[Dummies 01] • World War II For Dummies by Dickson, Keith D. -- Read -- Imperial Library of Trantor

Index

Title Contents Introduction: The Most Destructive War

About This Book Conventions Used in This Book How This Book Is Organized Icons Used in This Book Where to Go from Here

Part I : Origins and Causes of the War, 1919–1939 Chapter 1: World War II: Why It Matters and What You Need to Know

The War’s Beginnings Who’s Who of Combatants The Course of the War Where in the World Was the World War Fought? The Effect of World War II

Chapter 2: The Great War and the Uneasy Peace: How World War II Happened

The End of One War and the Roots of Another Collapsing Economies: The Great Depression Fascism and Nazism: Whose Bright Idea Was This? The Rise of Hitler Japan and the Militarists: The Army Calls the Shots

Chapter 3: Hoping for Peace: The Rise of the Dictators, 1933–1939

The Steps to War: Taking Advantage of Circumstances Getting Aggressive: Italy Makes a War Forging a Pact: The Axis Is Born The Spanish Civil War: Fascism and Communism Clash Germany: Using Diplomacy and Smoke Screens for War Britain: Seeking Mediation and Appeasement Austria and Czechoslovakia Catch Hitler’s Eye

Part II : Starting the War: The Axis Invades and Conquers, 1939–1942 Chapter 4: Invading Eastern Europe: Hitler’s Power Grows, 1939

Czechoslovakia Disappears: Divvying Land and German Occupation Playing Both Sides of the Fence: Negotiations with the Soviets Talking Peace and Planning War: Hitler Finds an Excuse

Chapter 5: Blitzkrieg in Europe: World War II Begins, 1939–1941

The Invasion of Poland Drawing the Line: Britain and France Declare War on Germany Fighting His Own War: Stalin Goes after Finland He’s B-a-a-ck: Hitler Strikes Norway and Denmark The Phony War: Using France to Get at Britain A British Epic: The Battle of Britain The Balkans: Mussolini’s Mess and Hitler’s New Target The Italians Take Their Lumps All Over Africa

Chapter 6: The Ultimate Battle: Hitler versus Stalin

If at First You Don’t Succeed, Find Another Target Appeasing Germany: Stalin Is Clueless Forgetting What’s Important: Hitler’s Fatal Decision Corporal Hitler Takes Charge of the Eastern Front

Chapter 7: America on the Sidelines: 1933–1941

Looking Inward: A New President and a Neutral Stance Bad Signs in Europe Roosevelt Plays the Neutrality Game France’s Fall: America’s Wake-up Call

Chapter 8: Collision in Asia: Japan and America, 1937–1941

A Brief History of Politics in Japan Building the Perfect Machine: Japan Thinks War War Comes to America: Pearl Harbor The Japanese Wage War Ignoring the Writing on the Wall: MacArthur Fights Hitler Declares War on the Mongrel Race Now It’s a World War

Part III : Behind Enemy Lines: Nations at War Chapter 9: Maintaining Resources: The Axis

Nazi Germany Unready and Unwilling: Fascist Italy Believing in Victory: Imperial Japan

Chapter 10: Working Together: The Allies

Staying United: The United Kingdom Working Hard: The United States The Soviet Union

Chapter 11: The War against the Jews

The Rationale: Nazi Thinking The Persecution Begins: Jews in Germany Mobile Killing Units: The Einsatzgruppen Deportation to Ghettos, Concentration Camps, and Death Camps The Final Solution and Its Ultimate Failure

Part IV : Planning and Launching the Allied Counterattack, 1942–1943 Chapter 12: The Politics of Compromise, 1942

The Axis Powers: Deals among Desperados American-British Cooperation: Not a Bed of Roses Clashing Strategies: A Debate among Friends Making the First Decision: Germany First

Chapter 13: Taking North Africa, Sicily, and the Boot

Rommel’s Desert Defeat: El Alamein Throwing the Torch: The Allies Strike in North Africa Turning toward Tunisia A Day and Night in Casablanca: The Allies Go-Forward Plan Operation HUSKY: Invading Sicily Up the Boot: Invading the Italian Mainland

Chapter 14: Germany a Three-Time Loser: In Russia, At Home, and in the Atlantic

Hitler’s 1942 Offensive in Russia Amassing Ammo and Men at Kursk Taking It to the Streets: Bombing Germany High Tide of the U-Boat: The Battle of the Atlantic

