The Road to World War II

Mr. BhattCHC 2DIDecember 2, 2010

Adolf Hitler Leader of the Nazi

Party

In 1933, he was named Chancellor (Prime Minister) of Germany

He eliminated all opposition and became a dictator

Rearming Germany

In 1933, Hitler began secretly rearming Germany, which had been forbidden by the Treaty of Versailles

In 1935, he made this policy public knowledge

The German people were grateful for jobs the weapons industry provided during the Great Depression

Rhineland, 1936 The Rhineland is a

border region between France and Germany

The Treaty of Versailles stated Germany was not allowed to have troops there

Hitler sent troops into the Rhineland in March 1936

Showed he wanted to destroy the Treaty of Versailles

Anschluss, 1938 The Treaty of

Versailles banned a union between Germany and Austria

Hitler sent troops into Austria and annexed it to Germany

Known as the Anschluss (“link-up” in German)

Sudetenland, 1938 Hitler wanted to annex

the Sudetenland, a part of Czechoslovakia populated by Germans

British PM Neville Chamberlain arranged its transfer to Germany in exchange for Hitler not taking any more territory (appeasement)

Czechoslovakia, 1939

Hitler broke his promise and took over the rest of Czechoslovakia in March 1939

This was the first sign that war might soon begin in Europe

Nazi-Soviet Non-aggression Pact, 1939 Hitler signed a non-

aggression pact with the Soviet Union (USSR)

A surprise move since Hitler hated Communism and it was thought he wanted new land in Russia

Pledged that Germany and the USSR would not attack each other in a war and secretly gave the Soviets a chunk of Poland, which Hitler would invade soon

Invasion of Poland, 1939 With no more fear of a Russian attack, Hitler

invaded Poland on September 1, 1939

Britain and France declared war on Germany two days later

After a six-month lull in fighting (the Phony War), the Germans invaded the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, and France

Fall of France, 1940 The German invasion

pinned Allied (British/French) troops down at Dunkirk, France

In June 1940, France surrendered, leaving Britain as Germany’s only enemy in Western Europe

Battle of Britain and The Blitz, 1940-41 Hitler tried to destroy the British air

defences by bombing British airports He switched to bombing cities in

retaliation for British air raids on Berlin

For the next nine months, the Luftwaffe (German air force) continuously bombed British cities

Despite this, it was unable to wipe out the Royal Air Force (RAF) and British morale

Operation Barbarossa, 1941

Hitler decided to stop the bombing of Britain in 1941 and turn to the East

He invaded the Soviet Union in violation of the 1939 non-aggression pact

This proved to be a turning point in the war