WW2 Flashcards
Anschluss
Germans annexing Austria
Rhineland
German territory that bordered France, Hitler militarized it (first military action)
appeasement
giving in to aggressive demands to maintain peace
Neville chamberlain
British prime minister, wanted to not block Hitlers way
Winston Churchill
British parliament member, thought while everyone was united we should stand up to Hitler
Axis Powers
Germany, Italy, Japan
Nonaggression Pact
soviets and nazis agreed not to attack eachother
blitzkrieg
lightning speed: method of fighting where planes and ground troops fight close together and go through and take over country as fast as possible, destroying everything
allies
GB and France (eventually US)
Battle of Britain
RAF vs Luftwaffe
Hitler wanted to destroy RAF and take over Britain
Britain wins
Hideki Tojo
general making planes and planning Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor
Dec 7, 1941 why? US cut off trade, japs hoped to stop US from coming to Europe mistakes: Japs didn't destroy aircraft carriers missed oil fields stopped attack too soon brought US Into war
isolationism
avoid involvement in affairs with other nations
Erwin Rommel
led German and Italian force in Africa (afrika Korps)
pushed British out of Libya and back into Egypt
Dwight D. Eisenhower
American general fought in NA- conquered it
European Theatre
fighting in Europe
pacific theatre
japan controls but US island hops to take it over
siege of Leningrad
900 day siege-deadliest in human history
Germans surround soviets there and starve everyone- but Lagodo river freezes over and soviets can escape and surround Russia and win
battle of Stalingrad
deadliest battle-neither side will surrender
barely any German soldiers make it home
Douglas MacArthur
American General in Philippines gets sent out when japan takes over
“I shall return”
Bataan Death March
phillipinos and some Americans forced to march to prison camp all along coast- many die
battle of midway
us wins!
japan loses 4 aircraft carriers
gives base to Americans and begins island hopping
battle of Guadalcanal
jungle island- japan fights to death and lots die
kamikaze
Japanese suicide pilots that crash into boats
nazi anti-semitism
nazis hate Jews ALOT
scapegoat
someone to blame for a problems- Jews
deported
forced to leave country
final solution
deliberate mass execution of all Jews
ghetto
confined area within city
concentration camps
meant to hold people hitler called enemies of the state-forced to be slaves and starved
holocaust
mass murder of Jews-but many other groups died too
Nuremberg Laws
Jews lost citizenship
kristllnacht
night of broken glass-Jews businesses and places of worship destroyed
German response of diplomat being upset
D-Day
June 6, 1944 biggest amphibious assault Normandy France operation overlord allies broke through German forces and took back France
battle of the bulge
Hitlers last ditch effort -anyone who could fire a fun fought
put all troops in 1 spot and attack
V-E day
victory in Europe
Germany surrenders
Iwo Jima
picture- American offensive, staging area for attack on japan, brutal fighting
Okinawa
Japan’s final stand
built tunnels
deadliest battle in pacific
Hiroshima
August 6, 1945
Nagasaki
August 9, 1945
Harry Truman
sends ok to bombs going off
V-J day
Japan surrenders
Yalta conference
allies try to agree on plan for peace
United Nations
world organization to prevent war
Potsdam conference
details of boundaries
reparations
communists coming to power
atomic bomb
