World War II

World War II started in September 1939 when German troops invaded Poland. It evolved into an international conflict involving sixty-one countries. Over 100 million people were mobilized for military service in four geographic regions across the globe: Europe, Asia, Africa, and the South Pacific. The war left 55 million people dead (30 million civilians and 25 million soldiers), cost over one trillion dollars, and resulted in more material destruction than any other armed conflict in history.

Although the war was fought across the world in many countries, a few powers led efforts on both sides. Those who joined, or were forced to join, Germany became known as the Axis Powers. They were led by German dictator Adolf Hitler (1889–1945), Italian dictator Benito Mussolini (1883–1945), and Japanese prime minister Hideki Tojo (1884–1948). The Axis Powers also included Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania, and others.

The opposing countries became known as the Allied Powers, or Allies . They were led primarily by U.S. president Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882–1945; served 1933–45), British prime minister Winston Churchill (1874–1965), and Soviet premier Joseph Stalin (1873–1953). Among many others, Canada, Australia, France, and China joined the efforts of the Allies.

In the years following World War I (1914–18), the United States had become increasingly isolated from the activities of European nations and other countries. Despite Americans' desire to remain uninvolved in world currents, the United States was drawn into World War II in 1941. The war posed great challenges for the nation even as it brought economic benefits and increased international power.

Evolution of a world war

The world conflict evolved throughout the 1930s as countries across the globe took various aggressive steps. In 1931, the Japanese invaded and occupied Manchuria, China, to obtain raw materials needed to support their industrial economy. In 1937 Japan launched efforts to control the entire Chinese mainland.

Mussolini had come to power in Italy in 1922 with extreme ambitions. Hoping to restore the Roman Empire, he invaded Ethiopia in 1935.

In Germany, the National Socialists (Nazis) came to power in 1933 under Hitler. He promised that he would restore the country to its position of leadership in Europe, a position it had lost after its defeat in World War I. Hitler's forces reoccupied the Rhineland (area along the Rhine River, which since Germany's defeat in 1918 had been a demilitarized area) in March 1936; annexed (forced a union with) Austria in March 1938; and then seized Czechoslovakia, one portion in October 1938 and the rest in March 1939.

The world stood by without taking military action until 1939, when Germany invaded Poland. Both Britain and France had made promises to maintain Polish independence, so they declared war against Germany. The United States, however, would refrain from direct support of any country until Japan's attack on the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor , Hawaii, in 1941.

From isolationism to involvement

With the memory of World War I still fresh, Americans preferred a policy of total noninvolvement and neutrality in world affairs. The result was the passage of several laws designed to avoid U.S. involvement in any conflict. The laws also limited America's ability to assist nations facing acts of aggression.

The Johnson Debt Default Act of 1934, for example, prohibited loans to any country that had not yet repaid debts to the United States from World War I (which meant to any country except Finland). Congress enacted the Neutrality Act in 1935 when Italy invaded Ethiopia. Originally this law only prohibited arms shipments to warring nations and travel by U.S. citizens on belligerent vessels. In 1936 Congress added a provision forbidding loans or credit to nations at war. As tensions increased and war began in September 1939, the United States was not in a position to lend public support, even if the public had wanted to do so.

Eventually Roosevelt persuaded Congress to make some changes in policy. The Neutrality Act of 1939 authorized the sale of arms to those nations who could pay cash and were able to transport the goods by their own means. By 1940, after Germany invaded France, Congress had increased taxes and the national debt limit to enable greater defense spending. Officially the United States was not yet at war, but the country was preparing for it.

Another piece of legislation that Roosevelt pushed for was the Lend-Lease Act , passed in March 1941. It enabled the U.S. to “lend” resources (specifically arms) to another country with the expectation that these resources would be “returned” at a later date. Though originally intended to assist Britain, which was under siege, the aid would soon be extended to thirty-eight nations. Through this indirect means, the United States

managed to avoid entering the war yet still made an important contribution to the Allied cause.

Then the war came home. On December 7, 1941, the Japanese attacked and severely crippled the American naval fleet in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Americans were immediately drawn into the war, and Congress declared war on Japan on December 8. Italy and Germany then declared war on the United States on December 11.

With military confrontations in both Europe and Asia, the United States needed to expand and reorganize its military rapidly. Most citizens became involved in the war effort to assure that enough supplies for the troops were produced as quickly as possible. President Roosevelt, along with Churchill and Stalin, worked to develop strategies to end the aggressions of the Axis nations.

