America and WWII Flashcards
Once France surrendered in June 1940, Congress would approve the ______ ______ __ _______ ___. This act would serve as the first ________ ____ in American history.
Selective Training and Service Act, peacetime draft
In 1940, the Department of Agriculture transferred over _________ acres to the War Department deemed for the construction of _______ ______.
350,000, military bases
New recruits were given physical examinations and injections against ______ and ______.
Smallpox, typhoid
At the start of the war, the US military was ________
Segregated
______ ______ were organized into their own units, but white officers generally commanded them.
African Americans
The _______ ______ launched the “_____ __” campaign to stop the racism at home and Hitler’s racism abroad.
Pittsburgh Courier, Double V
FDR promoted Colonel _______ __ _____ __, the highest-ranking African Americans officer to the rank of _________ _______.
Benjamin O. Davis Sr., brigadier general
In early 1941, the Air Force created its first African American Unit, the ____ ________ ______, the pilots would be known as the ______ ______.
99th pursuit squadron, Tuskegee Airmen
The airmen helped win the _____ __ ____ in Italy.
Battle of Anzio
Three other Tuskegee squadrons known as the _____ ______ _____ would protect American bombers.
332nd Fighter Group
Also, there were the African American ____ ___ ______ which was used in the Battle of ___ ____.
761st Tank Battalion, the Bulge
As the war raged, second-generation Japanese Americans served in the ____ _____ ______and the ____ _____ _____ ____.
100th Infantry Battalion, 442nd Regimental Combat Team.
At the end of the war __ Hispanic Americans had received the ______ ___ ___ _____.
17, Congressional Medal of Honor
More than ____ Navajo marines served as “___ _____” relaying critical information and orders over field radios in their native language.
400, code talkers
Congress first allowed women in the military May 1942 by creating the _______ _____ ______ _____ ( ? )
Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps, WAAC
About a year later, the army replaced the WAAC with the _____ ____ ____( ? )
Women’s Army Corps, WAC
About 300 women serving as ____ ___ _____ _____ _____ ( ? ) made more than 12,000 flights to deliver planes to the war effort.
Women Air force Service Pilots ( WASPs )
FDR would create the ______ ______ ______ _____ that business leaders would serve on.
National Defense Advisory Committee
The government would sign _____-___ ______, agreeing to pay a company the cost to make a product plus a guaranteed percentage as profit.
Cost-plus contracts
____-_____ is a government contract to pay a manufacturer the cost to produce an item plus a guaranteed percentage.
Cost-plus
Congress would authorize the _________ _____ ________ ( ? ) to make loans to companies wanting to convert to war production.
Reconstruction Finance Corporation ( RFC )
The _______ industry was uniquely suited to mass-producing military goods.
Automobile
Automobile factories produced r____, h______, a_____, t____, j____, t____ and other military equipment.
rifles, helmets, artillery, trucks, jeeps, tanks
Henry ____ created an assembly line near _____ for the _-__ “_______” _____.
Ford, Detroit, B-24 Liberator bomber
Ford’s remarkable achievement in aircraft production was more than matched by Henry ______’s _______.
Kaiser, shipyards
Kaiser’s shipyards built many kinds of ships, but they were best known for basic cargo ships called _____ _____.
Liberty Ships
FDR created the ___ ________ _____to direct priorities and production goals for military factories.
War Production Board
Mobilizing the economy finally ended the Great Depression, creating __ _____ new jobs and _______the average family’s income.
19 million, doubling
Under pressure to produce, employers began to recruit _____ and _______.
Women, minorities
The great symbol of the campaign to hire women was “_____ ___ ______”, a character from a popular song by the ___ _______.
Rosie the Riveter, Four Vagabonds
__ _____ _______, the head of the _______ __ _______ ___ _____ a major union for African American railroad workers decide to try and secure jobs for African Americans.
A. Philip Randolph, Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters
On June 25, 1941, FDR issued _______ _____ ____ which stated, “ There shall be no discrimination in the employment of workers in defense industries or government because of race, creed, color, or national origin.”
Executive Order 8802
To enforce the order, FDR created the ___ _______ ____ _______, the first federal civil rights agency since Reconstruction.
Fair Employment Practices Commission
The growth of southern California and cities in the Deep South created a new industrial region known as the _______.
