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Mussolini founds Fascist party
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Mussolini consildates gov control, calls self "Il Duce"
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Lenin dies, Stalin becomes head of Communist party
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Kellogg-Briand Pact
Outlaws war as instrument of national policy. Inneffective. -
Douglas MacArthur
Sent by Hoover to force the Bonus Army to leave. -
Hitler's empire begins
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Hitler becomes Chancellor
Goes on to presidency, is unchecked by Reichstag -
Quarantine Speech
Given by Roosevelt, pushing to quarantine the "contagion" of war -
Munich Pact
Sacrifices Sudetenland to preserve peace. Lasted 11 months before Hitler broke it. -
Neutrality Act of 1939
Allows nations to buy arms in US if paid in cash and carried on own ships. -
Non-aggression Pact
Between Hitler/Russia, agreeing not to attack each other. -
Blitzkrieg
"Lightning war", during which Poland was taken. -
Economics
War Bonds: saved income and invested in war.
Rationing: coupon books limited the amount of certain goods people could buy.
Great Migration: Many African Americans moved North, some running from racial prejudice in the South, other running towards economic advancement.
Rosie the Riveter: Gave Americans an image of women in wartime production. -
Winston Churchill
"We shall go on to the end. [...] [W]e shall never surrender."
"[W]ars are not won by evacuations." -
Selective Service Act
Peacetime draft allowing the military training of 1.2 million troops and 800,000 reserve troops per year -
Four Freedoms Speech
Focusing on freedom of speech, freedom of worship, freedom from want, and freedom from fear -
Lend-Lease Act
Allows Roosevelt to sell, transfer title to, exchange, lease, lend or otherwise dispose of to any government any defensive article. -
Attack on Pearl Harbor
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Japanese Internment
Japanese separated from each other, sectioned off out of fear from Pearl Harbor attack -
War Production Board
Oversaw movement from peacetime industry to wartime industry. -
Chester Nimitz
Commander of US Navy in Pacific who had Japanese battle plans with which we won the Battle of Midway. -
Battle of Midway
Turning point of the war in Pacific, ending Japanese advance, Won because Chester Nimitz had Japanese plans. -
Women's Army Corps
Provided clerical workers, truck drivers, instructors, and lab technicians for US Army -
Casablance Meeting
Roosevelt and Churchill met Casablancca, Morroco, to plan next move. They decided to:
1) Increase bombing of Germany and invade Italy
2) Announce the allies would only accept unconditional surrender -
George S. Patton, Jr.
"Now, suppose you lose a hand or an ear is shot off, or perhaps a piece of your nose, and you think you should take a walk back to get first aid. If I see you, it will be the kast [...] walk you'll ever take." -
Stalingrad
German troops surrender after grueling battle against Soviet troops in Stalingrad. Turning point of war in Europe. -
Tehran Conference
Roosevelt and Churchill meet up with Stalin to discuss invasion. -
Korematsu v. US
Japanese fighting for their rights. US upholds internment -
Island-Hopping Strategy
Capturing some islands held by Japanese forces while ignoring others to create a pathway to Japan. -
GI Bill of Rights
Granted war vets benefits. These included a year of unemployment pay to any that couldn't find work, financial aid for any that went to college, and entitled them to government loans for building homes and starting businesses. -
D-Day (Operation Overlord)
Allies attack Germany.
11,000 planes attempt to destroy German communication and transportation networks and weaken Nazi beach defense. -
Battle of the Bulge
Hitler's counterattack, named for it's creating a bulge in American lines and capturing several important towns. -
Hitler's empire ends
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Iwo Jima
Heavy battle during the island-hopping. 23,000 casualties in 36 days. -
Okinawa
Heavier fighting than Iwo Jima, Okinawa held an important air base needed for the invasion of Japan.
It was the hardest fight of the island-hopping campaign, using 500,000 troops 1,213 warships. The US took Okinawa with approximately 50,000 casualties. -
V-E Day(Victory in Europe)
Germany surrenders in a small French schoolhouse that had served as Eisenhower's headquarters. -
Potsdam Conference
The "Big Three" splits Germany into four segments for occupation: Soviet, American, British, and French. They agreed to new borders and free elections for Poland, and they recognized the Soviets' right to claim reparations for war damages from the German sector they controlled. -
ManHattan Project/Atomic Bomb
The Manhattan Project was the code name for the development of the atmoic bomb. On July 16, the atom bomb was successfully tested, light being visible from 180 miles away and audible at 100.
J. Robert Oppenheimer was one of the two main leaders of the project. When the bomb successfully exploded, Oppenheimer quoted a line from a Hindu poem: "Now I am become Death, the destroyer of Worlds." -
V-J Day(Victory in Japan)
The Allies celebrate victory over Japan, the emporer finally deciding to surrender after two Atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. -
Emporer Hirohito Surrenders
Emporer Hirohito surrenders after two atomic bombs are dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki -
Nuremberg Trials
The Nuremberg Trials were a series of legal cases in which the Allies prosecuted Nazis for war crimes. -
Levittown
Developer William Levitt purchased a large amount of land, and constructed thousands of homes for war veterans, selling them at slightly under eight thousand dollars each. -
Peak of Baby Boom
Convinced that all would be easier with the war over, many people began starting families.
At the peak of the baby boom, one child was born every 7 seconds, cumulating in a total of 4.3 million at the end of the year.