View
222
Download
0
Category
Preview:
DESCRIPTION
Background – cont’ 2. Imperialistic Expansion and Military Takeover 1931 – Japanese Army invaded Manchuria without the consent of the Japanese government Military – planned to terrorize the civilian gov. and force the country to accept martial law when the military takes over and creates their own laws to govern civilian affairs (usually in time of war or civil crisis); overrides civil law Prime Minister assassinated Followed by vicious in-fighting between factions of the army Hit squads sent to kill major political leaders
Citation preview
World War Two
The Pacific Theatre
Background1. Militarism in Japan
In 1920s – two main factions developed in Japan – divided between the civilian government and Military
Japan’s military very strong Had advantages over civilian
government, i.e. organization & weapons to impose will
Wanted Imperialistic Expansion
Japanese Army acted without government consent or approval
Background – cont’2. Imperialistic Expansion and Military Takeover
1931 – Japanese Army invaded Manchuria without the consent of the Japanese government
Military – planned to terrorize the civilian gov. and force the country to accept martial law
when the military takes over and creates their own laws to govern civilian affairs (usually in time of war or civil crisis); overrides civil law
Prime Minister assassinated Followed by vicious in-fighting
between factions of the army Hit squads sent to kill major political
leaders
Background – cont’3. How USA Became a Target
When France fell to NAZIS in 1940
Japan quickly occupied most of French Indo-China
American President Roosevelt responded by freezing Japanese assets in American banks
Roosevelt also refused to sell Japan any more oil or scraps of metal – needed desperately for war industries
Cut off from major supplies – Japanese military commanders insisted war with USA only solution
4. Pearl Harbour – December 7, 1941
Surprise attack by Japan on American naval base in Pearl Harbour, Hawaii
Devised by the brilliant naval commander Admiral Yamamoto Isoroku
Intended to give Japanese Navy control of the Pacific in preparation for future attacks
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Im5ILUjH5o&feature=related
Pearl Harbour – cont’
Hitler declared war on USA in support of Japan
USA declared war on Germany
Canada declared war on Japan
Britain finally got the ally it needed
Dec 8, 1941 – USA and Britain declared war on Japan
Pearl Harbour – cont’
Pearl Harbour – cont’
“A day the will live in infamy”
19 ships were destroyed or disabled 150 planes lost 2400 military personnel and civilians killed The Japanese were largely successful in
surprising the USA; however, they failed to cripple the American Navy – 3 US aircraft carriers were at sea and would play a key role in the War in the Pacific.
5. Canadians at Hong Kong - 1941
Canadians were sent to fight the Japanese in the British colony of Hong Kong
1st time Canadians saw active battle in WWII
5. Canadians at Hong Kong – cont’
Troops faced impossible task forced to surrender after 17 days
of fighting on Christmas Day, 1941, when supplies & ammo ran out
500 Canadian soldiers wounded 290 killed Most – captured and put into
Japanese Prisoner of War (POW) camps and treated very harshly
267 Canadian POWs died in camps
Turning the Tide in the Pacific Battle of the Coral Sea (4-8 May 1942)•Japanese desire Port Moresby, New Guinea
• Vital Allied base (Australia)• Naval battle fought with aircraft• First time two fleets fought without
being within sight of each other• Draw – Inhibits Japanese invasion
force
Battle of Midway (4-7 June 1942)•Japanese to engage US carrier force•4 Japanese vs. 3 American carriers
• USS Yorktown, by now, repaired•Jap. Fleet move toward Midway•US Naval Intelligence breaks Jap. code•In bombing Midway, Jap. Fleet caught unawares
The Road to Tokyo – American Advance on JapanRoute I: MacArthur: S.W. Pacific, New Guinea & Philippines Route II: Nimitz: Gilbert, Marshal Is., Mariana & Iwo Jima
Island Hopping (1942-1945)•the idea of taking key islands, rather than all•using each island as a staging point for the next brutal, often fanatical resistance by Japanese
Battle of Leyte Gulf (23-26 Oct. 1944)•Jap. Navy’s last stand•US Pacific Fleet•200+ ships
• 17 carriers, 12 battleships, 1500 planes
•Japanese Fleet•70 ships
• 4 carriers, 9 battleships, 200 planes
•‘Kamikaze’ dive-bombers
Iwo Jima and Okinawa By the Spring of 1945, US forces had
captured Iwo Jima and Okinawa, two Japanese islands just south of the Japanese homeland.
