The Holocaust and WWII

Kristallnacht

Marked the night when hundreds of Jewish businesses and synagogues were destroyed.

The Holocaust

The systematic, state-sponsored persecution and murder of six million Jews by the Nazi regime and its allies during World War II.

Nuremberg Laws

A set of laws enacted in 1935 that institutionalized racial discrimination against Jews in Nazi Germany.

Aryanization

The process of transferring Jewish-owned businesses and properties to non-Jewish ownership in Nazi Germany.

Evian Conference

A 1938 conference held in Evian-les-Bains, France, to discuss the Jewish refugee crisis, which ultimately resulted in little action.

Lebensraum

A Nazi policy aimed at acquiring 'living space' for the German people, often at the expense of other nations and peoples.

Ghettos

Sections of cities in which Jews were forced to live under harsh conditions during the Holocaust.

Final Solution

The Nazi plan for the systematic extermination of the Jewish people during World War II.

Extermination camps

Camps established by the Nazis for the mass murder of Jews and other targeted groups during the Holocaust.

Genocide

The deliberate and systematic destruction of a racial, ethnic, national, or cultural group.

World War II

A global conflict that lasted from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations divided into the Allies and Axis powers.

Appeasement (Munich Agreement)

A policy of making concessions to dictatorial powers to avoid conflict, exemplified by the 1938 agreement allowing Nazi Germany to annex parts of Czechoslovakia.

German-Soviet Pact

A non-aggression treaty signed between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union in 1939, which included secret protocols for dividing Eastern Europe.

Allied Powers

The coalition of countries, including the United States, the Soviet Union, and the United Kingdom, that opposed the Axis Powers during World War II.

Axis Powers

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

Pearl Harbor

A surprise military attack by the Japanese Navy on the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on December 7, 1941, leading to the U.S. entering WWII.

Battle of Stalingrad

A major battle between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union from 1942 to 1943, marking a turning point in the war in favor of the Allies.

Operation Barbarossa

The code name for the Nazi invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941, which ultimately failed and led to significant losses for Germany. NOT THE SAME AT THE BATTLE OF STALINGRAD

D-Day

The Allied invasion of Normandy on June 6, 1944, which was a pivotal moment in World War II leading to the liberation of Western Europe from Nazi control.

VE Day

Marking the formal acceptance of Nazi Germany's unconditional surrender, ending WWII in Europe.

Atomic bombings

The dropping of atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945, leading to Japan's surrender and the end of World War II.

Post-WWII

The period following the end of World War II, characterized by significant political, social, and economic changes worldwide.

Bretton Woods Conference

• Established IMF and World Bank

• promoted global economic and financial cooperation

Yalta Conference

• meeting with leader of USA, UK, and USSR

• Denazification of Germany

• Proposal for an international peace organization

Potsdam Conference

A 1945 meeting of Allied leaders to negotiate terms for the end of World War II and address post-war order.

Iron Curtain

A term used to describe the division between the Soviet-controlled Eastern Europe and the Western Europe.

Marshall Plan

A U.S. program initiated in 1948 to aid Western Europe's economic recovery after World War II.

Universal Declaration of Human Rights

A document adopted by the United Nations in 1948 that outlines fundamental human rights to be universally protected.

United Nations

An international organization founded in 1945 to promote peace, security, and cooperation among countries.

NATO and Warsaw Pact

Military alliances formed during the Cold War; NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) in 1949 and the Warsaw Pact in 1955, opposing each other.