WW2 Flashcards
Causes of WW2 (5 points)
- Treaty of Versailles
- Rise of totalitarianism/fascism
- Hitler
- Failure of League of Nations
- The Great Depression
What is the Nazi-Soviet Pact?
Hitler and Stalin sign a 10-year peacw agreement between Germany and the Soviet Union
Spark of WW2
Germany invades Poland on September 1, 1939
On September 3, Britain and France declare war on Germany
What happened to Poland after the spark?
Germany defeats Poland by the end of the month and splits the claimed land with the Soviet Union
Who was the Canadian Prime Minister during WW2?
William Lyon Mackenzie
Operation name for D-Day?
Operation Overlord
Who were the Axis Powers?
Germany, Italy, Japan
What was the Schlieffen Plan?
Incase of a war outbreak, Germany would first attack and dispose of France while Russia mobolized their army in order to avoid two battlefronts
What decleration was significant for Canada in 1939?
Canada declared war on Germany as an independant country on September 9, 1939.
Nuclear Weapon Significance (3 points)
- WW2 was the first war to utilize nuclear warfare such as atomic bombs.
- Such weaponry was evident trhough the US’s bomb attack on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan.
- Helped shape the development of the Cold war by inficling fear of a final World War.
What was The Holocaust?
The mass murder of Jewish people by the Nazis in WW2
What are the stages of Genocide? (6 points)
- Classification
what is the targeted group to take all the blame - Symbolization
Jews were forced to wear the Star of David to identify who was a Jew - Dehumanization
Nazis deemed the Jews to be less than humans - Organization
Nazis controlled the Jewish population through fear, terror, and restrictions - Preparation
Jewish properties were seized and Jews were relocated to The Ghettos where the Nazis isolated and controlled Jews - Extermination
Jews were moved to death camps where they faced brutal, inhumane, and cruel deaths.
What are some new inventions/technologies from WW2 (5 points)
- Nuclear warfare (atomic bombs)
- Antibiotics (penicillin)
- Skin grafts (likely from Jewish concentration camps)
- Radars
- Computers (The ENIAC (1945) was the first electronic general-purpose digital computer)
The ENIAC was used to calculate the trajectory of artillery shells - that means figuring out exactly where the big military guns should be aimed to hit the target
What was it like on the Homefront during WW2?
- Victory bonds immensely funded the war
-Rationing and Wage and Price Controls (Controlling inflation and how much one person could buy of each item)
- Censorship (propaganda, ensuring citizens didn’t adapt enemies ideaolagies
- Conscription (was intially opposed/rejected by the King however the government insisted and in result 16,000 conscriptions were enacted
- Japanese interment camps (Japanese people living in Canada were relocated to camps after the attack on Pearl Harbour) the camps were used to control the Japanese out of fear of spys and sabotages however provided extremely poor living conditions
- Indigenous Soldiers (In WW2, about 4000 Indigenous people, volunteered to join the Canadian Forces however treaties stated that they would not be drafted by conscription
What was the the War Measures Act?
- significance during WW2?
The War Measures Act was a Canadian law that granted the government sweeping emergency powers during times of war, invasion, or insurrection.
The Act was first enacted in 1914
In 1942, the Canadian government invoked the War Measures Act in response to growing concerns about potential threats of sabotage and espionage related to the ongoing World War II.
- conscription
- censorship
- economic controls
Changes to Canada’s Identity within the world?
Shift in Canada-US Relations
- close cooperation between US and Canada lead to close relations post-war
Emergence as an Independent Nation
- Canada’s contributions, such as the Canadians who served in the armed forces, demonstrated its ability to act autonomously on the world stage.
Shift in National Unity and Identity
- Nationalism grew however, However, the conscription crisis and the internment of Japanese-Canadians also highlighted ongoing tensions and divisions within Canadian society
Why/when did the U.S. join WW2?
On december 8th, the day after the attack on Pearl Harbour, which targeted American pacific fleets, the United States declared war on Germany.
What was the UN (United Nations)
The UN was formed in 1945 following end of WW2 with the goal of preventing future global conflicts and promoting international cooperation.
The UN’s founding charter was signed by 51 countries and continues to exist today. Aims to qualm conflict through civil negotiations
What is VE Day?
When?
The day Germany surrenders and stands for victory-in-Europe day
May 8th 1945
When did WW2 officially come to an end?
While Japan surrendered on August 14, the official ceremony wasn’t held until September 2 which officially concluded the Second World War.
Battle of the Atlantic
What: A long-running naval campaign between the Allies and Axis powers for control of the Atlantic Ocean shipping lanes.
When: 1939 to 1945
Where: North Atlantic Ocean
Who: Allied naval and air forces vs German U-boats and surface raiders
Why: Crucial for transporting supplies, troops, and resources between North America and Europe
How: Convoys, submarine warfare, air patrols, technological advancements like radar and sonar
Battle of Dunkrik
What: The evacuation of Allied troops from the port of Dunkirk, France
When: May-June 1940
Where: Dunkirk, northern France
Who: British, French, Belgian, and Dutch troops vs German forces
Why: To rescue Allied troops after the German invasion of France
How: Civilian boats assisted in the mass evacuation across the English Channel
Battle of Britain
What: An air battle between the British Royal Air Force and the German Luftwaffe
When: July-October 1940
Where: Skies over southern England
Who: British RAF vs German Luftwaffe
Why: Germany sought to gain air superiority over Britain before invading
How: Aerial dogfights, bombing campaigns, technological advances in radar
Battle of Hong Kong
What: The Japanese invasion and occupation of the British colony of Hong Kong
When: December 1941
Where: Hong Kong
Who: British, Canadian, and Indian troops vs Japanese forces
Why: Japan sought to expand its empire and control strategic Pacific territories
How: Japanese forces overwhelmed the smaller Allied garrison through a series of attacks
