Blitzkrieg: Germany Attacks Poland and France WWII - The War Ms. Hamer April 7, 2010.
World War II Poland Blitzkrieg –“ Lightening War” Poland defeated within weeks Soviet Union...
-
Upload
piers-austin -
Category
Documents
-
view
223 -
download
0
Transcript of World War II Poland Blitzkrieg –“ Lightening War” Poland defeated within weeks Soviet Union...
World War II
Poland
• Blitzkrieg– “Lightening War”
• Poland defeated within weeks
• Soviet Union occupied eastern Poland and invaded Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, & Finland
The Western Front
• Phony War– Oct. 1939- March 1940
• April- May 1940- Germany conquered Denmark, Norway, Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg
Conquest of France• May 1940- Germans attacked
through Ardennes
• Trapped allies escaped at Dunkirk
• Germany conquered Paris
• Italy attacked from the South
• France forced to sign an armistice
• Germany controlled northern 2/3; Vichy government was led by Petain
Battle of Britain
• Great Britain stood alone against Germany
• Winston Churchill had become Prime Minister
• Germany launched an air attack
• British used radar to defend
• The Blitz- German air raids against London
• Germany failed to defeat Britain
Africa
• Sept. 1940- The British defeated Italians in Libya
• Feb. 1941- Germans sent Gen. Rommel; British pushed back toward the Suez canal
• Jan. 1941- British forces helped to overthrow Italian rule in Ethiopia
Eastern Europe
• Hungary, Bulgaria, & Romania joined the Tripartite Pact w/ Germany, Italy, & Japan
• Italians were defeated in Greece
• Yugoslavian government was overthrown for supporting the Axis
• April 1941- Germany conquered Yugoslavia & Greece
Operation Barbarossa
• June 1941- Germany invaded Soviet Union
• Soviets caught off guard
• By Dec.1941, Germans had reached the outskirts of Moscow
US Entry• US helped Britain with supplies
• March 1941- Lend-Lease Act
• Aug. 1941- The Atlantic Charter
• July 1941- Japan conquered French Indo-China
• US condemned Japan & cut off exports of oil & other resources
• Dec. 7, 1941- Japan attacked Pearl Harbor
• US entered WWII
The Pacific• Japan established the Greater Asia
Co-prosperity Sphere
• The Coral Sea (May 1942)
• Midway (June 1942)
• US used “island hopping” strategy
• Aircraft carriers were significant
• Leyte Gulf (Oct. 1944)– US regained the Philippines
The Home Front• Millions of civilian casualties
• Mass migrations
• Created new opportunities for women
• Persecution of ethnic minorities; some groups gained opportunities
• European economies ruined
• US economy booming
• Renewed US interest in Latin America
Victory in Europe
• El Alamein (Oct. 1942)
• Stalingrad (Feb. 1943)
• Leningrad (Jan. 1944)
• Sicily (July 1943)– Mussolini was arrested; Italy joined
the Allies
• Mussolini killed (April 1944)
Victory in Europe (cont.)
• June 6, 1944- D-Day, Allies invasion of Normandy
• By August, Paris was liberated
• Battle of the Bulge (Dec. 1944)
Defeat of Germany
• Spring 1945- Allies entered Germany from East and West
• Soviets entered Berlin
• Hitler committed suicide
• Germany surrendered, but Japan still fighting
Defeat of Japan
• Japan used Kamikaze attacks
• Aug. 1945- US dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima & Nagasaki
• Japan surrendered; WWII was over
• US occupied Japan