1. World War II

2.
Between WWI & WWII, the European countries that fought in the Great War were in debt & were slowly able to rebuild
The USA & Japan emerged from the Great War with wealth & prosperity because both had traded with the Allies during war
In USA, 1920s were a great until…

3. Economic Depression In 1929, the US Stock Market crashed
investors were buying on margin (pay for only part of a stock), lenders called in loans which led to panic; banks collapsed; workers lost their jobs (Great Depression in US)
There was now no more money for investment in Europe to help rebuild; European banks collapsed; led to a world-wide economic depression

5. Affects of Conditions
These bad conditions led to the rise of totalitarian regimes in Europe:
Fascists in Italy under Mussolini
Nazis in Germany under Hitler
Communists in Russia under Lenin & Stalin

6. The Rise of Totalitarian Regimes

7. Rise of Totalitarian Regimes
As a world-wide economic depression got worse, peoples’ lives got worse & they grew frustrated
People became desperate for change & turned to new leaders who offered simple solutions to complex problems
Totalitarian Regime—Dictatorship form of government that controls all aspects of peoples’ lives

8. Rise of Totalitarian Regimes
Dictators came to power by using Fascism—idea that promises return to glory for the nation, strong leadership from one leader, a commitment of loyalty to government by the citizens
Fascists promote extreme nationalism, people can keep their private property (unlike Communism), religion is used as a tool to promote government ideas

10. Benito Mussolini in Italy
Mussolini’s rise to power:
Became popular by supporting the unemployed workers & helped stop a communist revolution in Italy
Created Blackshirts (a secret police force) to enforce goals of Fascists & led a March on Rome in 1922
King Victor Emmanuel was intimidated by Mussolini & named him Prime Minister

11. Benito Mussolini in Italy
As Prime Minister, Mussolini used his power to stop all voting and name himself dictator of Italy (even the king did not stop him); Mussolini strengthened Italy’s military, spread patriotic & nationalist propaganda promising a return to glory!
Earned the nickname Il Duce—“The Leader”

13. Adolf Hitler in Germany
National Socialist Workers’ Party (NAZIs) was a fascist political party that was one of many groups calling for the removal of the “disloyal” Weimar Republic;
Hitler was an early NAZI recruit who rose to power within the party; Hitler formed the Brownshirts (a secret police force) to enforce NAZI ideas

14. Adolf Hitler in Germany
He was jailed in 1923 for trying to overthrow the Weimar government; he wrote a book called Mein Kampf (“My Struggle”) in prison:
He blamed the Weimar Republic & the Jews for Germany’s problems
He saw himself as the leader (“Fuhrer”) of a master Aryan race
Believed Germans needed living space (Lebenstraum) in Europe

15. Adolf Hitler in Germany
Rise to power:
Hitler reorganized the NAZI party after his release from jail & made speeches promoting the NAZI party; NAZIs ran in political elections but never a won majority vote
Hitler was feared by the Weimar Republic, thought they could satisfy Hitler by naming him Chancellor (Prime Minister of Germany) in 1933

16. Adolf Hitler in Germany
As Prime Minister, he used his power to name himself dictator of Germany:
Started a fire in the Reichstag government building & blamed it on Communists
In 1934, Hitler had hundreds of his own secret police murdered (known as the Night of Long Knives)
Called his government the Third Reich—restore German army & pride

17. Adolf Hitler in Germany
Attacks on Jews:
Hitler used anti-Semitism (hatred & hostility towards Jews) to blame the Jews for all of Germany’s problems
In 1935, Hitler passed the Nuremberg Laws which stripped Jews of their German citizenship; all Jews were required to wear the yellow star of David as identification

18. Adolf Hitler in Germany
Nov 9-10, 1938—Kristallnacht (Night of Broken Glass)—NAZIs destroyed Jewish synagogues & businesses, created concentration camps & ghettos for prisoners

19. Adolf Hitler in Germany
Final Solution (Holocaust)—Hitler began his plan to eliminate Germany of all non-Aryans (Jews, Slavs, Gypsies, homosexuals, Communists, political opponents)
6 million Jews were murdered in firing squads & gas chambers throughout Europe by special killing units called the SS

21. Hideki Tojo in Japan
Japan felt the West did not accept it as an equal even though its population & industry boomed in the 1920s
Japanese leaders dreamed of a large empire to expand with lots of natural resources—In 1931, Japan invaded Manchuria, In 1937, Japan invaded China

