30.

1 World War II Begins

- In the 1930s, Germany and Japan invaded neighboring countries to gain resources and land.
Hitler allied with Italy, annexed Austria, and occupied the Sudetenland. Japan made a quick
conquest of Manchuria. At first, other world powers allowed these acts of aggression. They
wanted to avoid war—yet the path to war was already paved

THE GERMAN PATH TO WAR

- Started with Adolf Hitler’s ideas esp the belief that the Aryan race is superior to other races and
nationalities
- Hitler believed that Germany is capable of building civilization but needed more land for a larger
population and gaining more power
- Found land in Soviet Union, conquered it, and had it resettled by German peasants
- The Slavic people were used as slaves for the Aryan racial state

HITLER VIOLATES TREATY

- Germany’s power was limited by the Treaty of Versailles after WW1
- Hitler emphasized that Germany wanted to revise unfair provisions of the treaty by peaceful
means and wanted its rightful places among European states
- Created an new air force and began a military draft that would expand Germany’s army from
100,000 to 550,000, which both violated the Treaty of Versailles
- France, Great Britain, and Italy warned and turned against Germany’s actions but were distracted
with their own problems thus no other actions were taken in the midst of the Great Depression
- Because Hitler thought the Treaty wasn’t imposed in the Western states, he sent German troops
to Rhineland but did not allow any weapons or fornications there or France will force against it
with British support.
- However, Great Britain then started the practice of appeasement is because Germany’s actions
to take over Rhineland as reasonable, therefore, they did not support the use of force against the
Germany
- This policy was used to obtain stability and peace in Europe

NEW ALLIANCES
- Hitler allied with Benito Mussolini of Italy, who was opposed by the British and the French
- Alliance known as the Rome-Berlin Axis
- Both Germany and Italy helped Franco in the Spanish Civil War
- Also allied with Japan through the Anti-Comintern Pact for a common front against communism

UNION WITH AUSTRIA

- Hitler believed that Germany was a world power, not France or Britain
- Decided to unite with Austria, which was successfully annexed

DEMANDS AND APPEASEMENT

- Hitler’s plan to invade Sudetenland in Czechoslovakia worked because in the Munich conference,
no French, British, German, or Italian representative objected to his plans. Rather, they followed
him and believed that Hitler would be at peace with them and would keep the promises he made
for them
 - The Munich Conference was effective as Hitler predicted that the Western democracies wouldn’t
fight or declare war
- Hitler took over Bohemia and Moravia, then made Slovakia a puppet state
- After that, the Western states saw Germany as a threat
- Hitler then demanded for Polish port of Danzig, and Great Britain and France saw danger that
would cause war against Poland, so they began military negotiations with Joseph Stalin

HITLER AND THE SOVIETS

- While the British and the French still saw Hitler as a threat, Hitler believed that the Western
nations wouldn’t fight over Poland but feared their alliance with the Soviet union, which could
cause a two-front war for Germany
- Hitler then made an agreement with Stalin to prevent the war and signed the Nazi-Soviet Non
Aggression Pact
- After that, he offered Stalin control of Eastern Poland and the Baltic states but expected to fight
against Soviet union for breaking promises he made for other countries
- After German forces invaded Poland, Britain and France declared war on Germany two days later

THE JAPANESE PATH TO WAR

- Japan invaded Manchuria, which had many resources Japanese needed
- Formed Manchuria to Manchukuo, a separate state, and placed a puppet ruler, Henry Pu Yi, on
the throne
- The ruler then abdicated the throne following the revolution in China in 1911
- Japanese withdrew the League of Nations as the U.S. refused to recognize Japan’s takeover of
Manchuria
- Continued to expand and take control of Inner Mongolia and Northern China
- Soon, the army established the Japanese foreign policy

WAR WITH CHINA

- Chiang Kai-shek tried to avoid conflict with Japan because he had to deal with the Chinese
communists
- Wanted to appease Japan, but protests against Japan grew stronger
- Ended military efforts against the communists and formed a new front against the Japanese
- Japan did not declare war on China until 1937
- Japan seized Nanjing, destroyed cities, and massacred many civilians and prisoners
- China still resisted defeat

THE NEW ASIAN ORDER

- Japan hoped that Chiang would join the New Order in East Asia
- Japan planned to seize Soviet Siberia to obtain rich resources
- Cooperated with Nazi Germany

