World War II: Causes, Major Events, and Key Figures

How many people served in the armed forces during WWII?

70 million

What major event did Japan initiate in 1931?

Invasion of Manchuria (China)

How many countries participated in WWII?

More than 60

What economic crisis did Germany face after WWI?

Major economic crisis and hyperinflation

What plan aimed to reduce Germany's national debt?

The Dawes Plan

What political party did Adolf Hitler join in 1919?

The Nazi Party

What was the Beer Hall Putsch?

A failed revolt organized by Hitler in 1923

What book did Hitler write while in prison?

Mein Kampf

What position was Hitler appointed to in January 1933?

Chancellor of Germany

What laws did Hitler pass in 1935 that targeted Jews?

The Nuremberg Laws

What event occurred on November 9, 1939, involving the Nazis?

Targeting and imprisoning over 20,000 Jews

What was Mussolini's political ideology?

Fascism

What territories did Mussolini conquer to revive the Roman Empire?

Libya and Ethiopia

What treaty did Japan terminate in 1934?

The 1922 Five-Power Naval Treaty

What did the Anti-Comintern Pact aim to stop?

The spread of communism

What did Hitler do in 1936 that violated the Treaty of Versailles?

Reoccupied the Rhineland

What was the Munich Agreement?

1938 settlement permitting Nazi Germany to annex the Sudetenland region of western Czechoslovakia.

What did the non-aggression treaty between Stalin and Hitler entail?

Division of influence over Eastern Europe

What was the public sentiment in the U.S. regarding involvement in WWII?

Isolationism, with 70% believing the U.S. should not intervene

What did the Merchants of Death claim?

That arms manufacturers drew the U.S. into wars for profit

What neutrality laws were passed by Congress between 1935-1937?

Laws that clamped an embargo on arms sales and forbade American ships from entering warzones

What was the impact of the Axis powers' actions from 1935-1937?

Fading pacifist sentiment in the U.S.