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WW2 World War II: the events German victory in Europe by 1941 Blitzkrieg against Poland Germany attacked Poland on 1st September 1939 from the wat, and on 17th September Russia invaded from the east, as agreed in Nazi-Soviet Pact. Since Britain and France could not help, Poland was swiftly defeated when Germany attacked with overwhelming force and speed - "Blitzkrieg". Poland surrendered on 3rd October. There was now a pause, "the Phoney War" during the winter of 1939-1940, while each side prepared and waited for the other to move first. Germany turns west Germany turns west The invasion of Denmark and Norway by Germany was so quick in April 1940 that British expedition to Norway was unable to establish itself. Norwegian forces had not been mobilised, while the German invasion was helped by Norwegian Nazis, led by Viktor Quisling, Defeat there led to the replacement of British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain by Winston Churchill in May 1940. Holland, Belgium and France were attacked on 10th May. The decisive German advance through the Ardennes and rounds the north of Maginot Line cut off British and French forces, forcing the retreat of 340.000 soldiers to Dunkirk. There, by a miracle, 300.000 troops were evacuated to Britain by the Royal Navy, with the help pf about 700 small merchant ships and pleasure craft ("the little ships") of Dunkirk. The rescue was organised by Vice Admiral Bertram Ramsay in Operation Dynamo. Dunkirk was a defeat because the British Expeditionary Force was prevented from helping the French army against the German advance, but Winston Churchill created a propaganda victory, rallying Britain to show the "Dunkirk Spirit". France surrendered in June 1940, leaving Britain isolated in Western Europe (Spain remained neutral). Adapted from Alan Scadding, GCSE Success – History, Letts, pgg.58 - 64 1 WW2 The success of Bliztkrieg "Blitzkrieg" was a development of British tactics at the end of the First World War in which armour and troops advanced together, with air cover. German generals refined the method, both by taking infantry forward in troop carriers and by using para-troops to take the objectives from the air. The result was such as a fast advance that resistance could not be successfully organised. The significance of British survival The battle of Britain, July-September 1941 In order to invade Britain, Hitler needed to send a fleet of barges across the Channel (Operation Sea-lion). First he had to win air power. The battle of Britain was fought for air dominance, as the Luftwaffe changed its focus from attacking convoys in the Channel to attacking airfields and then factories. Although German losses were heavier than British, Hitler did not realise the seriousness of the damage inflicted on airfields in South-East England and the shortage of planes and pilots. He switched tactics to bombing London and other large cities, allowing the RAF to recover its effectiveness. By the time the German plans of invasion were abandoned, Germany had lost 1.389 planes; Britain had lost 792. Reasons for British victory: • • • • Spitfires and Hurricanes were more manoeuvrable than German Messerschmitts. German fighters only had fuel for a few minutes over Britain, whereas Britain fighters could spend as long as they needed in the air. Britain used radar to concentrate defenders onto attacking German planes. The German failed to target the vital radar stations. Hitler and Goering failed to push home the attack on the RAF. If they had not changed their focus, they would have succeeded. British factories produced more planes while British pilots showed tremendous bravery in aerial combat. The battle of the Atlantic Just as in the First World War, Britain depended on food, raw materials and oil from the USA. The creation of the "special relationship", in 1940 by Churchill and Roosevelt was of historic significance. Germany, therefore, focused her efforts on using U-boats to sink 150 British merchant ships every month of a year, which they thought was sufficient to defeat Britain. In 1942 losses of British merchant ships were very heavy, averaging about 140 each month, but later the success of the U-boats declined and Germany lost the battle of Atlantic. Reasons for British victory: • • • Merchant ships were convoyed by warships The Allies built merchant ships faster that the German could sink them British warships and aircraft began to use radar while German Enigma codes were broken, letting British code breakers at Bletchey Park track the German "wolfpacks". Over 750 U-boats had been sunk by the end of the war Adapted from Alan Scadding, GCSE Success – History, Letts, pgg.58 - 64 2 WW2 Victory in Africa: a turning point in the War? Yugoslavia and Greece 1940 Hitler attacked Yugoslavia in 1940 and, when an Italian attack on Greece was repulsed, he sent in German troops. British and Allied troops were overrun, making a last stand in Crete, which was captured by German parachutists in June 1940. The significance of campaign was that it delayed the German invasion of Russia, which would now take place in the winter. North Africa 1940-1943 Mussolini invaded Egypt from Libya in 1940 but was repulsed by British and Empire troops. Hitler then sent General Erwin Rommel, whose panzer army pushed the British army deep into Egypt, threatening the Suez Canal and the Gulf oilfields. Under a new commander, General Montgomery, and with new equipment from the USA, the 8th Army turned the tide at the battle of El Alamein, pushing the Germans deep into Libya. An Allied landing in Algeria then led to a complete victory in Africa. In 1943 the British and US forces invaded Italy from North Africa: El Alamein had been an important turning point. The invasion of the Soviet Union: the decisive turning point in Europe Operation Barbarossa Hitler had always intended to invade the Soviet Union in order to gain "Living