Causes of The Great Depression On October 29, 1929 the stock market in the United States crashed -People began to spend less, invest less and borrow less; this drove prices down and led to high unemployment rates g

Effects of the Great Depression -Unemployment rates rose to over 25% in the United States -The Depression spread around the world -International trade dropped by 50% -The unemployment rate rose in Germany to over 30%

Hitler Rises to Power The anti-capitalist party, the Nazis, won the majority in German elections in 1932 In 1933, Hitler became Chancellor Hitler abolished democracy and created a single-party state led by the Nazis Hitler began mass industrial and military projects; which led to almost full employment for the German people

The “New Order” -Hitler believed that Germans were superior and other groups of people, such as Slaviks and Jews, were not worthy of life -Hitler wanted to reorganize the world; he appointed a man named Heinrich Himmler to enslave, relocate, and exterminate “inferior” ethnic groups -Many people were relocated to forced labor camps or “concentration camps” -Hitler devised a “Final Solution” for Jewish people; the Final Solution was that “all Jews would be killed”

Appeasement -On March 7th, 1936, Hitler reclaimed the Rhineland -In March of 1938, Hitler annexed Austria; one year later he invaded Czechoslovakia -The major powers in Europe, France and Britain, ceded these territories in exchange for a promise that Hitler would not demand any more land

World War II Begins -On September 1st 1939, Hitler invaded Poland -Britain and France declared war on Germany -Britain, France and Russia joined forces and were called the Allies -Germany, Italy, and Japan joined forces and were called the Axis -In the beginning, the Axis were winning; Poland was defeated in 16 days

The United States Enters the war The United States did not want to enter the war; however they did sell weapons to the Allies On December 7th 1941, Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, the next day the U.S. entered the war Shortly after the U.S. entered the war, Allied forces gained momentum Germany officially surrendered May 7th, 1945 Japan did not surrender until August; after the United States dropped atomic bombs on Nagasaki and Hiroshima

The Holocaust -Allied forces begin to discover “concentration camps” in enemy territory -They discovered mass graves, crematoriums, and starving people in these death camps -The most famous of these camps was named Auschwitz -Over 6 million Jews, and 5 million Poles and gypsies were murdered during the Holocaust