Changing Nature of Warfare Notes Section 2 1939-1945 Flashcards

Question

germany bombing what 4 cities?

Answer 1

May 1942 - first thousand bomber raid on cologne Killed 40 000 people 1943 - hamburg virtually destroyed by firestorm 60 000 deaths Regularly - Berlin February 1945 - Most importantly dresden using incendiary bombs to create a firestorm Dresden was not an industrial city but bombing destroyed dresden and caused 100 000 casualties

Answer 2

Success: - Only slightly reduced war production - Drew off german aircrafts from eastern front - Did affect morale and everyday lives of germans

Answer 3

Controversy Morally wrong to target civilians ( especially dresden as no military presence or industrial presence) also rise in death due to incendiary bombs Counterproductive - often made germans more determined to support war cause and was used by goebbels for propaganda purposes Little effect on german industry - in 1944 industry output only fell by 10 % DEVELOPMENT - german industry moved underground Cost 140 000 allied airmen their lives and 21 000 planes crash Did not bring about collapse of germans - this was the russian advance combined with western advance

Answer 4

V-Weapons The British people suffered a second Blitz in the last year as of the war, sept 1944- march 1945, from V1 and V2 missiles. Advantages: They could travel extremely quickly They could travel far (launched from western france) Caused significant damage on the ground There was no risk to life as they did not require a pilot Cheap and quick to manufacture

Answer 5

Disadvantages: They were not very accurate, however, London was a large enough city that this did not matter. They were used in the war too late to have a significance in turning around matters for the flailing Germans. After the Normandy landings, missile sites were captured by the Allied forces which put an end to their use. They were not used effectively by the Germans.

Answer 6

V1 missiles: 6,000 V-1 bombs actually reached British targets causing casualties of 20,000 and caused considerable damage. The V-1 caused blast damage over a wide area. It exploded on the surface, and a huge blast wave rippled out from the epicentre. This caused a vacuum to form, leading to a devastating pushing and pulling effect. 2,500 V-1 missiles reached London, killing more than 6,000 civilians. Speed: 640 km h Range: 250km Weight of Warhead: 850kg British Fighter: Boltoun Paul Defiant fighter was used to intercept the bombs and capture the launch sites.

Answer 7

DEVELOPMENT: V2 missile: V-2 was much more dangerous because it was so fast that it could not be shot down or even seen when it flew (375 km in 5 min) It was a genuine guided missile and flew at supersonic speeds of 5760 km/h and had a range of 320km . This meant that it could not be shot down. About 500 V-2s hit london between September 1944 and March 1945 causing 900 casualties. Developed too late in the war to have a decisive impact. And after the Normandy landings the Allied forces managed to capture launch sites so the attacks came to an end.

Answer 8

Paratrooper - a member of a military infantry unit trained to attack or land in combat by parachuting from aeroplanes D Day - this was a very successful method used to secure vital bridges and destroying german communications It was nicknamed operation market gardens. The allied advance was in fact so quick that supply lines couldn’t keep up so the allies had to halt the attack in September which gave Germans time to recover and bolster their defenses and rebuild shattered formations The paratroopers secured bridges in Eindhoven, Nijmegen and arnhem to create corridor for allied advance. Arnhem, september 1944 netherlands → most distant target from allied front line

Answer 9

Cause: allied armies had pushed through belgium and france and needed to cross the River rhine, in order to do this is was vital to capture the german bridges in tact, if the germans destroyed eh bridges the allies would be delayed and speed was of the essence to defeat the germans

Answer 10

Aim : british and polish airborne troops land behind enemy lines and capture the arnhem road bridge then the veteran XXX corps would drive through german lines, relieve parachuters and capture the bridge

Answer 11

Reasons for failure Paratroopers did not land where they were supposed to and were then too widely spaced out The heavily wooded terrain meant that the radio sets did not work so communications were cut off Intelligence had wildly underestimated the scale of the german defense of the bridges Limited number of transport aircrafts e.g. first airborne division was brought in a day late and the polish brigade dropped in even later At nijmegen bad weather stunted the allied air support and relief couldn’t be brought in in time

