Unit 6 - World War II #1 Totalitarianism & The Outbreak of WWII

Essential Question: Warm-Up Question: What factors led to the outbreak of World War II in 1939? Warm-Up Question: Considering the short comings of the Treaty of Versailles, what do you think will cause the Second World War?

The Causes of World War II WWI was not the “war to end all wars” as a series of problems from 1919 to 1939 led to World War II Resentment in Germany over the Treaty of Versailles The failure of the League of Nations to maintain world peace A global depression & intense nationalism led to the rise of dangerous, aggressive dictators

Huge reparations slowed Germany’s ability to rebuild after the war Cause of World War II Huge reparations slowed Germany’s ability to rebuild after the war The punishing terms of the Treaty of Versailles (war guilt & demilitarization) led to anger & resentment in Germany

Causes of World War II Britain & France were leaders of the League of Nations, but war debts & post-war rebuilding meant that they could not afford another war

The Causes of World War I European nations were dependent upon U.S. investment to help rebuild, …but the Great Depression led to a world-wide depression in the 1930s, especially in Europe In Germany inflation was so bad, that money became worthless; Here German children use stacks of German money as play toys

Dictators in Europe and Asia

The Rise of Totalitarianism These desperate conditions led to the rise of totalitarianism in Europe Dictators seized total control over the gov’t & the lives of citizens Promoted nationalism to win support & promised a return of jobs, national pride, & “empire” Used propaganda, police terror, & persecution to maintain power

Totalitarian Regimes in Europe & Asia

Totalitarian Regimes in Europe & Asia Mussolini & Hitler both believed in fascism—the idea that nations need strong dictators, total authority by one political party, but that people can keep their private property Communists like Lenin & Stalin in the Soviet Union believed that the gov’t should control all property & business

Adolf Hitler 1919 – joined the National Socialist Worker’s Party, aka the Nazis Imprisoned in early ’20’s, wrote Mein Kampf Outlined Nazi beliefs Unify all German-speaking peoples into a German Empire Racial purification, sought master “Aryan” race Lebensraum, living space for German people 1933 – Hitler elected Chancellor

Adolf Hitler https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a2YEUhHFMHY

Totalitarian Regimes in Europe & Asia In the 1920s & 1930s, Japan was the strongest & wealthiest nation in Asia; Prime Minister Hideki Tojo created a military dictatorship in Japan

Hideki Tojo 1931 – Japan conquers Manchuria When condemned by the League of Nations, Japan just left the League

Causes of World War II In the 1930s, territorial expansion in Europe & Asia contributed to WWII In the 1930s, Japan began to build a large Asian empire to provide resources for their industry & military; Japanese forces attacked Manchuria, northern China, & East Indies In the 1930s, Mussolini directed the Italian military to seize Libya & Ethiopia in Africa, then Albania in Europe

A Weak League of Nations

The Ineffectiveness of the League of Nations No control of major conflicts. No progress in disarmament. No effective military force.

International Agreements Kellogg-Briand Pact – 1928 Makes war illegal as a tool of diplomacy No enforcement provisions Toothless treaty

To fulfill Hitler’s dream of Lebensraum (living space); Germany annexed Austria & Czechoslovakia in the 1930s

Germany Invades the Rhineland March 7, 1936

Failure of the League of Nations This expansion threatened world peace, but the League of Nations failed to intervene effectively: Britain & France relied on appeasement (giving in to an aggressor to avoid war) The League condemned Japan, Italy, & Germany but resisted more severe actions to halt expansion

Rome-Berlin Axis, 1936 The “Pact of Steel”

Appeasement: The Munich Agreement, 1938 British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain Now we have “peace in our time!” Herr Hitler is a man we can do business with.

Czechoslovakia Becomes Part of the Third Reich: 1939

The Outbreak of World War II In 1939, German expansion led to the outbreak of World War II: Hitler negotiated the Nazi-Soviet Nonaggression Pact allowing Germany to seize half of Poland World leaders were shocked by the agreement & horrified by German military expansion

The Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact, 1939 Foreign Ministers von Ribbentrop & Molotov

On September 1, 1939 Germany invaded Poland England & France could not use appeasement any longer & declared war on Germany On September 1, 1939 Germany invaded Poland

Blitzkrieg [“Lightening War”] Poland Attacked: Sept. 1, 1939 Blitzkrieg [“Lightening War”]

German Troops March into Warsaw

In 1940, Germany, Italy, & Japan signed the Tripartite Pact ( “Axis Coalition”) to protect each other in case any nation was attacked

Expansion in Europe & Asia Once WWII began, the Axis Powers used modern militaries to seize large territories in Europe & Asia: The Germans used blitzkrieg tactics to take most of Europe Italian forces seized north Africa Japanese military gained an empire in Southeast Asia

Blitzkrieg (“lightning war”) tactics used air raids followed by infantry & tanks invasions

Blitzkrieg

Invasion of France

Battle of Dunkirk

France Surrenders June, 1940

A Divided France Henri Petain

General Charles DeGaulle The French Resistance The Free French General Charles DeGaulle The Maquis

Now Britain Is All Alone!

Battle of Britain 1940 2 month long air war over Britain

Battle of Britain: The “Blitz”

Battle of Britain: The “Blitz”

Battle of Britain

The London “Tube”: Air Raid Shelters during the Blitz

British Prime Minister Winston Churchill

Operation Barbarossa: Hitler’s Biggest Mistake

Operation Barbarossa: June 22, 1941 3,000,000 German soldiers. 3,400 tanks.

In 1940, Germany began bombing Britain, the strongest Allied nation By 1941, the Axis Powers controlled almost all of Europe & northern Africa In 1940, Germany began bombing Britain, the strongest Allied nation By 1941, the Axis Powers controlled almost all of Europe & northern Africa In 1940, France fell to the Nazis In 1941, Germany broke the Nazi-Soviet Pact & invaded the USSR

Meanwhile…in the Pacific Japan took full advantage of the European war to expand in Asia

Japan Invades Manchuria, 1931

The Japanese Invasion of China, 1937

Conclusions By the end of 1941, the Axis Powers appeared close to victory: Germany & Italy were in control of Europe with Britain & USSR as the only opposition to victory Japan seemed to go unnoticed in their conquest of Asia From 1939 to 1941, the USA remained neutral, but not isolated, from the global conflict

Closure Activity On your map, label the following: The 3 main Axis Powers The territories under the control of the Axis Powers by 1942 On your timeline, identify the 5 most important events that contributed to World War 2; For each event, provide a brief summary & an image