30.2 World War II

- In the first years of World War II, Hitler, with his blitzkrieg, had gained control of much of western
and central Europe. Victories over Britain and Russia remained elusive, however. When the
United States entered the war, the Allies agreed to fight until the Axis Powers surrendered
unconditionally.
Europe at War
- Blitzkrieg:​ Hitler’s ​“lightning war”​ using armored cars (p
​ anzer divisions)​ supported by
airplanes on Poland that took 4 weeks
- September 28, 1939: Germany and the Soviet Union divided Poland

Hitler’s Early Victories

- Blitzkrieg​ on Denmark, Norway, Netherlands, Belgium, and France
- Main assault on Luxembourg and the Ardennes Forest
- German panzer divisions broke through France surprising Great Britain and France
- Germany avoided​ Maginot Line​ (heavily armed defense system on France’s border with
Germany) and attacked France from the ​Belgian border
- Germany split the Allied armies: trapping French troops and the entire British army on the
beaches of ​Dunkirk
- French signed ​armistice​ (three-thirds German army occupation of France)
- Vichy of France​ (remainder of the country) was lead by Marshal Henri Pétain (French
World War I hero)
- Germany was in control of western and central Europe but Britain had not been defeated,
especially with charismatic prime minister ​Winston Churchill
- President Franklin D. Roosevelt​ denounced aggressors
- US followed strict policy of i​ solationism​ (no alliances and international political relation)
- Neutrality Acts
- prevented US from taking sides/involvement in European wars
- Encouraged Axis aggression -> relaxed when US supplied food, ships, planes,
and weapons to Britain

The Battle of Britain

- Hitler realized he needed control of the air to have an amphibious (land-sea) invasion of Britain
- Luftwaffe​ (German air force): launched major offensive bombing British air and naval bases,
harbors, communication centers, and war industries
- British fought back with effective​ radar​ systems that gave them early warnings of German
attacks, but their air force still suffered critical losses
- Retaliation for British attack of Berlin: Hitler shifted strategy for Luftwaffe bombed British cities to
break British morale
- Military targets weren’t hit: British rebuilt air strength quickly and inflicted major losses on
Luftwaffe bombers
- Hitler postponed the invasion of Britain indefinitely

Attack on the Soviet Union

- Hitler didn’t desire a two-front war but believed that Britain would lose all hope if the Soviet Union
were smashed, which would be defeated quickly due to its pitiful army
- He scheduled the invasion of the Soviet Union for spring but was delayed by ​Balkan ​problems
- Had political cooperation of Hungary, Bulgaria, and Romania
- Failure of Mussolini’s invasion of Greece: exposure of Hitler’s southern flank to ​British
air forces​ in Greece
- Secure Balkan flank: Hitler seized both Greece and Yugoslavia in April
- Hitler invaded the Soviet Union in June believing they could still be defeated before the brutal
winter
 - November; 1 German army group swept through Ukraine, 2nd group besieged
Leningrad, and 3rd group approached Moscow (Soviet Capital) by 25 miles
- Early winter​ and fierce Soviet resistance: halted German advance and they didn’t have
winter uniform as they were certain of a quick victory
- 1st time German armies had been stopped
- Soviet counterattack in December: ominous ending of the year for Germans

Japan at War
- December: Japan attacked US naval base in ​Pearl Harbor​, Hawaii destroying more than 350
aircraft and 18 ships and killed more than 3,500 Americans
- Same day: they attacked the Philippines, advanced on Malaya, invaded the Dutch East
Indies, and occupied several islands in the Pacific Ocean
- Spring 1942: almost all of Southeast Asia and the western Pacific fell to Japan
- Japan declared creation of a “community” of nations: G ​ reater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere
- Entire region would be under Japanes direction
- Japan intended to​ liberate​ areas in Southeast Asia from Western colonial rule
- For the moment, Japan needed the ​resources ​of the region for its ​war machine ​and
treated countries under its rule as ​conquered lands
- Prime Minister Hideki Tojo​ (former general turned virtual military dictator): dictated Japanese
policy
- He hoped striking at US bases would destroy the US fleet in the Pacific but this was a
miscalculation
- Attack on Pearl Harbor: u ​ nified ​US to​ join ​the war with European nations and Nationalist China
to defeat Japan
- Hitler ​believed US involvement in the Pacific made them ineffective in the ​European theater of
war
- He declared war on the US 4 days after Pearl Harbor
- Like WWI: another E ​ uropean conflict​ turned into a global war

