Franklin D. Roosevelt

32nd President of the United States

### Vice President

John Nance Garner; (1933–1941); Henry A. Wallace(1941–1945); Harry S. Truman (January–April 1945)

### Birth

January 30, 1882, Hyde Park, New York, U.S.

### Death

April 12, 1945 (aged 63), Little White House Historic Site, Warm Springs, Georgia, U.S.

### Resting Place

Springwood Estate, Hyde Park, New York, U.S.

### Residence

Springwood Estate, Hyde Park, New York, U.S.

### Children

Anna Roosevelt Halsted (daughter), James Roosevelt (son), Elliot Roosevelt (son), Franklin D. Roosevelt Jr. (son), Franklin D. Roosevelt Jr. (son), John Aspinwall Roosevelt (son)

### Parents

James Roosevelt I (father)Sarah Delano (mother)

### Siblings

James Roosevelt "Rosy" Roosevelt (half-brother)

### Education

Harvard University (AB)Columbia University

### Hair Color

Brown

Assuming office at the depth of the Great Depression, our 32nd president **Franklin D. Roosevelt** (1933-1945) helped the American people regain faith in themselves. He went on to win a record four presidential elections and became a central figure in world events during the first half of the 20th century. He also brought hope as he promised prompt, vigorous action, and asserted in his Inaugural Address, “the only thing we have to fear is fear itself.”

*The Presidency of Franklin D Roosevelt spanned the period in United States history that encompasses the events of the Great Depression & WW2 era. President Franklin D Roosevelt represented the Democratic political party which influenced the domestic and foreign policies of his presidency which includes his New Deal program to bring the U.S. out of the Great Depression.*

## Biography

Born in 1882 at Hyde Park, New York–now a national historic site–he attended Harvard University and Columbia Law School. On St. Patrick’s Day, 1905, he married Eleanor Roosevelt.

Following the example of his fifth cousin, President Theodore Roosevelt, whom he greatly admired, Franklin D. Roosevelt entered public service through politics, but as a Democrat. He won election to the New York Senate in 1910. President Wilson appointed him Assistant Secretary of the Navy, and he was the Democratic nominee for Vice President in 1920.

In the summer of 1921, when he was 39, disaster hit-he was stricken with poliomyelitis. Demonstrating indomitable courage, he fought to regain the use of his legs, particularly through swimming. At the 1924 Democratic Convention he dramatically appeared on crutches to nominate Alfred E. Smith as “the Happy Warrior.” In 1928 Roosevelt became Governor of New York.

He was elected President in November 1932, to the first of four terms. By March there were 13,000,000 unemployed, and almost every bank was closed. In his first “hundred days,” he proposed, and Congress enacted, a sweeping program to bring recovery to business and agriculture, relief to the unemployed and to those in danger of losing farms and homes, and reform, especially through the establishment of the Tennessee Valley Authority.

By 1935 the Nation had achieved some measure of recovery, but businessmen and bankers were turning more and more against Roosevelt’s New Deal program. They feared his experiments, were appalled because he had taken the Nation off the gold standard and allowed deficits in the budget, and disliked the concessions to labor. Roosevelt responded with a new program of reform: Social Security, heavier taxes on the wealthy, new controls over banks and public utilities, and an enormous work relief program for the unemployed.

In 1936 he was re-elected by a top-heavy margin. Feeling he was armed with a popular mandate, he sought legislation to enlarge the Supreme Court, which had been invalidating key New Deal measures. Roosevelt lost the Supreme Court battle, but a revolution in constitutional law took place. Thereafter the Government could legally regulate the economy.

Roosevelt had pledged the United States to the “good neighbor” policy, transforming the Monroe Doctrine from a unilateral American manifesto into arrangements for mutual action against aggressors. He also sought through neutrality legislation to keep the United States out of the war in Europe, yet at the same time to strengthen nations threatened or attacked. When France fell and England came under siege in 1940, he began to send Great Britain all possible aid short of actual military involvement.

When the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, Roosevelt directed organization of the Nation’s manpower and resources for global war.

Feeling that the future peace of the world would depend upon relations between the United States and Russia, he devoted much thought to the planning of a United Nations, in which, he hoped, international difficulties could be settled.

As the war drew to a close, Roosevelt’s health deteriorated, and on April 12, 1945, while at Warm Springs, Georgia, he died of a cerebral hemorrhage.

## Personality

The character traits of President Franklin D Roosevelt can be described as outgoing, gregarious, strong, persuasive, determined, cunning and charming. He was well able to cope with the pressure and stressful situations he encountered during the difficult events of his presidency. It has been speculated that the Myers-Briggs personality type for Franklin D Roosevelt is an ESTP (introversion, intuition, thinking, perceiving). An outgoing, active, influential and resourceful character with the ability to improvise to achieve desired results. Franklin D Roosevelt Personality type: Socially sophisticated, persuasive, competitive and easily bored.

