World War 2 (Defeat of the Axis)

Question 1

What was the Island Hopping campaigns?

Answer 1

Post the Battle of Midway where would take an island and then establish a base and move to the next one and do the same

Question 2

What were the aims of the island hopping campaign?

Answer 2

Minimise allied casualities, get within bombing range of Japanese mainland and cut supply routes off

Question 3

What was the nature of fighting in the island hopping campaign?

Answer 3

Japanese = fight to the death, they knew they weren’t stronger enough to defend weakly fortified islands so the goal was instead to create as many US casualties as possible > created pill boxes, tunnels and heavily fortified beaches

Question 4

What happened during the Battle of Okinawa?

Answer 4

Extreme tactics used by japanese e.g mass murder of own citizens and using civilians as human shields > 90% of buildings in Okinawa destroyed. Brutal nature of fighting meant US knew attack on mainland would lead to high casualties so decided on bombing rather than invasion

Question 5

What were the two main examples of strategic bombing?

Answer 5

Dresden and Tokyo

Question 6

What was the Blitz?

Answer 6

After the withdrawal from operation sealion (battle of britain) hitler began ‘the blitz’ where he bombed key industrial areas with hope to decrease moral and confidence however had the opposite effect and actually made the british more determined than ever

Question 7

What happened during the bombing of Dresden?

Answer 7

Allies bombed dresden as it was an important industrial place with lots of facotries and ended up destroying 90% of the city but very controversial

Question 8

What happened with firebombing in Tokyo?

Answer 8

US choice to avoid lots of casualties and the japanese had built factories in residential areas in hope to blend it > avoiding civilians = very hard. In a single night, 100,000 dead, 25% of the city destroyed and one million left homeless. Firebombing continued for the rest of the war with 300,000 - 330,000 killed, 8 million left homeless and 60% of tokyo destroyed.

Question 9

What was Operation Overlord?

Answer 9

Code name for D-day

Question 10

Where was chosen for D-Day and why?

Answer 10

Normandy b/c of its long, sloping beaches and proximity to the english coast

Question 11

What was Operation Fortitude?

Answer 11

Mass deception campaign to make the germans think that the offensive was going to be anywhere except Normandy

Question 12

What did Operation Fortitude involve?

Answer 12

-Double agents = providing false info
-Fake radio signals and messages
-Actors having false conversations
-Fake US army group

Question 13

What were the impacts of operation fortitude?

Answer 13

Hitler believed attacks were going to be somewhere else and placed most powerful panzer division there

Question 14

What happened to the og date for D-Day and why did it change?

Answer 14

Originally planned for 5th of June 1944, but storm happened on 4th of June so delayed until just after midnight on the 6th of June

Question 15

What did the first steps of D-Day involve and what happened in the omaha beach landing?

Answer 15

It involved 5 surprise beach landing. Omaha had failed due to terrain and tanks sinking with 90% of first wave being wiped out as casualties.

Question 16

Outcomes and significance of Operation Overlord

Answer 16

-400,000/650,000 Germans who had fought had been killed vs 230,000/1.1 million allies
-Final preparations for invasion of belgium and fall of germany began

Question 17

Reasons for success of Operation Overlord

Answer 17

-Rommel had been visiting family
-Many skilled generals away on training camp
-Hitler had stayed up late watching movies and no one dared to wake him
-Panzer divisions not moved until wayyy to late as Hitler was the only one who could authorize this

Question 18

Reasons for the Fall of Germany

Answer 18

Hitler’s refusal to retreat and no lines built beyond front line played right into soviet’s hands > Hitler committed suicide > Belgium surrendered and the war was over!!!

Question 19

Outline the differences in the Soviet advance towards Belgium with the other allies (USA, France and Britain) advance

Answer 19

The Soviets were direct and were prepared to have casualites and get their as fast as possible whereas the allies were much slower to minimise casualties as belgium wasn’t even their main aim

Question 20

What happened at the Yalta conference?

Answer 20

Yalta: End of the war was in sight, so USSR, US and Britain met to discuss plans for end of the war and decided that germany would be split into four, belgium would be split into four, nazi criminals tried and UN established

Question 21

What happened at the Potsdam conference?

Answer 21

This was after the defeat of defeat of germany however wasn’t as effective roosevelt had died and truman replaced, and churchhill had been replaced > lack of trust regarding communism being developed > cold war and threatening of nuclear bombs

Question 22

Reasons for the dropping of the atomic bombs

Answer 22

Japan had wanted a peace treaty and didn’t want to unconditionally surrender

Question 23

Where did the atomic bombing happen and what were the impacts?

Answer 23

Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Hiroshima = 80,000 dead instantly, 80,000 suffered radiation poisoning and 67% of city destroyed
Nagasaki = 40,000 dead instantly + invasion of Manchuria on same day
» SURRENDER

Question 24

What were the short term and long term consequences of the atomic bombing?

Answer 24

Short term:
Surrender, 42/45 hospitals destroyed, radiation posioning and burns begin to show

Long term:
Increased cancer, miscarraiges and interllectual disabilities.