Causes and Outbreak of World War II: Rise of Totalitarian Dictators, Economic Depression, and Failure of the League of N

1. World War II • WWI was not the “war to end all wars” as a series of problems from 1919 to 1939 led to World War II • Resentment in Germany over the Treaty of Versailles • The failure of the League of Nations to maintain world peace • A global depression & intense nationalism led to the rise of dangerous, aggressive dictators

2. Causes of World War II *The punishing terms of the Treaty of Versailles (war guilt & demilitarization) led to anger & resentment in Germany *Huge reparations slowed Germany’s ability to rebuild after the war *Britain & France were leaders of the League of Nations, but war debts & post-war rebuilding meant that they could not afford another war

3. In Germany inflation was so bad, that money became worthless. Here German children use stacks of German money as play toys European nations were dependent upon U.S. investment to help rebuild, …but the Great Depression led to a world-wide depression in the 1930s, especially in Europe

4. The Rise of Totalitarianism • These desperate conditions led to the rise of totalitarianism in Europe • Dictators seized total control over the gov’t & the lives of citizens • Promoted nationalism to win support & promised a return of jobs, national pride, & “empire” • Used propaganda, police terror, & persecution to maintain power

5. Totalitarian Regimes in Europe & Asia

6. Totalitarian Regimes in Europe & Asia Communists like Lenin & Stalin in the Soviet Union believed that the gov’t should control all property & business Mussolini & Hitler both believed in fascism—the idea that nations need strong dictators, total authority by one political party, but that people can keep their private property

7. Totalitarian Regimes in Europe & Asia • In the 1920s & 1930s, Japan was the strongest & wealthiest nation in Asia; Prime Minister Hideki Tojo created a military dictatorship in Japan

8. Causes of World War II • In the 1930s, territorial expansion in Europe & Asia contributed to WWII • In the 1930s, Mussolini directed the Italian military to seize Libya & Ethiopia in Africa, then Albania in Europe • In the 1930s, Japan began to build a large Asian empire to provide resources for their industry & military; Japanese forces attacked Manchuria, northern China, & East Indies

9. To fulfill Hitler’s dream of Lebensraum (living space); Germany annexed Austria & Czechoslovakia in the 1930s

10. Failure of the League of Nations • This expansion threatened world peace, but the League of Nations failed to intervene effectively: • Britain & France relied on appeasement (giving in to an aggressor to avoid war) • The League condemned Japan, Italy,&Germanybutresistedmore severe actions to halt expansion

11. The Outbreak of World War II • In 1939, German expansion led to the outbreak of World War II: • Hitler negotiated the Nazi-Soviet Nonaggression Pact allowing Germany to seize half of Poland • World leaders were shocked by the agreement & horrified by German military expansion

12. Axis Powers • On September 1, 1939 Germany invaded Poland • England & France could not use appeasement any longer & declared war on Germany • In 1940, Germany, Italy, & Japan signed the Tripartite Pact ( “Axis Coalition”) to protect each other in case any nation was attacked

13. Expansion in Europe & Asia • OnceWWIIbegan,theAxisPowers used modern militaries to seize large territories in Europe & Asia: • The Germans used blitzkrieg tactics to take most of Europe • Italian forces seized north Africa • Japanese military gained an empire in Southeast Asia Blitzkrieg (“lightning war”) tactics used air raids followed by infantry & tanks invasions

14. In 1940, Germany began bombing Britain, the strongest Allied nation • In 1940, France fell to the Nazis • By 1941, the Axis Powers controlled almost all of Europe & northern Africa • In 1941, Germany broke the Nazi-Soviet Pact & invaded the USSR

15. Conclusions Japan took full advantage of the European war to expand in Asia • By the end of 1941, the Axis Powers appeared close to victory: • Germany & Italy were in control of Europe with Britain & USSR as the only opposition to victory • Japan seemed to go unnoticed in their conquest of Asia • From 1939 to 1941, the USA remained neutral, but not isolated, from the global conflict

