World War II - Causes and Effects

World War II

Causes of World War II

  • Germany's Aggressive Militarism:

    • In 1935, Hitler violated the Treaty of Versailles by announcing the creation of the German Air Force and implementing mandatory conscription to expand the army.

  • The Rhineland and Appeasement:

    • The Treaty of Versailles prohibited German troops in the Rhineland, a 31-mile wide strip of land between Germany and France.
    • In 1936, Hitler sent troops into the Rhineland.
    • Great Britain adopted a policy of appeasement, giving in to German demands to maintain peace.
    • Some believed Hitler was a strong anti-communist leader needed in Europe.

  • German-Austrian Unification:

    • Hitler threatened Austria with invasion, leading Austria to open its borders to Germany.
    • Austria became part of the Third Reich in 1938.

  • Czechoslovakia:

    • In 1938, Hitler demanded that Czechoslovakia open its borders to the Sudetenland, where many German speakers resided.
    • British Prime Minister agreed to appeasement via the Munich Agreement, granting Germany control over Czechoslovakia.

  • Conflict over Poland:

    • Hitler set his sights on Poland and the Polish port of Danzig, without a historical claim.
    • Britain, abandoning appeasement, pledged to defend Poland.
    • Britain and France sought a pact with the USSR against Germany, but the USSR had already signed the German-Soviet Nonaggression Pact in 1939, agreeing not to attack each other.
    • Germany invaded Poland, promising Stalin land in return.
    • Britain and France declared war on Germany, starting WWII.

Germany’s Early Victories and Challenges

  • Early Victories:

    • Hitler used "blitzkrieg" (lightning war) to quickly subdue Poland, employing tanks supported by the Air Force and bombs.
    • Germany and the Soviets took Poland in just 4 weeks.
    • France's government tried to escape but eventually established a pro-Nazi party in Northern France.

  • British-American Relations:

    • The US initially adopted a policy of isolationism but supported Britain.
    • Destroyers for Bases Agreement (1940): The US gave 50 destroyers in exchange for 8 naval air bases in the Western Hemisphere.
    • Lend-Lease Act (1941): Provided more war materials to Great Britain, officially ending US neutrality.

  • Battle of Britain:

    • Britain was the last major European holdout.
    • Hitler used the Luftwaffe to bomb British bases, then switched to bombing civilian cities for months.
    • Superior British planes and radar technology forced Germany to postpone invading Great Britain.

  • War on the Soviet Union:

    • Germany broke the non-aggression pact and invaded the Soviet Union in 1941.
    • Initial success led to the death of 2 million Soviets and the capture of significant land.
    • Russian winters stalled the German advance.
    • The Soviets defended Leningrad for over three years during the Siege of Leningrad, pushing Germany back while suffering millions of casualties.

Japan and the United States

  • Japanese Expansion:

    • Japan seized Manchuria in 1931.
    • The League of Nations was upset, so Japan left the League of Nations.
    • Western powers did not stop Japan.
    • Japan allied with Italy and Germany.

  • Nanjing Massacre (1937):

    • The Japanese Imperial Army marched from Shanghai to Nanking, slaughtering Chinese POWs and civilians.
    • Estimates range from 40,000 to 200,000 victims in the Nanking Special Administrative District.

  • U.S. Neutrality:

    • When war broke out in 1939, the U.S. was neutral.
    • Japan saw the war as an opportunity to seize more land, including French Indochina and the Dutch East Indies.

  • Japan's Dependence on U.S. Goods:

    • Japan depended on foreign sources, especially American, for vital goods.
    • By the late 1930s, Japan imported:
      • 73% of its scrap iron from the US
      • 60% of its imported machine tools from the US
      • 80% of its oil from the US
      • 50% of its copper from the US
    • The US was upset with Japanese hostilities and imperialist agenda.
    • An oil embargo was placed on Japan in July 1941.

  • Attack on Pearl Harbor:

    • Japanese General Tojo ordered a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor in Hawaii on December 7, 1941.
    • Japanese airplanes bombed the American fleet, killing 2,400 people.
    • President Roosevelt called December 7th “a date which will live in infamy.”

  • U.S. Enters WWII:

    • The attack on Pearl Harbor officially brought the US into WWII.
    • The US joined the Allies (Britain and the Soviet Union).
    • The US mobilized for war, fighting on two fronts: the Pacific against Japan and in Europe against Germany.

