Here We Go Again

Chapter 26 – WWII

(Here We Go Again)

I. The German Path to War

Adolf Hitler believed that Germany could build a great civilization.

1. To do this, Germ needed more land to support more Germ ppl

2. He wanted lands to east in the Soviet Union - prepared for war

3. His plan was to use the land for German settlements & Slavic ppl would become slaves.

Hitler proposed Germ be able to revise unfair provisions of Treaty of Versailles.

At first he said he would use peaceful means.
However, in March of 1935, he created a new air force and began a military draft.

France, Great Britain, and Italy condemned Hitler's moves.

Due to problems at home caused by the Great Depression, however, they were not prepared to take action.
Hitler convinced that the Western states would not stop him from breaking parts of Treaty of Versailles.

In March of 1936, Hitler sent German troops into the Rhineland, (demilitarized area)

France would not oppose Germany for this treaty violation w/o Brit support.
Grt Brit saw Hitler's actions as reasonable and did not call for military response.
This was the beginning of the policy of appeasement - based on the belief that if European states satisfied reasonable demands of dissatisfied states, dissatisfied states would be content and peace would be preserved.

Hitler gained new allies.

Benito Mussolini was the Fascist leader of Italy.
He invaded Ethiopia in 1935 with support of Germ troops.
In 1936, both Italy and Germ sent troops to Spain to support General Francisco Franco.
Later in the year, Hitler & Mussolini became allies & formed the Rome-Berlin Axis. Germany also signed the

Anti-Comintern Pact with Japan forming an alliance against communism.

By 1937, Germ had become a very powerful nation.

In 1938, Hitler pursued a long-held goal - union with Austria, or Anschluss.
By threatening to invade Austria, Hitler forced the Austrians to put Aust Nazis in charge of the gov’t.
The new government invited Germ troops into Aust to "help" maintain order.
Hitler then annexed Austria to Germany.

In 1938, Hitler demanded that the Sudetenland in northwestern Czechoslovakia be given to Germ.

The British, French, Italian, and German representatives then met in Munich.
Britain, France, and Italy gave in to all of Hitler's demands.
German troops were allowed into Czechoslovakia.

H. After the Munich Conference, the British Prime Minister, Neville Chamberlain, announced that the settlement meant "peace for our time." - he believed Hitler's promises that Germ would make no more demands.

I. After Munich, Hitler was even more convinced Fran and Grt Brit would not fight.

In March of 1939, Hitler invaded western Czechoslovakia
made a Nazi puppet state out of Slovakia in eastern Czechoslovakia.

J. Fran and Grt Brit began to react.

Grt Brit said it would protect Poland if Hitler invaded.
Fran and Brit began negotiations with Joseph Stalin, the Soviet dictator.
They knew that they would need the Soviet Union to help contain the Nazis.

K. Hitler was afraid of an alliance between the West and the Soviet Union.

In August of 1939, Germ and the Soviet Union signed the Nazi-Soviet Nonaggression Pact.
They promised not to attack each other.
Hitler offered Stalin eastern Poland and the Baltic states.
Hitler knew that eventually he would break the pact - it enabled him to invade Poland without fear.

L. On September 1, Germany invaded PolandAND…Two days later, Grt Brit & Fran declared war onGermany.

II The Japanese Path to War

A. Sept 1931, Japanese soldiers seized Manchuria b/c they claimed the Chinese attacked them – Japanese staged attack disguised as Chinese

B. League of Nations – investigated & concluded Japan at fault  Japan w/drew from league – they furthermore responded by strengthening hold on Manchuria which they renamed Manchukuo

C. 1930’s, militants gained control of politics – the US, who had opposed Jap takeover of Manchuria, still just sat back and watched

D. Chiang Kai-shek (China) tried to avoid war w/ Jap – more concerned w/ threat by Chinese Communists

tried to appease Jap by allowing Japanese occupation of N China but Jap moved steadily southward
Dec 1936, Chiang formed united front agst Jap
July ’37, Chinese & Jap clashed south of Beijing
Jap seized capital of Nanjing – Chiang refused to surrender, so he moved capital

E. Jap mil leaders – wanted to est NEW ORDER in E Asia to include: Jap, Manchuria, & China Jap’s rationale was that, as the only modernized country, it was their duty to guide the other E Asian nations to prosperity

