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History > Test Revision Unit 3 > Flashcards

Test Revision Unit 3 Flashcards

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1
Q

What was Blitzkrieg?

A

Translates to lightning fast war, surprise military attacks combining tanks, planes, and infantry for quick victory. Used successfully in France and Poland.

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2
Q

What failed in Russia?

A

Initially Blietzkrieg tactics worked. Germany captured 3million from 34million Russian soldiers, but when winter arrived there was lots of mud and snow which crippled German forces, as they found it difficult to transport resources on their already overstretched supply lines slowing advances and leaving troops under-equipped.

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3
Q

What happened at Stalingrad?

A

The Red Army fought a brutal year-long siege after Germany attacked in 1942. In 1943, the Soviets won, killing or capturing 300,000 German troops. This defeat shattered Nazi invincibility. After Stalingrad, the USSR went on the offensive, conscripting 12 million soldiers; 90% of German war deaths occurred fighting the USSR.

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4
Q

How did the USA join the war?

A

When Japan attacked Pearl Harbor unprovoked as a show of strength the USA declared war on Japan and its allies including Germany, and Italy, as per the tripartite pact. President Roosevelt demanded naval and army expansion and began sending supplies to the UK and USSR.

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5
Q

What was the Allied bombing campaign designed to do?

A
  1. Try to weaken and demoralise Germany
  2. Terror bombing attacking German cities killing hundreds of thousands of civilians
  3. Industrial bombing to cut down resources
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6
Q

What happened by the near end of the war?

A

Allied forces outnumbered the Nazis 7:1, yet Hitler refused to make peace.

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7
Q

Why did Hitler choose to invade the USSR in 1941?

A

Hitler invaded the USSR believing he’d secured Europe. He aimed to destroy the centre of the Jewish-Communist conspiracy and gain lebensraum and grain for Germany.

They invaded with 4 million soldiers and 4,000 tanks, believing Blietzkrieg tactics would defeat them. By the end of 1941, Germany captured 40% of the USSR’s population and 50% of its industry.

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8
Q

What was the role of propaganda in the war?

A

Nazi posters dehumanized enemies. But the Allies used it to boost morale and vilify Nazis.

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9
Q

Which nations led the Allied Powers from 1941?

A

USA, USSR, UK

Allied Powers = Triple U

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10
Q

What were Hitler’s foreign policy aims?

A

Destroy Treaty of Versailles, unite all Germans from different countries, defeat USSR, and expand east for Lebensraum and natural resources.

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11
Q

What was appeasement and why did Britain and France follow it?

A

Appeasement meant avoiding war; leaders feared another world war, overestimated Hitler’s promises, and distrusted the Soviet Union.

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12
Q

What did Germany gain from appeasement?

A

Germany remilitarised the Rhineland (1936), annexed Austria (1938), and took the Sudetenland after the Munich Agreement.

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13
Q

Why did appeasement end?

A

Hitler invaded the rest of Czechoslovakia in March 1939, proving he couldn’t be trusted; appeasement failed.

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14
Q

What triggered Britain and France to declare war?

A

Germany invaded Poland on 1 September 1939; Britain and France declared war two days later, on 3 September.

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15
Q

How did the Allies defeat Germany in the west?

A

After D-Day (6 June 1944), Allies pushed from France, outnumbering Germans 7:1 with 2 million soldiers.

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16
Q

How did Mussolini fall from power?

A

After Allied invasion of Italy in 1943, Mussolini was overthrown and Italy surrendered, but Germans fought on.

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17
Q

What happened to Hitler in 1945?

A

He refused to surrender, blamed his generals, and committed suicide in his Berlin bunker on 30 April.

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18
Q

When and how did the war in Europe end?

A

Germany surrendered on 7 May 1945 after Soviet forces captured Berlin and Hitler was dead.

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19
Q

What were ghettos under Nazi rule?

A

Ghettos were segregated urban areas for Jews, created to isolate and control them before extermination.

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20
Q

Why did Nazis create ghettos?

A

Ghettos confined Jews, exploiting them for forced labor under harsh conditions, often as a step towards deportation to camps.

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21
Q

What were the ghettos like?

A

Overcrowded, unsanitary, with limited food and resources, leading to starvation and disease.

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22
Q

What were extermination camps?

A

Facilities built to systematically kill Jews, political prisoners, and other minorities using methods like gas chambers.

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23
Q

How many Jews were murdered during the Holocaust?

A

Approximately 6 million Jews were killed by Nazi forces between 1941 and 1945.

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24
Q

Why did Japan go to war with China?

Study These Flashcards
A

Japan aimed to expand its empire, seeking resources and strategic dominance in Asia.

