16.1 Hitler’s Lightning

WarMs. BielefeldSpring 2012

Germany Sparks a New War in EuropeStalin signed 10 year

agreement: Non-Aggression Pact—with Germany saying they wouldn’t fight

Using a sudden mass attack, Germany overran much of Europe & North Africa

Hitler’s actions began World War II

Hitler calls for war against Poland.

Germany’s Lightning AttackSurprise attack on September 1, 1939

Blitzkrieg—lighting war

Used planes, tanks, & massive amounts of troops

Defeated Poland in 3 weeks

France and Britain declare war on September 3

Fast moving tanks headed for Poland

Soviets Make Their MoveSept. 17, 1939--

Stalin sent Soviet troops to occupy the Eastern half of Poland

Stalin then attacked Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Finland (Finland resisted)

A Phony WarAfter Poland fell, there was a 7 month stop in

fighting

French & British stationed troops along the Maginot Line—system of fortifications along France’s border with Germany

Nothing happened & referred to as a “phony war”

April 9, 1940—Hitler launched a surprise attackDenmark fell in hoursNorway fell in two months

Germany began to build bases along the coast to launch strikes on Britain

Maginot Line

The Fall of FranceHitler sends tanks through the Ardennes—heavily

wooded area in Northern France, Luxm., & BelgiumGermans squeeze between the Maginot Line &

moved across France

June 22, 1940—France surrenders

Rescue at DunkirkGermans trapped Allied forces around the Northern

French city of LilleAllies retreated to the beaches of Dunkirk, French

PortGreat Britain set out to rescue the ArmyShips crossed the English Channel & carried 338,000

soldiers to safety

British troops on the beaches of Dunkirk

Rescue at

Dunkirk

British soldiers aboard ship during mass evacuation at Dunkirk

A Belgian mother & her children

The Fall of France Cont.Resistance in France crumbles after

DunkirkGermans take ParisFrench leaders surrenderGermans take N. France & leave S. France

to a puppet government called Vichy FranceCharles de Gaulle—French general set up

exile gov’t in London & commits to taking back FranceWill battle Nazi’s until France was liberated in

1944

German troops in Paris

French surrender to Germany, June 22, 1940

The Battle of BritainBritain stood alone against the Nazis

Winston Churchill—new Prime Minister of BritainHitler wanted to destroy R.A.F.—Royal Air Force,

then land troopsLuftwaffe—German air force, began bombingBritish fight back

Technological advances help BritainRadar—could tell #, speed, & direction of

LuftwaffeEnigma—decoded German messagesStunned by British resistance, Hitler calls off the

attack

Key to this battle: Hitler could be defeatedR.A.F. pilots

Luftwaffe MC-202 Trainer

R.A.F. Pilots

Radar

The Enigma

The Eastern Front & MediterraneanHitler turned attention to the

Mediterranean, Balkans, and USSR

Axis forces attack N. Africa Mussolini orders attack on EgyptSuez Canal was key to oil in Middle East

Britain strikes backHitler sends in Afrika Korps—German tank

forces led by Erwin Rommel—later called the Desert Fox for his success

German tanks move into Greece

Erwin Rommel The Desert Fox

War in the BalkansHitler was planning to attack USSR from the

BalkansHitler persuaded Bulgaria, Romania, & Hungary

to join the Axis

June 22, 1941—Germany invades the USSROperation Barbarossa—plan to invade the USSRTried to starve out LeningradWinter stopped them as they pushed toward

MoscowGermans retreatHitler will gain nothing but 500,000 German

deaths

German tanks roll into the USSR

Harsh WinterConditions

U.S. Aids AlliesDespite isolation, Congress passed Lend-

Lease ActU.S. would sell goods & weapons to our alliesEnriched U.S. economyU.S. called the “Arsenal of Democracy”

German U-boats attacked ships

FDR & Churchill passed the Atlantic CharterUpheld free trade, right to choose own gov’tU.S. in undeclared naval war with HitlerPost-WWII peace plan

Tank headed to the Allies