Sunbelt
In 1942, FDR created the _______ _____ _____ (?) to coordinate government housing programs.
National Housing Agent ( NHA )
In Los Angeles, the fear of juvenile crime and racism against ______ _______ became linked in the “____ _____” riots.
Mexican Americans, Zoot suit
_____ ____ had very baggy, pleated pants, and an overstuffed, knee-length jacket with wide lapels.
Zoot suits
______ _____ had no vest, no cuff, a short jacket, and narrow lapel.
Victory suits
After the attack on Pearl Harbor, FDR signed an order allowing the ___ ________ to declare any part of the US a ______ _____.
War Department, military zone
People of ________ ancestry were evacuated to __ ________ camps further inland.
Japanese, 10, internment
In 1988, _____ ______ apologized to Japanese Americans on behalf of the US government and signed legislation granting ______ to surviving Japanese Americans who had been interned.
Ronald Reagan, $20,000
Worried about inflation, FDR created the ______ of _____ ________ and _____ ____ (?) and the ______ of ________ ________ (?) to regulate wages and certain prices.
Office of Price Administration and Civilian Supply (OPACS) and the Office of Economics Stabilization (OES)
The __ _____ _____ (?) tried to prevent strikes.
War Labor Board
_____ began ______, or ______ the purchases of many products to make sure enough were available for military use.
OPACS, rationing, limiting
M___, s_____, f___, o___, p______ f____, c_____, s____, and g______ were rationed.
Meat, sugar, fats, oils, processed foods, coffee, shoes, and gasoline
The government encouraged ______ ______ by praising them in film reels, pamphlets, and official statements.
Victory gardens
The government would also organize scrap drives for r____, t__, a______, and s____.
Rubber, tin, aluminum, and steel
In 1942, President Roosevelt created the _____ of ___ __________ (?)
Office of War Information (OWI)
The ___s role was to improve the public’s understanding of the war and to act as a liaison office with the various media.
OWI
Admiral _____ _____ was the commander of the United States Navy in the Pacific.
Chester Nimitz
A few hours after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, the Japanese attacked ______ airfields in the ________.
American, Philippines
General _____ _______ was the commander over the US forces in the Philippines.
Douglas MacArthur
78,000 men were forced to march 65 miles to a Japanese prison camp known as the ______ _____ _____.
Bataan Death March
FDR wanted to bomb _____, but American planes could reach it only if an aircraft carrier brought them close enough.
Tokyo
In early 1942, a military planner suggested replacing the carrier’s usual short-range bombers with long-range __-__ _____ that could attack from further out.
B-25 bombers
FDR would place L_____ C_____ J____ D_______ in command of the mission to bomb Tokyo.
Lieutenant Colonel James Doolittle
At the end of March, __ B-25s were loaded onto the ____.
16, Hornet
Officers of Japan’s military wanted to cut American supply lines to ______ by capturing the south coast of ___ ______.
Australia, New Guinea
Admiral _______, wanted to attack _____ _____– the last American base in the North Pacific west of Hawaii.
Yamamoto, Midway Island
Admiral ______ sent two carriers, the _______ and the ________ to intercept the Japanese in the _____ ___.
Nimitz, Yorktown, Lexington, Coral Sea
Acting upon the suggestion of _____ ______, an engineer who had lived on a Navajo reservation as a child, the marines recruited Navajos to serve as “____-_____”.
Philip Johnston, code-talkers
In 2001, Congress awarded the code talkers the congressional ____ _____ for their unique contribution during the war.
Gold Medal
Admiral _________ transmitted planes for the Midway attack by ____.
Yamamoto, radio
Admiral ______ used the opportunity to ambush the Japanese.
Nimitz
The ______ __ ______ was the turning point in the war in the Pacific.
Battle of Midway
Just ___ months after the Pearl Harbor, the US had stopped the ______ advance.
6, Japanese
In the fall of 1943, Admiral _____ would launch his _____ _______ campaign across the Pacific towards Japan.
Nimitz, island hopping
_____, part of the _____ Islands, was the Navy’s first objective.
Tarawa, Gilbert
To help combat these conditions, a boat with tracks nicknamed the “______” was created. It was an _______ ____, or ______, was first used to rescue people in Florida swamps.
Alligator, amphibious tractor, amphtrac
American military planners wanted to use the _______ as a base for the new heavy bomber, the __-___ ___ ____.
