WoRlD WaR Ii: CoUrSe AnD CoNsEqUeNcEs 3. The Battle of Midway
In June 1942, a sea battle between the Japanese navy and the American navy took place at the Midway Islands. Although outnumbered, the American fleet was able to destroy four Japanese aircraft carriers, two cruisers and three destroyers while only losing one carrier and one destroyer. The loss of the aircraft carriers was a huge blow to the Japanese who were unable to hold onto the islands that they had conquered. The Americans slowly advanced on Japan.
TAIWAN PHILIPPINES
AUSTRALIA INDONESIA
Pacific Ocean
Midway Islands HAWAII RECALL
1. Give four reasons why the German advance into the USSR failed in 1941.
2. What is meant by ‘scorched earth policy’? 3. What occurred in Hawaii just before 8 a.m. on Sunday, 7 December 1941?
4. How did the involvement of the USA in the war help the Allies in Europe?
5. Write a short paragraph on one of the following: (a) Battle of Stalingrad (b) Battle of Midway (c) Battle of El Alamein
6. Who were the following people: (a) Bernard Law Montgomery (c) General Zhukov (b) General Friedrich Paulus (d) Erwin Rommel
7. Match the following leaders with the correct countries: Leader
A. Franklin Roosevelt 1. Britain B. Josef Stalin
Country 2. USA
C. Winston Churchill
Fig 14.15 A map of the Midway Islands where an important sea battle between America and Japan took place.
1943
The surrender of the German and Axis troops at Stalingrad and in Africa in 1943 was reinforced by more successes for the Allies.
Italian invasion Following the victory of the Allies in Africa in May 1943, British and American troops landed and captured the island of Sicily. By September they had landed in Italy and were moving northward. The Italian population overthrew Mussolini’s government, arrested Mussolini and surrendered to the Allies. Mussolini was rescued by German SS commandos but was finally captured by Italians in 1945 and executed. The Italian invasion was important as it marked the first invasion of the land of the Axis Powers.
The eastern front
The Soviet army began to push the Wehrmacht back. By 1944 the Soviet army had reached Poland and Romania.
377 3. USSR 8. What was Operation Uranus?
14
Fig 14.16 Mussolini and his mistress Clara Petacci hanging in a public square after their execution by Italian communist partisans in April 1945.