World War Looms
Rise of the Dictators
Germany- Adolf Hitler
 Italy- Benito Mussolini
 Soviet Union- Joseph Stalin
 Japan- Military leaders take control
 World does not respond to these
dictators
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Nationalism in Europe in Asia
Failure of World War I and Versailles
Treaty
 Terrible economic struggles and anger
over WWI allows rise of powerful
dictators
 Poor countries needed to strong
dictators- not weak democracy
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Joseph Stalin- Soviet Union
Takes over for Lenin in 1924
 Focused on creating model communist
country
 Focused on economic growth
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 2nd largest industrial power by 1937
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Eliminated all threats to his power
 Totalitarian government
Killed more people than Hitler
 What is communism?
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Benito Mussolini- Italy
Fascism- totalitarian
 Took power on the fears of communism
 Focused on nationalism
 Strong leader, powerful party members
 Had complete control of Italy
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Adolf Hitler- Germany
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Nazis
Fought in World War I- very bitter
Powerful public speaker
Focused on extreme nationalism
Dreamed of a third reich- German Empire
Wanted a master race- blue eyed, blond
hair
Great Depression helped Nazis come to
power
Adolf Hitler
Created SS- his own private army
 Unemployed men joined SS
 By 1932 Nazi party is strongest in
Germany
 Appointed chancellor in 1933
 Dismantles democratic government
 Names himself Fuhrer
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Adolf Hitler
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nH0Et
56Hxt4&feature=related
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=syI_B
8a5IV4&feature=related
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Japan- Military
Military leaders take control of Japanese
govt
 Wanted to expand territory- more
resources
 Military invaded Manchuria in 1931
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 1931- Start of WWII?
Military did not have permission of govt
 League of Nations tries to intervene
 Militarists in firm control of Japan
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Aggression in Europe and N.
Africa
Hitler and German leave League of
Nations
 Hitler begins military build up for
Germany
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 Sends troops into Rhineland
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Mussolini builds up Italy army
 Italy invades Ethiopia
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League of Nations does nothing
Civil War in Spain
1936 Civil War breaks out in Spain
 Franco wants fascist state
 War between democracy and fascism
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 Franco gets support from Germany/Italy
 Western Democracies stay out
United States Response
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Most Americans wanted to stay neutral
 “Europe’s problem”
 Public outrage over WWI involvement
FDR passes Neutrality Acts in 1935
 FDR begins to change tone- realizes
war in inevitable
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Discussion Questions
How did the end of WW1 cause WW2?
Why did these dictators rise?
What is the difference between the 4
dictatorships?
Could WWII have been prevented? What
if there was no depression?
Why didn’t the world respond to these
dictators?
War in Europe
Austria and Czecholslovakia
Hitler believes Germany needs to
conquer neighbors
 Third Reich
 Germany takes over Austria- most of its
citizens were Germans and favored it
 World does nothing
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Sudetenland
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Area of German speaking people in
Czecholslovakia
Hitler wants more living space for Germany
and resources
Hitler is a master of propaganda
Tells German people that Germans are
being abused
Daladier and Chamberlain appease Hitler
Munich agreement is signed- what is it?
France and Britain believe they have peace
Churchill not happy
German Offensive Begins
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Hitler turns towards Poland
Poland also has large German speaking
population
Attack on Poland cause risk of war with
USSR
Many believed Hitler would not make
mistake of 2 front war
Stalin decides on neutrality- non agression
pact
Agree to divide up Poland
German Offensive Begins
Blitzkrieg in Poland
 First test of Germany’s military power
 Germanys advances in military
technology
 Germany wins in 3 weeks
 World War II officially begins
 Hitler continues domination of Europe
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France and Britain Fight On
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Germany invades France
Failure of Maginot line defense
Germany attacks through the Ardennes
Germany traps 400,000 British/French
troops at Dunkirk
Italy joins war and invades France from
south
De Gaulle flees to Great Britain
France falls on June 22, 1940
France suffers humiliating defeat
Battle of Britain
Summer of 1940
 Luftwaffe begins bombing Britain
 Bombers pound Britain for 2 straight
months
 RAF fights back
 Development of Radar
 RAF saves the day
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The Holocaust
Persecution Begins
Systematic murder of 6 million Jews
 Begins in 1933 as Hitler takes power
 Removes Jews from all govt jobs
 Anti-semitism
 Why did the Nazis hate the Jews?
