(warmup friday 10/23/26) Road to World War II Study Guide

Vocabulary flashcards covering the interwar aggression, totalitarian expansions, and the diplomatic crises leading to World War II across Europe, Africa, and Asia.

Anschluss

The political union of Austria and Germany, achieved in March 1938 when Hitler invaded and took control of Austria without opposition.

Sudetenland

A region of Czechoslovakia containing German-speaking populations that became Hitler's target after taking control of Austria.

Munich Conference

A September 1938 meeting where British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain and French Premier Daladier met with Hitler and Mussolini to address Germany's demands regarding Czechoslovakia.

Appeasement

The policy of conceding to Hitler's territorial demands by granting him the Sudetenland in exchange for a promise not to seize the rest of Czechoslovakia, which failed when he invaded the remainder of Czechoslovakia in March 1939.

Non-Aggression Pact

An August 1939 agreement signed between Germany and the Soviet Union pledging not to attack each other, which included a secret agreement to divide Poland.

Blitzkrieg

A method of rapid warfare meaning "lightning warfare," utilized by Hitler during the invasion of Poland on September 1, 1939.

Francisco Franco

The Spanish leader who led the effort to overthrow the Republican government in Spain with military backing from Hitler and Mussolini, ultimately winning the Spanish Civil War to become a dictator.

Abraham Lincoln Brigade

A volunteer group of 3,000 Americans who traveled to Spain to assist the Republican government during the Spanish Civil War.

Manchuria

The region of China invaded by aggressive Japanese forces in the 1930s, prompting condemnation from the League of Nations and Japan's subsequent withdrawal from the League.

China Incident

The military event in which Japanese forces attacked the cities of Shanghai and Nanking.

Haile Selassie

The Ethiopian Emperor who appealed to the League of Nations for aid after Italian armies invaded Ethiopia in October 1935.

Economic Sanctions

Measures designed to halt trade, which were imposed unsuccessfully by the League of Nations against Italy following its 1935 invasion of Ethiopia.

Rhineland

The demilitarized territory into which Hitler moved German troops in defiance of the Treaty of Versailles, facing no intervention from France or Great Britain.