Beginning of World War II Mr. Meester AP European History

War Begins On Sep. 1st, 1939 Germany invaded Poland. The German invasion was called “blitzkrieg,” or “lightening warfare.” On Sep. 3rd, Britain and France declared war on Germany. On Sep. 17th, Russia invaded Poland from the east. Later in 1940, Russia gained Bessarabia from Romania and territories from Finland. Throughout the spring of 1940, Western Europe was quiet. Britain and France were preparing for war, while others called it a “Sitzkrieg” or “phony war.”

The German Conquest of Europe The quiet came to an end in April when Germany invaded Denmark and Norway. In May, Germany attacked Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg. The British and French armies aiding Belgium were forced to escape at the beaches of Dunkirk. 200,000 British and 100,000 French soldiers were evacuated. German troops soon invaded France and by the end of the summer had taken Paris and forced an armistice.

Next Stop Britain With France defeated, Britain was now alone. Britain would not accept Hitler’s desire to control the continent, especially when Winston Churchill became Prime Minister. Early on, Churchill had been a critic of Hitler. Churchill was inspiring to the British people in their fight against Nazi aggression. Churchill was also able to develop a close relationship with Franklin Roosevelt. In 1940 and 1941, the Roosevelt sent supplies to Britain amid pressure not to help.

Battle of Britain With Britain standing firm, Hitler put into motion his plans to invade. First directed attacks against British airfields. In Sep. German bombers began to hit London. The “Blitz” 10 months of bombing The British retaliated by bombing German cities. Hitler was unable to break the British people’s spirit. Eventually due to the invention of radar, the Royal Air Force (RAF) was able to inflict great losses on the German Luftwaffe. Hitler was forced to abandon his plans for invasion.

Churchill on the RAF “Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few.“ -Winston Churchill Aug. 20th 1940

“Operation Barbarossa” The conquest of Russia was part of Hitler’s Lebenstraum. Italian aggression if North Africa and Greece hurt Hitler’s planned invasion of Russia. Had to send troops to these regions to help bolster the Italian army. The Italian army had been pushed back in both regions. Hitler sent General Erwin Rommel, “Desert Fox,” to Africa and he quickly pushed the British forces back. German troops quickly defeated Greek troops in the Balkans. The events in Greece and Africa delayed Hitler’s invasion of Russia by six weeks.

Invasion of Russia The invasion was to begin on May 15th, but would not happen until June 22nd of 1941. The Soviets had not prepared for a German invasion and 2,000 Russian planes were destroyed in 2 days. By December German troops were preparing to invade Leningrad, Stalingrad, and Moscow. Russia had lost 2.5 million men and 14,300 tanks. In August Hitler had made a crucial mistake by diverting troops from the Moscow invasion force to take oil fields further south. The German offensive stalled once the Russian winter hit.

Hitler’s Plan for Europe Hitler’s plans for the Third Reich (Empire) involved terror and genocide against the various inferior races of Europe. In conquered territories, Hitler sent groups of Germans to take over the lands and made the original inhabitants virtual slaves. This was all part of Hitler's policy of Lebensraum. Hitler’s long range plans not only included the colonization of these lands but also its Germanization. People of the Scandinavian countries would be absorbed since they were of Germanic descent It was planned for half a million Ukrainian women to be brought to Germany as servants and eventual wives for German men. Hitler saw the conquered lands as sources of plunder which were to be used to benefit the German people.

Japan’s Role When war started in Europe, Japan aligned itself with Germany and Italy in a attempt to dominate the western Pacific. With France, Britain, and the Netherlands being victimized by Germany, their colonies in the Pacific would become easy prey. The only obstacle Japan had in the Pacific was the United States. When the U.S., as well as Britain and the Dutch cut-off oil supplies, Japan set its sights on the oil fields of Indonesia. In October of 1941, General Hideki Tojo took control of the government in Japan and began preparations for war with the United States.

U.S. Entry Even though the U.S. was aiding the British, Hitler held back on declaring war. In regards to Japan, U.S. foreign relations had been shaky ever since their invasion of Manchuria in 1931. Dec. 7th 1941 the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. This attack destroyed much of the U.S. Pacific fleet U.S aircraft carriers were not at Pearl during the attack. On Dec. 8th, the United States and Britain declared war on Japan. On Dec. 11th, Germany and Italy declared war on the United States.

Axis Gains The U.S. was not prepared for war. Spring of 1942, Japan had captured Guam, Wake Island, the Philippines, Hong Kong, Malaya, Burma and the Dutch East Indies. Japan’s next step involved the invasion of Australia. 1942, German troops were moving again in Russia. Rommel had pushed the British back into Egypt but was stopped at the battle of El Alamein. German submarines were devastating allied shipping. Allied troops were being pushed back in all regions of fighting. The situation looked bleak.

Peak of Axis Expansion