Space" for the German people, to destroy communism and to take resources such as wheat, coal and oil. Hitler launched Operation Barbarossa in June 1941, taking Russian forces by surprise and striking deep into Soviet territory. But when the winter of 1941-1942 struck, German troops were ill-equipped for sub-zero. They only had summer clothing and were without the fuel additives to keep tanks and lorries moving. Their advance ground to a halt at Leningrad and Moscow. In 1943 they failed to take Stalingrad, where they had to endure another winter. The 100.000 men of von Paulus's army at Stalingrad surrendered to Soviet forces in January 1943. This decisive victory was the real turning point of the war in Europe. Soviet forces then began their long advance, beating the German Panzer Army at the battle of Kursk in July 1943, and diving German forces out of Russia by June 1944 (at the cost of over 20 million deaths) Adapted from Alan Scadding, GCSE Success – History, Letts, pgg.58 - 64 3 WW2 Reasons for German defeat • • • • The fatal delay in launching Operation Barbarossa occurred because of the resistance to the invasion of Greece. The harsh winters halted German advances allowing Soviet resistance to regroup. The Soviet "scorched earth" policy, destroying everything in the part of the advancing Germans, put huge strain on German supplies, which had to be transported over immense distances. Soviet armies and the Soviet people showed heroic resistance, especially at the sieges of Leningrad and Stalingrad. Concentration of Soviet Union by Germany was a fatal error. Three quarters of German forces were used there, which gave the chance for the Allies to regroup for invasion of Europe in the West Adapted from Alan Scadding, GCSE Success – History, Letts, pgg.58 - 64 4 WW2 The USA and the war with Japan Japanese rivalry with the USA Japan started her invasion to China in 1931 and had taken the coastline by 1940. In 1941 she invaded Indo-China seeking coal, oil, tin and other supplies. At home the Japanese army was virtually in control, and Japan had allied with Germany in 1936. The USA had important links with China and in 1941 demanded that Japan should withdraw from China and Indo-China. She also imposed sanctions on Japan, the most damaging of which was a ban on oil exports, on which Japan depended. Pearl Harbor Japan was not prepared to agree to USA demands and instead planned a pre-emptive strike on Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. This attack, on 7th December 1941, sank most of the US Pacific Fleet, destroyed 120 aircraft and killed 2.400 Americans. The US aircraft carries, however, had put to sea and were saved. The result were decisive, because the US was forced into war with Japan; furthermore, Germany and Italy declared war on the USA the following day, connecting the wars in Europe and in the Pacific. Turning point in the Pacific At first, Japan continued to make advances in 1941, taking Philippines, Malaya, Singapore and parts of Burma. In 1942 the tide turned when, at the battle of Midway Island, the US fleet sank four Japanese aircraft carriers, leaving the Japanese position in the Pacific seriously weakened. US victory over Japan During 1943, US forces captured one Pacific island after another, despite heavy casualties. In June 1944, British and Indian troops defeated Japan in Burma. From 1944-1945, US forces retook Philippines. The next objective was Japan itself, but it was obvious that a land invasion would be very costly since Japanese resistance was expected to be particularly fierce. Instead Harry Truman, the new American president, decided to use the Atom Bomb. In early August, bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The bomb on Hiroshima caused about 70.000 deaths within minutes of the blast and on 14th August 1945, Japan surrendered. Adapted from Alan Scadding, GCSE Success – History, Letts, pgg.58 - 64 5 WW2 The defeat of Germany D-Day 6th June 1944 Germany was fully committed to the war in the Soviet Union and so had provided the chance for British, French and American forces to regroup in Britain. From July 1943 British and American troops were advancing north in Italy where German troops had taken over the defence: in April 1945 Italy would fall. The Allies concentrated overwhelming force in Southern Britain ready to invade France, with over 3 million British, Canadian and American troops and 5.000 ships. They were equipped with "mulberry" harbours and the Pluto fuel pipeline to ensure supply across the Channel. Meanwhile control of the skies had been assured to protect the invasion. The landings were on five beaches on a 60-miles stretch of the Normandy coast. German resistance was strong and casualties high. The advance on Germany After long and bloody fights on 25th August 1944 Paris felt to Allies; then Belgium and France were freed on next September. In winter 1944, the battle of the Bulge, a German counter-attack, momentarily turned the tide at the cost of 240.000 German casualties and 600 tanks. However, the Allies invaded German in spring 1945: while the Allies were entering in Germany, the Soviet troops attacked Berlin; on 30th April 1945 Hitler shot himself. The VE-Day (Victory in Europe Day) was celebrated on 7th May 1945. Reasons for victory over Germany: • • • • • The continued resistance of Britain opened Germany to war on two fronts and allowed the USA to enter the war in Europe By attacking the Soviet Union, Hitler made a serious mistake. Most historians see the failure in Russia as the decisive turning point in Europe. Italian failure in Southern Europe and Africa further overstretched Germany resources in Greece, Africa and Italy. The entry of the USA into the war in Europe changed the balance of the war. The war continued too long exhausting German and Italian resources, while the Allies gained support from US resources. Adapted from Alan Scadding, GCSE Success – History, Letts, pgg.58 - 64 6