Iwo Jima 216 of 21 000 Japanese soldiers are taken alive US suffers 24 800 casualties of 110 000 troops
Okinawa US suffers 62 000 casualties (40 000 killed) Over 100 000 Japanese combatants killed
Final Stages of WarUS ‘Strategic Bombing’ of Japan (1944-45)•B-29 Superfortress
• 1500km range• 90% of bombs dropped
•Major urban centres selected• Most cities built of wood/paper• ‘precision’ bombing impossible
•Night-time ‘firebombing’•500 000 Japanese deaths•5 000 000 homeless
** See Fog of War – cities Firebombedhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYxXFwIPGHk
Final Stages of the WarManhattan Project
Secret, expensive plan to develop Atomic weapons
Los Alamos, New Mexico (1945)Truman’s decision
June 1, 1945 – US Secretary of War recommended that the bombs be dropped without prior warning on Japanese military targets in an urban setting
Prominent scientists disagreed – urged giving the Japanese a demonstration explosion over an isolated area, using the bomb only as a last resort
Truman rejected their views as “impractical” and made the “military decision” to shorten the war and save American lives
http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/trinity-test/videos/manhattan-project
Einstein & Leo Szilard
‘The search for a revolutionary weapon was one of the most immediate and persistent outcomes of the
industrialization of war in the mid-nineteenth century, and both a logical and inevitable extension of the
revolution in war which preceded.’John Keegan, The Second World War
Photo courtesy National Nuclear Security Administration / Nevada Site Office
Destruction of test house located 3,500 feet (1,000 meters) from detonation site of atmospheric test
at Nevada Proving Ground in 1953 The first photo and the last photo were taken 2.3 seconds apart.
Hiroshima – August 6, 1945
“Little Boy” was dropped on the industrial city of 340,000 people
Explosion at Ground Zero created temperatures of 540,000 degrees Fahrenheit
Immense firestorm gutted the city, destroying 60,000 of 92,000 buildings
Official death count: 78,000 Additional 60,000 died later
of atomic bomb- related injuries or diseases
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xs3JE4WRL-8
Hiroshima cont’
Hiroshima cont’
Hiroshima cont’
“My God, what
have we done?" Robert Lewis
co-pilot of the Enola Gay
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5nrvMNf-HEg
Nagasaki – August 9, 1945 Since Japan did not
surrender immediately Truman ordered the atomic bomb be dropped on the Japanese City of Nagasaki
“Fat Man” dropped on city of 250,000
death toll reached 35,000 people
Total of approx. 170,000 died due to both atomic bombs http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-KISiBHxv40
Nagasaki – cont’
Effects of Atomic Bombs
Shadows burned into concrete from blast; people vaporized
Effects of Atomic Bombs
Severe burns covering entire body = severe pain and suffering
Effects of Atomic Bombs
Severe property damage
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=id-yfB3I_R4&feature=related
V-J Day (Victory in Japan)
August 14, 1945 – VJ Day
Japanese government sued for peace
Second World War OVER
V-J Day
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3LyuWg8QTo
Bombing of Dresden, Germany: Controversy
Historically, Dresden had been northern Germany’s cultural centre – a city filled with museums and historic buildings
It was mostly untouched throughout the war
By February 1945, the city was filled with refugees – people moving from east to west in an attempt to escape the advancing Red Army
From February 13-15, over three waves of attacks, 3,300 tons of bombs were dropped on the city
Many of the bombs that were dropped were incendiary bombs that created so much fire that a firestorm developed
temperature peaked at 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit
Very few of those in the city centre survived
Dresden – con’t About 15 km2 of the ancient city
were destroyed, including more than 14,000 homes, 72 schools, 22 hospitals, 19 churches and scores of commercial and government buildings
The city was not simply a cultural centre – there were factories there producing weapons and equipment for the Nazi war effort, therefore many believe that the city was a legitimate target. It was also a rail base to send troops to the war front with the Russians.
The precise death toll remains uncertain
Historians generally believe 35,000 to 60,000 people perished in the two days of bombing, but due to the unknown number of refugees in the city that the count could easily be 10 times higher
Dresden Controversy Was the bombing
was justified? Does its outcome
constituted a war crime?
# who died close to Nagasaki (nuclear bomb)
Agreed by many: the raids continue to be included among the worst examples of civilian suffering caused by strategic bombing in WWII
Recommended