F. Jap – planned to seize Soviet Siberia, so they began to cooperate with Nazi Germany – they thought the two of them could defeat Soviets and then divide resources

G. Germ then signs Nazi-Soviet Pact  Jap must rethink position?????

Jap needed natural resources, so they looked to expand into SE Asia, knowing all along they risked a strong response from Eur colonial pwrs & US
But, no guts no glory, right? They took the risk……

H. 1940, Jap demanded right to exploit econ resources in Fr Indochina  US immediately responded w/ econ sanctions(restrictions on trade to enforce international law) unless Jap w/drew to its borders of 1931

Jap desperately needed oil & scrap iron from US – sanctions were very real threat, but SE Asia could supply them w/ rubber and oil – what to do, what to do…
They did the only thing they could – hit the US so hard w/a surprise attack that they would be forced to recognize Jap’s presence in SE Asia and leave them alone

26.2

I. Europeat War

A. The 1939 invasion of Poland by Germany took just four weeks.

The speed and efficiency of the German army stunned the world.
Called blitzkrieg ("lightning war"), Germans used panzer divisions (strike forces of about 300 tanks and soldiers) that were supported by airplanes.
On September 28,1939, Germany and the Soviet Union divided Poland.

B. In the spring of 1940, Hitler invaded Denmark and Norway.

In May, Germany attacked the Netherlands, Belgium, and France.
The German armies broke through French lines & moved across northern France.
The French had fortified their border with Germ along the Maginot Line, but the Germans surprised them by going around it.

C. The Germans trapped the entire British army and French forces on the beaches of Dunkirk.

The British navy and private boats were able to evacuate 338,000 Allied troops, barely averting a complete disaster.

D. On June 22, the French signed an armistice with the Germans, who occupied 3/5 of France.

An authoritarian French regime under German control was set up to govern the rest of the country.
Led by Marshal Henri Petain, it was named VichyFrance.
Germany now controlled western and central Europe.
Only Britain remained undefeated.

E. The British asked the United States for help.

The United States had a strict policy of isolationism.
series of neutrality acts passed in 1930s prevented the US from involvement in European conflicts.
Though President Franklin D. Roosevelt denounced the Germ’s, the US did nothing at first.

F. Roosevelt wanted to repeal the neutrality acts and help Great Britain.

Over time, laws were slowly relaxed
the US sent food, ships, planes, and weapons to Britain.

G. Hitler understood that he could not attack Britain by sea unless he first controlled the air.

August 1940, the Luftwaffe (German air force) began major bombing offensive against military targets in Britain.
Aided by a good radar system, the Britishfought back but suffered critical losses.

H. September, Hitler retaliated to a British attack on Berlin by shifting attacks from military targets to British cities.

He hoped to break British morale.
However, shift in strategy allowed British to rebuild air power and inflict crippling losses on Germans.
Having lost the Battle of Britain, Hitler postponed the invasion of Britain indefinitely at the end of Sept.

I. Hitler was convinced that the way to defeat Britain was to first smash the Soviet Union.

He thought that the British were resisting only because they were expecting Soviet support.
He also thought that the Soviets could be easily defeated.
He planned to invade in the spring of 1941, but was delayed by problems in the Balkans.
After the Italians had failed to capture Greece in 1940, the British still held air bases there.
Hitler seized Greece and Yugoslavia in April 1941.

J. Then Hitler invaded the Soviet Union in June 1941 & attack stretched for 1,800 miles

German troops moved quickly and captured 2 million Russian soldiers by Nov.
Germ’s were within 25 miles of Moscow BUT, winter came early combined with fierce Russian resistance

forced the Germans to halt – first time Germ’s been stopped – not prepared for winter (Dec, Soviets attack)

II Japan at War

A. Dec 7, 1941 – Jap attacked US naval base at Pearl Harbor inHawaii

while they were at it, they also attacked Philippines & Brit colony of Malaya
then invaded Dutch East Indies & other islands in Pacific Oc
despite fierce resistance, Jap contr’ld almost all of SE Asia & much of W Pacific by ‘42

B. Jap – created Greater East-Asia Coprosperity sphere

included the entire region under Jap control
they also announced intentions of liberating colonial nations in SE Asia, but first needed their resources
they treated these countries more like conquered lands

C. Jap erroneously believed attacks on US fleet would destroy US Navy & lead Americans to accept Jap’s domination in Pacific  attack on Pearl Harbor had opposite effect – united Americans & convinced them to enter war agst Jap