## Nicknames

* "F.D.R."
* "The Boss"
* "King Franklin"
* "The Squire of Hyde Park"

*Meaning: The nickname of President Franklin D Roosevelt provides an insight into how the man was viewed by the American public during his presidency. The meaning of the nickname F.D.R. simply refers to the initials of his name. One of his other nicknames 'King Franklin' was a reference to his hosting role at his Hyde Park estate during the 1939 royal visit of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, the first reigning British Monarchs to ever set foot in America.*

## Inaugurations

### First Inauguration

The **first inauguration of Franklin D. Roosevelt** as the 32nd president of the United States was held on Saturday, March 4, 1933, at the East Portico of the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. This was the 37th inauguration, and marked the commencement of the first term of Franklin D. Roosevelt as president and John Nance Garner as vice president.

It was also the most recent inauguration to be held on the constitutionally prescribed date of March 4, as the 20th Amendment, ratified earlier that year, moved Inauguration Day to January 20. As a result, Roosevelt's (and Garner's) first term in office was shorter than a normal term by 43 days. This was also the last time the vice president took the oath of office in the Senate chamber, until Nelson Rockefeller's swearing-in on December 19, 1974. The inauguration took place in the wake of Democrat Roosevelt's landslide victory over Republican incumbent Herbert Hoover in the 1932 presidential election. With the nation at its peak of the Great Depression, Roosevelt's inaugural speech was awaited with great anticipation. Broadcast nationwide on several radio networks, the speech was heard by tens of millions of Americans, and set the stage for Roosevelt's urgent efforts to respond to the crisis.

Chief Justice Charles Evans Hughes administered the presidential oath of office. Roosevelt wore a morning coat and striped trousers for the inauguration, and took the oath with his hand on his family Bible, open to I Corinthians 13. Published in 1686 in Dutch, it remains the oldest Bible ever used in an inaugural ceremony, as well as the only one not in English, and was originally used by Roosevelt for his 1929 and 1931 inaugurations as Governor of New York, and later his three subsequent presidential inaugurations until his death in 1945.

### Second Inauguration

The **second inauguration of Franklin D. Roosevelt** as president of the United States was held on Wednesday, January 20, 1937, at the East Portico of the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. This was the 38th presidential inauguration and marked the commencement of the second term of Franklin D. Roosevelt as president and John Nance Garner as vice president. It was the first inauguration to take place on January 20 per the 20th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. This was also the first time the vice president took the oath of office on the inaugural platform rather than in the Senate Chamber. The length of Roosevelt's term as president, and Garner's as vice president had already been shortened by 43 days. It rained all morning and during the inauguration; the crowds hastily dispersed once it was over.

### Third Inauguration

The third inauguration of Franklin D. Roosevelt as president of the United States was held on Monday, January 20, 1941, at the East Portico of the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. This was the 39th inauguration and marked the commencement of the third, and eventually final full term of Franklin D. Roosevelt as president and the only term of Henry A. Wallace as vice president. This was the first and only time a president has been inaugurated for a third term; after the Twenty-second Amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified in 1951, no person can be elected president more than twice.

Chief Justice Charles Hughes administered the presidential oath of office to Roosevelt for the third and final time, who placed his hand upon the same family Bible used for his 1933 and 1937 inaugurations, open to 1 Corinthians 13, as he recited the oath. The outgoing vice president, John Nance Garner, administered the vice presidential oath to Wallace.

### Fourth Inauguration

The fourth inauguration of Franklin D. Roosevelt as president of the United States was held on Saturday, January 20, 1945. This was the 40th inauguration and marked the commencement of the fourth and final term of Franklin D. Roosevelt as president and the only term of Harry S. Truman as vice president. This is the only time a president was inaugurated for a fourth term; after the Twenty-second Amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified in 1951, no person can be elected president more than twice. Roosevelt died 82 days into this term, and Truman succeeded to the presidency.

Due to austerity measures in effect during World War II, the inauguration was held on the South Portico of the White House, rather than the Capitol. The parade and other festivities were canceled as well. The oath was administered by Chief Justice Harlan F. Stone and the subsequent address was one of the shortest on record. This was also the most recent inauguration in which an outgoing vice president swore in his successor, which had previously been the practice. Roosevelt's presidency was, and remains, the longest in American history.