Answer 12

Failure - 2 000 allied troops killed - 7 000 allied troops taken prisoner - 1st airborne division lost ¾ of its operational strength and remained inactive for the rest of the war - 35 000 paratroopers and gliders were used

Answer 13

German victory? → yes but short lived 2 000 irreplaceable german troops lost Counterattack in october by germans led to more loss on september 18th the use of PLAT and grenades stopped the advance

Answer 14

Battle of the Pacific: 1941-45 Fighter Aircraft Japanese fighters: Mitsubishi Zero - Fast - Manoeuvrable - Kill ratio of 2:1 - Most successful fighter in WW2 - Lightly armed (easily shot down) USA: Brewster Buffalo - Cumbersome - Unstable - Outdated

Answer 15

Developed the Grumman F6 Hellcat and the Vought F4 Corsair: - Much faster - More manoeuvrable - More heavily armed so could sustain more damage Major Development: Torpedo bombers

Answer 16

Japan: At first- large, out of date biplanes and very vulnerable. It lacked manoeuvrability and speed. It was very easy to shoot down from the ground. Developed: Nakajima B6N superior, single-winged torpedo bomber. USA was far more advanced in its development of bombers: Douglas Devastator was notoriously slow and cumbersome. It was so unreliable that it was retired from serviced in 1942. Developed the Grumman Avenger which would play an extremely important role in the Battle of Midway:

Answer 17

Developed the Grumman Avenger which would play an extremely important role in the Battle of Midway: - Heavily armed with powerful machine guns both for and aft - Capable of carrying a large torpedo and 2000LB bomb - Faster and more manoeuvrable - Capable of hold its own in aerial combat even against the Mitsubishi Zero - DEVELOPMENT: folding wing design meant it was easy to store in limited space.

Answer 18

Blitzkrieg Main features: - Surprise - Speed - Overwhelming concentration of force on a small area - Using armour (tanks) as ‘shock troops’ to break through enemy lines - Strategic paralysis - Distrusting enemy communications and logistics, making it hard or impossible for the enemy to respond to the attack immediately - Combined arms - Infantry,tanks,aircraft and artillery (expensive) - NOT a war of attrition, avoided trench warfare of WW1

Answer 19

Blitzkrieg in France 1940 Cause: Germany wanted to invade France but needed to avoid the heavily fortified Maginot line, they decided to attack through the forest and hill of Ardennes in south Belgium as the French assumed they would avoid there. DEVELOPMENT in the 1930s- vehicles specifically designed for a Blitzkrieg campaign in western Europe.

Answer 20

Requirements: pass large town, cities and industrial areas in north France fast Tough and capable of facing different terrain Capable of fighting in built up or forested areas ``` Developed: Panzer 1 (tank) - -Small and fast -Travel at 50km/h over smooth ground -Short gun barrel -Turret that could rotate 360 degrees fast -Ideal for fighting at close quarters three man turret compared to french one man ``` Schützenpanzer (armoured troop carrier) - Caterpillar tracks enabled it to cross rough terrain - Large front wheels gave it greater manoeuvrability - Carry troops quickly and securely

Answer 21

French border crossed on May 10th 1940, one of the first major battles was in the town of Sedan. It was a success for Blitzkrieg. The German army then got to the river Meuse- they needed to take Sedan and secure the bridge to keep advancing quickly. Strategy they used: - bombers carpet bombed french defences - Stuka dive bombers attacked key command posts - German ground attack then led fast moving mechanised infantry which easily surpassed weak french defences.

