 Why?
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The failures of the Treaty of Versailles
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Economic Issues – gives rise to leaders with radical ideology
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Germany was punished and broke – anger was prevalent and the people looked for anyone who felt for them
Italy felt shorted by it – Fought with Allies but got nothing for it – refused Ethiopia
Germany lost industry, military, and wealth – led to huge inflation and in a horrible depression
Germany is a hot bed of political turmoil – Communists and Socialists move in along with Nationalists
Weak governments in Europe – Primarily the Weimar Government in Germany
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No respect from their people
They make many bad decisions that destroy the attitude of their people
 Outcome of these factors:
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Totalitarian Rulers take over – rulers who control all aspects of their people
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Use propaganda – control newspapers and other publications
Censor all those who speak out against them
Rule by fear and the promise of return to glory
 Fascism – system of government that stresses glory of the state
 Main Fascist leaders
Benito Mussolini – Italian dictator who promised Italy would never be overlooked
again and that they would return to the glory of the Roman Empire
 Adolf Hitler – German dictator who rose to power through the promise of ending
German humiliation at hands of Treaty of Versailles and a return to the greatness of
the Bismarck regime – also preached Anti-Semitism or discrimination against Jews
and blamed them for German hardships
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 Francisco Franco – Spanish dictator who rose to power during the
Spanish Civil War and received aid from both Hitler and Mussolini to
help him gain control
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By gaining an ally in Spain – Hitler put a lot of pressure on France because she was
now surrounded by those who were against a strong France
 Joseph Stalin – Communist leader who succeeded Lenin in Soviet
Union.
Was known for the brutal way he treated his people
 Took total control of his country and isolated it from the rest of the world
 Enacted many plans to create productivity in the nations farms and industry
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 Japan – became a totalitarian state after being denied any benefits after
helping the Allies in World War I
Military leaders ran the country with an Emperor as the head of the regime
 Became very militaristic
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 These totalitarian regimes became very aggressive:
Japan invades Manchuria in China (1931) – wanted resources and control of more
land
 Italy invades Ethiopia (1935) – they wanted the land they felt they deserved in Africa
 Spanish Civil War (1936) – started as a conflict between Communists and
Nationalists Fascists.
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This war saw the first real involvement of outside nations in a conflict
Germany and Italy – helped the Nationalist/Fascists
Soviet Union – sent aid to Communists
United States – volunteers went to help republican government
Germany militarizes the Rhineland (1936) – troops were put into the Rhine River
Valley on the French Boarder in violation of the Treaty of Versailles
 The Anschluss (1938) – The unification of Germany and Austria under Adolf Hitler’s
control
 Sudetenland Conflict (1938) – Hitler and Germany move to take control of German
speaking lands of Czechoslovakia
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Neville Chamberlain – British Prime Minister – meets with Hitler and works out a supposed deal where
Hitler is given lands and in turn he would not make any other moves of aggression on neighbors
Chamberlain said “we have a peace to last all time” – while holding Hitler’s signed document to stop with
Sudetenland
 Appeasement – giving into demands of an aggressive nation to avoid
war and try to maintain peace
Policy that was used by Great Britain and France to avoid war with Germany
 Idea of war was unpopular in these nations after World War I
 No one thought Hitler could actually have a war machine
 Main critic in Great Britain – Winston Churchill – rival to Chamberlain and said that
these actions are cowardly and will lead to war with a much stronger Germany
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 Hitler’s early aggression:
March 1939 – Hitler takes the rest of Czechoslovakia – after agreement with
Chamberlain
 August 1939 – Hitler makes non-aggression pact with Soviet Union
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Aimed to keep Soviet Union out of any conflict that was coming with France and Great Britain
Hitler promised to never attack Soviet Union – Stalin promised to not get involved with German affairs
September 1, 1939 – Hitler invades Poland
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Used military tactic called Blitzkrieg – Lightning War – use of massive air assault and fast moving land
based assault
 September 3, 1939 – Great Britain and France declare war on Germany
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Great Britain and France now known as the Allies
Leads to Hitler turning his attention back West and invasion of Allied lands
 War moves West:
There was a lull in fighting from end of 1939 to April of 1940 – called the Sitzkrieg – phony
war
 April 1940 – Hitler attacks Denmark and Norway – gave German’s access to Atlantic Ocean
 May 1940 – Netherlands and Belgium fall to German military – left only France to take
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Dunkirk – port city where Germans trapped 350,000 allied troops, which the British rescued and brought back home
June 1940 – France surrenders to Germany
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Led to two main factions in France
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Vichy France – French supporters of Hitler and those who helped him in taking France
French Resistance – led by Charles de Gaulle who worked to take out Vichy France and German controllers
 Great Britain left on her own against German aggression
 June/July 1940 – Battle of Britain begins – German bombardment with its air force
(Luftwaffe) of all London and other British targets – would lead to eventual
invasion
 Britain holds off German Luftwaffe – No ground assault was possible – MAJOR TURNING POINT!!!!
 Japan was already busy taking parts of China and some of the
neighboring islands – caused it to see itself as the a great imperialist
power
 Events in the Pacific:
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1934 – Japan expands Navy – violation of Washington Naval Conference agreements
1936 – Signs Anti-Comintern Pact with Germany – showed it supported Germany
1937 – Japan declares war on China – Massacres thousands in Nanjing
1940 – Japan forms military alliance with Germany and Italy – form the Axis Powers
1941 – Japan takes French Indochina – threatened American and British interests in
Asia
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Showed that Japan was after major resource areas of India and Philippines – British and American
controlled regions
October 1941 – General Hideki Tojo takes over control of Japan – he was a strong
nationalist who would go to war with anyone to make Japan a great empire
 American attitude after World War I
Many felt that the cost of World War I was so great that they did not want to get into
European or global affairs again
 American’s took on isolationist attitude – worry about U.S. affairs only
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Many thought it was only enough to defend our country
The Great Depression and hardships at home made this attitude even more prominent in the U.S.