## Famous Films

* **Gone with the Wind**
* Casablanca
* Citizen Kane
* King Kong (1933)
* The Wizard of Oz (1939)
* Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)
* Pinocchio (1940)
* Fantasia
* Mr. Smith goes to Washington
* Bambi (1942)

## Accomplishments and major events

*The major accomplishments and the main events of Franklin D Roosevelt to combat the Great Depression included FDR's New Deal, his 'Fireside Chats', his strategy of Relief, Recovery and Reform during the Great Depression. Relief programs and the 'alphabet soup agencies' were established by Franklin D Roosevelt to help the needy and impoverished. The Great Depression finally ended with the outbreak of World War 2 when Franklin D Roosevelt was faced with leading the nation through the conflict.*

**The New Deal**

Summary:  Franklin D Roosevelt's New Deal was a series of relief programs during the Great Depression. FDR's New Deal fell into two stages relating to the dates the programs were created. The First New Deal encompassed national planning laws and relief programs for poverty stricken from 1933 - 1934. The Second New Deal (1935 - 1939) and focused on social reforms together with programs to speed up the nation's recovery from the devastating depression.

**FDR's First Hundred Days**

Summary: FDR's First Hundred Days from March 9, 1933 to June 16, 1933 was a period of intense activity during which time 15 major acts were passed by Franklin D Roosevelt to combat the recession.

**Relief, Recovery and Reform**

Summary: FDR's Three R's,  Relief, Recovery and Reform were the basis of President Franklin D. Roosevelt strategy during the Great Depression to address the economic crisis and the problems of mass unemployment.  The programs and policies relating to Relief, Recovery and Reform required either immediate, temporary or permanent actions and reforms which were collectively known as the New Deal.

**The FDR New Deal Programs - The "Alphabet Soup Agencies"**

Summary: The array of New Deal Programs were implemented by Franklin D Roosevelt to combat the effects of the Great Depression with 25% of the population unemployed and over 1 million families homeless. The relief programs that were established were referred to as the  'Alphabet Soup agencies' such as the TVA, AAA, CCC, PWA, SEC, FCS and the FERA.

**The Fireside Chats**

Summary: The numerous changes and reforms implemented by Franklin D Roosevelt were communicated by the president via radio broadcasts called the  Fireside Chats. President Franklin D Roosevelt made 30 radio addresses, called the 'fireside chats'  between 1933 and 1944. The 'Fireside Chats' were used sparingly emphasizing the importance of the message he needed to convey.

**The Second New Deal**

Summary: The Second New Deal was implemented by Franklin D Roosevelt and covered the period from 1935 - 1939 and focused on social reform together with policies and programs to speed up the nation's recovery.

**The Second New Deal Programs**

Summary: The Second New Deal Programs was a series of legislation passed by Franklin D Roosevelt including Social Security Act, the Wagner Act (National Labor Relations Act) and the Fair Labor Standards Act. The Works Progress Administration (WPA) and the Rural Electrification Administration (REA) were also established by Franklin D Roosevelt.

**The New Deal Coalition**

Summary: The New Deal Coalition was an alliance of voters who supported FDR's New Deal programs and established a solid Democratic majority.

**The Emergency Banking Relief Act: "The Bank Holiday": March 1933**

Summary: The 1933 Emergency Banking Relief Act was passed by Franklin D Roosevelt on March 9, 1933 when FDR declared a National Bank Holiday and temporarily closed all the banks from March 6, 1933 until March 13, 1933 to prevent massive withdrawals from banks.

**The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC): March 1933**

Summary: The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) was established by Franklin D Roosevelt on March 9, 1933 to insure depositors against the loss of up to $5,000 of their deposits if their bank should collapse.

**The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC): April 1933**

Summary: The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was created by 1933 Emergency Conservation Work Act to put unskilled, unemployed young people to work developing conservation infrastructure on lands owned by the  government.

**The Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA): May 1933**

Summary: The Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA) was created by the Federal Emergency Relief Act on May 12, 1933 helped to support nearly 5 million households each month

**The Civil Works Administration (CWA): May 1933**

Summary: The Civil Works Administration was established in May 1933 by Franklin D Roosevelt to create programs for the unemployed. The CWA was short-lived and lasted only through the 1933-1934 winter.

**The Securities Act of 1933: May 1933**

Summary: The Securities Act of 1933  was passed by Franklin D Roosevelt on May 27, 1933 requiring companies that sold stocks and bonds to provide full, complete and truthful information to investors.

**The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA): May 1933**

Summary: The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) was created by Franklin D Roosevelt on May 18, 1933 to rejuvenate the region providing thousands of jobs for unemployed men and a cheap source of electricity.

**The Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA): May 1933**

Summary: The Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA) was signed into law by Franklin D Roosevelt on May 12, 1933 to to provide relief for farmers and other agricultural workers during the Great Depression.

**The 1933 Glass-Steagall Act: June 1933**

Summary: The Glass-Steagall Act aka 1933 Banking Act was passed by Franklin D Roosevelt on June 16, 1933 prohibiting commercial banks from engaging in the investment business and created the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).

