HITLERS AGGRESSION

HITLERS AGGRESSIONAxis Powers Germany, Italy and Japan

These nations had signed the Anti-Comintern Pact which required them to share information about Communist activities.Hitlers goal was to unify all German speaking parts of Europe.

He began by invading Austria, then parts of Czechoslovakia.

In 1939, his armies invaded Poland. Britain and France had promised to help Poland. This is the official start of World War II.

Germany and the Soviet Union had signed a non-aggression pact before Germany invaded Poland.

The Soviets agreed to allow Germanys invasion if they were given part of Poland. They also had a plan to divide up parts of Europe after the war.It took less than six weeks to defeat Poland.

Germany used blitzkrieg lightning war to attack the enemy.

Western Europe was experiencing sitzkrieg the sitting war. They expected Germanys attack, but were waiting for it.

Hitler advanced through Norway and Denmark, then on to the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg to get to France.

They went around the Maginot Line to attack France.

France surrendered in less than a month.

THE MIRACLE AT DUNKIRK

British and French forces were trapped in Belgium with only the port of Dunkirk as an escape.Hitler delayed for three days and allowed them time to get 338,000 troops out of Belgium.Left thousands of tanks, trucks, guns,etc behind.Miracle at Dunkirk

Germany expected Britain to surrender after the quick fall of France. They underestimated the determined leadership of Winston Churchill.

Germanys Luftwaffe began attacking British shipping and the Royal Air Force.BATTLE OF BRITAINAug. 23, 1940, German bombers accidentally bomb London.

The attack on civilians outraged the British. The following night, the Royal Air Force bombed Berlin.

Hitler now ordered bombings of London to terrorize the British people.

Britain had a new weapon radar. This allowed them to find German planes and intercept them.

In October, 1940, Hitler called off the invasion of Great Britain.HOLOCAUST

Nazis killed almost 6 million Jews.

They also killed millions they considered inferior disabled, Gypsies, homosexuals and Slavic peoples.1935 Nuremburg LawsTook citizenship away from JewsBanned marriage between Jews and other GermansDefined Jew as a person with at least one Jewish grandparentProhibited Jews from holding public office or votingPassports had to be labeled with a red J

Nov. 7, 1938 - a Jewish refugee shot and killed a German diplomat in Paris.

Hitler used this as an excuse to intensity attacks on Jews.Kristallnacht began a time of Jewish persecution.

Storm Troopers pulled Jews out of their homes and killed or injured them. They destroyed 7,500 Jewish businesses and wrecked over 180 synagogues.

Gestapo (secret police) arrested 20,000 wealthy Jews. The government took their wealth and made them leave the country.

1933-1939 350,000 Jews escaped Germany.THE FINAL SOLUTIONUntil 1942, undesirables were rounded up and shot or killed with poison gas.

The final plan called for these people to be taken to concentration camps where healthy people would work until they died from exhaustion or starvation.

Extermination camps were for the sick, elderly, disabled or women with children. They were executed in mass gas chambers.

BuchenwaldTreblinkaAuschwitz