Professional Documents
Culture Documents
TABLE OF CONTENTS
CAUSE
.3
BELLIGERENTS
5
I.
Axis
powers.............
.5
Allies
..
.5
II.
COURSE
OF
THE
WAR..
7
I.
II.
Timeline
.7
Notable
events
and
battles.12
a. Fall
of
France
.12
b. Battle
of
Stalingrad
..13
c. Attack
on
Pearl
Harbour..14
d. DDay
..15
e. Japanese
Instrument
of
Surrender16
AFTERMATH
19
BIBLIOGRAPHY
AND
RESOURCES.21
2
After his rise and take-over of power in 1933 to a large part based on these
grievances, Adolf Hitler and the Nazis heavily promoted them and also ideas
of vastly ambitious additional demands based on Nazi ideology such as
uniting all Germans (and further all Germanic peoples) in Europe in a single
nation; the acquisition of "living space" (Lebensraum) for primarily agrarian
settlers (Blut und Boden), creating a "pull towards the East" (Drang nach
Osten) where such territories were to be found and colonized, in a model that
the Nazis explicitly derived from the American Manifest Destiny in the Far
West and its clearing of native inhabitants; the elimination of Bolshevism;
and the hegemony of an "Aryan"/"Nordic" so-called Master Race over the
"sub-humans" (Untermenschen) of inferior races, chief among them Slavs
and Jews.
Tensions created by those ideologies and the dissatisfactions of those powers
with the interwar international order steadily increased. Italy laid claim on
Ethiopia and conquered it in 1935, Japan created a puppet state in Manchuria
in 1931 and expanded beyond in China from 1937, and Germany
systematically flouted the Versailles treaty, reintroducing conscription in
1935 with the Stresa Front's failure after having secretly started rearmament, remilitarizing the Rhineland in 1936, annexing Austria in March
1938, and the Sudetenland in October 1938.
All those aggressive moves met only feeble and ineffectual policies of
appeasement from the League of Nations and the Entente Cordiale, in
retrospect symbolized by the "peace for our time" speech following the
Munich Conference, that had allowed the annexation of the Sudeten from
interwar Czechoslovakia. When the German Fhrer broke the promise he had
made at that conference to respect that country's future territorial integrity
in March 1939 by sending troops into Prague, its capital, breaking off
Slovakia as a German client state, and absorbing the rest of it as the
"Protectorate of Bohemia-Moravia", Britain and France tried to switch to a
policy of deterrence.
As Nazi attentions turned towards resolving the "Polish Corridor Question"
during the summer of 1939, Britain and France committed themselves to an
alliance with Poland, threatening Germany with a two-front war. On their
side, the Germans assured themselves of the support of the USSR by signing
a non-aggression pact with them in August, secretly dividing Eastern Europe
into Nazi and Soviet spheres of influence.
Nazi dictatorship
BELLIGERENTS
I.
Axis powers
Allies
"Four
Policemen"
of
Nations" for the Allies.
"United
Allied Powers
Allies entering after the Attack on Pearl Harbor
Axis Powers
Neutral Powers
Tripartite Pact:
State of Burma
Reorganized National
Government of China
Independent State of Croatia
Provisional Government of
Free India
Combatant States of Allied
Forces:
Germany
Japan
Italy (until 1943)
Affiliate States:
Bulgaria
Hungary
United States
Soviet Union
United Kingdom
China
France
Poland
Canada
Australia
Yugoslavia
Greece
Netherlands
Belgium
New Zealand
Romania
Thailand
Co-belligerent States:
Finland (until 1944)
Iraq (Coup d'tat AprilMay 1941)
Client States:
Albanian Kingdom
7
South Africa
Norway
Denmark
Luxembourg
Czechoslovakia
Ethiopia
Brazil
Mexico
Colombia
Cuba
Philippines
Mongolia
Co-belligerent States:
Finland (194445)
Italy (194345)
Romania (194445)
Bulgaria (194445)
Hungary (1945)
Joseph
Stalin
(left;
birth
surname:
Jughashvili;
18
December 1878 5 March 1953)
was the leader of the Soviet
Union from the mid-1920s until
his death in 1953. Holding the
post of the General Secretary of
the Central Committee of the
8
1939
August - Germany, under Nazi
dictator Adolf Hitler, and the Soviet
Union, under Communist dictator
Joseph
Stalin,
sign
the
Nonaggression Pact, which secretly
accepts Germanys plan to invade
Poland.
