What happened in the end? Between 1939 and 1941, the Second World War went well for Hitler. In 1939 he invaded Western Poland. In 1940 he defeated Denmark, Norway, Holland, Belgium and France. In June 1941, Yugoslavia, Greece and the USSR were invaded. 1941-42 was a turning point. The USA joined the Allies in December 1941, and during 1942, the attack on the USSR stalled, whilst the Allies won victories in North Africa. 1943-44 saw the tide turn. Germany lost the Battle of Stalingrad.

REASON 1 Battle of Stalingrad in February 1943. In September, Allies invaded Italy from North Africa and in June 1944, they invaded France. The Germans were on the retreat everywhere. By April 1945, the Soviet Army had reached Berlin. On 30th April 1945, Hitler killed himself in his underground bunker in Berlin.

2: Germany failed to defeat Britain in an air and sea war The failure to defeat Britain early in the war meant that Hitler was forced to fight a two-front war. The Battle of Britain in July-September 1940 was Hitler’s attempt to invade Britain. Goering’s Luftwaffe targeted British cities and airfields in an attempt to force Britain into surrender. He failed which meant that Britain could be used as a launch pad for the Allies to build up their military strength against Hitler.

3: Hitler decided to invade the Soviet Union The decision to invade the Soviet Union was a massive mistake which drew German forces into a long, drawn-out struggle. From June 1941, Hitler invaded the Soviet Union with a force of 3 million and by winter, had reached Moscow. However the war turned against Hitler after the Battle of Stalingrad ended in February 1943. Over 90,000 German soldiers surrendered. From this point on, there was never less than 65% of the German Army fighting the Russians. By April 1945, the Russian had pushed the Germans all the way back to Berlin.

4: Decision to declare war on the USA The decision to declare war on the USA after Pearl Harbour in December 1941 was clearly disastrous. Once the United States joined the Allies, the men, machines and munitions available to the Allies far outweighed Germany’s. It became a war of attrition; Germany was worn down by a stronger enemy. By 1944, Germany was losing this war of production. The Allies were producing: twice as much steel; x4 as many planes and tanks; x7 as many rifles and machine guns. When the Allies invaded France on D-Day (6th June 1944), they had an air superiority of 70:1.

5: Hitler made poor decisions It was Hitler’s decision to invade the USSR. Its economy was weak but Russia was a huge country, with a population of over 200 million and a harsh fighting climate. To make matters worse, Hitler interfered in military decisions, refusing to allow the army to withdraw from Stalingrad and not seeing the importance of North Africa. He also backed the wrong scientific projects. Whilst the Allies invested in radar, cipher machines and the atomic bomb, Hitler invested in V1 and V2 rockets which did nothing to change the war.

6: Nazi philosophy Nazi philosophies also slowed down the war effort. Hitler allowed the SS and the German Army too much control of the economy. He was also slow to use women in the labour force, slowing the economy.

Questions to answer 1. Of all the reasons why Hitler lost the war – which is the most important and why? 2. Which is the least important and why? 3. Do you think that Hitler was a good leader? 4. Why?

Text books

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aBkx1JFufTk