Transcript World War II - Spring Branch ISD

Europe in the
th
20
Century
Map of Europe in 1900
World War I
• World War I Alliances (1914-1918)
The Central Powers
*Austria-Hungary
*Germany
*Turkey (Ottoman Empire)
*Bulgaria
The Allies
*Russia
*France
*U.K.
*Italy
*U.S.
• World War I ended in November, 1918. The Treaty of
Versailles was signed in 1919.
Europe After World War I
• The Treaty of Versailles demanded that Germany
had to pay for the damage done to the Allied
Countries.
• Germany also had to give up valuable territory.
• Austria-Hungary was divided as a result of the
war, becoming two separate countries. This
allowed several Eastern European ethnic groups
that had been part of Austria-Hungary to gain
their independence.
Map of Europe After WWI
Germany After WWI
• Germany’s economy was suffering, largely due to the
reparations for WWI that they had to pay.
• Unemployment in Germany was very high.
• Germany wanted to rebuild their own country.
• Nazi Party believed in Fascism-a philosophy that
supports a strong central government controlled by the
military and led by a powerful dictator.
• Adolf Hitler, leader of the Nazi Party, was voted into
office as Chancellor of Germany in 1933.
Causes of World War II
• 1934-Hitler took command of the Armed Forces.
• 1939-Nazis invaded Poland.
• By 1940, the Nazis had invaded much of Western
Europe, conquering Belgium, the Netherlands,
Luxembourg, France, Denmark, and Norway.
• 1941- Nazis invaded the Soviet Union.
• December 7, 1941-Japan (allies with Germany)
bombed U.S. military bases at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.
• U.S. entered the war by sending troops to fight in the
Pacific against the Japanese and troops to Europe to
fight the Nazis.
World War II Alliances
The Allies
U.S.
U.K.
France
Soviet Union
The Axis Powers
Germany
Italy
Japan
War on Two Fronts
• Although the U.S. did not officially enter the
war until 1941, we had been helping the other
Allies by ‘lending’ weapons and support.
• After the U.S. entered the war, the military
fought against Hitler in Europe and Japan in
the Pacific Ocean.
Soviet Union’s Role
• The Soviet Union had begun the war on
Germany’s side. They agreed with the German
invasion of Poland and invaded from the other
side.
• In 1941, however, Hitler decided to invade Russia.
This was not successful, however, because the
German army was not prepared for Russia’s harsh
winter.
• Russia successfully held their ground and joined
the Allies—Britain, France, and the United States.
The Holocaust
•Adolph Hitler felt that the Jews were responsible for all of
Germany’s economic troubles. Jews had to wear a yellow
star for identification in public.
•In the 1930s, the Nazis opened concentration camps.
These were labor camps for Jews. Many Jews worked for
the Nazi war effort, but most were killed. Over 6 million
Jews died in what is now called the Holocaust.
•The camps were liberated in 1945.
How Did World War II End?
• May 1945: The Western Allies were victorious in
Europe. Germany surrendered to the western allies
in
• August 1945: After Japan refused to surrender, the
United States dropped the atomic bomb on the cities
of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
• August 14, 1945: Japan surrendered to the United
States.
Europe After World War II
• Much of Europe had been devastated during the war.
• The allies (United States, France, and the United
Kingdom) helped rebuild and strengthen democracies in
Western Europe , including the West Germany.
• The Soviet Union occupied Eastern Europe, including East
Germany.
• NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization): members of
this alliance (western Europe, Canada, and U.S.) agreed
to defend one another if they were attacked by the
Soviet Union or any other country.
Europe after WWII
Europe After WWII
 Western European countries had democratic
governments.
 Eastern European countries, including the
Soviet Union had communist governments.
 Iron Curtain-symbolized the political
differences between Western Europe and
Eastern Europe.
Berlin Wall
East German government built a wall that divided East Berlin from West Berlin in
1961.
The Berlin Wall was both the physical division between West Berlin and East
Germany from 1961 to 1989 and the symbolic boundary between democracy and
Communism during the Cold War.
Fall of the Berlin Wall
In 1989, a weakened East German government announced to its citizens that
they could begin relocating to the West.
November 9, 1989Thousands of people came with hammers and began taking
down pieces of it. The following day, the Brandenburg Gate was opened.
Initially there were checkpoints established. Primarily it was to assist those
crossing over to the West, but it was soon discarded as well.
Collapse of the Soviet Union
• Daily life for the citizens of the Soviet Union and
Eastern European countries was difficult. Most
people were poor and had little say in their
government.
• By 1980s, economic conditions in the Soviet Union
and those Eastern European countries under its
control had worsened.
• 1991-Soviet republics declared their independence
from the Soviet Union, setting up democratic
governments.
• By 1991, the Soviet Union no longer existed. The
huge country had become 15 different nations.
Europe Today