Essential 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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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