The Allies Advance

- Entry of the US into the war created a new coalition: the Great Alliance
- Great Britain, US, and the Soviet Union (3 major A ​ llies)​ agreed to fight until Germany, Italy and
Japan (​Axis Powers)​ surrendered unconditionally (without any favorable condition)
- Cemented the ​Grand Alliance​ making it nearly impossible for Hitler to ​divide​ his foes

The European Theater

- Hitler didn’t think of defeat in the beginning of 1942
- Japanese forces adavanced into Southwest Asia and the Pacific + Hitler and his allies
continued fighting the war in Europe against Great Britain and the Soviet Union =
Germans might still prevail
- North Africa:​ German forces broke through British defenses in Egypt and advanced
towards Alexandria
- Renewed German offensive in the Soviet Union -> capture of ​Crimea​ (Spring 1942)
- Fall 1942: war turned against the Germans

The Tide Turns

- North Africa:​ British forces stopped G
​ eneral Erwin Rommel’s​ troops at El Alamein (Summer
1942)
 - Germans retreated
- (Novemeber) British and American forces invaded French North Africa forcing German
and Italian troops to surrender (May)
- Eastern Front ​(after capture of Crimea)
- Hitler’s generals wanted him to concentrate on ​Causcaus a ​ nd its ​oil fields
- But Hitler decided that S ​ talingrad (​ major industrial center on the Volga River) should be
taken first
- Soviets launched counterattack: most terrible battle of the war
- German troops were stopped, encircled, supply lines were cut off (all in frigid
winter conditions)
- Germans were forced to surrender at Stalingrad: entire ​German Sixth Army
(best of the German troops) was lost
- German forces in Russia went back to their positions in June
- Spring: Hitler knew the Germans would not defeat the Soviet Union

The Asian Theater

- Battle in the East​ changed dramatically
- Battle of the Coral Sea​: US forces stopped the Japanese advance and saved Australia from
being invaded
- Turning point of the war in Asia: ​Battle of Midway Island
- US planes destroyed 4 attacking Japanese aircraft carriers
- US defeated Japanese navy and established n ​ aval superiority​ in the Pacific
- Allied Forces​ in Asia gathered for 2 operations
- 1: Commanded by ​US General Douglas MacArthur​ -> move into the Philippines through
New Guinea and the South Pacific
- 2: Move across the Pacific with a combination of US Army, Marine and Navy attacks on
Japanese-held islands
- “island hopping policy”​ : capture some Japanese-held islands and bypass
others to reach Japan
- After engagements near the Solomon Islands: Japanese fortunes began to fade

30.3 The Home Front and Civilians

- During World War II, nations mobilized their people and geared their economies to war. While the
troops fought, the citizens on the home front made personal sacrifices to produce the materials
and supplies needed to fuel the war.Hundreds of thousands lost their lives in bombing raids.

30.4 The New Order and the Holocaust

- Japan exploited the resources of the nations it conquered. In Germany, the Nazis began a
terrifying genocide, carried out by death squads and death camps. Nearly two out of every three
European Jews died in the Holocaust.

The New Order in Europe

- Nazi regime stretched across Europe from the English channel (west) to the outskirts of Moscow
(east).
- Germany was run by German military or civilian officials who collaborated with the Nazis
- Nazi Germany annexed western P ​ oland​, made into a province
- Poland, populated by “racially inferior” Slavic people, was known as the “living space” for
german expansion
 - Hitler wanted an Aryan racial empire, the Nazis put into effect their racial program after
their conquest of Poland
- Heinrich himmler, leader of the SS, incharge of German settlement plans in the east
- Task: move Slavic people (Czech, Polish, Croatian, Slovene) out and replace them with
Germans
- Invasion of the Soviet Union excited the Nazis about German colonization

30.5 World War II Ends

- By 1943, the Allies had strengthened their strategies and stopped the advances of both the
Germans and the Japanese. Germany surrendered on May 7, 1945, and Japan surrendered on
August 14. When the war ended, political tensions, suspicions, and conflicts of ideas led to a new
struggle—the Cold War.

