Comprehensive Notes on WWII Causes, Events, and Aftermath

The Beginning

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Factors Contributing to World War II

  • Treaty of Versailles:
    • Germany: The treaty imposed a Guilt Clause, required heavy reparations, limited their military, and removed land. This fostered extreme resentment.
    • Other Countries: Many, like Italy, felt the Treaty of Versailles (TOV) did not fairly reward them for their contributions in World War I, leading to resentment.
  • Great Depression: The global economic downturn led people worldwide to seek new leadership. Examples include Mussolini in Italy and Hitler in Germany.
  • Rise of Nazism: The Treaty of Versailles and the Great Depression caused many to call for the end of the Weimar Republic and the rise of a new party. This party promised to address these issues.
    • Hitler pledged to fix the economy, reclaim lost territory, strengthen the military, and restore national pride. His policies led to extreme manipulation and control, such as outlawing political parties, establishing secret police, and promoting oppressive views against Jews (anti-Semitism).
  • New Alliances: These strengthened Germany’s (and the Axis powers') position.
    • Rome-Berlin Axis: A military pact between Italy and Germany.
    • Anti-Comintern Pact: A military alliance between Japan and Germany.
    • German-Soviet Nonaggression Pact: An alliance between the USSR and Germany.
  • Expansion and Militarism:
    • Hitler began rebuilding the military, stationing troops in the Rhineland, and seizing Austria, Sudetenland (after appeasement), and Czechoslovakia.
    • Japan aggressively expanded its military, particularly in the Pacific.
  • Appeasement: Hitler was able to conquer territory unchecked due to the Munich Agreement. Britain and France allowed Hitler to annex the Sudetenland in exchange for his promise to cease further expansion.
  • Invasion of Poland: This was the immediate cause of the declaration of war. Hitler invaded Poland in 1939, marking the start of World War II.

Key Characteristics of WWII

  • Total War: This involved mobilizing all levels of society to contribute to the war effort.
    • Economics: Restructuring of the economy to support wartime production.
    • Society: Women taking on jobs previously held by men and increased production of propaganda to boost nationalism.
    • Rationing: Conserving food/resources for soldiers.
    • Political: Temporary changes to laws (e.g., Sedition Acts).
    • Conscription: Drafting citizens for fighting.
  • Blitzkrieg: A German fighting style in Western Europe, characterized by swift attacks and destruction using tanks, ground troops, and airplanes. It is also known as "lightning war."
  • Island Hopping: A strategy used by Allied forces in the Pacific to attack weakly defended islands and bypass heavily defended ones. This involved using the navy and air force to advance toward Japan’s mainland.

Key People, Alliances, and Pacts During WWII

  • Axis Powers: Germany, Italy, and Japan (originally including the USSR, which later switched sides).
    • Rome-Berlin Axis: Military pact between Italy and Germany.
    • Anti-Comintern Pact: Military pact between Japan and Germany.
    • German-Soviet Nonaggression Pact: Pact between the USSR and Germany, which ended when Germany invaded the USSR.
  • Allied Powers: Britain, France (later joined by the US and USSR), and China.
    • Destroyers for Bases Agreement: The US supported Britain by providing 50 destroyers in exchange for eight British air and naval bases.
    • Lend-Lease Act: The US lent war materials to Britain without formally entering the war.
    • Atlantic Charter: Britain and the US outlined goals for the post-war world, including self-government, abandonment of force, and disarmament of aggressor nations.
  • Key People:
    • Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini, Emperor Hirohito.
    • Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, Dwight Eisenhower, Douglas MacArthur.

Key WWII Battles

  • 1940 Battle of Britain: Britain withstood months of air raids by Germany’s Luftwaffe. Germany aimed to weaken Britain by targeting military bases and then cities like London to pave the way for invasion.
    • Result: A victory for Britain, which Winston Churchill called Britain's "finest hour." Focusing on cities allowed military bases to rebuild. Radar and the British air force destroyed German planes, postponing a German invasion.
  • 1941 Siege of Leningrad: Germany attacked the USSR to create Lebensraum and eliminate the Bolsheviks. Initially successful, the German advance stalled with the onset of winter. The Soviets defended Leningrad for three years.
    • Result: Victory for the USSR, which switched to the Allies. However, the siege resulted in approximately one million Soviet deaths.
  • 1941 Pearl Harbor: Japan launched a surprise attack on the US naval base in Hawaii. The US, still technically isolationist, had imposed economic sanctions on Japan due to its expansion in the Pacific.
    • Result: The US declared war on Japan, and Germany declared war on the US.
  • 1942 Battle of El Alamein: The British defeated German General Erwin Rommel in Egypt.
  • 1942 Battle of Stalingrad: The USSR defeated the German Sixth Army in a counteroffensive.
  • 1942 Battle of the Coral Sea: The US Navy prevented the Japanese fleet from invading New Guinea and the Solomon Islands.
  • 1942 Battle of Midway Island: Allied forces halted the Japanese advance in the Pacific.
  • 1944 D-Day: 150,000 Allied forces launched an amphibious invasion of the French coast from England, landing on the beaches of Normandy.
  • 1944 Battle of the Bulge: Fought in the Ardennes Forest, it was Hitler’s last major offensive.
  • 1943 Battle of Kursk: The largest tank battle of World War II, where the USSR defended and then attacked allowing eastern forces to begin pushing toward Berlin.