Answer 22

The British tried to bomb the bridges but were beaten by superior german air power. During the battle of Sedan the Germans lost just 120 men compared to the several thousand French killed/captured, it also helped shatter the French army's morale. 17th May 1940 - French fourth armoured division sent to control german advance - Sent to combat a German position at the village of Monecornet, west of Sedan - The french (led by Charles de Gaulle) attempted a version of Blitzkrieg with no air support and little artillery - However speed, suddenness and effective use of the tanks was highly effective - it made a hole in the german line but Gaulle had to pull back eventually - The attack brought time for the french and british to retreat - The french army was still defeated, leading further collapse in morale and the eventual surrender of france on 25th June

Answer 23

Why was the campaign in France successful Speed- France was defeated in 6 weeks French and British had no time to regroup Surprise- French did not expect an attack via Belgium so the positions along the border were unprepared Neither British or French were prepared for the tactics used and couldn’t react quickly enough Strategic paralysis- After breaking through the front line the germans often had to attack very lightly defended communication or command posts (soft targets) This made it difficult for the allies to gain a clear picture of what was happening and organise a counter-attack Aerial Superiority- although the allies had good armies and more armour/weapons however weak air forces compared to the Germans Their air forces did not perform well against the Germans- by June the British and French had little air support left meaning the german bombers were able to attack ground troops almost at will. Terrain- There was little space for the british and french to retreat and therefore give them time to regroup without being cut off or endangering the capital, meaning the germans could encircle them easily. Low Morale- French lacked leadership, the government was divided and the people had low morales meaning they were less willing to resist the attack. The army became demoralised after its early defeats

Answer 24

Challenges the germans faced due to Blitzkrieg: Speed- - Compromised their own ability to fight- long gap between Panzers and infantry on foot/horseback as well as long communication and supply lines - Slowed the german attack and even horse and cart had to be used, however the British were in no position to take advantage

Answer 25

Blitzkrieg in The invasion of the soviet union (Operation Barbarossa) 1941 Key Events PHASE 1 german advance 1941 22 June operation Barbarossa, germany invades USSR (3 million soldiers 125 divisions) Destroyed USSR’s entire air and tank forces 7000 aircraft 20,000 tanks four million casualties 19 September fall of Kiev, huge losses inc 655,000 prisoners 26 September siege of Leningrad begins. In starvation winter (1941) 800,000 16 October Height of Moscow panic Germans almost reached Moscow, surrender considered 6 December Soviet counter offensive begins near Moscow PHASE 2 stalemate until decisive victory 1942-43 8 May German offensive resumes in the south 28 July Stalin’s order 227: ‘Not a step back’- issued after fall of Rostov - low point 13 September Launch of German offensive to take Stalingrad Major industrial/strategic centre German tweets about in tanks however battle becomes a savage hand and German tanks become useless Hitler ordered German commander powerless to fight but Soviet air power cuts of German supplies Germans were pounded with shells and explosives from the Russians new Katyusha rocket launches 31 January Paulus surrenders at Stalingrad. In whole operation 800,000 German soldiers lost PHASE 3 Germans chased out of Soviet territory 1943-44 12-15 July Battle of Kursk 27 January Leningrad blockade lifted, ed of the 900 day siege 22 June-29 August operation Bagration. PHASE 4 1944-45 The drive to Berlin 2 May Berlin surrenders

Answer 26

Why the USSR won: During winter of 1941-2 German advance was halted USSR reorganised -Communist party and officials not allowed to interfere with military matters -Specialist tank and air forces created a new weapons e.g. T 34 tank developed they could be produced rapidly and in large numbers USSR adopted radio communications - put radios into all tanks and aircraft - units created with the specific job of disrupting German communication - 1943 2/3 of German communication was disrupted USSR had strong moral -The brutal treatment of locals by the Germans increased Russian will to resist Russians had superior technology/supplies - Russian T 34 tanks vastly outnumbered German Panzers - Russians developed ground attack aircraft which fired anti-tank rockets - Russian factories geared to maximum production behind the Ural Mountains whereas Germans couldn’t replace lost aircraft/tanks

