A little WWII quiz

[spidge]

Originally Posted by Von Poop

86...

I should have known the Battle of the Bulge took place near Milan...

B**CH!

[Peter Clare]

84%

[T. A. Gardner]

Originally Posted by spidge

I got 90% but question a few. eg

46. Where did the Battle of the Bulge take place? (A) The Ardennes Forest
(B In northern Italy, near Milan
(C) Normandy
(D) In northern Germany, near Hamburg

He says B

Yea, and most of the Japanese fleet was sunk at Midway. Many of the "right" answers are wrong. On top of that many of the questions had no right answer listed at all.

The Midway one is an example. Japan did not lose a majority of either its fleet or carriers (4 were lost leaving 4 fleet..Shokaku, Zuikaku, Hiyo, Junyo.. and 2 CVL along with 3 CVE) there. So no right answer is given.

Midway versus Guadalcanal as a turning point in the Pacific is also very debatable, as are the answers to several other questions. A shallow and intellectually juvenile quiz at best.

[spidge]

Originally Posted by T. A. Gardner

Yea, and most of the Japanese fleet was sunk at Midway. Many of the "right" answers are wrong. On top of that many of the questions had no right answer listed at all.

The Midway one is an example. Japan did not lose a majority of either its fleet or carriers (4 were lost leaving 4 fleet..Shokaku, Zuikaku, Hiyo, Junyo.. and 2 CVL along with 3 CVE) there. So no right answer is given.

Midway versus Guadalcanal as a turning point in the Pacific is also very debatable, as are the answers to several other questions. A shallow and intellectually juvenile quiz at best.

I answered Guadalcanal because as important as Midway was, the Japanese Pacific fleet was still as dangerous as it was before. Not until after the Battle of Guadalcanal (3rd battle of Savo island) did the US and their allies gain the ascendancy and win the decisive battle.

[spidge]

I do think that there are more than a few "iffy" answers in this quiz.

Maybe we should have a look at them one by one for an experiment and see what we end up with at the finish.

[T. A. Gardner]

That is not a bad suggestion.

[morse1001]

88% correct

[Cpl Rootes]

75% but all wrong he got wrong actually

[T. A. Gardner]

1. Which event is generally considered to be the first belligerent act of World War II?
(A) Germany’s attack on Russia
(b) Germany’s attack on Britain
(C) Germany’s attack on Poland
(D) Germany’s occupation of Austria

C is acceptable generalization for the European portion of the conflict.


2. Which two countries were the first to declare war on Germany?
(A) Italy and Greece
(b) Britain and France
(C) Norway and Denmark
(D) The United States and the USSR

I thought Poland was the first. But, of the above selections B is correct


3. Against which country did the Soviet Union instigate an armed conflict in late 1939?
(A) Finland
(b) Yugoslavia
(C) Czechoslovakia
(D) Hungary

Of the choices, A is correct


4. What were the first two western European countries that Germany invaded?
(A) France and Belgium
(b) Norway and Denmark
(C) Switzerland and Liechtenstein
(D) Austria and the Netherlands

B is an acceptable answer


5. Which best describes Germany’s standard invasion strategy at the beginning of World War II?
(A) Attack with a combination of speed and overwhelming force
(b) Intimidate the enemy by first amassing a large force along the enemy’s border
(C) Begin with acts of sabotage behind enemy lines
(D) Draw out battles for as long as possible to wear the enemy out

A is a somewhat simplistic but not overly bad description


6. What major mistake did the Allies make in preparing to defend against Germany’s attack on France?
(A) They failed to anticipate that the attack would take place
(b) They expected an attack by ground forces rather than a naval assault
(C) They misinterpreted where the main invasion would take place
(D) They failed to set up minefields along the border with Germany

While C is true to an extent, it was far more a failure of French doctrine than strategic deception that caused their rapid demise.



7. What happened at Dunkirk in May 1940?
(A) British forces retreated across the English Channel
(b) The French army lost a major battle
(C) American forces invaded France
(D) German forces were defeated in a large naval battle

Both A and B are true about Dunkirk. While A is the major British outcome, B is the major French outcome


8. Where was the French surrender to Germany signed?
(A) In Paris
(b) In Berlin
(C) In a railway car
(D) On a boat

C is correct


9. Why did the British Royal Navy attack French warships at Mers-el-Kebir?
(A) The French crews had sworn allegiance to Germany
(b) France was at war with Britain
(C) The French crews refused to surrender their ships when the British requested
(D) They were manned by Germans

C is not totally accurate. The British negotiated for the French fleet to sail to Alexandria for either internment or to join the Free French.


