The origins and outbreak of the Second World War

Question 1

What were 5 of Hitlers aims?

Answer 1

1. overturn TofV
2. take Lebensraum
3. unite Volksdeutsche
4. untie Austria (Anschluss)
5. destroy communism

Question 2

Why was Lebensraum a threat for war?

Answer 2

-Hitler would have to invade land in the East
-e.g. Poland

Question 3

What was the German air force called?

Answer 3

Luftwaffe

Question 4

Who was Britain’s PM from 1937-40?

Answer 4

Neville Chamberlain

Question 5

What was Chamberlain’s policy until 1939?

Answer 5

appeasement

Question 6

What 3 nations signed the Stresa Front?

Answer 6

-Britain
-France
-Italy

Question 7

What year was the Franco-Soviet pact signed?

Answer 7

1935

Question 8

What was the Franco-Soviet pact?

Answer 8

agreement between USSR and France to support each other if attacked by Germany

Question 9

What date did the Nazi troops enter the Rhineland?

Answer 9

7th March 196

Question 10

How many Nazi soldiers entered the Rhineland?

Answer 10

22,000 soldiers

Question 11

Italy and Germany signed what pact in 1936?

Answer 11

Rome-Berlin Axis

Question 12

What pact did Japan and Germany sign in 1936?

Answer 12

Anti-Comintern Pact

Question 13

What 3 countries were involved in the Pact of Steel?

Answer 13

1. Germany
2. Japan
3. Italy

Question 14

Who was the leader of the Spanish civil war 1936?

Answer 14

General Franco - led group of nationalist fascists

Question 15

Why did Hitler get involved in the Spanish civil war 1936?

Answer 15

-form alliance with Spain
-test out new weapons
-destroy threat of communism

Question 16

ANSCHLUSS: Who replaced Dollfuss as the Austrian leader?

Answer 16

Schuschnigg

Question 17

ANSCHLUSS: Where did Schuschnigg and Hitler first meet?

Answer 17

Berchtesgaden - Hitler’s mountain retreat in Germany

Question 18

ANSCHLUSS: Who did Hitler insist must be appointed as minister for the interior in Austria?

Answer 18

Seyss-Inquart

Question 19

ANSCHLUSS: What did Schuschnigg do in reaction to Hitler’s threatening demands?

Answer 19

held a plebiscite in Austria for people to vote for whether or not they want the Anschluss

Question 20

ANSCHLUSS: (11th March 1938) Hitler demanded to postpone the…

Answer 20

plebiscite

Question 20

ANSCHLUSS: Who became chancellor after Schuschnigg was forced to resign?

Answer 20

Seyss-Inquart

Question 21

ANSCHLUSS: What date did Nazi troops invade Austria?

Answer 21

12th March 1938

Question 22

ANSCHLUSS: What date was the plebiscite held?

Answer 22

10th April 1938

Question 23

ANSCHLUSS: What was the result of the plebiscite?

Answer 23

99% Austrians voted in favour of Anschluss

Question 24

How big was the Austrian army?

Answer 24

100,000 men

Question 25

How many German-speaking people lived in the Sudetenland?

Answer 25

3 million

Question 26

Where did Neville Chamberlain fly to on 15th September 1938?

Answer 26

Berchtesgaden - Hitler’s holiday home

Question 27

What did Chamberlain and Hitler agree to in Berchtesgaden?

Answer 27

Germany could take over the Sudeten land

Question 28

Where did Hitler and Chamberlain meet on 22nd September 1938?

Answer 28

Bad Godsberg (western Germany)

Question 29

What 4 countries were involved in the Munich conference?

Answer 29

1. Britain
2. France
3. Italy
4. Germany

Question 30

What were Hitler’s demands at the Munich conference?

Answer 30

-Sudetenland must be handed over to Germany
-Hungary and Poland should also receive Czechoslovakian land

Question 31

Who was the French president in 1938?

Answer 31

Daladier

Question 32

What date did Hitler march his troops into the Sudetenland?

Answer 32

10th Oct 1938

Question 33

Through the Munich conference, Britain and France alienated the…

Answer 33

USSR

Question 34

What did Chamberlain claim the Anglo-German declaration achieved?

Answer 34

“Peace in our time”

Question 35

3 reasons appeasement was a good idea

Answer 35

-USA signed 2 neutrality acts in the 1930s, so Britain and France couldn’t afford to go to war alone
-public opinion was against any new war, WW1 killed 17 million people
-Britain only started rearming in 1936, wouldn’t be ready for war until 1940

Question 36

3 reasons appeasement was a bad idea

Answer 36

-missed opportunities to stop Hitler’s actions(e.g. remilitarisation of the Rhineland)
-alienated USSR (needed as an ally against Germany, led to Nazi-Soviet pact)
-grew Hitler’s confidence (e.g. Sudetenland)

Question 37

What date was the Nazi-Soviet pact signed?

Answer 37

23rd Aug 1939

Question 38

What was the name of the German foreign minister who was sent to make a pact with the USSR?

Answer 38

Joachim von Ribbentrop

Question 39

Why did Stalin not trust his original allies?

Answer 39

-Stalin was not invited to the Munich agreement
-Hitler respected Stalin (sent Ribbentrop, one of his senior Nazis, to speak with him)
-League’s failure to deal with Manchuria, Abyssinia and Rhineland threat
-France didn’t act against German remilitarisation of Rhineland, so Stalin doubted whether they would ever defence USSR

Question 40

What did the Nazi-Soviet pact mean?

Answer 40

war was imminent/ inevitable

Question 41

Where did Germany first invade Poland?

Answer 41

Danzig (port)

Question 42

How many Luftwaffe aeroplanes invaded Poland on 1st September 1939?

Answer 42

1300 aeroplanes