 1935 Nuremberg Laws passed
 Stripped Jews of all citizenship rights,
jobs property
 Have to wear star of David
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Kristallnacht
Night of Broken Glass
 November 9-10 1938
 Attack by troops on Jews
 30,000 arrested
 Nazis blame destruction on Jews
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Kristallnacht
Jewish Refugees
Jews begin fleeing Germany
 Many countries wont accept them
 U.S. accepts 100,000
 Albert Einstein
 How did Americans feel about Jewish
immigration?
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Hitler’s Final Solution
Mass genocide of Europe’s Jews
 What is Genocide
 Can you name any other genocides?
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The Condemned
Aryans are master race
 Jews not only targets
 Communists, socialists, liberals,
homosexuals, enemies of the state,
gypsies, mentally or physically disabled.
 Started with Nazi death squads
 Rounded up Jews and shot them on the
spot
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Forced Relocation
Jews forced into ghettos
 What was life like in the ghettos?
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Concentration Camps
Labor camps
 Worked to the death, starvation
 Horrific conditions
 Killed once too weak to work
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Final Stage
1942
 Mass extermination
 Poison gas chambers to kill faster
 6 death camps are built
 12,000 people can be killed per day
 They are told to enter the shower
 They are gassed instead
 Auschwitz is largest death camp
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Final Stage
Bodies are first buried in large pits- but
odor is too strong- evidence
 Nazis install huge crematoriums or
ovens to burn victims
 Terrible medical experiments
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Final Stage
Almost 6 million Jews killed
 3 million killed in Poland
 1 million Russian Jews killed
 Over half of Europe’s Jews killed
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The Survivors
Some Jews survived Holocaust
 Camps are discovered by Allies as they
advance on Germany
 There had been rumors back in the U.S.
about Holocaust
 Citizens are shocked by the atrocities
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America Moves Toward War
U.S. Prepares for War
U.S. moves cautiously towards war
 1939 – “cash and carry” program
passed
 Aid to France and Britain
 Too little, too late
 France falls in 1940
 Germany, Italy, and Japan form Axis
Powers in 1940
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U.S. Prepares for War
Increased spending for national defense
 Congress passes 1st peacetime draft
 Should the U.S have joined the War
eariler?
 1940- Roosevelt is elected to 3rd term
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“The Great Arsenal of
Democracy”
FDR warns Americans of Nazis/Axis
threat
 FDR believed peace couldn’t be
achieved with Hitler
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idEUz
GrewlM
 Lend-Lease Act 1941
 What was it?
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Germany Advances
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1941- Hitler breaks pact with Soviet Union
Invades Soviet Union- Operation
Barbarosa
Germany advances to 50 miles with in
Moscow
Huge early success by Germany, massive
casualties for USSR
USSR almost falls
U.S./Great Britain begin aiding Stalin
Why is that controversial?
FDR Plans for War
Atlantic Charter
 What did FDR agree to with Churchill?
 U.S. begins attacking German U boats
 War gets closer
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Japan Attacks U.S.
Japan wants to expand, Pacific Empire
 U.S. in its way
 Who was Hideki Tojo?
 Hitler and European War create
opportunities for Japanese expansion
 How?
 U.S. puts oil embargo on Japan
 Japan needs oil to fuel its war machine
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Japan Attacks U.S.
Emperor Hirohito wants peace with
America
 Tojo secretly prepares to attack
 U.S. breaks Japanese code
 Waits for Japan to attack, but where?
 Peace talks continue
 December 6, FDR gets decoded
message from Japan to reject all peace
talks
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Pearl Harbor
December 7, 1941
 Japanese sneak attack on Naval Base
 Is supposed to be a massive blow to
U.S.
 Raid lasted less than 2 hours
 2,403 killed
 21 ships sunk or damaged
 U.S. aircraft carriers out to sea. Lucky?
Conspiracy?
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Reaction to Pearl Harbor
They awakened a Giant
 Americans enraged
 Mobilized for total war
 Concern about fighting a 2 front war
 U.S. would take early defeats before it
could be ready for victory
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VqQ
Af74fsE
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