Download WWII - Outbreak of War (Poland & France).

World War II Begins:
The Invasion of Poland
to the Fall of France
The Gathering Storm
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Failure of appeasement
Repeated gambles by Hitler had paid off
Nazi-Soviet Pact
Germany still not fully prepared but
opposition even less prepared
• Hitler confident in German blitzkrieg
Hitler’s Gamble
• Hitler believed that Britain wanted to (and
would) avoid war
• Less likely that France would declare war if
left alone to fight
• Hitler gambled that the invasion of Poland
would produce many complaints but little
action
Invasion of Poland
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4:45am on September 1st, 1939
62 German divisions pour into Poland
1,300 aircraft in support
Polish forces all but defeated within 2-3 weeks
Soviet invasion in East made things worse
Poland completely occupied in just over a month
However…Britain and France refused to accept
Hitler’s offers for peace
The Phoney War
• War declared…but no major conflicts on the
continent
• “Sitzkrieg”, “Bore War”, “drôle de guerre”
• Maginot Line stand-off
• Winter War (USSR vs Finland)
• German occupation of Norway & Denmark
• May 10/40 – Invasion of Benelux countries ends
Phoney War (Winston Churchill becomes British
PM on same day)
Nazi Blitzkrieg
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“lightning war”
Significant departure from WWI attrition
Weak spots identified and attacked by surprise
Required highly-mobile fighting force
Enemy communications, command centres,
supplies & defenses bombed/shelled
• Slower enemy forces would normally huddle
together to defend
• Emphasis on confusing & demoralizing the enemy
• Infantry would then surround enemy forces
Blitzkrieg (continued)
• Ran the risk of over-extending supply lines
• Worked best against stationary defences
• Required multiple types of forces to work in
unison
• “Get there the fastest with the mostest.”
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8gMB
ZCM--Q
Fall of France
• May 10/40 – Nazis begin sweep through
Low Countries and into France
• French feared repeat of Schlieffen Plan
• Best French forces amassed on Belgian
border
• Germans fake invasion through Belgium
• Surprise attack comes through the Ardennes
(splitting French forces in two)
Newsreel on the Fall of France
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=eJ74HakQZTo
&feature=endscreen
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How did the Germans succeed in taking France?
What mistake did the French and British forces make?
Could they have done anything differently to save France?
What do you think was the prevailing attitude among the
Allies after the fall of France? Why?
Miracle at Dunkirk (May 22
nd-June
3rd, 1940)
• Within a week of the German invasion, the
French government was preparing to
evacuate & capitulate
• French & British forces (BEF) surrounded
at Dunkirk
• Hitler orders forces to stop (to let Luftwaffe
finish Allies off)
• Allies only expected (and planned for)
evacuation of 30,000-50,000
Dunkirk (continued)
• Halt of German forces permitted over 300,000
troops to escape (200,000 Brits, 140,000 French)
• Everything was used to evacuate troops – military
and civilian vessels (“little ships”)
• RAF helped to protect vulnerable troops on the
beaches
• Left behind 2,472 guns, 84,427 vehicles of all
kinds and 657,000 tons of ammunition
Newsreel of Dunkirk
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SSoDLf
QKhGI
• What attitude does the announcer seem to
have towards the escape from Dunkirk?
• Why would this event have been presented
in this light?
• What do you think is not being said in this
video?
Fall of France
• Following Dunkirk, Germany quickly
conquered the rest of France
• Nazis occupy Paris by June 14th
• France officially surrenders on June 25th,
1940
Fall of France
• 3/5 of France occupied by Germany
• Armistice signed in WWI railway car
• Lower portion reorganized & administered by
collaborationist French (dubbed “Vichy France”)
• Invasion cost Germany approximately 150,000
casualties
• Allies suffered over 2,250,000 casualties (most as
prisoners of war)
Continental Europe, 1940
• Conquered nations: Poland, Denmark,
Norway, Netherlands, Belgium,
Luxembourg, France
• Soviet expansion in East
• Plans for Operation Sea Lion being
developed
• Battle of Britain about to begin
• British Commonwealth stands alone