World

War
II
By: Mr. McCaskill
LRMS Raleigh, NC

The Road
to
War:
1919-1939

Good Times, Bad Times

During the 1920s, the USA was the
richest country in the world.
The good times ended in 1929 when
thousands of people were in a
financial disaster known as the Wall
Street Crash.
After the Wall Street Crash, banks
and businesses failed and millions of
people lost their jobs.
This period is known as the Great

The Depression
The Depression in the US effected
the entire worlds economy.
In Japan, the Japanese attacked
China in order to obtain resources
(Manchurian Crisis).
In Germany the people were
desperate, and turned to the
National Socialist Workers Party.
This was the Nazi Party led by Adolf
Hitler.

New Hope
Hitler persuaded people that their
problems were caused by foreigners,
(especially Jews).
He believed that the Germans were
superior to other races, and said he
would make Germany powerful
again.
In 1933 Hitler became the head of
the government.

Nazi Germany
Once Hitler was in power, he banned
all political parties except the Nazi
Party.
He took control of all newspapers
and radio, and forced schools and
universities to teach Nazi ideas.
Anyone who disagreed with the Nazis
was arrested by Gestapo (the secret
police).

Fascism
Germany became a fascist state.
Fascism- A government marked by
centralization of authority under a
dictator and suppression of
opposition through terror and
censorship, and typically a policy of
nationalism and racism

Europe at War
Hitler planned to create an empire
made up of all German-speaking
people.
Hitler attacked the German-speaking
part of Czechoslovakia.
Britain & France wanted to avoid war
with Germany, so they agreed to let
Hitler invade Czechoslovakia.

The
War
Begins!

The War Begins

On September 1, 1939, Hitler
invaded Poland.
Britain & France agreed to help
Poland, so they declared war on
Germany.
Italy later joined the war on
Germanys side.
Together, Germany and Italy were
known as the Axis Powers.

The European
Theaters

Europe Under Attack

Although war was declared, nothing
much happened for the first 6
months of war.
Then, in April 1940, Hitlers troops
attacked!
By June 1940, Hitler had taken over
most of Western Europe.

The Battle of Britain

Hitler planned to invade Britain, but
he knew he needed to destroy the
British Royal Air Force first.
From August to October 1940, British
and German planes fought.
The British had fewer planes but still
managed to win.

The Atlantic Charter

y Roosevelt and

Churchill sign
treaty of
friendship in
August 1941.
y Solidifies alliance.
y Fashioned after
Wilsons 14 Points.
y Calls for League of
Nations type
organization.

D-Day!
Things were beginning to go well for
the Allies.
On June 6, 1944 the Allies made a
surprise attack on the Germans in
France.
Thousands of Allied soldiers landed
on the beaches of Normandy.
Slowly they fought their way across
France, reaching Germany in
September.

The
Holocaust

The Holocaust
As the Allies advanced, they found
camps, where the Nazis had sent
Jews, gypsies and mentally ill.
As many as 15 million people may
have been killed by Nazis in these
camps.
This is known as the Holocaust.

VIDEO
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=xxZ9U8NHIWo

Victory in Europe

Meanwhile, Russian troops advanced

into Germany from the east.
In April 1945, they reached Berlin.
Hitler realized he was defeated and
killed himself on April 30, 1945.
The Germans surrendered 8 days
later and the war in Europe was over!

The
Pacific
Theater

The World At War

The USA supported Britain & the
USSR by sending weapons and tanks.
However, the US didnt get involved
in fighting.
All this changed on December 7,
1941, when the US was bombed by
Japanese planes at Pearl Harbor.

Allies vs. Axis

The USA declared war on the
Japanese the next day.
Hitler and Japan were allies so he
then declared war on the USA.

Potsdam Conference:
July, 1945
y FDR dead, Churchill out of office as Prime
Minister during conference.
y Stalin only original.
y The United States
has the A-bomb.
y Allies agree Germany
is to be divided into
occupation zones
y Poland moved
around to suit
P.M. Clement President
Joseph
Atlee
Truman
Stalin
the Soviets.

Hiroshima and Nagasaki

On August 6, 1945 the US dropped
the first ever atomic bomb on the
Japanese city of Hiroshima.
Despite the destruction, the Japanese
refused to give up!
Three days later, another bomb
destroyed the city of Nagasaki, and
the Japanese then surrendered.

Hiroshima August 6, 1945

Little Boy killed
70,000
immediately.
48,000 buildings.
destroyed.
100,000s died of
radiation poisoning &
cancer later.

Nagasaki August 9, 1945

Fat Man killed

40,000
immediately.
60,000 injured.
100,000s died of
radiation poisoning
& cancer later.