World War II was caused by the rise of dictatorships in Germany, Italy, and Japan in response to economic hardship. Adolf Hitler led Nazi Germany, Benito Mussolini led Fascist Italy, and Hideki Tojo gained control of Japan in 1941. By 1942, the Axis powers of Germany, Italy, and Japan controlled large swaths of Europe and Asia. The US entered the war after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. Georgia supported the war effort through military bases that trained soldiers, a factory that produced B-29 bombers, and shipyards that built cargo ships. The war ended with Allied victories in Europe and Asia in 1945.

1. World War Two
1939-1945

2. Causes
 A world wide depression led to
dictatorships in Germany, Italy
and Japan.
 They promised prosperity for
total control (Fascism).
 They formed a military alliance
to gain world dominance
called the Axis Powers.

3. Adolph Hitler- Germany
 Led Nazi Party to power in 1933
 Committed suicide as Germany
faced defeat in 1945.

4. Benito Mussolini- Italy
 Came to power in 1922.
 Died violently in 1945.

5. Hideki Tojo- Japan
 Gained control in Japan in
1941.
 Convicted of war crimes and
executed in 1948.

6. Axis control of Europe- 1942
 Germany
 German control
 Italy and it’s
territories

7. Japanese control- 1942

8. The Lend Lease Act
 Congress gave President
Roosevelt the power to lend
military equipment to American
allies.
 For the next four years merchant
ships moved goods across the
Atlantic.
 Germany responded by sinking
many ships.

10. Pearl Harbor- Dec. 7, 1941
 Japanese warplanes attacked
the U.S. naval base at Pearl
Harbor, Hawaii.
 2,300 soldiers and civilians
were killed.
 Many naval ships and aircraft
were destroyed.
 The U.S. declared war on
Japan the next day.

11. U.S. involvement in Europe
 Germany declared war on the
U.S. in December of 1941.
 U.S. troops first fought in
North Africa, Italy and landed
at Normandy,France June 6,
1944 – D-Day.
 Germany was defeated by
May 1945.

12. U.S. involvement in the Pacific
 The U.S. used a strategy
called “island hopping” to
force the Japanese to retreat.
 In August, 1945 President
Harry Truman ordered atomic
bombs dropped on Hiroshima
and Nagasaki, Japan.

13. Japan surrendered Sept 2, 1945

14. Georgia in the war- military bases
 Georgia provide land for
new training bases and to
expand existing ones.
 Fort Stewart was built for
anti-aircraft training.
 Fort Benning trained
thousands of infantry.
 Many bases also held
prisoners of war.
 Warner Robins Air
Command trained pilots.

15. Bell Aircraft- Marietta, GA
 Bell Aircraft opened a factory
in Marietta (near Atlanta) to
build B-29 bombers.
 Employed 28,000 workers
(6,000 women).
 Brought millions of dollars in
wages to GA.

16. Georgia Shipyards
 200 Liberty cargo ships were
built in Savannah and
Brunswick.
 Nearly 45,000 men and
women worked around the
clock to build these ships.

17. Carl Vinson
 Congressman Vinson worked to
build up the U.S. Navy in the
1920s and 30s.
 Became know as the “Father of
the Two Oceans Navy”.
 Helped gain contracts to Georgia
shipyards.
 These ports continue to be
important military centers for
Georgia.

18. Richard Russell
 First served as Governor of
Georgia then became a US
Senator.
 Was considered an expert on
military strategy and was
influential on US Military policy.
 Russell used his influence to
bring many military bases and
thousands of jobs to Georgia.

19. The Holocaust
 Jews throughout Europe were
imprisoned in concentration
camps.
 By the war’s end, 6 million Jews
had been murdered.
 Many Holocaust survivors moved
to Georgia after the war.
 Georgians began to rethink their
treatment of minorities in the
state.

20. WWII Dictators and Terms Quiz
 Name the three WW2 dictators and the countries they ruled.
(example: Richards- Slackovia)
1.
2.
3.
genocide, Lend lease, reparations, Central Powers,
Fascism, Axis Powers, dictator , Holocaust
4. Which side of the war did Germany belong to?
5. This requires a country to pay compensation for losing a war.
6. What form of Government did Italy have during the war?
7. This is defined as a leader with absolute power.
8. This term describe the deliberate killing of a specific group of people.
9. This allowed Roosevelt to send military supplies to Great Britain.
10. This name refers to the killing of millions of Jews during the war.