2.  September 1, 1939 – Hitler invades Poland  Polish army was extremely outdated  They were still using horses and lances  Germans used “blitzkrieg” (lightning warfare)  Germany defeats Poland by Oct. 5, 1939

3.  Britain sent troops to help the French  Waited behind the Maginot Line  It was a series of concrete bunkers and fortifications to protect France along the German border.  This was a poor decision. ◦ (1) Germany was free to focus on Poland ◦ (2) Hitler decided to go around the Maginot Line

4.  On May 10, 1940, Hitler went around Maginot Line with another blitzkrieg  German troops parachuted into Netherlands  Panzers rolled into Belgium, Luxembourg  British & French forces race north to Belgium.  Instead of sending tanks through the flat area of central Belgium, Hitler sent his main forces through the Ardennes Mts. (eastern Belgium).

5.  French had only left a few troops there  Germans smashed through the troops  Then they turned west toward English Channel  British & French armies couldn’t move quickly ◦ They became trapped in Belgium ◦ Germans drove them toward the English Channel ◦ Evacuation by sea of Allied troops was needed ◦ Germany had occupied all but one port, Dunkirk

6.  Germans were closing in on Dunkirk  Suddenly, Hitler ordered them to stop  Historians are unsure of why  Some think he did not want to risk his tanks  Hermann Goering, head of the Luftwaffe, said his air force alone could kill the trapped soldiers.

7.  This gave Allies a 3-day delay to evacuate.  850 ships sailed, many times, from England  Known as “Operation Dynamo”  Rescue of about 338,000 British/French troops  However, all of Britain’s equipment remained at Dunkirk (rifles, ammunition, vehicles)  If Hitler invaded England, British were in trouble.

8.  June 22, 1940 – France surrenders  Installs Marshal Philippe Petain as leader of new government in Vichy, France  Leaders worked with Nazis, suppressing French people  Gen. Charles de Gaulle refused to recognize this government  From England and Algiers, he worked with Allied political leaders to fight for the liberation of France