World War II

GROUP 2
 TABLE OF CONTENTS
01 02
ACTORS
03 04 TIMELINE REFORMS
CAUSES
AND THEIR OF THE
OF WAR
INTERESTS. WAR.
We study how different people and their goals
and interests played a pivotal role in the war.
ACTORS AND THEIR INTERESTS
THE ALLIES

Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt

British Prime Minister Soviet Leader US President
ACTORS AND THEIR INTERESTS
THE AXIS POWERS

Benito Mussolini Adolf Hitler Emperor Hirohito

Italian Leader Fuhrer of Nazi Germany Emperor of Japan
 Winston Churchill
He was a major force in the resistance of Nazi
aggression during the height of the WW2. For
Britain, the things they could gain are far
outweighed than what they would stand to
lose. Before they formed alliances with the
United States and the Soviet Union, they had to
fight Hitler and his armies on their own.
Lacking tangible weapons, he used his words
and charisma to rally Britain amidst the chaos.
 Joseph Stalin
Initially, Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union
formed a non-aggression pact against each
other until Hitler broke their agreement.
Anxious to strengthen his western frontiers
while his new but palpably treacherous
German ally was still engaged in the West,
Stalin annexed eastern Poland, whereas Hitler
invaded in the other direction. After Operation
Barbarossa, Russia decided where their
allegiances lied.
Franklin Roosevelt
Similar to their stance in the First World War,
the US was largely isolated in the early days of
the war, aside from their usual effort of
supplying Britain with essential supplies.
President Roosevelt stated that “the United
States was fighting for the universal freedoms
that all people deserved. At a time when
Western Europe lay under Nazi domination,
Roosevelt presented a vision in which the
American ideals of individual liberties should
be extended throughout the world.
 Benito Mussolini
taly's participation in World War II was driven
by the expansionist policies of the Fascist regime
led by Benito Mussolini. Mussolini sought to
restore Italy to its former glory as a great power
and believed that war was necessary to achieve
this goal. Despite being on the winning side in
WW1, Italy felt cheated on the territories that
were ceded to them. In summary, Italy's
participation in World War II was driven by the
expansionist policies of the Fascist regime and a
desire to regain Italy's former status as a great
power, rather than any particular interest in the
war itself.
 Adolf Hitler
Hitler had an overriding ambition for territorial
expansion, which was largely driven by his desire
to reunify the German people. As a soldier in
WW1, he despised the Treaty of Versailles and the
German public shared his sentiments. He was
responsible for starting World War II, which
resulted in the deaths of more than 50 million
people. It also led to the extension of the Soviet
Union’s power in eastern, central, and Balkan
Europe. His anti-Semitic policies resulted in the
Holocaust, the genocide of six million Jews and
others.
 Emperor Hirohito
Japan's participation in World War II was driven
by its imperialist and expansionist policies, as
well as a desire to secure access to resources and
raw materials in Southeast Asia and the Pacific.
Japan was heavily dependent on these resources
to fuel its industrialization and economic growth.
In the 1930s, Japan pursued a policy of aggressive
territorial expansion, invading and occupying
parts of China, Korea, and Southeast Asia. In 1940,
Japan signed the Tripartite Pact with Germany
and Italy, forming the Axis powers and
committing to mutual defense in the event of war.
 CAUSES OF WAR
We discuss different causes and the different
motivations that led to the outbreak of war.
 CAUSES OF WAR
·Japanese Expansion in Asia
·Treaty of Versailles
·The League of Nations and Diplomatic Idealism
·Failure of Appeasement
·Rise of Fascism in Europe
·Rise of Nazism
 JAPANESE EXPANSION IN ASIA
Japan sought to imitate Western countries such as the
United States, which had established colonies in Asia and
the Pacific to secure natural resources and markets for
their goods.
Japan sought to incorporate the SEA and Pacific nations into
what it termed “Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere”
(Korea, Manchuria, and China). These possessions would
supply markets for Japanese products; oil, rubber, and tin
needed by Japanese industry; and enough rice to feed the
nation.
 TREATY OF VERSAILLES
The treaty imposed harsh penalties on Germany, including
the requirement to pay substantial reparations to the
victorious countries and the loss of territory and colonies.
Germany was also forced to accept responsibility for
starting the war under the "war guilt" clause of the treaty.

