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World War Two Europe an Theatre How it Began 1. Invasion of Poland 1939 September 1, 1939 – WWII began with German invasion of Poland NAZIs used the “blitzkrieg” (“lightning warfare”) method Airplanes led attack to knock out key enemy positions Immediately followed by tank & motorized infantry attacks Attacking forces swept past enemy, then close in behind, thereby trapping them NAZIs swept through Poland, encountering little resistance http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gUjrnlMAtQ4 2. Declarations of War 1) France & Britain immediately declared war on Germany 2) Canada declared war one week later (September 10th) Parliament voted and decided to join war NOT automatic like in WWI Leaders in Quebec supported Canada’s entry into war based on PM King’s promise that conscription (compulsory military service) would never be required Western Front 19391943 3. The “Phony War” October 1939 – April 1940 Bad weather and indecision prevented Germany from attacking Western Europe after invasion of Poland Called “Phony War” even though war was in Czechoslovakia, Poland, and Finland ? 4. Continental Europe Falls May 1940-June, 1940 Germany took over Norway, Denmark, Belgium, and Holland Then German troops marched into France France surrendered June, 1940 German Occupation of France German Domination of Europe 5. Evacuation of Dunkirk - 1940 British & French troops retreated to the French beaches of Dunkirk on the English Channel after fall of Belgium = became trapped 5. Evacuation of Dunkirk – cont’ Approx. 900 ships sailed from England and rescued 340,000 soldiers from Dunkirk Evacuation significant because it: represented a moral victory for the Allies Saved the best British forces to fight later in the war http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tKB-ZkWelb0 Battle of Britain 6. Battle of Britain - 1940 Hitler used air attacks on Britain to prepare for an amphibious invasion (operating on land and water) Aims: destroy Royal Navy that patrolled English Channel and protected UK Destroy British fighter planes and factories Destroy morale of British people http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RVBO61qg-kc&feature=related 6. Battle of Britain – cont’ British Royal Air Force (RAF) and German Luftwaffe (air force) fought in airspace over Britain Individual Canadians served in the RAF German aircraft over London - 1940 6. Battle of Britain – cont’ Even though British outnumbered 1:3, had superior fighter planes and large advantage through use of radar Using radio waves, British could detect German bomber and fighter squadrons while they crossed the English Channel Also: Enigma – German cipher Machine could decode German messages http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4SPxbjV4inw 6. Battle of Britain – cont’ anti-aircraft night fire above several fighter planes 6. Battle of Britain – cont’ – “The Blitz” August 1940 – German bomber squadron got lost and accidentally bombed civilians in London In retaliation – British PM Churchill bombed German capital city of Berlin As a result – Hitler abandoned assault on RAF airfields and ordered daylight bombing raids on London – known as “the Blitz” This shift cost Hitler the Battle of Britain – allowed RAF chance to train new pilots and rebuild 6. Battle of Britain – cont’ – “The Blitz” 6. Battle of Britain – cont’ – August – September, 1940 – RAF able to regroup & win Battle of Britain Significance: 1st time Hitler denied conquest Protection of Britain provided Allies with springboard from which to launch invasion of Europe later in war Allied Reaction – Forming of “Bomber Command” Many Canadian pilots part of Royal Air Force (RAF) “Bomber Command” Mission: it was to set up an important force ready for strategic bombing against Germany 15 Canadian squadrons (from RCAF) were formed within Bomber Command in Great Britain, with British Commonwealth Air Training Plan (BCATP) graduates the first one was No 405 Squadron in April 1941 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LsKDGM5KTBY European Theatre of War 7. Battle of the Atlantic 1. Longest campaign of WWII Fought for control of shipping lanes between North America and Britain Germany’s goal: cut off all Allied supplies to Britain in hopes of starving Britain into submission 8. Battle of the Atlantic – cont’ 2. German U-Boats British, Canadian, and later, American navies committed to stopping German submarine terror “wolfpacks” – German groups