overview – britain in the second world war september 1, 1939 germany attacked poland world war ii...

Overview – Britain in the Second World War

September 1, 1939

• Germany attacked Poland

• World War II begins

• Blitzkrieg or “lightning war”

Support for Poland

• Britain and France declared war on Germany

• Allies gave no real help

• Poland fell into German hands

Devastating effects

• Polish air force destroyed

• Soldiers fought; no match for German forces

• No natural barriers in the way

German troops in position

• On Germany’s western border

• Hitler eager for assault on France

• Plans for invasion made

The War Begins

Attack on France• Denmark and Norway captured; the Netherlands and Belgium

followed

• Tank attack through Ardennes; overwhelmed light resistance there

• Heroic Dunkirk rescue; France surrendered in June 1940

Battle for Britain• Great Britain stood alone against German war machine; Churchill

now leader

• Radar technology secret weapon for air defense

• British stood firm during Battle of Britain; Hitler called off invasion plans

1940–1941

• June 1941, Hitler’s invasion of the Soviet Union had initial successes

• Major goals of Leningrad and Moscow not reached before harsh Soviet winter

• Soviet armies had time to rebuild and would fight back

Invasion of the Soviet Union

Sequence

With what events did the war begin?

Answer(s): invasion of Poland, followed by the massing of German troops on its western border

Europe Goes to War

• How did the German invasion of Poland lead to war with Britain and France?

• What wartime victories and setbacks did Germany experience in western Europe?

• Why was the Battle of Britain an important victory for Britain?

Chapter 24, Section 2

Invasion of Poland

• After Hitler invaded other parts of Czechoslovakia, Britain and France ended their policy of appeasement. They warned Hitler that an invasion of Poland would mean war.

• Hitler, however, had stopped believing Britain and France. On September 1, 1939, Germany invaded Poland. Britain and France declared war on Germany two days later.

• Germany quickly overran Poland using a new military tactic called blitzkrieg, or “lightening war.” Blitzkrieg tactics involved a fast, concentrated attack that took the enemy by surprise.

• To avoid war on two fronts, Germany signed a nonaggression pact with the Soviet Union. In a secret addition to this pact, the two nations agreed to divide between them the independent states of Eastern Europe.


War in the West

Early Stages of War in the West• “Phony War” and the Maginot Line: After Poland fell, the war

entered a quiet period. The American press called this lack of combat a “phony war.” France prepared a massive string of fortifications, known as the Maginot Line, along its border with Germany.

• Germany Attacks: In April and May 1940, Germany attacked and quickly conquered Denmark, Norway, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg.

• Dunkirk: When Germany advanced on France, British and French forces retreated to the French coastal city of Dunkirk. From there, hundreds of thousands of soldiers were ferried to Great Britain in one of the greatest rescues in the history of warfare.


The Fall of France

• On June 22, 1940, France officially surrendered to Germany. • In accordance with the surrender terms, Germany occupied

most of France, while the French government controlled an area known as Vichy France in the south. Vichy France adopted a policy of collaboration, or close cooperation, with Germany.

• A French Resistance movement, supported by the Free French government in exile in Britain, sought to undermine German occupation.

• By the summer of 1940, Hitler had conquered most of Western Europe and seemed on the verge of conquering the Allies, the group of countries that opposed the Axis Powers. Britain alone stood against the Axis.


German AggressionBetween 1939 and 1941, Germany invaded and conquered much of Europe.


The Battle of Britain

Relentless Attack

• Before attempting to invade Great Britain, Germany wanted to establish superiority in the air.

• In August 1940, Germany launched an air assault on Britain, called the Battle of Britain, which continued well into September.

• At first, Germany only attacked British military sites. However, it later began bombing London and other cities to decrease British morale.

Courageous Defense• Although greatly outnumbered,

Britain’s Royal Air Force (RAF) worked to shoot down German bombers.

• Despite massive losses, the British people kept their will to fight.

• By February 1940, British scientists cracked the German secret communication code. This enabled Britain to get a general idea of Hitler’s battle plans.


Europe Goes to War—Assessment

How did Britain and France react to Hitler’s invasion of Poland? (A) They declared war on Germany.

(B) They continued their policy of appeasement.

(C) They signed a nonagression pact with the Soviet Union.

(D) They surrendered to Germany.

Why was the Battle of Britain considered a victory for Great Britain?(A) It gave Britain control of Denmark and Norway.

(B) It resulted in very little damage to London.

(C) It failed to decrease British morale.

(D) It helped the French Resistance reconquer France.Want to link to the Pathways Internet activity for this chapter? Click here!


• Invasion of Poland

• The Fall of France

• North Africa Battles

• Stalingrad

• Battle of the Bulge

• D-Day

• Hitler demanded the Baltic Sea port which was in Polish control

• Alleged allies such as Britain & France were going to back Poland’s refusal for the sea port Danzig

• Germany turned to the USSR for support in invasion of Poland

• Germany attacked from the west and the USSR from the east

• The warfare became known as blitzkrieg – “lightening war” using tanks & aircraft

• Poland Fell to German forces on October 5th 1939

• The Maginot line were bunkers built in protection against Germany

• Hitler simply went around the Maginot line and invaded through the Netherlands,Belgium & Luxembourg

• France was caught by surprise leaving the French & British forces trapped in Belgium

• A miracle occurred at a port called Dunkirk when German forces halted giving time for evacuation & saved the country from complete defeat by Hitler

• France surrendered in June 1940

• US president Roosevelt invaded Morocco & Algeria for the experience and to aid Britain in the fight against Germany in Egypt.

