More notes from 321 Axis Forces Attack North Africa July 1940 Italy enters the War on Axis Side Sept 1940 Italian army attacked Britishcontrolled Egypt Suez Canal was key to reaching Middle Easts oil ID: 469270
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Slide1
The Mediterranean and the Eastern Front
(More notes from 32.1)Slide2
Axis Forces Attack North Africa
July 1940
: Italy enters the War on Axis Side
Sept 1940 Italian army
attacked British-controlled EgyptSuez Canal was key to reaching Middle East’s oil fields!Italy pushed 60 miles inside Egypt, then both sides dug trenches and waitedSlide3
Britain Strikes Back
December 1940 GB struck back, disaster for
Italy!
By
Feb 1941 GB had swept 500 miles across North Africa, taken 130,000 Italian prisonersSlide4
Hitler Sends Help
Hitler
sent
his German tank force, the
Afrika Korps, under command of General Erwin RommelSlide5
Rommel attacked in late March 1941, caught GB forces by surprise,
retreated east to Tobruk, Libya
GB
began to drive Rommel back,
pushed him by mid-Jan 1942 to original positionJune 1942 tide turned again: Rommel regrouped, pushed GB back and seized Tobruk, shattering defeat for AlliesSlide6
The War in the Balkans
Hitler had begun plans to attack USSR
Early 1941, through threat of force, persuaded
Bulgaria, Romania, and Hungary
to join Axis PowersApril 1941 invaded Yugoslavia and Greece, which had resisted-fell in daysSlide7Slide8
Hitler Invades the Soviet Union
June 22, 1941
Hitler began Operation
Barbarossa:
plan to invade USSRUSSR army not prepared, Germany pushed 500 miles insideRussians used scorched-earth policy Slide9
Sept 8 Germany
began siege of Leningrad, completely cut off from rest of USSR
-to
force surrender Hitler decided to
starve the 2.5 million inhabitants
.
-nearly
1 million died
during winter of 1941-42, but would not surrender.Slide10
Lake
Lagoda
: “Road of Life”Slide11
Hitler impatient so looked to capital of Moscow-began drive on Oct 2, 1941, made it to outskirts
USSR counterattacked; Hitler sent order to troops not to retreat even though temperatures began dropping; German soldiers dug in, held line until march 1943
Attack
against USSR gained nothing but cost 500,000 German livesSlide12
The US Aids Its Allies
Most Americans wanted to stay out of the
war
1935-1937
Congress passed Neutrality ActsSept 1939 FDR asked Congress to allow Allies to buy Americans arms if they paid cash, carried goods=Cash and Carry ActSlide13Slide14
Lend-Lease Act
of 1941 President could lend or lease arms to countries vital to the US-by summer US Navy was escorting British ships carrying US arms. Hitler ordered subs to sink any cargo ships
FDR and Churchill met and issued joint
declaration
Atlantic Charter: upheld free trade, right of ppl to choose their own gov’tthis would later serve as Allies peace plan to end WWIISlide15