Download Introduction to World War II for Cumberland 7th Graders

Introduction to World War II for Cumberland 7th Graders
by Joe Waite, rough draft 2013
Chapter I: Causes
There are many historians and others who argue that
World War I and World War II were one and the same
events...that is that World War I never really ended and
just continued on because none of the problems that
causes by World War I were ever solved.
After Germany
sued for peace,
France felt that
Germany should
be punished
because they felt
that Germany
not only caused
the Great War
but that since all
of the fighting was in France and Belgium, Germany
should be forced to pay money and land to France.
The 1919 Treaty of Versailles (because it happened at
our old friend Louis’ XIV’s palace of Versailles) said
that Germany would have to give up 13% of it’s land to
France, Belgium, Poland, and Czechoslovakia and pay
$440 billion in today’s money, mostly to France.
This crippled Germany. Because Germany had to pay
these huge fines, Germany unemployment, homelessness, and other bad things that happen to a country
because they have no money all happened by 1920. A
country that is in economic hard times is said to be in a
Depression.
Anyway, Germany was being kept afloat by American
banks for the time being but times were still awful for
the German citizen in the mid 1920’s.
In 1921, a young war veteran named Adolf Hitler was
invited to join what would become the National Socialist Party, the Nazi Party, and by 1923, he became one of
their biggest leaders.
Hitler tried to take over power in the German city of
Munich in 1923 but he was arrested. He and his men
were thought of as thugs by most Germans. Though
sentenced to jail for eight years, he served only nine
months.
During this time he wrote a book called Mein Kampf,
which means My Struggle in English. A lot o Germans would be forced to read this book for the next
22 years.
Sadly, life in Germany for most Germans continued to
stink. As their lives got worse, more and more Germans started turning to radical political parties, like
the Nazis.
In 1929, the American banks had collapsed and not
only was there widespread poverty in America caused
by this Great Depression, it affected the entire world.
Remember that American banks had helped keep
Germany afloat. Now that those banks had no money,
the German economy completely fell apart.
Hitler blamed Germany’s problems on the Treaty
of Versailles, communists, like those in the Soviet
Union, trade unions, and Jews. Germany had suffered a 41% drop in production from her factories and
her unemployment rate had increased 230%. Times
were no truly terrible for most Germans and many of
them started listening to Hitler’s radical ideas on how
to fix Germany’s economic problems.
Hitler had been raised a racist. He believed that the
Jewish people were corrupt and stole from Germany.
Most people who started listening to Hitler ignored
what he said about the Jews because they liked some
of the other things he was saying.
He said that Germany should stop paying France the
money they owed because of the Treaty of Versailles,
that Germany should rearm and begin a new militaristic movement, that German nationalism should be
reborn.
By 1932, the Nazi Party had become the second largest party in Germany. The communists were third.
In 1933, the Chancellor of Germany made Hitler
President.
left: The Treaty of Versailles did many things
and punished Germany in many ways.
By 1934, Hitler and the Nazis had complete control of Germany and banned free elections.
Under Hitler, Germany did indeed have an
economic recovery. As Hitler secretly rebuilt
his army, navy, and air force, many jobs were
created because he needed factory workers to
build tanks, trucks, ships, and planes. Many
more young Germans joined the army, navy, and
luftwaffe, the German air force.
France and Britain wanted to avoid war at all
costs, so when Hitler started invading territories
and countries around Germany, they sat put.
had to stop.
Hitler first took back the Rhineland, an area of
Germany that had belonged to France because
of the Treaty of Versailles. He then took back
Alsace and Lorraine, two French provinces that
Germany had to give up after World War I. He
then sent troops into Austria an took over that
country in a single day. He, an Austrian himself,
said that Austria had invited Germany to invade
and that he was just helping out. After he took
over an area of Czechoslovakia called the Sudetenland, Britain and France finally told him he
The Prime Minister of Britain, Chamberlain, met with Hitler. Hitler promised Chamberlain that he would take
no more land if he could just have the rest of Czechoslovakia. Chamberlain believed this lie and even said, “I
have secured peace for our time.”
As it became more obvious that Germany was preparing to invade Poland, the English and French had finally
had enough. But it was too late. By this time, Germany had conquered huge chunks of land without firing a
shot. This entire episode is called appeasement, which more or less means to give in to somebody’s demands.
Germany attacked Poland on September 1st, 1939. Britain and France declared war on Germany shortly after
that. World War II in Europe had begun.
What were the causes of World War II? The Treaty of Versailles put such huge penalties on Germany that the
German economy suffered. German resentment toward this and losing the Great War caused the rise of Adolf
Hitler, who said Germany could only be great again increasing German militarism and industrialization. He
blamed communists and Jews for ruining Germany from within. He promoted German nationalism. As he delivered on his promises of rebuilding Germany, most Germans turned a blind eye to the increasing persecution
of Jews.
Little did they know at the time that he would lead their country to complete destruction.
Germany lost all
her colonies, 1919.
Given to Denmark, 1919
Given to Belgium,
1919
Poland was given a corridor
to the Baltic Sea, cutting
Germany in two.
French
controlled.
Posen--rich farmland given to Pol.
Saar: Rich in
coal, given to
France for 15
years.
Given to France, 1919
Germany forbidden to
unite Austria.
Chapter I Review
1. ______________________
What treaty ended World War I and punished Germany?
2. ______________________
What was the short name of the German National Socialist
Party?
3. ______________________
When a country suffers an economic downturn, what is that
called?
4. ______________________
Hitler was arrested in this German city after trying to take over
power. What city was it?
5. ______________________
While in prison, he wrote a book. What was it called?
6. ______________________
In what year did Hitler take over the Presidency of Germany?
7. ______________________
What ethnic group did Hitler blame for Germany’s problems?
8. ______________________
What political party did Hitler blame for Germany’s problems?
9. ______________________
Hitler made Germans feel good about being German again.
What term describes this?
10. _____________________
Hitler rebuilt his army, navy, and air force. What term
describes this?
11. _____________________
What term describes the giving away of countries in the return
for a promise for peace from Hitler?
12. _____________________
On the map above, trace Germany’s 1914 border with a
sharpie or something.