Answer 27

Why the campaign in the USSR was unsuccessful: Speed- Although the german advance was rapid it was too fast and supply lines became very long, struggled to provide food, ammunition and warm clothing Surprise- After the first few weeks the germans had lost the element of surprise The russians retreated and regrouped, by Moscow the Germans were met by well organised, determined and heavily fortified opposition. Strategic Paralysis- Art first the germans were effective But as the russians retreated they brought back their command/supply posts making them less accessible Aerial Superiority- At the start of the campaign they had aerial superiority As time went of they lost more aircraft. A lot of the planes also brokedown in the freezing weather as their engines froze, however russian planes were designed for these conditions By the Battle of Moscow the USSR had better airsupport 10x the amount of aircraft Terrain- The russian army had space to retreat and it was hard for Germans (even fast moving mechanised units) to catch large numbers of Russian soldiers Low Morale- German morale began to suffer particularly in winter. They lacked suitable clothing and began to run out of supplies The russians were encouraged by propaganda ‘mother Russia’ ‘great patriotic war’ and the fact they were fighting on their own

Answer 28

D-Day and the Allied attempt to liberate Europe This took place in June 1944, and was the largest amphibious operation. It involved all three armed forces: air, land and naval forces. Stalin pressed the USA and the UK for a better opportunity such as a second front to relieve the pressure of the German Army on the Russian Army. 130,000 across the sea 23,000 by air

Answer 29

land air sea guerrilla

Answer 30

American support: 9 million tonnes of supplies and equipment crossed the Atlantic. 1.4 million American soldiers arrived on British shores. The US troops trained together with British troops. Aerial photography: Allies took countless photographs in order to decide on the most suitable five beaches Deception: Radio broadcasts on the subject of gathering troops and the use of tank-shaped balloons on the coast were used to deceive the Germans about the location of the invasion. The Germans were deceived into believing it to be near Calais instead of Normandy. 6th June: 156000 troops with supporting mechanised vehicles had landed. They had faced little opposition with the exception of Omaha , where the Americans came up against a top division of the German army, there on a training exercise. Cost of 3000 American casualties. German defences of the Atlantic Wall were very weak as they had a large breadth to defend. The German army command structure was inefficient and confusing so little retaliation was quickly organised. COMPARISON: Eisenhower welded the Allies into an effective team.

Answer 31

Air Warfare: Bombing- 13,000 aircrafts faced only 400 Luftwaffe aircraft. The strategy was to bomb a long distance from the actual target of landing to confuse the Germans about the landing. This would hinder the Germans preparations to counter the invasion and so would allow the landing to be faster and more efficient. Aerial superiority: The Allies devastated German industry. HEAVY BOMBERS destroyed factories and fighter bombers such as the P-47 Thunderbolt and the Typhoon attacked vehicles and trains. They also destroyed Luftwaffe bases and the German aircraft industry. Germans would not be able to retaliate by aerial bombing of the beaches. Paratroopers and soldiers in gliders landed in Normandy to destroy communications and secure vital bridges. - see arnhem

Answer 32

PLUTO- an underwater pipeline was created to ensure a rapid supply of oil to the ships. Mulberries- floating harbours were constructed to ensure that they could supply the troops that landed. Long pieces of concrete piers to secure the boats and unload the troops. Provided armour, reinforcements and supplies. Landing craft: a flat bottomed boat which could transport troops very close to the shore to reduce the distance that the men must swim. A ramp would come down into the shallows. 7000 naval vessels were used.

Answer 33

Resistance Fighters disrupted German communications and destroyed supplies being taken to German forces.

Answer 34

D-Day Landings: Follow-up/importance Mulberries were quickly erected and allowed the Allies a foothold until they captured Cherbourg (deep-water port) on the 25th of June. Falaise: Allies surrounded the German 7th Army and the Fifth Panzer Army. In the space of 8 days, the Germans lost more than 10000 men and 50000 were taken prisoner. They made rapid advances through Northern France and officially liberated Paris on 25th August.

Answer 35

The most significant development in sea warfare before and during the Second World War, was that of the Aircraft Carriers. It would, consequently, be used in both the Falklands War and the first Gulf War.