10. What was Germany’s initial strategy for conquering Britain?
(A) First establish air superiority, then send in ground forces
(b) First destroy the British navy, then send in ground forces
(C) First send in ground forces, then attack the country with aircraft
(D) Immobilize London with poison gas attacks

A is very coarsely correct.


11. What was the “London Blitz”?
(A) Germany’s plan for a blitzkrieg on London
(b) A term used for Germany’s bombing campaign on London
(C) A series of German missile attacks late in the war
(D) Code name for a secret British radar system

B is accurate for the media term for the bombing


12. Overall, the Battle of Britain is considered to be
(A) A victory for Germany
(b) A victory for Britain
(C) A victory for neither
(D) A minor conflict

While B might be construed correct, C is more accurate. The Germans gave up their attempt but not because they could not continue. Britain did not "win" this campaign as much as simply avoided defeat.


13. What was Italy’s primary role in the war?
(A) It helped Germany in accomplishing its main objectives
(b) It was helpful to Britain
(C) It caused problems for Japan
(D) It distracted Germany from accomplishing its main objectives

While D obviously occured, Italy did assist the Germans in several campaigns as a minor ally as did Hungary, and several other nations. It is just a bad way to put it.


14. What was Hitler’s primary justification for invading Russia?
(A) Stalin was preparing to attack Germany
(b) Germany needed more space for its population
(C) Hitler believed that a war on two fronts would be to his advantage
(D) He desired revenge for the execution of Tsar Nicholas II

B is a correct answer


15. What was the code name given to Germany’s plan to invade the USSR?
(A) Operation Sea Lion
(b) Operation Barbarossa
(C) Operation Wolfenstein
(D) Operation Crossbow

B is a correct answer

16. What happened to the Soviet air force during the opening days of the German invasion?
(A) Up to 2,000 Soviet aircraft were destroyed while still on the ground.
(b) Soviet pilots scored easy victories against inexperienced German pilots
(C) It was evacuated to Siberia
(D) The Soviet air force engaged in huge dogfights involving thousands of planes on each side

A is a good characterization of the opening air operations of this campaign.


17. Which of the following was not a part of the Soviet defense plan against Germany?
(A) Well-organized partisan resistance
(b ) A strict policy of destroying any usable resources before retreating
(C) The Soviets sought to lure German armies into forests, which they would then set on fire
(D) Major factories were disassembled and moved east

While C is given as correct, really none of the above were part of Soviet pre-war planning for the defense of the nation. Partisan warfare sprang up largely on its own at first and was later assisted as an official doctrine. The relocation of industry was done on the fly without prior planning. This was hardly an anticipated need pre-war. Stalin's scorched earth policy was issued as a field order after the invasion started. Again there was no prior plan for it.


18. On which region of the Soviet Union did Hitler place the highest priority?
(A) Ukraine and southern Russia
(b) Leningrad and northern Russia
(C) Moscow and central Russia
(D) Siberia

The answer is given as A. But, initially C is correct. The Ukraine was in German hands by the time they changed focus to the South of Russia in 1942.


19. Via what route did Russians manage to send some supplies to Leningrad during the German siege of the city?
(A) A German supply line across the Black Sea
(b) An underground railroad
(C) A supply route across Lake Ladoga
(D) An airlift

C is an acceptable answer


20. Which country was the site of most of the Nazi extermination camps? (A) The USSR
(b) Czechoslovakia
(C) Poland
(D) Hungary

C is correct


21. How did the Western Allies respond to Germany’s invasion of Russia? (A) They sent supplies and intelligence information to the USSR
(b) They were largely indifferent to the situation in Russia
(C) They sent large numbers of troops to fight in Russia
(D) They attacked German naval forces from the Black Sea

A is given as correct. But, the Western Allies only shared limited intelligence with the Soviets, so really none of the answers is really accurate.


22. What Japanese action created tension with the United States?
(A) Its seizure of territory in China
(b) Its seizure of territory in Russia
(C) Its seizure of territory in Korea
(D) Its decision to block American shipping routes

A is correct


23. What U.S. action created tension with Japan?
(A) Its blockade of Japanese ports
(b) Its freezing of Japanese assets
(C) Its establishment of a trade embargo against Japan
(D) Its default on Japanese loans

C is reasonably accurate but only one of many American actions that in part pushed Japan to war.