of submarines operating out of ports of occupied countries http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TtUw_JnmYQ0 Even active in Canadian waters – sank 21 ships in St Lawrence River 8. Battle of the Atlantic – cont’ 3. Convoy System Allied merchant supply ships sailed surrounded by destroyers for protection against U-Boats Royal Canadian Navy provided much of the protection with small warships called corvettes Corvette destroyer 8. Battle of the Atlantic – cont’ 3. Convoy System – cont’ Eventually – Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) provided with long-range bombers that could cover convoys until their reached British airspace Development of sonar also helped Allies • Sonar – works much like radar works in air, but uses sound waves instead of radio waves. Sound bounces off subs, alerting Allies to their presence Sonar box on ship’s deck 8. Battle of the Atlantic – cont’ Depth Charges (explosives) By 1943, wolfpacks less effective as they suffered heavy damages from depth charges dropped by escort ships and bombs from Allied planes U-Boat attacked from the air • helped Allies win Battle of the Atlantic 8. Battle of the Atlantic – cont’ Canadian Navy Initially – RCN consisted of 13 ships & 3,000 soldiers By end of WWII – 370 ships & 100,000 personnel Over 2,000 members of RCN died in Battle of Atlantic Canadian Citizens – Merchant Marines Also played large role by manning freighters that transported materials to Europe Faced great danger as their ships were only lightly armed and were easy prey for German U-Boats Canadian Naval ship “Haida” 8. Dieppe - 1942 In early 1942 – war not going well for Allies Although time not right for full-scale Allied invasion on Western Front, small-scale invasion planned to serve as rehearsal for real invasion of Europe August, 1942 – 5,000 Canadian soldiers landed at Dieppe on coast of France 8. Dieppe – cont’ Objective – to take the beach and town of Dieppe back from Germans Upon arrival – soldiers mowed down on beach by German fire 8. Dieppe – cont’ By early afternoon: 900 Canadians dead or dying 1,000 wounded 1,900 taken prisoner More Canadian troops died in these few hours than on any other day of the Second World War Canadian Prisoners of War from Dieppe http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcNI92b6E98&feature=related 8. Dieppe – cont’ Why Dieppe Went Wrong 1. Lost Element of Surprise Secrecy required for effective attack – but part of the Allied flotilla of landing craft encountered an enemy convoy on the way and a noisy fight ensued - Germans were therefore prepared for attack 8. Dieppe – What went Wrong cont’ 2.No Aerial Bombardment At last minute, British decided to forgo a planned aerial bombardment of the Dieppe fortifications, which would have weakened the Germans for the attack 8. Dieppe – cont’ Why Canadian Troops at Dieppe? PM King looking for a diversion from the Conscription Crisis of 1942 Canadian Troops considered to be expendable by other Allied powers 8. Dieppe – cont’ Lessons Learned from Dieppe Taught Allies that heavy air and sea support would be required for any future invasions of France Many believe lessons learned helped save lives on beaches of Normandy during D-Day invasion North Africa 9. North Africa 1940 - 1942 Mussolini attacked Egypt Sept 1940 British forces resisted, led by General Montgomery German forces – led by General Rommel – supported Italians Battle of El Alamein – October, 1942 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UyoZQP5C-Q4 9. North Africa 1940 – 1942 – cont’ Battle of El Alamein - Turning point 1st time Allies had defeated the forces of the fascist countries Prevented the Germans from seizing the Suez Canal Denied Hitler important oil resources of Middle East Soon after – USA joined war – forced Germans into retreat & eventually defeated Eastern Front 19391945 10. Invasion of Soviet Union 1941 1) 2) Motives for invading the USSR: Lebensraum (living space) Part of Hitler’s racial program that stated “inferior” races should be conquered and enslaved so that the “superior” Germans had more living space Main target of this – Soviet Union because of its vast resources that Germany needed Ideology Hitler wanted to destroy his ideological rival - communism 10. Invasion of Soviet Union – cont’ Operation Barbarossa - June 1941 1) Hitler broke the NAZISoviet Pact to invade USSR 3 million German troops smashed into the USSR, catching them by surprise Moscow (capital city) 10. Invasion of Soviet Union – cont’ 2) Stalin’s