September - Germany invades
Poland in a blitzkrieg (lightning
war). England and France react by
declaring war on Germany. This
begins the European War, which
will become World War II.
November - The Soviet Union
invades Finland, occupies part of
Poland,
and,
by
threatening
invasion, takes over Lithuania,
Estonia, and Latvia.
December - The United States,
which supplies Japan with nearly all
its aviation fuel, stops the export of
any technical information about the
production of aviation fuel.
1940
9
1941
10
The
U.S.
government
forces
thousands of Japanese-Americans
to move from the U.S. West Coast
to relocation camps in isolated
areas.
May In the battle of the Coral
Sea, U.S. warships turn back a
Japanese invasion force heading for
New Guinea.
June U.S. carrier-based aircraft,
alerted to Japanese moves by code
breakers, stop a Japanese invasion
of Midway, a U.S. base that guards
Hawaii. U.S. dive-bombers sink four
Japanese carriers; one U.S. carrier
is lost. The Battle of Midway is the
turning point of the Pacific War.
Japanese troops land on Attu and
Kiska in the Aleutian Islands.
August U.S. Marines land on
Japanese-held Guadalcanal in the
Solomon Islands. This is the first
battle in a U.S. island hopping
campaign that will keep moving
U.S. forces closer to Japan.
September An aircraft launched
from a Japanese submarine drops
fire
bombs
on
forests
near
Brookings, Oregon, in the first
bombing of the continental United
States.
October After months of desert
fighting, the British Eighth Army in
North Africa puts Germanys Afrika
Corps to flight.
November U.S. and British
troops invade French North Africa
and will later link up with the
British Eighth Army.
December German troops are
near Moscow. But, forced to fight in
freezing weather, the troops pull
backdefeated by the Russian
winter, which had also defeated
Napoleons army in 1812.
1942
January - Manila, Philippines, falls
to Japanese troops.
February
Japanese
carrier
planes bomb Darwin, Australia.
In the Battle of the Java Sea, Japan
defeats an Allied strike force,
putting Japan in control of Java and
the Netherlands Indies.
April First U.S. troops arrive in
Australia.
On the Bataan Peninsula of the
Philippines, U.S. and Filipino troops,
low on food and ammunition,
surrender. Japanese troops force
about 76,000 prisoners to march to
distant camps; at least 5,200
Americans die on the march.
Sixteen U.S. bombers, led by Lt.
Col. James Doolittle, take off from
an aircraft carrier 800 miles (1300
kilometers) off Tokyo and make the
first bombing raid against Japan.
11
1943
January Japans attempt to take
New Guinea ends as Australian and
U.S. troops defeat Japanese troops
at landing sites. Australia is no
longer threatened by invasion.
February
German
troops
surrender
at
Stalingrad
(now
Volgograd). The Soviet Red Army,
turning the tide of war, begins an
offensive that will end in the
capture of Berlin in 1945.
April
U.S. code
breakers
intercept a Japanese radio message
saying that Admiral Yamamoto is
flying to the Solomon Islands. He is
killed when U.S. fighters shoot
down his plane.
May The U.S. Navy announces
that, except for the U.S.S. Arizona,
U.S.S. Utah, and U.S.S. Oklahoma,
all warships sunk at Pearl Harbor
have been repaired and returned to
sea.
U.S. forces retake Attu as Japanese
troops evacuate Adak, thus ending
Japan s occupation of Alaskas
Aleutian Islands.
June The Royal Air Force and U.S.
Eighth Air Force begin round-theclock bombing of Germany.
A Japanese destroyer rams and
sinks a small U.S. Navy vessel, PT109, commanded by Lt. (and future
President) John F. Kennedy. He and
other survivors swim for five hours
to reach a small island, where they
are later rescued.
July U.S. and British forces land
in Sicily.
September Italy surrenders. But
German troops, continuing to fight
the Allies in Italy, seize Rome.
1944
June U.S. troops enter Rome. On
D-Day, June 6, 155,000 Allied
troops land on the beaches of
Normandy, France, to begin the
liberation of Europe.
U.S. Marines land on Saipan in the
Northern
Marianas
Islands.
Japans last aircraft carrier forces
are defeated as Japan loses 220
warplanes in one battle with U.S.
carrier planes.
July U.S. troops liberate Guam.
August French and American
troops liberate Paris.
U.S. Marines take Tinian Island in
the Northern Marianas Islands. It
will become a base from which B29 bombers can bomb Japan.
September A U.S. Navy torpedo
plane, piloted by Lt. (and future
President) George Bush, is shot
down near Okinawa. He parachutes
into the sea; a U.S. submarine
rescues him.