24. Who was the Japanese admiral behind the Pearl Harbor attack?
(A) Hirohito
(b) Myamoto
(C) Yamamoto
(D) Matsuhito

C is correct


25. Which of the following was not true about the Pearl Harbor attack? (A) U.S. officials knew the day before that Japan was planning a major attack
(b) There was concern among U.S. military leaders that Peal Harbor was vulnerable to attack
(C) The Japanese painted their aircraft to look like American planes
(D) Prior to the attack, Japanese spies had verified which U.S. battleships would be in port

While C is given as the correct answer, A and D are really not true either


26. What was unique about the Doolittle Raid?
(A) The bombers were launched from an aircraft carrier
(b) It was the first raid to employ jet aircraft
(C) The bombers flew to Japan all the way from Hawaii
(D) The bombers were unmanned

A is a reasonable answer


27. Which battle is considered to be the turning point for the war in the Pacific?
(A) The Battle of the Coral Sea
(b) The Battle of Guadalcanal
(C) The Battle of Iwo Jima
(D) The Battle of Midway

While D is given as the correct answer I think most serious historians would give B as correct. Guadalcanal represents the point at which the Allies first went on the offensive and the tide of war really shifted against Japan. While Midway was a defeat for the Japanese they continued offensive operations elsewhere for several more months; New Guiena / Port Moresby is an excellent example.

28. The Battle of the Coral Sea was a unique naval battle in that

(A) It was fought entirely with submarines
(b) It was fought during a typhoon
(C) It was fought entirely with carrier-based aircraft
(D) It was fought primarily at night

C is correct


29. During the Battle of Midway, Japan lost
(A) Most of its battleships
(b) Most of its aircraft carriers
(C) Admiral Yamamoto
(D) Most of its Pacific Fleet

B is given as correct. Actually, none of the above are true. Japan still had more carriers left than they lost at Midway. Yamamoto survived the battle, their fleet was largely intact except for the loss of the four carriers, and they lost no battleships in this action.


30. The Battle of Stalingrad was
(A) A clear-cut example of a blitzkrieg
(b) An easy victory for Germany
(C) One of the deadliest battles in human history
(D) Primarily a tank battle

C is given as the answer but, once again none of the above is more accurate. While Stalingrad was intense and very large it hardly can be construed as one of the deadliest battles in history in terms of killed as a proportion of the number of troops that participated.

31. Who met at Casablanca?

(A) Roosevelt and Churchill
(b) Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin
(C) Roosevelt, Churchill, Stalin, and Hitler
(D) Truman and Churchill

A is correct


32. What was the focus of the Tehran Conference?
(A) The Allied invasion of France
(b) The war in the Pacific
(C) The Battle of Stalingrad
(D) The division of Germany after the war

While D is given as the answer, A was also discussed


33. What was the significance of Guadalcanal to Japan?
(A) The island was sacred to the Shinto religion
(b) The island offered a good position for attacking the Philippines
(C) The island was known to have oil reserves beneath it
(D) The island was in an ideal position for controlling the Solomon Islands

D is given as the answer. This is really not the reason the Japanese took the island. Rather they were planning on using it to interdict the Australian supply lines as an extension of their drive on Port Moresby and only became interested in the island after their stalemate at Coral Sea.


34. Why was the Japanese capture of Rangoon such a bitter loss for the Allies?
(A) They were worried about Rangoon historical sites
(b) As a major seaport, it was an excellent supply point
(C) Winston Churchill was born there
(D) The location was perfect for launching air strikes against Japan

While B is true, its loss meant that supplying China was now made nearly impossible and this was a bigger problem than the loss of the city itself


35. Which statement best characterizes the series of battles in the Pacific following the Battle of Guadalcanal?
(A) With each battle, the Allies became increasingly disheartened until they finally gave up
(b) With each battle, the Japanese surrendered in large numbers
(C) With each battle, the Japanese soldiers increasingly fought to the death
(D) With each battle, civilian inhabitants of the islands joined the Allies in battle

C is given but this was true long before Japan started losing the Pacific war. I would say that Japan was unable to successfully go on the offensive after that point would be more accurate.