Chapter 15: Guadalcanal, New Guinea, and Midway: Japan’s Three Strikes

The Rope-a-Dope: Japan Fights for Time A Military First: The Battle of the Coral Sea Midway: Naval Aviation’s Finest Moment New Guinea: Green Hell Protecting Australia: Allied Pacific Strategy Nimitz Takes the Offensive

Chapter 16: Planning for the Rest of the War, 1943

The Big Three: Conference at Teheran Winds of Change in 1943: From the Axis Perspective The Panorama of 1943: From the Allied Perspective

Part V : The Long Haul, 1944 Chapter 17: The Italian Campaign and Soviet Victories in the East

Changing Plans: End Run on the Winter Line Rome: The First Capital to Fall — So What? Steamrolling the German Army in Russia

Chapter 18: Liberating Europe: From Normandy to Paris, and Beyond

Deciding on Strategy: OVERLORD D-Day: Invasion and Breakout Expanding the Beachhead Too Far, Too Fast: More Decisions The Air War: Wearing Germany Down Hitler’s Gamble: The Battle of the Bulge The Soviets on Germany’s Doorstep Advancing into Yugoslavia and Hungary

Chapter 19: Japan Begins to Crack

The Island Assault Plan: The Marshalls and Then the Marianas Marshall Islands: Learned Lessons Well Applied Mauling the Marianas The Japanese Navy Weighs In: The Battle of the Philippine Sea Kicking Off the New Guinea Campaign Preparing to Take Leyte Operations in the Pacific: An Appreciation The China-Burma-India Theater Allied Hit and Runs in Burma The Japanese Tip the Balance in China Stirring Up Trouble: The Japanese Offensive against India The End of the Line in Burma: Good-bye to Stilwell and the Japanese

Part VI : Starting Over: The War’s Aftereffects, 1945 Chapter 20: Ending the War (Almost): The Final Offensive

The Allies Cross the Rhine, the Germans Turn a Corner The Soviets Move Forward Fighting in the Air and at Sea: The Final Acts Capturing German Territory Roosevelt’s Last Act and Stalin’s Coup at Yalta The War in Italy Ends, and Germany Succumbs Stalin Moves on Berlin No Way Out: The Germans Surrender Celebrating VE Day Reconstructing a New Germany: The Potsdam Conference Loose Ends of a Bitter Victory

Chapter 21: The Japanese Defeat

Returning to the Philippines Attack from Air and Sea: Japan Is Next The Fight for Iwo Jima Okinawa: A Different Set of Problems The Planned Invasion of Japan The Atomic Bomb and the Defeat of Japan The Allied Occupation of Japan

Chapter 22: The Uneasy Peace

The Costs: A Global Assessment Remaking the World: War and Technology Giving Peace a Chance: The United Nations A New World Emerges The Beginnings of the Cold War Some Final Thoughts

Part VII : The Part of Tens Chapter 23: Ten Formidable Military Leaders of World War II

Winston S. Churchill: Timeless Excellence Dwight D. Eisenhower: Don’t Worry, Be Happy Douglas MacArthur: Damn the Torpedoes! George C. Marshall: Sterling Dedication Chester W. Nimitz: Master of the Sea George S. Patton: A Warrior for All Seasons Irwin Rommel: The Desert Fox Franklin D. Roosevelt: Artful Dodger Isoroku Yamamoto: Samurai Warrior Georgi Zhukov: Leading the Masses

Chapter 24: Ten Weapons That Made a Difference

The German MG-42 Machine Gun The German Tiger Tank The M-1 Garand Rifle The V-2 Rocket The P-51 Mustang The Me-262 Jet Aircraft The B-17 Bomber: The Flying Fortress The 88 mm Gun The Yorktown and Essex Class Carriers The Atomic Bomb

Chapter 25: Ten “What Ifs?” of World War II

What If Hitler Conquered Great Britain Instead of Attacking the Soviet Union? What If U.S. Carriers Had Been at Pearl Harbor? What If Hitler Pursued Proper Strategic Programs? What If There Had Been No Attack on Pearl Harbor Until 1942? What If Hitler Liberated the Russians? What If France Held Out in 1940? What If the Bulge Had Worked? What If Hitler Had Been Assassinated? What If Hitler Let His Generals Plan Strategy? What If the Japanese Navy Had Survived?

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