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US History Honors > WWII Study Guide > Flashcards

WWII Study Guide Flashcards

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1
Q

Who was Benito Mussolini?

A

The founder of Italy’s fascist party

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2
Q

What is fascism?

A

An aggressive nationalistic movement that considered the nation more important than the individual

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3
Q

Who was Joseph Stalin?

A

The Soviet Union’s dictator; he held power as General Secretary of the Soviet Union’s Communist Party

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4
Q

Who was Adolf Hitler?

A

The Austrian-born dictator of Germany and leader of the Nazi party

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5
Q

What was Mein Kampf?

A

Hitler’s book, “My Struggle,” that outlined his political ideology, which was especially rooted in antisemitism. He detailed his idea of the master race, considering blond hair and blue eyes as superior.

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6
Q

How did Hitler rise to power?

A

Germany experienced economic instability after the Treaty of Versailles, which Hitler took advantage of. Paul von Hindenburg appointed him chancellor in 1933.

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7
Q

What were the Neutrality Acts of 1935-1937?

A

They made it illegal for Americans to sell arms to any country at war and banned US citizens from traveling war ships. In general, they were an attempt at limiting America’s involvement in war.

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8
Q

Were the Neutrality Acts really neutral?

A

No, because they failed to make a distinction between the aggressor and the victim, treating every country as belligerent.

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9
Q

What countries comprised of the Axis Powers?

A

Germany, Italy, and Japan

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10
Q

What is appeasement?

A

When a country gives an opposing nation an advantage in exchange for peace. Britain and France had agreed to Hitler’s demands for the same reason.

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11
Q

What is Blitkrieg?

A

“Lightning War”; using surprise tactics to overwhelm an enemy country in hopes of creating disorganization

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12
Q

Who was Winston Churchill?

A

The British leader who replaced Chamberlain as prime minister; he refused to negotiate peace in WWII.

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13
Q

What happened at the Battle of Britain?

A

The Germans attacked coastal targets and British shipping operations

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14
Q

What were the Nuremberg Laws?

A

They took citizenship away from Jewish Germans and banned marriage between Jews and Germans

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15
Q

What was Kristallnacht?

A

A young Jewish refugee (Herschell Grynzpan) shot a German diplomat as revenge for Jewish deportations. Nazis then attacked many Jews and acted like it was a spontaneous reaction instead of a planned attack.

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16
Q

What was the international response to the Holocaust?

A

Many international countries stated their regret for not being able to take in enough Jews; most of them denied Jews, even if they had documents

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17
Q

What was the St. Louis affair?

A

900 escaping Jews were on a ship from Germany to Cuba, but were rejected by the Cuban government

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18
Q

What were concentration camps?

A

Detention centers where healthy detainees woked as slave laborers

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19
Q

What were extermination camps?

A

Elders and young children were sent to them to be exected in gas chambers

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20
Q

What was the Neutrality Act of 1939?

A

It lifted the arms embargo, but kept the ban on loans and ships

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21
Q

What was the America First Committee?

A

An isolationist group opposed to American intervention or aid to Allies

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22
Q

What was the Lend-Lease Act?

A

Roosevelt’s idea to allow the US to lend or lease arms to any country deemed necessary for America’s defense

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23
Q

What was the Atlantic Charter?

A

A policy statement (agreed on by Roosevelt and Churchill) that defined America and Britain’s ideals for the postwar world.

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24
Q

Why does America ultimately enter WWII?

A

Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, Hawaii

25
Q

Who was Henry Kaiser?

A

An American industrialist who is known as the father of “liberty ships”.

26
Q

What was the War Production Board?

A

Roosevelt’s attempt to improve the mobilization process. They set priorities and production goals to control the distribution of materials and supplies.

27
Q

How was the military segregated?

A

African Americans were segregated from whites in the military. Black fighters were commanded by white leaders and were treated horribly.

28
Q

Who were the Tuskegee Airmen?

A

A group of mostly African American military pilots and airmen

29
Q

What did other minorities do in the military?

A

Japanese Americans were not allowed to fight in the military at first. Later, second-gen Japanese Americans served in specific teams. Mexican-Americans were often in the National Guard. Although most minorities worked in noncombat, Native Americans fought in the war.

30
Q

What was the Women’s Army Corps?

