Transcript Phoney War - Issaquah Connect

Phoney War
By: Tasha and Aspen
Thesis
Despite Britain’s and France’s
declaration of war on
Germany, the Phoney War
demonstrated the ineptness of
the war as no significant
military event occurred in the
entire span of seven months.
No major hostilities taking place
From October 1939 to April 1940 (7 months 4 days)
Overview
"There is something phoney about
this war."
Term was coined by US senator William Borah
because nothing of military importance took place in
Western Europe
Oct 14 1939
Mar 13 1940
Apr 9 1940
• The British battleship Royal
Oak is sunk by Germans
(death toll of 833 men)
• The Winter War ends
• Germany invades Denmark
and Norway
Nov 30 1939
Mar 12 1940
Apr 13 1940
• The USSR/Soviets attack
Finland
• Finland signs a peace treaty
with USSR/Soviets
• German lose 13 warships in
the Battle of Narvik
Dec 13 1939
Feb 16 1940
May 10 1940
• The Royal Navy Sinks
German battleship Admiral
Graf Spee
• The British capture the
Altmark from the Germans
• Chamberlain resigns,
Churchill becomes PM
Dec 14 1939
Dec 15 1939
• Soviet Union expelled from
League of Nations
• The French build up forces
behind the Maginot Line
Map
Jo, and Lydia. The Phoney War. Digital image. Wikispaces.
Jspivey, n.d. Web. 17 Mar. 2015.
 Poland was occupied by Germany at the time
 Allies didn’t do much to help
 No land operations were undertaken by the Allies or the Germans
after the German conquest of Poland in September 1939
Background:
Poland
 September 3- first casualty after Britain and France’s declaration
of war on Germany
 British passenger liner bound for Canada
 Sunk by U-30 (German submarine)
Athenia
 Lemp, the German submarine commander claimed he thought
“Athenia” was a naval boat
 Sailing in zigzag manner
 Dark
 Hitler claimed Winston Churchill ordered the British intelligence to
place a bomb on the ship
More time for government to protect Britain from an
attack
Britain
Protections
Barrage balloons were deployed
to force the Luftwafe to fly higher
38 million gas masks were handed out
Pillar boxes were painted with
yellow gas-sensitive paint
More time for government to protect Britain from an
attack
Britain
Protections
(continued)
Windows were taped- prevented glass
from flying if bombed
400 million sandbags were piled
around the entrances to shops and
public buildings
British engaged in “bombing” raids in Germany
Dropped propaganda leaflets instead of bombs
“Bombing”
Raids
Two purposes
• Germans would read
about evils of Germany
• Show leaders of
Germany how
vulnerable their
country was to
bombing raids
Result: Germans
stepped up their
anti-aircraft
protection
In September 3rd alone, 6 million copies of “Note to the German People were
dropped in just one night (13 tons of paper!)
 Politicians believed the raids served an important purpose
 Members of military did not
“Bombing”
Raids
(continued)
My personal view is that the only
thing achieved was largely to
supply the continent’s
requirements of toilet paper for
the five long years of the war.
‘BOMBER’ Harris writing at the end
of the war
It is ignominious to
wage a confetti war
against an utterly
ruthless enemy.
General Spears
 Public faced a torrent of prohibitions
Regulations
 Blackouts were regulated- low street lighting was allowed but no
night time lighting of any description was allowed within 12 miles
of the south-east coast
 Public was unhappy
 As nothing happened, things went back to normal
Hartley, June. "The Phoney War." BBC News- WW2 Memories. BBC, 2
June 2004. Web. 17 Mar. 2015.
History.com. "Britain and France Declare War on
Germany." History.com. A&E Television Networks, n.d. Web. 17 Mar.
2015.
Jo, and Lydia. The Phoney War. Digital image. Wikispaces. Jspivey,
n.d. Web. 17 Mar. 2015.
Works Cited
"Phony War." Britannica School. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 2015.
Web. 13 Mar. 2015.
"The Phoney War". HistoryLearningSite.co.uk. 2014. Web.