16. When World War I came to an end in 1919, President Woodrow Wilson’ s League of Nations would have committed America to help maintain international peace. However, the U.S. Senate rejected joining the League of Nations. Through the 1920s, political leaders embraced an isolationist foreign policy and most Americans seemed happy to enjoy the consumer goods and entrainment available during the “Roaring Twenties.”In the early 1930s, a flood of books argued that the United States had been dragged into World War I by greedy bankers and arms dealers, the so called “merchants of death.” Chaired by North Dakota Senator Gerald Nye, a series of Congressional hearings documented the large profits that banks and manufacturers made during World War I. During the 1930s, the Great Depression led to high unemployment and business failures. President Franklin Roosevelt began his New Deal initiative to combat the effects of the depression. The depression triggered a world-wide depression that left European nations with high unemployment and no American dollars for investment. In this climate of desperation and intense nationalism, totalitarian leaders increased their power and initiated plans of conquest. Italian leader Benito Mussolini ordered a successful attack on Ethiopia, Libya, and Albania. Adolf Hitler of Germany seized Austria and Czechoslovakia. Military dictator Hideki Tojo of Japan led an attack on Manchuria and China.

17. (A) Do nothing and hope that these problems do not hurt the United States. • ____ (B) Send European nations money in order to revive European economies and to help keep more dictators from coming to power. • ____ (C) Join the League of Nations in an effort to help secure international peace. • ____ (D) Create a series laws to protect American neutrality by outlawing U.S. banks or businesses from loaning money or selling military equipment to nations at war. • ____ (E) Declare war on any aggressor nation that refuses to withdraw from the European, African, or Asian territories that it conquered.

18. America’s Response to World War II: Read Situation #1 (1930—1938) Answer: D

19. America’s Response in the 1930s • America’s response to the rise of totalitarianism was isolationism: • Congress passed the Neutrality Acts (1935-1937) that outlawed weapons sales to nations at war & required trade during wartime to be done on foreign ships • Americans protested when FDR tried to convince world leaders to“quarantine”aggressornations

20. British and French policies of appeasement did not bring an end to territorial aggression by Germany. By 1939, Hitler had restored the German military and taken Austria and Czechoslovakia. 1939, Hitler set his sights on Poland. In August 1939, Hitler and Stalin surprised everyone by signing a nonaggression pact. Once bitter enemies, fascist Germany and communist Russia now committed never to attack each other and agreed to divide Poland between them. With the danger of a two-front war eliminated, Germany invaded Poland on September 1, 1939. As day broke on September 1, 1939, the German Luftwaffe, or German air force, roared over Poland, raining bombs on military bases, airfields, railroads, and cities. At the same time, German tanks raced across the Polish countryside, spreading terror and confusion. This invasion was the first test of Germany’s new blitzkrieg strategy, using fast tanks and more powerful aircraft to take the enemy by surprise and then quickly crush all opposition with overwhelming force. On September 3, two days following the terror in Poland, Britain and France declared war on Germany. The blitzkrieg tactics worked perfectly. Major fighting was over in three weeks, long before France, Britain, and their allies could mount a defense. In the last week of fighting, the Soviet Union attacked Poland from the east, grabbing some of its territory. By the end of the month, Poland was conquered—and World War II had begun.

21. ____ A) Do nothing and hope that these problems do not hurt the United States. • ____(B) Remain neutral, but join the League of Nations in an effort to help secure international peace • ____(C) Remain neutral but change the Neutrality Acts to allow the U.S. to sell war equipment to the Allies but only if these countries agree to use their own boats. • ____(D) Remain neutral but give full support to the Allies by selling war supplies, loaning money, and delivering equipment to Europe using U.S. ships • ____(E) Declare war on Germany and join the Allies.

22. America’s Response to World War II: Read Situation #2 (1939) Answer: C

23. America’s Response in 1939 • To help Britain & France defeat Germany, Congress passed the “cash-and-carry” provision: • Amended the Neutrality Acts to allow arms sales to the Allies • But Allied nations had to agree to pay in cash & transport supplies on their own ships

