World War IIWorld War IIWorld War IIWorld War II

Chapter 32Chapter 32

I. Hitler’s Lightening War• Nonaggression Pact – Secret

treaty signed between Hitler and Stalin

• Agreed that they would divide Poland• September 1, 1939 – Germany

invaded Poland starting World War II

Signing of the Nonaggression Pact

Nazi Rally

Two Sides•Allied Powers – Great Britain, France, United States, and Soviet Union

•Axis Powers – Germany, Italy, and Japan

A. Lightening War• September 3, 1939 – To Hitler’s

surprise France and Britain declare war

• Blitzkrieg – “Lightening War” - Surprise attacks with fast-moving airplanes followed by massive attacks with infantry forces

B. Phony War• September 17, 1939 – Stalin

invades Poland and helps the Germans to a quick victory

• Sitzkrieg – Phony war in which the Allies waited for Germany to attack

• 1940 – Phony war ends when Hitler invades Norway

C. Fall of France

• Similar to WWI the Germans invaded France through Belgium

• Maginot Line – Defensive barrier along French and German border

• Germans were able to avoid invading alone the Maginot Line

Maginot Line

• June 14, 1940 – The fall of Paris

• June 22, 1940 – French leaders officially surrender to Germany

• Charles de Gaulle – French general who set up a government in exile in London

D. Battle of Britain • When France

surrendered only Great Britain stood against the Nazis

• Winston Churchill – British Prime Minister who vowed never to surrender

• Battle of Britain – Series of battles between German and British air forces, fought over Britain in 1940-1941

• Luftwaffe – German air force• Royal Air Force (RAF) – British

air force

The Blitz

• Operation Sea Lion – Hitler’s plan to invade Great Britain

• Two Reasons it Failed: – Radar – Electronic tracking system

developed by the British – Enigma – Machine used by the

British to decode German messages

E. Axis Forces Invade Africa• British resistance caused Hitler to

change his strategy• Mussolini and Hitler invaded North

Africa• Erwin Rommel (Desert Fox) – Helped

the Axis forces defeat the British forces in North Africa in 1942

Nazi Belt Buckle: “God is with us”

F. Hitler Invades the Soviet Union

• Operation Barbarossa – Hitler invaded the U.S.S.R. on June 22, 1941

• Soviet Union was not prepared for war

• Germany won many quick battles• Russians began to once again use

the scorched-earth strategy

• Battle of Leningrad – Nearly 1 million people die from 1941-1942 but the city refused to fall

• Instead of surrendering, the Russian winter set in

• Hitler gains nothing from invasion