8 – 2 STUDY SLIDES
Review of WWII
Grade 8 Social Studies
Mrs. J. Kennedy
Following, you will find a selection of
some of the more important slides we
have covered in class.
Use these slides to help you study for
our upcoming World War II exam.
2 2
When?
• September 1,1939 - September 2,1945
General Timeline :
1939 1941 1945
Sept.1
Germany Dec. 7
Sept. 3 Japan Aug-Sept.
invades Britain & May Atomic
Poland bombs
France Germany Bombing
(official Pearl
declare war Surrenders of
start to Harbor;
on Germany US enters Hiroshima
the war) ------- &
the War
Sept. 10 Nagasaki.
Canada‟s Japanese
involvement Surrender
3
began 3
Who were the Alliances
(teams)?
Allies Axis
(major powers) (major powers)
Great Britain Germany
Russia Italy
France Japan
Canada
United States
4 4
Causes of WW II:
1. Treaty of Versailles
(Germany‟s loss of land and Reparations $)
2. World-wide Depression
(Made German‟s $ situation even worse;
Hitler promised to lead Germany out of The Depression)
3. Rise of Totalitarian Regimes
(Dictatorship Governments - Germany, USSR, Italy, Japan)
4. Attempts to „Keep the Peace‟
With Germany 5
(Appeasement; Did not work)
1. Treaty of Versailles
Germany forced to sign this Treaty
A. To admit WWI was Germany‟s fault.
B. Germany lost land to surrounding
nations as a result.
C. Germany forced to pay War
Reparations to Allies to make-up for
WWI damages.
- Germany had to pay $57 trillion
(modern equivalent) $ 57 000 000 000 !
- Bankrupted German economy &
Lloyd George, Georges Clemenceau
embarrassed Germans
and Woodrow Wilson
6
during
6 negotiations for the Treaty
2. World-wide Depression
„The Great Depression‟
made Germany‟s debt and
economic situation even
worse!
1923 - Wallpapering with
German Deutchmarks (money)
7 7
2. World-wide Depression Continued:
Desperate people turn to desperate leaders.
i) Adolf Hitler came to power in Germany (1933)
Hitler, a great speaker, was able to convince Germans
that he could solve Germany‟s problems.
– Promised economic growth
– Promised creation of new jobs
– Refused to pay Reparations $
– Built Germany‟s army back up
– Began to Annex land
(taking over other countries)
• Most of Germany confident and
happy again. 8
2. World-wide Depression Continued:
Hitler provided scapegoats
for Germany‟s problems
(Foreigners, Jewish people,
Gypsies, Mentally ill, Handicapped,
Homosexuals)
Scapegoat (definition)
One that is made to
9
bear the blame of others. 9
3. Rise of Totalitarian Regimes
In a Totalitarian government, individual rights are not viewed as
important as the needs of the country.
Communist Fascist
Dictatorship Dictatorship
(Russia) (Germany, Italy)
Totalitarianism
* Dictator
Military Dictatorship - a person with
absolute power and
(Japan)
complete control in a
10
10 government.
4. Attempts to „Keep the Peace‟ (Appease)
This led to policies of “Appeasement”
Appeasement: give dictators what they want
and hope that they won’t want anything else.
•People wanted to avoid another war at all costs!
•The Allies thought that if they simply ‘relaxed’ the terms of
the Treaty of Versailles, Germany would be satisfied and
peace could prevail.
•However, giving Germany what they wanted did NOT work!
Hitler began to demand more and more!
11 11
‘The Last Straw’
• Germany invaded & defeated Poland:
Sept. 1st, 1939
12
Blitzkrieg
( “Lightning War” )
A sudden violent
attack combining planes,
tanks and ground
soldiers to quickly
overcome the enemy.
13
• After its defeat, Poland was split up between Germany
and Russia, who signed a “non-aggression agreement”
for this (a promise not to fight one another).
14
Declarations of War
• War Declared Sept 3, 1939
(2 days after Poland invasion)
• Canada joined war Sept. 10, 1939
(7 days later)
15
Canada Commits
• May 1940 (9 months later)
Canada changed from a volunteer army to
complete commitment to the war effort.
16
Conscription
• Being forced to
join the armed
services (the
war).
17
TWO MAJOR EVENTS THAT TURNED WAR AROUND :
Event #1 - June 1941, Germany Invaded Russia
„Had‟ an agreement that if
Germany kept to their side,
Russia wouldn‟t fight them
(“Non Aggression Agreement”)
Germany went back on their
word.
Russia became Allies with
Britain afterwards.
18
Event #2 - December 7, 1941
Pearl Harbour
Japan enters war by attacking US at Pearl Harbour, Hawaii
(without warning); Japan teams up with Germany.
19
United States Declares War
• The Americans were
angered by the Pearl
Harbour attacks.
• US was neutral prior
to this, but declared
war on both Japan &
Germany shortly
after.
