24.2

Nonaggression Pact

1939-Secret agreement between German leader Hitler and Soviet Leader Stalin not to attack one another and to divide Poland. What they did not know was that the treaty also contained a secret deal between Germany and the Soviet Union to divide Poland between them.

Appeasement

At the Munich Conference on September 29, 1938, Britain and France agreed to Hitler's demands, a policy that came to be known as appeasement. Appeasement is the policy of giving concessions in exchange for peace. Supporters of appeasement mistakenly believed that Hitler had a few limited demands. They felt that if they gave Hitler what he wanted, he would be satisfied and war would be avoided.

Summarize the early events of the war and analyze the reasons why britain was able to avoid a Nazis Invasion

German Aggression: The war in Europe began in September 1939, when Germany, under Chancellor Adolf Hitler, invaded Poland. Britain and France responded by declaring war on Germany but took little action over the following months. In 1940, Germany launched its next initiative by attacking Denmark and Norway, followed shortly thereafter by attacks on Belgium, the Netherlands, and France. All of these nations were conquered rapidly. The Battle of Britain: Later in the summer of 1940, Germany launched a further attack on Britain, this time exclusively from the air. The Battle of Britain was Germany's first military failure, as the German air force, the Luftwaffe, was never able to overcome Britain's Royal Air Force. Greece and North Africa: As Hitler plotted his next steps, Italy, an ally of Germany, expanded the war even further by invading Greece and North Africa. The Greek campaign was a failure, and Germany was forced to come to Italy's assistance in early 1941. The USSR:Later in 1941, Germany began its most ambitious action yet, by invading the Soviet Union. Although the Germans initially made swift progress and advanced deep into the Russian heartland, the invasion of the USSR would prove to be the downfall of Germany's war effort. The country was just too big, and although Russia's initial resistance was weak, the nation's strength and determination, combined with its brutal winters, would eventually be more than the German army could overcome. In 1943, after the battles of Stalingrad and Kursk, Germany was forced into a full-scale retreat. During the course of 1944, the Germans were slowly but steadily forced completely out of Soviet territory, after which the Russians pursued them across eastern Europe and into Germany itself in 1945.

Luftwaffe

Hitler's air force. He tried to use it to bomb England into submission, but this strategy failed. The RAF (Royal Air Force) though fewer in number, were more maneuverable then German planes. The RAF also had radar, a new electronic device that gave the British enough early warning so they would not be caught by surprise.

Battle of Britain

In June 1940, the German air force, called the Luftwaffe, began to attack British shipping in the English Channel. Then, in mid-August, the Luftwaffe launched an all-out air battle to destroy the British Royal Air Force. This air battle, which lasted into the fall of 1940, became known as the Battle of Britain. , the prolonged bombardment of British cities by the German Luftwaffe during World War II and the aerial combat that accompanied it.

Sitzkrieg

In contrast to the war in Poland, western Europe remained eerily quiet. The Germans referred to this situation as the sitzkrieg, or sitting war. The British called it the "Bore War," while American newspapers nicknamed it the "Phony War." The British had sent troops to France, but both countries remained on the defensive, waiting for the Germans to attack.

Winston Churchill

Neither Pétain nor Adolf Hitler anticipated the bravery of the British people or the spirit of their leader, Winston Churchill, who had replaced Neville Chamberlain as prime minister. Hitler fully expected the British to negotiate peace after France surren- dered. For Winston Churchill, however, peace was not an option. The war was a fight to defend civiliza- tion. On June 4, 1940, Churchill delivered a defiant speech in Parliament, intended not only to rally the British people but to alert the isolationist United States to Britain's plight. , British statesman and leader during World War II

Examine the impact of the Nazi-Soviet Nonaggression Pact

On August 23, 1939, four days after the economic agreement was signed and a little over a week before the beginning of World War II, Ribbentrop and Molotov signed the Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact. (The pact is also referred to as the German-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact and the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact.) Publicly, this agreement stated that the two countries Germany and the Soviet Union - would not attack each other. If there were ever a problem between the two countries, it was to be handled amicably. The pact was supposed to last for ten years; it lasted for less than two. What was meant by the terms of the pact was that if Germany attacked Poland, then the Soviet Union would not come to its aid. Thus, if Germany went to war against the West (especially France and Great Britain) over Poland, the Soviets were guaranteeing that they would not enter the war; thus not open a second front for Germany. addition to this agreement, Ribbentrop and Molotov added a secret protocol onto the pact - a secret addendum whose existence was denied by the Soviets until 1989.

