WAR AND PEACE

1. WAR AND PEACE CHAPTER 27 (718-743)

2. THE ROAD TO PEARL HARBOR Secretary of State Hull attempted to get Japan to completely withdraw in East Asia – something that they refused to do When Germany invaded Russia, Japan invaded French Indo-China and the US responded by embargoing oil in an attempt to stop the Japanese war machine – so the Japanese decided to attempt to cripple the US Pacific fleet by attacking Pearl Harbor The Japanese wiped out 150 planes, several battleships, a host of smaller vessels, over 2,400 military personnel and left over 1,000 wounded – all in about two hours – War was declared on Dec 8 – Germany and Italy declared war on Dec 11

4. MOBILIZING THE HOMEFRONT About 15 million men and women entered the armed forces – plus all the allied troops Congress granted Roosevelt broad powers but he was watched closely However, his basic strategies were good: To pay for the war by taxes rather than loans To base taxes on the ability to pay To ration scarce raw materials and goods To regulate prices and wages He was also able to inspire almost all Americans with a sense of purpose – as when he fought the depression In 1939 the GNP was $91 million, after 1945, $166 million Manufacturing output doubled, agriculture up 22% From 237,000 tons of shipping to over 10 million 6,000 airplanes to 96,000

5. THE WAR ECONOMY By 1943, the economy was functioning effectively Labor shortages allowed workers more leverage The National War Labor Board was formed to stabilize wage rates Smith-Connally War Labor Disputes Act – allowed the president to take over any plant threatened by strike and outlawed striking at a seized plant Wages and prices were balanced, overtime was abundant, Americans had both guns and butter Income taxes reached farther down the worker chain, but the poor got richer The wealthiest 1% owned 13.4% of the national income in 1935 – by 1941 it was 11.5%, by 1944 in was only 6.7 %

6. WAR AND SOCIAL CHANGE Millions of people put on the uniform and were sent all over the world Factories were located in smaller towns, drawing thousands of workers to out of the way areas California’s population increased by 50%, most other western states were similar Marriage rates rose – the population increased by only 3 million in the depression decade, it increased by 6.5 million from 1941-1945

7. MINORITIES IN TIME OF WAR:BLACKS, HISPANICS, AND INDIANS Hitler’s treatment of Jews caused many Americans to reexamine their own feelings If they would serve and risk their lives, how could they continued to be treated as second-class citizens? Blacks were treated better than they had been in WWI – many were commissioned and given responsibility (the first black general was commissioned) and they served in the army, navy, marine corps and army air corps – about 1 million altogether However, segregation was still practiced in the armed forces

8. MINORITIES IN TIME OF WAR:BLACKS, HISPANICS, AND INDIANS Labor shortages caused black civilians to reap many benefits – better jobs, higher pay, more value assigned to them The NAACP took a more militant approach that it had during WWI Hispanics too were able to get better jobs and more Mexican American men served in the armed forces than the national average – still there was much discrimination and numerous riots occurred throughout the nation Many American Indians served with distinction as well – the Navajo code talkers are a famous example – 24,000 Indians served in the war, coming out of the reservations and contacting other Americans, many also left the reservations to work

10. THE TREATMENT OF GERMAN AND ITALIAN AMERICANS Far less intolerance than had happened in WWI Most German and Italian Americans were very opposed to Hitler and Mussolini However, some 14,000 Germans and Italians were arrested as security risks There was much less idealism about changing the world this time around, Americans tended to be realistic and determined – far less concerned about dissenters at home

11. INTERNMENT OF THE JAPANESE The toleration of Germans and Italians did not transfer to the Japanese – especially on the West coast Stimson suggested setting up internment camps in the interior states to prevent sabotage and possible insurrections – Roosevelt told them to “Be as responsible as you can.” Japanese-Americans were transported to these facilities against their will and arrested if they refused

13. WOMEN’S CONTRIBUTION TO THE WAR EFFORT The same trends we saw during WWI happened during WW2 but on a larger scale More married women entered the workforce Thousands served in the military More women were doing “men’s work” More minority women were finding work Of course, more women had to move, take care of families without their husbands present, and deal with shortages and rationing

14. ALLIED STRATEGY: EUROPE FIRST When America entered the war it looked bad: The Japanese were expanding in Asia Germany had control of most of Europe and was preparing a strong offensive at Stalingrad Germany was also moving toward the Suez Canal The Allies decided upon a Europe first policy – Germany was more important than Japan – Allied planes began bombing German cities to knock out production

