WORLD WAR II BEGINS Ch. 19, Section 2 By Thomas Parsons

I. Peace in our Time A.1938 Hitler threatened to invade Austria 1.In February demanded Austrian Nazis given important government posts 2.March 1938 Hitler announced Anschluss, or unification of Austria and Germany.

B.Hitler claimed the Sudetenland (area around Czechoslovakia with large German population. C.Czechs resisted

D. France, the Soviet Union and Britain threatened war if Germany attacked Czechoslovakia 1.September, 29, 1938, leaders of Britain (Neville Chamberlain), France, Italy (Mussolini), Germany (Hitler) met at Munich 2.Leaders allowed Hitler to take just Sudetenland 3.became known as the Policy of Appeasement

E.After Munich Hitler took all of Czechoslovakia in March, F.Hitler demanded the return of Danzig – Poland’s Baltic Sea Port. 1.Also demanded Polish Corridor - a highway and railroad across Poland to Danzig 2.British and French refused to appease Hitler

G.August 23, 1939 Germany and USSR signed a Nonaggression Treaty to divide Poland

II. The War Begins A.September 1, 1939, Germany and USSR invaded Poland. 1. September Britain and France declared war on Germany B.The Germans used Blitzkrieg (lightning war) to attack Poland. 1. Poland was defeated on October 5, 1939

Continued C. April 9, 1940 Germany attacked Norway and Denmark, they fell within a month

D. The Maginot Line 1.After WWI the French fortified the border with Germany 2.Impenetrate-able Concrete fortifications 3.Hitler went around by invading Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg (low countries) 4.The French and British went into Belgium and were trapped there

E. British and French escape 1.June 4th about 328,000 British and French troops had escaped Belgium through Dunkirk 2.Picked up on the coast and sent to Britain.

F.On June 22, 1940 France surrendered to the Germans. 1. Germany set up a puppet government (Vichy)

III. Britain Remains Defiant A. Hitler thought that Britain would negotiate peace after France surrendered 1. British Prime Minister Winston Churchill delivered a speech of defiance June 4, Rallied the British people

B. The Battle of Britain 1.To invade Britain, Germany had to defeat the British air force 2.Germany’s Luftwaffe launched an all-out air battle to destroy the Royal Air Force

3.Germany bombed London, 4.Britain bombed Berlin in response

C. Radar turned the tide 1.The R.A.F was greatly outnumbered by the Luftwaffe 2.Radar picked up planes leaving Germany and British Spitfires and Hawker fighter planes intercepted bombers