World War 2 Flashcards
(18 cards)
Prelude to WW2
totalitarian: putting the state abve all else including the rights of an individual
- gov. has total control, uses violence, bans all other political parties, leader has absolute power
Causes of WW2
League of Nations failed
-didnt include every nation, no army, must be unanamous voting
Totalitarian leaders had nationalistic ambitions
Hilter threatened to invade Sudentendland, British and French leaders met with him in Munich to try to negotiate
-Germany would get the Sudetenland and wouldn’t invade the rest of Czechoslovakia (munich Agreement)
-6month later Hitler invaded Czech
Germany and Italy felt they had been cheated by Treaties after WWI
-order troops to Rhineland (violation of Treaty of Versailles, but Britain and France chose not to act)
-Hilter annexed Austria (violation of ToV)
The Depression had crippled economies worldwide and people were desperate for a solution
Canada’s Response
Isolationism: keeping out of affairs outside our borders
anti-semitism: Hostility to or prejudice against Jews
–many didnt agree with anti-semitism (1st female senator spoke up against it)
Government restricted immigration in the 1930s, jews considered burden on state
September 8, 1939: WLMK called a special session of Parliament to decide whether or not Canada would join the war (WLMK for war, , Ernest Lapointe for war but no conscription)
CAN delcares war Sept. 10th, 1939
58,000 willing volunteers, though no cheering
the entire resources of a nation had to be mobilized for war (Department of Munitions and Supplies was created)
Evacuation of Dunkirk
Hitler had his sights on France to attack next
Within days, German panzers reached the English Channel and surrounded Allied forces in French port of Dunkirk (If they surrendered, Britain would lose the bulk of its army)
British navy rounded up every boat capable of getting across the English Channel to Dunkirk to rescue troops there
Evacuation began on May 26, 2 days later, the German Luftwaffe bombed the port
Nearly 340,000 soldiers were brought to safety in Britain
After, the German army continued to sweep through France
French army was no match for the Germans–>June 22, 1940: France surrendered
Pearl harbour
Japan began to expand its territory in the 1930s
By 1941, it was prepared to invade American and European colonies in the Pacific region
Wanted to gain control of resources such as oil, rubber and tin
December 7, 1941: Japanese planes bombed the naval base in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii
More than 2400 people were killed and much of the American fleet was destroyed
December 8, 1941: USA joins Allies and declared war on Japan
Japan’s Allies (Germany and Italy) declared war on the United States
Crimes Against Humanity (holocaust)
HOLOCAUST: “Final Solution to the Jewish Question” Nazi Party believed that German people were a “master race” of Aryans (non-aryans were inferior) As early as 1933, Nazis set up concentration camps to isolate these people from German society STRIPPING OF RIGHTS -1935: Nuremberg Laws SEGREGATION -ghettos CONCENTRATION -concentration camps -Slave labor “annihilation by work” EXTERMINATION -death factories -euthinasia -mobile killing units
Espionage
WHAT: Intelligence activity that denotes the work of secret organizations whose task is to gather information by covert means.
Most espionage in World War II was conducted by “rings”, or teams of agents
Bletchly park: code-breaking center for the Allies run by gov. penetrated the enigma machine to decode GER messages
Battle of the Atlantic
September 1939 – 1945
Germany was trying to starve Britain by cutting off vital shipping routes (Uk rely on imports for citizens and miltary survival)
The struggle between Allies and Axis powers to control the Allies’ shipping route across the Atlantic Ocean
Britain cracked the German naval code, the Allies could track German submarine movements more easily
CAN convoy of ships protected vessels carrying war supplies and food heading Britain
GER used submarines to attack Allies
Dieppe Raide
August 19th 1942
One Canadian ship met a small German convoy; engaged in brief sea battle
Noise alerted German ships on the shore
Allied ships were delayed; landed in daylight instead of at dawn
Tanks were ineffective; no traction on steep, pebbled beach
Communication between ships and land troops was poor
LEARNING EXPERIENCE: Allies became more subtle and secretive
D-Day
June 6, 1944: Allies launched a full scale invasion of Europe
Canadians rehearsed and practised to avoid a situation like Dieppe
Allies landed their troops on 5 beaches along the Normandy Coast in Northern France
Soldiers on the beaches had massive air and naval support ( Allies bring in 1,000,000+ men, vehicles and supplies)
Disrupted transportation and communication lines by dropping paratroopers and bombing targets
Allies kept details a secret from the Germans
End of War
MANHATTAN PROJECT: A top secret plan to develop an atomic bomb (Allies)
August 6th 1945: an American bomber plane Enola Gay dropped an atomic bomb over the city of Hiroshima
August 9th 1945: another atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki
The Japanese realized they could not withstand the power of the new U.S. weapon, and signed a formal instrument of surrender on September 2, 1945.
200,000 deaths, cancers, burns
Soviet union
Stalin leader of the Communist Party in the USSR
1928, he gained total control of the USSR and began toimplement a series of Five-Year Plans
–To industrialize the country and give government complete control of the economy
Eliminated anyone he believed opposed the communist government or his power
–Gulags (work Camps)
secret police force (NKVD)
Italy
Mussolini leader of Fascist Party (nationalism and challenged Italy democratic gov.)
Blackshirts–> gans of fascists attack communists and socialists
Promised to revitalize Italy and restore Italian Pride
1922: March on Rome (blackshirts gather outside rome and demand gov. turned over to him
everything under fascists control
Germany
political and economic unrest after WW1
GER distrusted gov since Treaty of Versailles (wanted leader who could solve GER problems)
1921: Hilter became leader of the Nazi party
Adolf Hitler persuaded Germans that he could save the country from the Depression and make it a great nation again
Ruled country with intimidation and fear
Spain
struggled with economic and political strife
Spaniards became increasingly dissatisfied with the governments inability to prevent widespread poverty
1936: Fascist rebels, led by Francisco Franco, tried to overthrow the elected socialist government (3yr civil war)
Won the Spanish Civil War thanks to support from Hitler and Mussolini
Totalitarian dictator who ruled by intimidation and violence
people were imprisoned in concentration camps or executed
Battle of Britain
Hitler launched Operation Sea Lion to invade Britain to defeat the Royal Air Force (RAF) so German forces could land in Britain
July 1940: Luftwaffe launch massive bombing campaign to destroying harbours and shipping facilities in southern England
August 24 1940: German planes bombed several areas of London
In retaliation: the RAF bombed the city of Berlin
In revenge of that: An outraged Hitler ordered the bombing of London & other British cities (BLITZ)
unable to defeat the RAF
September 1940: Hitler gave up plans to invade Britain
Operation Barbarossa
June 22, 1941: Hitler launched Operation Barbarossa ) against the Soviet Union for raw materials, agricultural land and labour for the German army.
It broke the non-aggression pact that Hitler signed with Stalin in 1939
Soviets were unprepared; Germans got deep into Russian territory, Germans were unprepared for long and cold Soviet winter
Germans suffered 734,000 casualties and then retreated in 1942, Soviet Army went on the offensive, retaking much of the territory it had lost
Operation Mincemeat (espionage)
In 1943 an allied invasion of southern Europe was expected by Germany.
The Allies wished to convince Germany an attack would occur in Greece when really it was in SIcily
The allies obtained a body, complete with papers hinting that an attack would come elsewhere. The body was discovered by Spain and autopsy info given to Hitler.
On 9, 1943 the Allied invasion of Sicily took place.
