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The second world war

The second world was is the ugliest brutally violent emotionally damaging war ever. Through out this term paper I will use various references to inform you about how the United States wanted to stay out of the dangers of war with powerful ruthless countries. How Americans battled through many conflicts and various attacks, and finally builds up to the mighty United States of America becoming a huge world power. The war came about because of the depression. The world powers were struggling, but they still had their natural resources to maintain their way of life.

Germany, Italy, and Japan however relied on foreign trade for food and raw materials. If these countries were going to be able to survive and compete they would have to overtake other lands with valuable natural resources. When German’s newfound Nazi-leader Hitler obtained control of a huge group of men to do his deeds. His mass number of men overtaking Europe made many Americans start talking. These Americans were talking as though they lived in the ship sailing days. They felt as though their two oceans would keep them out of war and they could remain at peace if they simply refused to fight.

Those Americans were against alliances with other countries so they were referred to as isolationists. Roosevelt opposed the isolationists. In nineteen hundred and forty when German bombs fell on the British Isles, the fight between Roosevelt and the isolationists escalated. Teddy Roosevelt was elected to a third term and begins building aircraft’s for over seas governments as well as other various war equipment, but still refused to shove the United States of America into war. The German’s were upset about this and used this rage to inflict more pain on the Jews.

On August third, nineteen hundred and forty-one President Roosevelt and Prime Minister Winston Churchill meet at Placentia Bay to discuss the war in Europe and the far east. The two spoke of an eight-point system. At this meeting the two men pledged to aid Russia’s struggle with axis powers it also sent out a warning to Japan to leave the Far East alone. Japan was expanding all throughout Asia. The Japs were getting ready for war and on July twenty forth, nineteen hundred and forty-one her troops occupied all of Indochina.

The United States of America reacted to this by quickly calling Japan to withdraw from Indochina. Teddy Roosevelt ordered “freeze” on all Japan holdings and assets in the United States of America and put an immediate stop on all trade. The next month Saburo Kurusu, arrived in Washington. He appeared to be carrying out peaceful negotiations. It was all a trick, the Japs were not peaceful. On December seven, nineteen hundred and forty one at 7:58 a. m. the United States were caught off guard on their naval base in Hawaii at Pearl Harbor.

Japanese bombers roared over the base in waves dropping enormous numbers of armor-piercing shells and torpedoes of powerful destruction on bewildered US Pacific fleet’s anchored ships. There were many ships destroyed, the Arizona was bombed, the Oklahoma was drilled on her side by several massive torpedoes, the California, West Virginia, Maryland, and Nevada all felt the incredible destructive power of the kamikaze Japan pilots. The California was struck with a bomb and started on fire and the flames came in contact with the ship source of fuel and exploded due to the horrible acts of the eastern cowards of war.

Our method of lining the entire group of planes wing to wing across the airfield made the planes very vulnerable to the surprise attack. Almost all of the two hundred and three of the air force’s planes were wrecked by the first wave of Japanese bombers. When the pilots finally had a chance to try and fly the planes they found that only three could still fly. Japan’s sneak attack catapulted the United States of America into war. The slaughter at Pearl Harbor took two thousand three hundred and forty two American soldiers, sailors, and marines that dreadful day in December.

The next day America declared war on Japan. Americans soon realized that this particular war was a different kind of war from those that had been fought in the past. The government not only drafted men, but also called for women to enlist in the armed forces. The army had its WACS, the Navy WAVES, the Coast Guard SPARS, and the Marine Corps it’s Women’s Reserve. These many different branches of the government offered women the chance to defend their country and see first hand all of the brutality and ugliness that comes with war.

The Japanese landed as many as 250,000 troops in the Philippines. They far outnumbered the Americans. While the some Americans and Filipinos were in Manila attending church on Sundays the Japanese bombers would roar over head making their severest attacks on the Sabbath, devastating this undefended city. Japanese bombers attacked unknowing Americans. Men were smothered to death in dirt thrown by explosions. The foreign fighter pilots would attack hospital wards. This would force the patients to run for their lives even amputation cases tried to hobble out in the confusion.

Prayer was the only escape for the disabled victims. Two days later the Japanese overran the Bataan peninsula. The battered American forces withdrew to Corregidor there they made another brave stand. By May sixth, however, they could hold out no longer, and were forced to surrender. Of the 40,000 soldiers that became prisoners to the Japanese, more than half died- some from the long march under the hot sun without food and water, some from mistreatment in the prison camps.

This was a war that was fought on far away lands many people had to go find forgotten geography books just o see were their families were being sent to die for a cause of freedom. As president Roosevelt said The news was all bad. (1 page 753). German subs were sinking ships in Chesapeake bay. The Russians continued to advance on France. And , in England, German bombers were showering down explosives on London, Coventry, Liverpool, and Bristol all populated with civilians.

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