World War II: Military (College Board AP® US History): Flashcards
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Define Holocaust.
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Cards in this collection (22)
Define Holocaust.
The Holocaust was the systematic persecution and genocide of nearly six million Jewish people by the Nazis during World War II.
Besides Jewish people, which groups did the Nazis persecute?
The Nazis also persecuted Romani people, disabled people, Polish people, and Soviet prisoners of war.
How did the Holocaust begin in the 1930s?
It began with discriminatory laws, such as the Nuremberg Laws (1935).
Define ghetto (Holocaust).
A ghetto was an overcrowded part of a city, such as Warsaw or Lodz, where Jewish people were forcibly confined, facing starvation and disease, before being deported to camps.
What was planned at the Wannsee Conference (1942)?
Nazi officials planned the "Final Solution," a systematic plan to exterminate Jewish people.
Which post-war developments did the Holocaust help bring about?
It led to the establishment of Israel (1948) and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948).
What was agreed at the Tehran Conference (1943)?
Churchill, Roosevelt, and Stalin planned Operation Overlord, the Allied invasion of Normandy.
What was D-Day (1944)?
D-Day was the largest amphibious invasion in history: over 156,000 Allied troops landed in Normandy, beginning the Nazi retreat in Western Europe.
True or False?
The Battle of the Bulge (December 1944) ended in a German victory.
False.
Germany's surprise attack through the Ardennes aimed to split Allied forces, but the battle, Germany's last major offensive, ended in an Allied victory that left Germany weakened.
Why did the German offensive at the Battle of the Bulge fail?
Delays let the Allies regroup, German forces ran out of fuel and supplies, and the Allies held key positions.
How did the war in Europe end?
Soviet forces captured Berlin, Hitler died by suicide on April 30, 1945, and Germany surrendered, marking VE-Day.
Why was the Battle of Midway (June 1942) a turning point?
The US defeated the Japanese Navy, sinking four aircraft carriers, halting Japan's expansion and shifting naval power to the Allies.
American Marines captured Iwo Jima, an island crucial for American air and future attacks on Japan.
American Marines captured Iwo Jima, an island crucial for American air superiority and future attacks on Japan.
How did Japanese forces defend Okinawa?
They used underground bunkers and kamikaze attacks.
What was the US strategy for advancing toward Japan?
The US captured key islands to move closer to Japan while bypassing heavily fortified positions.
Define Manhattan Project.
The Manhattan Project was a top-secret US program, led by J. Robert Oppenheimer, to develop the first nuclear weapons.
Why did the US want to end the Pacific war quickly?
The US wanted to avoid further casualties and economic strain.
Which two Japanese cities did the US hit with atomic bombs in August 1945?
The US dropped Little Boy on Hiroshima (August 6, 1945) and Fat Man on Nagasaki (August 9, 1945).
What arguments were made in support of the atomic bombings?
Supporters argued the bombings ended the war quickly, saving lives by avoiding a ground invasion, and demonstrated nuclear power as a deterrent.
What arguments did critics make against the atomic bombings?
Critics pointed to the immense loss of civilian life, the long-term effects of radiation, and argued Japan was already close to surrender.
Japan's formal surrender, VJ-Day, was signed on September , 1945.
Japan's formal surrender, VJ-Day, was signed on September 2, 1945.
True or False?
The Battle of Okinawa was the bloodiest battle in the Pacific.
True.
Okinawa (April-June 1945) was the bloodiest battle in the Pacific, and the US aimed to capture the island to help with a potential invasion of Japan's mainland.
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