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End of WWI
With the Treaty of Versailles, all nations decide to stop all warfare against each other. This is because they want to establish peace within the world. However, Germany is not so happy because they feel that some of the things within it are unfair. This is why it is considered a cause of WWII -
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Interwar Years
This was the period between WWI and WWII. -
The Creation of Fascism
Benito Mussolini wanted everything to operate how he wanted it too. So, he created an ideology known as fascism. This was when a dictator, like Mussolini, lead the government and emphasized nationalism, militarism,and racism aggressively. This was a major cause of the war because it caused other nations to follow this belief and led to many conflicts. -
Rise of Totalitarian Dictators
The rise of totalitarian dictators began with Benito Mussolini. He became the Prime Minister for Italy in 1922 and he created the idea of Fascism. Another was Joseph Stalin. He was appointed leader of the USSR in 1922, like Mussolini, and was the man that created communism. A final totalitarian was Hitler. He was notorious and was disliked by many all over the entire world. He was made chancellor of Germany in 1933 and was appointed leader of the Nazis. -
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The Great Depression
Before this happened, the stock market was created. This gave people to chance to become rich and invest money. However, everyone was using it and when it crashed, it affected everyone deeply. It started in the US and it caused mass depression (hence the name), people to lose money, unemployment and nations to stop trading with each other. It was one of the most drastic time periods in the world and people now hope that it will never happen again. -
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Japan begins to expand
When Japan becomes a major power after WWI, they decide to expand their territory. However, they have some obstacles along the way. They are affected by Great Depression and their economy is weakened, western culture is started to become emphasized, and they don't have many supplies since they have small islands. On the other hand, they solve this by creating a strong and bi millitary, they invade Manchuria for their resources, they take over Nanjing, and establish the Anti-Comintern Pact. -
Nuremberg Laws
These laws were created by Adolf Hitler and majorly affected Jews and made their lives miserable. One reason was because it limited their natural rights. Things like being free and living equally among their fellow citizens. Another reason was that they classified Jews based on their ancestry instead of religion. This caused much discrimination and prejudice toward them. -
Germany begins to expand
Hitler led the Germans to the annexing, and taking over of Austria. He did this because he felt that Germany should receive back the land they had lost as a result of the Treaty of Versailles. When he does this, Europe responds by appeasing them. They do this because they do not want to start another war and have to deal with all of its casualties. -
Munich Agreement
This agreement was made by the different nations of Europe. It gave Germany all of Czechoslovakia's borders and defenses. Like appeasement, it prevented the outbreak of war to happen once again. -
Kristallnacht
On this day, the Nazis led the Germans towards the attack of the Jewish. They attacked Jewish, as well as their property, items, and land. This was done within Germany as well as lands that were controlled by Germany. -
Non Aggression Pact with USSR
The Non Aggression Pact with USSR was created by Germany and the Soviet Union. It meant that both nations could not commit any military actions against each other for 10 years. Hitler agreed to this because he wanted to make sure that a major nation did not attack him when he invaded Poland. -
Poland is Invaded
Germany decides to expand their empire. Hitler convinces the Germans that they should get back some of the territory they lost. Poland was the main place that he was discussing. So, they make a decision to invade Poland and this is major because it starts World War 2. -
Allies declare war
When Hitler and Germany invades Poland, it makes the Allied powers furious. This is what causes them to declare war on Germany. The main reason was that they were seeing that Germany was becoming corrupt and would do the same thing again. To prevent this, they decided to wage a war against Germany. -
France is Invaded
Before they invaded France, Germany decides to invade the Netherlands, Denmark, Belgium and Norway. After all of this, they decided to move to France. They were successful because they attacked from the North and from a place in which France did not expect, the Ardennes Forest. This was because the French left the forest undefended. The reason for this was because the forest was difficult to travel through. However, the Germans made it through and the French paid for it deeply. -
Battle of Britain
Great Britain was the only Allied country that was not conquered. So, Germany saw this as an opportunity to try to take over them. They wanted to do this by destroying Britain's Royal Air Force. However, Winston Churchill was Britain's new leader. Also, the British had radars and this helped them to detect the Germans. This was why the Germans failed to conquer Britain. -
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Holocaust
The Holocaust was the mass extinction and harming of Jews and people that were different than the "Aryan race." This was done by the Nazis because Hitler wanted a perfect race in the world and felt that only certain people should be left on this Earth. So, he and the other Nazis went to places around Germany and German territories and attacked people that they believed should not be a part of this Earth. However, the US and the other allied forces find out about this and terminate all evil acts. -
