World War IIWorld History 9th

Mr. Sanderson

15.4 Notes:“Aggressors Invade Nations”

World History 9th

Mr. Sanderson

15.4 Terms1. appeasement—making concessions to an aggressive power in

order to avoid war.

2. Axis Powers—alliance of Germany, Italy, & Japan formed in 1936.

3. isolationism—policy of avoiding political or military involvement with other countries.

4. Third Reich—the Third German Empire established by Adolf Hitler in the 1930s.

5. Munich Conference—1938 meeting of British, French, Italian, & German representatives at which Britain & France agreed to allow Nazi Germany to annex part of Czechoslovakia in return for Hitler’s promise to respect Czechoslovakia’s new borders.

Japanese Militarism

• Japan’s military leaders won power after Great Depression hit in 1929

• Kept Emperor Hirohito as symbol of state power

• Goal—create an empire to gain resources & markets

Japanese Expansion• Manchuria—

northeast province of China

• Rich in iron & coal

• 1931—Japan invaded Manchuria

• League of Nation was powerless to stop Japan

Japanese Expansion

(1931-39)

1937—Japaninvaded China after border incident

Totalitarian Regimes in Europe (1930s)

Totalitarian states:• Germany (Fascist)• Italy (Fascist)• Soviet Union (Communist)

Democratic states:• Britain• France• Scandinavian countries

Italian Expansion• Mussolini’s goal—build a

colonial empire in Africa

• 1935—Italy invaded Ethiopia• Britain allowed Italian troops &

supplies through its Suez Canal• Britain & France wanted to keep

peace in Europe

Italy occupied:• Albania• Libya• Ethiopia• Somalia

Hitler rebuilds German Military• Treaty of Versailles had

severely limited German military

• 1935—Hitler began rebuilding German military

• League of Nations condemned the action, but had no power to stop it

The Axis Powers• Rome-Berlin Axis—

Germany & Italy formed an alliance in Oct. 1936

• Nov. 1936—Germany signed alliance with Japan

• Axis Powers—Germany, Italy, & Japan

Mussolini & Hitler (1936)

German Expansion• Treaty of Versailles had taken

away German territories

• The Rhineland—important industrial area; a buffer between France & Germany

• 1936—Hitler sent troops to re-occupy the Rhineland

• French were unwilling to risk war

• British urged appeasement

German Expansion• Hitler wanted to

unite Germany & Austria—Anschluss

• 1938—German army entered Austria

• Germany annexed Austria

• Britain & France did nothing

German Expansion• Sept. 1938—Hitler

demanded the Sudetenland for Germany

• Area was part of Czechoslovakia

• Home to 3 million German-speakers

• Heavily fortified, it was Czechoslovakia’s main defense against Germany

German Expansion• Munich Conference—Germany, France, Britain, &

Italy met in Munich, Germany (Czechs weren’t invited)

• Wanting to keep peace, Britain & France gave into Hitler’s demands

• In return, Hitlerpromised to respectCzechoslovakia’s newborders

German Expansion• British Prime Minister

Neville Chamberlaindeclared the Munich Agreement meant “peace for our time”

• 6 months later, Hitler took the rest of Czechoslovakia

• Hitler then demanded Poland to return former German territories

• Poland asked Britain & France for help

Why didn’t someone stop Hitler?• After WWI, Britain & France

wanted peace

• Americans supportedisolationism

• Each country still facedserious economic problems after the GreatDepression

16.1 Notes:“Hitler’s Lightning War”

World History 9th

Mr. Sanderson

16.1 Terms1. non-aggression pact—agreement in which nations

promise not to attack one another.

2. blitzkrieg—“lightning war”—form of warfare in which surprise attacks with fast-moving airplanes are followed by massive infantry attacks.

3. Winston Churchill—British prime minister during World War II.

4. Battle of Britain—series of battles between German and British air forces, fought over Britain in 1940-41.

Major Leaders• Winston Churchill (Britain)

• Franklin D. Roosevelt (U.S.)

• Joseph Stalin (Soviet Union)

• Adolf Hitler (Germany)

• Benito Mussolini (Italy)

• Hideki Tojo (Japan)

Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact• Aug. 1939—Stalin & Hitler

signed non-aggression pact

• Soviet Union & Nazi Germany agreed not to attack each other

• Secretly agreed to divide Poland between them

• Allowed Hitler to focus on fighting Britain & France

German Invasion of Poland

• Sept. 1, 1939—Hitler launched a surprise invasion of Poland

• German tanks & troops rushed into Poland

• German aircraft & artillery bombed Poland’s capital, Warsaw

• Sept. 3—France & Britain declared war on Germany

German blitzkrieg• Germans conquered Poland before Britain & France could

respond• Hitler annexed

western Poland

• Sept. 17—Sovietsinvaded easternPoland

• Stalin also annexed Baltic countries into theSoviet Union