The Rise of Italian Fascism
In Italy, Benito Mussolini, known as “El Duce” or “the leader,” was installing a Fascist system similar to the Nazis in Germany. His political party was called the National Fascist Party. Mussolini became Prime Minister of Italy in 1922 and ruled until he was deposed in 1943. Characteristic of the Fascist approach was a quote […]
The Spanish Civil War
In April 1931, the Spanish people elected a republican legislature that replaced the monarchy that had ruled the country for centuries. This event led to a struggle for power between those that supported the Republic (Loyalists) and those that backed the monarchy (Royalists). The Loyalists were made up of the Spanish working class, who advanced […]
Japanese Expansion in the Pacific – “March Toward Asian Dominance”
Control of the Japanese government in the 1920s and 1930s was increasingly in the hands of the military and expansionists. The Japanese developed the idea of the “Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere,” the concept of a Japanese sphere of influence encompassing Southeast Asia (Indochina), China, the Philippines, and the southern Pacific Islands. They were determined […]
The Start of World War Two
On September 1, 1939, Germany attacked Poland using a new military tactic called Blitzkrieg or “lightening war,” which was characterized by fast-moving columns of motorized armored vehicles supported by air power. This new style of warfare made WW I entrenchment tactics obsolete. The Poles fought bravely, but it was literally horse cavalry against tanks and […]
Lend-Lease
Given the shifting winds of international affairs, Congress reversed course somewhat and passed the Neutrality Act of 1939. This legislation permitted “all aid to the Allies short of war.” The U.S. began the sale of arms to Britain, France and China, and started to transfer surplus military materiel to the U.S. allies. However, the authority […]
Pearl Harbor
The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, the “date which will live forever in infamy,” destroyed about 200 American planes in two hours and 150 others were damaged. Eight battleships and three light cruisers were sunk or damaged. Two thousand four hundred Americans were killed with 1,200 Americans wounded. Fortunately, no American […]
Internment of Japanese-Americans
One hundred twenty five thousand people born in Japan or of Japanese descent, known as “Issei” lived in the United States at the time of Pearl Harbor. One hundred and ten thousand of them lived on the West Coast. There were an additional 70,000 persons of Japanese ancestry born in the U.S. These people were […]
The War in the Atlantic – U-Boats and Conoys
The Battle of the Atlantic was critical for the Allied cause. The UK, being an island nation, was heavily dependent on provisions from the United States. Germany, using submarines (“Unterseeboot”, “U-boats”) hoped to defeat Britain by weakening their economy and interrupting its war supplies. (For a graphic portrayal of World War II in the Atlantic, […]
The Battle of Britain
The London Blitz occurred from September 1940 through May 1941 when massive amounts of German bombers attacked the London area. The Blitz started in earnest on the afternoon of September 7, 1940 when the German Luftwaffe conducted the first major daytime raid on London. Nearly 350 German bombers, with 600 fighter escorts, dropped explosives on […]
Operation Barbarossa – Hitler Attacks Russia
English Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery has said: “One of the great laws of war is never invade Russia.” Nevertheless, on June 22, 1941, Hitler unleashed his long-planned attack on the USSR, which was called “Operation Barbarossa”. It was a surprise attack, directed toward Leningrad and Moscow. The German Army assigned 148 divisions, including 19 panzer […]