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World War Looms. Failures of WWI Peace Settlement. Germany felt Treaty of Versailles was unfair Russia resented their land was taken away to form Poland & Lithuania Treaty left war-torn nations to rebuild on their own Gave new democracies little chance at survival
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Failures of WWI Peace Settlement • Germany felt Treaty of Versailles was unfair • Russia resented their land was taken away to form Poland & Lithuania • Treaty left war-torn nations to rebuild on their own • Gave new democracies little chance at survival • What took place as democracy collapsed?
Stalin & the Soviet Union • 1922: Revolutions in Russia gave way to a Communist state • Soviet Union • 1924: Joseph Stalin took control of the gov’t • Focused on creating a model Communist state
Stalin & SU contd • 1927: Stamped out all private enterprise • Production only under state control • 1928: Goal- turn SU into great industrial power • To accomplish goals the Soviet became a police state
Fascism in Italy • 1919: Benito Mussolini began his rise to power • Many people who feared communism became supporters of Mussolini • 1935: Fascist Part established & won 35 seats in Italian Parliament FACISM: strong centralized govt headed by a dictator
Nazis take over Germany • 1919: Adolf Hitler joined the Nazi party, soon became leader or Fuhrer • Mein Kamf (My Struggle) • March 1932: Hitler won more votes than any other party • Jan. 1933: appointed Chancellor • Once in power democratic govt dismantled • Third Reich established
Japan • Militaristic leaders take over • Shared Hitler’s belief in more living space • 1931: Surprise invasion of Manchuria • First test for League of Nations • Report condemned Japan • Japan simply quit League
League of Nations Failure • 1933: Hitler pulls Germany out of League • 1935: Began military build up • Sent troops into the Rhineland • Signed Rome-Berlin Axis Pact • Mussolini began building his own Roman Empire • June 1936: Ethiopia fell to Italy • “It is us today, it will be you tomorrow” Ethiopian Emporer
America Responds • Americans had strong anti-war feelings • 1937: poll 70% of Americans believed they should not have entered WWI
Breakdown • America took sides when Hitler & Mussolini came to Franco’s aid • Supported Franco with • Troops, weapons, & fighter planes • 1939: Spain fell to a totalitarian govt. • 1937: FDR went against Neutrality acts & sent China aid
Austria • Feb 1938: Hitler met with Austrian chancellor Kurt von Schuschnigg • Schuschnigg was bullied into signing a pact that brought Austrian Nazis into his govt. • Schuschnigg had second thoughts • March 12, 1938: German troops forced chancellor to resign
Sudetenland • At the end of WWI the Sudetenland was joined to Czechoslovakia • Mountainous region with 3 million German speaking people
Sudetenland • Spring 1938: Hitler charged the Czechs with abusing Sudeten Germans • France & GB promised to protect Czechoslovakia • Just before war broke Hitler called a meeting in Munich • Edouard Daladier - French Premier • Neville Chamberlain- British PM
Sudetenland • Hitler claimed Sudetenland would be his last territorial claim • September 1938: Munich Pact signed • Turned land over to Hitler w/o a shot fired
Reactions • Chamberlain returned home claiming “peace in our time” • Britain rejoiced except for Winston Churchill • Churchill claimed the pact was a policy of appeasement
German Offensive Begins March 1939:Hitler broke the Munich Pact & seized control of Czechoslovakia
Poland • Charged with the same mistreatment of Germans • Both France & GB promised aid • People didn’t think Hitler was serious because of the Soviet’s location to Poland • Stalin did not want war with Germany • August 1939: The SU & Germany signed a non-agression pact • Also signed a secret pact: agreeing to divide Poland between them
Invasion of Poland • Sept. 1, 1939: German war planes flew over Poland dropping bombs & tanks rolled over the country side Sept. 1939: Nazi soldiers marching through Warsaw
Poland • Germany tested a new strategy- Blitzkrieg or lightning war • By the end of Sept. Poland ceased to exist • Britain & France declared war on Germany Sept. 3
Axis PowersJapan, Germany, & Italy • Tripartite Pact -each Axis nation agreed to come to the aid of the other incase of attack • If the United States were to declare war on any Axis power it would face a two ocean war
The Phony War • Countries expect & braced for heavy combat • Troops sat & waited in peace • After months SU broke the peace by taking countries it lost in WWI • Finland was the only one to put up a fight & fell
Phony War Ends • By the end of May Germany took … • Denmark, Norway, Netherlands, Belgium & Luxembourg
Fall of France • Before the war France fortified its border with Germany (Maginot line) • Invasion of Belgium threatened France • Hitler sent forces to France • Allied forces fled to Dunkirk • Italy invades from the south
Fall of France • June 1940:Germany reached Paris • Hitler hands over his terms of surrender • Germans occupy Northern France • Nazi-controlled puppet govt. in S. France
France • General Charles DeGaule • Fled to England • Set up govt in exile
Britain Stands Alone May 1940: Winston Churchill becomes Prime Minister
Battle of Britain • Summer- Fall 1940 • The Blitz • Luftwaffe or German Airforce • Goal: gain control of the skies • On a single day 1,000 planes would bomb England
Battle of Britain Targets: • Airfields, aircraft & eventually cities • RAF: fought back with help of radar Royal Air Force (RAF)
The London “Tube” Air Raid shelters during the “blitz”
U-Boat Attacks • British & Soviet supplies from America were being destroyed by U-boats • Wolf-packs: 15 to 20 U-boat groups • April-May 1941: Germans sank 1.2 million tons of British shipping • June 1941: FDR orders the Navy to protect shipments • Permission to attack U-boats in self defense
Atlantic Charter • FDR & Winston Churchill met secretly to form a declaration of war principles • Atlantic Charter spelled out causes in which WWII was fought
Japanese Aggression • Nationalist leaders take control of Japanese government • Shared Hitler’s belief of more living space • Japan kept claiming more lands in its colonial empire • July 1941- Japan takes military bases in French Indochina • US cut off trade with Japan • Oil embargo
Japan Continued • October 1941- Hideki Tojo became Prime Minister of Japan • Tojo promised Hirohito a final attempt to make peace with America • No peace = war • November 5, 1941- Tojo flew to Washington for peace talks • At the same time he ordered the Japanese navy to prepare for attack
Japan • The US broke Japan’s secret codes • They knew an attack was coming but did not know when • FDR sent a war warning to Guam, the Philippines, and Hawaii • Peace talks went on for a month • Dec. 6- FDR received a decoded message instructing Japan to reject all peace terms
“A date that will live in infamy”… • Dec. 7, 1941- Two wave attack on Oahu, Hawaii • First at 7:53 am • Second at 8:55 am • 2,403 left dead • 188 destroyed planes • 8 damaged or destroyed battleships
Pearl Harbor • Japanese Navy crippled the entire US Pacific Fleet • More damage to US Navy than all of WWI • Threw America into a two front war • Congress approved a declaration of war the next day • Dec 11- Germany & Italy declared war on the US