President Franklin D. Roosevelt Biography

President Franklin D. Roosevelt Biography Franklin Roosevelt (1882-1945) served as Americas thirty-second president of the United States. He was elected to an unprecedented four terms and served during the Great Depression and World War II.   Franklin Roosevelts Childhood and Education Franklin Roosevelt grew up in a wealthy family and often traveled overseas with his parents. His privileged upbringing included meeting Grover Cleveland at the White House when he was five. He was cousins with Theodore Roosevelt. He grew up with private tutors before attending Groton (1896-1900). He attended Harvard (1900-04) where he was an average student. He then went to Columbia Law School (1904-07), passed the bar, and decided not to stay on to graduate. Family Life Roosevelt was born to James, a businessman and financier, and Sara Sallie Delano. His mother was a strong-willed woman who did not wish her son to be in politics. He had one half-brother named James.On March 17, 1905, Roosevelt married Eleanor Roosevelt. She was the niece to Theodore Roosevelt. Franklin and Eleanor were fifth cousins, once removed. She was the first First Lady to be politically active, involving herself in causes like Civil Rights. She was later appointed by Harry Truman to be part of the first American delegation to the United Nations. Together, Franklin and Eleanor had six children. The first Franklin Jr. died in infancy. The other five children included one daughter, Anna Eleanor and four sons, James, Elliott, Franklin Jr., and John Aspinwall. Career Before the Presidency Franklin Roosevelt was admitted to the bar in 1907 and practiced law before running for the New York State Senate. In 1913, he was appointed Assistant Secretary of the Navy. He then ran for Vice President with James M. Cox in 1920 against Warren Harding. When defeated he went back to practicing law. He was elected Governor of New York from 1929-33. Franklin Roosevelts Nomination and Election of 1932 In 1932, Franklin Roosevelt won the Democratic nomination for the presidency with John Nance Garner as his Vice President. He ran against incumbent Herbert Hoover. The Great Depression was the backdrop for the campaign. Roosevelt gathered a Brain Trust to help him come up with effective public policy. He campaigned continuously and his apparent confidence made Hoovers meager campaign pale in comparison. In the end, Roosevelt carried 57% of the popular vote and 472 electors versus Hoovers 59. Second Reelection in 1936 In 1936, Roosevelt easily won the nomination with Garner as his Vice President. He was opposed by progressive Republican Alf Landon whose platform argued that the New Deal was not good for America and relief efforts should be run by the states. Landon argued while campaigning that the New Deal programs were unconstitutional. Roosevelt campaigned on the programs effectiveness. The NAACP supported Roosevelt who won an overwhelming victory with 523 electoral votes versus Landons 8. Third Reelection in 1940 Roosevelt did not publicly ask for a third term but when his name was placed on the ballot, he was quickly renominated. The Republican nominee was Wendell Willkie who had been a Democrat but switched parties in protest to the Tennessee Valley Authority. War was raging in Europe. While FDR pledged to keep America out of war, Willkie was in favor of a draft and wanted to stop Hitler. He also focused on FDRs right to a third term. Roosevelt won with 449 out of 531 electoral votes. Fourth Reelection in 1944 Roosevelt was quickly renominated to run for a fourth term. However, there was some question over his Vice President. FDRs health was declining and the Democrats wanted someone they were comfortable with to be president. Harry S. Truman was eventually chosen. The Republicans chose Thomas Dewey to run. He used FDRs declining health and campaigned against waste during the New Deal. Roosevelt won by a slim margin getting 53% of the popular vote and winning 432 electoral votes versus 99 for Dewey. Events and Accomplishments of Franklin D. Roosevelts Presidency Roosevelt spent 12 years in office and had an enormous impact on America. He took office in the depths of the Great Depression. He immediately called Congress to special session and declared a four-day banking holiday. The first Hundred Days of Roosevelts term were marked by the passage of 15 major laws. Some of the important legislative acts of his New Deal included: Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC)- hired more than three million men to work on various projects.Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)- used the Tennessee River to provide electricity for the depressed area.National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA)- created the Public Works Administration to provide aid to cities for construction and the National Recovery Administration to help businesses.Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)- corrected abuses which led to the stock market crash.Works Progress Administration (WPA)- hired many people for a variety of projects including in the arts.Social Security Act - Created the Social Security System. One of the election promises Roosevelt ran on was the repeal of prohibition. On December 5, 1933, the 21st Amendment passed which meant the end of prohibition. Roosevelt realized with the fall of France and the Battle of Britain that America could not remain neutral. He created the Lend-Lease Act in 1941 to help Britain by delivering old destroyers in exchange for military bases abroad. He met with Winston Churchill to create the Atlantic Charter vowing to defeat Nazi Germany. America did not enter the war until December 7, 1941 with the attack on Pearl Harbor. Important victories for the US and the allies included the Battle of Midway, the North African campaign, the capture of Sicily, the island-hopping campaign in the Pacific, and the D-Day invasion. With an inevitable Nazi defeat, Roosevelt met with Churchill and Joseph Stalin at Yalta where they promised concessions to Soviet Russia if the Soviets entered the war against Japan. This agreement would eventually set up the Cold War. FDR died on April 12, 1945 of a cerebral hemorrhage. Harry Truman took over as president. Historical Significance Roosevelts terms as president were marked by bold moves to fight two of the largest threats to America and the world: the Great Depression and World War II. His aggressive and unprecedented New Deal programs left a lasting mark on the American landscape. The federal government grew stronger and became deeply involved in programs traditionally reserved for the states. Further, FDRs leadership throughout World War II led to victory for the Allies even though Roosevelt died before the war ended.

World War II German Panther Medium Tank

World War II German Panther Medium Tank Armored vehicles known as tanks became crucial to the  efforts of France, Russia, and Britain to defeat the Triple Alliance of Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy in World War I. Tanks made it possible to shift the advantage from defensive maneuvers to offensive, and their use completely caught the Alliance off guard. Germany eventually developed a tank of their own, the A7V, but after the Armistice, all tanks in German hands  were confiscated  and  scrapped, and Germany was forbidden by various treaties to possess or build armored vehicles. All that changed with the rise to power by Adolph Hitler and the start of World War II. Design Development Development of the Panther began in 1941, following Germanys encounters with Soviet T-34 tanks in the opening days of Operation Barbarossa. Proving superior to their current tanks, the Panzer IV and Panzer III, the T-34 inflicted heavy casualties on German armored formations. That fall, following the capture of a T-34, a team was sent east to study the Soviet tank as a precursor to designing one superior to it. Returning with the results, Daimler-Benz (DB) and Maschinenfabrik Augsburg-Nà ¼rnberg AG (MAN) were ordered to design new tanks based on the study. In assessing the T-34, the German team found that the keys to its effectiveness were its 76.2 mm gun, wide road wheels, and sloping armor. Utilizing this data, DB and MAN delivered proposals to the Wehrmacht in April 1942. While the DB design was largely an improved copy of the T-34, MANs incorporated the T-34s strengths into a more traditional German design. Using a three-man turret (the T-34s fit two), the MAN design was higher and wider than the T-34 and was powered by a 690 hp gasoline engine. Though Hitler initially preferred the DB design, MANs was chosen because it used an existing turret design that would be quicker to produce. Once built, the Panther would be 22.5 feet long, 11.2 feet wide, and 9.8 feet high. Weighing around 50 tons, it was propelled by a V-12 Maybach gasoline-powered engine of about 690 hp. It reached a top speed of 34 mph, with a range of 155 miles, and held a crew of five men, which included the driver, radio-operator, commander, gunner, and loader. Its primary gun was a Rheinmetall-Borsig 1 x 7.5 cm KwK 42 L/70, with 2 x 7.92 mm Maschinengewehr 34 machine guns as the secondary armaments. It was built as a medium tank, a classification that stood somewhere between light, mobility-oriented tanks and heavily armored protection tanks. Production Following prototype trials at Kummersdorf in the fall of 1942, the new tank, dubbed Panzerkampfwagen V Panther, was moved into production. Due to the need for the new tank on the Eastern Front, production was rushed with the first units being completed that December. As a result of this haste, early Panthers were plagued by mechanical and reliability issues. At the Battle of Kursk in July 1943, more Panthers were lost to engine problems than to enemy action. Common issues included overheated engines, connecting rod and bearing failures, and fuel leaks. Additionally, the type suffered from frequent transmission and final drive breakdowns that proved difficult to repair. As a result, all Panthers underwent rebuilds at Falkensee in April and May 1943.  