TASK # 40 - Appeasement 1.

How was the meaning of the word

appeasement changed? _____________
The modern interpretation of the word appeasement means “giving in to a bully.” Consequently, many _____________________________________
people have criticized British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain for appeasing Hitler. However, this critique is _____________________________________
not entirely fair because in the 1930s, the word appeasement meant what we would today call negotiation. 2. Why do some historians think
There were many reasons why Britain 'appeased' Hitler in the 1930s. Historians have ascribed every possible Chamberlain appeased Hitler?
motive to Chamberlain - sheer abject cowardice, that he was duped by Hitler, that it was a noble attempt to _____________________________________
prevent bloodshed, that he was buying time for Britain to re-arm... and many others! _____________________________________
_____________________________________
In the 1930s, there were some people – most notably future British Prime Minister Winston Churchill – who
_____________________________________
opposed his policy. Below is a political cartoon by British cartoonist David Low appeared in the Evening
_____________________________________
Standard newspaper.
_____________________________________
This cartoon of February 1938 by the British cartoonist David Low shows Germany crushing Austria. Next in _____________________________________
line is Czechoslovakia. At the back, Britain says to France, who is next-to-last: ‘Why should we take a stand 3. What does David Low depict in the
about someone pushing someone else when it’s all so far away?’ political cartoon on the left?
_____________________________________
This cartoon is an attempt to persuade the British government that it needs to stand up to Hitler. A Nazi _____________________________________
soldier leans on Austria, which implies that Hitler is bullying Austria, forcing Schuschnigg to accept Nazis into _____________________________________
his government. Other countries are in line behind Austria, demonstrating Low's (accurate) belief that Hitler _____________________________________
would not stop, and that - _____________________________________
when he had conquered _____________________________________
Austria - he would move on to 4. What are some ways Low make it clear
bullying Czechoslovakia. his negative opinion of appeasement?
Please reference specific images and text
Britain and France stand at from the cartoon.
the back, reassuring each _____________________________________
other that they do not need to _____________________________________
do anything because it is all _____________________________________
happening so far away = this is _____________________________________
directly contrary to the _____________________________________
message of the cartoon, which _____________________________________
clearly shows that they ARE _____________________________________
affected, and that their turn _____________________________________
will come eventually. Many of _____________________________________
Low's cartoons are built _____________________________________
around a theme that _____________________________________
appeasement will not stop _____________________________________
Hitler, who will just go on _____________________________________
demanding more until he is stopped. _____________________________________
40
TASK #42 - The Growing Nazi Menace 1. How did the west feel about the Treaty of Versailles?
_________________________________________________
Hitler and the Nazis were not always regarded by the world as a great menace; in fact, Hitler was quite popular for a time. 2. How did the west feel about fascism vs. communism?
He was aided by public opinion in the west, which broadly regarded the Treaty of Versailles as flawed and held the belief _________________________________________________
that Communism rather than Fascism posed the greater threat to western democracies. In this context many welcomed a _________________________________________________
rearmed Germany as a safeguard against the Soviet Union. Consequently, Hitler enjoyed a largely positive press in the west _________________________________________________
throughout the period 1933-1938, as evidenced by the hosting of the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. _________________________________________________
Having occupied Austria in March 1938, Adolf Hitler turned his attention to the ethnically German Sudetenland region of 3. How was Hitler regarded by the west from 1933-1938?
Czechoslovakia. Since its formation at the end of World War I, Czechoslovakia had been wary of possible German advances. _________________________________________________
The loss of the Sudetenland was strongly opposed by the Czechoslovak government as the region contained a vast array of _________________________________________________
natural resources, as well as a significant amount of the nation's industry and banks. In addition, as Czechoslovakia was a 4. After Austria, what was Hitler’s next target?
polyglot country, there were concerns about other minorities seeking independence. Long concerned about German _________________________________________________
intentions, the Czechoslovaks had constructed the bulk of their border defenses in the mountains of the Sudetenland. Also, 5. How did the Czechs feel about this and why?
they were able to secure military alliances with France and the Soviet Union. _________________________________________________
Though Hitler was willing to risk war, he soon found that the German people were not. As a result, he stepthped back from _________________________________________________
the brink and sent Chamberlain a letter guaranteeing the safety of Czechoslovakia if the Sudetenland were ceded to _________________________________________________
Germany. Eager to prevent war, Chamberlain replied that he was willing to continue talks and asked Italian leader Benito _________________________________________________
Mussolini to aid in persuading Hitler. In response, Mussolini proposed a four-power summit between Germany, Britain, 6. Why did Hitler agree to diplomatic talks?