D. Hitler erroneously thought US would be so involved w/ Jap it would be unable to fight in Eur on 2nd front, so he declared war on US 4 days later  Now a global war

III The Allies advance

A new coalition was formed called the Grand Alliance.
It included Great Britain, the Soviet Union, and the United States.
The three nations agreed to focus on military operations and ignore political differences.
They agreed in 1943 to fight until Axis Powers - Germ, Ity, and Jap - surrendered unconditionally.
At the beginning of 1942,the Germ’s cont’d to fight the war against Brit and Soviet Union.
The Germans were also fighting in North Africa.
The Afrika Korps under General Erwin Rommel broke through British lines in Egypt & advanced on

Alexandria.

3. During the spring, the Germans captured the entire Crimea in the Soviet Union.

C. By the fall of 1942, the war had turned against the Germans.

1. In the summer of 1942, the British in N Af had stopped the Germ’s at El Alamein, so Germ’s retreated

2. In November, British and American forces invaded French North Africa A& forced the Germ and It troops to surrender by May.

D. On the Eastern Front, Hitler decided to attack Stalingrad, a major Soviet industrial center.

1. Between November 1942 & February 1943, the Soviets counterattacked.

2. They surrounded the Germ’s and cut off their supply lines.

3. In May, the Germans were forced to surrender.

4. They lost some of their best troops as Hitler realized that he would not defeat the Soviet Union.

E. 1942, Allies had first successes in Pacific – Battle of the Coral Sea

1. Amer naval forces stopped Jap invasion of Australia

2. the next month was the Battle of Midway, which was the turning point in the war as US planes destroyed 4 Jap aircraft carriers & est naval superiority

F. fall of ’42, Allied forces about to begin two operation plans agst Jap

1. one led by Douglas MacArthur - would move into Philippines through New Guinea & South Pacific Is 2. the other operation would move across Pac, capturing Jap-held islands & ending up in Jap

G. Nov ’42, after fierce battles in Solomon Islands, Jap pwr was diminishing

IV Last Years of War

A. By early 1943, the tide had turned against the Axis forces.

In May, the Axis forces surrendered in Tunisia.
The Allies then moved north and invaded Italy in September.
Winston Churchill called Italy the "soft underbelly" of Europe.

B. After the Allies captured Sicily, Mussolini was removed from office.

1. The king arrested him & a new Italian government offered to surrender to the Allies.

2. However, Germ’s rescued Mussolini & set him up as dictator of a puppet Germ state in N Italy.

C. The Germ’s est’d a strong defense south of Rome.

1. The Allies had very heavy casualties as they slowly advanced north.

2. They did not take Rome until June 4, 1944.

D. The Allies had long been planning a "second front" in western Europe.

1. They planned to invade France from Great Britain across the English Channel

2. On June 6, 1944 (D-Day), the Allies under U.S.Gen Dwight D. Eisenhower landed on the beaches

in Normandy.

E. Though the Germ’s were expecting the invasion to take place in another location, there was still heavy resistance 1. because the Germ’s thought the invasion was a diversion, they were slow to respond.

2. This gave the Allies the chance to set up a beachhead.

3. By landing 2 1/2 mill men and a ½ mill vehicles, the Allies eventually broke through Germ lines.

F. After the breakout, the Allies moved south and east.

1. French resistance fighters rose up in German-occupied Paris.

2. Paris was liberated by the end of August.

3. In March of 1945, the Allies crossed the RhineRiver & in the north they linked up with the Soviet army

that was moving from the east.

G. The Soviets had turned the tables on the Germ’s in 1943.

1. They soundly defeated Germ troops in July at the Battle of Kursk in a huge tank battle.

2. moving westward, by the end of 1943, they had reoccupied the Ukraine.

