Ch. 32: WWII

1. Ch. 32: WWII Sec. 1: Hitler’s Lightening War

2. Background • - Hitler repeatedly violated the Treat of Versailles through the 1930’s but in the hope of peace, Great Britain and France did nothing. He now turned to Poland. Both Great Britain and France vowed war if Hitler were to invade Poland

3. Non-Aggression • Non-Aggression Pact – A promise between Germany and the Soviet Union not to invade each other • - A secret part of the pact was that Germany and the USSR would divide Poland between them. • - This cleared the way for Germany to invade Poland

4. War • September 1, 1939 – Germany invades Poland • September 3, 1939 – Great Britain and France declare war on Germany • - This declaration came too late to help Poland

5. Blitzkrieg • Blitzkrieg – “lightening war.” New German war tactic that involved fast moving tanks and planes followed by massive military forces. • - It was designed to surprise and quickly overwhelm enemy defenders. In the case of Poland, it worked.

6. Divided Poland • - Germany gained control of western Poland • - The USSR invaded and occupied eastern Poland • - Germany also occupied Denmark and Norway • - This gave them a strategic point to launch attacks on Great Britain

7. France • May 1940 – Hitler took Belgium, Netherlands, and Luxembourg. This was designed to get to France • June 22, 1940 – France falls after only six weeks of battle

8. France

9. France • Charles de Gaulle – The leader of the French government in exile in London • - He urged the French citizens to continue to fight against Germany • - The fall of France meant that Great Britain was now alone against Germany

10. Churchill • Winston Churchill – Was the British leader. He vowed that Great Britain would never surrender • - Hitler planned to knock out the British air force and then put 250,000 soldiers on the ground • Summer, 1940 – The German Luftwaffe began bombing Great Britain

11. Luftwaffe • Luftwaffe – German air force • September 7, 1940 – Germany began to bomb London. This was designed to break the British morale but that did not happen • - The British weathered the German attacks and began to hot back

12. Battle of Britain • Battle of Britain – The name of this air war campaign • May 10, 1941 – Hitler could not penetrate British forces so he called of the attack and focused on eastern Europe and the Mediterranean. He would deal with Great Britain later - It showed that Hitler’s attacks could be stopped

13. Battle of Britain • - Although Hitler couldn’t see it, the Battle of Britain was a huge loss for Germany. Many planes were destroyed and many of Germany’s top pilots were killed

14. Egypt • September, 1940 – Italy invaded Egypt. Mussolini wanted to push the British out and control the oil fields of the Middle East • - The British stopped Mussolini but Hitler sent in help and pushed the British back

15. Rommel • Erwin Rommel – The German commander in Africa • - His success in Africa earned him the nickname “The Desert Fox.”

16. Barbarossa • June 22, 1941 – Hitler ignores the non-aggression pact and invades the USSR • Operation Barbarossa – The code name of the attack • - The USSR had a large army but they were poorly trained and caught off guard by the attack • - At first, the Germans moved very quickly into the Soviet Union • - As the Soviets retreated , they used the same scorched earth policy they used against Napoleon

17. Leningrad • Leningrad – The Germans launched a fierce battle to take the city • - The Germans had the city surrounded and cut off all supplies. Still, the citizens did not give in, even though they were starving • - Eventually Hitler gave up and moved on to Moscow, but the result was the same

18. Leningrad

19. Russian winter • - The German military was caught out in the Soviet winter with only summer uniforms. • - It was a stalemate until march, 1943 • - About 500,000 Germans died in that time

20. BRRRRR….

21. US • - At this point in the war, the US was still claiming to be neutral, but was selling weapons to the allies. The US was also attacking German U Boats when they were encountered. • - But it wouldn’t be Germany that drew the US into WWII

22. Sec. 2: Japan’s pacific Campaign

23. Background • - Japan began its invasion of China in 1931 and launched a full invasion in 1937. The Japanese expected a quick victory but it didn’t work out that way. In need of resources for the war, Japan looked to the European colonies of Southeast Asia • - As Japan overran French Indochina, the US became worried about its colonies in the Philippines and Guam • - The US sent aid to China to help fight the Japanese and cut off oil shipments to Japan. • - Japan responded by attacking the US

24. Pearl Harbor • December 7, 1941 – Japan attacked the US naval base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii • - 19 ships were sunk or damaged. 2,300 Americans were killed and 1,800 were wounded • - The US declared war on Japan the next day

25. Pearl Harbor

26. Stuff • - Japan took several lightly defended islands in the Pacific such as Guam and wake Is. But they also took the Philippines, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Singapore, and Burma • - Japanese treatment od citizens of the conquered areas was brutal. The treatment od captured soldiers was worse • Read Primary Source – p. 932 • - At first the Japanese made gains and seemed unstoppable, but much of that was due to the element of surprise