France, and Italy to discuss the situation. The Czechoslovaks were not invited to take part. _________________________________________________
_________________________________________________
Gathering in Munich on September 29, Chamberlain, Hitler, and Mussolini were joined by French Prime Minister Édouard
7. What happened to the Czechoslovak delegation?
Daladier. Talks progressed through the day and into the night with a Czechoslovak delegation forced to wait outside. In the
_________________________________________________
negotiations, Mussolini presented a plan which called for the Sudetenland to be ceded to Germany in exchange for
guarantees that it would mark the end of German territorial expansion. Though presented by the Italian leader, the plan _________________________________________________
had been produced by the German government and its terms were similar to Hitler's latest ultimatum. 8. Please summarize the excerpt from the Munich
Agreement . ______________________________________
Desiring to avoid war, Chamberlain and Daladier were willing to agree to this "Italian plan." As a result, the Munich _________________________________________________
Agreement was signed shortly after 1:00 AM on September 30. This called for German troops to enter the Sudetenland on _________________________________________________
October 1 with the movement to be completed by the 10th. Around 1:30 AM, the Czechoslovak delegation was informed of _________________________________________________
the terms by Chamberlain and Daladier. Though initially unwilling to agree, the Czechoslovaks were forced to submit when _________________________________________________
informed that should a war occur they would be held responsible.
_________________________________________________
“Agreement concluded at Munich, September 29, 1938, between Germany, Great Britain, France and Italy _________________________________________________
GERMANY, the United Kingdom, France and Italy, taking into consideration the agreement, which has been already 9. What caused the west to turn against Hitler? ______
reached in principle for the cession to Germany of the Sudeten German territory, have agreed on the following _________________________________________________
terms and conditions… _________________________________________________
(6) The final determination of the frontiers will be carried out by the international commission… “ 10. What action by Hitler breached his agreement with
Chamberlain at Munich? __________________________
The positive climate of Europe ended in March 1939. Hitler, emboldened by his earlier successes, ordered the German
_________________________________________________
occupation of the whole of Czechoslovakia Hitler's annexation of Czechoslovakia breached the written guarantee he had
_________________________________________________
issued to Chamberlain in Munich in 1938, stating that he had no further territorial demands to make in Europe. Therefore,
on March 31, 1939, Chamberlain issued a formal guarantee of Poland's borders and said that he expected Hitler to 11. Why did Hitler think he would get away with his
moderate his demands. Hitler was not deterred, and on April 3, he ordered the army to prepare for the invasion of Poland invasion of Poland? ________________________________
on September 1. Hitler was convinced that Chamberlain would not go to war to defend Poland and that France would lack _________________________________________________
the will to act alone. _________________________________________________
42
TASK # 43 - Hitler’s Blitzkrieg 1. What was Blitzkrieg? ___________________
_________________________________________
The German military strategy of using fast-moving tanks, with motorized infantry and artillery supported _________________________________________
by dive-bombers, and concentrating on one part of the enemy sector, became known as Blitzkrieg _________________________________________
(lightning war). The strategy was first put forward by Colonel John Fuller, the chief of staff of the British 2. Who first developed the idea of Blitzkrieg?
Tank Corps. Fuller was disappointed with the way tanks were used during the First World War and _________________________________________
afterwards produced Plan 1919. This included a call for long-range mass tank attacks with strong air, _________________________________________
motorized and artillery support. 3. What impact did the Treaty of Versailles have
on Germany’s military capabilities?
Fuller's ideas were ignored by the British Army but were studied in Germany and in 1926 leaders of the _________________________________________
German Army asked the government to commission the production of new tanks that would enable them _________________________________________
to use Blitzkrieg tactics in any future conflicts. As a result of the terms of the Versailles Treaty these new _________________________________________
experimental tanks were called tractors. _________________________________________
After Adolf Hitler obtained power in 1933, the German 4. How did Hitler react to this limitation?
government was open about its tank production. In the _________________________________________
spring of 1934 the German Army began developing the _________________________________________
Panzer tank. Hitler was able to test the ability of these tanks _________________________________________
and the entire blitzkrieg strategy during the Spanish Civil _________________________________________
War when he came to the aid of his ally and fellow Fascist, 5. According to Tom Wintringham, who
Francisco Franco. experience Blitzkrieg first hand in the Spanish
Civil War, why was this strategy developed?
