World War II
Blitzkrieg/Battle of Britain
Blitzkrieg in Poland
• Luftwaffe=German Airforce rained over
Poland/dropped bombs
• Soviet Union invades from east
• 3 weeks Poland falls
• http://www.awesomestories.com/assets/w
arsaw-during-world-war-ii--• Poland taken by the Germans
Invasion of Poland, Sept.1939
Invasion of France, May 1940
Hitler invades Belgium, Denmark, & Norway.
- By passing the French “Maginot Line”
Trapping British & French forces at Dunkirk
British navy rescues most of them, taking
them to Great Britain.
Results
• June 22, 1940 France surrenders
• Vichy government set up (Nazi puppet
gov)
• Charles de Gaulle (french general) fled to
Britain to set up government in exile
Battle of Britain
Battle for Britain
• Summer 1940=Germans hit Britain hard
with air raids.
• Hope: break will of British ppl.
• RAF fought back/developed radar
• British will remains unbroken.
• October 1940: Battle of Britain – draw.
Battle of Britain – a draw…
US Neutrality
• Cash & Carry Act, September 1939
– US trades with belligerents
– Buyers must pay cash & do all the shipping.
• Lend-Lease Act, March 1941: Lend or
lease weapons to the Allies.
War in Europe 1940-1941
• Axis Pact: June,
1940: Germany,
Italy & Japan.
• July, 1941: Hitler
invades the Soviet
Union.
War in Asia, 1940 - 1941
• Japan continues war against China, 19401941.
• Japan invades Indochina, July, 1941.
• US stops all oil exports to Japan.
• Atlantic Charter signed, August, 1941.
• December 7, 1941:
– Japan bombs Pearl Harbor.
Activity
• Make sure your Friday Flashcards are
done for the second set of WW II
vocabulary.
• Design a timeline of the Major
Events/Battles from 1938 through1941
regarding WW II, including months, years,
and belligerents and results.