1. Beginning of World War II

2. “Nature is cruel, so we may be cruel, too… I have the right to remove millions of an inferior race that breeds like vermin”
-Hitler

3. Adolf Hitler

4. Immediate Causes of WW II
In Germany Adolf Hitler came to power in 1933 as a fascist dictator.
Hitler Hated the Treaty of Versailles and violated it. First he built up the German military. Then he sent troops into the Rhineland. This was a direct violation of the Treaty of Versailles, which said in 1919 that Rhineland was a demilitarized zone.

5. Immediate Causes of WW II
Hitler wanted to conquer whoever he felt was inferior to the Germans or Aryans. He wanted “living space” for the Germans in Eastern Europe.
On September 1, 1939 Germany invaded Poland without a declaration of war. This starts World War II.

6. Immediate Causes of WW II
Britain and France declared war on Germany on September 3, 1939.
Italy declared war on France and Britain on June 10, 1940.

7. “Blitzkrieg” In German blitzkrieg means “lightning war”.
Hitler used blitzkrieg during his invasion of Poland.
Blitzkrieg included surprise attacks, rapid advances into enemy territory, and massive air attacks that struck and shocked the enemy.
Germany achieved most of its victories in World War II with the Blitzkrieg tactic.

8. Blitzkrieg

9. “Blitzkrieg: German soldiers being parachuted into Holland - May 10, 1940”

10. Early Axis Triumphs
In April 1940 the quiet time of the war exploded into action.
Hitler launched a series of blitzkrieg.
Norway and and Denmark both fell.
Germany had overrun the Netherlands and Belgium.
Germany along with Italy forced France to surrender.

11. World War II in 1939/1942

12. Fall of France

13. Hitler’s Major Blunder
The Germans invaded France in May 1940.
Retreating Allied forces made it to Dunkirk and found themselves trapped between the advancing Nazis and the English Channel. The British sent every boat they could get across the English Channel to pick up troops off the beaches of Dunkirk.

14. Miracle at Dunkirk
The event at Dunkirk is called a miracle because the retreating allies had lost hope and then the British pulled through for them and rescued 338,000 men.

15. June 22, 1940
On June 22, 1940 France signs an armistice with Germany in occupied France.
An armistice is a cease fire or a truce.
The Franco-German Armistice divided France into two zones. One zone was under German military occupation and the other was under French control.
In 1942 Germans occupied all of France

16. Questions: Re-write and answer the questions!
What was the immediate cause of World War II?
Describe the German concept of the “blitzkrieg”.
What was the miracle at Dunkirk?
What was the significance of June 22, 1940?