response: “scorched earth policy” As the Red Army (Soviets) retreated, they destroyed everything – livestock, supplies, and machinery – so NAZIs would have nothing to use 3) By Christmas, 1941 – Germans stopped outside Stalingrad 11. Eastern Front 1942-1945 Harsh winter of USSR – took its toll on German forces Germans suffered huge losses Soviets launched attack to prove could fight through winter Spring – conflict continued along a 2,000 mile front 11. Eastern Front 1942-1945 – cont’ Battle of Stalingrad - 2nd Turning Point http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aEh9jlNG0nQ&feature=related Sept. 1942-Jan 1943 Hitler’s goal – to attack it because of its name & to get to the Caucasus oil fields Soviets captured or killed entire German army in area Huge boost to Allied morale After – Germans suffered defeat after defeat on eastern front Soviet forces moved closer to Berlin The Big Three: The Communist, the Democrat and the Imperialist Tehran Conference, Dec. 1943 Main Outcomes: • Opening of a Second Front • Churchill: Southern Europe • Stalin & FDR: W. Europe • Establishment of Polish borders • Stalin agrees to fight Japanese • Germany’s unconditional surrender Key: The conference establishes real, if tenuous, diplomatic relations between the West and Communist Russia. Stalin remained skeptical of the West, though he received Lend-Lease aid from the USA, for he suspected the Allies were content to let the Nazis and Soviets struggle to the death in the East. FDR and Churchill were unhappy about doing business with Stalin, but he was the lesser of two evils. Italian Campaign Italian Campaign By mid-1943 – Germans had been defeated in North Africa and were in retreat on Eastern Front Allied plan: to take island of Sicily, then Italy itself Crucial step in liberation of Europe Italian Campaign – cont’ 1. Landing on Sicily – July, 1943 Designed to: take pressure off Soviet Allies and divert Germans from Northwest Europe where attack on Normandy (re-invasion of Europe) was planned Canadians among Allied forces who used amphibious attack Captured Sicily in one month Italian Campaign – cont’ Sicily Invasion – cont’ Italian Campaign – cont’ 2) Taking Italy – Ortona - 1943 Allied troops invaded peninsula of Italy Canadian forces stopped by Germans at Ortona – vicious fighting occurred throughout December, 1943 Fought & won street by street, house by house Italian Campaign – cont’ Ortona – cont’ Italian Campaign – cont’ Ortona – cont’ Italian Campaign – cont’ Ortona – cont’ Italian Campaign – cont’ Germans finally driven back by FrenchCanadian unit – the Vandoos Canadian troops succeeded in breaking through last line of German defences before Rome Continued to free northern Italy in fall of 1944 Italian Campaign – cont’ Italy – some of toughest fighting in war April 1945 – Mussolini captured by Italian civilians Mussolini and mistress were hung and “displayed” for several days in the streets of Milan Normandy Landing & End of War 1) Normandy Landing – June 6, 1944 “Operation Overlord” (D-Day) Allied invasion of Germanheld Europe Planned to use naval and aerial bombardment to knock out German defences Over 1 year of preparation – most complex operation ever attempted Learned from mistakes at Dieppe Normandy Landing cont’ Largest Canadian military operation of WWII 14,000 Canadian soldiers 100 ships 36 bomber squadrons from Royal Canadian Air Force Canadians assigned 1 of 5 beachfront targets code- named JUNO – 8km of coastline Normandy Landing cont’ Within 1 week – over 300,000 Allied soldiers on shores of Normandy After 1 month – 1 million soldiers & 200,000 Allied military vehicles Created foothold in Europe from which Allies could push back the Germans Normandy Landing cont’ 5,000 Canadians killed at Normandy 200,000 Allied casualties German losses: 200,000 killed, wounded or missing 200,000 taken prisoner http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZgKo46X8CI 2. Liberation of Holland - 1945 Canadian troops distinguished themselves in a year of long, hard fighting with other Allies, pushing the Germans out of France & Western Europe May 5th, 1945 – Canadians drove NAZIS out of Holland Allowed Allies to continue towards Germany 2. Liberation of Holland – cont’ End of European War 3. Berlin – April 1945 American & Soviet forces met in Germany, south of Berlin Soviets – wanted to demolish the city 4. April 30, 1945 – Hitler committed suicide 5. May 8th, 1945 – V-E Day (Victory in Europe) – German troops surrendered V-E Day - 1945