25
Why did Japan enter WWII against the U.S. and Western powers?
US sanctions and embargoes pushed Japan to seize Southeast Asian resources. To avoid Western interference, Japan pre-emptively attacked Pearl Harbor, drawing the US into WWII.
26
Describe Japan's early military success in WWII (1941-1942).
Japan quickly captured major Allied territories like the Philippines, Malaya, and the Dutch East Indies, gaining control of vital resources and defeating U.S., British, and Dutch forces
27
What was life like under Japanese occupation?
Occupied areas suffered exploitation, forced labor, and violence including mass executions and starvation.
28
What was the Bataan Death March?
In 1942, 76,000 Allied prisoners were forced to march 65 miles in brutal conditions by Japanese forces.
29
How did Japanese military campaigns affect civilians?
Civilians faced violence, food shortages, and forced conscription, with many killed in mass reprisals.
30
What was the goal of Japan’s Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere?
Japan claimed it was uniting Asia against Western powers but exploited territories for resources.
31
How did Allied forces respond to Japanese occupation?
Resistance movements emerged, local fighters sabotaged Japanese operations and aided Allied advances.
32
What resources drove Japan’s imperial ambitions?
Japan needed oil, rubber, and other materials to fuel its military and industrial expansions.
33
What were the outcomes of Japan's actions in WWII?
Japan’s aggression led to its eventual defeat, with massive civilian and military losses.
34
What was risky about them provoking war with the USA?
- They provoked the most industrialised and wealthy nation globally - Japan failed to conquer China, fighting multiple land and sea wars - Resistance grew in occupied areas like the Philippines and Vietnam - Allied-controlled bases in Australia, India, and Hawaii boosted the war effort
35
What assumption did Australia hold about Britain’s defense in WWII?
Australia assumed Britain would defend it during the war, but this belief faded—especially after the fall of Singapore—leading to stronger ties with the U.S. for defense.
36
What measures did the Australian government implement for the war effort during WWII?
- Workforce mobilization, - Food/resource rationing, - Conscription single men 18–35 and childless married men aged 18–45 for home and Pacific defense - Media censorship loose lips sink ships, and bans on sharing war details.
37
How did Prime Minister Curtin respond to the fall of Singapore?
He recalled Australian troops from British colonies and shifted focus to U.S. alliances.
38
What was significant about the Battle of Kokoda?
Despite challenges such as dense jungle, tropical diseases, and poorly mapped terrain, Australians were victorious in November 1942, preventing Japanese forces from capturing Port Moresby. Proved Australia’s defence strength and turned the tide in the Pacific War.
39
Why was Japan’s attempt to capture Papua New Guinea important?
Japan aimed to use it as a base to bomb Australian cities.
40
What role did women play in wartime Australia?
Women replaced men in technical roles such as factories. Over 70,000 women served in the army, joining auxiliary services like the Australian Women’s Army Service to support the war effort.
41
What is total war?
Where all of your society is involved in war.
42
Who were the two Prime Ministers and why was one voted out?
Prime Minister Menzies was voted out because he sent 20,000 members of the Australian army and John Curtin was elected.
43
How many people were in the Australian army at the end of the war?
730,000 Australians in armed forces.
44
What was the significance of the fall of Singapore for Australia?
It highlighted Britain’s inability to protect Australia, leading to a shift in reliance towards the United States for defense against Japan.
45
How did Papuans and Australians collaborate during the Kokoda Campaign?
The fuzzy wuzzy angels, acted as stretcher-bearers supporting Australian troops, carrying supplies and easing harsh terrain challenges
46
What was the Battle of Kokoda?
A five-month-long battle in 1942 between Japanese and Australian forces along the Kokoda Track in Papua New Guinea, fought to prevent Japan from capturing Port Moresby.
47
Why was 1942 a turning point in the war against Japan?
In 1942, Japan's expansion isolated it from trade, and the war of attrition revealed its inability to counter superior Allied naval and industrial power.
48
What does a "war of attrition" mean in the context of Japan in WWII?
A war of attrition means a long, wearing-down battle to drain the enemy’s resources and will to fight. During WWII, the US’s vast industry, resources, and manpower overwhelmed Japan, which faced shortages, depended on imports, and couldn’t sustain prolonged conflict.
49
What was the USA's strategy to defeat Japan in a long war?
In 1943, the USA launched a counterattack through an "island-hopping" strategy, seizing key islands and converting them into supply bases with airports to isolate Japan.
50
How did the U.S. strategy lead to Japan's defeat in WWII?
The U.S. destroyed Japan’s navy and air force, blockaded vital supplies fuel and food, isolating Japan and forcing surrender
51
What were kamikaze pilots? Were they effective?
Kamikaze pilots were suicide pilots who flew planes full of explosives into enemy ships. While they caused significant damage, only 20% of attacks hit their targets, and they couldn’t stop Japan's defeat.
52
Why did Japan surrender in September 1945?
The USA dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945, killing approximately 200,000 people and devastating both cities. This led Japan to surrender on September 2, 1945.
53
What were the key consequences of Japan’s surrender in WWII?
* The Axis Powers were defeated. * Refugees needed resettling. * Nations were rebuilt. * The Nuremberg Trials established protocols for war crimes. * Efforts began to ensure future peace.
54
How did the atomic bombings influence the end of WWII?
The immense destruction and loss of life forced Japan into surrender, marking the first use of nuclear weapons in warfare and reshaping global military policies.
55
Why was the loss of the Battle of Kokoda significant for Japan?
Halted Japan’s push toward Australia, secured Allied supply routes, and drained Japanese resources. With about 15,000 casualties, it weakened Japan’s hold on occupied lands and marked a major Allied turning point.
56
What factors contributed to the start of WW2?
Hitler wanting to achieve foreign policy goals - appeasement, invading Czechoslovakia and the Sudentenland. lebensraum. Rearmerment defying Treay of Versailles, had 950,000 soldiers by 1939. Pearl Harbour is the catalyst for Asia-Pacific war.
57
Purpose of the Einsatzgruppen
Mobile killing units tasked with mass shootings of Jews, communists, and others in Nazi-occupied Eastern Europe.
58
What was the significance of the Wansee Conference
In 1942 the Wannsee Conference Top Nazi officials planned the “Final Solution”—the coordinated, systematic genocide of Europe’s Jews.
59
Militarism
Belief in building up strong armed forces and prioritising military power to achieve national goals.

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