October British and Greek troops
liberate Athens.
U.S.
troops
land
on
Leyte,
beginning the liberation of the
Philippines.
November U.S. troops in
Germany begin a drive to reach the
Rhine River.
December German forces launch
a surprise attack in the Ardennes
region of Belgium, beginning the
Battle of the Bulge (so called
because the German drive put a
bulge in the Allied battle line).
12
1945
13
b. Battle of Stalingrad
The Battle of Stalingrad was a major battle on the Eastern Front of
World War II in which Nazi Germany and its allies fought the Soviet
Union for control of the city of Stalingrad (now Volgograd) in Southern
Russia, on the eastern boundary of Europe.
Marked by constant close quarters combat and direct assaults on civilians by
air raids, it is often regarded as one of the single largest (nearly 2.2 million
personnel) and bloodiest (1.72 million wounded, killed or captured) battles
in the history of warfare. The heavy losses inflicted on the German
Wehrmacht make it arguably the most strategically decisive battle of the
whole war. It was a turning point in the European theatre of World War II;
German forces never regained the initiative in the East and withdrew a vast
military force from the West to replace their losses.
The German offensive to capture Stalingrad began in late summer 1942,
using the German 6th Army and elements of the 4th Panzer Army. The attack
was supported by intensive Luftwaffe bombing that reduced much of the city
to rubble. The fighting degenerated into house-to-house fighting, and both
sides poured reinforcements into the city. By mid-November 1942, the
Germans had pushed the Soviet defenders back at great cost into narrow
zones generally along the west bank of the Volga River.
On 19 November 1942, the Red Army launched Operation Uranus, a twopronged attack targeting the weaker Romanian and Hungarian forces
protecting the German 6th Army's flanks. The Axis forces on the flanks were
overrun and the 6th Army was cut off and surrounded in the Stalingrad area.
Adolf Hitler ordered that the army stay in Stalingrad and make no attempt to
break out; instead, attempts were made to supply the army by air and to
break the encirclement from the outside. Heavy fighting continued for
another two months. By the beginning of February 1943, the Axis forces in
Stalingrad had exhausted their ammunition and food. The remaining
elements of the 6th Army surrendered. The battle lasted five months, one week, and three
days.
d. D-Day
The Normandy landings (codenamed Operation Neptune) were the
landing operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 (termed D-Day) of the Allied
invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. The largest
seaborne invasion in history, the operation began the liberation of Germanoccupied northwestern Europe from Nazi control, and contributed to the
Allied victory on the Western Front.
Planning for the operation began in 1943. In the months leading up to the
invasion, the Allies conducted a substantial military deception, codenamed
Operation Bodyguard, to mislead the Germans as to the date and location of
the main Allied landings. The weather on D-Day was far from ideal, but
postponing would have meant a delay of at least two weeks, as the invasion
planners had requirements for the phase of the moon, the tides, and the
time of day that meant only a few days in each month were deemed
suitable. Adolf Hitler placed German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel in
command of German forces and of developing fortifications along the
Atlantic Wall in anticipation of an Allied invasion.
The amphibious landings were preceded by extensive aerial and naval
bombardment and an airborne assaultthe landing of 24,000 American,
British, and Canadian airborne troops shortly after midnight. Allied infantry
and armoured divisions began landing on the coast of France at 06:30. The
target 50-mile (80 km) stretch of the Normandy coast was divided into five
sectors: Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno, and Sword Beach. Strong winds blew the
landing craft east of their intended positions, particularly at Utah and
Omaha. The men landed under heavy fire from gun emplacements
overlooking the beaches, and the shore was mined and covered with
obstacles such as wooden stakes, metal tripods, and barbed wire, making
the work of the beach-clearing teams difficult and dangerous. Casualties
were heaviest at Omaha, with its high cliffs. At Gold, Juno, and Sword,
several fortified towns were cleared in house-to-house fighting, and two
major gun emplacements at Gold were disabled using specialised tanks.
The Allies failed to achieve all of their goals on the first day. Carentan, St. L,
and Bayeux remained in German hands, and Caen, a major objective, was
not captured until 21 July. Only two of the beaches (Juno and Gold) were
linked on the first day, and all five beachheads were not connected until 12
June; however, the operation gained a foothold which the Allies gradually
expanded over the coming months. German casualties on D-Day were
around 1,000 men. Allied casualties were at least 10,000, with 4,414
confirmed dead. Museums, memorials, and war cemeteries in the area host
many visitors each year.
