History

Treaty of Versailles

The peace treaty signed in 1919 that ended World War I and imposed harsh terms on Germany, including reparations, territorial losses, and military restrictions.

Weimar Republic

The democratic government established in Germany after World War I to replace the imperial rule, facing economic challenges and political instability.

Nazi Party

The National Socialist German Workers' Party, led by Adolf Hitler, which rose to power in Germany in the 1920s and promoted nationalism, anti-Semitism, and opposition to the Treaty of Versailles.

Great Depression

The severe economic downturn that began in 1929, leading to high unemployment, bankruptcies, and hyperinflation in Germany, contributing to the rise of extremist political parties like the Nazis.

Nuremberg Laws

Anti-Semitic laws introduced in 1935 in Nazi Germany, classifying people based on ancestry and depriving Jews of citizenship, leading to systematic persecution and discrimination.

Kristallnacht

The night of November 9, 1938, when Nazis carried out violent attacks against Jews in Germany, destroying synagogues, businesses, and homes, marking a turning point in the persecution of Jews.

Holocaust

The systematic genocide of six million Jews and millions of other 'undesirable' groups by Nazi Germany during World War II, known as the 'Final Solution' to the Jewish Question.

Holocaust

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

Concentration Camps

Camps where individuals, especially Jews, were detained and confined under harsh conditions during the Holocaust.

Anne Frank

A Jewish girl who gained posthumous fame for her diary documenting her experiences hiding during the Holocaust.

White Rose Movement

A non-violent resistance group in Nazi Germany, led by Sophie Scholl and others, that opposed Hitler's regime.

Warsaw Ghetto Uprising

The largest single revolt by Jews during World War II, occurring in the Warsaw Ghetto in Nazi-occupied Poland.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer

A German Lutheran pastor and anti-Nazi who resisted Hitler's regime and was involved in plans to assassinate Hitler.

Pearl Harbor

A surprise military strike by Japan against the United States naval base in Hawaii on December 7, 1941, leading to the US entry into World War II.

Internment Camps

Camps where Japanese-Americans were forcibly relocated and detained in the USA during World War II.

Japanese Atrocities in China

Brutal actions committed by the Japanese military during their occupation of China from 1931 to 1945.

Japanese Prisoner-of-War Camps

Camps where Allied prisoners, including military personnel and civilians, were held by Japan during World War II, subjected to harsh conditions and mistreatment.

Weimar Republic

Name for Germany after World War I.

Treaty of Versailles*

Peace treaty that ended World War I, imposed harsh conditions on Germany.

Nazi Party

National Socialist German Workers' Party, led by Adolf Hitler.

Great Depression

Economic crisis in the 1930s, exacerbated conditions in Germany.

Occupation of Japan

After WWII, Japan was occupied by Allied forces, led by the U.S.

Atomic Bombs

Dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki by the U.S., leading to Japan's surrender.

Island Hopping

Strategy used by Allies in the Pacific, involved capturing key islands.

Tripartite Pact

Alliance between Germany, Italy, and Japan during WWII.

Axis Powers

Alliance of nations opposed to the Allies during WWII.

Prisoners of War (POWs)

Constructed by Allied POWs and Asian laborers, under brutal conditions.

Thailand-Burma Railway

Constructed by Allied POWs and Asian laborers, under brutal conditions.

Sino-Japanese War

Conflict between Japan and China.

Internment Camps

Detention centers for Japanese-Americans in the U.S. during WWII.

Pearl Harbor

Japanese attack on the U.S. naval base in Hawaii, led to U.S. entry into WWII.

Occupation

Allied control of Germany and Berlin after the war.

Genocide

Deliberate extermination of a specific ethnic, racial, or religious group.

End of World War II in Europe

Allied victory, Hitler's suicide, surrender of Germany.

Warsaw Ghetto Uprising*

Jewish revolt against Nazi occupation in Poland.

Resistance

Acts of defiance against Nazi regime, such as White Rose Movement.

Axis vs. Allies

Military alliances during World War II.

Lebensraum

Nazi ideology of acquiring living space for the German people.

Hitler's Ideology

Promoted nationalism, anti-Semitism, and the superiority of the "Aryan race".

Enabling Act

Gave Hitler dictatorial powers in 1933

Mein Kampf

Hitler's autobiographical manifesto outlining Nazi ideology.

Ruhr Occupation

French and Belgian occupation of Germany's industrial region in 1923.

Weimar Hyperinflation

Economic crisis in Weimar Germany, characterized by hyperinflation.

Night of the Long Knives

Purge of SA leaders and political opponents by Hitler in 1934.

Gestapo

Nazi secret police responsible for internal security and repression.

Goebbels

Nazi Minister of Propaganda, responsible for shaping public opinion.

Sturmabteilung (SA)

Nazi paramilitary organization, also known as Brownshirts.

Operation Barbarossa

Nazi invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941.

Stalingrad

Major battle between Germany and the Soviet Union, turning point of WWII.

D-Day

Allied invasion of Normandy on June 6, 1944.

VE Day

Victory in Europe Day, May 8, 1945, marking the end of WWII in Europe.

Kamikaze

Japanese suicide pilots who conducted suicide attacks against Allied ships.

Manhattan Project

Secret U.S. project to develop the atomic bomb.

Nanjing Massacre

Mass killing and rape committed by Japanese troops in Nanjing, China.

Reichstag Fire

Arson attack on the German parliament in 1933, used by Nazis to justify the Enabling Act.

Heinrich Himmler

Leader of the SS and key architect of the Holocaust.

German-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact

Pact signed between Germany and the Soviet Union in 1939, dividing Eastern Europe into spheres of influence.