Subsequent upgrades to the design helped reduce or eliminate many of these issues.   While initial production of the Panther was assigned to MAN, demand for the type soon overwhelmed the companys resources.  As a result, DB, Maschinenfabrik Niedersachsen-Hannover, and Henschel Sohn all received contracts to build the Panther.  During the course of the war, around 6,000 Panthers would be constructed, making the tank the third most-produced vehicle for the Wehrmacht behind the Sturmgeschà ¼tz III and Panzer IV. At its peak in September 1944, 2,304 Panthers were operational on all fronts. Though the German government set ambitious production goals for Panther construction, these were seldom met due to Allied bombing raids repeatedly targeting key aspects of the supply chain, such as the Maybach engine plant and a  number of Panther factories themselves. Introduction The Panther entered service in January 1943 with the formation of Panzer Abteilung (Battalion) 51. After equipping Panzer Abteilung 52 the following month, increased numbers of the type were sent to frontline units early that spring. Viewed as a key element of Operation Citadel on the Eastern Front, the Germans delayed opening the Battle of Kursk until sufficient numbers of the tank were available. First seeing major combat during the fighting, the Panther initially proved ineffective due to numerous mechanical issues. With the correction of the production-related mechanical difficulties, the Panther became highly popular with German tankers and a fearsome weapon on the battlefield. While the Panther was initially intended to only equip one tank battalion per panzer division, by June 1944, it accounted for nearly half of German tank strength on both the eastern and western fronts. The Panther was first used against US and British forces at Anzio in early 1944. As it only appeared in small numbers, US and British commanders believed it to be a heavy tank that would not be built in large numbers. When Allied troops landed in Normandy that June, they were shocked to find that half the German tanks in the area were Panthers. Greatly outclassing the M4 Sherman, the Panther with its high-velocity 75mm gun inflicted heavy casualties on Allied armored units and could engage at a longer range than its foes. Allied tankers soon found that their 75mm guns were incapable of penetrating the Panthers frontal armor and that flanking tactics were required. Allied Response To combat the Panther, US forces began deploying Shermans with 76mm guns, as well as the M26 Pershing heavy tank and tank destroyers carrying 90mm guns. British units frequently fitted Shermans with 17-pdr guns (Sherman Fireflies) and deployed increasing numbers of towed anti-tank guns. Another solution was found with the introduction of the Comet cruiser tank, featuring a 77mm high-velocity gun, in December 1944. The Soviet response to the Panther was faster and more uniform, with the introduction of the T-34-85. Featuring an 85mm gun, the improved T-34 was nearly the equal of the Panther. Though the Panther remained slightly superior, high Soviet production levels quickly allowed large numbers of T-34-85s to dominate the battlefield. In addition, the Soviets developed the heavy IS-2 tank (122mm gun) and the SU-85 and SU-100 anti-tank vehicles to deal with the newer German tanks. Despite the Allies efforts, the Panther remained arguably the best medium tank in use by either side. This was largely due to its thick armor and ability to pierce the armor of enemy tanks at ranges up to 2,200 yards. Postwar The Panther remained in German service until the end of the war. In 1943, efforts were made to develop the Panther II. While similar to the original, the Panther II was intended to utilize the same parts as the Tiger II heavy tank to ease maintenance for both vehicles. Following the war, captured Panthers were briefly used by the French 503e Rà ©giment de Chars de Combat. One of the iconic tanks of World War II, the Panther influenced a number of postwar tank designs, such as the French AMX 50.