The Pacific Theatre And America

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The Pacific TheatreAnd Americas Entry Into
WWII

• Chapter 16 Section 2

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I. Japanese Empire

1. Japan was eager to become the major empire of the
   Pacific.
2. In 1931-1932 Japan conquered Chinas northern
   province of Manchuria.
3. By 1941 Japan had a stronghold on the Pacific
   islands, Korea, and Taiwan.
4. Japan wants to be the dominant empire in the
   Pacific and Asia.
5. What problems did Japan face in building an
   empire in the Pacific?

• Hideki Tojo

Isoroku Yamamoto
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II. Neutral America?

• Neutrality Acts 1935-1937
• Cash and carry (1939) pay for materials but
  must take away themselves.
• Military Preparedness
• The Ocean Navy and Air Force are built up.
• 1940 Selective Service Act (Draft)

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• Lend-Lease Act of 1941
• Allowed president to lend or lease goods to any
  nation whose defense he deemed necessary for the
  defense of the US.
• Total amount 50 billion.
• Japanese Embargo
• Who does the Pacific belong to?
• 1940-1941 the US protested the Japanese
  occupation of French Indochina (Vietnam).
• US responded by cutting off sales of vital scrap
  iron and oil to Japan.

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America Enters WWIIPearl Harbor

1. To avoid further American response the Japanese
   attacked the Pearl Harbor naval base on December
   7, 1941.
2. Yamamoto planned the surprise attack on the US.
3. How did the Japanese plan to catch the European
   colonial powers and the US by surprise?

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1. USA declares war on Japan the following day.
2. Germany and Italy immediately declare war on the
   US.
3. Did Admiral Yamamoto make a wise decision in
   bombing Pearl Harbor? Why or why not?
4. Why was America lucky at Pearl Harbor

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IV. Early Victories for Japan

1. European and American possessions in the Pacific
   were falling to Japan.
2. Americans were defeated in Bataan, Philippines.
3. Bataan Death March
4. Why do you think the Japanese changed their
   approach from trying to win the support of the
   colonized peoples to acting as conquerors?

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Doolittle Raid April 18, 1942

• A raid on Japan led by Lieutenant Colonel Jimmy
  Doolittle.
• The first carrier based attack of WWII by the
  United States. (Hornet)
• Large planes with far greater range than
  carrier-based bombers were used.
• The attack on Tokyo did not cripple the Japanese,
  but it did lift the moral of the American people.

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Battle of Coral Sea 4-8 May 1942

• Strategic victory for Allies
• Morale boost
• Weakened aircraft force
• Could not fight _at_ Midway
• Opened up South Pacific to invasion
• In what ways was this battle a new kind of naval
  warfare?

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Battle of Midway

• The Americans then turned the tide of the war for
  good after defeating Isoroku Yamamoto at the
  Battle of Midway.

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Guadalcanal Aug. 1942-Feb. 1943

• Douglas MacArthur
• The Island of Death
• The beginning of the end
• Explain General Douglas MacArthur's
  Island-hopping strategy.
• What was the strategic significance of
  Guadalcanal?
• Why was it important for America to be successful
  at Guadalcanal?