Tom Wintringham fought against the German Army during the Spanish Civil War. He wrote about German _________________________________________
military tactics in his book New Ways of War (1940): “Blitzkrieg tactics and strategy are almost entirely _________________________________________
developed with the idea of escaping from the trench deadlock that held the armies between August 1914 _________________________________________
and March 1918... _________________________________________
6. What were the three main advantages to this
One thing admitted by all observers of the German attacks is that they use most of their bombers as a strategy? ______________________________
flying artillery. The second thing that enters into the German formula of warfare, all observers agree, is _________________________________________
the use of heavy tanks, so powerfully armoured that they are not vulnerable to light anti-tank weapons. _________________________________________
_________________________________________
The third main factor in the success of the German tactics and strategy is that they have employed and
_________________________________________
developed the tactics known as "deep infiltration." This means that their army does not attack strung but
_________________________________________
in a line, and maintaining contact all the time between its advanced units and its main forces. It does not
_________________________________________
hit like a fist, but like long probing fingers with armoured finger-nails. Each separate claw seeks a weak
_________________________________________
spot; if it can drive through this weak spot, it does not worry about its flanks, or about continuous
_________________________________________
communications with the forces following it. It relies for safety upon surprise, upon the disorganisation of
_________________________________________
its opponents due to the fact that it has broken through to the rear of their position.”
_________________________________________
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
_________________________________________
Source modified from: http://spartacus-educational.com/2WWblitzkreig.htm
_________________________________________43
TASK #46 - Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact
1. What was Hitler’s concern about his planned
Once Hitler successfully took over Czechoslovakia with minimal objections, he set his sights on Poland. Hitler's only invasion of Poland? _________________________
real concern was that a sudden German invasion of Poland might alarm Stalin and trigger a war with the Soviet _____________________________________________
Union. Stalin feared a German invasion and had been seeking an anti-Nazi 'collective security' alliance with the
western powers for many years, but by July 1939 Britain and France had still not agreed terms. Hitler saw his 2. What did Stalin fear and how did he try to alleviate
opportunity, and entered into secret negotiations with the Soviet Union. those fears? _______________________________
_____________________________________________
The result was the signing of the Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact on August 23, 1939. Both Hitler and Stalin set
aside their mutual antipathy for national gain and in particular the restoration of their pre-1919 borders. 3. What happened on August 23, 1939? ___________
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
This alliance was a shock to the
world because traditionally 4. What did Germany gain from this pact?
Communists and Fascists were _____________________________________________
mortal enemies. However, this _____________________________________________
arrangement provided mutual _____________________________________________
benefits. This pact allowed
Germany to invade Poland 5. What did the Soviet Union gain from this pact?
without Soviet opposition. _____________________________________________
Hitler learned a valuable _____________________________________________
lesson from WWI in that he _____________________________________________
knew he did not want to fight
a two-front war. This pact 6. Please describe this political cartoon & explain how
would ensure that Hitler could it is a visual representation of this pact. (10 pts)
concentrate his forces. _____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
The Soviet Union agreed to _____________________________________________
this pact in order to protect _____________________________________________
the Soviet Union from the _____________________________________________
threat of war with Germany. _____________________________________________
Stalin knew war with Germany _____________________________________________
was inevitable. In a speech _____________________________________________
from 1931, Stalin stated: “We _____________________________________________
are fifty or a hundred years _____________________________________________
behind the advanced _____________________________________________
countries. We must make good _____________________________________________
this distance in ten years. _____________________________________________
Either we do it, or they will _____________________________________________
crush us.” Thus, by agreeing to _____________________________________________
this pact, Stalin gains more _____________________________________________
time to prepare his country for _____________________________________________
war. _____________________________________________ 46
TASK #47 - The Invasion of Poland 1. What allowed Hitler to invade Poland? __________
_____________________________________________
Once the threat of Soviet interference was eliminated with the Navi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact, Hitler moved 2. What is the capital of Poland? _________________
forward with his plan to invade Poland. At 6 am on September 1, Warsaw (the capital of Poland) was struck by the 3. What happened on September 1, 1939? ________
first of a succession of bombing raids, while two major German army groups invaded Poland from Prussia in the _____________________________________________
north and Slovakia in the south. In advance of the line of attack the Luftwaffe (the German air force) heavily _____________________________________________
bombed all road and rail junctions, and concentrations of Polish troops. 4. When did Britain declare war on Germany and
what did this indicate?
Towns and villages were deliberately bombed to create a fleeing mass of terror-stricken civilians to block the roads _____________________________________________
and hamper the flow of reinforcements to the front. The surprise German strategy of blitzkrieg (“lightning war”) _____________________________________________
was based upon continuous advance and the prevention of a static frontline that would permit Polish forces time _____________________________________________
to regroup. 5. Please summarize the main message of Mr.
