Q3: Why had international peace collapsed by 1939?

Question 1

What were Hitler’s plans for Germany?

Answer 1

Abolish the Treaty of Versailles - He (and many other Germans) believed that it was unjust and humiliating

Expand German Territory - He wanted to reunite German minorities and give the German people more ‘living room’. He also wanted Germany and Austria to unite

Defeat communism - He was against communism and believed that it helped defeat them in WWI

Question 2

When did Hitler come into power?

Answer 2

1933

Question 3

When did Hitler stage a military rally, celebrating the German armed forces?

Answer 3

1935

Question 4

When was conscription reintroduced to Germany?

Answer 4

1936

Question 5

An agreement was signed between Germany and Britain, allowing them to increase their navy up to what percent of the British navy?

Answer 5

35%

Question 6

What percentage of the population voted for the Saar region to return to German Rule?

Answer 6

Around 90%

Question 7

When was the Saar plebiscite?

Answer 7

1935

Question 8

When was the Rhineland remilitarised?

Answer 8

March 1936

Question 9

How did Hitler justify remilitarising the Rhineland?

Answer 9

France had just signed a treaty with the USSR that agreed that they would defend each other if Germany attacked. Hitler claimed that it was a threat and that he should be allowed to defend his own borders

Question 10

How did France react to the Remilitarisation of the Rhineland?

Answer 10

They didn’t. They decided that they didn’t want to take responsibility for starting a war.

Question 11

When Hilter remilitarised the Rhineland, what would he have done if France showed any sign of resistance?

Answer 11

He would have retreated

Question 12

When did the Spanish civil war break out?

Answer 12

1936

Question 13

What were the sides of the Spanish civil war?

Answer 13

Supporters of the Republican Government and right-wing rebels

Question 14

Who lead the right-wing rebels in the Spanish Civil war?

Answer 14

General Franco

Question 15

Who supported the Republican Government in the Spanish civil war?

Answer 15

The USSR (in the form of weapons, and aircraft and pilots) and thousands of volunteers from around 50 countries

Question 16

Who did Hitler and Mussolini support in the Spanish civil war?

Answer 16

General Franco

Question 17

What did the German aircraft and pilots take part in for the Spanish civil war?

Answer 17

They bombed civilian populations and other major campains

Question 18

When did Japan invade China?

Answer 18

1937

Question 19

What did Germany and Japan sign in 1936?

Answer 19

An Anti-Comintern Pact, designed to oppose comunism

Question 20

Comintern

Answer 20

The USSR’s organisation to spread communism to other countries

Question 21

When did Italy sign the Anti-Comintern Pact?

Answer 21

1937

Question 22

What year did Hitler first attempt to take over Austria but was stopped by Mussolini?

Answer 22

1934

Question 23

When did Germany unite with Austria?

Answer 23

1938

Question 24

What percentage of the Austrian population voted for Anschluss?

Answer 24

99.75%

Question 25

How did Hitler ensure that he didn’t loose the plebiscite for union with Austria?

Answer 25

He sent German troops to “guarantee a trouble free plebiscite”

Question 26

When did Hitler take over the Sudetenland?

Answer 26

1938

Question 27

Was Hitler lying when he told Chamberlain that he did not want to take Czechoslovakia?

Answer 27

Yes

Question 28

When did Chamberlain meet Hitler to discuss Hitler’s demands for the Sudetenland?

Answer 28

15 September, 1938

Question 29

What were Hitler’s initial demands for the Sudetenland?

Answer 29

He said that he was only interested in the German parts

Question 30

How did Hitler justify increasing his demands from just parts of the Sudetenland to all of it?

Answer 30

He claimed that the Czech government was mistreating the Germans in the Sudetenland. He intended to rescue them by 1 October, 1938

Question 31

What was the Munich Agreement?

Answer 31

It was when the leaders of Britain, Germany, France and Italy decided what to do with the Sudetenland. They gave it to Germany

Question 32

When was the Munich Agreement signed?

Answer 32

29 September, 1938

Question 33

When did German troops march into the Sudetenland?

Answer 33

1 October, 1938

Question 34

When did Hitler take the rest of Czechoslovakia?

Answer 34

15 March, 1939

Question 35

Why did Stalin not trust the treaty he signed with France in 1935?

Answer 35

They failed to stop Hitler remilitarising the Rhineland, which was directly on their border

Question 36

When was the Nazi-Soviet Pact signed?

Answer 36

23 August, 1939

Question 37

What were the terms of the Nazi-Soviet Pact?

Answer 37

They agreed not to attack each other. They also secretly agreed to split Poland between them

Question 38

Why did Stalin sign the Nazi-Soviet pact?

Answer 38

It gave him territory and time. He gained half of Poland. It also bought him time to prepare for Hitler’s inevitable betrayal

Question 39

When did Germany invade Poland?

Answer 39

1 September, 1939

Question 40

When did Britain and France declare war on Hitler?

Answer 40

3 September, 1939