World War II Begins

World War II Key Ideas Hitler’s Steps to War: 1. Rearmament 2. Rhineland 3. Austria 4. Munich Conference- Sudentland 5. Czechoslovakia 6. Poland Video: WWII Crash Course

The Road to World War II On your own paper explain what the cartoonist suggests Hitler is doing? Who are the other people in this picture and what does the cartoonist think of them?

January 1933: Hitler became Chancellor of Germany Von Hindenberg and the Reichstag put through the “Enabling Act,” which gave incredible power to Hitler

Otto Von Hindenberg – 8/2/34 Hitler assumes the role of President upon the death of Von Hindenberg Renames the Office Fuerer and Chancellor of the Reich (possibly out of respect for Von Hindenberg) The Republic gave wide powers to the President. Hitler uses these to make himself dictator and effectively dissolves the Weimar Republic

Hitler soon ordered a program of rearming Germany Hitler visits a factory and is enthusiastically greeted. Many Germans were grateful for jobs after the misery of he depression years.

March 1936: German troops marched into the Rhineland The Rhineland was a region of Germany that was “demilitarized” after the Treaty of Versailles. Germany was not allowed to have troops in the region. Hitler’s actions showed how he was willing to directly challenge the treaty.

March 1938: Nazi Germany annexed Austria Again, this went against the terms of the Treaty of Versailles which banned Germany from uniting with Austria. However, the arrival of German troops was met with great enthusiasm by many Austrian people.

March 1939: Germany invaded Czechoslovakia Hitler had ordered the occupation of a part of Czechoslovakia known as the Sudetenland (in October 1938). Many hoped that that this would be the last conquest of the Nazis. However, in March 1939, he ordered his troops to take over the remainder of Czechoslovakia. This was the first aggressive step that suggested that a war in Europe would soon begin.

Neville Chamberlain Peace in Our Time We Lie Within a Few Minutes Video We Lie Within a Few Minutes Video (play until 2:17)

August 1939: Germany and Russia signed a non-aggression pact Hitler and Stalin (the Russian leader) signed a ‘non-aggression pact’. They promised that neither country would attack the other in the event of war. As part of the deal, Hitler promised Stalin part of Poland, which he planned to invade soon. This photo shows the Russian foreign minister signing the pact, whilst Stalin stands smiling in the background

Hitler also hated Communism, the form of government in Russia Stalin Hitler The non-aggression pact was surprising. Hitler and Stalin were seen as natural enemies. When Hitler talked of taking over new land for Germany, many thought that he meant Russia. Hitler also hated Communism, the form of government in Russia

September 1939: Germany invaded Poland But, the pact allowed Germany to march into Poland without fear of an attack from Russia. On September 3, 1939, Germany invaded Poland, which started a War with Britain and France. German troops marching into Warsaw, the capital of Poland.

May 1940: Germany turned west and invaded France and the Netherlands In May 1940, Germany used Blitzkrieg tactics to attack France and the Netherlands. British troops were forced to retreat from the beaches of Dunkirk in northern France. Blitzkrieg: a sudden and overwhelming military attack Captured British troops, May 1940

Blitzkrieg

By June 1940, France had surrendered to the Germans Britain now stood alone as the last remaining enemy of Hitler’s Germany in Western Europe. Vichy France- June 22, 1940, France divided into two zones: one to be under German military occupation and one to be left to the French in full sovereignty Adolf Hitler tours Paris after his successful invasion.

German/ Axis Occupation 1941-42

September 1940-May 1941: the Blitz For the following nine months, the German air force (Luftwaffe) launched repeated bombing raids on British towns and cities. This was known as the BLITZ and was an attempt to bomb Britain into submission.

Operation Barbarossa, June 1941 But in May, 1941, Hitler ordered a change of tactics. He decided to halt the bombing of Britain and launch an attack against Russia. He betrayed Stalin and ignored the promises he had made. This was a bold move that would prove to be an important turning point in the War.

Battle for Moscow October 2, 1941 Moscow itself had been turned into a fortress 422 miles of anti-tank ditches 812 miles of barbed wire 30,000 firing points By December, Germany was 18 miles from the center of Moscow Germany lost 155,000 men Harsh winter temperatures reached -20 at night Supply trains had a hard time supplying an army spread out that far January of 1942 Hitler withdrew, ending Operation Barbarossa

Battle of Stalingrad Winter 1942-1943 Last German offensive attack Historians believe Hitler went after Stalingrad because it was named after Stalin Stalingrad was a complete loss for Germany, 91,000 prisoners taken Germany was in full retreat after this battle

Battle of Kursk July, 1943 German was in retreat after Stalingrad, and Hitler was worried about image and morale He launched an offensive Greatest Tank Battle Germany lost 500,000 men Now in full retreat

Review Questions: Answer on Notability In what ways did Hitler ignore the Treaty of Versailles? At what stage do you think other countries should have attempted to stop Hitler by using force? Why do you think they did not? How was Hitler able to take over Western Europe so quickly? Why did he create problems for the German army by deciding to invade Russia?

Battle of Normandy June 6, 1944 US joins with France and Britain to take back France Normandy is the point where the Allied invasion force lands Heavy beach fighting as the force pushes their way inland

Battle of the Bulge Winter 1944-1945 German halted their retreat for one last attack. Largest battle fought by Americans in WWII The Germans experienced great success to start with. Why was this? Ø    The Allies were surprised by the attack. They had received little intelligence that such an attack would take place. Ø    Before the attack started, English speaking German soldiers dressed in American uniforms went behind the lines of the Allies and caused havoc by spreading misinformation, changing road signs and cutting telephone lines. Those who were caught were shot after a court martial. Ø    The weather was also in Hitler’s favour. Low cloud and fog meant that the superior air force of the Allies could not be used German success lasts 2 days. Then the weather cleared and the Allies started pushing back.

Battle of Berlin April- May 1945 The Russians from the east and the Allies from the west surround Hitler and his army in Berlin On the morning of April 30th Hitler was informed that German soldiers would soon run out of ammunition. Hitler and his wife of 1 day, Eva Braun, committed suicide that afternoon Germany surrendered May 2, 1945

WW2 in the Pacific

Japanese Goals of the 1930’s Revive economy hit by Depression Lead economic modernization in Asia - hoping to one day rival Europe and the United States Free Asia from western colonial influences Set up “East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere” “Asia for Asians” Dominate Asia economically and militarily

Aggression in Manchuria September 1931, needing the resources of Manchuria the Japanese army invaded China protested to the League of Nations The League of Nations “condemned” Japan

Tensions Rise in China By 1937, Japanese forces overran much of the northern part of China Rape of Nanking – in 1937 Japanese forces brutalized the population of Nanking – murdering over 300,000 civilians and soldiers in a few months

WWII in Asia Berlin, 1940 - Japan joins alliance with Germany and Italy (WHY) Looked to European colonies in Southeast Asia for resources FDR threatened to cut off supplies of scrap metal, rubber, and oil • Why? Because Japan couldn’t / didn’t to try to defeat USSR by itself - wanted Hitler to attack from west, themselves from the east - make the Soviets fight a two front war