3. By early 1944, they had moved into the Baltic states.

4. In the north, Soviet troops occupied Warsaw in Jan 1945 and entered Berlin in April.

5. Along a southern front, the Soviets swept through Hungary, Romania, and Bulgaria.

H. By January 1945, Hitler had moved into an underground bunker in Berlin.

1. In the end he blamed the Jews for the war.

2. On April 30, he committed suicide.

3. Two days before, Italian partisans (resistance fighters) had shot Mussolini.

4. On May 7,1945, Germ commanders surrendered, and the war in Europe was over.

I. ’43, Allied forces had gone on offensive – moved across Pac

1. as Allies came closer to Jap home islands in’45, US president, Harry S Truman decided to drop atomic bombs on Jap cities

2. hoped to avoid invasion ofJap – 1st dropped on Hiroshima on Aug 6 – three days later, 2nd dropped on Nagasaki

3. both cities completelydestroyed – thousands died immediately - thousands more died later of radiation related sickness

4. Jap surrendered on Aug 14

J. WWII now over – 17 mill ppl died in battle alone – high civilian losses put deaths at over 50 mill for entire war

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26.3

I The New Order in Europe

1942, Nazis contrl’d Eur from Eng Channel to near Moscow – when Germ annexed areas, most run by military or civilian officials w/ help from local citizens who supported them
Nazis – esp ruthless in E Eur – saw the Slavics as racially inferior (who didn’t they find inferior) – they wanted lands for Germ settlers – after conquering Pol, began to put plans for Aryan racial empire into action
Heinrich Himmler – SS leader, was put in charge of Germ settlement plans in east  move Slavic ppl out & Germ in – began in Pol by moving 1 mill Poles to S Pol – 2 mill Germ move in to colonize
When Nazis invaded Sov Un, Hitler anticipated turning all ppl into slaves & inhabiting conquered lands w/ Germ peasants – Himmler stated these Germ plans could involve killing 30 mill Slavs
Due to labor shortages in Germ, Nazis started rounding up foreign workers as slave labor – by summer ’44, 7 mill Eur were laboring in Germ – another 7 mill forced to work in own countries
Forced labor caused problems for Germ – bringing in workers to Germ reduced number of workers left in occupied countries – Germ’s brutal tactics led more and more ppl to resist Nazi occupation forces

II The Holocaust

Hitler’s vision: the Aryan race and then everyone else who would destroy it – convinced Jews were grtst threat to Aryan Emp – directed all Jews in Eur be exterminated The Final Solution
SS, under Himmler – responsible for carrying this plan out – to eliminate an entire race of ppl is called: genocide
Reinhard Heydrich – head of SS’s Security Service – in charge of creating special forces called Einsatzgruppen, to carry out plans – when Pol fell, ordered all Jews rounded up & put in ghettos in a number of cities  these were temporary housing centers until camps could be fitted for next step – they tried to starve many to death – some Jews forced resistance groups
Einsatzgruppen, became mobile killing units –they were a unit of army who specifically rounded up Jews & executed where ever they went - buried victims in mass graves – est 1 mill Jews killed this way – But, this was too slow for Germ
next  death camps – ’42, countries supportive of or sympathetic to Germ began transporting Jews by cattle cars to the camps: 6 of them, all built in Pol – largest was Auschwitz only 30 % used for labor where they worked or starved to death – others immediately executed

1______2______3______4______5______

spring ’42 death camps fully operational – throughout war, Final Sol was of top priority – Even as Nazis began to lose the war, they cont’d shipping Jews from Greece & Hung to camps – they even had priority over military for use of trains
over 3 mill Jews killed just in camps – est 5-6 mill Jews, about 2 out of every 3 Eur Jews –
they also killed another 9-10 mill as political prisoners and “causalities of war” in the form of Gypsies, Homosexuals, Jehovah’s Witnesses, & other undesirables – killed 3-4 mill Soviet prisoners of war
mass slaughter of so many is called: The Holocaust – but Jews did resist in a few places and some countries tried to help them escape – Danish were able to protect most of their Jews and many ppl risked their lives to help smuggle them out of the country ( called righteous gentiles) – others conspired with the Nazis for money or favors to turn Jews in ( called collaborators) - Sadly, the Allies knew about death camps but chose to concentrate on ending war – they did not learn the full extent of these camps until war was over (Band of Brothers)
Young ppl of all ages were victims in this war – Jewish children were among 1st to die in camps to the tune of 1.5 mill – they were considered expendable b/c they could not work
Germ, Brit, Jap – many children moved from cities being bombed – any some that were evacuated, never saw parents again – by ’45, there were 13 mill orphaned children in Eur – children suffered terribly in E Eur where their schools were closed b/c Hitler did not feel they needed more than a basic educ
Children on both sides, esp at end of war, joined fighting – sometimes 14-15 yr-olds were on front line or worked as spies

III The New Order