At 8 am on September 1, Poland requested immediate military assistance from France and Britain, but it was not Chamberlain as it was reported by the Manchester
until noon on September 3rd that Britain declared war on Germany, followed by France's declaration at 5 pm. The Guardian. _________________________________
delay reflected British hopes that Hitler would respond to demands and end the invasion. This invasion marks the _____________________________________________
official beginning of World War II. _____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
The British Newspaper, the Manchester Guardian reported the news of the invasion on September 2, 1939: _____________________________________________
“Germany's sudden attack on Poland yesterday morning has been followed by an ultimatum to Germany by Great _____________________________________________
Britain and France. Germany is warned that unless the German troops are immediately withdrawn Britain and _____________________________________________
France will without hesitation fulfill their obligations to Poland. This announcement was made by the Premier last _____________________________________________
night in a crowded House of Commons. Mr. Chamberlain said: ‘If the reply to this last warning is unfavourable - and _____________________________________________
I do not suggest that it is likely to be otherwise - his Majesty's Ambassador is instructed to ask for his passport. We _____________________________________________
shall stand at the bar of history knowing that the responsibility for this terrible catastrophe lies on the shoulders of 6. What was the Luftwaffe? ____________________
one man - the German Chancellor. He has not hesitated to plunge the world into misery in order to serve his own _____________________________________________
senseless ambitions. 7. What was the blitzkrieg and its impact?
_____________________________________________
Eighteen months ago I prayed that the responsibility might not fall on me to ask the country to accept the awful _____________________________________________
arbitrament of war. I fear I am not able to avoid that responsibility. It only remains to set our teeth and enter upon _____________________________________________
this struggle, which we so earnestly endeavoured to avoid, with a determination to see it through to the end. We _____________________________________________
shall enter it with a clear conscience and with the support of the Dominions and the British Empire and the moral _____________________________________________
approval of the greater part of the world. 8. What did the Treaty of Versailles allow with regard
We have no quarrel with the German people except that they allowed themselves to be governed by a Nazi to German military aircraft?
Government. As long as that government pursues the method which it has so persistently followed during the last _____________________________________________
two years there will be no peace in Europe.’” _____________________________________________

The Nazi invasion was so successful thanks to Germany’s well-prepared air force, the Luftwaffe. Under the terms 9. What did Hitler put Hermann Goering in charge of?
of the Versailles Treaty Germany was forbidden to own military aircraft. After Hitler came to power he made it _____________________________________________
clear that he was unwilling to keep to the terms of the peace treaties and in 1935 Hermann Goering announced _____________________________________________
the establishment of the Luftwaffe in March, 1935. Over the next few years Goering, the commander-in-chief of 10. How was the Luftwaffe used in Poland?
the Luftwaffe, ordered the production of a large number of fighter planes. By 1938 Germany was producing 1,100 _____________________________________________
airplanes a year. During the invasion of Poland the Luftwaffe used 1,750 bombers and 1,200 fighters. _____________________________________________
47
TASK #48 - Winston Churchill, Prime Minister of Great Britain
1. What was Churchill’s role when WWII first broke
When WWII broke out, British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain asked Winston Churchill to become a member of out? _____________________________________
his war cabinet. He was made first lord of the admiralty and immediately began efforts to bolster the Royal Navy, _____________________________________________
particularly in the area of antisubmarine warfare. Public confidence in Chamberlain began to fade with the German
invasion of Norway, and he resigned on May 10, 1940, the day Germans invaded the Netherlands and Belgium. King 2. What happened to Chamberlain? ______________
George VI asked Churchill to be prime minister. _____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
Below is an excerpt from Winston Churchill’s "Blood, Sweat, Toil, and Tears" speech on May 13, 1940 where he
_____________________________________________
addresses Parliament for the first time after being named Prime Minister.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Remember to mark the text: (circle and define unknown words, underline patterns, draw connections, ask questions, make 3. How did Churchill become Prime Minister? ______
observations, star the author’s claim, and mark the evidence of that claim) _____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
“On Friday evening last I received from His Majesty the mission to form a new administration… _____________________________________________
To form an administration of this scale and complexity is a serious undertaking in itself. But we
are in the preliminary phase of one of the greatest battles in history. We are in action at many 4. In his "Blood, Sweat, Toil, and Tears" speech, what
other points-in Norway and in Holland-and we have to be prepared in the Mediterranean. The air does Churchill suggest as a policy?
battle is continuing, and many preparations have to be made here at home… _____________________________________________
I say to the House as I said to ministers who have joined this government, I have nothing to offer _____________________________________________
but blood, toil, tears, and sweat. We have before us an ordeal of the most grievous kind. We _____________________________________________
have before us many, many months of struggle and suffering. _____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
You ask, what is our policy? I say it is to wage war by land, sea, and air. War with all our might _____________________________________________
and with all the strength God has given us, and to wage war against a monstrous tyranny never _____________________________________________
surpassed in the dark and lamentable catalogue of human crime. That is our policy.