24. After attacking Poland in 1939, Hitler invaded Denmark, Norway, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg in 1940. By May, the Nazis began their siege on France which surrendered to Germany on June 22, 1940. In the summer of 1940, the German air force (the Luftwaffe) began making bombing runs over Great Britain. On a single day-August 15-approximately 2,000 German planes ranged over Britain. Every night for two solid months, bombers pounded London. The “Battle of Britain” raged on through the summer and fall. Night after night, German planes pounded British airfields and cities. During the Battle of Britain, Prime Minister Winston Churchill inspired the British to fight back and “never surrender.” In 1940, France had fallen and Britain was under siege. On September 27, Germany, Italy, and Japan signed the Tripartite Pact. The three nations became known as the Axis Powers andagreed to come to the defense of each other in case of attack. This meant that if the United States were to declare war on any one of the Axis powers, it would face its worst military nightmare—a two-ocean war, with fighting in both the Atlantic and the Pacific.

25. (A) Do nothing and hope that these problems do not hurt the United States. • ____ (B) Do not declare war but secretly negotiate with the British to send American soldiers to fight in Europe. • ____ (C) Help Britain defend itself by offering the Soviet Union money and war equipment if they agree to break the Nazi-Soviet Pact and attack Germany • ____ (D) Remain neutral but give full support to Britain by selling war supplies, loaning money, and delivering equipment to Europe using U.S. ships • ____ (E) Declare war on Germany and join the fight with Britain to keep fascism from taking total control of Europe.

26. America’s Response to World War II: Read Situation #3 (1940) Answer: D

27. America’s Response in 1940-1941 • By 1940, Britain needed U.S. aid to hold off the German assault: • The Lend-Lease Act allowing the U.S. to send war supplies to Allied nations & transport goods to Europe on armed U.S. ships • FDR began preparing America for a possible war by calling for the 1st ever peacetime draft

28. Lend-Lease Act of 1941 The United States will become the “Arsenal of Democracy”

29. In June 1941, Hitler broke the Nonaggression Pact and invaded the Soviet Union. The action brought the USSR into the war as an Allied Power, but Hitler believed that Britain would soon fall and the vast Russian territory would provide Germans with enough “Lebensraum” (living space) to satisfy the Aryan race. With the 1941 Lend-Lease Act in effect, American war equipment began flowing into Britain. To prevent delivery of lend-lease shipments, Hitler deployed hundreds of submarines to attack supply ships, hunting “wolf packs.” Wolf packs were successful in sinking as much as 350,000 tons of shipments in a single month. In September 1941, President Roosevelt granted the navy permission for U.S. warships to attack German U-boats in self defense. Germany’s European victories created new opportunities for Japanese expansion. Japan controlled Manchuria and parts of China. In 1941, Hideki Tojoordered an attack on the unprotected French, Dutch, and British colonies in East Asia and Indochina (Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos). The British and French were too busy fighting Hitler to block Japanese expansion. Only the U.S. and its Pacific islands remained in Japan’s way.

30. A) Do nothing and hope that these problems do not hurt the United States. • ____ (B) Concentrate on Europe: Give Lend-Lease aid to Stalin so that the USSR can defend itself and fight Germany, but avoid confrontation with Japan. • ____ (C) Concentrate on Asia: Negotiate a peaceful settlement with the Japanese to keep Hawaii and the Philippines safe from Japanese attacks. Keep giving aid to Britain. • ____ (D) Remain neutral, but offer any and all assistance to Britain and the Soviet Union in Europe and stop Japanese aggression in Asia by cutting off the sale of oil. • ____ (E) Enough is enough; the world needs the United States. Declare war on the Axis Powers in order to end totalitarian control of Europe, Africa, and Asia.

31. America’s Response to World War II: Read Situation #4 (1941) Answer: D

32. America’s Response in 1941 • The success of the Axis Powers in Europe brought the USA closer to an undeclared war on Germany • FDR gave the navy & merchant ships authority to fire on u-boats • FDR secretly drafted the Atlantic Charter with Churchill: planned a war strategy if the USA entered WWII & a post-war United Nations

34. America’s Response in 1941 • The USA attempted to stop Japanese aggression in Asia: • FDR wanted to protect U.S. territories & allies in the Pacific • The USA created an embargo & stopped selling iron & oil to Japan • Hideki Tojo sent an envoy to negotiate a resolution, but secretly plotted to attack the U.S.