Answer 36

At first aircraft carriers were simply large ships with a platform constructed across the deck, however, during the interwar period the British continued to develop them to be later used in the battle of Taranto in 1940 against the Italians. The slanted deck was introduced which gave carriers two runways from which to conduct operations. This development led to greater efficiency in conducting operations as now more than one plane could take off at one time. TURNING POINT: the battleship was becoming increasingly obsolete and the aircraft carrier increasingly important. (1961) The Americans developed the first nuclear-powered carrier, USS Enterprise- had a crew of over 5000 and over 100 jet aircraft. (1970s) Nimitz class aircraft carriers were super carriers with a length of 333 metres. They are capable of operating for 20 years without refueling due to nuclear power. Their service life is over 50 years.

Answer 37

Developments to weaponry and technology: Battle of Taranto: air-launched torpedo attacks the British modified their torpedoes and dropped them from a very low altitude to compensate for the shallow water of Taranto harbour. Hence, the half Italian naval fleet was decimated - Conte di Cavour was sunk and the battleships Littorio and CAio Duilio heavily damaged. British gained advantage in the Mediterranean. Battle of Coral Sea and Battle of Midway: the US intelligence were able to decipher Japanese codes and there did not fall into the trap that the Japanese had prepared for them. They also had the locations of many Japanese ships.

Answer 38

Battle of the Pacific 1941-45 Japanese had been very expansionist during the interwar period and had invaded China, Burma, the Philippines and much of South-East Asia. It now wanted to capture the islands in the centre of the Pacific. After the attack on Pearl Harbour, the US declared war on Japan and the Battle of the Pacific ensued.

Answer 39

US aircraft carriers: - Very large 230m (could carry more aircraft) and have an extremely long range - 23,200km - Purpose-built - US carriers had more weapons and were able to defend themselves from aerial attack- 16 anti-aircraft guns and 24 machine guns - Americans could refuel and rearm their aircraft on deck and so have a faster turnaround of aircrafts into the air. - USS Hornet -72 aircraft

Answer 40

Japanese aircraft carriers: - These carriers were built to support ground operations in mainland China and Korea. - They were smaller, more numerous and could not carry as many aircraft - Less well armed and had smaller crews which meant that when their escort ships and aircraft had been destroyed they were virtually defenceless. - Smaller crews means that operations took longer and the japanese had to take their planes below deck to work on them in crowded and difficult conditions. - IJN Hiryu- 227m long, a range of 19,130 km, 34 kn, 1,100 crew, 7 anti-aircraft guns

Answer 41

Pearl Harbour: The Japanese strike force travelled 3000 miles and launched 360 planes and bombers from aircraft carriers. The 4 aircraft carriers were not in port, the Japanese did not attack the fuel dumps, and so the port was functioning again shortly.

Answer 42

Battle of Midway: the decisive battle - Americans lost a carrier, 150 aircraft, and 307 servicemen - Japanese lost all 4 of the their aircraft carriers, 248 aircraft and more than 3000 servicemen - The Americans were able to take control of the air and the sea and begin liberating occupied Pacific islands.

Answer 43

U Boat warfare in the atlantic Aim: germans wanted to starve britain out of a war by cutting of supplies Two phases - German success in years 1939-1942 - Allies success against u boats 1943 - 1945

Answer 44

Phase 1 Germans used norway, denmark, the netherlands and france as secure naal bases from which to launch u boats. The u boats also laid mines on the coast. They also used converted airlines ( focke- Wolf condors) as long range anti shipping bombers and sank 58 000 tons of shipping in 1940.