Marianas, B-29 Super Fortress
Admiral Nimitz decided to invade three of the Mariana Islands: _____, ______, and ____.
Saipan, Tinian, and Guam
________’s troops would start their campaign in the south Pacific at _______ in the _______ Islands.
MacArthur, Guadalcanal, Solomon
The Battle of _____ _____ was the largest naval battle in history. It was the first time that the Japanese __________ attacks. It is also the first battle where ships sunk each other without ______ __ ____.
Leyte Gulf, kamikaze, seeing one another
Kamikaze means “_____ _____” in Japanese.
Divine Wind
In July 1942, FDR ordered the invasion of ______ and _______–two French territories indirectly under German control.
Morocco, Algeria
German General _____ ______, whose success earned him the nickname “_____ ___”, commanded the “_____ _____”.
Erwin Rommel, Desert Fox, Afrika Korps
The ____ ______ is located in ______, and was a major supply route for ______.
Suez Canal, Egypt, Britain
In November 1942, American troops commanded by ______ __ _________ invaded North Africa.
Dwight D. Eisenhower
At the battle of _________ ____, the Americans were outmaneuvered and outfought.
Kasserine Pass
Eisenhower fired the general who led the attack and put General ______ in command.
Patton
To protect ships, citizens on the ____ ____ went dark.
East coast
The loss of so many ships convinced the US Navy to set up a _____ _____– a system in which merchant ships travel with naval vessels for protection.
Convoy system
American airplanes and warships began using r____, s_____, and d____ c_____ to locate and attack s_______.
Radar, sonar, depth charges, submarines
Hitler was convinced that defeating the _____ _____depended on destroying their economy.
Soviet Union
The city of ______, which controlled the Volga River and was a major railroad junction was the key to the attack.
Stalingrad
When German troops entered ______ in mid September, _____ ordered his troops to hold the city at all costs.
Stalingrad, Stalin
The Battle of ________ put the Germans on the Defensive.
Stalingrad
In January 1943, Roosevelt and Churchill headed to _______, _______, to meet and discuss the next stage of the war.
Casablanca, Morocco
At the ________ ________, FDR and Churchill agreed to step up the bombing of Germany.
Casablanca Conference
The allies also agreed to attack the Axis on the island of ____.
Sicily
General _______ commanded the invasion of Sicily, with General ____ and General ________ heading the ground forces.
Eisenhower, Patton, Montgomery
The king of Italy, ____ _______, and a group of Italian generals decided it was time to dispose of Mussolini.
Victor Emmanuel
Following Italy’s surrender, German troops seized control of Northern ____, including _____, and returned _______ to power.
Italy, Rome, Mussolini
The terrain near ______ was steep, barren, and rocky.
Cassino
The Allies would land at _____, behind the German lines.
Anzio
The ______ campaign was one of the bloodiest in the war, with more than ________ Allied casualties.
Italian, 300,000
In late 1943, Stalin agreed, proposing that Roosevelt and Churchill meet him in ______, ____. The leaders reached several agreements :
- Stalin promised to launch a full scale offensive against the _______ when the Allies invaded France in 1944.
- Roosevelt and Stalin agreed to _____ Germany after the war so that it would never again threaten world peace.
- Stalin promised once Germany was defeated, the Soviet Union would help the US with _____.
- He also accepted Roosevelt’s proposal of an _______ _________ _______ after the war.
Tehran, Iran; Germans, divide, Japan, international peacekeeping organization
At _____, ______, Roosevelt selected General Eisenhower to be in command of _______ ______– Code name for D-Day.
Cairo, Egypt, Operation Overlord
Hitler fortified the French Coast along the English Channel all the way up along the coast at Norway which would be known as the _______ ____.
Atlantic Wall
The real target was farther South, a ___-mile stretch of ___ beaches along the Normandy coast.
60, five
The selection of the site for the largest _______ ______in history was one of the largest decisions of WWII.
Amphibious landing
The invasion had to begin at night to hide the ships crossing the _______ _______.
English Channel
The first opportunity for the invasion was from ____ __-__, _____.
June 5-7, 1944.
Eisenhower’s planning staff referred to the day any operation began by using the letter __.
D
Shortly after midnight on ____ _, ____, Eisenhower gave the final orders to launch the invasion.
