1. World War II
Introduction

2. LONG TERM CAUSES LEADING UP TO WORLD WAR II (WWII)
Treaty of Versailles
Germans were forced to:
pay reparations
Redraw boundaries and reduce territory
Reduce the size of their military
The Germans were upset with this treaty and the Weimar Republic for signing it because it made them look WEAK

3. Economic and Political Factors Great Depression hit Germany hard
High unemployment rates
High inflation making German money worthless
Germans were afraid communists would take over
Hitler was seen as a defense against this

4. Appeasement (giving in to someone’s demands)
Americans passed Neutrality Acts to stay out of foreign affairs
France and Britain appeased Hitler and his violation of the Treaty of Versailles
Germany, Italy, and Japan united to form an alliance called the AXIS POWERS

5. Hitler invaded Austria, the Sudetenland and eventually all of Czechoslovakia
This territory was known as the “Third Reich”
Chamberlain appeased him to avoid another war, even though it violated the Treaty of Versailles

6. Hitler’s Leadership
Challenged the Treaty of Versailles
Rebuilt German military
Practiced territorial aggression to claim back land
Promoted extreme Nationalism
Encouraged Anti-Semitic Scapegoating

7. WWII Begins

8. WORLD WAR II BEGINS Hitler invaded Poland in 1939
France and Britain promised that they would defend Poland if this happened
As a result, WWII began in September of 1939

9. WAR BEGINS
Hitler invaded Poland on Sept. 1, 1939 using a tactic called “Blitzkrieg” meaning “lightning war”
It was a very fast, forceful fighting tactic and Poland surrendered after one month
After this, the war was called a “phony war” because there wasn’t much fighting until April 1940
Germany began invading Denmark,
Norway, and other surrounding countries
Before attacking France and Britain
The only country that was not conquered by the Nazis was Britain
WWII Map

10. JAPANESE INVOLVEMENT
Japan wanted to expand their empire and become an imperialist power
Japan invaded Manchuria (part of China) because it had many natural resources
The League of Nations investigated this invasion, and Japan withdrew their membership from the League
Japan allied with Germany
Thought they would invade Soviet Union together
When Germany signed Nazi-Soviet Pact, Japan instead invaded the South Pacific
Led to the attack on Hawaii

11. ALLIANCES AXIS POWERS Germany, Italy, and Japan
ALLIED POWERS  France, Great Britain, Poland; later joined by Soviet Union and USA
The Soviet Union made a non-aggression pact with Germany called Nazi-Soviet Pact promising neutrality between the two
countries

12. AXIS POWERS Germany ~ Adolf Hitler Italy~ Benito Mussolini
Japan~ Hideki Tojo

13. ALLIED POWERS Great Britain Neville Chamberlain until 1940
Winston Churchill took over in 1940
Soviet Union ~ Joseph Stalin
USA~ Franklin D. Roosevelt ~ until 1945
Harry S. Truman ~ End of the war
FDR
Truman
Churchill
Chamberlain

14. US INVOLVEMENT
USA passed the Neutrality Acts in 1935, stating that we would not supply weapons to belligerent countries (countries at war) taking a position of isolationism
In 1941, the US passed the Lend-Lease Acts which allowed us to supply weapons to the Allied Powers without going to war
Kept us directly out of the war, but showed that we supported Allies

16. US ROAD TO WAR
FDR and Churchill met in 1941 and wrote the Atlantic Charter
Document stated their democratic goals that both share
US also helped defend Britain against German submarines
US was showing support for Britain in the war

18. PEARL HARBOR
Dec. 7, 1941~ US naval base in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, was attacked by Japan
Dec. 8, 1941~ Congress declared war on Japan
Event caused the US to enter WWII as an Allied Power

20. ALLIED VICTORIES IN EUROPE
Battle of Stalingrad~ Soviets defeated the Germans turning the war against Germany
Battle of El Alamein~ North African battle that eventually led to the defeat of Italy
D-Day~ June 6, 1944~ led to the eventual defeat of Nazi Germany

21. END OF WAR IN EUROPE V-E Day~ May 8, 1945 Victory in Europe Day
Germany surrendered ending the war on the European Front

23. VICTORIES IN THE PACIFIC
Battle of Midway~ air battle that turned the tide of the war in favor of the Allies on the Pacific Front
Island hopping – strategy of capturing some of the Pacific Islands making a path to Japan

25. ATTACK ON JAPAN Japan refused to surrender in the war
US dropped two atomic bombs in August of 1945
Hiroshima ~ 80,000 killed
Nagasaki~ 40,000 killed
Led to the surrender of Japan

26. WAR ENDS IN JAPAN V-J Day~ September 2, 1945 Victory in Japan Day
Japan surrendered and World War II was over

28. EFFECTS OF THE WAR Over 22 million military personnel died
34 million wounded
Holocaust resulted in over 12 million deaths, 6 million being Jews
Millions of dollars spent on the war
Territory destroyed