec. 16, 1944- Battle of the Bulge- Germany final bid to break the
allies
Germans penetrated 60 miles creating a bulge in the allied lines
Foul weather aided the Germans
Patton and Montgomery stopped the advancing Germans
By the end of January, the Bulge was pinched off
German losses- 120,000 of their best remaining men
It was also the single most costly American battle of the war

The Yalta Conference

President Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin met at Yalta to discuss the

Nazi surrender
Stalin- tough and clever bargainer
o Most of his promises were lies
Western democracies- needed Stalins armies

Death of FDR

Worn down by wartime burdens, health continued to decline

Died April 12, 1945 while resting in Warm Springs, Georgia
The nation grieved

Collapse of Germany

March 1945- allies were closing in US & GB from west, Russia from east
Churchill- shakes hands with the Russians as far as possible

The War in the Pacific

Extent of Japanese Conquests:

o Controlled a 4500 mile area of the Pacific
o Allied Policy in Pacific- Active defense

Island Hopping

General MacArthur & Admiral Nimitz- Commanders of Allied forces in

the Pacific
The Allies invaded strategic islands, and bypassed others
May 3-8, 1942- Battle of the Coral Sea- Result: Draw.
First Naval Battle where the opposing ships never saw one another
June 4, 1942- Battle of Midway- US Victory
Japans first great naval defeat; a big turning point
Aug. 7, 1942- Battle for Guadalcanal- US Victory
o Our troops first exposure to land battle with Japanese
o The fighting was fierce and brutal- the Japanese would not
surrender
October 20, 1944- Re-conquest of the Philippines begins
Led by MacArthur, the US crushes the Japanese and knocks their navy
out of the war
Feb. Mar. 1945- Iwo Jima (650 miles from Tokyo)- US VictoryOperation Detachment
Goal- secure airfield
Heavy losses: 6821 US deaths
Flag raised: Mt. Suribachi
March 9-10- Tokyo Firebombing- Operation Meetinghouse
Targeted industrial sites, but was a very populated area
Utilized 334 B-29 Superfortress airplanes
100,000 died in the attack, 1 million homeless
April-June, 1945- Okinawa- US Victory
Brutal Fighting- Japan considered it a home island
o 12,513 Americans died
Within striking distance of Japan: Victory is in sight!

The Atomic Bomb

Developed after Germans and Italians surrendered; Manhattan Project

The Little Boy and the Fat Man
Potsdam Declaration (Ultimatum) Allies warned the Japanese: the
alternative to surrender is prompt and utter destruction
August 6, 1945- A-bomb is dropped on Hiroshima

August 9, 1945- A-bomb is dropped on Nagasaki

V-J Day- August 14, 1945