World War II 1939 1945 APUSH Part I

World War II 1939 -1945 APUSH Part I Essential Questions: • How did the WWI peace settlement fail? • Why doesn’t the United States want to be directly involved with European affairs? • What conflicts led to American Involvement in World War II?

Between two wars n Between WWI & WWII Europe is devastated and must rebuild n Why is it difficult for Germany to rebuild & recover after WWI?

Return of Nationalism n n n 1. 2. Peace from WWI does not lead to prosperity Dictators gain power across Europe as intense nationalism makes a comeback Dictators want 2 things Prove superiority of their country Territorial expansion

Joseph Stalin Soviet Union n n “Man of steel” takes over in 1924 Communist, made agriculture & industrial growth # 1 Economic activity was controlled by gov’t Killed over 8 million people to accomplish goals Est. a totalitarian gov’t Joseph Stalin

Totalitarian: n. A government which maintains total/complete control over its citizens n Citizens have little to no rights & the gov’t suppresses all opposition

Benito Mussolini Italy n n n Italy devastated by WWI Takes power in 1921 Est. a Fascist gov’t Used military to force the King of Italy to appoint him head of Italian gov’t Crushed all opposition Benito Mussolini

Fascism n Extreme form of nationalism & placed interest of the nation above individual needs n Power should reside with a single strong leader and a very small group of devoted party members

Adolf Hitler Germany n n Takes power in 1933 in the midst of economic depression Powerful public speaker, joined Nazi party in 1919 and worked his way to the top Nazism is the German brand of fascism Aggressively spreads German influence all over Europe Adolf Hitler

Japanese Militarists Hideki Tojo Nationalistic military leaders trying to take over imperial gov’t of Japan n Wanted more territory for a growing population n Took over part of China (Manchuria) in 1931 n League of Nations is powerless to stop Japan n Hideki Tojo

Francisco Franco Spain n n Led a fascist revolt in Spain Took over country in 1939 after a civil war Hitler & Mussolini supported Franco’s totalitarian gov’t Meanwhile Italy invaded Ethiopia Francisco Franco

American Isolationism n Americans do not want to be brought in to another large-scale conflict like WWI n Many Americans are against intervention in Europe and Asia n President Franklin D. Roosevelt is criticized for trying to end U. S. isolationism

Hitler & The Nazi Party n n 1. 2. 3. Many desperate Germans see Nazi’s as their only hope Hitler had three goals Unite all German speaking people in a great empire Racially purify Germany: Aryans are the master race all & other races are inferior National expansion: believed Germans were entitled to more

War in Europe n Hitler orders German military to take over Austria & Czechoslovakia n Goal is to unite all German speaking peoples n Instead of fighting back rest of Europe is focused on appeasement: giving in to German demands n Poland & eventually France are invaded by the Nazis

Soviet Neutrality n U. S. S. R. and Germany sign a non-aggression pact and promise not to fight each other n Once n Hitler enemies the two nations become allies will break the pact and attack U. S. S. R, ending the alliance

The Holocaust n n n Hitler wants to purify Germany/Europe of inferior races Persecutes Jews, Gypsies, & any nonwhite race Millions put in concentration camps What was Hitler’s final solution? An estimated 11 million civilians killed in Holocaust

End of Isolation Despite best efforts U. S. cannot stay neutral during WWII n Cash-and-Carry: warring nations can buy U. S. arms as long as they pay cash and transport them in their own ships n Lend-Lease Act: passed by FDR to provide arms & supplies to “any country whose defense was vital to the U. S. ” n Just like WWI, Britain & France needed help & U. S. would provide it n

Pearl Harbor n n n Japan attacks Pearl Harbor in 1941 Officially brings U. S. into WWII Raid kills 2, 403 people Nearly destroys U. S. Pacific Fleet What is Japan’s goal in attacking Pearl Harbor?