The War Begins

The Second World War began

on September First, 1939, when Nazi
Germany invaded Poland. German
expansion had really begun in the
mid-1930's with the takeover of
Austria and lands east of Germany.
Great Britain and France allowed
German takeovers in the name of
temporary peace, but the invasion of
Poland was one step too far, so France
and Great Britain had no choice but to
declare war on Germany. For a bit the
declaration of war meant little, as
England and France did nothing to
save Poland. Eventually Hitler's
Blitzkrieg, or lightning war, through
Poland turned into a 'Sitzkrieg,' where
nothing of substance occurred for a spell. The months of 'Sitzkrieg' ended almost
instantaneously as Hitler went around France's Maginot line and invaded France though Holland,
Belgium and Luxembourg.12
Eventually, the situation in France began to look hopeless and Great Britain was beginning to
feel threatened by the German movement. On June 4th, 1940 British Prime Minister Winston
Churchill stated the following in a speech:
We shall not flag nor fail. We shall go on to the end. We shall fight in France and on the
seas and oceans; we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air.
We shall defend our island whatever the cost may be; we shall fight on beaches, landing
grounds, in fields, in streets and on the hills. We shall never surrender and even if...[we]
were subjugated and starving...3

Pitt, B. (1986). The military history of World War II. New York, NY: The Military Press.

Map from: http://gr10history2011.asb-wiki.wikispaces.net/A_The+Fall+of+France

Churchill, W. (1940) Speech before Commons. Retrieved from
http://history.hanover.edu/courses/excerpts/111chur.html
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