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WORLD WAR II: CAUSES OF THE WAR
The depression that hit the World .Because of that desperation, some European nations built large military forces to combat the economic situation. As jobs became more numerous because of the increase in military, this build-up increased production and lowered unemployment, however, caused growing tensions as smaller nations were overcome by the threat of the great military power. This tension would eventually result in a second global confrontation, World War II. -
World War II beginning
World War II began on September 1, 1939, when Germany attacked Poland by using the blitzkrieg, or lightning warfare arms. Soon after this successful attack, the German war machine defeated Denmark, Norway, Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and France. Surprisingly, the Germans required only three months to conquer these countries. However, Adolf Hitler, the dictator of Germany, failed in his prolonged attempt to defeat Great Britain with bombing missions and submarine blockades. -
the Allies take the offensive
Japan's plans for expansion in the Far East included a surprise attack on the United States' naval fleet at Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. Finally, after a series of serious disasters, the Allies took the offensive. Totally committed and determined, the Allies halted the Axis advances at El Alamein in North Africa, off Midway Island in the Pacific, and at Stalingrad in Russia. Allied amphibious invasions leapfrogged across the Pacific Islands and brought the Allies to the doorstep of Japan. -
WORLD WAR II:
The Second World War introduced the atomic age and brought sweeping changes in warfare. Trucks sped infantrymen to the battlefront after aerial bombings, giant tanks, and pinpoint artillery weakened the enemy. Bombers and ballistic missiles rained death and destruction upon the armed forces and civilians alike. Airplanes, warships, and men worked together with split second timing in amphibious attacks, and paratroopers dropped from airplanes or landed in gliders to seek out the enemy. -
COMMUNIST THREAT: WORLD UNREST
Following World War II, a spirit of optimism prevailed in the United States similar to that following the First World War. With the military threats of Germany and Japan no longer a problem, the safety of this nation and the world seemed assured indefinitely.If a lasting peace had not been earned after four long years of American involvement in the war, at least hostilities were not expected to erupt in the near future. such optimistic thinking was soon to be quickly shattered. -
WORLD UNREST DEMANDS ACTION
The security earned in defeating Germany and the other Axis powers was short-lived in the postwar years. Following V-E Day in Europe and V-J Day in the Pacific, world peace was almost immediately threatened. The frequently used term. "the hot war," a term used to describe actual fighting, was soon to be traded for what came to be known as "the Cold War." The threat of Communism, however, was advanced as the Russians spread their influence and propaganda through Eastern Europe and parts of Asia. -
Russian Greed (Beginning Of Cold War)
World leaders soon realized that it would take much more than the United Nations to halt the huge Soviet appetite. The Russians wanted to control conquered countries in Eastern Europe and to seek new lands to devour.Both the United States and Great Britain realized the necessity of negotiating with Russia immediately, before the great bulk of military men returned home from Europe. The Soviets would have a definite bargaining advantage because of their large military build-up in Eastern Germany -
KOREAN CONFLICT
The problem of containing Communist aggression was by no means limited to Europe.Communism threatening to infect the complete Pacific area. Police-keeping forces were involved in the Korean conflict with peace negotiations coming some three years later.The Korean War was the first war in which the United Nations played a military role. The war was a major challenge for the United Nations and tested the ability of this international body to keep peace in the world. -
VIETNAM: FIGHTING COMMUNISM
To counteract the Russian advance, the United States had to execute timely and firm action-action that would command Russian respect. In an attempt to counter the Communists, the United States came to the military aid of South Vietnam. During the early years of the war in the 1950s, the United States sent military advisors to assist the government and army of South Vietnam. As the Communists advanced the war, however, the United States sent military aid to help the people of South Vietnam. -
Peace and Defeat
Signing of a peace treaty by North Vietnam,the Vietcong,South Vietnam, and the United States occurred in Paris on January 27, 1973.The United States agreed to leave Vietnam within a sixty day period.After the final American pullout,however,the South Vietnamese military proved to be no match for its northern enemies. By 1975,not only did South Vietnam fall to the Communists but Laos and Cambodia did as well.In the end,more than 1million Vietnamese and 58,000 Americans had died in the Vietnam War.