World Affairs
Moving Closer to War
The United States at War
War on the Home Front
Miscellaneous
100
Define totalitarian and fascism.
Totalitarian- a nation that totally controls the life of its people. Fascism- a form of government in which a dictator and supporters cooperate to seek more power for their nation, usually at the expense of rights for individuals.
100
Explain what "blitzkrieg" is and name the country German took over using this strategy.
Blitzkrieg means "lightning war." It was a war strategy that utilized surprise attacks and rapid advances into enemy territory through speedy mobilization of all areas of the military.
100
When was the turning point of the war and when did it occur?
1942, when German troops laid siege to Stalingrad for months, allowing the Russians to outlast them in the harsh Russian winter.
100
How did the war affect women, African Americans, and Japanese Americans?
Women became a major part of the workforce, as did African Americans. Many African Americans migrated from the South to fill jobs. Japanese Americans were placed in internment, or detention, camps.
100
What was the name of the anti-semetic laws enacted by the Nazis?
Nuremberg Laws
200
Define appeasement and name one instance in which it failed.
Appeasement- a policy of giving aggressor nations what they wanted in order to avoid war. The failed example is the Munich Conference. In September of 1938, British and French leaders allowed Hitler to annex part of Czechoslovakia in return for his promise to make no further territorial demands. He clearly did not adhere to these terms.
200
Why did Germany turn on its nonaggression pact with the Soviet Union and attack them?
Hitler wanted Russia's vast wheat and oil supplies.
200
What happened after the Battle of the Bulge?
The Allies invaded Germany while the Soviets took Berlin in 1945. Hitler committed suicide and on May 7, 1945, German leaders agreed to unconditional surrender. President Roosevelt died days before Hitler's suicide.
200
List the three main ways the government financed the war.
War bonds, taxes, and an income tax.
200
Where did D-Day occur?
Normandy
300
Why did the United States initially remain neutral?
World War I left the U.S. with huge domestic debt and foreign debt that could not be collected due to the financial states of other countries. Americans also viewed manufacturers and industrialists as "merchants of death" because of the immense profit they made through the war.
300
Describe the desperate situation Great Britain was in, which caused the U.S. to violate its neutral stance.
Germany had been bombing Great Britain nonstop and began starving them by a naval blockade. The blockade also made the lend-lease program difficult and endangered American merchant ships in the Atlantic, eventually leading to the death of more than 90 crew members on an American destroyer.
300
Describe the Battle of the Bulge.
American forces advanced towards Germany, while Germany began a last resort all-out offensive. The battle occurred in France, Luxembourg, and Belgium, in 1944 and 1945. The Germans were able to push some American troops back, creating a bulge in their front line, but they were ultimately defeated, eliminating their last hope of forcing a treaty rather than unconditional surrender.
300
What did the War Production Board do?
It could seize vital materials, order industrial plants to convert to war production, and prohibit manufacture of products considered nonessential to the war effort.
300
How many Jews did the Nazis kill and how many people did they kill overall?
6 million Jews, 12 million people
400
Why did the U.S. recognize the Soviet Union?
The Communist government seemed less threatening while it was busy dealing with domestic issues. The U.S. and the Soviet Union also shared a common enemy, Japan. The U.S. hoped they would check Japanese expansion in Asia, and it also saw the opportunity to create a market for farmers and manufacturers.
400
Explain the two ways in which the U.S. ended its neutrality by aiding the Allies.
The cash and carry policy, which allowed the sale of war materials as long as the buyers paid for them in cash and provided transportation themselves. The Lend-Lease Act allowed Great Britain to borrow 50 U.S. destroyers in return for a 99-year lease of bases in the Caribbean and Newfoundland.
400
What was the significance of Guadalcanal?
It was the first step in the "island hopping" campaign of American forces in the Pacific. The battle was fought there from August 1942 to 1943.
400
Who was A. Philip Randolph and what did he do?
He was an African American labor leader who, in 1941, threatened to lead a protest of 100,000 people on Washington, D.C. to force Roosevelt to ban discrimination in defense jobs and the armed forces.
400
In January 1943, Roosevelt and Churchill demanded unconditional surrender and assured the Soviet Union they would not accept separate peace. Explain both unconditional surrender and what it meant to not make separate peace.
An unconditional surrender meant the Axis Powers would be at the complete mercy of the Allies. Not making a separate peace meant the Allies would not make peace with the Axis Powers while the Soviets continued to fight. In order for one to accept peace, they all had to accept peace.
500
Why did Japan invade and occupy mineral-rich Manchuria in northeastern China, in spite of opposition from the League of Nations, and expand elsewhere in the Pacific?
Japan began pursuing a policy of expansion in the Pacific to meet its demands for products and raw materials needed to sustain the industrial growth of an increasing population. They also continued their expansion with the invasion of Manchuria to show they no longer answered to the Western nations, who had earlier angered Japan by forcing the country to return territory captured in the Russo-Japanese War.
500
What factors caused the U.S. to prepare for war against Japan (prior to Pearl Harbor)?
In September 1940, Japan allied with the Axis Powers and continued aggressive expansion in the Pacific, despite the U.S. embargo. Japan also rejected Roosevelt's offer to help them find raw materials if they abandoned their conquests. He finally ceased all trade with them.
500
Name the two Japanese island outposts that were the last to fall. American marines suffered more than 20,000 casualties in capturing them by 1945.
Iwo Jima and Okinawa
500
In January 1942, why did Roosevelt grant the War Production Board strong regulatory power?
A Senate investigation revealed corruption and mismanagement among companies involved in war production.
500
What were the four things agreed upon by the Allies at the Yalta Conference?
They would occupy Germany after the war, they would encourage some form of representative government for other peoples of Europe, they would meet in San Francisco in 1945 to establish a world peace organization, and the Soviets were promised Japanese territories (Outer Mongolia in China) and an ice-free naval port in return for their support of Chinese Nationalist leader Chiang Kai-shek.
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