World War II

1
World War II

• European Theater of Operations
• The Ground War

2
Components of the War in Europe

• The Naval War
• The Air War
• The Ground War

3
The Ground War

• Four Broad Fronts
• Eastern front Russia vs. Germany (June 1941
  April 1945)
• North Africa U.S. Britain vs. Germany Italy
  (Nov. 1942 May 1943)
• Operation Torch Morocco
• Operation Husky Sicily
• Italy - U.S. Britain vs. Germany Italy (July
  1943 April 1945)
• Operation Avalanche Salerno
• Operation Shingle Anzio/Rome
• Operation Dragoon South France
• Western front - U.S. Britain vs. Germany (June
  1944 April 1945)

4
The Ground War
5
The Ground War

• North Africa and Southern Europe

6
The Ground War

• Operation Torch
• November 1942

7
The Ground War

• Casablanca Conference
• 14 24 January 1943
• Franklin Roosevelt
• Winston Churchill
• Charles de Gaulle
• Henri Giraud
• Joseph Stalin invited but declines to attend
• Meeting was arraigned to plan Allied European
  strategy
• All agreed to accept nothing but Unconditional
  Surrender

8
The Ground War

• Operation Husky

9
The Ground War

• 3 September 1943
• Operation Baytown
• 9 September 1943
• Operation Slapstick
• Operation Avalanche

10
The Ground War

• Downfall of Italy
• 24 July Mussolini receives a vote of no
  confidence
• 25 July Mussolini dismissed by king Victor
  Emmanuel III
• 25 July Mussolini arrested immediately after
  being dismissed as he leaves the palace jailed
  by Italians
• 25 July - Pietro Badoglio replaces Mussolini
  assigned the task of extricating Italy from the
  War
• 8 September Italy surrender to Britain and the
  US
• 12 September Germans rescue Mussolini

11
The Ground War

• Operation Shingle
• January 1944

12
Key Tactical Issue - How to Proceed?

• Montgomery wanted narrow front
• Eisenhower favored a broad front
• Key issue was logistics

13
The Ground War

• Invading Fortress Europe

14
June 6, 1944 D-Day
15
The Ground War

• Operation Dragoon
• August 1944

16
The Western Front
17
The Ground War

• Operation Market-Garden
• Fall 1944

18
The Ground War

• Battle of the Bulge

19
The Ground War

• Grinding it Out

20
The Ground War

• Berlin Falls to the Soviets

21
The Death of a President

• 12 April 1945

22
VE Day

• 8 May 1945