Legacies Of WWII

Question 1

The atomic bomb

Answer 1

• fear that the Nazi’s had the capacity to develop an atomic weapon
• 16 July 1945-first atomic bomb detonated in the US
• President Truman approved use of atomic bomb on 2 Japanese cities without warning
• shortened the war but laid foundations for the Cold War

Question 2

Legacy of the atomic bomb

Answer 2

• changed the war from a conventional war to an atomic war, endangering the world’s future
• development of atomic weapons created a legacy that influenced international relations

Question 3

The Holocaust

Answer 3

• 6 million
• genocide
• deliberate policy of killing or exterminating the Jews of Europe
• Hitler & Nazi’s violently anti-Semitic
• began to persecute Jews in Germany & took over parts of Europe
• 1942-1945-Jews taken to death camps where they were gassed

Question 4

Legacies

Answer 4

• 7 superpowers before the war
• 2 superpowers post war
• 50-60 million died in the course of WWII
• 70 million served as military personnel
• Reaction to holocaust led to development of legal framework for international war crimes trials & the UN’s declaration that all people have social, cultural & political rights

Question 5

Two events challenged the world

Answer 5

1. The holocaust

2. Atomic attacks on two Japanese cities in 1945