The Impact of WW1: Was World War Two Inevitable?

Flashcards about the causes and events leading up to World War II, based on lecture notes.

Treaty of Versailles

The harsh and humiliating terms caused terrible resentment in Germany after WW1.

League of Nations

Established to solve conflicts through diplomacy, but was unable to stand up to expansionist dictators.

The Wall Street Crash (1929)

The collapse of the US stock market which led to a worldwide depression, hitting Germany hard.

World’s economic problems

Led to extremist dictators on both the left and right of the political spectrum.

Hitler’s Foreign Policy aims

Revision of the Treaty of Versailles, Grossdeutschland, and Lebensraum.

Appeasement

Policy followed by Britain and other European countries to try and avoid another war.

Fascist

Extreme right wing policies of nationalism, expansionism and militarism.

Communist

Extreme left wing policies of state ownership and control.

Appeasement

The policy of trying to avoid war at all costs.

Mussolini

Fascist leader of Italy from 1922.

Stalin

Communist leader of the Soviet Union from 1928.

Hitler

Nazi leader of Germany from 1933.

Franco

Fascist leader of Spain following the Civil War 1936-39.

Chamberlain

British PM from 1937.

Hirohito

Japanese Emperor from 1926.

Rome-Berlin Axis

Pact between Italy and Germany in 1936.

Anti-Comintern Pact

Pact between Italy, Germany and Japan in 1937.

Nazi-Soviet Pact

Pact between Germany and the Soviet Union in 1939.

Manchuria (1931)

Japan's invasion of Manchuria demonstrated the League of Nations' weakness.

Abyssinia (1935)

Mussolini's invasion of Abyssinia exposed the League's inability to enforce its decisions.

Rhineland (1936)

Hitler's remilitarization of the Rhineland tested the resolve of the Allies.

Anschluss (1938)

Germany's annexation of Austria showed Hitler's expansionist ambitions.

Sudetenland Crisis (1938)

The Munich Agreement, which ceded the Sudetenland to Germany, is a prime example of appeasement.

Czechoslovakia (1939)

Germany's invasion of Czechoslovakia demonstrated the failure of appeasement.

Poland (1939)

Germany's invasion of Poland triggered World War II.

Neville Chamberlain

British Prime Minister who pursued a policy of appeasement towards Hitler.

Edouard Daladier

French leader who signed the Munich Agreement, ceding the Sudetenland to Germany.

Benito Mussolini

Italian fascist dictator who allied with Hitler.

Joseph Stalin

Soviet leader who signed a non-aggression pact with Hitler before the war.

Non-Aggression Pact

An agreement between countries not to attack each other. Notably, the Nazi-Soviet Pact.

Appeasement

A diplomatic policy of making political, material, or territorial concessions to an aggressive power in order to avoid conflict.

Lebensraum

German term for 'living space,' a major motivation for Nazi expansionism.

Grossdeutschland

German term for a 'Greater Germany,' uniting all German-speaking peoples.

Axis Powers

The alliance of Germany, Italy, and Japan during World War II.

Allied Powers

The alliance of Britain, France, the Soviet Union, the United States, and other nations during World War II.

Blitzkrieg

German term for 'lightning war,' a military tactic relying on swift, coordinated attacks.

Maginot Line

A line of concrete fortifications, obstacles and weapon installations built by France in the 1930s to deter invasion by Germany.

Phony War

A phase in early World War II marked by few military operations in Continental Europe, in the months following the German invasion of Poland and preceding the Battle of France.