Answer 45

Reasons for success development : wolf-pack tactics - Since the germans had cracked the allied code they could lie in wait for atlantic convoys and through coordination and working together they could at night attack these convoys British anti- u boat tactics were not effective as they used out of date escort vessels and the air cover did not cover the whole of the atlantic leaving the mid-atlantic gap Problem - the british could detect u boats using ASDIC detection devices which used sound waves through the water development - they attacked from the surface and at night The entry of the USA into the war in 1941 produced many more targets - they were especially easy as the merchant ships were silhouetted against the bright city

Answer 46

Success: - Sank 1 000 ships, a quarter of britain's merchant fleet in 1940 - sank 661 more ships by 1942 - britain only able to import ⅓ of peacetime import - By jan 1943 navy had only 3 months of supplies left - 50 000 merchant seamen died in north atlantic

Answer 47

Phase 2 Reasons for british success Allies were able to build ships faster than the u boats could sink them, especially america Development: improved training for convoys ( special support group of destroyers created with powerful radar and listening devices) and better escort vessels equipped with hedgehog depth charge which fires clustered bombs over a large area Allies cracked the german enigma code and were thus able to save 105 out of 174 convoys Development: long range aircrafts like the liberator gave protection to convoys this was assisted by the use of Azores as allied air bases this closed atlantic gap

Answer 48

From 1942 the british devoted more energy to winning the battle in the atlantic. Thus more german u boats were sunk and less british shipping lost. In december 1943 germans lost 141 u boats while the allies lost only 57 ships. In july 1943 1 600 ships crossed the atlantic unharmed. Radio was used to link ships which improved communications and spread the intelligence gathered. Main reason was they were able to produce ships more quickly.

Answer 49

During world war 2 France was under the occupation of Nazi government (Vichy) . However soon a resistance led by general charles de Gaulle and called the Free French government was formed. It was formed in London and aimed to organise and support resistance movements within france. Problem : lacked organisation - consisted of random acts of sabotage (cutting telephone wires, blowing up railway tracks ) which were sort of effective as germans had to send workers who were really needed elsewhere People who were caught were very harshly punished however → this led to more people being encouraged to join the resistance.

Answer 50

Development : By 1941 the illegal communist party in France started to play a role in organising and coordinating various groups of resistance. This had two consequences - Resistance becomes more hierarchical, organised and it had more political impetus which made it more effective - Other resistance groups who did not the trust the communists ( e.g the Free French) split off so the opposition also became divided Due to 40, 000 refugees from the spanish civil war the resistance was also strengthened. As these were often people who had fought in the republican army the resistance developed a strong professional core of fighters. The resistance also had direct support from the free french government in London from 1941. They created a special operations executive (SOE) which dropped in weapons, ammunition and radios to the french guerilla fighters. They also provided training in guerilla warfare and espionage to the soldiers. This considerably improved the experience and expertise of the resistance.

Answer 51

This increase in organisation led to the intensification of the guerilla tactics in 1942 and 1942. Up till now the resistance had avoided direct attacks focusing instead on disrupting german communications and logistics and smuggling british aircrew back to britain. However in 1941 the resistance assassinated a german officer in Paris. This led to a brutal reprisal by the germans who killed 500 French prisoners. (similar to spanish civil war but instead of crushing the guerilla fighters it simply encouraged them) In August 1942 hand grenades were thrown at a group of off duty german airmen. In retaliation 88 French were threatened to be executed. Again this encouraged rebellion among the people.

Answer 52

Development: - Increased organisation led to a new group of french resistance known as the maquis. They focused on - Gathering intelligence - Damaging communications or transport networks - Encouraging passive resistance

Answer 53

Success: between june 1943 and may 1944 1822 trains were damaged, 200 passenger carriages destroyed and 2500 freight trucks also destroyed by the resistance Problem: However this only provided an inconvenience to the germans and did not greatly impede their war efforts. Success: the resistance was very successful in encouraging support of the Free French and undermining german propaganda

Answer 54

Development by germans in retaliation: Germans set up their own guerilla paramilitary group called the Millice. They are notoriously brutal and with support of the german army carry out several massacres and assassinations. → resistance begins to fight millice openly using smuggled in weapons, although they were successful the millice did distract the resistance form further inconveniencing the germans. development : german reprisal becomes more effective and brutal E.g. shortly after D-Day landings the germans destroy the town of Oradur- sur - glane murdering 642 civilians after a rumor that a german officer was being held prisoner by the resistance there.

Changing Nature of Warfare Notes Section 2 1939-1945 Flashcards

(78 cards)