The Home Front in the United States

  • Women at War:

    • Women filled factory positions as men went overseas to fight.
    • From 1941-1945, 6.5 million women joined the workforce.
    • 150,000 women joined the Women’s Army Corps (WAC) auxiliary unit.
    • Women worked in clerical and administrative positions, including at bases in Great Britain and the Pacific.

  • Propaganda:

    • Used to encourage citizens to support the war effort through various means, including joining the Citizens Defense Corps, participating in salvage programs, planting victory gardens, and buying war bonds.

Fighting in the Pacific

  • The Tide Turns:
    • Battle of the Coral Sea (1942): First Allied victory in the Pacific.
    • Battle of Midway Island (1942): Destroyed 4 Japanese aircraft carriers, demonstrating Allied naval superiority.
    • Douglas MacArthur: U.S. General.
      • Island Hopping: Allies attacked weakest Japanese islands, skipping those where they were strong, moving through the Philippines towards Japan.
    • Superior technology, like aircraft carriers, submarines, and intelligence gathering, helped the Allies.

Final Years of the War

  • Allied Victories:

    • Allied victories in 1942 put the Axis powers on the defensive in 1943.
    • Italy was deemed the weakest Axis power.
      • The people turned on Mussolini, and he fell from power.

  • D-Day:

    • June 6, 1944: 150,000 Allied forces under Dwight D. Eisenhower stormed Normandy beach in France.
    • Despite many deaths, they marched towards Paris.

  • Battle of the Bulge:

    • Final German push in 1944.
    • Allied air raids began slowly destroying Germany's infrastructure.
    • In March 1945, Allied forces began marching towards Berlin.

Victory and Consequences

  • Victory in Europe:

    • April 30, 1945: After weeks hiding in a bunker, Hitler committed suicide.
    • May 8, 1945: Germany surrendered to the Allied Powers, marking Victory in Europe Day (V-E Day).

  • Victory in the Pacific:

    • Japan’s emperor refused to surrender in 1945 despite 100,000s of deaths after the firebombing of Tokyo.
    • President Truman wanted to avoid further Allied deaths.
    • The US Army Air Force dropped the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima on August 6, 1945, and another on Nagasaki on August 9, 1945, resulting in 140,000 Japanese lives lost.
    • Japan surrendered. September 2nd is the designated day of surrender, or V-J Day.

WWII - Outcomes

  • Global Impact:

    • Most destructive war in history.
    • 60 million deaths (10 times the number in WWI), with half being civilians.
    • Blurring of lines between civilian and military targets.
    • Thousands of towns, villages, and industrial enterprises destroyed.
    • Colonial resources were harnessed a second time.
    • Heavy bombers, jet fighters, missiles, and atomic weapons increased casualties.
    • Women at home took on heavy industrial jobs; in the Soviet Union, women took on more than half the workforce in 1945.
    • 6 million Jews died in concentration camps due to Hitler’s “final solution.”

  • International Efforts for Peace:

    • Renewed interest in international efforts to maintain peace.
    • Creation of the United Nations in 1945 as successor to the League of Nations.
    • Proved a more effective forum for international opinion but less so for resolving major conflicts (e.g., the Cold War).
    • World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) created in 1945 to regulate the global economy, prevent another depression, and stimulate economic growth in poorer countries.

  • Casualties of WWII:

    • 40-50 million people died, more than half of whom were Soviet.
    • 290,000 Americans lost lives, and 600,000 were wounded.

  • The Nazis:

    • The Nazi police, the SS, oversaw the removal of millions of Jews, Poles, and Roma from their homes.
    • Many minority groups were forced to work in labor camps supporting the German war effort.
    • Many were sent to extermination camps.
    • The “Final Solution” planned to murder all Jews in Europe.
    • Camps like Auschwitz and Treblinka spread throughout Europe.
    • The Holocaust killed about 6 million Jews and 5 million from other persecuted groups.

  • The Japanese:

    • Killed about 100,000 Chinese soldiers and civilians during the Rape of Nanking in 1937.
    • Under “Asia for Asiatics,” millions died in labor camps.
    • Chinese and Korean women were forced to become “Comfort Women.”

  • The Allies:

    • Killed millions through deadly warfare, like firebombing in Germany and Japan.
      • Hamburg - 50,000 casualties
      • Dresden - 25,000 deaths
      • Tokyo - 100,000 deaths
    • Killed mass numbers with Atomic Bombs.