Blitzkrieg “Lightning War” The First Phase of WWII

WORLD WAR II BEGINS Do you remember the “Schlieffen Plan” from World War I? Hitler did! He knew that Germany needed to take France quickly and force them out of the war. Hence... the development of BLITZKRIEG

What is Blitzkrieg? “Lightning war” that was a swift, sudden, and overwhelming military attack based on speed and surprise Required a military forced based around light tanks and support planes and infantry First used in WWII by the German army

How did the Germans do it? These operations were dependent on surprise, enemy un-preparedness and an inability to react swiftly enough to the attacker Required sheer speed, specialized support vehicles, new methods of communication, new tactics, and an effective decentralized command structure Hit hard and move on instantly Its aim was to create panic amongst the civilian population.

DUNKIRK!! 2. Invaded Norway on April 9, 1940 May 26, 1940 1. Defeated the Polish army on Sept. 1, 1939. 3. Defeated the French army in May of 1940.

Dunkirk Evacuation May 26 & 27 1940

Dunkirk Evacuation Thousands of small boats pleasure craft and life boats went across the English Channel to bring back British troops. 340 000 troops were evacuated from Dunkirk after realizing that they could not escape from German forces. German Military surrounded a half moon area around Dunkirk, surrounding the British troops.

Codenamed Operation Dynamo by the British Dunkirk In World War II, during May 26-June 4 1940, Dunkirk was the site of one of the great military feats of history when more than 335,000 Allied soldiers were evacuated by naval vessels and small civilian craft that were under constant German attack. Codenamed Operation Dynamo by the British After reaching the Channel, the Germans swung north along the coast, threatening to capture the ports and trap the British and French forces before they could evacuate to Britain When British and French troops were cut off by the German army during the Battle of Dunkirk (Blitzkrieg) in the Second World War If it wasn’t for Dunkirk, Hitler would have most likely conquered Europe

The Results Major devastation to cities and urban areas in Europe In a matter of months Hitler was able to control the vast majority of the continent of Europe Major devastation to cities and urban areas in Europe Resulted in the British and French armies being pushed back in just a few weeks to the beaches of Dunkirk and the Russian army being devastated in the attack on Russia in June 1941.

The Battle of Britain

What was the Battle of Britain? Summer and Fall of1940: Battle of Britain centered around Germany trying to overtake Britain after Dunkirk Invasion was the expeditious way to finish off Britain, but that meant crossing the English Channel; Hitler would not risk it unless the British air force could be neutralized first. As a result, the Battle of Britain was fought in the air, not on the beaches. In August 1940 the Germans launched daylight raids against ports and airfields and in September against inland cities. The objective was to draw out the British fighters and destroy them.

Where did it take Place? It took place in air over Great Britain Britain was almost completely surrounded by the Luftwaffe (German Air Fleet). The new technology of “radar” saves Great Britain!

The Battle of Britain The German plan was to take out the British air force bases Next, Germans attacked British fighter planes September 7, 1940- London and other large cities were attacked Bombings and attacks were now done at night because German pilots met resistance during the day. Raids lessened with greater German defeats, and the poor weather that came in October The damage to Britain's cities were extensive and many civilians were killed