**The National Recovery Administration (NRA): June 1933**

Summary: The National Industrial Recovery Act of 1933  was signed into law by President Franklin D Roosevelt on June 16, 1933 to create the National Recovery Administration (NRA). Its purpose was to address the crisis in industry by suspending the antitrust laws and allowed the government, businesses and labor to work together on issues including setting prices, working hours, productivity, minimum wages and union membership.

**The Public Works Administration (PWA): June 1933**

Summary: The Public Works Administration (PWA) was authorized by Franklin D Roosevelt allotting $3.3 billion to be spent on the construction of public works to revive American industry and provided employment to skilled workers.

**The Home Owners Loan Corporation (HOLC): June 1933**

Summary: The Home Owners Loan Corporation (HOLC) was  established in June 1933 to provide relief to troubled mortgage borrowers and their lenders.

**The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC): 1934**

Summary: The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was established by the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 that created the SEC as an independent government agency to enforce laws to regulate the Stock Market and to prevent fraud.

**The Works Progress Administration (WPA): 1935**

Summary: The Works Progress Administration  (WPA) was created by the Emergency Relief Appropriation Act of April 1935 to provide light construction jobs for millions of unskilled workers without the need of heavy machinery or large amounts of materials.

**The 1935 Wagner Act**

Summary: The Wagner Act (aka the National Labor Relations Act) was passed by Franklin D Roosevelt guaranteeing workers the right to organize Unions and to bargain collectively.

**The Social Security Act of 1935**

Summary: The Social Security Act of 1935 established an unemployment insurance system, a national pension fund, a public assistance program for dependent mothers and disabled people and benefits for victims of industrial accidents.

**The Court Packing Plan: 1937**

Summary: The Court Packing Plan was to introduced on February 5, 1937 to expand the Supreme Court to 15 judges to make it more efficient.

**Gone with the Wind (1939)**

Summary: Gone with the Wind is a 1939 American epic historical romance film adapted from the 1936 novel by Margaret Mitchell. The film was produced by David O. Selznick of Selznick International Pictures and directed by Victor Fleming. Set in the American South against the backdrop of the American Civil War and the Reconstruction era, the film tells the story of Scarlett O'Hara (Vivien Leigh), the strong-willed daughter of a Georgia plantation owner, following her romantic pursuit of Ashley Wilkes (Leslie Howard), who is married to his cousin, Melanie Hamilton (Olivia de Havilland), and her subsequent marriage to Rhett Butler (Clark Gable).

It received generally positive reviews upon its release on December 15, 1939. While the casting was widely praised, the long running time received criticism. At the 12th Academy Awards, *Gone with the Wind* received ten Academy Awards (eight competitive, two honorary) from thirteen nominations, including wins for Best Picture, Best Director (Fleming), Best Adapted Screenplay (posthumously awarded to Sidney Howard), Best Actress (Leigh), and Best Supporting Actress (Hattie McDaniel, becoming the first African American to win an Academy Award). It set records for the total number of wins and nominations at the time.

*Gone with the Wind* was immensely popular when first released. It became the highest-earning film made up to that point, and held the record for over a quarter of a century. When adjusted for monetary inflation, it is still the highest-grossing film in history. It was re-released periodically throughout the 20th century and became ingrained in popular culture. Although the film has been criticized as historical negationism, glorifying slavery and the Lost Cause of the Confederacy myth, it has been credited with triggering changes in the way in which African Americans were depicted cinematically. *Gone with the Wind* is regarded as one of the greatest films of all time, and in 1989 became one of the twenty-five inaugural films selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry.

**Franklin D Roosevelt and WW2**

Summary: The Great Depression finally ended with the outbreak of World War 2 when President Franklin D Roosevelt was faced with leading the nation through the conflict.

### Franklin D. Roosevelt and World War 2

*Europe witnessed the rise of the Dictators such as Hitler, Mussolini and Stalin and WW2 (1939 - 1945) broke out. Militarists gained control of Japan and the US joined the war after the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. FDR guided the nation through WW2 and met with Winston Churchill and Josef Stalin at the Yalta Conference on February 11, 1945. By this time the US had developed the Atomic Bomb by the scientists working on the Manhattan Project.* *Franklin D Roosevelt died of a stroke on April 12, 1945, just months before World War 2 ended on September 2, 1945.*

**American Isolationism**

Summary: The policy of American Isolationism was adopted by Franklin D Roosevelt by the US entry into WW2 in an attempt to isolate the US from the diplomatic affairs of other countries by avoiding foreign entanglements or entering into alliances with other nations.

**The Good Neighbor Policy**

Summary: The Good Neighbor Policy was adopted by Franklin D Roosevelt during the 1930's to improve US ties and relations with Latin America to ensure non-hostile neighbors south of its borders.