5. What is Churchill’s primary aim regarding the war?
You ask, what is our aim? I can answer in one word. It is victory. Victory at all costs - Victory in _____________________________________________
spite of all terrors - Victory, however long and hard the road may be, for without victory there is _____________________________________________
no survival… _____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
I take up my task in buoyancy and hope. I feel sure that our cause will not be suffered to fail
_____________________________________________
among men. I feel entitled at this juncture, at this time, to claim the aid of all and to say, "Come
_____________________________________________
then, let us go forward together with our united strength.”
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
Churchill quickly proved to be a skillful prime minister. As commander in chief, he had direct control over the
_____________________________________________
formulation of policy and the conduct of military operations. He and his staff supervised virtually every aspect of the
war effort, working closely with the war cabinet secretariat. Through Churchill's efforts, Great Britain was able to arm
6. How did he work as commander in chief? _______
itself and prepare for war with remarkable speed.
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
Churchill assumed power just as the Germans were invading France. The French begged him to send fighter
_____________________________________________
squadrons, but he quickly realized that there was little Britain could do to stop the German war machine in France. In
_____________________________________________
one of his most difficult decisions, he declined France's request. Great Britain's planes, he knew, would be needed for
his nation's own air defense.
48
TASK #49 - Miracle at Dunkirk 1. What happened at Dunkirk in May 1940?
____________________________________________
On May 12, 1940, Adolf Hitler ordered the invasion of France. The German Army employed 136 ____________________________________________
divisions and 2,500 tanks in its invasion of France. The French, supported by Belgian and British troops, ____________________________________________
had a total of 125 divisions and 3,600 tanks. The Germans were dominant in the air with 3,000 aircraft ____________________________________________
against the allies 1,400. B y May 14, 1940, the German tanks had crossed the Meuse and had opened ____________________________________________
up a fifty-mile gap in the Allied front. Six days later they reached the English Channel. 2. What was Operation Dynamo?
____________________________________________
The advancing German Army trapped the British and French armies on the beaches around Dunkirk.
____________________________________________
330,000 men were trapped here and they were a sitting target for the Germans. When he heard the
____________________________________________
news, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill ordered the implementation of Operation Dynamo, a
____________________________________________
plan to evacuate of troops and equipment from the French port of Dunkirk.
____________________________________________
The beach at Dunkirk was on a shallow slope so no large boat could get near to the actual beaches 3. What types of ships took part in the rescue?
where the men were. Therefore, smaller boats were needed to take on board men who would then be ____________________________________________
transferred to a larger boat based further off shore. 800 of these legendary "little ships" were used. It ____________________________________________
is thought that the smallest boat to make the journey across the Channel was the Tamzine - an 18 feet ____________________________________________
open topped fishing boat now on display at the Imperial War Museum, London. Between May 27 and ____________________________________________
June 4, 1940, a total of 693 ships (39 Destroyers, 36 Minesweepers, 77 trawlers, 26 Yachts and a ____________________________________________
variety of other small craft) brought back 338,226 people back to Britain. Of these 140,000 were 4. How many soldiers were rescued?
members of the French Army. All heavy equipment was abandoned and left in France. ____________________________________________
____________________________________________
A British artillery officer produced an anonymous account of what it was like waiting on the beaches at 5. How did the anonymous British artillery officer
Dunkirk on 30th May, 1940. Below is an excerpt from that account: characterize the wait on the beaches of Dunkirk
before the rescue?
“The whole front was one long continuous line of blazing buildings, a high wall of fire, roaring and ____________________________________________
darting in tongues of flame, with the smoke pouring upwards and disappearing in the blackness of the ____________________________________________
sky above the roof-tops. ____________________________________________
____________________________________________
Along the promenade, in parties of fifty, the remnants of practically all the last regiments were wearily
____________________________________________
trudging along. There was no singing, and very little talk. Everyone was far too exhausted to waste
____________________________________________
breath. It was none too easy to keep contact with one's friends in the darkness, and amid so many
____________________________________________
little masses of moving men, all looking very much alike. If you stopped for a few seconds to look
____________________________________________
behind, the chances were you attached yourself to some entirely different unit.
____________________________________________
A group of dead and dying soldiers on the path in front of us quickened our desire to quit the ____________________________________________
promenade. Stepping over the bodies we marched down the slope on the dark beach. Dunkirk front ____________________________________________
was now a lurid study in red and black; flames, smoke, and the night itself all mingling together to ____________________________________________
compose a frightful panorama of death and destruction.” ____________________________________________
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ____________________________________________
Source modified from: http://spartacus-educational.com/2WWdunkirk.htm and http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/dunkirk.htm ____________________________________________
49
TASK #53 - D-Day Primary Source 1. What time of day did the invasion start?
