Chapter 18 - The Second World War 1939-1945

Question 1

What was Blitzkrieg?

Answer 1

• Lightening War
  1. Bombs dropped
  2. Tanks to sweep the area
  3. Infantry
• Surrendered after 2 weeks

Question 2

What was the Phoney War?

Answer 2

A period of calm following the defeat of Poland in September 1939. The BEF (British Expeditionary Force) went to France and children were evacuated to countryside.

Question 3

When did the Phoney War end?

Answer 3

When Hitler unleashed Blitzkrieg on Western Europe. Took over Denmark and Norway. Therefore Churchill was appointed prime minister

Question 4

How did Hitler take over France?

Answer 4

• Bypassed the Maginot Line and attacked through Ardennes
• BEF retreated towards English Channel
• Operation Dynamo

Question 5

What was Operation Dynamo?

Answer 5

A plan to evacuate British soldiers from Dunkirk. A flotilla of boats sailed from Britain and rescued over 338,000 men. Churchill declared this a success.

Question 6

Why did France fall?

Answer 6

• German troops entered Paris on 13th of June
• Surrendered 8 days later
• Charles de Gaulle refused to accept it => French gov. in London

Question 7

How was France divided?

Answer 7

NORTH EAST: Occupied by Germans
SOUTH: Pro-German State called Vichy France (Marshal Pétain)
-French Resistance: hit-and-run
-Collaborators: Alongside Germans. out of fear, love of fascism, gain

Question 8

What was Operation Sealion?

Answer 8

A plan to invade Britain by sea. However firstly, the Luftwaffe must have control of the air over the RAF.

Question 9

What was the Battle of Britain?

Answer 9

-August 1940
-RAF had advantage of Radar; could see them coming
-RAF had advantage of Spitfire & Hurricane
-RAF had advantage of Lend-Lease from USA (weapons & ammo)
RAF won; bombing of British Cities began until mid-1940 BLITZ

Question 10

What was the Battle of Alamein?

Answer 10

• Mussolini vs Britain => help from Germany
• General Rommel (G) vs General Montgomery (B)
• Britain won

Question 11

What was Operation Barbarossa?

Answer 11

A plan to invade the Soviet Union, launched in June 1941

Question 12

Why did Hitler invade the Soviet Union?

Answer 12

• Needed oil supplies for tanks etc.
• Lebensraum
• Hated communism

Question 13

What was the scorched earth tactic?

Answer 13

Policy of destroying anything that could be of use to the enemy as they retreated from the advancing German Army in 1941.

Question 14

Why did the Germans loose the Battle of Stalingrad?

Answer 14

• Unprepared for the winter
• Difficult to manoeuvre tanks in narrow streets
• ‘Molotov Cocktails’ petrol bombs thrown down hatches
• Red Army surrounded the city, leaving no exit
• Surrendered in February 1943

Question 15

Why did America enter the war?

Answer 15

-Without warning Japan attacked Pearl Harbour, in Hawaii. Franklin D. Roosevelt declared war on Japan.

Question 16

What was Operation Torch?

Answer 16

An attack on Italy by America through North Africa. This led to Mussolini being overthrown

Question 17

What was Operation Overlord?

Answer 17

The invasion of continental Europe from the West, on D-Day 6th June 1944. This meant that forces were coming at Germany from the East and West.

Question 18

How did the Allies prepare for D-Day?

Answer 18

• Amphibious tanks (land & sea) - funnies to land on beaches
• PLUTO: Pipeline for oil from Britain
• Mulberry Piers: Artificial harbours for supplies

Question 19

Describe D-Day.

Answer 19

• General Eisenhower: USA, Canada, Britain
• Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno, Sword
• Evening: 155,000 allies, 1000 tanks
• Liberation of Western Europe began

Question 20

What was the Battle of the Bulge?

Answer 20

• August 1944, Paris Liberated
• Winter: Halt advance at Ardennes
• Brief bulge, but were force back
• Last major battle of the west
• Allies crossed Rhine into Germany in March 1945

Question 21

What was the Yalta Conference?

Answer 21

• February 1945
• Churchill,Stalin, Roosevelt
• Discuss the future of Europe

Question 22

Describe the Fall of Berlin.

Answer 22

-Late April to May 1945
-G: 45,000 + reserve soldiers + Hitler Youth
-White Flag = shot
-G: Little ammo and fuel
-RA: 1/2 mil (Marshal Zhukov’s First Belorussian Front)
-30th April 1945: All power to Admiral Dönitz; Hitler shot himself
-7 May: Admiral Dönitz surrendered unconditionally
VE DAY = 7th May

Question 23

Why did Germany loose the war?

Answer 23

• Allies had better military equipment and bigger armies
• Too many enemies
• Invaded the Soviet Union too late in the year
• Lack of fuel supplies - failed to take Russian oilfields

Question 24

What was the Battle of Midway?

Answer 24

When planes from American aircraft carriers inflicted heavy losses upon the Japanese navy at the Battle of Midway in June 1942. Turning Point

Question 25

Why did Truman drop the atomic bomb?

Answer 25

• He thought 1 mil soldiers would die if they attacked Japan
• To end the war in the east quickly
• To avoid allied casualties as much as possible

Question 26

Where did the atomic bombs go?

Answer 26

1. 6th Aug 1945 => Hiroshima
   -70,000 killed instantly.
2. 9th Aug 1945 => Nagasaki
   Fearing an attack on Tokyo, they surrendered

Question 27

When did WW2 end?

Answer 27

14th of August 1945

Question 28

What are the effects of WW2? (3)

Answer 28

• Over 55 million people were killed - may left as refugees
• Nazi leaders tried at Nuremberg (Nov 45 - Oct 46) 12 killed
• United Nations was established to prevent war and keep peace