Intro to WWII

Introduction: Most devastating war in human history 55 million dead 1 trillion dollars Began in 1939 as strictly a European Conflict Widened to include most of the world

How It Began Lots of factors WWI leftovers Germany defeated in and had to pay cost of war. In huge economic depression Italy victorious but wanted more territory Japan victorious but wanted China Outside factors…

What Were These Outside Factors? Germany reduced size Organized League of Nations French and Britain unsure U.S. isolationist

Kellogg-Briand Pact 1928 Countries agreed to condemn wars and settle quarrels peacefully – No enforcement Pacifism

German Depression The German Mark v. the U.S. Dollar 1914: $1 = 4 Marks 1921: $1 = 75 Marks 02/1923: $1 = 48,000 Marks 10/1923: $1 = 440,000,000 Marks (440 million) 11/1923: $1 = 4,200,000,000,000 Marks (4.2 trillion)

Rise of Hitler Weimar Republic – Reparations ($33 billion), Rhineland, and weak military Nazi Party organized, 1920s – workers’ party Nazi party largest in Germany, 1932 Hitler voted as chancellor, 1933 – The Reichstag burns down and Hitler blames the Communists New parliament created 450, 000 members Larger than German army

Hitler Gets Busy Gestapo Created -- April, 1933 Jewish Boycott – April, 1933 Nuremburg Laws – (yellow star) Strip Jews of their citizenship and property. Jewish Books Banned & Burned – May, ,000 People in Camps – July, ,000 People in Camps – 1938 Illegal to Leave Germany – October, 1941

Spanish Civil War 1937 Monarchy to Republic – Democracy vs. Fascism Germany enters war to test out its war machine and blitzkrieg tactics – Guernica Franco becomes the new fascist leader West sits back and watches - Appeasement

Appeasement Austria – March, 1938 – West does nothing Germany enters Rhineland – West does little Sudetenland in Czech.(80% Germans)– Sept., 1938 – self-determination? Munich Conference All of Czechoslovakia – March, 1939 – West prepares for war Poland – Sept., 1939 – official start of war By Summer of 1940, Germany Controlled Most of Europe World shocked as France falls to Germans

Italy and Mussolini Fascism – Political philosophy that advocates the glorification of the state, a single party system with a strong leader and an aggressive form of nationalism

Post WWI Italy They wanted more land, high war debts and high unemployment Threat of Communism Democracy

Uprisings Peasants and workers want more land and money Blackshirts make Fascism the only party by 1924

Corporate State Bring workers and owners together and put an end to all parties. Unemployed men become the military Rebuild A Glorious Rome.

Italy attacks Ethiopia Use of Gas The League of Nations place sanctions on Italy, allowed them to have oil, coal, and iron. Haile Selassie I Appeasement

Those Dumb Enough To Ally Nazi-Soviet Pact, 1939 Stalin fears Hitler, so he tries to ally with GB and France. Stalin wants land from Finland to Bulgaria. West says no way. Mussolini and Italy, 1939 Off and on betrayed until Italian defeat in 1943

Alliance That Changes War Germany “allies” with Japan Japan was “China Hungry” Japanese angry over U.S. support of China