• During El Alamein General Erwin Rommel who lead the German forces planned to trap US and British forces in between Tunisia and Libya

• US forces did not fare well up against German force causing 7,000 casualties and losing 200 tanks

• Luckily Both American and British Forces forced Germany to surrender in North Africa

• With confidence and persistency Hitler wanted to cut off supplies to Stalingrad which would keep the Soviets in the war

• Joseph Stalin ordered all troops to hold forcing German forces to the front lines

• Soviets surrounded 250,000 German troops

• 91,000 surrendered & only 5,000 survived

• One last desperate attempt by Hitler involved blocking supplies coming through Belgium

• Germany caught Americans surrounding them

• General Patton and troops saved the Americans by attacking German forces

• Germany lost the battle with 100,000 casualties

• President Roosevelt and Churchill planned the invasion of France which was lead by General Eisenhower

• The US forces were going to surprise Germany using rubber tanks,and dummy landing craft. This completely fooled Germany while they attacked through Normandy

• 100,000 soldiers by boat• 23,000 paratroopers

• Soviet troops began a massive attack on German Troops sending German forces back to Poland

• The Soviets had Germany by the Eastern border and America had attacked German forces by the Western border

• This crushed the German forces causing the suicide of Hitler

• The Surrender of Germany was on May 8th 1945

Lightning War

• The alliance of Britain, France and Poland had more soldiers and more infantry division than Germany.

• Each German division had superior firepower- more machine guns, artillery and other weapons.

• German practiced a new form of attack that they unveiled in the invasion of Poland.

• Called blitzkrieg, this new military tactic included a fast, concentrated air and land attack that took the enemy’s army by surprise.

• Using the blitzkrieg tactic, German troops overran Poland in less than a month.

• They imposed German laws, and imprisoned and murdered Jewish citizens.

• Soviet forces joined the German attack. Stalin seized eastern Poland for the Soviet Union.

War in the West

• After Poland fell, the war entered a quiet period. The British and French held back their troops, fearing tremendous losses.

• The key defense for the French was the Maginot Line, a massive string of fortifications along France’s border with Germany.

Maginot Line

• Maginot Line provided housing for troops, recreational areas, and even air conditioning.

• The two major problems with this line was that it only protected part of France and all of its heavy guns pointed east, towards Germany.

Germany Attacks

• On April 9, 1940, Hitler began a successful attack on Denmark and Norway.

• The German army overran Luxembourg in a day.

• German motorized and made their way all the way into northern France.

Dunkirk

• The German drive west divided British and French troops into two pockets, one in the north and one in the south.

• In the face of Germany’s advance, French and British forces in the north retreated to the coastal city of Dunkirk.

• Braving merciless attacks by the Luftwaffe, about 900 vessels carried some 340,000 soldiers across the English to Great Britain (most heroic escape in history)

The Fall of France

• On June 10, the French government abandoned Paris.

• Italy declared war on France and Great Britain on the Same day.

• On June 14, German troops entered Paris and on June 22, France surrendered.

• According to the surrender terms, Germany occupied the northern 3/5 of France and the entire Atlantic Coast southward to Spain.

• Free France, a government in exile in London, continued the struggle against the German invaders from bases in Britain and colonies in Africa.

Battle of Britain

• “We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender” Churchill

• Britain’s large and well equipped navy stood between Hitler and England. German had to control the air to neutralize the standoff.

• Hitler turned to the Luftwaffe to destroy the British’s air defense.

• In Late August, a group of German bombers strayed off course and dropped their bombs on London. Two nights later British plans bombed Berlin.

Courageous Defense

• Britain’s Royal Air Force stoutly defended its homeland even though they were greatly outnumbered.

• In December 1940, German bombing of London started some 1500 fires, setting the center of the historic city ablaze.

• By the end of 1941, when the German air raids ended, some 20,000 Londoners had been killed and more than 70000 injured.

1. Look at the graphic to help organize your thoughts. Identify the effects of each of the early events of World War II that are listed below.

Hitler’s Lightning War 1

Section 1 Assessment

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Cause Effect

First blitzkrieg

Allies stranded at Dunkirk

British radar detects German aircraft

Lend-Lease Act

The fall of Poland

338,000 soldiers saved

British forces leave Western Europe.

British able to hold off German occupation

U.S. supplied Allies with war goods.

U.S. decision to favor the Allies

2. Great Britain and the Soviet city of Leningrad each fought off a German invasion. Other countries gave in to the Germans without much resistance. What factors do you think a country’s leaders consider when deciding whether to surrender or to fight? THINK ABOUT

Section


1 Assessment

• the country’s ability to fight • the costs of resisting • the costs of surrendering

ANSWERANSWER

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Section


1 Assessment

Ability to Fight: army large enough to fight the enemy, sufficient weapons

Costs of Resisting: major civilian and military deaths, destruction of property, economic chaos

Costs of Surrendering: enemy control of the government, repression of the population

Possible Responses:

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overview – britain in the second world war september 1, 1939 germany attacked poland world war ii...

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