War in Europe
Hitler and Germany’s Need for Land
• On November 5, 1937, Hitler boldly declared that to grow and prosper Germany needed
the land of its neighbors.
• His plan involved absorbing Austria and Czechoslovakia into the Third Reich.
Union with Austria
• Austria was Hitler’s first target
• After WWI, Austria was developed into a small nation that once was the AustroHungarian empire
• The majority of Austria’s 6 million people were Germans who favored unification with
the Nazi’s
• March 12, 1938, German troops marched unopposed into Austria
• Germany announced unification
• Anschluss- Germany uniting with Austrian Germans
Invasion of Czechoslovakia
 Hitler then turned to Czechoslovakia
• 3 Million German speaking people lived in the western border called the
SUDETENLAND
• Hitler wanted to annex Czechoslovakia in order to provide more living space for
Germany as well as natural resources
• Hitler’s excuse for invading Germany was that the Czechs were abusing Sudeten
Germans
Munich Agreement
• Early in the crisis, both France and Great Britain promised to protect Czech
• When war seemed inevitable, Hitler invited the French Premier and British Prime
Minister Chamberlain to Munich
• Hitler declared the Sudetenland was his last territorial demand
• In eagerness to avoid war, France and Britain believed him
• On September 30th, 1938, they signed the Munich Agreement
• Turned the Sudetenland over to Germany without war
Hitler Takes The Rest of Czechoslovakia
• Chamberlains satisfaction was not shared by Winston Churchill, a political rival
• To Churchill, by signing the Munich Agreement, they had adopted the shameful policy of
Appeasement
• Appeasement- Giving up principles to pacify an aggressor
• As Churchill warned, Hitler was not finished expanding
•
March 15, 1939, German troops poured into what remained of Czechoslovakia
Nazi/Soviet Pact
• Poland also had a sizable German-speaking population
• Hitler declared that Germans were being mistreated by the Polish people
• An attack on Poland would bring Germany into a conflict with the Soviet Union and
provoke war with France and Great Britain
• This would put Germany into a two-front war, which proved to be Germany’s downfall
in WWI
• Stalin surprised everyone by signing a non-aggression pact with Hitler and a secret pact
that divided Poland between the two nations
Germany Invades Poland
• September 1, 1939- The German Luftwaffe (Airforce) roared over Poland and bombed
military bases and airfields
• First test of Germany’s newest military strategy
• Blitzkrieg- Lightning war that used fast tanks and powerful aircraft to overwhelm an
opponent physically and mentally
• Major fighting lasted only 3 weeks
• September 3rd, Poland, Britain, and France declared war on Germany
Fall of France
• Germany and France would fight at the Maginot line for several months
• Italy joined the Germans and attacked France from the south, setting up a two front war
• France quickly fell and was divided into two zones
• Zone 1 was controlled by the Nazi’s and Zone 2 set up a French-Nazi-puppet government
in Vichy
• Charles de Gualle would set up an exile French government and gained some support for
the Allies
Battle of Britain
• In 1940, the Germans began to assemble an invasion fleet along the French Coast
• Germany’s navy could not compete with that of Britain's, so the Germans launched an air
war
• The Luftwaffe began bombing runs over Britain
• At first they targeted airfields and military bases, then they went after cities like London
• The RAF (Royal Air Force) fought back with help of radar
• The usefulness of radar made Hitler call off the invasion but continued to bomb cities