The 45th Infantry Division
Glossary
absolute monarchy: A form of government in which the monarch has absolute power over his or her people.
alliance: A union or association formed for mutual benefit, especially between countries or organizations.
amphibious assault: A military operation involving forces landed from the sea.
army: An organized military force equipped for fighting on land, typically made of two or more corps.
authoritarian: Favoring or enforcing strict obedience to authority, especially that of the government, at the expense of personal freedom.
beachhead: A defended position on a beach taken from the enemy by landing forces, from which an attack can be launched.
bond: An investment to the government that is paid back after the war with interest.
casualty: A person killed or injured in a war.
communism: A political theory derived from Karl Marx, advocating class war and leading to a society in which all property is publicly owned and each person works and is paid according to their abilities and needs.
concentration camp: A place where large numbers of people, especially political prisoners or members of persecuted minorities, are deliberately imprisoned in a relatively small area with inadequate facilities, sometimes to provide forced labor or to await mass execution. The term is most strongly associated with the several hundred camps established by the Nazis in Germany and occupied Europe in 1933–45, among the most infamous being Dachau, Bergen-Belsen, and Auschwitz.
constitutional monarchy: A form of government in which a monarch acts as head of state within the parameters of a written, unwritten, or blended constitution.
country: A nation with its own government.
courage: The ability to do something that frightens one or the strength to accomplish something despite pain or grief.
fascism: An authoritarian and nationalistic right-wing system of government and social organization.
forced labor: Where people are employed against their will by the threat of destitution, detention, and/or violence.
frontline: The military line or part of an army that is closest to, and actively fighting, the enemy.
genocide: The deliberate killing of a large group of people, especially those of a particular ethnic group or nation.
heroes: People that are admired or idealized for courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities.
Holocaust: Destruction or slaughter on a mass scale, especially the mass murder of Jewish peoples under the German Nazi regime from 1941 to 1945. More than 6 million European Jews, as well as members of other persecuted groups, were murdered at concentration camps such as Auschwitz.
National Guard: The primary reserve military force, partly maintained by the states but also available for federal use.
nationalism: An extreme form of patriotic feeling, principles, or efforts, especially marked by a feeling of superiority over other countries.
Nazi: A member of the National Socialist German Workers' Party, or a member of an organization with ideology similar to Nazism.
neutral: Not helping or supporting either side in a conflict, disagreement, etc.
representative democracy: Founded on the principle of elected officials representing a group of people.
symbol: A thing that represents or stands for something else, especially a material object representing something abstract.
total war: A war in which armies involved attacked cities and civilians as well as each other.
trench: A long narrow ditch.
world war: A conflict that involves different nations and is fought on continents around the world.
