Second World War

Question 1

What were the contents of the Treaty of Versailles?

Answer 1

• The Great War was Germany’s fault.
• The Germans must pay for the war until 1988. The money will go to the British and French.
• Germany should only have a small army (100,000 men), a small navy (six battleships) and no submarines, air force or tanks.
• Germany must hand over huge areas of its land to the winning nations. Some of the land will be used to make new countries like Poland and Czechoslovakia.
• Germany must never unite with Austria again.
• No German soldiers can go into an area known as the Rhineland.

Question 2

What party took over Germany and who became the leader of Germany in 1933?

Answer 2

The Nazi Party took over Germany and Adolf Hitler became the leader.

Question 3

Why was there a Second World War?

Answer 3

Adolf Hitler drove Germany to break the requirements of the contract by doing things like building their army, getting aeroplanes and battleships, uniting with Austria and entering the Rhineland when they weren’t supposed to. Germany then was allowed to take Sudetenland but took all of Czechoslovakia instead and then invaded Poland, involving other countries and causing the second war to break out.

Question 4

How long was the Second World War?

Answer 4

About 6 years long, from 1939 to 1945.

Question 5

What is a Blitzkreig?

Answer 5

A method to help defeat another in the war, it was used for the invasion of Poland by Germany. This method was also used to attack countries like France, Denmark, Norway, the Netherlands, and Belgium.

Question 6

What was the Battle of Britain?

Answer 6

The Battle of Britain was a battle against Britain and Germany that took place in the air. Germany’s aim was to destroy Britain’s air force but they failed.

Question 7

When did Germany attack Russia?

Answer 7

June 1941.

Question 8

When did Germany and Italy invade Yugoslavia and Greece?

Answer 8

April 1941.

Question 9

When did Japan enter the war?

Answer 9

At the end of 1941.

Question 10

What are some turning key points?

Answer 10

• The Battle of Midway (June 1942).
• The Battle of Stalingrad (July 1923 - February 1943).
• El Alamein (October - November 1942).

Question 11

When did Italy surrender and what happened to Mussolini?

Answer 11

Italy surrendered by the end of 1943 and Mussolini was captured and shot.

Question 12

When was D-Day?

Answer 12

6 June, 1944.

Question 13

When did Hitler die and how?

Answer 13

Hitler died on the 30 April, 1945. He shot himself in the Führerbunker. Germany surrendered in days.

Question 14

When did Japan surrender and why?

Answer 14

Japan surrendered on the 14 August, 1945 because the USA bombed Hiroshima and Nagasaki with a very powerful nuclear weapon.

Question 15

When did the Battle of Britain take place?

Answer 15

The Battle of Britain started and ended from 10 July 1940 – 31 October 1940.

Question 16

What was the name of the German air force?

Answer 16

The Luftwaffe.

Question 17

What was the name of the British air force?

Answer 17

The RAF.

Question 18

Why were the odds stacked up for the British?

Answer 18

• The Germans had 842 fighter planes and 1017 bomber planes and the British only had 600 fighter planes.
• It took five minutes for German planes to cross the Channel from France. However, it took 15 minutes for British planes to take off and reach the invading planes after they were spotted.
• Many of the British pilots were part-timers and had not received the same level of training or experience as the Germans. Germany trained 800 new pilots a month, while the British trained just 200.

Question 19

What were the planes of the RAF and what were the planes of the Luftwaffe?

Answer 19

RAF - the Hawker Hurricane and the Supermarine Spitfire.
Luftwaffe - Messerschmitt BF 109, Messerschmitt BF 110 and Heinkel HE 111.

Question 20

RAF - the Hawker Hurricane and the Supermarine Spitfire.
Luftwaffe - Messerschmitt BF 109, Messerschmitt BF 110 and Heinkel HE 111.

Answer 20

Radar. It actually caused Germany to loose more planes than the British.

Question 21

What were the statistics at the end of the Battle of Britain?

Answer 21

Germany lost 60 aircraft to Britain’s 25.

Question 22

Who were the ‘few’?

Answer 22

The pilots who fought in the Battle of Britain.

Question 23

What caused the USA to bomb Japan?

Answer 23

• The incident with Pearl Harbour.
• Japan not willing to surrender.

Question 24

How many people in the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings in total?

Answer 24

Between 129,000 - 226, 000 people died in the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings in total.

Question 25

How hot was the bomb?

Answer 25

Around 300,000 degrees.

Question 26

What is a kamikaze?

Answer 26

When suicidal crashes were made onto opponents.

Question 27

What happened to Germany after WWII?

Answer 27

Germany was divided up, and so was Austria. Countries like France, Britain and USA took the west of Germany and the Soviet Union took the east of Germany.

Question 28

What did Britain do after the war?

Answer 28

A new party called the Labour Party was elected and they helped rebuild homes, towns and cities, increased the number of jobs and came up with the NHS.

Question 29

What happened to the British Empire after WWII?

Answer 29

It collapsed. Most of the colonies of the British Empire gained their independence throughout the years, (Mahatma Gandhi was responsible for pushing the independence of India).