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Covers the early stages of WWII in Europe (1939-1940), including the invasion of Poland
Citation preview
PP. 575-579
17.2: Europe Goes to War
In your notebook….
Answer questions #1-4 on p. 579 & complete #7#1)How did relations between Britain & Germany
change between the Munich Conference & the invasion of Poland?
#2) What were the reasons why Germany was able to defeat Poland in less than a month?
#3) What was the French policy of collaboration with Germany?
#4) Why were aircraft crucial to Germany’s planned invasion of Britain?
#7) Construct a timeline of important events in Europe in 1939 & 1940.
Germany/Hitler/Nazis
Hitler rises to power in 1934
Remilitarizes the Rhineland in 1936
Creates alliance w/ Italy in 1936 (Rome-Berlin Axis)
Nazis move into Austria in 1938, “Anschluss”
Hitler acquires Sudetenland in 1938
Mussolini/Italy
Fascist Party formed in 1919
Mussolini becomes prime minister in 1922
Italy invades Ethiopia in 1935
Italy joins alliance w/ Germany
Britain/France
Followed a plan of appeasement (giving in to Hitler’s demands)
Continued policy of appeasement at Munich Conference in 1938; Germany allowed to keep Sudeteneland
Had to choose between “war and dishonor,”
Winston Churchill said “They chose dishonor. They will have war.”
Increased Invasion
Hitler takes western half of CzechoslovakiaItaly invades AlbaniaAbove actions prompted Britain & France to end
policy of appeasement Told Hitler that further invasions would create war
Hitler’s Pact w/ Stalin
Germany feared a two-front war
Hitler & Stalin signed a non-aggression pact in August, 1939; plan was to last ten years
Agreed to split up eastern Europe
Invasion of Poland
Hitler invaded Poland on Sept. 1, 1939New invasion unveiled in Poland=“blitzkrieg” or
lightning war Fast, concentrated air attack Then tanks & mobile artillery Then infantry
Polish army of 700K was not readyBritain & France declared war on Germany on Sept.
3, 1939
Invasion of Poland
Germany had complete control of Poland w/in a month; split country w/ Soviet Union
Britain & France were unable to react quick enough
German laws implemented & Jews were murdered or imprisoned
Wielun, Poland on Sept. 1, 1939
Nazi troops in Warsaw, Sept. 1939
War in the West
After Poland fell, the war entered a quiet period American press called it the “phony war”
French forces waited at the heavily fortified Maginot Line Underground rails, air conditioning, thick concrete walls,
extra-heavy artillery
But didn’t protect French from a German attack through Belgium
Guns were pointed east toward Germany
Germany Attacks
April 9, 1940—Starts an attack on Denmark & Norway
May 10, 1940—Hitler launches a blitzkrieg on the Netherlands, Luxembourg, & Belgium All three were conquered in less than 3 weeks
From Belgium Hitler attacked France The Germans split the Brit/French troops into two The group in the north retreated to the coastal city of Dunkirk
Germany Attacks
In late May/early June one of the greatest rescues in history took place
A makeshift fleet of tugboats, yachts & other private boats carried some 340K soldiers across the English Channel to Great Britain
Saved Brit/French forces from certain capture
Fall of France
June 10, 1940—French gov’t fled Paris
Italy then declared war on France & Britain
June 14, 1940—German troops entered Paris
June 22, 1940—France & its 1.5 million troops surrendered
Germany now occupied the northern 3/5 of France & the entire Atlantic Coast southward to Spain
The French gov’t supervised the unoccupied south of France
Now as Vichy FranceAdopted a policy of close
cooperation w/ Germany, known as collaboration
Fall of France
Free France, gov’t-in-exile, operated from London
Supported underground Resistance movement in France Anti-German propaganda
& sabotaging German operations
Hitler had experienced nothing but success
German armies had taken almost all of Western Europe
At the time Great Britain stood alone
The Battle of Britain
Churchill refused to surrender:
“We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender.”
Appointed Prime Minister in May of 1940
The Battle of Britain
Difficult for Germans to reach British land: English Channel Powerful British navy
Hitler instead used an aerial assault w/ his “Luftwaffe” Day after day, up 1,000
planes bombed Britain
By September of 1940 Hitler was bombing cities/civilians Included “fire-bombs,”
chemicals aimed at starting fires
British responded by bombing Berlin
Battle of Britain
The RAF was able to hold its own against the Luftwaffe despite being outnumbered
“Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed to so few.”—Churchill praising the RAF
Despite huge losses, Brits continued to fight
20K Londoners were killed & 70K were injured
Brits ability to hold out was tied to fact that they had cracked German codes & could anticipate attacks
In your notebook….
Answer questions #1-4 on p. 579 & complete #7#1)How did relations between Britain & Germany
change between the Munich Conference & the invasion of Poland?
#2) What were the reasons why Germany was able to defeat Poland in less than a month?
#3) What was the French policy of collaboration with Germany?
#4) Why were aircraft crucial to Germany’s planned invasion of Britain?
#7) Construct a timeline of important events in Europe in 1939 & 1940.