President Roosevelt was not an isolationist – he thought that the U.S. had a duty as a world power to help
put down any threats to global peace and security – wanted to join League of Nations
American Congress passes Neutrality Act (1935) – law meant to keep U.S. out of any
foreign war
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Also made it illegal for U.S. to make loans to warring nations
 Changing American attitude:
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Roosevelt saw trouble coming when Italy invaded Ethiopia – but he had to stay
neutral
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Also bothered by aggressive actions of Germany and Japan – knew that this would eventually cause issues
for U.S.
Roosevelt gives Quarantine Speech (1937) – response to Japan’s invasion of China and
he felt he had to wake America up to threat of war – compared war to spread of
disease
 Still a fight to get isolationist view to give way
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1938 – Roosevelt asks Congress for funds to build new Naval Vessels
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1939 – Neutrality Laws changed – Roosevelt convinced Congress to do this after Germany’s
invasion of Poland
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Isolationists saw this as an act of a warring nation
Congress approves the funds and construction of ships
Creates policy of Cash-And-Carry – countries at war could purchase American goods as long as they paid cash and picked up
their own orders from American ports
1940 – Roosevelt pushes for a policy of “all aid short of war”
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Allowed Britain to trade for American warships
 Election of 1940 – Isolationist View vs. Aid to Allies
Roosevelt seeks 3rd term – opposed by Wendell Wilkie
 Roosevelt wins 3rd term – no one had ever served more than 2 terms
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 America secures ties with Great Britain
1940 – Lend-Lease Act passed – allowed U.S. to send weapons to Great Britain
 1941 – Atlantic Charter signed – Roosevelt and Churchill make agreement to oppose Germany and
her allies (Italy and Japan)
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These two factors lead to German attacks with U-boats (Submarines) on U.S. ships in the Atlantic
Charles Lindbergh and other isolationists formed the First Committee to fight against Roosevelt’s actions
 What led to this happening?
 American government had cut off supplies of oil, gas, and steel to Japan because
of issues in French Indochina and threats to American interests in Pacific – Japan
was angry because they lost some ability to expand war machine
 American view:
 Knew an attack would come – did not know where
 Japan – had been planning a surprise attack of Pearl Harbor for some time
 U.S. planners knew that an attack here was possible
 December 1941 – Pearl Harbor was not prepared for any surprise attacks
 December 7, 1941 – Japan bombs Pearl Harbor
 Using multiple waves of bombers from aircraft carriers the Japanese do a great
deal of damage to Pacific Fleet – but American aircraft carriers were out at sea and
not attacked – JAPANESE MISTAKE!!!
 2,400 Americans killed and many ships sunk – only 30 Japanese planes shot down
 Great anger and fear – thought that it could happen again
 Rumors of Japanese troops invading West Coast
 Japanese Submarines were supposedly spotted off coast of California
 Japanese Americans were feared – Americans wanted them contained
 Thought they would assist in any invasion
 December 8, 1941 – Roosevelt asks and gets a Declaration of War
against Japan
 December 11, 1941 - Germany and Italy declare war on U.S.
 George C. Marshall – Army Chief of Staff who worked with Roosevelt
on a plan for the war
 U.S. had been planning since 1940
 Steps to getting U.S. ready for war:
 Expanded the Draft – had to get more troops and sailors to fight a war in
two separate parts of the world
 Women took an active role in helping the war effort –but could not fight in
frontline combat
 Joined WAVES – Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service
 Joined WASPs – Women Airforce Service Pilots – tested and delivered aircraft
Joined WAC – Women Army Corps – repaired equipment, worked as electricians, etc
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By 1943 – became full-fledged members of the army by join Women Army Corp which was led
by Oveta Culp Hobby – an army colonel
 Americans built new military bases – primarily in rural areas
 Camp Hood and Randolph Airfield – Texas – bases were also home for German,
Italian, and Japanese Prisoners of War
 Also California and Florida saw the growth of many bases
 Industry mobilized:
 Used to build a huge amount of needed war machinery – planes, tanks,
guns, bullets, cargo ships, and warships
 Government created new agencies to ensure American industry would
meet the needs of military
 Regulated what was made, the prices charged, and the use of raw materials
 Headed by American Businessmen
 Office of Production Management – headed by Henry Knudsen and Sidney Hillman
 War Production Board – headed by Donald Nelson
 Rosie the Riveter – became symbol of the industrial working woman who
was needed because of men going off to fight war
 National War Labor Board established in 1943 – helped to solve issues
between workers and owners so that production was not slowed
 Science mobilized – Manhattan Project – creation of an Atomic Bomb
 Led by Robert Oppenheimer
 Research started in 1939
 African-Americans for the first time were allowed to fight as Marines
 Also saw first African-American officers in Navy
 Discrimination still was prevalent against African-Americans at home
even with their want to be in the war effort
 Segregated Units
 Did not receive awards for bravery – none won Medal of Honor until 50
years after the war
 African-Americans found new opportunities in labor force
 Still had to take lowest paid jobs
 A. Philip Randolph – Union leader who noticed unfair treatment called for
march on Washington which force Roosevelt to call for end of
discrimination of African Americans in government or defense jobs
 Also saw opportunities in War Effort
 Bracero Program (1942) - Mexican workers had chance to work temporarily
in America because of need for farm laborers
 Led to increased tension in some communities – California saw violence
 Zoot Suit Riots – violence breaking out in California in 1943 between
white sailors and Mexican-American youths
 Hispanics remained loyal to America despite violence
 Many fought in war effort