The humiliation faced by Germany under this treaty, paved

the way for the spread of Ultra-Nationalism in Germany.
 FOUR MAJOR PROVISIONS
Ceding occupied territories such as the Rhineland as well
as overseas colonies in Africa, Asia and the Pacific
Demilitarization and reduction of men to 100,000
Pay reparations amounting to an estimated 67.8 billion
gold marks or 23 billion US dollars.
Force Germany and other Central Powers to accept the
blame/responsibility for causing the conflict (war guilt
clause)
 THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS
AND DIPLOMATIC IDEALISM
The League was premised on the idea that security
threats to one member demanded responses from all
members. But when it came time to respond to those
threats, the organization largely failed.
As a result, the group’s toothless response to blatant
aggression and external threats only encouraged
more invasions.
 FAILURE OF APPEASEMENT
Appeasement- Policy of giving in to the demands of
the aggressor to maintain peace.
Munich Agreement of September 1938- Britain and
France allowed Germany to annex areas in
Czechoslovakia where German-speakers lived.
Germany agreed not to invade the rest of
Czechoslovakia or any other country. In March 1939,
Germany broke its promise and invaded the rest of
Czechoslovakia.
 RISE OF FASCISM IN EUROPE
Postwar Italy saw the rise of fascism as a political
movement led by Benito Mussolini.
Benito Mussolini and his National Fascist Party (PNF)
stepped into the breach, taking advantage of the failure
or ineffectiveness of existing institutions, parties, and
elites, and offering a mixture of “national” and “social”
policies.
 ·RISE OF NAZISM
Hitler promised to overturn the Versailles Treaty, restore
German wealth & glory and secure additional
Lebensraum (“living space”) for the German people, who
he contended deserve more as members of a superior
race.
Nazi Germany used the self-determination for nationalities
to justify their actions. Hitler sought to bring together all the
German-speaking people including large populations in
Czechoslovakia and Poland as well as Austria.
TImeline
Discussing the main events in the course of the
war.
March 12,
1938
Hitler marches
into Austria,
greeted by
Austrians waving
Nazi symbols and
cheering them on.
(Anchsluss)
September
1938
The Munich Pact is
signed with
France, Great
Britain, Germany
and Italy in
attendance. The
Allies appeased
Germany by
allowing him to
take over border
areas of
Czechoslovakia
(Sudetenland)
 May 1939
The Pact of Steel is
formed, allying
Germany and Italy
both militarily and
politically. ·
Hitler eyed
invading Poland
and moving
eastward, but that
would mean
fighting a war on
two fronts. So he
formed an
agreement with
Joseph Stalin.
September
1, 1939
·Hitler launches
an invasion on
Poland, making
France and
Britain to
declare war on
Germany.
May 1940
Nazi Germany
invades France,
using Blitzkrieg
(lightning war)
to easily
penetrate the
Ardennes,
leading to the
fall of France,
resulting to
only Britain as
the sole
defender
against Hitler
in Europe
May 1940
Nazi Germany
invades France,
using Blitzkrieg
(lightning war)
to easily
penetrate the
Ardennes,
leading to the
fall of France,
resulting to
only Britain as
the sole
defender
against Hitler
in Europe
May 1940
·Auschwitz-
Birkenau
serves as the
place for the
Holocaust, the
systemic
genocide of
roughly 6
million Jews
and other
minorities,
located in
German-
occupied
Poland.
 July-
October
1940 London
Hitler began
bombing the
British coastline
and RAF bases.
Churchill
orders a small
bombing raid
on Berlin which
made Hitler
target London.
Vichy France
September
1940
The Tripartite
Pact between
Italy, Germany
and Japan is
signed, largely
to deter the
United States
from entering
the conflict.
 July-
October
1940
The Luttwaffe
launched a
huge strike to
end it, but it
was repelled by
the RAF. The
Battle of Britain
ends in an
Allied victory.
April 1941
Mussolini saw
success in Afica
and decided to
take Greece but
failed. Churchill
began referring to
italy as Europe's
soft underbelly.
Hitler decided to
take things on his
own. He wanted
to move troops
along Bulgaria
and Yugoslavia to
which the latter
rejected.
 June 1941
Nazi Germany
launches an
invasion of the
Soviet Union,
codenamed
Operation Moscow
Barbarossa. It was
the largest grand
invasion as Hitler
sent almost three
million troops.
Major cities were
captured and
Moscow was
close.
December
1941