**The Neutrality Acts**

Summary: A series of Neutrality Acts banning arms and war materials to countries at war.

**The Lend-Lease Act**

Summary: The Lend-Lease Act was passed by Franklin D Roosevelt on March 11, 1941, enabling the United States to aid the Allied Powers.

**The Atlantic Charter**

Summary: The Atlantic Charter was the result of a top secret meeting between FDR and Winston Churchill between August 9-12, 1941 in which the general strategy of the war against the Axis Powers of Germany, Italy and Japan were discussed. The Atlantic Charter was issued by FDR and Churchill on August 14, 1941 and detailed the common principles of the national policies of the two countries.

**The USS Greer, Kearny and Reuben James**

Summary: German U-Boats attack the  USS Greer, Kearny and Reuben James in the Atlantic before the US officially entered World War 2.

**FDR's Navy Day Address**

Summary of FDR's Navy Day Address: The FDR's Navy Day Address was a speech to the nation made over the radio concerning the attack upon the destroyer USS Kearny on October 27, 1941.

**Attack on Pearl Harbor**

Summary: On December 7, 1941 Japanese planes and submarines launched a surprise attack on the US Pacific fleet at the Pearl Harbor naval base in Hawaii. The United States was a neutral country at the time; the attack led the U.S. to formally enter World War II on the side of the Allies the following day. The Japanese military leadership referred to the attack as the **Hawaii Operation** and **Operation AI**, and as **Operation Z** during its planning.

The attack commenced at 7:48 a.m. Hawaiian time (6:18 p.m. GMT). The base was attacked by 353 Imperial Japanese aircraft (including fighters, level and dive bombers, and torpedo bombers) in two waves, launched from six aircraft carriers. Of the eight United States Navy battleships present, all were damaged and four were sunk. All but USS *Arizona* were later raised, and six were returned to service and went on to fight in the war. The Japanese also sank or damaged three cruisers, three destroyers, an anti-aircraft training ship, and one minelayer. More than 180 US aircraft were destroyed. A total of 2,403 Americans were killed and 1,178 others were wounded, making it the deadliest event ever recorded in Hawaii. Important base installations, such as the power station, dry dock, shipyard, maintenance, and fuel and torpedo storage facilities, as well as the submarine piers and headquarters building (also home of the intelligence section) were not attacked. Japanese losses were light: 29 aircraft and five midget submarines lost, and 64 servicemen killed. Kazuo Sakamaki, the commanding officer of one of the submarines, was captured.

Japan declared war on the United States and the British Empire later that day (December 8 in Tokyo), but the declarations were not delivered until the following day. The British government declared war on Japan immediately after learning that their territory had also been attacked, while the following day (December 8), the United States Congress declared war on Japan. On December 11, though they had no formal obligation to do so under the Tripartite Pact with Japan, Germany and Italy each declared war on the United States, which responded with a declaration of war against Germany and Italy. While there were historical precedents for the unannounced military action by Japan, the lack of any formal warning, as required by the Hague Convention of 1907, and the perception that the attack had been unprovoked, led then President Franklin D. Roosevelt, in the opening line of his speech to a Joint Session of Congress the following day, to famously label December 7, 1941 "a date which will live in infamy".

**Doris "Dorie" Miller**

Summary: Doris "Dorie" Miller was an African American hero at Pearl Harbor who he took control of an unattended machine gun and used it in defense of the base.

**Executive Order 9066**

Summary: Executive Order 9066 was issued by Franklin D Roosevelt on February 19, 1942 to protect "against espionage and against sabotage to national defense materials". By 1943, more than 110,000 Japanese Americans were moved to Japanese Internment camps in remote inland areas of the United States.

**The Doolittle Raid**

Summary: The Doolittle Raid of B25 bombers with a crew of 80 bomb Japan on April 18, 1942. It was the first US attack on the Japanese homeland , four months after Japan's surprise attack on Pearl Harbor.

**The US Mobilization for WW2**

Summary: Franklin D Roosevelt and his administration had to organize the US Mobilization for WW2 involving movement of troops and supplies in preparation for war.

**The Bataan Death March: April 1942**

Summary: The Bataan Death March in the Philippines on April 9, 1942 was the name given to the infamous 66 mile  journey that was endured by 75,000 Japanese prisoners of war, consisting of 12,000 Americans and the remainder Filipinos. The prisoners were beaten, shot and bayoneted and it is is estimated that only 65,000 survived the Bataan Death March.

**The Battle of the Coral Sea: May 1942**

Summary: The Battle of the Coral Sea was a naval battle fought in the South Pacific between New Guinea and the Solomon Islands against Japan from May 4-8, 1942. was a draw, but it stopped the Japanese from invading Port Moresby in New Guinea and threatening Australia.

