WORLD WAR 2BY LIAM COOKSON

WHICH COUNTRIES WERE THE MAIN PARTICIPANTS IN THE WAR?

• ITALY

• GERMANY

• JAPAN

• BRITAIN

• FRANCE

• AUSTRALIA

• NEW ZEALAND

• INDIA

• SOVIET UNION (RUSSIA)

• UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

WHAT EVENTS STARTED THE WAR?

• AFTER SECURING THE NEUTRALITY OF SOVIET UNION, GERMANY STARTED THE WAR BY INVADING POLAND ON SEPTEMBER 1, 1939, BRITAIN AND FRANCE RESPONDED BY DECLARING WAR ON GERMANY ON SEPTEMBER 3RD.

WHEN DID THIS CONFLICT BEGAN

• THIS CONFLICT BEGAN ON THE 1ST OF SEPTEMBER 1939

HOW MANY PEOPLE DIED AS A RESULT

• OVER 60 MILLION PEOPLE DIED IN WORLD WAR 2, WHICH WAS OVER 3 PERCENT OF THE 1909 POPULATION

WHAT WERE SOME OTHER CONSEQUENCES OF THE WAR?

• AFTER THE WAR MILLIONS OF PEOPLE WERE HOMELESS, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMY HAD COLLAPSED AND MUCH OF THE EUROPEAN INFRASTRUCTURE, THE SOVIET UNION HAD BEEN HEAVILY AFFECTED, IN RESPONSE, IN 1947 THE US STATE DEVISED THE “EUROPEAN RECOVERY PROGRAM” WHICH BECAME KNOWN AS THE MARSHAL PLAN.

DID ANY GROUP OR PARTY WIN THE WAR?

• NO AND YES, HITLER MIGHT HAVE WON THE SECOND WORLD WAR IF BRITAIN HAD SETTLED FOR A TRUCE AFTER THE FALL OF FRANCE IN 1940, IF HE HADN’T MADE THE CATASTROPHIC DECISION TO INVADE RUSSIA OR THE NAZIS HAD DEVELOPED AN ATOM BOMB BEFORE AMERICA.

WHAT SORT OF MUNITIONS AND TECHNOLOGY WERE USED TO FIGHT THIS WAR?• TECHNOLOGY PLAYED A CRUCIAL ROLE IN DETERMINING THE OUTCOME OF

WORLD WAR 2, MUCH OF IT WAS DEVELOPED DURING THE WAR YEARS OF 1920 AND 1930’S, SOME WERE DEVELOPED IN RESPONSE TO VALUABLE LESSONS LEARNED DURING THE WAR, AND SOME WERE DEVELOPED AFTER THE WAR ENDED

• THE TYPE OF TECHNOLOGY THAT WAS USED INCLUDES THE FOLLOWING:

• ARMORED WEAPONS, MISSILES, ARMORED TANKS, SPECIALIZED BOMBS, PROXIMITY MINES, SELF GUIDED WEAPONS, PLASTIC EXPLOSIVES AND NAPALM

WHO WERE SOME OF THE PRINCIPAL CHARACTERS AND LEADERS INVOLVED IN THIS WAR?

• ADOLF HITLER: WAS AN AUSTRIAN-BORN GERMAN POLITICIAN WHO WAS THE LEADER OF THE NAZI PARTY. HE WAS CHANCELLOR OF GERMANY FROM 1933 TO 1945 AND FÜHRER (LEADER) OF NAZI GERMANY FROM 1934 TO 1945. AS EFFECTIVE DICTATOR OF NAZI GERMANY, HITLER WAS AT THE CENTER OF WORLD WAR II IN EUROPE, AND THE HOLOCAUST.

HOW WERE WOMEN EFFECTED OR INVOLVED IN THIS WAR?• DURING WORLD WAR 2, SOME 300,000 WOMEN SERVED IN THE US ARMED

FORCES BOTH AT HOME AND ABROAD. THEY INCLUDED THE WOMEN'S AIR FORCE SERVICE PILOTS IN ADDITION TO FACTORY WORK AND OTHER HOME FRONT JOBS, SOME 350,000 WOMEN JOINED THE ARMED SERVICES, SERVING AT HOME AND ABROAD. AT THE URGING OF FIRST LADY ELEANOR ROOSEVELT AND WOMEN’S GROUPS, AND IMPRESSED BY THE BRITISH USE OF WOMEN IN SERVICE, GENERAL GEORGE MARSHALL SUPPORTED THE IDEA OF INTRODUCING A WOMEN’S SERVICE BRANCH INTO THE ARMY. IN MAY 1942, CONGRESS INSTITUTED THE WOMEN’S AUXILIARY ARMY CORPS, LATER UPGRADED TO THE WOMEN’S ARMY CORPS, WHICH HAD FULL MILITARY STATUS.

HOW, IF ALL WAS AUSTRALIA INVOLVED IN THIS CONFLICT?

• AUSTRALIA ENTERED THE WORLD WAR SHORTLY AFTER THE INVASION OF POLAND, DECLARING WAR ON GERMANY IN SEPTEMBER 1939, BY THE END OF THE WAR ALMOST A MILLION AUSTRALIANS HAD SERVED IN THE ARMED FORCES, WHO'S MILITARY UNITS FOUGHT PRIMARILY IN THE EUROPEAN THEATER, NORTH AFRICAN CAMPAIGN AND THE SOUTH WEST PACIFIC CAMPAIGN.

TIMELINE• 1939 JANUARY 30 (GERMANY INVADES POLAND)

• 1939 APRIL 9-JUNE 9 (GERMANY INVADES AND TAKES CONTROL OF DENMARK AND NORWAY)

• 1940 SEPTEMBER 22 – (GERMANY, ITALY, AND JAPAN SIGN THE TRIPARTITE PACT CREATING THE AXIS ALLIANCE)

• 1942 JUNE 4 – (THE US NAVY DEFEATS THE JAPANESE NAVY AT THE BATTLE OF MIDWAY)

• 1944 JUNE 6 – (D-DAY AND THE NORMANDY INVASION. ALLIED FORCES INVADE FRANCE AND PUSH BACK THE GERMANS).

• 1944 AUGUST 25 - PARIS IS LIBERATED FROM GERMAN CONTROL.

• 1945 APRIL 12 - US PRESIDENT FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT DIES. HE IS SUCCEEDED BY PRESIDENT HARRY TRUMAN.

• 1945 APRIL 30 - ADOLF HITLER COMMITS SUICIDE AS HE KNOWS GERMANY HAS LOST THE WAR.

• 1945 MAY 7 - GERMANY SURRENDERS TO THE ALLIES.

• 1945 SEPTEMBER 2 - JAPAN SURRENDERS TO US GENERAL DOUGLASS MACARTHUR AND THE ALLIES.