It’s
cold
AF
December 7,
1941
Attack on Pearl
Harbor, however
the naval repair
yards and
submarine bases
are left intact. The
US declares war
on Japan, and
Germany declares
war on the US.
December 7,
1941
With the loss of
Allied naval
presence, Japan
began its
sweeping
conquest of the
Pacific.
 June –
September
1942
Germany pushes
USSR as far back
as Stalingrad and
penetrates deep Stalingrad
into the Caucasus,
hoping for the
deep oil reserves s
su
ca
au
C
 November
1942 –
February
1943
Soviet
counterattack, the Stalingrad
Sixth Panzer
army gets
encircled and
trapped as Hitler's
own tactics are
used against
Germany
 June 5,
1944
Allied
paratroopers
were dropped,
tasked to
sabotage
defenses and
capture key
bridges along
the coast of
France with
ship
bombardments
in the morning.
 June 6,
1944
American
troops land in
Utah and
Omaha beach,
the British at
Gold and Sword
and the
Canadians at
Juno. This is the
largest Allied
invasion of the
war, known as
the Normandy
or D-day
landings.
 October
1944

The allies begin to

force the Japanese
out of the Pacific
then General
Douglas McArthur
liberates the
Philippines.
December
1944
Hilter attempts
to blitzkrieg the
Ardennes but
fails, and the
Allies continue
pushing
towards Berlin
April 1945

Hilter commits
murder of the
self. With that,
Nazi Germany
and its plans for
domination and
conquest end.
August 6
& 9, 1945
The Little Boy is
dropped on Hiroshima
Hiroshima. Three
days later, Nagasaki
Nagasaki is
bombed by the
Fat Man.
September
2, 1945

Japan signs an
unconditional
surrender,
formally ending
the Second World
War
 WORLD WAR 2

Reforms
 Reforms
01 United Nations
03 European Union

02 Geneva Conventions
04 Africa and Asia
Decolonization of

05 Truman Doctrine
 United Nations
The United Nations was formed in 1945 in the
aftermath of World War II. Its primary goal was to
promote international cooperation and prevent
future conflicts between nations. The organization's
main objectives include maintaining international
peace and security, promoting human rights, and
providing humanitarian assistance to those in need.
The UN has played a vital role in resolving conflicts,
providing aid, and promoting economic and social
development around the world.
 United Nations
The Declaration of St. James Palace (1941)

The Atlantic Charter (1941)

The Declaration of United Nations (1942)

Moscow Conference (1943)

Dumbarton Oaks and Yalta Conference (1944)

San Francisco Conference (1945)

 United Nations
General Assembly - the main deliberative body of
the UN.
Security Council - the premier global body for
maintaining international peace and security.
International Court of Justice - the principal
judicial organ of the United Nations.
The Secretariat - the administrative arm of the UN.
Economic and Social Council - the central forum
for discussing international economic and social
issues, and formulating policy.
Trusteeship Council - to oversee the administration
of trust territories.
 Geneva Conventions
The Geneva Conventions were formed as a result of
the need to establish international agreements on
the treatment of wounded soldiers during times of
war. The first convention was held in 1864,
following the efforts of Swiss businessman Henry
Dunant to improve the treatment of wounded
soldiers. The conventions established the standards
of international humanitarian law for the
treatment of individuals in armed conflict,
including the protection of wounded and sick
soldiers, prisoners of war, and civilians.
 Geneva Conventions
First Geneva Convention (1864)

Second Geneva Convention (1906)

Third Geneva Convention (1929)

Fourth Geneva Convention (1949)

Adopted in 1977
First Additional Protocol
Second Additional Protocol
Third Additional Protocol
 European Union
The European Union was established in 1957 to
promote economic cooperation between European
countries and prevent future conflicts. Its goals
were to create a common market, facilitate trade
and economic growth, and promote political and
social integration. The EU has since expanded to
include 27 member states, and it has become an
important political and economic force in the
world.
 Decolonization of Asia
and Africa
Between 1945 and 1960, three dozen new states in
Asia and Africa achieved autonomy or outright
independence from their European colonial rulers.
There was no one process of decolonization. In
some areas, it was peaceful, and orderly. In many
others, independence was achieved only after a
protracted revolution.
 Truman Doctrine
In 1947, President Harry S. Truman pledged that the
United States would help any nation resist
communism in order to prevent its spread. His
policy of containment is known as the Truman
Doctrine where in US would provide political,
military, and economic aid to democratic countries
under the threat of communist influences in order
to prevent the expansion of communism. The policy
marked a step away from the US’s previous
isolationist policies, which discouraged the US from
becoming involved in foreign affairs