WORLD WAR II BACKGROUND

During the 1930’s, dark forces in Germany and Japan embarked on a program of global domination, building huge killing machines to carry out their mission. The Japanese Empire’s invasion of China and the atrocities that followed shocked American sensibilities to the core with reports of killing, torture, and evil deeds perpetrated against Chinese civilians. Then in September of 1939, the German war machine under orders from Adolf Hitler invaded Poland and suddenly, the world was at war.By the end of 1940, the blitzkrieg had swarmed like locust across Western Europe and into the Soviet Union leaving a path of death, chaos and destruction in its wake. Yet despite this the United States, a neutral and peaceful country, held its breath and stayed on the sidelines in anticipation of what was to come. It came on December 7, 1941 when the Empire of Japan carried out a sneak attack on Pearl Harbor in what President Roosevelt called, “a date that will live in infamy.”The attack resulted in the death of 2,403 American personnel, including 68 civilians, and the loss of 18 ships including 8 battleships. The United States declared war on Japan the following day and on December 11th, war was declared on Germany. The “sleeping giant’ had been woken, and was now to undergo the largest mobilization in military history, going from an armed forces of 190,000 in 1939 to over 16,000,000 by wars end. In addition, millions of Americans on the Homefront would support the troops with the weapons, ships, planes, materials and financial support needed to destroy the dark, evil forces that sought to destroy freedom and liberty on a massive scale. Indeed, as the war unfolded it was clear that if the nations of the free-world were to survive the onslaught against them, it would be up to the United States to make sure that the bells of freedom would one day ring again throughout the world.The fighting was fierce, horrific and at times unconscionable, as massive war machines embarked on programs of annihilation and liberation. The brutality of the aggressors sought to demoralize and destroy nations, humanity and people with an endless barrage that brought death from the skies and seas and into every city, town and village in Europe and Asia. In June of 1944, allied forces under the command of Dwight Eisenhower unleashed the greatest invasion by sea ever in what would be known as D-Day. What was impossible to think of only two-years earlier, was now possible and following the terrors of the Normandy landing, American troops were on the move, with the surrender of Germany the ultimate prize. In one last gasp, the German army mustered a final, massive assault against U.S. forces in what was known as , the ‘Battle of the Bulge’ and when it was over, the end was not in doubt. On May 7, 1945, Germany surrendered ending their quest to build the Third Reich. Across the Pacific, American forces, “island hopped’ their way to a fateful date with destiny, dropping two atomic bombs on the islands of Japan leading to Japan’s surrender on September 2, 1945 and WWII was over. In all, over 55 million people were killed, including the extermination of over 6 million European Jews and the death of over 418,000 Americans. But evil had been destroyed, democracy preserved, and in the years following the war the United States was reborn, embarking on a domestic agenda to ensure freedom and liberty to all its citizens and serve as a beacon of hope for millions around the world seeking the divine blessings of freedom and liberty.

Battle Of The Bulge 1944