Russia is Invaded
The invasion of the Soviet Union was named Operation Barbarossa. Germany decided to invade because they wanted to increase the land for the people of Germany and expand their empire. This breaks the Non-Aggression Pact and is unsuccessful. -
Pearl Harbor (Pacific War)
This was the bombing of the US by Japan. This was major because it brought the US into WWII. They did not want to be involved in the war, but this made America angry. It was very drastic because 2,400 Americans died, 200 aircraft were destroyed, and all the 8 battleships that were involved were either sunk or demolished. -
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Major Battles in Pacific AKA "Pacific War"
"Island Hopping" was a strategy established by the US to stop and defeat Japan. They created it because did not want them to attack or be threatened by them again. Also, the allies wanted to get close enough to Japan and prepare to invade it. There were 6 battles and they all resulted in the surrender of Japan. -
US enters war
Following the event of Pearl Harbor, the US becomes angry with Japan and join the Allied Powers in WWII. Then, they officially declared war on Japan. However, this caused them to become deep within the war because Japan, Italy, and Germany were all allies. So, when the US declared war on Japan, Germany and Italy did the same thing to the US. -
Battle of Coral Sea (Pacific War)
This was the first major battle between the US and Japan. This battle is actually considered the first aircraft carrier battle. There is no exact winner, but Japanese expansion and conquering is terminated by the allies. -
Battle of Midway (Pacific War)
This was a major turning point in the war for the allies. I say this because the Navajo code talkers and code breakers break the Japanese code. As a result, the US figure out that Japan is headed toward Midway and they destroy Japan's aircraft carriers. -
Battle of Stalingrad (First Strategy War)
The Russians and Germans have an all-out war at Stalingrad. This was very hardcore and resulted in a lot of bloodshed. However, it is considered the most significant turning point because Russia was able to push the Germans back. -
Operation Torch (First Strategy War)
This was when the Allied Powers decided to invade North Africa to stop the Germans. It was the 1st step in their "Europe First Strategy" to defeat them. Their idea of this war was to hit Germany where they were very weak and fragile. After they did this, they invaded and won the battle. -
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Major battles in Europe AKA "First Strategy War"
The "Europe First Strategy" was made by the Allied Forces to try and push Germany back, and make them surrender. There were 6 total events and they started with the invasion of North Africa, and ended with the surrender of Germany. These events officially ended the war between Germany and the Allied powers. -
Invasion of Italy (First Strategy War)
This was when the Allied Forces invaded Italy. This was the second step in "Europe First Strategy" and it helped the Allies to push the Axis troops even further south. The Germans sent the Italians help, but the war resulted in a win for the Allies and was a major turning point. -
D-day (First Strategy War)
This was the invasion of Northern France and was the 4th event in the "Europe First Strategy." It was made because the Allies wanted to take away Hitlers control over France. They accomplished this goal and won the war. Then, the created beachheads for troops and supplies during the war. -
Battle of Philippines (Pacific War)
This battle was significant in turning the war in favor of the US. I say this because it was the biggest possession that the US had in the Pacific. Also, the US felt that they really needed to grab hold of the Philippines again so they could create a base of operation there. Finally, it resulted in the victory of the United States over Japan. -
Battle of the Bulge (First Strategy War)
This was the 5th step in the "Europe First Strategy" established by the allied powers. It happened on the direct border of Germany and France. Hitler desperately tried to push the allies back, but failed to do so. This resulted in a victory and major accomplishment for the allies. -
Battle of Iwo Jima (Pacific War)
This was an extremely bloody and serious battle during the Pacific War. I say this because all 22,000 Japanese that defended the island of Iwo Jima were killed. Also, the US had 25,000 casualties and around 6,800 deaths. Despite all of this, the United States manages to beat the Japanese and take Iwo Jima. -
Battle of Okinawa (Pacific War)
This was the final battle between Japan and the United States. It ended with the victory of the US. However, it came at a cost. 12,000 Americans die and around 107,000 Japanese soldiers die during this war. -
Germany Surrenders (First Strategy War)
After losing so many battles constantly, the Germans decide to surrender to the Allied powers. This causes the war in Europe to be terminated. Also, Hitler becomes so angry that he commits suicide. -
Potsdam Declaration
This was a declaration issued by Harry Truman and the United States. It was created because they did not want risk all of the casualties that would have resulted with the invasion of Japan. The document was a warning that I Japan did not surrender, then the US would destroy them. Japan did not listen because they did not know that they meant a bomb. -
Hiroshima
This was the first bomb of two that the US dropped on Japan. This was because Japan did not surrender and listen to the Potsdam Declaration. The bomb resulted in 70,000 killed. However, 110,000 were killed within the month. -
Nagaski
This was the second bomb that the US dropped on Japan for not surrendering. It killed an estimated total of 65,000 people. -
Japan surrenders (Pacific War)
This is also known as VJ-Day. It stands for Victory in Japan Day. This is because it is the day the Japan surrendered and turned control of Japan over to the United States.