**The Battle of Midway: June 1942**

Summary: The Battle of Midway was a major naval battle in the Pacific Theater of World War II that took place 4–7 June 1942, six months after the Empire of Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor and one month after the Battle of the Coral Sea. The U.S. Navy under Admirals Chester W. Nimitz, Frank J. Fletcher, and Raymond A. Spruance defeated an attacking fleet of the Imperial Japanese Navy under Admirals Isoroku Yamamoto, Chūichi Nagumo, and Nobutake Kondō north of Midway Atoll, inflicting devastating damage on the Japanese fleet. Military historian John Keegan called it "the most stunning and decisive blow in the history of naval warfare", while naval historian Craig Symonds called it "one of the most consequential naval engagements in world history, ranking alongside Salamis, Trafalgar, and Tsushima Strait, as both tactically decisive and strategically influential."

**The Battle of the Philippine Sea: June 1944**

Summary: The Battle of the Philippine Sea was a major naval battle of World War II on 19–20 June 1944 that eliminated the Imperial Japanese Navy's ability to conduct large-scale carrier actions. It took place during the United States' amphibious invasion of the Mariana Islands during the Pacific War. The battle was the last of five major "carrier-versus-carrier" engagements between American and Japanese naval forces, and pitted elements of the United States Navy's Fifth Fleet against ships and aircraft of the Imperial Japanese Navy's Mobile Fleet and nearby island garrisons. This was the largest carrier-to-carrier battle in history, involving 24 aircraft carriers, deploying roughly 1,350 carrier-based aircraft.

**The Normandy landing/D-Day: June 1944**

Summary: The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed **Operation Neptune** and often referred to as D-Day, it is the largest seaborne invasion in history. The operation began the liberation of France, and the rest of Western Europe, and laid the foundations of the Allied victory on the Western Front.

Planning for the operation began in 1943. In the months leading up to the invasion, the Allies conducted a substantial military deception, codenamed Operation Bodyguard, to mislead the Germans as to the date and location of the main Allied landings. The weather on D-Day was not ideal, and the operation had to be delayed 24 hours; a further postponement would have meant a delay of at least two weeks, as the planners had requirements for the phase of the moon, the tides, and time of day, that meant only a few days each month were deemed suitable. Adolf Hitler placed Field Marshal Erwin Rommel in command of German forces and developing fortifications along the Atlantic Wall in anticipation of an invasion. U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt placed Major General Dwight D. Eisenhower in command of Allied forces.

The amphibious landings were preceded by extensive aerial and naval bombardment and an airborne assault—the landing of 24,000 American, British, and Canadian airborne troops shortly after midnight. Allied infantry and armoured divisions began landing on the coast of France at 06:30. The target 50-mile (80 km) stretch of the Normandy coast was divided into five sectors: Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno, and Sword. Strong winds blew the landing craft east of their intended positions, particularly at Utah and Omaha. The men landed under heavy fire from gun emplacements overlooking the beaches, and the shore was mined and covered with obstacles such as wooden stakes, metal tripods, and barbed wire, making the work of the beach-clearing teams difficult and dangerous. Casualties were heaviest at Omaha, with its high cliffs. At Gold, Juno, and Sword, several fortified towns were cleared in house-to-house fighting, and two major gun emplacements at Gold were disabled using specialised tanks.

The Allies failed to achieve any of their goals on the first day. Carentan, Saint-Lô, and Bayeux remained in German hands, and Caen, a major objective, was not captured until 21 July. Only two of the beaches (Juno and Gold) were linked on the first day, and all five beachheads were not connected until 12 June; however, the operation gained a foothold that the Allies gradually expanded over the coming months. German casualties on D-Day have been estimated at 4,000 to 9,000 men. Allied casualties were documented for at least 10,000, with 4,414 confirmed dead.

**The Battle of the Bulge: December 1944 - January 1945**

Summary: The Battle of the Bulge (6 December 1944 and ended on 25 January 1945) was a major German offensive campaign on the Western Front during World War II which took place from 16 December 1944 to 25 January 1945. It was launched through the densely forested Ardennes region between Belgium and Luxembourg. The offensive was intended to stop Allied use of the Belgian port of Antwerp and to split the Allied lines, allowing the Germans to individually encircle and destroy the four Allied armies and force the western Allies to negotiate a peace treaty in the Axis powers' favor.

Allied forces eventually came to more than 700,000 men; from these there were from 77,000 to more than 83,000 casualties, including at least 8,600 killed. The "Bulge" was the largest and bloodiest single battle fought by the United States in World War II and the third-deadliest campaign in American history. It was one of the most important battles of the war, as it marked the last major offensive attempted by the Axis powers on the Western front. After this defeat, Nazi forces could only retreat for the remainder of the war.