​Last Years of the War

- tide of battle had turned against Germany, Italy, and Japan
- Allies crossed the Mediterranean and carried the war to Italy, an area that Winston Churchill,
prime minister of Great Britain: “soft underbelly”
- After taking Sicily, Allies began an invasion of mainland Italy in September

The Europe Theater

- After the fall of Sicily: King Victor Emmanuel III of Italy arrested Mussolini, but Germans liberated
him, made the head of a German puppet state
- The Allies planned an invasion of France from Great Britain, fought their way past hidden
underwater mines, barbed wire, and horrible machine → Germans responded slowly, the Allied
forces set up a beachhead
- Allied troops liberated Paris
- Germans launched a counter-offensive to regain the seaport of Antwerp
- Battle of the Bulge:​ named for the “bulge” the German attack caused in Allied lines
- In 1945, the Allied forces crossed the Rhine River and advanced into Germany then moved
toward the Elbe River to link up with the Soviets
- The Soviets defeated German forces at the B ​ attle of Kursk​, the greatest tank battle of World
War II
- Soviet forces began a steady advance westward, moving into the Baltic states then Warsaw
- Soviet troops along a southern front swept through: Hungary, Romania, and Bulgaria
- As the Allied forces advanced into Nazi-occupied Europe, they liberated c ​ oncentration camps
and​ death camps
- January 1945: ​Adolf Hitler had moved into a bunker 55 feet under the city of Berlin
- In his final political statement, he blamed the Jews for war
- He committed suicide on April 30, two days after the Italian ​partisans s​ hot Mussolini
- May 7 1945: Germany surrendered, war in Europe was finally over

The Asian Theater

- U.S. forces went on the offensive and advanced across the Pacific
- Along with their allies, U.S. forces continued their island-hopping campaign
- Iwo Jima ​and ​Okinawa: ​their acquisition helped the Allied military power draw even closer to the
main Japanese islands
- The islands of Iwo Jima and Okinawa were of a great strategic importance
 - Iwo JIma: e ​ ssential to the air war on Japan; small volcanic island had two airfield u
​ sed
by the Japanese to attack Allied aircraft​ and t​ o support naval forces
- The Allies felt capturing Iwo JIma would lessen the Japanese threat and could aid the
invasion of the Japanese mainland
- Okinawa: A ​ llies hoped that controlling this island would also provide them with a base
near the mainland
- The Allies were victorious on both sides, but victories came at a great cose
- Casualties were great on both sides, and many began to fear more losses
- The Manhattan Project: a ​ top secret project created by the scientist, Enrico Fermi
- Their efforts led to the development of the atomic bomb
- The bombs Truman used:
- 1st bomb: w ​ as dropped on the Japanese city of Hiroshima on August 6; out of the
350,000 inhabitants, 190,000 died (some immediately and others suffering the effects of
radiation)
- 2nd bomb: w ​ as dropped in Nagasaki
- Both cities were leveled, thousands of people died in alter moths of radiation
- The devastation led Emperor Hirohito to accept the Allied forces’ demands for unconditional
surrender
- World War II was finally over, 17M died in battle, 20M civilians perished as well
- Dropping of atomic bombs in Japan also marked the beginning of the ​Nuclear Age
- In August 1949, the Soviet Union set off its first atomic bomb, starting an arms race with the U.S.
that lasted 40 years

Peace and A New War

- Cold War: a ​ period of political tensions that followed the victory of the Allies in WWII
- Stalin, Roosevelt, and Churchill w ​ ere the leaders of the ​Big Three​ (the Soviet Union, the U.S,
and Great Britain) of the Grand Alliance
- They met at the ​Tehran​ in November 1943 to discuss strategy
- Major tactical decision: an American-British invasion through France scheduled for the
spring of 1944
- Acceptance of this plan had important consequences
- Soviet and British-American forces would meet in defeated Germany along a north-south
dividing line
- Most likely, Soviet forces would liberate Eastern Europe
- The Allies also agreed to a partition of postwar Germany
- The Big Three met again at ​Yalta ​in southern Russia (the defeat of Germany was
assured)
- Stalin​ was suspicious of the Western powers; wanted a buffer to protect the SU from
Western aggression
- Pro-Soviet governments were established along the SU borders
- Roosevelt​ favored the idea of self-determination for Europe
- Also agreed to Stalin’s price for military aid against Japan
- The creation of the UN was a major American concern
- Problems of Germany and Eastern Europe were treated less decisively
- After Germany surrendered, the Big Three divided it into 4 zones
- Stalin agreed to free elections in Poland which caused a split between the Soviets and
the Americans; became more evident when the Big Three met at Potsdam, Germany
​ otsdam Conference)
(P
- The Allies agreed that trials should be held of leader who committed crimes against humanity
during the war
- Nazi leaders were tried and condemned at war crimes (also held in Japan and Italy) trials in
Nuremburg, Germany
- Soviets viewed Western policy as nothing less than global capitalist expansionism
- Winston Churchill:​ former British prime minister declared “an iron curtain” had “descended
across the continent,” dividing Europe into two hostile camps; Stalin branded his speech “a call to
war on the USSR”