27. Japanese Aggression

28. Battles • April, 1942 – The US bombed Tokyo under the leadership of James Doolittle • - The raid itself did little damage but made an important psychological point to both sides: Japan was vulnerable to attack

29. Midway • Battle of Midway – (June 1942) – The US scored a huge victory over Japan at Midway Is. This was an early turning point in the war with Japan • - After Midway, the US went on the offensive • - The war in the Pacific covered vast distances and the Japanese were dug in to several islands

30. MacArthur • Douglas MacArthur – Was the allied forces commander in the Pacific • - MacArthur decided not to attack heavily defended islands but to take smaller less defended islands closer to Japan first

31. Guadalcanal • Battle of Guadalcanal – A deadly six month battle to take the island of Guadalcanal. Japan lost 24,000 of 36,000 soldiers on the island • - It was an important American victory, but other islands would prove to be very costly • - read Primary Source – p. 935

32. Sec. 3: The Holocaust

33. Holocaust • - The Nazis proposed a new world order as part of their vision for Europe • Aryan – Germanic people were the “master race.” • - The Nazis claimed that all non-Aryan people, especially the Jews, were inferior

34. Holocaust • Holocaust – The attempted extermination of Europe’s Jews • - To gain support for racist ideas, Hitler knowingly tapped into a hatred of the Jews that had deep roots in European history • - Jews had been targeted for years in Europe

35. Nuremberg Laws • - Hitler made the targeting of Jews government policy by passage of the Nuremberg Laws. These laws deprived Jews of their right to German citizenship, forbade marriage between Jews and non-Jews, and eventually limited the type of work they could do

36. Kristallnacht • - To avenge his uncle’s deportation to Poland, a Jewish youth shot a German diplomat in Paris. • - This set off a night of destroying Jewish property and burning synagogues in Germany. • Kristallnacht – “Night of Broken Glass” • Read Primary Source – p. 937 • - Many Jews tried to flee Germany after kristallnacht but most stayed in Germany thinking Hitler would be gone soon • - Germany occupied several countries with large Jewish populations so he decided to isolate them

37. Ghetto • Ghetto – Segregated Jewish areas. Most were overcrowded and filthy. Many Jews died in the ghetto of starvation and disease • Final Solution – This was Hitler’s answer to the Jewish question. All of the Jews in Germany and the occupied territories would be killed • Genocide – The killing of a race of people

38. Ghetto

39. Murder • - Hitler actually did not do the planning for the Final Solution, he just gave the order • - Hitler also ordered the deaths of the Roma (Gypsies), Poles Russians, homosexuals, and the mentally and physically disabled • - He felt those groups were inferior and would ruin racial purity

40. Murder • - In the beginning, the Nazis used “killing squads” to go from village to village to round up Jews and shoot them.

41. Murder • - This was a slow and pshychologically difficult process for the killers

42. Murder • - Eventually extermination camps were built that used gas to kill thousands a Jews a day

43. Holocaust

44. Holocaust • Mr. Hager will explain the Holocaust in greater depth in class • Read – Primary Source – p. 939

45. Sec. 4: The Allied Victory

46. Background • - The USSR was fighting the Germans in the east, but Stalin was desperate for the US to attack from the west and force Germany to fight on two fronts. He felt this would split the German military and weaken them. • - Stalin wanted the second front to be in France, but the US and Great Britain decided to attack in Africa instead. • - The British were able to push Rommel’s forces back with a huge attack force • - The US attacked from the west and had Rommel’s troops pinned in between the US and the British • May, 1943 – Rommel’s troops were defeated

47. Stalingrad • Battle of Stalingrad – Was a fierce battle fought between the USSR and Germany beginning on August 23, 1942 • - Stalingrad was an industrial center and it was the last defense between the German army and the oil fields in the east • - It also had psychological importance as Stalin’s namesake city

48. Stalingrad • - The Germans held 90% of the city but could not control it all • - On February 2, 1943, against Hitler’s orders, 90,000 German troops surrendered. That is all that was left of the 330,000 that invaded • - Stalingrad was 99% destroyed

49. Stalingrad • - After this battle the USSR began to push the Germans back and turned the tide of the war against Germany

50. Italy • July 10, 1943 – The allies landed on the island of Sicily and began the takeover of Italy • September 3, 1943 – Italy surrendered and declared neutrality, but Germany still controlled northern Italy and continued fighting • June 4, 1944 – The allies took Rome, but Germany continued to fight in Italy until the war ended in May, 1945