36. The United States protested Japanese aggression by cutting off trade with Japan. Japanese military leaders warned that without oil, Japan could be defeated without its enemies ever striking a blow. The leaders declared that Japan must either persuade the United States to end its oil embargo or seize the oil fields in the Dutch East Indies. On November 5, 1941, Tojo ordered the Japanese navy to prepare for an attack on the United States. The U.S. military had broken Japan’s secret communication codes and learned that Japan was preparing for a strike. What it didn’t know was where the attack would come. Late in November, Roosevelt sent out a “war warning” to military commanders in Hawaii, Guam, and the Philippines. On December 7, 1941, the Japanese began a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor—the largest U.S. naval base in the Pacific—launching more than 180 Japanese warplanes from six aircraft carriers. In less than two hours, the Japanese had killed 2,403 Americans and wounded 1,178 more. The surprise raid had sunk or damaged 21 ships, including 8 battleships—nearly the whole U.S. Pacific fleet. More than 300 aircraft were severely damaged or destroyed. These losses constituted greater damage than the U.S. Navy had suffered in all of World War I. By chance, three aircraft carriers at sea escaped the disaster. President Roosevelt referred to the December 7, 1941 attack as “a date which will live in infamy.”

37. (A) Declare war on Japan and mobilize for a war in Asia. Hope that Britain and the Soviet Union can defeat Germany and Italy by themselves. • ____ (B) Declare war on all the Axis Powers (Germany, Italy, and Japan), but prioritize Japan as the biggest threat to U.S. safety. Start preparations for an Asian war. • ____ (C) Declare war on all the Axis Powers (Germany, Italy, and Japan), but prioritize Germany as the biggest threat to U.S. safety. Focus on Europe first. • ____ (D) Declare war on all the Axis Powers (Germany, Italy, and Japan) and split the U.S. military into two equal fighting forces. Focus on Asia and Europe equally.

38. America’s Response to World War II: Read Situation #5 (1941) Answer: C

39. America’s Response in 1941 • The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec 7, 1941 brought the USA into World War II • On Dec 8, Congress declared war on Japan • On Dec 11, Germany & Italy declared war on the U.S. • The USA had to fight a two-front war in Europe & Asia; Despite the attack by Japan, FDR viewed Germany as the immediate threat

40. American Home Front in WWII The U.S. Government • To win wars in Asia & Europe & meet civilian demands, the U.S. gov’t grew to its largest size ever: • The U.S. gov’t spent $250 million per day from 1941 to 1945 • This is 2x as much as all previous gov’t spending combined • The War Powers Act gave the president power to expand the gov’t & limit liberties (censorship) • The gov’t imposed rations, sold war bonds, drafted soldiers • War Production Boarddirected factories to produce war supplies so that the Allies could out produce the Axis Powers

41. Mobilizing Soldiers: The Draft War bonds helped raise $187 billion

42. The War Mobilization Board oversaw production of war equipment WWII propaganda: was directed by the Office of War Information Henry Ford’s factories made one B-24 bomber every hour

43. The War Mobilization Board oversaw production of war equipment Pre-fabrication allowed shipbuilders to make a battleship in 14 days (rather than 355 days)

44. Consumers • War production stimulated the economy & created new jobs: • Business & farm profits doubled • Wages rose & people wanted to buy, but wartime production led to shortages of consumer goods • Office of Price Administration fixed prices & distributed ration books to save gas, meat, butter • Americans recycled & planted victory gardens for the war effort

45. Wartime Ration Books

46. Victory Gardens

47. Wartime production led to shortages on consumer goods

48. GIs • When the USA declared war, the military needed soldiers to fight a two-front war in Europe & Asia: • 6 million men volunteered • 10 million more were drafted • Everything soldiers were given was “government issue” so WWII became known as “GIs” • Homesickness among soldiers was common Preparing for a jump into Nazi-occupied France

49. GIs missed the freedoms of “home” Marines at Iwo Jima GIs with movie star Marlene Dietrich

50. African Americans • During WWII, African Americans fought in the military & at home: • The war led to factory jobs & increased the Great Migration of blacks in the North & west coast • African Americans faced racial discrimination; civil rights leader A Philip Randolph forced FDR to offer equal pay for black workers by creating the Fair Employment Practices Commission