Chapter 29 section 2 Pages 930-938 The Axis Advances Chapter 29 section 2 Pages 930-938

Allied VS Axis 1939 Allied Powers U.S., Britain, France, USSR, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, Denmark, Greece, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, South Africa, Yugoslavia Axis Powers Germany, Italy, Japan, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria

The Axis Attacks September 1,1939 Nazi forces storm Poland from the West, the USSR attacks Poland from the East (as per the Nazi-Soviet Pact).

Within a month Poland ceased to exist. Britain and France could do nothing but declare war on Germany.

The USSR attacks the Baltic States Stalin attacks Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania

Blitzkrieg Blitzkrieg- “lightning war” Airplane strikes to create devastating blows against the enemy using the Germany Air force or Luftwaffe.

The Miracle of Dunkirk The British and French had been hunkered down behind the Maginot line all winter while the Germans launched a blitzkrieg against Norway and Denmark.

The Surprise attack In May, The Germans forces surprise attacked the French and British by Attacking through the Ardennes Forest. Retreating British forces were trapped between the Nazi’s and the English Channel.

The miracle Occurs The British sent all available navel vessels, merchant ships, fishing and even pleasure boats across the channel to pick up the stranded soldiers off the beaches of Dunkirk.

France Falls On June. 1940 German forces headed towards Paris and forced France to sign an armistice to end WWI. The Germans set up a “puppet state” in southern Germany with it’s capital as Vichy.

Operation Sea Lion Winston Churchill had replaced Neville Chamberlain as prime minister. Operation Sea Lion would be the code name for Hitler’s plans to invade Great Britain. Beginning in August 1940, The Germans began to bomb England's southern coast, Britain's Royal Airforce battled the Luftwaffe for a month. Hitler decide to change his tactics and bomb the city of London.

Germany Launches the Blitz September 7, 1940 the German’s began to bomb London, the bombing lasts late into the night. The bombs continue for 57 nights, known as the Blitz.

Hitler Fails to take Britain The British never give up, Churchill continues to lift the moral of his people through daily speeches . Operation Sea Lion is a failure.

Mussolini Takes Africa and the Balkans Mussolini ordered his forces into Libya and Egypt, when they ran into British forces Hitler sent Erwin Rommel, better known as the Desert Fox, into North Africa to help the Italians. The Axis powers defeated the British and took Libya, Egypt and added the territories of Greece and Yugoslavia. Bulgaria and Hungary join the Axis powers

Germany invades the USSR In June 1941, Hitler nullified the Nazi-Soviet Pact. The Plan was named Operation Barbarossa. Hitler wanted to invade the USSR for it’s natural resources. The Soviets were unprepared for this war and lost 2.5 million soldiers trying to fend off the Germans. The Germans however were stalled when winter temperatures in the Soviet Union reached -40 degrees and thousands of German soldiers froze to death.

The Siege of Leningrad In September 1941, the city of Leningrad in the USSR and been surrounded by the Germans and would remain that way for two-and-a-half years. The soviets nearly starved to death, many boiled and ate leather shoes and belts. Some boiled wall paper to drink the potato paste from the back of the paper.

American Involvement Grows President Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR) was looking for a way around the neutrality acts. Lend-Lease Act- allowed FDR (USA) to sell or lend any war materials to “any country whose defense the President deems vital to the defense to the United States.” The USA would become an “arsenal of democracy”.