The war in Europe

In the spring of 1940, Germany swept through Europe. Norway, Denmark, Belgium, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands all fell to Germany. By June, France was overtaken and Hitler was attempting to overrun Britain with attacks by both sea and air.

Though Britain managed to hand Germany its first significant defeat, Hitler merely changed course. His troops invaded Russia in June 1941, taking the Russians by surprise. Given the desperate situation in Europe when America entered the war, Roosevelt agreed to focus attention first on Germany and Italy. Japan could be taken care of when Europe was safe.

Amidst the fighting, Hitler had begun a program of ethnic cleansing, known as the Holocaust , that targeted Jews, primarily, and other groups. Five to six million people were forced from their homes, imprisoned in labor, or concentration, camps, and then murdered. Hitler sought Aryan, or non-Jewish Caucasian, domination.

American forces joined the Allied troops first in Africa, where they began with a string of victories under General Dwight D. Eisenhower (1890–1969). The Allied strategy was to chase the Axis armies out of Africa, remove them from the Italian island of Sicily, and slowly push them out of the Italian mainland. In 1943 Mussolini was removed from office by the King of Italy, who surrendered to the Allies that September.

The Germans, who were trying to take Russia in 1941, were severely crippled by the Russian winter. Many troops retreated or were captured, and from 1942 to 1943 Hitler attempted to reinvigorate his campaign there. The Russians, however, managed to drive the German forces back across Poland by the end of 1943.

The most aggressive and costly Allied offensive was made in June 1944. General Eisenhower led Operation Overlord, the largest amphibious assault in history. The Allies took more than a year to plan it.

In the early hours of June 6, 1944, a day now called D-Day , 5,000 ships, 10,000 planes, and 176,000 soldiers crossed the English Channel and landed in Normandy, on the northwest coast of France. The intense

fighting in the Battle of Normandy opened Europe to the Allies, who brought a million troops over the next month through the beaches of Normandy. Over the course of that summer, the Allies pushed the Germans back across France and Belgium.

The Battle of the Bulge took place in December 1944, at the German border, where the Allies pushed on and crossed into Germany. With the Allied offensive pushing the Germans back on three fronts, the German army finally collapsed. An unconditional surrender came from Germany on May 7, 1945. A month before, on April 12, President Roosevelt had died, and his vice president, Harry S. Truman (1884–1972; served 1945–53), had become president.

The Pacific theater

The Japanese aggressively invaded the islands of the Pacific, taking hostile action against U.S. forces stationed there. The United States, however, was focusing on Europe, so it initially did not launch attacks in the Pacific. General Douglas MacArthur (1880–1964) was instead ordered to retreat from the Philippines to Australia to protect it from invasion.

With only a limited number of troops, MacArthur skillfully defended Australia. Although he was commanded merely to contain the situation, MacArthur decided to push the Japanese back through islands it had taken. By 1944 he added air and sea power to assist his ground troops. By March 1945 MacArthur had managed to push the Japanese back far enough to clear an invasion of Japan itself.

After Germany surrendered in 1945, MacArthur received the long-awaited support of U.S. forces, and attacks on Japan were devastating. Japan, however, refused to surrender. On August 6, 1945, President Truman authorized the dropping of an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, killing 75,000 people. When Japan still refused to surrender, the United States dropped another atomic bomb, on August 9, this time on Nagasaki, killing 39,000 people. On August 14, 1945, Japan agreed to surrender.

Participation on the Home Front

With so many American men drafted and serving overseas, life in the United States changed dramatically. All citizens were expected to do their part to support the war effort. Manufacturing and military supply needs created a demand for workers that was filled by unprecedented numbers of women and minorities. Rations were imposed on everything from sugar to rubber to gasoline. Hollywood made movies that encouraged the war effort. Families had to pull together through food shortages, increased taxes, and long lines at the gas station to support family members and friends at war.

Victory

The United States played an essential role in the outcome of World WarII. Its sustained production of supplies for the Allied armies enabled the troops to continue fighting in situations in which the enemies lacked support. The U.S. military leaders displayed extraordinary skills and strategies, while the troops they led fought with courage and determination. The willingness of Americans at home to work and sacrifice to give the troops all they needed also contributed to victory. With victory came a booming U.S. economy and the nation's new status as a world superpower.