36. What was the significance of Mt. Suribachi?
(A) It was the site of the bloodiest fighting on Okinawa
(b) It was the Japanese defense headquarters outside Tokyo
(C) It was the location where Japan was defeated in New Guinea
(D) It was the site of a major battle on Iwo Jima

D is correct within the answers


37. Which country instigated the conflict in North Africa?
(A) Germany
(b) Italy
(C) Britain
(D) The United States

B is correct


38. Why did Allied forces invade Italy after it had already surrendered?
(A) German forces were still fighting in the country
(b) Italy refused to meet all of the Allied demands
(C) There was strong anti-Allied resistance among Italian partisans
(D) The Allies felt that Italy needed to be punished

While A is cited this is wrong. The Allies invaded Italy prior to its surrender. Three times no less! Sicily first (it is part of Italy), then at the tip (8th Army) and at Salerno. Italy surrendered after the Salerno landings.

39. What was Monte Cassino?

(A) A place where Allied soldiers celebrated after the fall of Rome
(b) The place where Italy’s surrender was signed
(C) A large monastery in central Italy where the Germans defended Rome from Allied forces
(D) The site where Mussolini was killed

C is given. But, it was not so much as a defense of Rome but to defend the major highway leading to Rome.


40. The Battle of Kursk is best described as
(A) Trench warfare
(b) An aerial battle
(C) Hand-to-hand combat
(D) A tank battle

While D is given, A is really a pretty accurate description. Kursk comes very close to WW 1 1918 warfare in nature.


41. After the Battle of Kursk, German forces
(A) Advanced deeper into southern Russia
(b) Finally entered Moscow
(C) Began a lengthy retreat back to Germany
(D) Held their position until the end of the war

C is correct


42. What was the code name for the Allied invasion of Europe?
(A) Operation Barbarossa
(b) Operation Watchtower
(C) Operation Overlord
(D) Operation Bagration

C is given. But, it really should be Operation Avalanche, the Salerno landings. Last time I checked, Italy was part of Europe.


43. The Allied invasion of Europe was primarily directed at
(A) The German coast
(b) The Italian coast
(C) The Danish coast
(D) The French coast

While D is given, it really is B and D. The Allies landed three times in Italy first fpllowed by two landings in France.


44. What was the location of the second major Allied assault into Europe in 1945?
(A) The Italian coast
(b) Greece
(C) The French Mediterranean coast
(D) The German North Sea coast

1945?!! The Rhine? The second major Allied invasion of Europe was a Anzio. (Salerno and the toe of Italy were the first two simultaneous landings). Southern France was the last and fourth.


45. Why was the Luftwaffe so ineffective during the last part of the war? (A) Germany was experiencing a severe oil shortage
(b) Germany was running out of pilots
(C) Most of Germany’s airplanes had already been destroyed
(D) The Allies had developed a way to interfere with German navigation equipment

While A was the major reason, B was a problem too.

46. Where did the Battle of the Bulge take place?

(A) The Ardennes Forest
(b) In northern Italy, near Milan
(C) Normandy
(D) In northern Germany, near Hamburg

B is given and obviously wrong unless they mean the Pasta War of 1637..... A is the correct answer.


47. What were the V1 and V2?
(A) Italian army battalions
(b) German missiles
(C) The two atomic bombs dropped on Japan
(D) Nightclubs in Berlin

B is correct within the context of the question and answers.


48. Which Allied country’s forces arrived in Berlin first?
(A) The United States
(b) Britain
(C) France
(D) The USSR

D is correct. Unless you count aircrew that landed there earlier from shot down bombers.....


49. In the last six months of the war, what was the U.S. strategy for winning the conflict with Japan?
(A) Negotiate with Japan for a conditional surrender
(b) Insert ground forces on the Japanese home islands
(C) Break the Japanese will with massive bombing raids on Japanese cities
(D) Place all of Japan under a naval blockade until the country surrendered

C is given but D is equally accurate. If anything, the blockade and submarine campaign in the Sea of Japan strangled the economy more effectively than bombing.


50. At what conference did the Allies set the terms for the Japanese surrender?
(A) The Yalta Conference
(b) The Casablanca Conference
(C) The Tehran Conference
(D) The Potsdam Conference

D is reasonable

[spidge]

A good synopsis of the questions and thorough review of the possible answers T.A. Gardner.

As with most quizzes the quizmaster knows the answer he wants and adds the multiple choice later.

Does anyone disagree with any of the responses as PearlJamNoCode is going to contact the quizmaster with the "queries" from this forum.

I think it would be a good idea to pick those that you feel are straight out incorrect or have over simplistic answers.

I suggest we start with the questions each of you thought were correct but were deemed incorrect.

The phrasing of the questions may also be taken to task compared to the required correct answer.