1. World War II

2. Before World War II Hitler wants land Reoccupied the Rhineland in 1936
Annexes Austria in March 1938
The Munich Conference takes place September 1938
Hitler annexes the Sudetenland October 1938 (takes all in March)
Europe adopts an appeasement policy (give Hitler what he wants)

3. Germany and the Soviets signed the Non-Aggression pact (1939)
Agree to split up land between them
This includes Poland

5. Invasion of Poland Germany invades Sept. 1st 1939
Germany wages “Blitzkreig”, which is lightning war
Warsaw continues to resist but finally surrenders Sept. 27th

6. During the invasion, the Totenkopf (SS) enter’s Poland
This stands for “Death’s Head”
They kill civilians and many Jews
Others were sent to ghettos, where many would starve

7. Invasion of France
After Poland is defeated there is a “Sitzkrieg”, or sitting war (phony war)
However on May 10th 1940, Germany invades Belgium, Luxembourg, Netherlands and France
Germany sidesteps the Maginot Line (defensive line)

11. France is overwhelmed and surrenders June 22nd 1940
Hitler had the surrender signed in the same railway car the Germans surrendered at in during WW I
All this despite the fact that France’s army was superior

13. Dunkirk The British army was getting trapped by the Germans in France
England began Operation Dynamo, the evacuation of its troops from France
Within a week, 300,000 are brought safely back to England