Effects and End of WWII

  • End of War: Victory in Europe
    • Hitler committed suicide, and Mussolini was killed by Italian resistance members.
    • VE Day: May 8, 1945, marked the official end of World War II in Europe when Germany surrendered to the Allies.
  • Victory in the Pacific:
    • Though war in Europe had ended, it continued in the Pacific. Despite weakening Japan through island hopping, Japan refused to surrender.
    • President Truman decided to use the atomic bomb developed by the Manhattan Project.
    • The US dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima and, three days later, another on Nagasaki.
    • VJ Day: Victory Over Japan Day, September 2, 1945, Japan surrendered unconditionally.
  • Post-War Decisions: The Big Three (Britain, US, USSR) discussed the post-war world at several conferences.
    • Tehran Conference (1943): Allies agreed the USSR would focus on liberating Eastern Europe, while Britain and the US focused on Western Europe. The USSR would receive Polish territory, and Poland would receive German territory.
    • Yalta Conference (1945): The Allies discussed the fate of Germany after its surrender.
      • US (FDR) wanted free, democratic elections in Eastern Europe and requested the USSR to join the war against Japan.
      • USSR (Stalin) wanted control of Eastern Europe as a buffer zone and control of islands claimed by Japan, ports controlled by China, and part ownership in the Manchurian Railroad.
      • The conference ended with vague promises for free elections and help with Japan.
    • Potsdam Conference (1945): The US (Truman) insisted on free elections in Eastern Europe, but USSR troops already occupied the region, leading to the rise of communism.

General Impacts of WWII

  • Massive destruction in Europe led to the US and USSR rising as superpowers.
  • Women gained influence and rights due to their roles in WWII.
  • Germany was divided into four regions.
  • Colonies renewed their push for self-determination.
  • Genocide was acknowledged, with the term first used in 1944.
  • Tensions escalated, leading to the Cold War between the US and USSR.

The Armenian Genocide (1915-1917)

  • Considered the first genocide of the 20th century.
  • The Ottoman government blamed its ethnic minority for their loss during WWI. They forcibly deported and executed those they blamed; many died of starvation, disease, and exposure to the elements.
  • Between 600,000 and 1.5 million Armenians were killed in Turkey.
  • During the Holocaust, Hitler referenced the Armenian Genocide in his own plans, saying, "who, after all, speaks today of the annihilation of the Armenians?"

1918 Influenza Pandemic

  • Also known as the Spanish Flu, it was a major pandemic.
  • 20 million people around the world died.

Shellshock

  • Both World Wars had a significant effect on the soldiers who fought in them.
  • In WWI, the Lost Generation experienced great hardship.

Holodomor in the Ukraine (1932-1933)

  • Stalin’s collectivization plan led to resistance by peasants.
  • Massive famine occurred, especially in the Ukraine, where the government took crops to feed industrial workers.
  • Approximately 7-10 million died.

Holocaust

  • Systematic removal and elimination of those seen as unfit to live in Hitler’s Third Reich.
  • 6 million Jews died, along with 5 million other persecuted groups.
  • Steps taken:
    • Nuremberg Laws: Banned Jews from certain professions and took away citizenship.
    • Ghettos: Walled sections of cities where Jews were relocated.
    • Concentration Camps: Labor camps that transitioned to killing centers.
    • Final Solution: Plan to kill all Jews in Europe.

Rwanda (1993)

  • Due to ethnic conflict, the minority ethnic Tutsis were murdered by the Hutus.
  • 500,000-1 million Tutsis and moderate Hutus were killed.

Sudan (2003)

  • The Sudanese government responded with the Janjaweed.
  • The Sudanese forces and Janjaweed attacked villages in Darfur, destroying hundreds of them and killing more than 200,000 non-Arab Muslim Africans.
  • 1 million people were displaced and became refugees.

"Asia for Asiatics"

  • Japan committed atrocities against those it conquered in East Asia.
    • Rape of Nanking (or Nanjing, 1937): 100,000 Chinese soldiers and civilians were killed.
  • Asia for Asiatics was a program where Japan forced conquered peoples into labor programs (ex. Service in the military, service in work industries, or on farms). They also forced women to be ‘comfort women’ or prostitutes during the war for Japanese soldiers. 1 million died in Vietnam alone, countless prisoners of war and others forced into harsh working conditions also died

Firebombing in World War II

  • Firebombing (used by both sides, ex. Hamburg 1943 and Dresden 1945, and Tokyo) creates massive damage through initiating fire rather than contained blasts