By April 3 1945 3 million Allied soldiers

• By April 3, 1945, 3 million Allied soldiers approached Berlin from the Southwest. US Soldiers cross the Rhine river under heavy fire. • 6 Million soldiers from the Soviet Union approached Berlin from the East.

Franklin Roosevelt died April 12, 1945 of a stroke. He was proceeded by his Vice President Harry Truman.

Hitler prepares for his end “I myself and my wife choose to die in order to escape the disgrace of…capitulation, I die with a happy heart aware of the immeasurable deeds of our soldiers at the front” -Hitler

April 29, 1945, Hitler married his mistress Eva Braun. Late that evening, Hitler shot himself in the head and Eva took a lethal dose of poison. A week later, the Germans surrendered.

• May 7, 1945 • VE- Day was celebrated. U. S. soldiers holding the Nazi flag after their win at the Battle of Bastogne.

Mussolini and his mistress Clara Petacci were arrested, then lynched and hung by an angry mob of communist partisans.

With little hope of forcing the unconditional surrender of Japan, President Truman made the decision to drop the bomb on Hiroshima, Aug. 6, 1945. The blast instantly killed 100, 000 people. Two days later, on Aug. 8 a second bomb was dropped on Nagasaki instantly killing 40, 000 people. *On August 13, 1945, the Japanese surrendered unconditionally. Nagasaki

Atomic Bombs • *The bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki was supported by President Truman because he hoped that by doing so would reduce possible casualties from an attack on Japan’s mainland, and end WWII.

Result of Dropping the Bombs • Realization that new military technologies had become far superior to those used previously • Warfare has become vastly more destructive

Gen. Douglas Mac. Arthur accepts the Japanese surrender. The Japanese officially surrender aboard the USS Missouri September 2, 1945

Victory over Japan September 2, 1945 General Douglas Mac. Arthur accepted the surrender of the Japanese. Meanwhile, scenes like this one erupted everywhere in the U. S. THE WAR WAS OVER!

Eisenhower will go on to serve as President of the United States from 1953 -1961. His campaign slogan was a simple “I like Ike. ”

The “G. I. General” went on to serve as the first Chief of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Bradley also advised President Eisenhower on postwar matters.

Ironically, the old warrior died in a car accident after the war. Patton and his 3 rd Army

The Nuremberg Trials began on Nov. 20, 1945. Almost all of the accused were convicted and executed by hanging with a rope until dead.

Result of the Nuremburg Trials • *The first time leaders of a country were held responsible for human rights violations • Set the tone for future “crimes against humanity” and how they will be handled.

General George Marshall advised President Truman that if we did not supply war-torn countries with money, food, and medical supplies, they would be susceptible to a take over by the Soviet Union. Europe is re-built

The Soviets occupied the Eastern Zone of Berlin, Germany. Eventually, they would build a wall separating Germany into Eastern and Western Sections. The Soviets also claimed the Eastern European nations of Czechoslovakia, Poland, Hungary, Bulgaria, and Romania.

The United Nations was founded for the following reasons: 1. Establish democracies around the world. 2. Keep peace among nations and prevent future wars; *mediate or intervene in international disputes 3. Establish trading partners.

1. The United Nations was formed. 2. The Cold War Begins. 3. The rise of 2 Super Powers: the Soviet Union and the United States. 4. The race for Atomic strength. 5. Europe is divided into a Democratic West and a Communist East.