The European Theater

Causes of WWII  Aggression by totalitarian governments in Germany, Italy, and Japan  Japan invaded Manchuria and China  Italy invaded Ethiopia  Hitler invaded Austria and Czechoslovakia

Causes of WWII  Nationalism (hey..that sounds familiar) in Germany, Italy, and Japan  And finally the BIGGEST causes…  the failures of the Treaty of Versailles  Too harsh on Germany  the League of Nations inability to act  They were unable to stop Mussolini and Hitler  Practiced Appeasement

Causes of WWII  Most countries were practicing isolation and pacifism because of their own problems  Isolation = not getting involved, cutting off involvement in outside affairs  Pacifism = promoting peaceful solutions instead of fighting

Causes of WWII  By September 1938, Germany had annexed Austria, and invaded Czechoslovakia  GB and France at this point were preparing for war  Mussolini proposed a meeting between GB, France, Germany, and Italy in Munich.

Causes of WWII  The Munich Conference  Held on September 29, 1938  GBs Prime Minister, Neville Chamberlain thought he could prevent war by appeasing Hitler (giving him what he wanted)  GB and France gave Germany the Sudetenland as long as Germany would leave Czechoslovakia alone.

Causes of WWII  When Chamberlain returned to GB he declared “I believe it is peace for our time.”  He was only a little wrong…  Future Prime Minister Winston Churchill thought differently and warned of the consequences of appeasement

Causes of WWII  Churchill believed that Hitler was evil  6 months later, Germany invaded Czechoslovakia anyway

Hitler’s Lightening War  Because of GB and France had practiced appeasement, Hitler thought they would do nothing to stop him from invading other countries  Not even a year after the Munich conference, September 1, 1939 Hitler invaded Poland  His tactic to quickly conquer Poland was called Blitzkrieg (Lightening War)

Hitler’s Lightening War  Hitler surprised Poland by moving tanks and soldiers across their boarders  He also sends in his Luftwaffe (Air Force) to bomb Poland before his troops get there  This tactic is incredibly successful and Hitler conquered Poland in 3 weeks

WWII Has Begun  GB and France declare war on Germany 2 days after he invades Poland, September 3, 1939

WWII Has Begun  On September 17, 1939, the Soviet Union makes their move to invade countries  They invade eastern Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia

Fall of France  The war with France starts as a Phony War  French troops line up at the border and wait  German troops line up on the other side of the boarder and wait

Fall of France  In May of 1940, Hitler starts his invasion of France  His tactic is to invade Netherlands, Belgium, Luxemburg and keep the allied powers busy there  He then surprises France by sending a large force of tanks across the boarder into France

Fall of France  It takes Germany ten days to make it to the Northern Shore of France  By June 14 resistance in France falls, and Hitler takes Paris  By June 22, Hitler controls northern France and leaves the south to a puppet government

Battle of Britain  Now that France had fallen, GB stands alone against the Nazis  Winston Churchill (the new Prime Minister) had already declared that they would not give in to Germany “We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets… we shall never surrender.”

Battle of Britain  In order to take Britain, Germany needs to take out their Air Force (they are an island…)  Britain will “…wage war, by sea, land and air, with all our might and with all the strength that God can give us…against a monstrous tyranny” –Winston Churchill

Battle of Britain  Hitler would direct his Luftwaffe to target British cities, particularly London in the summer of 1940  Why?  Britain had two technological devices that would help them resist against the Luftwaffe

Battle of Britain  Radar  Could tell the number, speed, and direction of incoming planes  German code-making machine “Enigma”  This machine was smuggled into Britain and could decode Germany’s secret messages

Battle of Britain  By May 1941 Hitler called off his attack on Britain  In June he found a new target for his aggression…Soviet Union

Operation Barbarossa  Before the war started, the Soviet Union and German had signed the Non- Aggression Pact  Hitler decides that’s no longer in his best interest, and he wants to take on the Soviet Union….this is always a BIG mistake, when will they learn?

Operation Barbarossa  In June 22, 1941 German tanks and aircraft invaded the Soviet Union  The people of the Soviet Union retreated, burning everything as they went  The same strategy they used against Napoleon

Operation Barbarossa  On September 8 German forces moved on Stalingrad and were ready to starve the 2.5 million citizens to death  Nearly 1 million people died over the first winter  But the city would not fall

Operation Barbarossa  After a month, Hitler grew impatient and directed troops to Moscow  As the weather turned, the German troops realized they were not prepared for the weather  Hitler ordered his generals that there would be NO RETREAT!

Operation Barbarossa  The Germans held their position, but gained no ground in the Soviet Union  Instead they lost 500,000 soldiers

Chapter 16 Section 1 Review 1. What was the purpose of the Munich Conference? 2. Why did World War II begin? 3. Name and explain Hitler's war plan. 4. Explain the battle of France and what the outcome was 5. Explain the Battle of Britain and what the outcome was 6.Explain what happened when Germany attacked the Soviet Union. 7. What role did the United States play in WWII up until this point?