The ceremony aboard the deck of the Missouri lasted 23 minutes and was
broadcast throughout the world. The instrument was first signed by the
Japanese foreign minister Mamoru Shigemitsu "By Command and on behalf
of the Emperor of Japan and the Japanese Government" (9:04 am). General
Yoshijir Umezu, Chief of the Army General Staff, then signed the document
"By Command and on behalf of the Japanese Imperial General Headquarters"
signed (9:06 am).
At 9:08 a.m., U.S. General of the Army Douglas MacArthur, the Commander
in the Southwest Pacific and Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers,
accepted the surrender on behalf of the Allied Powers and signed in his
capacity as Supreme Commander.
After MacArthur's signature as Supreme Commander, the following
representatives signed the instrument of surrender on behalf of each of the
Allied Powers:
Fleet Admiral Chester Nimitz for the United States (9:12 a.m.)
Admiral Sir Bruce Fraser for the United Kingdom (9:14 a.m.)
Lieutenant General Kuzma Derevyanko for the Soviet Union (9:16 a.m.)
We, acting by command of and in behalf of the Emperor of Japan, the Japanese Government
and the Japanese Imperial General Headquarters, hereby accept the provisions set forth in the
declaration issued by the heads of the Governments of the United States, China, and Great
Britain on 26 July 1945 at Potsdam, and subsequently adhered to by the Union of Soviet
Socialist Republics, which four powers are hereafter referred to as the Allied Powers.
We hereby proclaim the unconditional surrender to the Allied Powers of the Japanese Imperial
General Headquarters and of all Japanese Armed Forces and all Armed Forces under Japanese
control wherever situated.
We hereby command all Japanese forces wherever situated and the Japanese people to cease
hostilities forthwith, to preserve and save from damage all ships, aircraft, and military and civil
property, and to comply with all requirements which may be imposed by the Supreme
Commander for the Allied Powers or by agencies of the Japanese Government at his direction.
We hereby command the Japanese Imperial General Headquarters to issue at once orders to the
commanders of all Japanese forces and all forces under Japanese control wherever situated to
surrender unconditionally themselves and all forces under their control.
We hereby command all civil, military, and naval officials to obey and enforce all proclamations,
orders, and directives deemed by the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers to be proper to
effectuate this surrender and issued by him or under his authority; and we direct all such
officials to remain at their posts and to continue to perform their non-combatant duties unless
specifically relieved by him or under his authority.
We hereby undertake for the Emperor, the Japanese Government, and their successors to carry
out the provisions of the Potsdam Declaration in good faith, and to issue whatever orders and
take whatever action may be required by the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers or by
any other designated representative of the Allied Powers for the purpose of giving effect to that
declaration.
We hereby command the Japanese Imperial Government and the Japanese Imperial General
Headquarters at once to liberate all Allied Prisoners of War and civilian internees now under
Japanese control and to provide for their protection, care, maintenance, and immediate
transportation to places as directed.
The authority of the Emperor and the Japanese Government to rule the State shall be subject to
the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers, who will take such steps as he deems proper to
effectuate these terms of surrender.
Signed at TOKYO BAY, JAPAN at 09.04 on the SECOND day of SEPTEMBER, 1945
AFTERMATH
The Soviet Union, despite enormous human and material losses, also
experienced rapid increase in production in the immediate post-war era.
Japan experienced incredibly rapid economic growth, becoming one of the
most powerful economies in the world by the 1980s. China returned to its
pre-war industrial production by 1952.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Addison, Paul and Angus Calder (eds.) Time to Kill: The Soldier's
Experience of War in the West, 1939-1945. London: Pimlico, 1997.
Baker, Nicholson. Human Smoke: The Beginnings of World War II, the
End of Civilization. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2006.
Deighton, Len. Blood, Tears and Folly: An Objective Look at World War
II. New York: Harper Collins, 1993. - covers from World War I to Pearl
Harbor
Ellis, John. Brute Force: Allied Strategy and Tactics in the Second World
War. London: Viking, 1990.
Hastings, Max. All Hell Let Loose: The World at War 1939-1945.
London: Harper Collins, 2001.
Taylor, A.J.P. The Origins of the Second World War. London: Hamish
Hamilton, 1961.
Bloch, Marc. Strange Defeat. New York: W.W. Norton & Co., 1968
[1946]. - Battle of France
Deighton, Len. Blitzkrieg: From the Rise of Hitler to the Fall of Dunkirk.
London: Jonathan Cape, 1979.
http://en.wikipedia.org