Why did it start then? ______________
The Intelligence and Reconnaissance Platoon of the 16th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division landed on _______________________________________
Omaha Beach. Their objective was to move ashore and then scout the area ahead. The following is an excerpt _______________________________________
_______________________________________
from their platoon diary for D-day.
2. How far out from the beach did the
D-Day June 6, 1944 landing crafts drop the troops off?
_____________________________________
“In the pre-dawn darkness the I & R Platoon started climbing down the nets of the U.S.S. Henrico and the _____________________________________
U.S.S. Chase into the waiting assault craft. Under a sky overcast with dark, heavy clouds the craft moved _____________________________________
toward the shore of France. From the distance came the rumble of aerial bombardment, an occasional flash of 3. Describe what the soldiers saw when the
a direct hit, the flicker of far away fires. landing craft ramp went down.
_______________________________________
The choppy waters of the English Channel began to tell. Paper bags issued to each man filled as even the
_______________________________________
strongest stomachs succumbed. Men with taut nerves, set faces, talked of this and that, anything to keep their
_________________________________
minds off the job that lay only minutes ahead….
_____________________________________
At 7:10 (H-Hour plus 50) the first I & R landing craft struck bottom approximately two hundred yards off shore. _____________________________________
The ramp went down and out the men went into an inferno of machine gun fire from the height above the _____________________________________
beach, cross-fired so it seemed to cover every square foot, into mortar fire and artillery fire. Through the waist _____________________________________
deep water men by the hundred waded beachward as the murderous fire cut them down. Those who reached 4. What weapon killed the most
the shore found sanctuary behind a ledge that screened off the small arms fire. soldiers?_______________________________
_______________________________________
As far as the eye could see bodies were packed behind this ledge, men who were moaning with pain and those _______________________________________
who would moan no more. The medics were everywhere dressing wounds and rescuing men which the _______________________________________
incoming tide stretched out its lengthening tentacles to impound. To the left our planes were dive bombing an _______________________________________
active pillbox as devastating machine gun fire still swept the water. Heavier equipment began to come in. _______________________________________
Tanks remained submerged save for protruding cannon barrel. 5.Based on this D-Day account, why do we call
these soldiers the “Greatest Generation?”
Preinvasion briefing stated that the ground just ahead was crammed with mines. It was impossible to move
________________________________________
forward until there was at least one breach in the mine field. Behind the men the tide crept relentlessly
onward. Artillery and mortar fire grew heavier. It seemed only a matter of time until all were annihilated and ________________________________________
the invasion a dismal failure. ________________________________________
________________________________________
As the day wore on, the tide receded leaving behind a graveyard of humanity and equipment. “Mae West” life
________________________________________
preservers lay everywhere, combat packs, rifles, ammunition, personal belongings were strewn all over the
beach and adjacent area. ________________________________________
________________________________________
Darkness settled over Omaha Beach near Colleville-sur-Mer, France, bloodiest of the three beachheads ________________________________________
established in Fortress Europe on the 6th of June, 1944. Out ahead of the Regimental Command Post, ________________________________________
members of the I& R Platoon stood guard....”
________________________________________
53
TASK #55 - War in the Pacific Theater 1. What is Pearl Harbor? _______________________
_____________________________________________
Pearl Harbor, on the island of Oahu, had been used by the US Navy since the early part of the twentieth _____________________________________________
century. In April, 1940, the US Fleet had been sent to Pearl Harbor to deter aggressive moves by Japan in
the Pacific. Tensions increased when in September, 1940, Japan and Germany signed the German- 2. Why did tensions increase between the U.S. and
Japanese Pact. Japan? ___________________________________
_____________________________________________
In January 1941, the Commander in Chief of the Japanese Combined Fleet, Admiral Yamamoto began
planning for a surprise attack on the US Navy at Pearl Harbor. Yamamoto feared that he did not have the 3. Why did Admiral Yamamoto plan a surprise attack?
resources to win a long war against the United States. He therefore advocated a surprise attack that _____________________________________________
would destroy the US Fleet in one crushing blow. _____________________________________________

Nagumo's fleet was positioned 275 miles north of Oahu. On Sunday, December 7th, 1941, 105 high-level 4. Describe the first wave of the Japanese attack.
bombers, 135 dive-bombers and 81 fighter aircraft attacked the US Fleet at Pearl Harbor. In their first _____________________________________________
attack the Japanese sunk the Arizona, Oklahoma, West Virginia and California. The second attack, _____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
launched 45 minutes later, hampered by smoke, created less damage. In two hours 18 warships, 188
_____________________________________________
aircraft and 2,403 servicemen were lost in the attack. Luckily, the navy's three aircraft carriers,
Enterprise, Lexington and Saratoga, were all at sea at the time. The following day, President Franklin D. 5. Describe the second wave of the Japanese attack.
