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The Japanese wanted to create a sphere of economic domination, trying to solve economic problems through expansion. The US response was limiting trade and placing embargoes on Japan. This is important because if the Japanese did not invade Manchuria, then the US would not have placed embargoes on Japan.
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In this pact, Britain, and France agreed to allow Hitler to take more land, in exchange for Hitler’s agreement to seek no more territory after that concession. Hitler broke the Pact less than 6 months later by continuing to take territory, ending the European policy of appeasement. This is important to history because it proved to be a policy of appeasement and proved that appeasement does not work.
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The "Night of Broken Glass," in which Nazis in Germany torched synagogues, vandalized Jewish homes, schools, and businesses, and killed close to 100 Jews. This is important because it marked a point in which the Nazis attacked the Jewish people as part of their "Final Solution."
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FDR had the Neutrality Acts amended in response to Germany's aggression. FDR attempted to change American policy from isolationism to international involvement. This is important because it marked a great change in America's policy towards other nations involved in the war.
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Germany's invasion of Poland was a violation of the policy of appeasement that Germany had agreed to. During the invasion, Germany used a strategy called blitzkrieg. Germany's invasion led to France and Britain declaring war on Germany. Germany then invaded France and launched air raids on Britain. These German invasions also caused the U.S. to amend the Neutrality Act and enact policies such as Lend-Lease and Cash-and-Carry.
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Congress authorizes Roosevelt to “sell, transfer title to, exchange, lease, lend or otherwise dispose of to any such government any defense article” which he thought was “necessary in the interest of the defense of the United States." This is important because this provides aid to allies. Specifically, it gave them vehicles and other pieces of equipment that were essential in effectively countering the Axis Powers' military forces.
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A broad statement of US and British war aims. It endorsed self-determination and an international system of general security.
It also showed FDR’s commitment to opposing German and Japanese aggression. This is important because it helped show support for the British and French and set a firm stance against German and Japanese aggression. -
FDR issued this executive order due to the segregation of minorities. This order prohibited ethnic or racial discrimination in the nation's defense industry. This is important because it was a step in the right direction for improving civil rights and stopping discrimination.
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Churchill and Roosevelt signed the Atlantic Charter. It strengthened the alliance between the U.S. & Great Britain and demonstrated U.S. support for British goals againsts the Germans.
It was important because it reinforced the stance of the U.S. against the aggression of the Axis Powers. -
This was a surprise attack by the Japanese on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. This was in response to the embargoes the US implemented on Japan and was intended to deter the U.S. from becoming involved in WWII. As a result, the U.S. Congress declared war on Japan. This event is important because it brought the U.S. into the war and "awoke a sleeping giant."
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FDR issued this order. This order authorized the internment of Americans of Japanese descent and resident aliens from Japan. These residents and citizens were forced to sell their possessions and report to deportation camps. This is important because it showed one of the more unfortunate decisions that FDR made during WWII in order to try and ensure the safety of the U.S.
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The Battle of Midway was a turning point on the Pacific war front. Up until that time, the Japanese had largely won the naval battles against the U.S. and things did not look good for the Allies. During this battle, the U.S. surprised the Japanese naval forces and sunk four of their aircraft carriers. This battle was important because it turned the tide of the war in the Pacific in favor of the U.S. and set the stage for the Island Hopping Campaign that would ultimately help win the war.
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The invasion of North Africa was launched to free the Mediterranean Sea from German control and protect the oil fields in the Middle East. The Soviet’s fierce resistance to the Germans at Stalingrad turned the tide on the eastern front. Italy surrendered, but German troops continued to fight in Italy, which tied up Allied troops. This is important because this helped free the Mediterranean Sea from Germany's control and opened up another front that the Germans would have to counter.
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On June 6, 1944, the Allies launched the D-Day Invasion of France in order to open up a western front in Europe. The invasion of Normandy proved successful and provided the Allies their long-awaited western front. This was important because Germany was now engaged on three fronts & had to divert resources to the eastern front in the Soviet Union, a southern front in Italy, & a western front in France. This is was the beginning of the end for Germany.
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This was the last major German offensive and led to the end of the war for the Nazis. Military forces marched to Berlin to crush the Nazis. This leads to the post-war division of Berlin and Cold War tension. This is important because this was the last major effort by Germany and signified their inevitable defeat.
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Korematsu was a Japanese American who refused to leave his home per the Exec. Order (9066). FDR issued the order in regards to Japanese Americans and resident aliens. This was important because it brought the issue of internment camps to the Supreme Court. The court upheld and ruled Japanese internment as constitutional.