U.S. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt 20
Revenge . . .
• June 1942 (1 year later) – “The Battle of
Midway”
- U.S. battled back against Japan (in Japan)
& destroyed much of their army. U.S won.
21
The “Battle Of The Atlantic”
• Fought at sea by
Navy & Merchant
Marine
• Convoys of
merchant ships
carried supplies
to Allies.
22
Also . . .
• Canadian ground troops were fighting
alongside British troops.
• Canadian army suffered 2 defeats.
23
Defeat # 1
Dec. 1941 – Japan defeated Canada &
Britain (shortly after Pearl Harbour attack)
Defeat # 2
1942 – Battle of Dieppe (a port in France)
•“Battle of Dieppe was a disaster.”
= 60% of our soldiers from this battle were killed or
captured.
24
Canada:
- Became a „Force to be
Reckoned With‟ and learned from its
great defeats.
The Canadian force was
no longer just 1 division
but now a full army.
Canada’s air force expanded
greatly in size.
25
25
Allies Hit Germany Hard:
D-day
June 6, 1944
– Allies landed in Normandy, France starting
the invasion against Germany
26
Canada‟s D-Day Role
Canada played an important role.
30,000 Canadians fought in the
Battle of Normandy; code-named
“Operation Juno Beach”.
Allies had to be extremely well prepared
to attack a defended coastline
(as they had learned „the hard way‟
in previous phases) 27
Allies on the Western Front
• Slowly but surely, battle after battle, the
Allies pushed the Nazi‟s back to
Germany.
Nazi‟s,
GO HOME
Already !!
28
France is Freed
• September 1944 (3 months after D-Day)
– The Allies liberated (freed) France from the
German forces.
29
Balance of Power :
PHASE # 1 Allies
BLITZKRIEG ! We got the
BLITZKRIEG !
power!
Woah, it’s BLITZKRIEG !
scary way
up here
Axis
PHASE # 2 Uh-oh !
Allies
Gettin’
stronger . . . Axis
PHASE # 3 Oh
You’re in *?%!* Axis
trouble
now Allies
30
30
Germany „Sandwiched‟
by The Allies
Canada,
Britain, Russia
U.S.A.
• Germany now under attack from both sides:
Russians from the East
British, Canada, U.S. from the West 31
Yikes !
Allies
32
War of the Pacific
• After Germany was finally defeated, the
Allies focused on defeating Japan.
• Canada was preparing to join in this
Pacific War, however, the war ended
abruptly because of . . .
33
The Atomic Bomb
• Created by U.S. scientist under the code
name “Manhattan Project”.
• Had devastating explosive power.
34
Big Decision . . .
• New U.S. President Harry S. Truman had
to decide whether to use this weapon; as
many Japanese civilians would be killed
by it.
• Decided that using it would stop the
Japanese from continuing the war & would
therefore save lives.
35
U.S. Drops 2 Atomic Bombs
on Japan
• August 6th & 9th 1945:
– U.S. dropped atomic bomb on Hiroshima,
Japan (first atomic bomb ever).
– Almost the entire cities of Hiroshima &
Nagasaki were destroyed instantly.
– Japan surrendered Sept. 2, 1945.
36
Atomic Bomb Devastation
• Killed 140,000 Japanese people
instantly.
• Plus approx. another 140,000 died later
from exposure to atomic radiation from
bomb.
37
Controversial Decision
• The use of atomic bombs by the U.S. on
Japan, remains one of the most
controversial decisions ever made in
World War II ( and in history ).
• What do you think???
– Should the Americans have used atomic
bombs on Japan as a means to end WW II?
38
War
Officially
Declared
Over
Sept. 2,
1945
39
Let us never forget the cost that was paid
so that we can live free. . . 40
We thank those who came before,
for the freedom we get to enjoy today. 41
What was the Holocaust ?
• The Holocaust occurred before and during
WW II (pre-1939 to 1945)
• Jewish people were persecuted,
discriminated against and killed because of
their religion.
• WW II helped the Nazis “cover up” the
Holocaust and allowed them the opportunity
to mass murder Jewish people. 42
Anti-Semitism
• Prejudice or hatred towards Jewish
people.
• Existed and was allowed for far too
long.
43
3 Main Types of camps
• Concentration Camps.
• Work or Labour Camps.
• Death camps.
Hundreds of Jews stripped
of clothes (& their dignity) 44
Death Camps
Began in 1941.
Prisoners died of:
- starvation
- complete exhaustion from being
overworked
- beatings, shootings
- gas chambers.
20,000 people were killed each day. 45
On Sept. 2, 1945,
WW II officially
ended.
It wasn’t until then
that Allied soldiers
made the grim
discovery of what
was happening to
the Jews “behind
enemy lines”
46
The Events of World War II shaped the
world as we know it today.
47
Many important lessons can be learned
from the events of WW II.
May today‟s generation
never forget these important lessons . . . 48