World War II

What was collective security?

The idea that if one nation acted aggressively towards another, all the other countries in the League of Nations would use force to stop them

Where did Mussolini invade in 1935?

Ethiopia

What is appeasement?

A policy used by Britain and France in the 1930s where they tried to avoid another war by giving Hitler some of what he wanted, hoping it would keep the peace

What are some reasons appeasement was attempted?

People feared another world war, many thought the Treaty of Versailles was unfair, they wanted more time to rebuild their military, to prevent force from being used against Germany, and some also saw Hitler as a barrier against communism

Why do many people believe appeasement was a mistake?

It encouraged Hitler to keep expanding without allies being able to prevent it, it made Germany stronger each time it gained land, and it failed to stop war and led directly to WWII

How did the Treaty of Versailles help cause World War II?

It punished Germany with land losses, military limits, and blame for WWI, which created resentment. Hitler used this to gain support by promising to restore Germany’s power and when he began breaking the treaty, other countries were slow to stop him

How could the League of Nations be blamed for failing to prevent war?

It had no real power to enforce its decisions and major countries didn’t fully support it. When it failed to stop aggression, countries like Germany became more confident that they wouldn’t be stopped

Who were the three major Axis powers? What person led each nation?

Germany led by Adolf Hitler, Italy led by Benito Mussolini, and Japan led by Hideki Tojo

Who were the five major Allied powers? What person led each nation?

The US led by FDR, USSR led by Joseph Stalin, Great Britain led by Winston Churchill, China led by Chiang Kai-shek, and France led by Charles DeGaulle

What was blitzkrieg?

A fast German war tactic using planes, tanks, and troops together to quickly overwhelm and defeat enemies

What was the Maginot line?

A huge system of French forts built along the border with Germany as an attempt to stop an invasion

Why didn't the Maginot line work?

Germany avoided it by invading through other countries to attack France from the side instead

What happened at Dunkirk?

German forces trapped British and Allied soldiers on the French coast. Britain launched a massive evacuation, rescuing thousands of troops and bringing them to safety in Britain before Germany captured the area

What was Lend-lease?

A program where the US gave supplies, weapons, and food to allied countries on credit before officially entering the war

What was the main reason the axis lost the war?

They fought too many strong enemies at once and could not keep up with the combined power of the allies.

Why did the Japanese attack the Dutch East Indies?

Because the US stopped trading oil and resources, so they captured the Dutch East Indies because they had oil

Why did the Japanese attack Pearl Harbor?

They knew the attack on the Dutch East Indies would cause a war with the US, and they wanted to be the first to attack. They also wanted to destroy the US Pacific Fleet to avoid them from stopping expansion

Who was Admiral Yamamoto?

A Japanese naval leader who helped plan the attack on Pearl Harbor

How did Churchill react when he heard about Pearl Harbor?

He reacted by saying “we have won the war”

Why did Churchill react this way when he heard about Pearl Harbor?

The US entering the war gave the Allies a huge advantage

What was Operation Barbarossa?

Hitler’s invasion of the USSR. It was a major attack where Germany used blitzkrieg tactics to quickly try to defeat the USSR

What are four reasons why the Germans lost in Russia/USSR?

Poor Strategy (overextended troops), Russia’s unlimited manpower, Russia’s large land size, Scorched earth policy

What was Unit 731?

A group of Japanese scientists during WWII who conducted experiments on prisoners

Which of our allies also committed numerous atrocities?

The USSR

What was the "Final Solution"?

Hitler’s plan to murder all the Jews in Europe in order to create a “pure” Aryan race

What country refused to turn its Jews over to the Nazi's?

Denmark

How did the Euthanasia program lead to the Holocaust?

It allowed the Nazis to test their ideas about racial purity by killing those who they considered as undesirable or inferior. It helped develop methods for mass killing and train workers who later carried out the Holocaust

What was Zyklon B?

A prussic acid-based chemical that the Nazis used during the Holocaust to kill people in gas chambers

What was area bombing?

Dropping bombs over a wide region instead of a precise target

What impact did bombing have on production?

It did not significantly lower production, and in some cases the output even increased

What does Stokesbury say about morality?

He says that in “total war”, bombing civilians became part of a chain of escalation, and that morality gets harder to apply when both sides are trying to destroy the other’s entire war ability

What happened at Dresden?

Allied forces dropped bombs on Dresden, Germany, creating a fire storm. They justified it as a strike against a strategic rail and communication hub. Bunkers were used, but still about 100,000 people died

How does this account of Dresden compare with the version in the old textbook?