June 6, 1944
Thousands of shells rained down on the beaches codenamed “____”, “______”, “____”, “______”, and “____”.
“Utah”, “Omaha”, “Gold”, “Sword”, and “Juno”.
At “____” and “_____” the British, “_____” also had the French, “_____” is Canadian, and “_____” and “____” were Americans.
Gold, Sword, Sword, Juno, Omaha, Utah
_____ _____ was only four miles long and overlooked a 150 foot high bluff, and there were only five ravines leading from the beach to the top of the bluff.
Omaha Beach
General ____ ______, commander of the American forces landing at _____ and ____, began making plans to evacuate.
Omar Bradley, Omaha, Utah
Surrounding many fields in Normandy were ________– dirt walls, several feet thick, covered in shrubbery.
Hedgerows
The ______ ________ were French civilians who had secretly organized to resist the German occupation– staged a rebellion in _____.
French Resistance, Paris
His goal was to cut off Allied supplies coming through the port of ______, ______.
Antwerp, Belgium
______ __ ___ _____ - The attack began just before dawn on ______ __, 1944.
Battle of the Bulge, December 16
As German troops raced west, their lines bulged outward, and the attack became known as the _____ __ ___ _____.
Battle of the Bulge
On _____ ___, 1945 _____ would commit suicide in his underground bunker.
April 30, Hitler
May 7, 1945 Germany accepted the terms for an ________ ______.
Unconditional surrender
May 8, 1945 was proclaimed __-__ ___, for “______ __ _____”.
V-E Day, “Victory in Europe”.
On April 12, 1945, while vacationing in ____ _____, _______, ___ died of a stroke.
Warm Springs, GA, FDR
____ ____ was perfectly located, roughly halfway between the Marianas and Japan.
Iwo Jima
On ____ _____’s southern tip was a dormant volcano rugged with terrain and rocky cliffs.
Iwo Jima
To help the B-29s hit their targets, _____ ______ ordered them to drop bombs filled with _____- a type of jellied gasoline.
Curtis LeMay, napalm
Military planners would choose _______, an island 350 miles from Japan to stockpile and build up troops.
Okinawa
America wanted an __________ surrender, however, the Japanese people would surrender on the condition Hirohito was left in power.
Unconditional
In 1939 ____ ______, A Jewish physicist who had fled Nazi persecution, learned that German scientists had split the uranium atom.
Leo Slizard
_____ had been the first scientist to suggest that splitting the atom might release enormous energy.
Slizard
He would have _____ _______ to sign a letter Szilard had drafted and sent it to FDR.
Albert Einstein
The secret American program to build an atomic bomb was code-named the _______ ______ and was headed by General _____ __ _____.
Manhattan Project, Leslie R. Groves
The first breakthrough came in 1942 when the world’s first nuclear reactors at the ______ __ ______ came online.
University of Chicago
______ then organized a team of engineers and scientists to build an atomic bomb laboratory in ___ ______, __.
Groves, Los Alamos, NM
Physicist __ _______ _________ led the team that on July 16, 1945 would test the first atomic bomb in the _______ ______ of ____ ______.
J. Robert Oppenheimer, Proving Grounds of New Mexico
_______ ______-didn’t want to use the bomb because it would kill civilians.
William Leahy
_____ ________-wanted to warn the Japanese
Henry Stimson
_____ ______-wanted to drop the bomb on the Japanese without warning.
James Byrnes
On _______ ___, 1945, a B-29 bomber named ____ ___ dropped an atomic bomb code name ____ ____.
August 6, Enola Gay, Little Boy
The Enola Gay would be piloted by the son of the woman for whom the plane was named after, ____ _____.
Paul Tibbetts
Later the same day, the US dropped the second atomic bomb code named ____ ____ on the city of ______ killer between 35,000 and 74,000 people.
Fat Man, Nagasaki
On _____ __, 1945- _-__ ____ -Japan surrendered.
August 15, VJ Day
In August 1945 the __, B_____, F_____, and the other S____ U_____ created the _________ ________ ________(?).
US, Britain, France, Soviet Union, International Military Tribunal (IMT)
__ German Leaders were prosecuted at the _______ _____. __ were acquitted, __ given prison sentences, and __ were sentenced to death.
22, Nuremberg Trials, 3, 7, 12