Roosevelt and a united US Congress declared war on Japan. _____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
After the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, American forces struggled early in the war in the Pacific. _____________________________________________
However, by 1942, the tide of war would change in favor of the U.S. at the Battle of Midway. _____________________________________________
In 1942 Admiral Isoruku Yamamoto decided to try and capture the US base on Midway Island. He
believed that the Japanese Air Force would be able to launch air attacks on the US Fleet at Pearl Harbor. 6. Which battle turned the tide of war in favor of the
Yamamoto devised a complex plan where the Combined Fleet was split into eight task groups. Two of U.S.? _____________________________________
these groups made a diversionary attack on the Aleutian Islands. The rest of the fleet led by Yamamoto,
Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo and Vice Admiral Nobutake Kondo, would head for Midway. 7. What advantage did the U.S. have in the Battle of
Midway? _________________________________
_____________________________________________
Unknown to Yamamoto, the US intelligence service and broken the Japanese communication code and
informed Admiral Chester Nimitz of the Japanese plans. Nimitz was able to assemble two task forces. 8. How did the U.S. use this advantage?
With the carriers Yorktown, Enterprise and Hornet, eight cruisers, and fifteen destroyers, they also _____________________________________________
headed for Midway. _____________________________________________

On June 3rd, 1942, 100 aircraft from Nagumo's carrier force bombed Midway. The US Marine fighters 9. What damage did the U.S. suffer? _____________
were outnumbered and were unable to stop extensive damage being caused. While the Japanese _____________________________________________
aircraft were being rearmed they were attacked by carrier planes from Spruance's Task Force.
While this was taking place Yorktown and Enterprise arrived and scored hits on the Japanese ships, 10. What damage did the Japanese suffer?
Akagi , Soryu and Kaga . The Hirpu managed to sink the Yorktown before it was set afire by the _____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
Enterprise. The Japanese Navy had now lost all four of her aircraft carriers and Admiral Yamamoto was
_____________________________________________
forced to order a withdrawal.
55
_____________________________________________
TASK #58 - Kamikazes and World War Two 1. What became clear in the fall of 1944 in the Pacific?
__________________________________________________
__________________________________________________
By the fall of 1944, it had become clear that the Japanese were losing in a 2. What was the “divine” force the Japanese believed would
struggle for their empire. They were losing to the American forces in the Pacific help them defeat the Americans? ______________________
Theater of World War II. Short on resources as well as victories, the Japanese __________________________________________________
turned to this “divine” force in the belief that it would save them from total __________________________________________________
annihilation by foreign forces. It came in the form of men who were willing to 3. What was a kamikaze mission? ______________________
sacrifice their lives in order to help their country. These suicide pilots took on the __________________________________________________
name “kamikaze” and applied it to their airborne missions. These pilots flew __________________________________________________
one way missions with the intent of driving their plane into Allied ships. It is 4. What were kamikaze pilots willing to sacrifice? __________
generally thought that those men who volunteered were given a guarantee of a __________________________________________________
place in heaven for sacrificing their life for the emperor. __________________________________________________
5. What was generally believed that they would they be given
The Japanese lived and fought under a code of conduct that demands complete for sacrificing their lives? _____________________________
obedience to the Emperor and the state. As kamikazes were sent out (never to __________________________________________________
return) they never said no and never asked why. Those that got through Allied __________________________________________________
counter fire inflicted heavy physical damage on their targets. As one Japanese 6. How many ships in the Pacific did kamikaze’s destroy and
Imperial Air Corps officer put it, “I am firmly convinced that the idea of the damage? __________________________________________
kamikaze attack developed quite naturally in the fighting spirit of the younger 7. How could kamikaze planes damage navy crewmen even if
pilots. In my opinion, the best method is to kill a thousand with one soldier and they shot down the plane and the ship was not harmed?
to sink a battleship with one aircraft.” Japanese kamikazes destroyed 56 Allied __________________________________________________
ships in the Pacific while severely damaging three times that number. __________________________________________________
8. What was the real reason the Japanese resorted to
Kamikazes also took a physiological toll on their targets as well = the Allied survivors; as death rained down on kamikaze missions? __________________________________
them from the skies. As one naval seaman put it, “It was terrifying to realize that this plane was going to crash into __________________________________________________
us unless we could shoot it out of the sky…they just kept coming!” __________________________________________________
9. What does that say about countries who are desperate to
However, the real reason kamikazes were used was not because it was the best method to beat the American achieve a goal? _____________________________________
Navy steaming towards Japan, it was the last option they had in a desperate attempt to stop the enemy any way __________________________________________________
they possibly could. As one kamikaze pilot from the 205th Imperial Squadron stated, “We saw the poor war __________________________________________________
situation and believed that the special attack was the best method. We volunteered and were determined to 10. Which island battle saw the most kamikaze attacks and
sacrifice ourselves so that our country could win a victory.” Another pilot said this, “The real cause which why? _____________________________________________
compelled us to employ such a tactic lay in the great difference between the productive power and fighting ability __________________________________________________
of the two countries (Japan and U.S.A.), and in the lack of alternative in fighting methods.” __________________________________________________
11. What is your overall opinion of kamikaze pilots and their
The Battle of Okinawa (a brutal and costly contest eventually won by the Americans) witnessed the most kamikaze missions? Please explain that opinion.
