Download World War II Names to Know Path to War

World War II
Names to Know
 Benito Mussolini = Fascist dictator of Italy
 Adolf Hitler = dictator of Germany who led the fascist National Socialist German
Workers’ Party, or Nazi Party
 Joseph Stalin = dictator of Soviet Union; leader of the Communist government
 Hideki Tojo = dictator of Japan –former army general that became prime minister
 Hirohito = Emperor of Japan during WWII
 Francisco Franco – Fascist military leader who becomes the dictator of Spain
 Winston Churchill – Prime Minister of Great Britain during WWII
 Franklin Roosevelt – President of the United States during WWII
 Harry Truman – President of the U.S. who succeeded Roosevelt during WWII
Vocabulary
 Fascism = military government with extreme form of patriotism, nationalism, &
racism….a political philosophy that exalts nation and often race above the
individual … it advocates strict obedience to the state
 Appeasement = meeting the demands of a hostile power in order to avoid
conflict
 Blitzkrieg “lightning war” = German war tactic which uses speed and surprise to
overwhelm the enemy (use of planes, tanks, troops, etc.)
 Lend-Lease Act = allowed U.S. to lend or lease resources & equipment to the
Allies
 Imperialism = the policy of extending the power and influence of a nation over
foreign countries through military force or diplomatic means in order to
expropriate for their own enrichment the land, labor, raw materials, and markets of
another people.
Path to War
* Dictators were able to seize control of their governments because
countries were looking for a way out of financial ruin caused by WWI, the
Great Depression, and mass unemployment.
* The Treaty of Versailles which ended WWI did not resolve any of the issues
which caused WWI…in fact, it created more problems.
 The terms of the Versailles Treaty (WWI) made Germans and Italians resentful
and angry (the Germans because they felt the terms were too harsh, and the
Italians because they felt they didn’t get their “fair share”)
 In addition, the world economy fell apart in the 1920s because of the Great
Depression.
 Benito Mussolini of Italy, Adolf Hitler of Germany, Joseph Stalin of the Soviet
Union, and Hideki Tojo of Japan all became dictators of their countries.
 These dictators began to move aggressively into other territories to acquire
resources.
 There are attempts made by France and Great Britain to appease Hitler and
avoid another war.
 Italy invaded Ethiopia, Germany annexed Austria, remilitarized the Rhineland,
occupied Czechoslovakia; Japan invaded China and French Indochina.
 France and Great Britain warn that they will declare war if Germany invades
Poland….
 On Sept. 1, 1939, Germany invades Poland, and Great Britain & France declare
war on Germany … this is the beginning of World War II.
 France falls to the Germans in June of 1940…
 In the summer of 1940, the German Luftwaffe begins bombing London. The RAF
holds off the German Air Force, Britain refuses to surrender and Germany
eventually withdraws.
 The Germans invade the U.S.S.R. Stalin becomes an ally of Great Britain.
 Japan made an alliance with the Axis (Germany and Italy)… it becomes part of
the Axis Powers.
 Up until this point, the United States had tried to stay out of the war… (except
for sending aid to Great Britain and USSR to help in their war against Germany)
 On December 7, 1941, Japan attacked the U.S. Naval Base at Pearl Harbor
because the U.S. Navy blocked Japanese expansion in the Pacific and had
embargoed oil and other trade goods.
 The U.S. declares war on Japan on Dec. 8, 1941
 Three days later, Germany and Italy declare war on the U.S.
 The US is now brought in to WWII.
Axis
Germany
Italy
Japan
The European Theater: 1939-1945
Allies
United States
Great Britain
Soviet Union
The Pacific Theater: 1939-1945