**The Battle of Iwo Jima: February - March 1945**

Summary: The Battle of Iwo Jima was a major battle in which the United States Marine Corps (USMC) and United States Navy (USN) landed on and eventually captured the island of Iwo Jima from the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA) during World War II. The American invasion, designated **Operation Detachment**, had the purpose of capturing the island with its two airfields: South Field and Central Field. The Japanese Army positions on the island were heavily fortified, with a dense network of bunkers, hidden artillery positions, and 18 km (11 mi) of tunnels. The American ground forces were supported by extensive naval artillery and had complete air supremacy provided by U.S. Navy and Marine Corps aviators throughout the battle. The five-week battle saw some of the fiercest and bloodiest fighting of the Pacific War.

The Japanese combat deaths numbered three times the number of American deaths, but unique among Pacific War Marine battles, the American total casualties (dead and wounded) exceeded those of the Japanese. Of the 21,000 Japanese soldiers on Iwo Jima at the beginning of the battle, only 216 were taken prisoner, some of whom were captured only because they had been knocked unconscious or otherwise disabled. Most of the remainder were killed in action, but it has been estimated that as many as 3,000 continued to resist within the various cave systems for many days afterwards until they eventually succumbed to their injuries or surrendered weeks later. Despite the fighting and severe casualties on both sides, the American victory was assured from the start. Overwhelming American superiority in numbers and arms, air supremacy, the impossibility of Japanese retreat or reinforcement, and sparse food and supplies for the Japanese, permitted no plausible circumstance in which the Japanese could have won the battle.

The action was controversial, with retired Chief of Naval Operations William V. Pratt stating that the island was useless to the Army as a staging base and useless to the Navy as a fleet base. The Japanese continued to have early-warning radar from Rota island, which was never invaded. Experiences with previous Pacific island battles suggested that the island would be well-defended and thus casualties would be significant. Joe Rosenthal's Associated Press photograph of the raising of the U.S. flag at the top of the 169 m (554 ft) Mount Suribachi by six U.S. Marines became a famous image of the battle and the American war effort in the Pacific.

**Rosie the Riveter**

Summary: As the men went off to war the women began to work in the munitions factories. The iconic image of the time was of Rosie the Riveter who was working for the nation on the homefront.

**The Zoot Suit Riots**

Summary: The Zoot Suit Riots erupted in Los Angeles, California during WW2 and consisted of a series of attacks by American servicemen on zoot-suit wearing gangs of young Mexican-Americans.

**The Tuskegee Airmen**

Summary: The all-black Tuskegee Airmen of the 99th squadron  shipped out of Tuskegee on 2 April, 1943 bound for North Africa where it flew its first combat mission on 2 June, 1943 flying in their famous "Red Tail" aircraft.

**The Kamikaze Pilots**

Summary: The Japanese Kamikaze suicide pilots were used by Japan in 1944-45. During this time nearly 8000 Kamikazepilots flew to their deaths.

**The Navajo Code Talkers**

Summary: The Navajo Code Talkers used a secret code based on their native language making it possible to relay a message in minutes that would have taken a code machine operator hours to encipher and transmit.

**The GI Bill**

Summary: The GI Bill or the "GI Bill of Rights," was signed by President Franklin D Roosevelt on June 22, 1944 providing a range of benefits for returning WW2 veterans (G.I.s)

**The Yalta Conference: February 1945**

Summary: The Yalta Conference was a meeting between February 4, 1945 - February 11, 1945 in which FDR met with Winston Churchill and Josef Stalin in Yalta , Crimea, Russia. The leaders discussed the unconditional surrender and occupation of Nazi Germany, the defeat of Japan and peace plans for the post war world.

**The Holocaust**

Summary: World War 2 ended on September 2, 1945 with the unconditional surrender of all the Axis powers and the world began to learn about the horror of the Holocaust.

**The Manhattan Project**

Summary: The Manhattan Project, led by Robert Oppenheimer, started on May 12, 1942 when President Franklin D Roosevelt signed an order creating a top secret project to develop the nuclear weapon.  President Roosevelt died on April 12, 1945 and the decision to drop the atomic bomb on the city of Hiroshima, Japan was made by President Harry Truman.

## Death

When Roosevelt returned to the United States from the Yalta Conference, many were shocked to see how old, thin and frail he looked. He spoke while seated in the well of the House, an unprecedented concession to his physical incapacity. During March 1945, he sent strongly worded messages to Stalin accusing him of breaking his Yalta commitments over Poland, Germany, prisoners of war and other issues. When Stalin accused the western Allies of plotting behind his back a separate peace with Hitler, Roosevelt replied: "I cannot avoid a feeling of bitter resentment towards your informers, whoever they are, for such vile misrepresentations of my actions or those of my trusted subordinates." On March 29, 1945, Roosevelt went to the Little White House at Warm Springs, Georgia, to rest before his anticipated appearance at the founding conference of the United Nations.

