Transcript document
World War II
The War to End All Wars (Round 2)
There are 2 main sites where
fighting is happening in WWII
1. Europe
1. Called the European Theater
2. Asia
1. Called the Pacific Theater
There are 2 main sides fighting
in the war:
Axis Powers
– Germany, Italy, and Japan
Allied Powers
– France, Britain, Soviet Union, US
Vocab
Blitzkrieg: “Lightning War” tactic used by
the Germans in WWII (fast and surprise air
attacks).
Luftwaffe: German Air force
Vichy: city in Central France where a
puppet government governed unoccupied
France (the area not controlled by
Germany).
Puppet Government: a government in
which a local leader is placed in charge,
yet directed by an outside government.
Hitler and the Nazi’s have fully
taken over Germany and have
set their sights on the rest of
Europe!
Show PPT of LIFE photos
Nazis and Soviets at Peace????
In August of 1939, Hitler and
Stalin sign a public
nonaggression pact promising
not to attack one another.
Secretly:
– Poland is divided between the two.
– Soviets get:
• Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and
Finland
– Germany gives USSR plans for
naval vessels, subs, airplane
engines
– USSR will supply Germany with
many raw goods
September 1st 1939– Germany lead a surprise attack on
Poland
They used Blitzkrieg (lightning
war).
– Using concentrated tanks and dive-
bombers to break a hole in the
enemy line and followed quickly
mobile infantry.
Hitler used over 1.5 million men
– Luftwaffe (German Air Force)
Poland
bombed major cities, rail lines and
communication lines
September 3
– France and Great Britain
declare war on Germany
Since they aren't ready for
war this period is known
as the Phony War
– Great Britain drops “Confetti”
• millions of leaflets of
propaganda over Germany
– September 17th
• Stalin orders Soviet troops to
occupy the eastern half of
Poland.
The Phony War
Seven months after France and Great Britain had
declared war on Germany the two sides had not
fought each other.
– In WWI the defender had the advantage and many
believed it would be the same in WWII.
The Allies had mobilized their armies.
The French waited for Germans behind the
Maginot Line (a 87-mile long line of forts,
concrete walls and underground barracks).
End of the Phony War
April 1940
– Germany attacks neutral Denmark and
Norway
– Denmark falls in hours, Norway will
last months
Why did Hitler invade these
areas?
– To gain naval bases/airfields to
attack UK in the future
May 1940
– Germans invade Holland, Belgium
and Luxembourg
Surprise, Surprise…
Germans attack
through Central
France through the
thick Ardennes Forest.
– Experts believed that it
was impossible to drive
tanks through it.
British and French
Armies are divided.
– British are encircled at
port of Dunkirk
Dunkirk
Allied soldiers escaped aboard
anything that could float (yachts,
lifeboats, motorboats, fishing ships).
– 338,000 were rescued
All large equipment was left behind
France is alone against Germany
Watch: http://www.history.co.uk/explore-history/ww2/fall-offrance/video.html?bctid=73448415001&The-miracle-of-Dunkirk
France Falls
On June 10, Mussolini declares war on
France fearing that Hitler would take the
entire nation for himself.
June 14, Paris is captured by Germany
On June 22, France surrenders
– Germany takes direct control of the northern
two-thirds of France
1. Hitler creates a puppet
gov. in France:
-The Vichy French who
controlled southern
France.
-“Free French” based in
Britain.
Three
Results of
the Fall of
France
2. Britain is the only
nation still fighting
Germany.
3. The Axis powers are
masters of the
European mainland
The Battle of Britain
Answer these questions in your notes (page
6 in journal):
1. When?
2. What tactics are used by the Germans?
3. What tactics are used by the British?
4. Who wins?
The Battle of Britain
After fall of France, Britain stands alone.
Germany must control air in order to
successfully invade England.
Hitler launched air campaign in July 1940
Despite 3000 to 1200 advantage in aircraft,
the Luftwaffe is unable to defeat the RAF.
Why did Germany lose?
Radar provides
early
warning/eliminate
surprise.
Allows British to
focus their fighter
effort where the
Germans pose the
greatest threat.
Watch Battle of Britain video:
– Scenes: http://www.history.co.uk/explorehistory/ww2/battle-ofbritain/video.html?bctid=69750699001&The-
Blitz
– News about the Blitz:
http://www.history.co.uk/explorehistory/ww2/battle-ofbritain/video.html?bctid=68798765001&Blitz
krieg-1940
– News interview:
http://www.history.co.uk/explore-
history/ww2/battle-of-britain.html
Vocab
1. Rosie the Riveter – symbol of
women who built ships, planes, and
produced ammunitions (weapons) on
the home front.