15. ALLIED STRATEGY: EUROPE FIRST Nov. 1942 – Eisenhower attacked French North Africa and French Admiral Jean Darlan switched sides and joined the Allies Spring 1943 – Rommel is defeated in Africa July 1943 – Allies invade Sicily from Africa, Mussolini is already gone, and by June 1944, Italy is captured

17. GERMANY OVERWHELMED D-Day – June 6, 1944 – Allies forces stormed Normandy, supported by hundreds of ships, thousands of planes and paratroopers German resistance was poorly coordinated – partly due to misinformation placed by the Allies and partly due to Hitler’s constant meddling in military affairs Within a few weeks there were 1 million allied soldiers in France – French soldiers liberated Paris on August 25

18. GERMANY OVERWHELMED The Allies had total control of the skies and 20 times more tanks than Germany – the Russians were pushing hard in the East The Battle of the Bulge – Hitler attempted to split the Allied lines by breaking out at Antwerp – they failed and exhausted their last reserves - In April 1945, American and Soviet forces made contact – a few days later, Hitler committed suicide As Allied forces overran Germany, they began seeing the concentration camps where millions had been murdered, mostly Jews

20. THE NAVAL WAR IN THE PACIFIC While preparing to invade Europe, America had to hold off Japan in Asia and the Pacific Its aircraft carriers had escaped Pearl Harbor – lucky because the airplane became the most important naval fighting machine As the Japanese began to overextend themselves, the US took advantage Coral Sea – Japan was invading New Guinea but the Americans forced them to turn back Midway – The Japanese attempted to invade but US planes smashed their fleet, sinking 4 large carriers

21. ISLAND HOPPING Working to retake the Philippines, American forces had to eject the Japanese from several other islands – airpower played a central role August 1942 – Guadalcanal Gilbert Islands, Marshall Islands, Saipan, Guam, Leyte Gulf (Oct 1944), Iwo Jima (March 1945) The Japanese began using kamikaze pilots and the US was in position to begin bombing Japan with high explosives and firebombs

22. BUILDING THE ATOMIC BOMB In 1944 Roosevelt was elected for a 4th term but died in April 1945 – Harry S Truman became president – and inherited the atomic bomb The US had been working on an atomic weapon since 1939 – it was finally ready in July 1945 – under the direction of J. Robert Oppenheimer One bomb, one plane, one crew now had the destructive power of over 1500 conventional bombers

23. BUILDING THE ATOMIC BOMB Truman decided to use the bomb against Japan to end the war as quickly as possible – before too many more American lives were lost and before Russia could enter the picture in Asia Enola Gay dropped the first one on Hiroshima on August 6, killing 78,000 people and injuring 100,000 more – a second bomb was dropped on Nagasaki 3 days later – Japan surrendered on August 15

25. WARTIME DIPLOMACY 1945 – a new United Nations charter was created – it was hoped that international cooperation would help the poor and war victims and bring the whole world into prosperity Unfortunately, the conflict that developed between The Soviet Union and the other Allies derailed that hope During the war, however, efforts were made to get along, may of Stalin’s worst features were overlooked, yet Russia was involved constructively in many post-war decisions – they signed the United Nations charter, helped to divide Germany into occupation zones, and Stalin offered numerous helpful suggestions The new United Nations was similar to Wilson’s League of Nations but with Lodge’s reservations included

26. ALLIED SUSPICION OF STALIN The Allies did clash over important matters long before the war ended Were the Soviets bent on world domination or simply on protecting themselves? The Soviets did resent the delay in the Allies opening of a second front in France Russia would not allow unfriendly governments to reside on its western border – Roosevelt and Stalin knew this privately Russia was heavily involved in the Poland issue, having vested interest there and having been part of the original attack

27. YALTA AND POTSDAM Yalta Conference – Roosevelt and Churchill agreed to Soviet annexation of Poland provided they allowed free elections – the elections were never held – Stalin saw no difference there or in American control of Latin America Potsdam Conference – Truman, Churchill and Stalin met outside Berlin after the war – they agreed to try Nazi leaders as war criminals, made plans for German reparations, and divided the country into 4 zones Yet suspicions were mounting, positions hardening, and the US-Soviet rise to power shaped the world for the next several decades