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AP US History World War 2 Flashcards

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5464225867Neutrality Actlaw that kept the US out of WW20
5464225868Lend Lease Actlaw that said the US can give or sell arms to other nations for the protection of the US from those countries1
5464225869America 1st Committeegroup that favored US neutrality or isolationism2
5464225870Fascismform of government that glorifies the state over the individual; demands a strong central government3
5464225871Totalitarian Statea government that controls all aspects of the people4
5464225872Inflationthe rate of increase in costs5
5464225874Adolf Hitlerfascist chancellor of Germany; started the rise of the Nazi Party; broke the Versailles Treaty and pretty much started WW26
5464225875NAZINationalist Socialist German Workers' Party; party those rose to power in Germany; led by Adolf Hitler7
5464225876GestapoHitler's personal army; would eventually become the SS8
5464225877Reichstagthe government building (kind of like the White House and Capitol Building combined) that Hitler attacked and got arrested9
5464225878Mein KampfHitler's book that is titled "My Struggle"; details his beliefs and what he would do when he gets to power; illustrates his hatred of the Jews, German imperialism; every German family had a copy but never read it10
5464225881Enabling Actlaw that gave Hitler ultimate power to disregard any and every law in order to fix the economy; his approval rate increased due to his success in boosting the economy11
5464225882Nuremburg Lawslaws that banned Jews from German citizenship; targets were identified (Jews had to wear the yellow Star of David)12
5464225883appeasementa compromise where 1 side gets something13
5464225884German Soviet Non-Aggression Pactdeal between Russia and Germany that split Poland in half; Germany takes west and Russia takes east14
5464225885blitzkrieg"lightning war"; tactic to go in with as much force as you can (airforce and tanks)15
5464225886Maginot Lineseries of defenses France put up along the border of Germany; consisted of trenches and bunkers; 60% of France became occupied in less than 1 month16
5464225887Puppet Governmenta government that is controlled by an outside force17
5464225888Rape of Nankingthe capital of China was invaded by the Japanese; over 50% of the people that lived there were killed either by torture, killing competitions, or rape18
5464225889Blockade of Japanimpact of the rape of Nanking; the US decided to impose this as well as an embargo to ensure that Japan never hit anyone else like that ever again19
5464225891USS Arizonaonly ship in Pearl Harbor that was not able to be salvaged and repaired; 1,177 men died in this explosion; sunk in 9 minutes; bomb hit engine and artillery room20
5464225892Doolittle's Raid1st US raid on Tokyo; showed the US that we were going to come back from Pearl Harbor and fight21
5464225893Pearl HarborJapan's bombing of the US Pacific Ocean naval base; hit us hardcore; December 7th, 194122
5464225895Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC)program that paid factories to change to produce war products23
5464225896Cost Plus Programprogram that paid for materials and the finished product that companies made for the war effort24
5464225897Ration Cardsthese limited what a person could buy; this ensured that there were enough resources for the war25
5464225898scrap drivepeople would donate their scraps of metal for the war effort26
5464225899victory gardensgardens that people would grow because of the ration cards; if there was a surplus of food, they would donate the extra to the war effort27
5464225900GI Billthis paid vets to go to college and would provide housing28
5464225901Navajo "Code Talkers"these people would talk in the Navajo language since it was not a written language; this was useful as the Axis Powers could not translate the code29
5464225902Tuskegee Air Mengroup of all black fighter pilots; their job was to protect big bombers; flew over 200 missions and never lost a bomber; Eleanor Roosevelt convinced her husband to put them into combat30
5464225903442nd Regimentcombat team that was made up of Asians that volunteered for the military to show their loyalty to America; most decorated combat team in US history; fought in Italy and France31
5464225904Executive Order 9066order given by FDR that made all Japanese people live in internment camps32
5464225905internment campscamps in the US designed to hold people of Japanese descent33
5464225906D-Daybattle on the beaches of Normandy; June 6th, 1944; largest amphibious invasion in the history of the world; also known as Operation Overlord34
5464225907General Eisenhowerman who planned the D-Day invsion; hand delivered several thousand letters that he personally addressed that explained to the soldiers exactly their jobs for the invasion35
5464225908Atlantic Sea WallGermany's defense wall on the French coast; 4 million land mines36
5464225910101st airbornegroup of paratroopers that were elite; their job was to take out the German machine guns and tanks behind enemy lines37
5464225911Arsenal of Democracyweapons that were used to fight the Fascists; US gave weapons to democratic nations and Russia38
5464225912Destroyer Dealthe deal in which the US gave 50 destroyers to Great Britain in exchange for 8 UK bases39
5464225913Tehran Conferencemeeting between Stalin, Churchill, and Roosevelt; the Big 3 agreed to focus on Germany and then Japan; 1st meeting of the Big 340
5464225917Battle of the BulgeHitler's last offensive battle; over 10,000 US troops surrendered; Patton drove over 102 miles in 2 days to help support Allied lines; Russia eventually came in and helped41