2. Stalingrad – “turning point” in
European Theater of WWII. USSR
defeated the Nazis.
The War in Europe starts to
come to an end…
On page 7 in your journal…
Title: US involvement
Write/answer these questions:
1. What is the Lend Lease Act?
2. What are the benefits?
3. What are the side effects?
Early US Involvement in Europe
The US is supposed
to be neutral
– Lend-Lease Act: The
US “Lends” UK (and
eventually the Soviet
Union) ships, planes,
and other war
material for
“Leasing” British
bases in the
Caribbean.
Lend-Lease
Why is this a good deal for the
UK?
Why is this a good deal for the
US?
Side Effects of the Lend-Lease Act
Hitler orders his U-Boats to target US
ships
By Sept. 4th Roosevelt orders US Navy to
shoot German submarines on sight
US is now in an undeclared war with
Germany
Germany and the Soviet Union
Hitler signed
Non-Aggression
Pact
– violates it when
he launches
Operation
“Barbarossa” in
June 22nd 1941.
If Russia is so much bigger, why
is Germany a threat?
Germany had a strong army
Stalin had killed many military leaders in
the Great Purge
Read and respond in notes
The Invasion of Russia
Soviets Advance
Soviet Union in secured…
What about North Africa?
– While Germany and the Soviets are at war,
North Africa and Italy are at war
• Mussolini is still trying to re-create the old Roman
Empire
For the Glory of Rome!
Italy’s Goal: to cut off Britain’s life line to
India (Suez Canal) and take the oil rich
Middle East.
Plan: Italian Army will strike east from
Italian Libya and capture Egypt.
For the Glory of Rome: North Africa
British Offensive
First Italy wins but the British
counter-attack and push the
Italians back.
December 1940-February 1941
– British victories
– Italians retreat
– 130, 000 Italians captured
Germany is worried about
British invasion from the south.
Vocab
1. General Erwin Rommel – “Desert
Fox” German commander who
conquered most of North Africa.
2. Dwight Eisenhower – commander
of British and American forces in
North Africa who defeated General
Erwin Rommel
Operation Torch in North Africa
North Africa clip
http://www.pbs.org/thewar/detail_5357.ht
m
Read excerpt on Italy/North Africa
The score…
North Africa once again controlled by the Allies
USSR once again controlled by the Allies
Italy once again controlled by the Allies
Britain STILL controlled by the Allies
– Let’s keep going!
Vocab
1. D-Day – June 6, 1944, Allied
invasion of France at Normandy
2. V-E Day – May 8, 1945,
Germany surrenders
D-Day
Normandy…
D-Day Invasion
May 1944 the long awaited invasion of
France was ready
Led by General Dwight D. Eisenhower
(supreme commander of the all Allied
Forces in Europe)
Normandy…
D-Day Invasion
Thousands of planes, ships, tanks
and landing crafts
3.5 million troops
June 6th 1944
– five beaches
– 150,000 US, Canadian and UK
troops.
– 23,000 parachuted
Normandy…D-Day Invasion
Losses…Allies 12,000. Germans 9,000.
By late summer 1944, Paris is liberated.
All the Allies move towards Germany.
D-Day Clip
http://www.pbs.org/thewar/detail_5360.ht
m
http://www.pbs.org/thewar/detail_5361.ht
m
Battle of the Bulge
Begins on December 16, 1944 in the Ardennes Forest
(N. France/Belgium)
Germany attacks with the hopes of dividing the Allies to
force a peace treaty favorable to the Axis
– Remember: the Germans used this strategy once before
Germany concentrated its fighting in the center of the
Allied line due to its apparent weakness…causing a
“bulge” effect which gave the battle its name
Battle of the Bulge
The first three days saw
the most causalities for
the US
Eventually the attack fails
due to lack of troops and
supplies.
January 1945, Hitler
removes his troops from
the Ardennes
Hitler’s Downfall
Allies move to Berlin
– Hitler refuses to surrender
Hitler relocates to the bunker under the Chancellery
in Berlin on winter of 1945.
As the Soviets enter Berlin in April 1945
– Hitler marries Eva Braun
– two days later commits suicide
– his body is burned afterwards
The German army surrenders May 7th, 1945. War
in Europe is over!
Where was Japan
during all of this?
Vocab
1. Concentration Camps – detention centers, prisons,
for civilians considered enemies of the state.
2. Holocaust – Nazi massacre of approx. 6 million
Jews, Gypsies, Poles, Homosexuals, and political
dissenters.
3. Genocide – the murder of a group of people based on
their race.
4. Nuremburg Trials – European trials for Nazis who
committed “crimes against humanity”