WORLD WAR II

(1939-1945)

Causes of WWII

Post WWI Problems The Treaty of Versailles

Germans were angered and humiliated and they believed that they were punished too harshly

Italians and Japanese were disappointed because they felt they didn’t gain enough territory or colonies

The Great Depression Economic problems made people desperate They wanted strong leaders to help

Fascist Aggression Dictators in Germany, Italy, and Japan wanted to

build empires so they invaded other nations Responses to Fascist Aggression

Appeasement: giving into a nation’s demands in order to avoid war

To avoid war with Germany, Great Britain and France allowed Hitler to rebuild his military and invade other nations

Isolationism: when a nation keeps to itself and remains neutral in wars between other nations

The United States ignored these aggressive actions and hoped to remain neutral when the war began

Key Conceptsof WWII

Alliances of WWIIAllied Powers (Allies) Axis Powers

Great Britain Germany

France Italy

China Japan

The Soviet Union (from 1941)

The United States (from 1941)

Theaters of Conflict European Theater

In Europe and the surrounding areasWestern Front – battles fought in Western Europe

Mainly Britain, France, and U.S. vs. Germany and Italy

Eastern Front – battles fought in Eastern Europe

Mainly between Germany and the Soviet Union

Africa – battles fought in deserts of North Africa

Allies fought against Germany and Italy

Pacific Theater Fighting between Allies and Japanese on islands, water, and air of the Pacific OceanAllies used “island hopping” or fighting island by island to push closer to Japan

Aircraft carriers (large ships that planes could takeoff of and land on) were very important

Role of Geography

The small islands of Japan had very few natural resources so the Japanese invaded other nations to get them.

Germany’s location in Central Europe made it easy to expand in every direction.

Great Britain was an island protected from invasion by surrounding waters.

The Soviet Union was protected from invasion by lots of territory and extremely cold winter weather.