Causes of WWII

Causes of WWIIThe Continuation of the Great WarThe Axis Powers GERMANY, ITALY, JAPAN

CauseNationalismForms of Fascism (state is important)Weakness of the League of NationsNo army to stop AXISAppeasementLoN says, Dont do it againDo not want warRebuilding from DepressionFor US: Its a European affair

Aggression by totalitarian powers GERMANYRhineland AUS CZECH POLBELFRAITALYEthiopiaJAPANManchuriaChinaKorea THE RHINELANDFollowing the First World War of the early 20th century, the western part of Rhineland was occupied by Entente forces, then demilitarized under the Treaty of Versailles. German forces reoccupied the territory in 1936, as part of a diplomatic test of will, three years before the outbreak of the Second World War.

MAJOR LEADERS OF WWIIAXIS POWERS

GER ADOLF HITLER

ITALY BENITO MUSSOLINI

JAPAN TOJO & HIROHITOTOJO - MILITARY

HIROHITO - EMPEROR

MAJOR LEADERSALLIESGB WINSTON CHURCHILL

FRA - CHARLES de GAULLE

USSR JOSEPH STALIN

US - FDR

US - HARRY TRUMAN

BERNARD MONTGOMERY

GB GENERALDWIGHT EISENHOWER

US GEN.SUPREME ALLIED COMMANDERDouglas MacArthur

US Commander in the PacificTHE WAR IN EUROPESTART OF WWIIInvasion of PolandNon-Aggression PactHitler and Stalin pledge to split up Poland and not attack each otherWorld War II began with Hitlers invasion of Poland in 1939, followed by the Soviet Unions invasion of Poland and the Baltic countries from the east.

BETRAYAL!In mid-1941, Hitler turned on his former partner and invaded the Soviet Union.

Battle of Britain (video)Blitzkrieg by Luftwaffe of London (57 days)Continuous bombing of BritainRAF fends off attacksHitler retreats

US NeutralityFirst two years of the war, the United States stayed officially neutral while Germany overran France and most of Europe and pounded Britain from the air (the Battle of Britain).

TIME TO HELP OUT YET?

CASH & CARRYDespite strong isolationist sentiment at home, the United States increasingly helped Britain. It gave Britain war supplies and old naval warships in return for military bases in Bermuda and the Caribbean.

LEND LEASE ACTGave the U.S. President authority to sell or lend equipment to countries to defend themselves against the Axis powers.

F.D.R. compared it to Lending a garden hose to a next-door neighbor whose house is on fire.

The War in Asia, Strategies, & US InvolvementMilitaristic JapanDuring the 1930s, a militaristic Japan invaded and brutalized Manchuria and China for military and economic domination over Asia.

EmbargoThe United States refused to recognize Japanese conquests in AsiaImposed an embargo (stop) on exports of oil and steel to Japan. Tensions rose, but both countries negotiated to avoid war.Attack!While negotiating with the United States and without warning, Japan carried out an air attack on the American naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on December 7, 1941. The attack destroyed much of the American Pacific fleet and killed several thousand Americans.

ResultWithin 2 hours Japan sank 5 battleships and destroyers, destroyed 250 planes and killed about 2,500 people with 1500 wounded.Roosevelt called it a date that will live in infamy as he asked Congress to declare war on Japan.

Pearl Harbor

Pearl Harbor

Pearl Harbor

ResultsAfter Pearl Harbor, Hitler honored a pact with Japan and declared war on the United States. The debates about isolationism in the United States were over. World War II was now a true world war, and the United States was fully involved.

Allied Strategy - Who do we attack first??America and its allies (Britain, and the Soviet Union after being invaded by Germany) followed a Defeat Hitler First strategy. Most American military resources were targeted for Europe.Only a few to China Germany was a bigger threat If Britain lost, then Germany could take the world.

Pacific Campaign StrategyAmerican military strategy called for an island hopping campaignTaking islands closer and closer to JapanUsing them as bases for air attacks on JapanCutting off Japanese supplies through submarine warfare against Japanese shipping.Japan Strategy - AsiaFollowing Pearl Harbor, Japan invaded the Philippines and Indonesia and planned to invade both Australia and Hawaii. Its leaders hoped that America would then accept Japanese power in Southeast Asia and the Pacific, rather than conduct a bloody and costly war to reverse Japanese gains.

Germany Strategy - EuropeGermany hoped to defeat the Soviet Union quicklyGain control of Soviet oil fieldsForce Britain out of the war through a bombing campaign and submarine warfare Before Americas industrial and military strength could turn the tide.