END OF THE WAR

A L O O K AT H O W W O R L D WA R I I E N D E D
VOCABULARY
D-Day Battle on Normandy Beach in France, June
1944, that turned the tides of the War in favor of the
Allied Powers
V-E Day - The day the Allied Powers won the war in
the European theater on May 7, 1945.
V-J Day - The day the Allied Powers won the war in
the Pacific theater against the Japanese on September
2, 1945.
Atomic Bomb - A massive bomb that kills thousands
of people.
D-DAY
June 1944
Battle on the beach of Normandy in France, who was
occupied by the Nazis at the time
One of the largest assaults in military history
Approximately 156,000 Allied troops had successfully
stormed Normandys beaches. More than 4,000 Allied
soldiers lost their lives
Continued to fight across France- turning point of the
War and turned the tides against the Nazis
EUROPEAN THEATER
After D-Day, the Allied Powers were
attacking the German Army (Nazis)
from the East and the West.
EUROPEAN
THEATER
The Allied Powers
closed in on
Germany and they
were close to
winning the war.
The Soviet Union
was rushing in on
Berlin, Germany
from the east,
and the Allied
Powers led by the
U.S. was rushing
in from the West.
THE DEATH OF HITLER
Hitler was forced to go into hiding in April of
1945 (towards the end of the war).
In the bunker he got reports from his generals
saying that the German army was losing.
Instead of being caught by the Allied Powers,
Hitler committed suicide.
Hitler had his body burned by one of his close
friends.
Why do you think Hitler killed himself?
V-E DAY
A couple days after Hitler killed
himself, the Soviet Union and its
tanks rolled into Berlin and took
over the capital of Germany!
The Germans were forced to
surrender on May 7, 1945
The Allied Powers won in the
European Theater
BERLIN, GERMANY 1945
VICTORY IN EUROPE DAY!
PACIFIC THEATER

World War II was not done!

The war was still waging in the Pacific
Theater
The Allied Powers were fighting against
the Japanese
Although the island hopping technique
was working, the fighting was really
bloody.
IWO JIMA
The Allied
Powers
defeated the
Japanese on
the island of
Iwo Jima
PRESIDENT
TRUMAN
President Roosevelt
died while still on
office on April 12,
1945 - 10 days
before V-E Day.
Vice President
Henry Truman
became the new
President of the
United States
TRUMANS DECISION

Truman had a huge decision to make

He had to decide to defeat Japan. His choices
were to
1. Invade Japan
2. Drop an atomic bomb on Japan
INVADING JAPAN

If Truman decided to invade Japan, the Japanese

would not surrender until almost all their troops
had died.
DROPPING THE BOMB

If Truman decided to drop the Atomic Bomb on

Japan, he knew that the Japanese would be forced
to surrender, but he would kill thousands if not
millions of Japanese people.
TRUMANS DECISION

What are some pros and cons of

each option?
DROP THE BOMB
Truman decided to drop the Atomic bomb on two cities
in Japan: Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Made this decision to save the lives of American troops
Hiroshima: Aug. 6, 1945
Nagasaki: Aug. 9, 1945
AFTERMATH

140,000 Japanese died in Hiroshima

80,000 Japanese died in Nagasaki
Thousands others died years later
from cancer caused by the radiation
from the Atomic bomb
V-J DAY

September 2, 1945, the Japanese surrendered to the

Americans.
This day is known as Victory in Japan Day.
WWII

WORLD WAR II HAS ENDED