Download The Path to War

Name _______________________________
Date ________________________________
Period _______________________________
The Path to War
Objectives
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After this section, we should be able to:
– Explain how World War II began, and how its roots lay in the results of World
War I
Japanese Expansion
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Japan was dependent on getting natural resources from outside to maintain its industrial
power
In September of 1931, the Japanese army invaded ______________________, in China
China protested the invasion to the _____________________________
– League of Nations conducted an investigation
– Place total blame on Japan; ordered the Japanese government to return Manchuria
Chinese Responses
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Japan withdrew from the League when ordered to return Manchuria
– The League did nothing in response, and revealed it to be powerless; Italy and
Germany felt encouraged
Japan invaded other parts of China in order to seize ____________________________,
so they could invade the oil-rich areas of the East Indies
The nationalist government under _____________________________ retreated inland
– Nationalists, communists, and the Japanese all struggled for control of China
Italian Expansionism
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In 1934, Italian and Ethiopian forces clashed in a disputed zone on the border of Ethiopia
and Italian _________________________________
– League of Nations: Nobody’s fault
October, 1935 – Mussolini ordered Italian forces to invade Ethiopia
Ethiopian president _______________________________________ appealed to the
League of Nations for help
The League of Nations imposed sanctions on Italy
– However, members could still trade _________, ___________, and ___________
to Italy – vital war materiel
Despite the sanctions, Italy was able to take over Ethiopia
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The Spanish Civil War
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In Spain, King Alfonso abdicated in 1930 – a republic was set up
Many right wing groups were opposed to the reforms of the republican government, and
wanted to restore the old ways
Spanish Nationalists (__________________________) under
______________________________ started a revolt against the Loyalist (republican)
government and battled for control of Spain
An International Conflict
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Many foreign nations intervened in this war
– ___________________________ – backed the Loyalists
– _______________ and _______________________ – supported the Nationalists
– Many volunteers from Britain, France, and the U.S. came to support that
Loyalists, as well
Hitler and _______________________________ saw this war as an opportunity to
support fascism in Europe and to test new weapons and tactics
– German air force participated in the war by bombing Spanish towns and cities
Franco defeated the Loyalist forces and set up a fascist government in Italy, but didn’t
ally with Hitler or Mussolini
German Expansionism
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Hitler had said that the German people needed _________________________________,
or living space
Since 1935, the Nazi government had been re-arming Germany, in defiance of the Treaty
of Versailles
– League of Nations gave a _________________________________
Encouraged by the League of Nation’s apparent timidity, Hitler decided to start
expanding
The Rhineland and Austria
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First, Hitler sent troops into the _______________________________, an area bordering
France which served as a buffer to a German invasion of France
– France could have declared war, and Britain would have had to back them, but
they did not
Hitler turned to ______________________________
– Austria’s prime minister resisted unification
Hitler’s troops invaded Austria in 1938 and Hitler proclaimed an anschluss, or linking of
the two nations
Hitler insisted he was promoting ____________________________ in central Europe
The Axis Powers
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In October of 1936, Hitler and Mussolini agreed to the ___________________________
Later, both nations joined with Japan in the Comintern Pact, which was an alliance
against Soviet communism
Josef Stalin viewed this as a direct threat to the Soviet Union
– He urged the ________________________________ to unite against Hitler
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– The western democracies wanted to avoid a war, and distrusted Stalin, so they
didn’t
Czechoslovakia
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Since World War I, Czechoslovakia had been prosperous and democratic
– Was created by the Treaty of Versailles
– Had alliances with ________________ and ______________________
The country had many different ethnic groups that didn’t always get along
Hitler would take advantage of these divisions to take over Czechoslovakia
The Sudeten Crisis
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On September 12, 1938, Hitler demanded that Germans in the Sudetenland, in
Czechoslovakia, be given the right to self-determination
Czechoslovakia responded by declaring _______________________
To avoid a crisis, Prime Minister _________________________________ of Great
Britain asked for a meeting with Hitler
Appeasement at Munich
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At the meeting, Hitler demanded that the Sudetenland become part of Germany so that
the Sudeten Germans there could be protected
Chamberlain adopted a policy of __________________________, which sought to give
small concessions in order to avoid war
Hitler also promised to respect the ____________________________ of Czechoslovakia
Chamberlain supported the eventual _________________________________, which
granted the Sudetenland to Germany
Chamberlain felt that he’d won a victory for peace
Continued Aggression
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Germany quickly broke the Munich agreement by invading Czechoslovakia in March of
1939
Hitler forced ___________________________ to give up the German-speaking town of
Memel
Next, he demanded the _______________________ and the city of ________________
from Poland
Poland refused to hand these over to Germany, and France and Britain promised to back
Poland
Stalin’s Distrust
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Stalin suspected that the Munich agreement was an attempt by the western democracies
to turn Hitler’s attention away from them, and toward the Soviet Union
Chamberlain didn’t trust Stalin
The western democracies seemed unable to decided who was the bigger threat –
________________ or _____________________________
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Soviet-West Relations
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Chamberlain did ask Stalin to join Britain and France in an ____________________
against Nazism
Stalin agreed, but only if the western democracies would allow Stalin to occupy a large
part of eastern Europe – Chamberlain refused
Stalin suspected, even more, that the West wanted to see Germany and the Soviet Union
fight each other
Non-Aggression Pact
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Stalin knew that Hitler’s _______________________________ would lead to him taking
land near the Soviet Union
He began talks with Germany to avoid this war, or at least put it off
August 23, 1939 – the Soviet Union and Germany signed the
__________________________________________________________________
– Would never attack each other
– Each would remain neutral if the other was involved in a war
– Spheres of influence for each nation
An Unholy Alliance
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Both leaders knew that this was a short-term agreement to achieve their immediate aims
Stalin thought war with Germany was inevitable
– If nothing else, it would buy time for the Soviet Union to prepare to fight
Germany
Western leaders were shocked by the agreement – an unholy alliance
World War II Begins
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Hitler believed that the western democracies would back down if he invaded
______________________________
September 1, 1939 – Germany invaded Poland and won a quick victory
Great Britain and France declared war on Germany
World War II had begun
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