attacks than any other fight in the Pacific, as it was the closest island to the mainland of Japan. It would also prove __________________________________________________
to be the last before the dropping of the Atomic bombs on Japan. The US Navy encountered 191 separate __________________________________________________
kamikaze attacks and was able to destroy 146 of them, rendering their method ineffective while losing a majority __________________________________________________
of their skilled / experienced pilots. The end of the war would arrive soon, and the Empire of Japan would no __________________________________________________
longer exist. __________________________________________________
__________________________________________________ 58
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61
TASK #64 – Atrocities of the War - The Holocaust 1. What was the Holocaust? ____________________
_____________________________________________
The Holocaust is the name given to the murder of millions of Jews, Gypsies etc. by the Nazis during WWII. During _____________________________________________
the Holocaust, factories of death, such as at Auschwitz-Birkenau, were built to ensure that the mass murders were 2. What did Hitler explain in “Mein Kampft”?
carried out. Hitler had made it perfectly clear in "Mein Kampf" what he thought of "untermenschen" (the sub- _____________________________________________
humans) but to most people, these were the thoughts of a madman and not to be taken seriously. _____________________________________________
However, during "Kristallnacht" in 1938 the Nazis had shown their desire to persecute the Jews and in the war _____________________________________________
Hitler had the opportunity to carry out his plan to rid Nazi-occupied Europe of all undesirables (from his point of 3. What did Kristallnacht demonstrate? ___________
view) and he concentrated his efforts in Eastern Europe. After the attack on Russia, murder squads called _____________________________________________
Einsatzgruppen from the SS moved behind the army and systematically wiped out towns and villages containing _____________________________________________
Russian people. _____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
However, the process was slow and the head of the SS, Heinrich Himmler, was concerned that the men doing the 4. What did the Einsatzgruppen do? ______________
evil deed were becoming demoralized shooting innocent civilians and he looked for another solution. The lead to _____________________________________________
the Final Solution decided at the infamous Wannsee Conference in 1942 when it was ordered that all Jews in _____________________________________________
Europe be killed in extermination camps. _____________________________________________
With due speed, German industrialists were required to design and produce ovens and gas chambers that would _____________________________________________
enable the mass murders to be carried out quickly and cleanly without involving German personnel too much. The _____________________________________________
most infamous camps were at Auschwitz-Birkenau, Belzec, Sobibor and Treblinka. Here Jews, Eastern Europeans 5. Why problems did Himmler have with the
(many of whom were also Jewish), gypsies and the physically and mentally handicapped were brought and Einsatzgruppen? ___________________________
murdered. _____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
For many years there has been an accepted figure for the number of Jews murdered - six million. As a result of _____________________________________________
recently found evidence, this figure is now being upgraded & some historians have put the figure as high as 7 to 8 _____________________________________________
million. To this day mass graves are still found in Russia of Jews murdered by the Einsatzgruppen (SS) & so the final _____________________________________________
figure may never be truly known. The gypsy community claims that 50% of all gypsies in Europe were murdered 6. What was proposed at the Wannsee Conference in
while the number of handicapped people murdered is not really known. 1942? ____________________________________
As the war came to a close the Nazis destroyed many of the records they held but the survivors of the _____________________________________________
extermination camps have given us an accurate portrayal of what ‘life’ was like in these hell-holes. The death _____________________________________________
camps were seen as factories which had to make profits and the camp commanders exchanged ideas on how to 7. Which were the most infamous camps? _________
make their camps more efficient and therefore more profitable. Hence why hair was shaved from the heads of _____________________________________________
victims (to use in mattresses), gold teeth were taken out etc. There was even 'competition' to see which gas was 8. About how many were killed in the Holocaust?
the most effective, though each death camp eventually used Zyklon B (hydrogen cyanide), whose effectiveness _____________________________________________
was found by an officer at Auschwitz. Each camp had to keep an accounts book that could be inspected. 9. Why are the death estimates being updated?
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
10. How did the Germans try to make their camps
profitable? ________________________________
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
65