The Road to War

1931-1941

The Rise of Dictators• The world of the 1930s was a very

unstable place, due to economic crisis and a slow recovery from WWI

• Several leaders in European nations catapulted to power on this shaky foundation, including Joseph Stalin, Adolf Hitler, and Benito Mussolini

• These leaders used bitterness and discontent to achieve total power

Totalitarianism and Fascism• These leaders, in the 1920s and 1930s,

establish totalitarian governments in Germany, Italy, and the Soviet Union – total control over a nation by using terror to suppress individual rights and by silencing all forms of opposition

• Fascism, adopted in Italy and Germany, stressed nationalism and the supreme authority of the leader

Stalin’s Soviet Union• To stem the economic failures of

communism, the Soviet dictator Josef Stalin tried to modernize agriculture and industry by placing all farms under state control – collectivization

• Stalin seized most of the food farmers produced and millions died from starvation, while millions more fled to the cities – farming production falls and Stalin begins rationing of food

The Great Purges• Stalin also punished those that

resisted and conducted a series of purges – killing or imprisoning enemies and opposition – to hold TOTAL power (paranoia)

• By 1939, had arrested more than 7 million people and also sent about 5 million peasants to labor camps in Siberia (Gulags)

Fascism in Italy• Fascism, as with Nazism and

communism, arose from the failures of WW I to solve problems

• Benito Mussolini, calling himself “Il Duce”, [the leader] began organizing those dissatisfied, while consolidating his own power

• He promised an end to riots and rationing and began to forcibly gain power

Adolf Hitler• In Germany, Adolf Hitler, a

discontented WWI vet, rose to power through the Nazi party, whose philosophy, Nazism, included fanatical ideas of nationalism and German racial superiority (Aryan)

• This charismatic leader began to promise an end to unemployment and problems from WWI

Mein Kampf• In Hitler’s autobiography, he outlined

his plan for the nation• Germany had been weakened by certain

groups (Jews, Mentally/Physically Handicapped/Homosexuals) – which he blamed for Germany’s defeat in WWI

• Hitler proposed strengthening the military, expanding Germany’s borders, and purifying the “Aryan race” – mass genocide

Fascism – Italy and Germany• Both fascist leaders used force to

silence opposition, and each blamed his country’s problems after WWI on “undesirables” in society – Mussolini blamed communists, while Hitler blamed whom???

• Both agreed that WAR might be necessary to right the wrongs they felt had been done by the Treaty of Versailles

Adolf Hitler• As depression hit Germany, Hitler

vowed to rebuild the economy and restore lands lost after WW I

• In defiance of the Treaty of Versailles, Hitler and the Nazis began rearming Germany, while suspending freedom of speech and press (Brownshirts – “storm troopers”)

Der Führer• In 1934, Hitler becomes both

chancellor and president of Germany, he gives himself the title Der Führer (the leader)

• Hitler keeps his promise of work, putting all to work on massive building projects (autobahn), but begins to look outward (expansion) as a way to bolster national pride

Hitler’s Goals and Dreams• Hitler’s main goal for Germany

becomes the conquest of eastern Europe and the Soviet Union, but he needed to assert power within his own borders and those former German areas – does this by re-arming!!

• Neither Britain nor France tried to stop Hitler from rearming, they had not forgotten the costs of WWI and were reluctant to challenge Hitler

The Axis Power• Hitler also signs an alliance with

Mussolini (Italy) in 1936 – their agreement established an “axis” between Rome and Berlin – the Axis Powers (later Japan joins)

• Hitler turns to Austria and invades in March 1938, Britain and France protest, but do nothing

Appeasement• The response of UK and France was

APPEASEMENT – policy of giving aggressor nations what they want in order to avoid war – UK and FR wanted PEACE, not WAR

• Appeasement reached peak at Munich Conference in 1938 when UK and FR leaders allowed Hitler to annex part of Czechoslovakia in return for his promise to make NO further demands for lands

• Upon his return in Sept 1938, Neville Chamberlain, the British Prime Minister, promised that appeasement meant “peace for our time”

Winston Churchill• New Prime Minister, Winston

Churchill, disagreed with the policy of appeasement

• “Britain and France had to choose between war and dishonor. They chose dishonor. They WILL have war.”

Winston Churchill – British Prime Minister

Spanish Civil War• In Spain, the military was waging a

brutal war against a new republican govt

• General Francisco Franco overthrew the govt and established a fascist state in Spain that lasted until 1975

• Germany and Italy provide weapons and men – a “practice run” for soldiers

Polish Promise• Munich agreement failed to appease

Hitler – in Mar 1939 took rest of Czech and demanded Poland – UK and FR pledged to defend Poland – asked Soviets to join alliance

• Hitler was willing to go to war with UK and FR, but not Soviets

• He did not think UK and FR would defend

Non-Aggression Pact• To prevent such an attack, Hitler

signed the NON-Aggression Pact with Stalin in Aug 1939 – this pact promised that Stalin would not invade from the east in exchange for lands in newly conquered areas

• This pact opened the way for Hitler to invade Poland (Sept 1, 1939)

Blitzkrieg and Poland• On Sept 1, 1939, Germany invaded

Poland in a blitzkrieg attack – “lightning-quick” – land and air assault that conquered Poland in less than a month

• UK and FR declare war on Germany, and France prepared defenses along the Maginot Line, a massive string of fortifications along France’s border with Germany

Maginot Line• However, France was open to attack

through Belgium, and in April 1940, Hitler launched another blitzkrieg, conquering Norway, Denmark, the Netherlands, and Belgium

• He then attacked France from behind the Maginot Line, and pushed UK and FR troops all the way to the English Channel

Battle of Dunkirk• UK and FR troops were thoroughly

defeated by superior German troops and were trapped in the city of Dunkirk, where 340,000 troops were rescued by a makeshift armada of boats that carried them to Britain