The textbook summary does not fully encapsulate the real struggle and truth about the bombing. The summary is extremely surface level and neglects what happened, while this account goes in depth

How did Saundry use Dresden to try and prove that nuclear disarmament would not help make the world any better or safer, or war more “tolerable”?

He points out that modern air forces can wipe out entire cities using conventional weapons, so even if nuclear weapons were banned he claims it would not make a big difference.

What two rival groups and leaders agreed to a truce in China to fight Japan?

Nationalists led by Chiang Kai-shek and Communists led by Mao Zedong

What nation fought on Britain's side even though they wanted independence from them? Why didn't they help Japan?

India. They didn’t help Japan because they didn’t trust Japan’s promises of liberation. Japan said it would create an equal Asian alliance, but Indians didn’t want to replace British rule with Japanese control

What was a kamikaze attack?

A suicide attack used by Japanese pilots where they flew their planes into enemy ships

What two cities had an atomic bomb dropped on them?

Hiroshima and Nagasaki

What battle turned the tide against the Japanese?

Battle of Midway

What was the turning point of the war in the USSR? Who won?

Battle of Stalingrad, in which the Soviets won

What was Kursk?

A huge tank battle where Germany was defeated by the Soviets

What was D-Day?

The allied invasion of Nazi occupied Normandy, France.

What other names is D-Day known by?

Operation Neptune, Operation Overlord, Normandy Invasion

People from what part of the USSR were most likely to help Hitler? Why?

Ukraine. They resented Soviet rule, were treated poorly, and hoped Germany would improve their lives

Should we have dropped the A-Bomb? Why or why not?

I believe the A-Bomb should not have been dropped because Japan may have already been close to surrender through peace negotiations, the USSR entering the war could have ended it without the bomb, and some U.S. leaders like Eisenhower and Admiral Leahy believed Japan was already defeated

What are three reasons to explain why some people support the opposite side of the argument (A-Bomb)?

Japan was still strongly resisting with kamikaze attacks and heavy fighting, an invasion would likely have caused massive casualties on both sides, and the bomb helped end the war quickly

What were the symptoms of radiation sickness?

Nausea, headache, diarrhea, fever, weakness, burns, hair loss, bleeding gums, skin spots, sharp drop in white blood cells, slow-healing wounds, sore throats, anemia, mouth infections

What allied country lost the most soldiers? How many? Why?

The USSR lost 12,000,000 soldiers because they were unequipped, were willing to sacrifice lots of deaths, and Stalin killed off his experienced generals

What allied country lost the most civilians? How many? Why?

China lost 20,000,000 civilians because of the beheadings and medical experiments being practiced on prisoners

What axis country lost the most soldiers? How many? Why?

Germany lost 3,250,000 soldiers because they fought too many wars at once and kept losing (2 front wars)

What axis country lost the most civilians? How many? Why

Germany lost 2,445,000 civilians because the German government killed them and some died due to air raids

How many people died in World War II? What percentage were civilians?

78,173,400 died and 70-71% were civilians

What nations lost the most people to air raids? Why?

Japan because they fought US through island hopping, bombing campaigns, and kamikaze attacks

What happened at Leningrad?

It was surrounded by German forces for over two years, blocking food and supplies. Massive starvation followed, killing about one million people

Who was Eichmann?

A Nazi SS officer who helped organize the “Final Solution”. He was arrested after the war, escaped, was captured in Argentina in 1960 and later was tried and executed in 1962

Who was Goebbels?

The Nazi Minister of Propaganda who controlled media and spread Nazi ideology. He stayed in Berlin until the end of WWII and committed suicide in 1945

Who was Heydrich?

A high ranked SS leader who came up with the “Final Solution”. He led Nazi security forces and chaired the Wannsee Conference. He was assassinated by resistance fighters in 1942

Who was Himmler?

The head of the SS who oversaw the concentration camps and Holocaust policies in Nazi Germany. He was captured after WWII and committed suicide in 1945

What were some of the common propaganda symbols used in the war?

Depict themselves as kind and enemies as evil, national flags, swastika, patriotic poster, convincing men to not fight and stay with wives

What year do you think was the most important year of the war? Why?

1941 was the most important year in the war because that is when it became truly global. US creates lend-lease, Japan signs non-aggression pact with USSR, Operation Barbarossa, Siege of Leningrad starts, Pearl Harbor attacks, US declares war on Japan, Germany declares war on US to help Japan

What was the original role of the camps?

To incarcerate their political opponents