WWII Flashcards
1
Q
Axis and Allied Powers
A
- The Axis powers (Germany, Italy, Japan) were opposed by the Allied Powers (led by Great Britain, the United States, and the Soviet Union). Five other nations joined the Axis during World War II: Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Slovakia, and Croatia
2
Q
Understand the expansionist policies of fascist governments: Lebensraum and Anschluss, 1938 Sudetenland
A
3
Q
Chamberlain and appeasement of Hitler
A
- Instituted in the hope of avoiding war, appeasement was the name given to Britain’s policy in the 1930s of allowing Hitler to expand German territory unchecked. Most closely associated with British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain, it is now widely discredited as a policy of weakness.
4
Q
League of Nations failure - Collective Security Principles
A
- While the League of Nations did not succeed in its primary goals of collective security, disarmament, or a large worldwide membership, it is important not to overlook or downplay certain achievements and precedents that were set by the League during the quarter century of its lif
- The idea of collective security failed to keep the peace between 1920 and 1935 due to the fact that the league was unable to act against the larger powers due to its lack of support, and the depression.
- The failures of the League in the 1930s were not only because of aggressor nations undermining its authority, but also down to its own members. Britain and France, the two most influential members, ignored the League in their efforts to appease Hitler - actions that arguably led to the outbreak of the Second World War.
5
Q
Manchurian crisis - significance
A
- Followed the Mukden Incident in which Japanese rail tracks were destroyed in an explosion. Claiming that it was saboteurs, the Japanese responded with force, taking control of the Chinese province of Manchuria
- The conquest of Manchuria, a land rich in natural resources, was widely seen as an economic “lifeline” to save Japan from the effects of the Great Depression, generating much public support
6
Q
Why people became disenchanted with the democratic process in the 1930s
A
- The Depression affected politics by shaking confidence in unfettered capitalism. That type of laissez-faire economics is what President Herbert Hoover advocated, and it had failed. As a result, people voted for President Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR).
7
Q
Key concepts: annexation, appeasement, demilitarization.
A
- Annexation: Possession taken of a piece of land or a country, usually by force or without permission
- Appeasement: Giving in to demands. A foreign policy practiced by Britain and the United States when they granted Hitler concessions in an effort to avoid World War II
- Demilitarization: The reduction of state armed forces
8
Q
Benito Mussolini and ultranationalism in Italy
A
- Italian nationalist and the founder of Italian Fascism. He ruled Italy from 1922–1925 as Prime Minister, and from 1925–1943 as il Duce, the Fascist dictator. Mussolini’s Fascist takeover of Italy was an inspiration and example for Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party in Germany
- In Italy and Germany extreme nationalism was the driving force behind right-wing, anti-democratic movements personified by Benito Mussolini, whose Fascists seized power in Italy in 1922, and Adolf Hitler, whose Nazis took over Germany in 1933.
9
Q
Primary motivation for Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor
A
- Japan intended the attack as a preventive action. Its aim was to prevent the United States Pacific Fleet from interfering with its planned military actions in Southeast Asia against overseas territories of the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and those of the United States.
- By attacking Pearl Harbor Japan believes that it can severely cripple the U.S fleet and buy them time in the Pacific and Southeast Asia. So not only would they be able to launch their attacks without interference from the U.S they would also have time to dig in defensively and consolidate their gains
10
Q
Understand the inability of the United States to remain isolationist (Franklin Roosevelt)
A
- Both parties gave support to his plans for a rapid build-up the American military, but Roosevelt himself sided with the isolationists in not getting the nation into a war with Germany.
11
Q
Understand the different nature of conflict between WWI and WWII
A
- World War II was a war of thousands of guns, tanks, and planes—a “gross national product war” according to one historian. It was a total war—a mobilization of nearly all human and natural resources.