Neville Chamberlain

The Czechs strongly resisted Germany's demands for the Sudetenland. France threatened to fight if Germany attacked, and the Soviet Union also prom- ised assistance. British prime minister Neville Chamberlain publicly promised to support France, Britain's ally.

Anscluss

What is known is that in the years before Welles visited Europe, when the Nazi regime was population. Since Austrians shared a common cul- ture and language with Germany, many people had accepted the Anschluss. In Czechoslovakia, on the other hand, people spoke several different languages. In addition, while Austria had an authoritarian government, Czechoslovakia was a democracy. Furthermore, Austria had no allies to help it defend itself, but Czechoslovakia was allied with France and the Soviet Union.

Nazi-Soviet

When German officials proposed a nonaggression treaty to the Soviets, Stalin agreed. He believed the best way to protect the USSR was to turn the capitalist nations against each other. If the treaty worked, Germany would go to war against Britain and France, and the USSR would be safe. On August 23, 1939, Germany and the USSR signed the nonaggression pact. The Nazi-Soviet pact shocked the world. Communism and Nazism were supposed to be totally opposed to each other. Leaders in Britain and France understood, however, that Hitler had made the deal to free himself for war against their countries and Poland. What they did not know was that the treaty also contained a secret deal between Germany and the Soviet Union to divide Poland between them.

Dunkirk

a city in northern France on the North Sea where in World War II (1940) 330,000 Allied troops had to be evacuated from the beaches at Dunkirk in a desperate retreat under enemy fire. city in the northwest corner of France where the allied troops were trapped by the advancing Germany Army. 800 British ships, ranging from warships to fishing boats, crossed the channel from England to rescue over 300,000 British and French troops.

Chapter Overview

describes the events that led to World War II. As Hitler set out to unite all the German-speaking regions of Europe, European leaders hoped to avoid war by agreeing to Hitler's demands. When Hitler's demands reached into Poland, however, leaders knew that appeasement had failed. A Nazi-Soviet pact strengthened Hitler's resolve, and on September 1, 1939, Germany invaded Poland. On September 3, Britain and France declared war on Germany, and World War II was underway. Unable to withstand the German blitzkrieg, Poland fell to Hitler. As German forces plowed through Europe, countries fell like dominoes into German control. When German troops smashed through French lines, a miraculous evacuation at Dunkirk saved Allied troops. The Allies could not, however, save France from the German siege, and France soon surrendered. A determined Britain was unwilling to give up the fight, even when German bombers blasted London.

Maginot Line

fter World War I, the French had built a line of concrete bunkers and fortifications called the Maginot Line along the German border. Rather than risk their troops by attacking, the French preferred to wait behind the Maginot Line for the Germans to approach. Unfortunately, this decision allowed Germany to concentrate on Poland first before turn- ing west to face the British and French.

Explain the policy of Appeasement and analyze the policies impact upon Austria and Czechoslovakia

he appeasement policy was the efforts by France and Britain in the 1930s to allow Nazi Germany to have pretty much anything it wanted in the hopes that eventually Hitler would be appeased and cease his aggressive policies. thus they let him build up the German armed forces in contravention of the treaty of Versailles. They let him put German troops in the Rheinland violating the same treaty. They let annex Austria. They let him take the Sudetenland from Czechoslovakia. Then they let him take the rest of Czechoslovakia. The affect of the policy was that each time Hitler was allowed to get away with something, far from being appeased, it simply whetted his appetite for more. Finally they realized he would never be appeased and they would have to fight in order to stop him. Had they fought several years earlier there would have been a far shorter and less destructive war.

Blitzkrieg

oland bravely resisted Germany's onslaught, but to no avail. The Germans used a new type of warfare called blitzkrieg, or light- ning war. Blitzkrieg used large numbers of massed tanks to break through and rapidly encircle enemy positions. Supporting the tanks were waves of air- craft that bombed enemy positions and dropped paratroopers to cut their supply lines. Blitzkrieg depended on radios to coordinate the tanks and aircraft. The Polish army was unable to cope with the German attack. On September 27, the Polish capital of Warsaw fell to the Germans. By October 5, 1939, the Polish army had been defeated.

Munich

the capital and largest city of Bavaria in southeastern Germany. , German city where conference was held giving Hitler permission to take the Sudetenland if he promised not to expand Germany territory further. , In 1938, Britain and France yielded to Hitler's demands and persuaded Czechoslovakia to surrender the Sudetenland to Germany. It was looked upon by some as an act of appeasement that merely encouraged further German aggression.

Polish Corridor

the strip of territory cut through Germany to allow Poland access to seaport. , Versailles gave Poland the territory of Poznania and much of Pomeriania. Led to the Baltic Sea and devided East Prussia from the rest of Germany.