Australians at War

Question 1

Treaty of Versailles

Answer 1

Treaty signed in Versailles, France that blamed Germany for WW1 and forced them to give up money, territory and most of their military

Question 2

Causes of WW2

Answer 2

Germany: Wanted revenge for the treaty of Versailles and wanted to be a powerful nation again. Invaded Poland in Sep 1st 1939 which caused WW2
Italy: Believed it didn’t get the Victor’s spoils
Japan: Participated in WW1 but didn’t get much recognition due to racism. Led to Japan beginning expansionist and wanting be become a great nation like other European countries

Question 3

Period of Time WW2 took place over

Answer 3

1939 - 1945

Question 4

Operation Barborossa

Answer 4

June 1941: Germany betrayed Russia and attempted to invade the Soviet Union

Question 5

When was Pearl Harbour Attack

Answer 5

7 Dec 1941

Question 6

When did Germany surrender in WW2

Answer 6

8 May 1945

Question 7

When and after what event did Japan surrendur in WW2

Answer 7

August 1945 after Hiroshima and Nagasaki were nuked

Question 8

Key Features of Prewar Germany that led to Hitler’s rise

Answer 8

• Dissatisfaction with outcome of WW1 and the Treaty of Versailles. Belief that Germany did not deserve what it got
• Democratic system of government was only recently installed and not very stable or trusted
• Fracturious Parliament: Many political parties in parliament (about 32)
• The Great Depression caused economic crisis and widespread discontent amongst German people
• Historical Anti-Semitism

Question 9

When did Hitler become Fuhrer

Answer 9

19 August 1934

Question 10

On Australian Soil…

Answer 10

1942 and beyond: Multiple Air Raids by Japanese in Darwin
East Coast attacks by Midget Submarines

Question 11

WW2 Home Front Key Aspects

Answer 11

• Rationing Campaigns
• Conscription was less divisive and conscripts were sent to Papua New Guinea
• Anti-Japanese Propoganda
• Women filled many supporting roles

Question 12

How many Jews died in the Holocaust

Answer 12

Around 6 million

Question 13

How did Social Darwinism fit with Nazi ideas

Answer 13

• Nazi ideology partly based on Darwin’s “Survival of the Fittest” concept
• Believed that races had no inherent value and that some races were naturally evolved to be better than others
• Nazism further applied this concept, saying that the human race could be benefited by removing people deemed to be ‘genetically inferior’

Question 14

Anti-Judaism vs Anti-Semitism

Answer 14

Anti-Judaism: Hatred against Jewish beliefs systems and culture
Anti-Semitism: Hatred against Jews in terms of racial grouping

Question 15

What was the Beer Hall Putsch

Answer 15

A failed coup attempt by Hitler in 1923 that put him behind bars for a short time

Question 16

What was the “Final Solution”

Answer 16

Devised at Wannsee Conference 1942. Concluded that the best way to deal with Judenfrage (The Jewish Problem) was to move them to extermination camps and eventually kill them

Question 17

Nuremberg Trials

Answer 17

1945-1949: Trials for high profile Nazis

Question 18

Reasons Australians enlisted to Fight in WW2

Answer 18

• Britishness: Many migrants from Britain and loyalty to Britain
• Adventure
• Unemployment: still high from Great Depression
• Japanese Threat: Racist Propoganda highlighted the threat of Japan
• Fear of Being seen as a coward
• French Defeat shocked Aussies into action

Question 19

Kokoda Track Battle (WHEN< WHERE, WHY)

Answer 19

WHEN: Between July and Nov of 1942
-WHERE: Kokoda Track a mountainous jungle trail running through Papua New Guinea to Pt Moresby from Buna and Gona
WHY: Japan pushed for a base at Pt Moresby which would put them very close to Australia
- Australia won

Question 20

Conscription in WW2

Answer 20

Less divisive than in WW1. Conscripts defended Australia at home, though the “South West Pacific Area” was considered part of Australia’s homeland resulting in conscripts fighting in New Guinea.

Question 21

Propoganda in WW2

Answer 21

Used regularly to encourage people to help war effort or fear the Japanese

Question 22

What happened to “Enemy Aliens”

Answer 22

Japanese people were sent to internment campaigns due to fears of espionage. Italian and German people were also detained.

Question 23

Role of Women

Answer 23

Not allowed combat roles. Lots of women’s service groups established. Undertook jobs men couldn’t do as they were fighting overseas. This resulted in women gaining some independence and influencing equal rights in future.

Question 24

Prisoners of War

Answer 24

Treated badly, especially by the Japanese who saw surrender as dishonourable and suicide as preferable

Question 25

Indigenous Soldiers in WW2

Answer 25

• Illegal for most Aboriginal people to enlist
• Many did anyway
• Approx 3000 Indigenous troops served
• Torres St Islanders served disproportionately to protect the Torres strait

Question 26

Ngapa William Cooper

Answer 26

• Marched in protest to the German consulate after the Night of Broken Glass
• Organised 1938 Day of Mourning
• Campaigned for Indigenous Rights

Question 27

Siege of Tobruk (WHEN, WHERE, WHY)

Answer 27

-10 April - November 1941
- Libyan City of Tobruk near Egypt
- A group of mostly Australian troops were besieged by Erwin Rommel in Tobruk. Holding Tobruk was vital for the defence of Egypt as it would prevent the Nazis from using it as a port for supplies
- Aussies were called rats which they took as a compliment

Question 28

How were Jews discriminated against prior to 1938

Answer 28

• Jewish civil servants were to be excluded from state service and major restrictions placed on their activities
• Prevented people of ‘Jewish’ blood marrying people of ‘German blood’
• They were stripped of rights such as voting, ,trade, property etc
• They were segregated
• Forced to adopt common Jewish names like Israel or Sara to be easy to identify and had the letter J stamped on their passports

Question 29

What were the Nuremberg Race Laws

Answer 29

• Series of laws in Sep 1935
• Made Jewish people racially distinct from others
• The laws forbade marriage between Jewish and Germans and denied Jews German citizenship

Question 30

Reichstag Fire

Answer 30

• 27 Feb 1933 the
• Reichstag was set on fire and burnt down
• Dutch communist Van der Lubbe was arrested for the crime
• The Nazis used the fire to turn the population against the communists, their main political opponents

Question 31

November Pogrom

Answer 31

1938 November 9 and 10.
Sudden outpouring of state-encouraged violence targeted at Jewish businesses across Germany and incorporated territories.

Question 32

How have Australians commemorated events and figures in WW2?

Answer 32

• Last Post Ceremony
• Roll of Honour: list of Australians who have died in combat throughout much of history
• ANZAC Day
• RSLs

Question 33

Fall of Singapore (WHEN, WHERE, IMPACT)

Answer 33

• Occured in Feb 8 1942
• In Singapore, which was a valuable British Naval Base at the time
• The Australian relied on the British to protect them via Singapore. However the British were too preoccupied with the war in Europe to protect Eastern assets, so Japan could easily take over Singapore
• This was the start of Australia’s military relationship with th United States