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    The Second World War began on September 1, 1939 when Nazi Germany invaded Poland. German expansion had begun in the mid-1930s through annexing Austria and territories of Czechoslovakia. Britain and France allowed previous German aggression in an attempt to maintain peace but invading Poland was too far, forcing them to declare war on Germany. Initially, the declaration meant little as the allies did nothing to help Poland. Germany then quickly defeated France through invading through Belgium, Holland, and Luxembourg, circumventing France's Maginot Line. As the situation in France looked hopeless, Britain began to feel threatened by Germany's movement, prompting Winston Churchill's famous June 4, 1940 speech vowing to fight on and never surrender.

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    The Second World War began on September 1, 1939 when Nazi Germany invaded Poland. German expansion had begun in the mid-1930s through annexing Austria and territories of Czechoslovakia. Britain and France allowed previous German aggression in an attempt to maintain peace but invading Poland was too far, forcing them to declare war on Germany. Initially, the declaration meant little as the allies did nothing to help Poland. Germany then quickly defeated France through invading through Belgium, Holland, and Luxembourg, circumventing France's Maginot Line. As the situation in France looked hopeless, Britain began to feel threatened by Germany's movement, prompting Winston Churchill's famous June 4, 1940 speech vowing to fight on and never surrender.

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    10 views1 page

    Document Two

    Uploaded by

    api-272482504
    The Second World War began on September 1, 1939 when Nazi Germany invaded Poland. German expansion had begun in the mid-1930s through annexing Austria and territories of Czechoslovakia. Britain and France allowed previous German aggression in an attempt to maintain peace but invading Poland was too far, forcing them to declare war on Germany. Initially, the declaration meant little as the allies did nothing to help Poland. Germany then quickly defeated France through invading through Belgium, Holland, and Luxembourg, circumventing France's Maginot Line. As the situation in France looked hopeless, Britain began to feel threatened by Germany's movement, prompting Winston Churchill's famous June 4, 1940 speech vowing to fight on and never surrender.

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    of 1

    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 annexation of
    Austria, the Sudetenland and later all
    of Czechoslovakia. A war-weary
    Great Britain and France allowed
    German aggression 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. Granted, for
    a time, the declaration of war meant
    little, as England and France did
    nothing to intervene in Poland.
    Eventually Hitler's Blitzkrieg through
    Poland turned into a 'Sitzkrieg,' where nothing of substance occurred for a spell. The months of
    'Sitzkrieg' ended almost instantaneously as Hitler circumvented 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, which
    I do not for the moment believe, this island or a large part of it were subjugated and
    starving, then our empire beyond the seas, armed and guarded by the British Fleet, will
    carry on the struggle until in God's good time the New World with all its power and
    might, sets forth to the liberation and rescue of the Old...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
    3

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