5464225918Yalta Conference2nd conference of the Big 3; they decided what to do with Germany after the war; Churchill and FDR wanted to work with Germany; Stalin=burn/crush Germany; Stalin demanded a buffer between Germany and Russia, aka Poland42
5464225919Pottsdam Conferencelast conference of the Big 3; Prime Minister Clement, President Truman, and Stalin; debated about what to do with Germany; Truman told Stalin about the nuclear bomb43
5464225920VE DayMay 8th, 1945; Victory in Europe Day; millions of Jews move to Israel and make it a country44
5464225921Nuremberg Trialsevent where the Nazis (mostly concentration camp workers) were put on trial for crimes against humanity; these went on for over a year; several Nazis were executed, some committed suicide, and some escaped to Argentina45
5464225923Tojocommander of all Japanese forces; tried to kill himself with an American gun and lived because an American medic saved him; later put on trial and executed; responsible for demanding the Pearl Harbor attack46
5464225924Douglas MacArthurUS commander of the Pacific; "We are not retreating - we are advancing in another direction" (what a lame coverup)47
5464225925Bataan Death Marchevent in which the Japanese marched US POWs to labor camps; they marched over 60 miles in the blazing Filipino summer; there were 80,000 soldiers that were captured48
5464225926Island hoppingthe US tactic of taking over little islands bit by bit to get close enough to bomb Japan49
5464225927Battle of Midwaybattle that was 100% naval; midway between the US and Asia; 6 months after Pearl Harbor; turning point of the war in the Pacific; US cracked the Japanese radio code; US found out about the attack on midway and sneak attacked with aircraft carriers; result was that the Japanese fleet was no longer a threat in the war50
5464225929KamikazeJapanese suicide bombers; they added extra explosives, extra gas, and carried a short sword to take their life51
5464225930Bonzai Chargefamous attack in which the soldiers attached bayonets and charged the enemy while yelling "Long live the Emporer!" in Japanese52
5464225931Iwo Jimabattle that took place on a volcanic island; Japanese hid and traveled through cave and tunnel networks; this was where the famous Flag Raising photograph was taken53
5464225932Marinesmain US force in the Pacific; only branch that has been in every major conflict54
5464225933Battle of Okinawalargest amphibious assault in the Pacific; more people were killed than Hiroshima and Nagasaki and most casualties were civilians55
5464225934Harry S Truman33rd President of the US; succeeded FDR when he died; known for being a Moderate Democrat56
5464225935Fire bombingtactic that is essentially napalm; US did this to Japan and ended up destroying 50% of the country; we only lost about 240 airmen in the attacks57
5464225936Manhattan Projectthis event's objective was to create the atomic bomb; had to split an atom in a controlled manner; Einstein came to the US and helped; thousands of scientists came to help; cost $2 billion to make 1 bomb; located in Los Alamos, New Mexico58
5464225937Major General Grovesmilitary leader of the Manhattan project; created and designed the Pentagon; organzied and ensured efficiency in the project59
5464225938Dr. Oppenheimerscientific leader of the Manhattan project; became obsessed with his work and could not handle stress very well; devastated at the results of dropping the bombs; "I am become death, the destroyer of worlds"60
5464225940Tinian Islandthe island the bombers took off of to bomb Japan61
5464225941Little Boythe uranium bomb; 1st bomb of its kind to be used in combat; dropped on Hiroshima62
5464225942Paul Tibbetsman who flew the plane that dropped Little Boy; named his plane, the Enola Gay, after his mother63
5464225943HiroshimaAugust 6th, 1945; Little Boy was dropped and killed 70,000 immediately and then twice that much by radiation and cancer; was targeted because of its poor defense and high population64
5464225944Fat Manthe plutonium bomb; surrounded by smaller and slower explosives; the US only had enough plutonium to make 1 bomb; we didn't know if it would work or not but decided to go with it anyways; this bomb was two times stronger than the uranium bomb but killed half as many65
5464225945Nagasakiplace where Fat Man was dropped; US dropped warning pamphlets 3 days before dropping the bomb; 40,000 people were killed; most of the shock was absorbed in the hills and mountains; this place has a higher radiation poisoning66
5464225946VJ DaySeptember 2nd, 1945; the Japanese surrender and marked the end of the war; japan has never had a military since; the unofficial surrender was 6 days after Nagasaki67
5464225947Japanese War Crime Trialsevent where many Japanese leaders were put on trial; General Tojo was put on trials; many were tried for the Rape of Nanking as well as bio chemical experiments68
5464225948Bio-chemical experimentswhat the Japanese performed on POWs; purpose was to develop more harmful weapons using nature69
5464225949German Soviet Non-Aggression Pactthe agreement between Germany and Russia to split Poland70
5464225950V Vvictory in Europe, victory at home; black civil rights movement during the war. The Double V campaign bolstered the spirits of black soldiers and strengthened African American commitments to fighting for equal rights.71
5464787015Spheres Of InfluenceWhen a country has a geographical influence, like America to Southern American countries72
5464804667Bloca group of nations with similar interests, like the European countries under the influence of communism from Stalin.73

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