A

The women’s branch of the US army. They baked, drove, and served for medical purposes.

31
Q

Who was Douglas MacArthur?

A

He was the general of the US Army who helped defend the Philippines

32
Q

What was the Bataan Death March?

A

The Japanese army forced nearly 78,000 American and Filipino prisoners of war to march to their prison camp. Almost 10,000 died.

33
Q

Why was the Battle of Coral Sea significant?

A

The Japanese experienced failure because Americans had decoded a message regarding an attack.

34
Q

What happened at the Battle of Midway?

A

The Japanese surprise-attacked American carriers by attacking the Coral islands. The US managed to stop the Japanese advance.

35
Q

Who were the key leaders in North Africa?

A

General Erwin Rommel and General Dwight D. Eisenhower

36
Q

What happened at the Battle of Stalingrad?

A

Germany tried to attack Stalingrad because of its economic significance, but the Soviet Union defeated them – they had an advantage because they were well-equipped for the weather

37
Q

What was the role of women during this time?

A

Because men were at war, many women took over their factory jobs. About four million women were hired for the war (mostly for clerical jobs).

38
Q

What was Japanese-American Relocation?

A

Americans feared the Japanese after Pearl Harbor, so Japanese immigrants were relocated to internment camps. These camps had poor living conditions and many died in them.

39
Q

What was the Korematsu v. United States Case?

A

Korematsu (a Japanese immigrant) pretended to be Chinese to avoid being relocated. After being caught, he claimed the interment camp policy was racist but the Supreme Court said it was based on “military urgency”

40
Q

What was Italian-American and German-American relocation?

A

Italian and German Americans also had their freedom restricted; most had travel restrictions and had to hold ID cards. Over 5000 were relocated and sent to internment camps in Texas.

41
Q

What was the Office of Price Administration?

A

Designed by Roosevelt, the OPA helped stabilize prices and keep inflation under control.

42
Q

What was rationing?

A

The OPA limited the purchase of products to make sure there was enough for military use.

43
Q

What were victory gardens?

A

Americans planted gardens to produce more food for the war effort. They were heavily praised in American films and pamphlets.

44
Q

How did the government pay for the war?

A

Raising taxes and issuing war bonds.

45
Q

What happened at the Casablanca Conference?

A

Roosevelt and Churchill agreed to step up the bombing of Germany. Churchill thought to attack Italy, the “soft underbelly” of Europe because he assumed Italians would quit the war.

46
Q

What happened at the Tehran Conference?

A

Roosevelt and Stalin agreed to launch a full-scale offense against Germany. They also decided that after the war, they would divide Germany and keep international peace.

47
Q

What was D-Day?

A

The Allies invaded Normandy, France. It liberated France, stopping Germany from exploiting its resources.

48
Q

What was island hopping?

A

The US gained military bases by securing small islands (that were lightly defended)

49
Q

What was a kamikaze?

A

Japanese pilots who flew suicide attacks into enemy targets

50
Q

What was the Battle of the Bulge?

A

Hitler’s last major offensive in WWII against the Western front. He tried to cut off the Allies’ supplies.

51
Q

What was V-E Day?

A

Victory in Europe; Germany had unconditionally surrendered after Hitler killed himself

52
Q

Who was Harry S. Truman?

A

Roosevelt’s vice president who took over when he died

53
Q

What was the importance of Iwo Jima?

A

Over 6,800 marines died trying to attack and invade the Japanese island

54
Q

What was firebombing?

A

Bombs with napalm (jellied gasoline) were dropped to explode and start fires. The US firebombed Tokyo and 66 other Japanese cities.

55
Q

What were the terms for surrender of Japan?

A

Japanese leaders were willing to surrender as long as the emperor stayed in power, but most Americans wanted him removed from power.

56
Q

What was the Manhattan Project?

A

The secret atomic bomb project that was heavily debated at the time, but was eventually used on Hiroshima and Nagasaki,

57
Q

What was V-J Day?

A

When Japan surrendered after the atomic bombs were dropped.

58
Q

What is the United Nations?

A

An organization of 39 countries, designed to sustain peace

59
Q

What were the Nuremberg Trials?

A

The trials for the 22 Nazi German leaders. Seven went to prison and twelve were sentenced to death. Similar trials were held in Japan.

US History Honors (5 decks)

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