1. The Sitzkrieg, The Winter War, and the War At Sea

2. The Sitzkrieg After fury of the blitzkrieg came the sitzkrieg on the Western Front –Sit down war –Also called the phony war –Was a six month lull between the fall of Poland and the German attack on Norway and Denmark

3. The Sitzkrieg British and French were behind the Maginot line Germans gathered behind the Siegfried Line Almost no combat Ended when Germany attacks Norway and Denmark in April, 1940

4. Russia Invades Finland Russia was still very active during the “phony war” Force Estonia to give them bases on Estonian soil Latvia and Lithuania bullied into the same thing

5. Russia Invades Finland Finland refused to give in to Russia Nov. 30, 1939- Soviet army struck at Finland –Soldiers carried propaganda leaflets –Expected to be welcomed as liberators –Thought it would be quick and only had light clothing –Not equipped or trained for harsh Finnish winter

6. The Winter War A Finnish soldier Frozen Russian soldier

7. Russia Invades Finland Finns fall back and draw the Germans into the forest and then they strike Would hit and hold the Russian front while other Finns moved to the Russian flank –Cut off routes of retreat –Separated Russian units from each other –Russians fell by the thousands

8. Russia Invades Finland World was amazed at Finnish resistance France and Britain begin to consider aiding Finland Stalin realizes Hitler is watching –Is Russia weak enough for Germany to take? Russia must take action against the Finnish Mannerheim Line

9. Russia Invades Finland Stalin brings all five of his forces together In two weeks, they break through the Mannerheim Line and after 42 days, Finland is lost Russia gets everything they demand –Their second largest city –Their biggest Artic Ocean port –Karelian Isthmus

10. The Struggle At Sea Never was a sitzkrieg at sea Began Sept. 3, 1939, 250 miles off the coast of Ireland Germans sink British passenger liner Athenia Was a violation of international agreement

11. The Struggle At Sea By the end of September, British losses were staggering. Resorted to the convoy system –Ships gather in groups and were escorted by destroyers who circled around the convoy, hunting for submarines Was offense and defensive system –The freighters and tankers acted as bait

12. The Struggle At Sea Churchill improved the convoy system by adding aircraft protection at either end of the voyage.

13. The Struggle At Sea British ships began to blow up and sink as they entered or left port Germans were dropping a new type of mine, a magnetic mine, at harbor mouths –Was drawn to a ships hull as the vessel passed over it

14. The Struggle At Sea Late November, a German airplane was seen dropping a magnetic mine –It was captured by two skillful and brave naval officers and brought to Portsmouth Naval Base to be analyzed They could then combat it by encircling British ships with an electric cable –Called degaussing

15. The Struggle At Sea Germany had three pocket battleships –Deutschland and Graf Spee left Germany between Aug. 21 and Aug. 24 and were loose in the ocean By Dec. 13 th the Graf Spee had sunk 3 British merchant ships in five days –Was tracked down by 3 British cruisers, Achilles, Ajax, and Exeter

16. The Struggle At Sea Battle enrages The Spee leaves under smoke cover and enters Montevideo, Uruguay with Ajax and Achilles outside –Uruguay is neutral Captain Langsdorff telephones the German Admiral that escape is hopeless Spee leaves harbor with British ships waiting hungrily

17. The Struggle At Sea Graf Spee is scuttled, sunk itself –Fear if ship is captured secret equipment will fall into enemy hands Langsdorff was so brokenhearted by the loss of the ship that he wrapped himself in an old Imperial flag, an insult to Hitler, and shot himself. This ends the first phase of the Battle of the Atlantic

18. The War At Sea