• Europe was now in the hands of Hitler and Mussolini

Vichy France• Germany conquered nearly all of

France by June 1940, leaving only an area in the south under French supervision

• Called Vichy France, this French govt entered into collaboration – close cooperation – with Germany

• Many French continue to fight back against the Germans through underground Resistance movements

Battle of Britain• Until the summer of 1940, Hitler had

experienced nothing but success, but that changed when he turned his attention to the island of Britain and launched a series of bombings and air attacks to prepare for an invasion

• Called the Battle for Britain, the people remained steadfast, often sleeping in the subways and going without electricity, food, and water – thousands killed

“To the Rescue”• “We shall defend our island, whatever

the cost may be. We shall fight on the beaches…the landing grounds…on the fields and in the streets…We shall never surrender….until, in God’s good time, the New World (?), with all its power and might, steps forth to the rescue and liberation of the Old.” - WC

Courageous Defense• Hitler’s Luftwaffe (air-force) was

unable to defeat Britain’s Royal Air Force (RAF) even though the RAF was outnumbered and outgunned

• Britain’s new PM Winston Churchill praised the courage shown by the RAF pilots: “Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few.”

Japanese Expansionism• The US and Europe weren’t the only

nations affected by WW I and the Great Depression

• In Asia, Japan emerged from isolationism in the 1920s only to be hit hard by the GD – massive layoffs, strikes, and political discontent

• Radical nationalistic groups formed and assassinated several key people in hopes of gaining power

Japanese Expansionism• Japanese expansion was seen as a way

of securing new markets for trade and new sources of raw materials

• During WWI, Japan had helped the Allies, but only to GET something – only to lose those possessions in the Treaty of Versailles

• From this anger, the military began to look for solutions to their problems

Manchurian Incident• The problem was that most of the

young military officers supported these terrorists and used these events to gain more power for the military

• In 1931, in the Manchurian Incident, the Japanese army seized Manchuria from Chinese troops and set up a puppet state – controlled by Tokyo

Japanese Aggression• Although Europe and the US

protested the Manchurian Incident, nothing was done, and Japan’s military continued to gain power

• Manchuria became a base for Japanese expansion, and in 1937 Japan resumed its war against China

• The Japanese army occupied major cities thru superior weapons

Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere

• With European countries caught up in the war, Japan announced it would free Asia from European colonizers

• In 1940, Japan named itself leader of a Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere – an area that Japan would control in order to secure new areas for markets and new raw materials

Looking Beyond China• The GEAC-PS immediately set its

sights on colonies such as the Dutch East Indies and French Indochina (Vietnam)

• Later in 1940, Japan allied itself with Germany and Italy in the Tripartite Pact, moving troops into French Indochina

• In 1941, Japan signed a neutrality pact with the Soviet Union

Setting the Stage• All of these Japanese events would set

the stage for Japan to challenge the Europeans and Americans for supremacy in Asia and for all of the Pacific

Isolationism in America• During the 1930s the US was focused

on solving domestic problems ??• The govt did NOT want to get

involved in foreign affairs, even when Germany, Italy and Japan threatened world peace

• Under FDR, the US maintained its neutrality through a series of Neutrality Acts

Neutrality Acts• To prevent being drawn into war,

Congress passed Neutrality Acts in 1935, 1936, and 1937 – These laws barred the transportation or sale of arms to warring nations and banned loans to nations at war outside the Western Hemisphere

• Did NOT please FDR – felt would drag us into war, NOT keep us out

Cash and Carry• One of the Neutrality Acts (1937),

permitted trade with fighting nations in non-military goods as long as those nations paid cash and transported the cargo themselves – Cash and Carry

• FDR believe these laws actually encouraged aggression by not fighting the “good fight”

FDR and Neutrality• FDR felt these acts gave him little

power to decide between “good nations” and bad ones – called for abandonment of isolationism – American people forced him to drop that idea

• “It’s a terrible thing to look over your shoulder when you’re trying to lead – and find no one there.” – FDR

American Public Opinion• However, American opinion changed as

German aggression increase, and after the fall of Poland/France, public opinion favored increasing aid to Europe (not involvement, just aid)

• Congress responds by giving Britain 50 old destroyers in exchange for permission to build military bases on British soil in the Western Hemisphere

America First Committee• This move prompted a group of

isolationists to form the America First Committee

• This group lobbied to block any aid to Britain

• Despite this opposition, FDR proposed “lending” war supplies to Britain, and he persuaded Congress to pass the Lend-Lease Act in 1941

Lend-Lease Act• This law gave the President the

authority to aid any nation whose defense he believed was vital to the security of the US

• The result of Lend-Lease was that Germany began sinking American merchant ships – led to the arming of US trade ships and virtual war by 1941

FDR Response to Japan• Japan’s aggression in the Pacific left

only one obstacle to total domination – the USA

• In response to Japan’s alliance with the Axis Powers, FDR restricted trade with Japan (scrap metal)

• As Japan continued its aggression, FDR extended embargo to other war-type materials (OIL)

• And when Japan refused to abandon Pacific conquests, FDR, in July 1941, cut off all trade with Japan and ordered US forces to prepare for war

• Just as Japanese and American diplomats met in Washington to try to avoid war, Japan’s military struck

• On December 7, 1941, a massive Japanese air attack on the US Navy base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii killed 2,400 and wounded 1,200

• Nearly 200 airplanes were destroyed; 18 warships were sunk or damaged, including 8 of the 9 battleships – Japan had lost only 29 planes

• Japan had wanted to deal a decisive blow to the US ability to interfere in Asia, what they had not counted on was the American peoples’ responses as FDR proclaimed December 7, 1941, “a date which will live in infamy”