Download Slide 1

U.S. Isolationism
1) The Great Depression shattered notions
of American imperialism as the country
returned to the isolationism that had
defined U.S. foreign policy during much
of the 19th Century (1800s).
U.S. Isolationism
4) Mired in the Depression,
many Americans now
viewed U.S. participation in
the First World War as a
catastrophic mistake. It
was obvious that the War
was a significant factor in
causing the Depression and
the rise of fascist dictators
only further proved that the
treaty of Versailles was a
colossal failure.
U.S. Isolationism
6) Reflecting America’s storm-cellar
isolationism, Congress passed the
Neutrality Acts to prevent U.S. involvement
in future European wars. The Act
stipulated that when the President declared
that there was foreign war, a series of
restrictions went into effect:
-No American could (A) legally sail on a
belligerent ship, (B) sell or transport war
supplies to belligerent nation, or (C) make
loans to a belligerent nation.
Causes of World War II
A) Aggression by the totalitarian powers of
Germany, Italy, Japan (the Axis Powers)
Causes of World War II
B) Nationalism – all of the Axis powers firmly
believed in the supremacy of their nation.
This attitude often fueled their acts of
conquest.
Causes of World War II
C) Failures of the Treaty of Versailles – the punitive nature
of the treaty humiliated Germany and made it
economically unstable. Growing poverty and
unemployment fueled an angry and vengeful form of
nationalism to grow in the ranks of the Nazi Party.
Causes of World War II
D) Weakness of the
League of Nations –
acts of military
conquest by Germany,
Italy, and Japan clearly
violated several
international treaties,
but the League failed to
take any significant
action against these
belligerents.
Causes of World War II
E) Appeasement – Britain and France adopted a
policy of “appeasement” in order to avoid
another war. Allowing Hitler and Mussolini to
expand their empires only further fueled their
aggression and desire for conquest.
Causes of World War II
F) U.S. isolationism – Many
Americans believed that
the Great Depression was
partially caused by U.S.
involvement in the First
World War. This led many
to support an “isolationist”
foreign policy that kept the
nation out of European
affairs. Much like Western
European appeasement
policies, U.S. isolationism
only gave Hitler and
Mussolini greater
confidence to further
expand their empires
without consequence.
Soviet Non-Aggression Pact
?
1) During the summer of 1939 the British
and French were desperately
negotiating with the Soviet Union in the
hopes of securing a mutual defense
treaty to halt Germany.
Soviet Non-Aggression Pact
2) In late August, the Soviet
dictator Joseph Stalin
shocked the Western
world by announcing a
non-aggression treaty
with Hitler. The two
dictators agreed to split
Poland and resolved not
to attack one another.
(They were not military
allies)
Soviet Non-Aggression Pact
3) Stalin believed that the non-aggression
pact protected the Soviet Union (Russia)
and ensured that Hitler would attack the
Western European democracies (Britain,
France, and others
Soviet Non-Aggression Pact
4) Stalin believed that the war between fascism
and democracy would leave all of Europe
vulnerable to the Soviet Communist state.
However, Stalin correctly suspected that
Hitler would eventually turn on him and the
non-aggression pact bought valuable time.
Soviet Non-Aggression Pact
5) When neighboring Poland refused to
return German territory that was taken
under the Treaty of Versailles, the Nazi war
machine blazed across the border at dawn
on September 1, 1939
Soviet Non-Aggression Pact
?
6) Britain and France were finally pushed over
the brink and were forced to declare war on
Germany. The Second World War had
finally begun. However, the allies were
powerless to aid Poland as it was besieged
by German forces in the west and Soviet
forces in the east.
The Fall of France
1) Defenseless Poland fell to Nazi and Soviet forces
after only three weeks of fighting in the fall of 1939.
German forces combined overwhelming force with
modernized military technology in order to quickly
overrun Polish defenses. This “Blitzkrieg” strategy
(German for “lightening war”) matched surprise
attack with a relentless pursuit that prevented
enemy forces from organizing an effective defense.
The Fall of France
2) The invasion of Poland led
British Naval forces to
blockade German ports. Once
again, British troops were
sent across the English
Channel in order to assist the
French forces on the
“Western Front.” This crisis
led the British to replace
Neville Chamberlin with
Winston Churchill as the
wartime Prime Minister.
Churchill’s popularity
stemmed from his previous
opposition to appeasement
policies and his support for a
more aggressive stance
against Hitler.
The Fall of France
5) The war resumed in April of 1940 when the Nazi warmachine crashed into Denmark, Norway, the
Netherlands, and Belgium. The fall of Belgium enabled
German forces to invade northern France and flank past
the Maginot Line. With the bulk of French forces
stationed along the German border, Hitler’s forces
quickly advanced along the coast and surrounded the
British and Belgian troops near the English Channel.
The Fall of France
The Fall of France
7) This evacuation left the
French to stand alone
against the Nazi warmachine. The French
military was extremely
unprepared for the “total
war” that was
perpetrated by the
German Blitzkrieg.
French cities were
destroyed and civilians
were explicitly targeted
by bombing raids. Paris
fell by June 14th and the
French government
resigned.
The Fall of France
8) Only Great Britain remained in
Hitler’s warpath across
Western Europe. Prime
Minister Winston Churchill
prepared his people for the
inevitable attack by declaring,
“the Battle of France is over. I
expect that the Battle of Britain is
about to begin…Let us therefore
brace ourselves to our duties,
and so bear ourselves that, if the
British Empire and its
Commonwealth last for a
thousand years, men will say,
‘This was their finest hour.’”
The Fall of France
6) The Axis Powers formed in September
of 1940 when Japan joined the fascist
alliance between Germany and Italy.
The Lend Lease Act
1) The Battle of Britain represented the series
of bombings and intense air battles
between the German Luftwaffe and the
British Royal Air Force (RAF) between
August 1940 and May 1941.
The Lend Lease Act
2) Hitler believed that an invasion of the British
Isles would be unsuccessful without gaining
air superiority over the RAF. The German
Luftwaffe continuously bombed England for
over nine months in an attempt to eliminate the
RAF and to terrorize the civilian population.
The Lend Lease Act
4) Continual German
bombings forced
British civilians to seek
refuge in their storm
cellars, basements, and
newly constructed
bomb shelters.
Thousands of civilians
in London descended
into the subways for
protection as their city
burned above.
The Lend Lease Act
6) The Lend Lease Act was passed by Congress in
March 1941 to “lend” unlimited U.S. war supplies
to the British on the condition that they would be
returned after the war. Roosevelt compared it to
“lending a garden hose to a next-door neighbor
whose house is on fire.”
The Lend Lease Act
7) Roosevelt tried to calm the fears of isolationists
by claiming that the United States would be,
“the Great Arsenal of Democracy,” and that we
intended to “send guns, not sons.”
The Lend Lease Act
8) However, this
strongly represented
an economic
declaration of war
against the Axis
powers of Germany,
Italy, and Japan.