Phoney WarBy: Tasha and Aspen

Thesis

Despite Britain’s and France’s declaration of war on Germany, the Phoney War demonstrated the ineptness of the war as no significant military event occurred in the entire span of seven months.

Overview

No major hostilities taking place

From October 1939 to April 1940 (7 months 4 days)

"There is something phoney about this war."

Term was coined by US senator William Borah because nothing of military importance took place in Western Europe

Oct 14 1939• The British battleship

Royal Oak is sunk by Germans (death toll of 833 men)

Nov 30 1939• The USSR/Soviets

attack Finland

Dec 13 1939• The Royal Navy Sinks

German battleship Admiral Graf Spee

Dec 14 1939• Soviet Union expelled

from League of Nations

Dec 15 1939• The French build up

forces behind the Maginot Line

Feb 16 1940• The British capture the

Altmark from the Germans

Mar 12 1940• Finland signs a peace

treaty with USSR/Soviets

Mar 13 1940• The Winter War ends

Apr 9 1940• Germany invades

Denmark and Norway

Apr 13 1940• German lose 13

warships in the Battle of Narvik

May 10 1940• Chamberlain resigns,

Churchill becomes PM

TIM

ELIN

E

Map

Jo, and Lydia. The Phoney War. Digital image. Wikispaces. Jspivey, n.d. Web. 17 Mar. 2015.

Background: Poland

Poland was occupied by Germany at the time

Allies didn’t do much to help

No land operations were undertaken by the Allies or the Germans after the German conquest of Poland in September 1939

Athenia

September 3- first casualty after Britain and France’s declaration of war on Germany

British passenger liner bound for Canada

Sunk by U-30 (German submarine)

Lemp, the German submarine commander claimed he thought “Athenia” was a naval boat

Sailing in zigzag manner Dark

Hitler claimed Winston Churchill ordered the British intelligence to place a bomb on the ship

Britain Protections

More time for government to protect Britain from an attack

Barrage balloons were deployed to force the Luftwafe to fly higher

Pillar boxes were painted with yellow gas-sensitive paint

38 million gas masks were handed out

Britain Protections(continued)

More time for government to protect Britain from an attack

Windows were taped- prevented glass from flying if bombed

400 million sandbags were piled around the entrances to shops and public buildings

“Bombing” Raids

British engaged in “bombing” raids in Germany

Dropped propaganda leaflets instead of bombs

Two purposes• Germans would

read about evils of Germany

• Show leaders of Germany how vulnerable their country was to bombing raids

Result: Germans

stepped up their anti-

aircraft protection

In September 3rd alone, 6 million copies of “Note to the German People were dropped in just one night (13 tons of paper!)

“Bombing” Raids (continued)

Politicians believed the raids served an important purpose

Members of military did not

‘BOMBER’ Harris writing at the end General Spears

of the war

My personal view is that the only thing achieved

was largely to supply the continent’s requirements of toilet paper for the five

long years of the war.

It is ignominious to wage a

confetti war against an utterly ruthless enemy.

Regulations

Public faced a torrent of prohibitions

Blackouts were regulated- low street lighting was allowed but no night time lighting of any description was allowed within 12 miles of the south-east coast

Public was unhappy

As nothing happened, things went back to normal

Works Cited

Hartley, June. "The Phoney War." BBC News- WW2 Memories. BBC, 2 June 2004. Web. 17 Mar. 2015.

History.com. "Britain and France Declare War on Germany." History.com. A&E Television Networks, n.d. Web. 17 Mar. 2015.

Jo, and Lydia. The Phoney War. Digital image. Wikispaces. Jspivey, n.d. Web. 17 Mar. 2015.

"Phony War." Britannica School. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 2015. Web. 13 Mar. 2015.

"The Phoney War". HistoryLearningSite.co.uk. 2014. Web.