1. Warm up: Which candidate will you choose?
It is your first election and the country is in the middle of a depression, you are one of thousands of Americans who have gathered at an outdoor stadium in California. You are unemployed; your country is still suffering from the effects of the Afghanistan/Iraq War. Like everyone else, you have come to this mass meeting to hear two politicians campaigning for public office. Before long, you will have to cast your ballot. Read the promises of each of the two candidates and decide who you will vote for…….

2. Who will you choose? Vote now! Candidate 1 Candidate 2
Remember America’s long and glorious past
Replace our present indecisive leadership with a strong and effective leader
Regain the jobs taken unfairly from us
Make sacrifices to return to economic health
Put the welfare of the state above all, and our country will be a great power again
Candidate 2
Realize that there are no simple solutions to the problems in America
Put people back to work, but the recovery will be slow
Provide for the poor, sick, and elderly
Avoid reckless military spending
Act responsibly to maintain a democratic government in America
Be a good neighbor- honor our debts and commitments to other nations
Vote now!

3. Candidate 1 is Hitler!! “Road to War in 7 Steps” Notes

4. #1 - 1936- Rhineland Hitler takes back territory lost in WWI
France was given the Rhineland when the Treaty of Versailles was signed
Hitler was testing his military as well as the reaction of France

5. #2 - March 1938- Hitler Annexes Austria (Lebensraum)
The Treaty of Versailles had outlawed any alliance between Germany and Austria
Majority of the 6 million Austrian’s supported this move
German army took over without any resistance

6. #3 1938- Hitler annexes Sudetenland
Territory was along the eastern border of Germany, western border of Czechoslovakia
3 million Germans lived in the Sudetenland
Hitler made up fake headlines about how the Sudeten Germans were being mistreated
Hitler manipulated
Germans to support
invasion

7. #4 Sept. 1938- Munich Conference
Britain and France were allied with Czechs and were angry about Hitler’s invasion
Hitler promised not to invade anyone else if Britain and France would allow him to keep Sudetenland
All parties agreed in hopes to avoid war
This agreement is known as appeasement

8. #5 March 1939- Hitler invades Czechoslovakia
Hitler takes over the entire country
Czechs knew that Britain and France would not be helpful and Czech army could not defeat the Nazi army
Nazi experienced little resistance from the Czechs
Britain and France began to prepare for war

9. #6 Russia and Germany make a pact
Non-aggression pact of 1939
Germany and Russia vowed not to attack each other
In a secret deal, not written in the official non-aggression pact, Germany and Russia agreed to divide Poland
The pact insured that Germany would not have to fight a 2-front war again

10. #7 Sept 1, 1939- Hitler invades Poland
Hitler claimed that Germans in Poland were being mistreated
Nazi’s invaded Poland using their air force and tanks
Stalin invaded eastern Poland and took his share
2 days later, Britain and France declared war on Germany

11. ***The U.S. shows little reaction
U.S. had a policy of isolationism after WWI
U.S. agreed to aid any country resisting aggressive nations but refused to commit to anything more.

12. Summary
Summarize the major events leading up to the beginning of WWII.