In the afternoon of April 12, 1945, in Warm Springs, Georgia, while sitting for a portrait by Elizabeth Shoumatoff, Roosevelt said: "I have a terrific headache." He then slumped forward in his chair, unconscious, and was carried into his bedroom. The president's attending cardiologist, Howard Bruenn, diagnosed the medical emergency as a massive intracerebral hemorrhage. At 3:35 p.m. that day, Roosevelt died at the age of 63.

## Funeral

The following morning, Roosevelt's body was placed in a flag-draped coffin and loaded onto the presidential train for the trip back to Washington. Along the route, thousands flocked to the tracks to pay their respects. After a White House funeral on April 14, Roosevelt was transported by train from Washington, D.C., to his place of birth at Hyde Park. On April 15 he was buried, per his wish, in the rose garden of his Springwood estate.

Roosevelt's declining physical health had been kept secret from the public. His death was met with shock and grief across the world. Germany surrendered during the 30-day mourning period, but Harry Truman (who had succeeded Roosevelt as president) ordered flags to remain at half-staff; he also dedicated Victory in Europe Day and its celebrations to Roosevelt's memory. World War II finally ended with the signed surrender of Japan in September.

## Facts and trivia

* Franklin D. Roosevelt is the only President in American History elected to more than two terms.
* His parents, who were sixth cousins, both came from wealthy, established New York families, the Roosevelts, the Aspinwalls and the Delanos, respectively. Roosevelt's paternal ancestor migrated to New Amsterdam in the 17th century, and the Roosevelts succeeded as merchants and landowners. The Delano family patriarch, Philip Delano, traveled to the New World on the *Fortune* in 1621, and the Delanos thrived as merchants and shipbuilders in Massachusetts.
* Roosevelt's father, a prominent Bourbon Democrat, once took Franklin to meet President Grover Cleveland, who said to him: "My little man, I am making a strange wish for you. It is that you may never be President of the United States."
* Franklin's mother, the dominant influence in his early years, once declared, "My son Franklin is a Delano, not a Roosevelt at all." James, who was 54 when Franklin was born, was considered by some as a remote father, though biographer James MacGregor Burns indicates James interacted with his son more than was typical at the time.
* Except for attending public school in Germany at age nine, Roosevelt was home-schooled by tutors until age 14.
* Roosevelt went to Harvard College. He was a member of the Alpha Delta Phi fraternity and the Fly Club, and served as a school cheerleader. Roosevelt was relatively undistinguished as a student or athlete, but he became editor-in-chief of *The Harvard Crimson* daily newspaper, a position that required ambition, energy, and the ability to manage others. He later said, "I took economics courses in college for four years, and everything I was taught was wrong."
* As a young man, he idolized his fifth cousin President Theodore Roosevelt. In 1905, he married Theodore niece, Eleanor, a sixth cousin. Young Roosevelt was self-assured and at ease in the upper class, while Eleanor was then shy and disliked social life, and initially stayed home to raise their children. As his father had, Franklin left the raising of the children to his wife, and Eleanor delegated it to caregivers.
* Roosevelt had several extra-marital affairs, including with Eleanor's social secretary Lucy Mercer, soon after she was hired in 1914, and discovered by Eleanor in 1918. Franklin contemplated divorcing Eleanor, but Sara objected, and Lucy would not marry a divorced man with five children. Franklin and Eleanor remained married, and Roosevelt promised never to see Lucy again. Franklin broke his promise to Eleanor as he and Lucy maintained a formal correspondence, and began seeing each other again in 1941 or earlier. Eleanor never forgave him, and their marriage became more of a political partnership. Lucy was with Roosevelt when he died in 1945.
* Roosevelt's son Elliott claimed that his father had a 20-year affair with his private secretary, Marguerite "Missy" LeHand. Another son, James, stated that "there is a real possibility that a romantic relationship existed" between his father and Crown Princess Märtha of Norway, who resided in the White House during part of World War II. Aides began to refer to her at the time as "the president's girlfriend", and gossip linking the two romantically appeared in the newspapers.
* In 1921, Roosevelt contracted polio, which left him paralyzed from the waist down. Although unable to walk unaided, Roosevelt returned to public office after his election as governor of New York in 1928.
* Roosevelt took office during the worst depression in the history of the United States.
* After the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, Roosevelt became the last president to ask Congress to declare war.
* His physical health began declining during the later war years, and less than three months into his fourth term, Roosevelt died on April 12, 1945 at his retreat house in Warm Springs, Georgia.
* Since his death, several of Roosevelt's actions have come under substantial criticism, such as the relocation and internment of Japanese Americans in concentration camps. Nevertheless, he is consistently ranked by scholars, political scientists, and historians as one of the greatest presidents in American history.