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This was a conference between Churchill, FDR, and Stalin. These were the final plans for the defeat of the Axis Powers in Europe & began a discussion of post-war European Plans. This is important because it set the stage for victory in Europe and the post-war plans for the continent.
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Truman decided to drop atomic bombs in Japan on Hiroshima (Aug 6, 1945) and Nagasaki (Aug 9. 1945). He determined that this action was necessary to prevent the loss of up to one million more American lives. It would negate the requirement to land and fight on the Japanese home islands (which would result in too many American lives lost). This is important because this ended the war.
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This organization was made in order to promote international cooperation and to create and maintain international order. The United Nations was largely based on the League of Nations, which was originally proposed by Woodrow Wilson. This is important because this helped maintain international order following WWII.
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These trials followed WWII and prosecuted Nazi officers, soldiers, and civilians for war crimes against humanity. This established the precedent that individuals are responsible for their own actions for future trials on war crimes. This did not bring an end to genocide. This is important because these trials brought a precedent to individuals that they are responsible for their actions, even if they were "just following orders."
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This pledged to contain communism in Europe. It was first applied when the United States supplied military and financial aid to Greece and Turkey to resist the communist-backed rebel forces there. This is important because it contained communism in Europe.
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This plan was proposed by George Marshall when he saw that economically unstable countries in Europe could have chosen to use communism as their economic system. To prevent this, the US offered financial aid to promote economic rebuilding. This is important because it deterred many war-torn European nations from choosing communism and aligning with the Soviet Union.
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The US supported the self-determination of the Jewish people with the creation of the Jewish state of Israel. This demonstrates the impact of German war crimes on the conscience of the US & the world. This is important because Israel was established.
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The first test of US policy by the Soviet Union came when the Soviets blockaded Berlin. The US won this first Cold War confrontation with the Berlin Airlift. The US supplied the people of Berlin with food, water, and other supplies via airdrops. This is important because it was a strategic victory for the US and a boon for capitalism in the face of the communist USSR.
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The US establish NATO, which established a military alliance aimed at the Soviet Union. Later, the Soviet Union established the Warsaw Pact. This is important because it established a military alliance that still stands today and was a successful counter to communists threats.
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The Soviet Union tested an atomic bomb. This led the United States to accelerate the development of the hydrogen bomb and began a nuclear arms race. This is important because this raised tensions even more between the US and USSR during the Cold War.
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Communist North Korea invaded South Korea. The United Nations voted unanimously to demand a ceasefire and support ‘police action’ to defend South Korea. Peace negotiations ended with North Korean forces contained above the 38th parallel, a victory for containment. This is important because it stopped the spread of communism and established a border between the communist North and free South Korea that still stands today.
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President Eisenhower intervened in the Suez Crisis in 1956. This extended containment to the Middle East (Eisenhower Doctrine). Israeli troops push into Egypt towards the Suez Canal after Egypt nationalized it. This is important because it extended containment to the Middle East.
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The space race took off when the Soviet Union launched Sputnik. The launching of this satellite by the Soviets acted as a "wake up" call to the US and showed that the USSR was as technologically advanced as the Americans. It prodded the US to advance their space technology and put the Americans on a course to get a man on the moon by the end of the 1960s. The launching of Sputnik was important because it escalated the urgency of the space race.
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This act promoted science and math skills to a nation that seemed to be declining in its skillsets. It counteracted the fear that consumerism had made Americans less competitive and less likely to win the arms race. This is important because it recognized a negative trend in necessary skills and emphasized a renewal of those skills in order to remain competitively dominant.
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Germany was divided after World War II into the East (Soviet zone) and West (Allied zones). The Berlin Wall became a symbol of the Cold War to separate East & West Germany and keep people of the eastern bloc from escaping to freedom in the west through Berlin. This is important because divided Germany into two and firmly established a line between the free capitalists and oppressed communists.
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The Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan in December of 1979. In order to counter the Soviet effort, the US supported the Afghan resistance movement. The Soviets withdrew and Afghan rebel groups evolved into the Taliban. This is important because it ended in defeat for the Soviet Union and demonstrated that the communists were not as militarily dominant as originally perceived. It also contributed to the eventual collapse of the communists' economic system and the fall of the Berlin Wall.
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In November of 1989, the communists conceded that the people from East Germany should begin to have to same freedoms as the people of West Germany. As a result, the Berlin Wall was broken down and communism was beginning to see its final days. The Fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 considered to be the end of the Cold War. The Soviet Union eventually collapsed in 1991. This is important because this was the end of the Soviet Union.