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Pearl Harbor Bombed by Japanese
The Japanese become mainly involved in World War II when they bombed Pearl Harbour in Hawaii. It was one of the largest naval bases for the US army and all of the ships were destroyed. The effect the bombing had on the US was tremendous. It angered many Americans. This marked the US involvement in World War II (Willmott).
Image: Fig. 1. Pearl Harbor (Images that Endure). -
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Japanese Involvement
The Japanese entered World War II when they attacked America at Pearl Harbour and other Pacific sites. They surrendered after the dropping of the atom bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. -
Signing of the UN Declaration
Franklin D. Roosevelt was the first to use the term "United Nations" in the Declaration of United Nations. It was meant to stabilize international relationships and form a starting point for peace. The UN charter was drafted in San Francisco from April 25 to June 26, 1945, at the United Nations Conference on International Orginization. The UN was officially ratified on October 24, 1945 (Formation of the United Nations).
Image: Fig. 2. United Nations Building (Formation of United Nations). -
Creation of the Manhattan Project
The Manhattan Project was a super-secret project formed to create an atomic bomb before Germany. The Project was headed by General Leslie R. Groves. The Manhattan Project was a three year project which developed and planned the testing of the atomic bomb. This project was a major success due to the fact that they created an atomic bomb. The Manhattan Project brought an end to the war and gave birth to the Age of Atomic Energy (Eyewitness to History).
Image: Fig. 3. Manhattan Project (Caron). -
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Creating the Atomic Bomb
After recieving a warning from Einstein about the German involvement in the creation of an atomic weapon, the US set out the beat them to it. It took a total of 3 years for the US to develop the first atomic weapon and have the capabilities of testing the bomb. They began the research 3 years after they received the warning from Einstein. They would create the bomb using uranium-235, a radioactive isotope of uranium. It would take $2 billion to produce the weapon (Rosenberg). -
Casablanca Conference
The Casablanca Conference was held from January 14 to January 24, 1943. British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt and Combined Chiefs of Staff all met to discuss important and strategic military operations. They decided on the invasion of Italy and the bomber offensive against Germany. Roosevelt stated the allies would insist on "unconditional surrender" (Tucker).
Image: Fig. 4. Churchill and Roosevelt (Roosevelt and Churchill). -
The Italian Campaign
When the North African Campagin ended in 1943 and the Axis were stopped from going through the Middle East, the Allies began the Italian Campaign. The Allies were mainly allowing the Axis forces to retreat towards the Italian peninsula. The campaign tied up both Ally and Axis forces. The Axis forces in Italy surrendered in April of 1945, only a week before Germany itself was captured (Willmott).
Image: Fig. 5. Tank in flames (World War II Pictures). -
First Test of Atom Bomb
The US first tested the atomic bomb in a remote area of New Mexico. It was a top secret project that was called the "Manhattan Project" and was headed by General Leslie R. Groves. The test itself was given the code-name "Trinity", The tension leading up to the test were immense. Everyone there knew the potential risks. The importance of this test was it marked the winning of a race with Germany to use atomic energy (Eyewitness to History).
Image: Fig. 6. Attomic bomb blast (Photostream). -
Potsdam Declaration
President at the time, Harry Truman, issued the Potsdam Declaration 10 days before the bombing of Hiroshima. He said the Decalaration was the last chance for Japan to surrender and avoid total destruction. He stated the US had capabilities to completely decimate Japan's military (1945: US Drops Atomic Bomb).
Image: Fig. 7. Potsdam conference (Old Picture of the Day). -
Atomic Bomb Dropped On Hiroshima
The US dropped the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima on August 6, 1945 at 8:15 AM. The bomb dropped was know as "Little Boy". It had a devastating effect on the area. It destroyed 60% of the buildings. This bomb was 2,000x more powerful than any bomb used to date. It eventually caused the surrender of the Japanese (1945: US Drops Atomic Bomb).
Image: Fig. 8. Hiroshima (K_c_). -
Bomb Dropped On Nagasaki
Three days after the bombing of Hiroshima by the US military, they moved their sights and dropped a larger and more devastating atomic bomb on Nagasaki. The bomb dropped was nicknamed "Fat Man". The bomb destroyed 40% of Nagasaki. Due to the terrain of the city, there was not as much damage (Rosenberg).
Image: Fig. 9. "Fat Man" model (Richard). -
Japan Surrenders
After the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan surrendered to the Allies. They knew that with the US having the capability of dropping more bombs, they could not win the war. The President at the time was Harry Truman and he made sure the Japanese knew that the US could destroy their whole way of making war (1945: US Drops Atomic Bomb).
Image: Fig. 10. Japan surrendering (Carl).
