Causes of World War II and American Involvement

Causes of World War II and American Involvement MR. CURNOW

Sticky Note Responses (A-Day) Name 3 out of the 5 dictators we talked about from last class (bonus if you know the country too!) What did these dictators have in common? Who do you think was the most ruthless? Explain in 2 -3 words Put sticky notes on storage door in back of room when done!!

Recall/Review Question What document ended World War I? Who did it effect the most?

The Treaty of Versailles Officially ends World War I on June 28 th, 1919 Terms were negotiated among the Allied powers, with Germany having little to no say Re-designated German boundaries(they lost a lot of land) and held them financially responsible for damages caused to the Allies $33 Billion worth of damages Disarmament/demilitarized Germany US never ratified the treaty or joined the League of Nations (so, very ineffective!) Germans were disgraced angry at the harsh sanctions imposed on them

Recall/Review Question What was the Great Depression? How long did it last? Who did it effect? “I’ll take any work/job!”

The Great Depression Started in the United States in 1929 (earlier in parts of Europe) and lasted into the late 1930 s to early 1940 s until the start of WWII Time of severe economic downturn and instability around the world The US was financially involved with countries around the world through loans and/or trade Severe unemployment, decline in output and trade, and deflation of currency (price of goods and services drop)

So what? . . . The combined effects of the Treaty of Versailles and world wide economic depression made much of Europe politically and economically unstable! These unstable conditions made it possible for influential people like Mussolini, Stalin, and Hitler to gain power, influence, and total control over their respective countries League of Nations useless!!

Appeasement Neville Chamberlain: Conservative British Prime Minister 1937 -40 Best know for his appeasement policy with Hitler through the Munich agreement in 1938 Made concessions for Hitler to violate Treaty of Versailles and defy League of Nations in hopes of preventing further conflict Criticized by peers (especially Winston Churchill) and other countries for this Allowed Hitler to do what he pleased, which eventually lead to his invasion of Poland in September, 1939 Official start of WWII

Quick Video https: //www. history. com/topics/world-war-i-history/videos/didwwi-lead-to-wwii

Document Analysis Take about 15 -20 minutes to read through your document and answer the questions on the worksheet When everyone seems about done with their documents pair up with person behind/in front of you and share with each other what you read about and key ideas! (THINK CRITICALLY!!) Be ready to talk about your documents!!!

Critical Thinking… What were the Neutrality Acts? Do you agree with them? What were the Lend-Lease Acts? What were Churchill’s speeches trying to do/convey? How inspiring were Roosevelt’s speeches? What did all of these documents (even Churchill speeches) have in common?

Neutrality Acts Series of Laws passed by the US in the mid-late 1930 s (1935, 1936, 1937, 1939) Designed to prevent US involvement in foreign wars Part of “isolationist” mentality in US following WWI As WWII began in late 1930 s, Roosevelt opposed neutrality but faced lots of opposition by Congress and the American people Found ways around total neutrality through cashcarry acts and Lend-Lease Acts

Lend-Lease Act Law proposed in 1940 and passed in 1941 Mainly between US (Roosevelt) and Great Britain (Churchill) US provided aid/supplies to Britain and other Allied countries throughout the war basically as gifts, expecting to receive favors/agreements/aid themselves in return Pretty much replaced Neutrality Acts No actual money was exchanged! Was eventually extended to other Allies during the war with the agreement that any receiving country would help US establish new international economic order after the War. Estimated $49 Billion in aid given by US to Allies Estimated to have received roughly $8 Billion in aid back

Lend-Lease Video https: //www. history. com/topics/world-war-ii-history/videos/lendlease-act? m=528 e 394 da 93 ae&s=undefined&f=1&free=false

Pearl Harbor Major US Naval base in Hawaii Attacked by Japanese suicide bombers on December 7 th, 1941 (2+ years after Poland) Thousands of American soldiers and civilians died Devastated a large part of America’s Pacific Fleet The next day, the US officially entered WWII (Dec. 8 th, 1941) Roosevelt Speeches?

Pearl Harbor Video https: //www. schooltube. com/video/d 9 f 27 eab 2 b 9336300895/The-attack-on. Pearl-Harbor-from-the-movie-Pearl-Harbor https: //www. history. com/shows/wwii-in-hd/videos/pearl-harbor

Allied and Axis Powers By 1941…. major players are… Allies= Great Britain, United States, China, Russia, (Free France) Axis= Germany, Italy, Japan

Video Recap https: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=Objoad 6 r. G 6 U https: //www. pbslearningmedia. org/resource/f 55 a 3 d 0 e-6070 -43 bc-b 79 c 251 c 5 c 67385 f/world-war-ii-part-1 -crash-course-us-history 35/#. Wq. A 04 vnwa. Uk

Exit Slip Before you leave class today, please write down two things/events that led to the start of WWII and/or American involvement in the war. Turn in to me on scrap piece of paper HAVE A GOOD DAY!!

Dr. Seuss Assignment Find a political cartoon by Dr. Suess dealing with US involvement in WWII (Neutrality Acts, Lend-Lease, etc. . ) Print out a copy of the cartoon along with a paragraph, 4 -6 sentences, describing what the cartoon is portraying! Bring to next class ready to share!!