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U.S. Goals in World War II (0:31)

In his speech delivered July 23, 1942, Secretary of State Cordell Hull explains the aims of the United States in World War II.

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Speeches & Audio (10)

  • U.S. Goals in World War II
    U.S. Goals in World War II

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    In his speech delivered July 23, 1942, Secretary of State Cordell Hull explains the aims of the United States in World War II.

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  • War Report on B-29 Use
    War Report on B-29 Use

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    Brig. Gen. H.S. Hansell delivers a report in June 1944 on American B-29 bomber strikes against Germany and Japan.

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  • Nixon on Vietnam War
    Nixon on Vietnam War

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    On March 26, 1971, President Richard Nixon holds a meeting in the Oval Office with his National Security Council to discuss the war in Vietnam. The meeting is secretly recorded. Among the many topics he raises, Nixon recounts a prior conversation with House majority leader Hale Boggs on setting a date for the final withdrawal of U.S. forces.

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  • Franklin D. Roosevelt on American Progress in World War II
    Franklin D. Roosevelt on American Progress in World War II

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    With the United States now entered into World War II, President Franklin D. Roosevelt uses the occasion of Washington’s birthday to broadcast to the nation on February 23, 1942, an outline of America’s progress in the war.

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  • Franklin D. Roosevelt's War Progress Report
    Franklin D. Roosevelt's War Progress Report

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    In his progress report on World War II on July 28, 1943, President Franklin D. Roosevelt informs the nation that "the first crack in the Axis has come" as Italian Premier Mussolini falls from power.

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  • General Howell Recounts Civil War Experience
    General Howell Recounts Civil War Experience

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    In a recorded interview in 1947, 101-year-old General Julius Howell recalls fighting as a Confederate soldier during the Civil War and the moment he heard about Lincoln’s assassination.

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  • Stanley Baldwin on the Impending World War
    Stanley Baldwin on the Impending World War

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    Former British Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin visited New York four months prior to the outbreak of World War II to discuss the international situation. He describes the British Empire's diminishing influence as a world power.

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  • Clinton Announces End of Kosovo War
    Clinton Announces End of Kosovo War

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    On June 10, 1999, in an address to the nation, President Bill Clinton announces the withdrawal of Serbian forces from Kosovo. A settlement was reached between NATO and Serbian military commanders to cease hostilities and begin creating a framework for peace.

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  • Clinton Commits the United States to the Kosovo War
    Clinton Commits the United States to the Kosovo War

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    On March 24, 1999, after Serbian leaders refused to discuss peace and instead launched an attack against Kosovo, the United States joined forces with NATO in airstrikes against Serbian forces. In an address to the nation, President Bill Clinton explains why the military action is necessary.

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  • World War II POW Recounts Capture
    World War II POW Recounts Capture

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    In a radio interview on March 14, 1944, Sgt. Milton Williams, one of the first Americans swapped in the exchange of prisoners between Germany and the United States, recounts his experience being shot down over Germany during a mission with the Eighth Air Force.

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Videos (10)

  • Native Americans Aid War Effort
    Native Americans Aid War Effort

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    Native Americans assist U.S. troops in the war effort (circa 1943).

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  • America and the Civil War
    America and the Civil War

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    Discover how the bloodiest war in American history transformed the face of the nation.

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  • Gulf of Tonkin Incident Escalates War
    Gulf of Tonkin Incident Escalates War

    Video Clip (2:25)

    The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution jump started the Vietnam War. The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution was addressed by Lyndon B. Johnson as a joint resolution and was passed by the U.S. Congress on August 7, 1964.

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  • Amphibious Assaults of World War II
    Amphibious Assaults of World War II

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    The landing vehicle tank was essential to the amphibious assaults on D-Day and throughout the Pacific theater.

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  • Nixon's Secret Plan to End the Vietnam War
    Nixon's Secret Plan to End the Vietnam War

    Video Clip (3:36)

    In 1968, Richard Nixon ran on a platform for presidency that included a "secret plan" to end the war in Vietnam.

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  • Yale's Students of War
    Yale's Students of War

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    In this History Channel video, learn how the United States Army took over American Universities. At Yale University, for example, three thousand officer cadets come to complete their training for the Air Force.

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  • Gulf War: Operation Newmarket
    Gulf War: Operation Newmarket

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    During a night operation in Iraq, U.S. Army forces were caught in a fire fight with Iraqis.

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  • Korea Vet Recalls War
    Korea Vet Recalls War

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    Veteran Sherman Pratt recalls the tough conditions during the Korean War.

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  • World War I: Germans Attack U.S. Navy Boats
    World War I: Germans Attack U.S. Navy Boats

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    In this History Rewind video clip, take a step back in time to the beginning of World War 1. The repeated sinking of American ships caused the President to declare war. Watch the historic black and white footage of some of the attacks.

    Video Clip (2:31)
  • Americans and British Face Off in War of 1812
    Americans and British Face Off in War of 1812

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    Shortly after gaining its independence, the United States goes to war with England over its seizure of U.S. ships and sailors.

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Photo Galleries (10)

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    Vietnam War: Leaders

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    View images of the Presidents, politicians, and military leaders who influenced American involvement in the Vietnam War.

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    World War II: Rest and Relaxation

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    View photos of soliders from World War II

    (10 Photos)
  • Civil War: Artifacts
    Civil War: Artifacts

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    Explore Civil War artifacts, from medical kits and personal hygiene items, to carbines and currency.

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  • Mexico's War of Independence
    Mexico's War of Independence

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    September 2010 marks the 200th anniversary of Mexico's War of Independence from Spanish rule, which was launched by Mexican priest Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla.

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  • Faces of the Civil War
    Faces of the Civil War

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    The Library of Congress recently acquired a rare collection of nearly 700 Civil War-era ambrotype and tintype photographs, donated by the Liljenquist family.

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  • Civil War: Confederate Leaders
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    View images of Confederate leaders from the Civil War, like Robert E Lee and Stonewall Jackson, and learn more about the roles they played protecting the southern states.

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  • World War I: Trench Warfare
    World War I: Trench Warfare

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    Trench warfare reached its highest development on the Western Front during World War I (1914–18), when armies of millions of men faced each other in a line of trenches extending from the Belgian coast through northeastern France to Switzerland.

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  • Civil War: Union Military Leaders
    Civil War: Union Military Leaders

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    View images of Union leaders from the Civil War, like Abraham Linoln and Ulysses S. Grant, and learn more about the roles they played in this bloody engagment.

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    Civil War: Gettysburg

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    View photos of the damage and destruction from World War II.

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Interactives (4)

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