UNIT 10: WWII and the Holocaust

maginot line

Massive defensive fortification that France constructed on its German border during the interwar period in an effort to guard against a third German invasion; it offered a false sense of security, but was of little use when Germany invaded in 1940

Kellogg-briand pact

Arrangement signed in 1928 by almost every independent nation; renounced war as an instrument of national policy, effectively outlawing war, but providing no mechanism or enforcement

great depression

Major worldwide economic slump that began with a stock market crash in 1929 in the U.S. and prompted history’s most severe global economic crisis; in some countries, it would lead desperate people to lose faith in their governments and support leaders who promised dramatic change

appeasement

Policy of going in to the demands of an aggressor in order to keep the peace, as the Western democracies did by allowing Hitler to remilitarize, occupy the Rhineland, and annex Austria and the Czech Sudetenland in the buildup to World War II

axis powers

Named for the rome-berlin-tokyo axis (italy, germany, and japan), the aggressive states and their leaders who started and fought against the allied powers in WW2; specifically they agreed to collectively fight soviet communism and not to interfere with one other’s plans for territorial expansion

blitzkrieg

Hitler’s tactic of combining tank and air power to strike a devastating blow against his enemies; first, the Luftwaffe bombed airfields, factories, towns, and cities, as dive bombers attacked troops and civilians; next, tanks and troop transports swept in to encircle entire divisions, forcing them to surrender; used most infamously in his 1939 invasion of Poland, which officially started World War II

luftwaffe

Name for the german air force which among other feats bombed not only military targets but civilian centers (towns and cities) in england in preparation for a full invasion from 1940-41

vichy france

German puppet stateestablished in southern france and which governed france’s overseas colonies following the 1940 nazi takeover under the leadership of quasi–collaborator marshal philippe petain a ww1 hero who was later sentenced to death (commuted to life imprisonment by gernal de gaulle) for his actions during the war; northern france was under full german occupation until its liberation in 1944e

erwin rommel

Nicknamed the desert fox, this brilliant general and expert in tank warfare commanded german operations in the north african theatre of ww2, where he had been sent to assist the italians in fighting the british; despite a string of victories in 1941 and 42, his advance would be halted at the battle of el alamein, he would surrender to the forces of american general dwight eisenhower returning to germany after a final failed offensive in spring 1043

hideki tojo

Extreme militarist general who became japans prime minister in 1941-44; prior to the war, he had strongly supported the invasion of china and formation of the alliance with germany and italy; under his leadership japan seized additional territory in asia and the pacific and believed that the U.S. was interfering with his plans; when he was arrested after the war for ordering the murder of millions of civilians in china and the far east and thousands of allied POWs, he tried to commit suicide but failed- he was hanged as a wart criminl following the tokyo war crimes trials

greater east asia co-prosperity sphere

Major objective of japanese aggression during ww2 - to establish a bloc of east asian nations which were self-sufficient free of western influence and dominated by japan; inreality, this was a japanese empire, many parts of which the japanese exploited and brutalized

island hopping

Beginning with the American marines’ victory at Guadalcanal (1942), this campaign in the Pacific theatre aimed to recapture some strategically-chosen, Japanese-held islands while bypassing others, using each as a stepping stone toward the next objective, gradually moving north toward the Japanese mainland

kamikaze

Means “divine wind”, a reference to a typhoon that thwarted an attempted Mongol invasion of Japan in 1281; Japanese plot during WWII who, motivated by fear of shame and social pressure as well as honor and devotion to his country and emperor, deliberately undertook suicide missions, crashing their planed into Allied aircraft carriers and other ships; more than 3,000 Japanese pilots were killed through this desperate policy

united nations

Established in 1945 by delegates from 50 nations in san francisco as an international peacekeeping forum in which nations could resolve their differences peacefully rather than resorting to war; each general assembly member has one vote; the framers – the U.S., britain, france, china, and the soviet union are the 5 permanent members of the security council with the right to veto any decision; has evolved into an umbrella organization that has the power to aid refugees and provide other services

concentration camp

Detention center designed to imprison and intimidate civilians who were considered enemies of the Nazi regime, including Jews, Communists, poliitcal opponents, homosexuals, Roma and Sinti, freemasons, and others, under harsh conditions and without regard for legal norms; the first was established at Dachau, Germany in 1933; controlled by the SS, it functioned outside the normal judicial system–inmates were neither indicted or convicted of a crime; existed until the fall of Nazi Germany in 1945

death camps

Also referred to as “killing centers” or “extermination camps”, these were established in Poland between 1941 and 1945 to carry out the Nazi genocide of the Jews and other “undesiravles”; of the six, Belzec, Treblinka, Sobibor, Chelmno, Auschwitz, and Majdanek, the last two also functioned as forced-labor camps; in total, 3.5 million jews, as well as roma and soviet prisoners of war were murdered at these centers

genocide

An internationally recognized crime in which acts are committed with the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group by murder, inflicting serious bodily or mental harm, inflicting conditions that result in physical destruction of the group in whole or part, efforts to prevent births within the group, or forcibly transferring children of the group to another group

why did italy invade ethiopia in 1935?

to avenge italy’s loss in the 1896 battle of adowa

why is the spanish civil war considered a “dress rehearsal” for WWII?

many countries untiized new tactics and weapons in the civil war

describe the terms of the agreement that the western democracies made with hitler at the 1938 munich conference?

in exchange for hitler seeking no further territory, western democracies persuaded the czechs to surrender the german-desired sudentenland without a fight

why was the miracle at dunkirk so improtant for the allied war effort in WWII?

300,000 troops were safely ferried to england, allowing the allied powers to maintain a large military

where was the battle of britain mostly fought? why?

-in the sky

-so hitler could target britain’s air force, would make it easier to invade britain

why did the japanese invade the U.S. at pearl harbor in 1941?

they saw american interference as an obstacle to their colonial aims/designs

what is the significance of the battle of midway?

it prevented the japanese from launching any further offensive operations

what was the most significant benefit of the allied defeat of the germans in north africa?

it cleared a path for the allies to attack italy

what is the code name for the allied invasion of europe? what kind of invasion was it? where were its starting and landing points?

-operation overlord (d-day)

-amphibious invasion: military operations characterized by attacks launched from the sea by naval and landing forces against hostile shores

-starting point: england

-landing point: beaches of normandy, france

under what circumstances did the germans surrender on may 7, 1945?

-allies closed in on berlin from the east and west

-hitler committed suicide april 30, 1945

describe the allied strategy in the pacific. what was their ultimate objective?

-”island-hopping”

-gradually captured japanese-held islands and more while headed towards japan

-objective: to get closer to japan in order to attack

how did the japanese attack enemy warships late in the war?

kamikaze attacks: deliberating crashing explosive-laden airplanes into american warships

what was the result of the 1938 evian conference?

all jewish emigration was cut off except for within the democratic republic

what was decided at the 1942 wannsee conference?

“the final solution” aka systematic murder

how did the holocaust change the zionist movement?

-prompted the international pressure for britain to allow increased jewish immigration to palestine

-support for a jewish state grew more urgent and widespread