3.1 War in Europe (1)

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• Leerjaar 3

For today

Causes en start of WW2

Goals

• In this paragraph you will learn why and how Hitler caused the war.
  
• In this paragraph you will learn how Germany expanded its power during the war.
  
• In this paragraph you will learn how Germany lost in Eastern Europe.
  
• In this paragraph you will learn how Germany lost in Western Europe.

What do you see here?

What do you see here?

German expansion

• 1938: Anschluss with Austria → Hitler pressured Austria to join Germany
  
• 1938: Hitler demanded the German-speaking region of Czechoslovakia
  
• Munich Agreement → Britain and France followed appeasement → Allowed Hitler to take Sudetenland in exchange for peace
  

What do you see here?

What was Hitler’s primary goal for expanding Germany?

1. To create a better economy
2. To acquire Lebensraum (living space)
3. To form alliances with other countries
4. To defeat the United States

Which policy did British Prime Minister Chamberlain use to try to avoid war with Germany?

1. Isolationism
2. Mobilization
3. Military alliances
4. Appeasement

What was the secret agreement between Germany and the Soviet Union in August 1939?

1. To divide Poland between them
2. To share economic resources
3. To support each other in war against the West
4. To form a military alliance

The Start of World War II

• Germany & Soviet Union → Non-aggression Pact (August 1939) → Secret deal to divide Poland, the Molotov Ribbentroppact
• Germany invades Poland (1 September 1939) → Poland defeated quickly
• Great Britain & France declare war (3 September 1939) → World War II begins

What do you see here?

What do you see here?

German Conquests & Expansion

• April 1940 → Germany invades Denmark & Norway
• May 1940 → Blitzkrieg in the West → Netherlands, Belgium, France
• Rotterdam bombed → Netherlands surrenders (15 May)
• Belgium falls after 18 days, France after 6 weeks
• Battle of Britain: Germany bombs cities, but Britain holds on under Churchill

What do you see here?

Operation Barbarossa

• June 1941 → Invades Soviet Union
  
• Reaches Moscow & Leningrad, but Red Army stops them
  
• Atrocities in the East → Mass killings, ethnic cleansing in Poland

What was the secret agreement in the Nazi-Soviet Pact of August 1939?

1. Germany and the Soviet Union would not attack each other for 10 years
2. Germany and the Soviet Union would divide Poland between them
3. The Soviet Union would help Germany invade France
4. Germany would help the Soviet Union conquer Finland

Why did the Netherlands surrender to Germany so quickly in May 1940?

1. The Dutch army was too weak to fight back
2. The Germans had already conquered all of Western Europe
3. The bombing of Rotterdam caused massive destruction and fear
4. The Netherlands had signed a peace treaty with Germany

Why did Hitler expect Great Britain to surrender in 1940?

1. Germany had already invaded and occupied London
2. The British navy was much weaker than the German navy
3. The Battle of Britain caused heavy losses for the British army
4. Germany had air superiority and bombed British cities in terror attacks

What was Hitler’s main reason for attacking the Soviet Union in June 1941?

1. He no longer wanted to follow the 1939 non-aggression pact
2. He needed Soviet resources to continue fighting in Western Europe
3. He wanted to help Italy defeat Greece and Yugoslavia
4. The Soviet Union attacked Germany first

How did the German war in Eastern Europe differ from the war in the West?

1. Germany fought more defensively in the East than in the West
2. The war in the East was more brutal, with mass killings and ethnic cleansing
3. The Soviet Union surrendered quickly, while Western countries resisted
4. Germany used fewer tanks and aircraft in the East than in the West