World War II CHAPTER 15. Section 1: The Allies Turn the Tide The Axis powers do not have a coordinated strategy to defeat the Allies Hitler wanted.

World War IICHAPTER 15

Section 1:The Allies Turn the Tide

The Axis powers do not have a coordinated strategy to defeat the Allies

Hitler wanted to dominate Europe and eliminate “inferior” peoples

Mussolini harbored dreams of an Italian empire from the eastern Adriatic Sea to East Africa

Tojo wanted Japanese control of the Western Pacific and Asia

The Allies unify their strategy and decide to take a “Europe First” approach, making sure that until Hitler was defeated, the Pacific would be a secondary priority

Section 1:The Allies Turn the Tide

The Battle of Stalingrad: The starting point of Hitler’s plan invade the Soviet Union and then take over all of Europe

Soviet forces trapped Nazi troops and the Nazi armies were forced to retreat

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qd_Wt4N1Sss

Photo on page 467 in textbook

Allies then go to North Africa to force the Germans out of this area

American officer General Dwight Eisenhower (known as Ike), commanded the Allied invasion of North Africa

Section 1:The Allies Turn the Tide

Allied forces struggled fighting in desert conditions and needed aggressive officers and troops better trained for desert fighting

Read “Focus on Geography” on page 468

Eisenhower put American forces in North Africa under the command of George S. Patton, Jr.

Patton was known as “Blood and Guts Patton”

Read quote from Patton on page 469

“You usually will know where the front is by the sound of gunfire, and that’s the direction you should proceed. Now, suppose you lose a hand or an ear is shot off, or perhaps a piece of your nose, and you think you should walk back to get first aid. If I see you, it will be the last…..walk you’ll ever take” –George S. Patton, Jr. 1943

George S. Patton Video Clips

http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/george-smith-patton/videos/george-s-patton

Section 1:The Allies Turn the Tide

Germany was now on the defensive and the Allies wanted to keep it that way

Roosevelt and Churchill met in Casablanca, Morocco to plan their next move

Two important decisions were made: To increase the bombing of Germany and to invade Italy

The Allies invaded Sicily and then moved on to mainland Italy

After 38 days, Italy surrendered and the rule of Benito Mussolini came to an end

However, Hitler was not through with Italy

Section 1:The Allies Turn the Tide

Hitler rescued Mussolini from a mountain top fortress in Italy

Hitler then installed Mussolini as head of a puppet state in Northern Italy

In the southern part of Italy, German forces continued to fight against the Allies

Although the fighting continued in Italy until 1945, neither side gained ground due to heavy rains, mountain snow, and the criss-crossing rivers which made combat extremely difficult

Section 1:The Allies Turn the Tide

In early 1942 nonstop bombing attacks were launched on German cities

The attacks took place at night in order for the British planes to avoid being shot down

The goal of this “saturation bombing” was to inflict maximum damage on the Germans

During the day, American bombers targeted Germany’s key political and industrial centers

This was known as “strategic bombing”

An African-American fighter squadron, known as the Tuskegee Airmen, played a key role in this bombing campaign

Section 1:The Allies Turn the Tide

The Tuskegee Airmen escorted bombers and protected them from enemy fighter planes

They flew more than 1,500 missions over enemy territory in Europe, and they never lost a single bomber

This bombing mission cost the Allied forces dearly Bomber crews suffered an incredibly high 20% casualty

rate This bombing campaign paved the way for an all-out

Allied offensive Infographic on pages 470-471

Bombing Campaign in Germany

http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=bombing%20of%20germany%20wwii&qs=n&form=QBVR&pq=bombing%20of%20germany%20wwii&sc=2-23&sp=-1&sk=#view=detail&mid=68692E8D71E42DA0938C68692E8D71E42DA0938C

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l_RctYbl1v8

Section 1:The Allies Turn the Tide

Although the Allies were pursuing their “Europe First” strategy, they did not forget about what was going on in the Pacific

The Japanese continued to have unstoppable momentum

They had attacked American, British and Dutch colonies, winning control of several areas including The Philippines, Hong Kong and Guam

Admiral Yamamoto, commander of the Japanese naval forces in the Pacific had a plan to take over Midway, an American naval base in the Central Pacific that was the vital defense to Hawaii

Losing Midway would then force American defenses back to the California coast

Yamamoto also planned to establish a Japanese military presence in the Aleutians, a string of Islands in Alaska

Section 1:The Allies Turn the Tide

Luckily, US Navy code breakers intercepted the Japanese plan and the US Navy was ready!

The Japanese launched their attack on June 4, 1942; however, they lost the battle, as well as many of its most experienced pilots and aircraft

The US lost only one aircraft carrier

The battle of Midway was the turning point of the war in the Pacific, as it stopped the Japanese advance

Although Japan maintained a powerful navy, never again would they threaten Hawaii or dominate the Pacific

Japan was now on the defensive

The Battle of Midway

http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=battle+of+midway+video&FORM=VIRE9#view=detail&mid=F8DE54E59801C78E7591F8DE54E59801C78E7591

Section 1:The Allies Turn the Tide

The US was now on the offensive

They first American offensive strike took place with an assault on Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands

Read “Witness to History” on page 466

After 3 months of fighting, US Marines drove the Japanese off the Island

Guadalcanal was the first leg in a US strategy to approach Japan on two fronts

In the jungles, during monsoons and in the blistering sun, American servicemen began their slow painful trek toward Japan