22. Hideki Tojo in Japan
Militarism grew—Emperor Hirohito relied on Hideki Tojo (a military general) to reorganize the Japanese military
Although Emperor Hirohito “ruled” Japan, General Hideki Tojo held all dictatorial power from October 1941 to July 1944

23. Totalitarian Aggression
These totalitarian countries began to expand:
Japan: invaded Manchuria & northern China; invaded Indochina & the East Indies
Italy: occupied Ethiopia; invaded Egypt & Greece
Germany: annexed Austria & Czechoslovakia, invaded Poland

24. Alliance Formed
Knowing these actions would not be approved by the West the Axis Coalition was formed—treaties between Italy, Germany, & Japan (called the Rome Berlin-Tokyo Axis) offered mutual protection if any country was threatened by war

25. Vehemently Violating Versailles
Hitler wanted lebensraum (living space) for Germans
In March 1936 moved troops into Rhineland
In March 1938 invaded Austria & made it part of Germany
Western countries & the League of Nations did nothing (used policy of appeasement—giving in to demands to avoid another war)

27. World War 2 Begins
Knowing Russia will stay out of Hitler’s way, Germany invaded Poland on September 1, 1939
On Sept 3, 1939, England & France declared war on Germany, but do not fight Germany for months (a time period known as Phony War)

28. World War 2 Begins
Hitler used Blitzkrieg (“lightening war”—fast, strong attacks using air bombings, tanks, infantry); Germany quickly took Poland, Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania, Finland, Denmark, Norway
West was slow to arm & had old weapons; Hitler had new weapons

30. Meanwhile...
In July 1940, Italy declared war on England & France; Italy attacked British forces in Egypt
In Dec 1941, Japan attacked Indochina; the US responded to this attack by banning all sale of scrap iron to Japan

31. Pearl Harbor
Japan was mad at the US for “interfering” with Japanese expansion
On Dec 7, 1941, Japan bombed Pearl Harbor (in Hawaii); the US declared war on Japan
19 ships, 188 planes, 2,400 killed;

32. War in the Pacific

33. Pearl Harbor
Used planes to destroy 18 battleships & kill 2,403 sailors in 2 hours
Pearl Harbor was not only US naval base attacked—Japan also bombed US navy in Manila, Bataan, Corregidor, Wake Island, & Guam on its way to taking huge empire in Pacific Ocean by June 1942
Wanted “Asia for Asians” & hoped to stretch empire from Japan to Australia

34. War in the Pacific
Japanese Empire, 1942

36. War in the Pacific
Allies could never take all Japanese-controlled islands (too costly), so US began island-hopping strategy—capture some islands, skip others; hoped to cut off Japanese supply lines & “starve” other Japanese-controlled islands

37. V-J
Despite heavy losses, Japan refused to surrender to Allies; continued to fight to last man & used suicide missions to kill as many Allies as possible
US faced with decision: invade Japan OR use new weapon—atomic bomb
Atomic Bomb secretly developed in New Mexico desert during Manhattan Project

38. V-J
August 6,1945—new US President Harry Truman ordered drop of atomic bomb on Hiroshima; Japan issued no response; nd atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki 3 days later

39. Hiroshima

40. Nagasaki

42. V-J August 14, 1945-Japan surrendered—Victory in Japan
World War 2 was over

43. Conferences and Cold War
The End of World War II
Conferences and
Cold War

44. End of the War in Europe
USA, England, Russia met twice before WWII ended to discuss the reconstruction of Europe after the war:
Yalta Conference (Feb 1945)
Potsdam Conference (July 1945)

45. Yalta Conference
At the Yalta Conference, the Allies discussed 6 topics:
Wanted the unconditional surrender of the Axis Powers
They realized the League of Nations was weak & ineffective in stopping war—USA, England, Russia, France, China should form a United Nations (international organization to keep the peace after the war)

46. Yalta Conference Topics Discussed:
Russia agreed to declare war on Japan (& help the USA invade Japan) after Germany surrendered in Europe
The Allies would divide Austria, Germany & capital Berlin into 4 occupied zones (controlled by USA, England, France, USSR)

47. Potsdam Conference
After Germany surrendered, Stalin began pressuring Eastern European countries to become Communist
US President Truman was unhappy with these new pro-Soviet governments; Demanded Stalin allow free elections as he agreed to at Yalta
Stalin refused to allow freely elections in Eastern Europe because he feared they would be anti-Soviet