WWII

Question 1

What event started WWII?

Answer 1

the German invasion of the USSR occupied Poland in September 1939

Violated the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact - Poland ceased to exist

USSR coutner-invasion -> Poland was a gov in exile
Baltic States fell to USSR
When Poland was invaded the Allies declared war
There was na immiediate naval blockage against GR by UK and FR.
Royal airforce immediately and unsuccessfully bombed GR cities

Question 2

German and USSR alliance WWII

Answer 2

Molotov-Ribben Trop pact born

done in secret oh wow - ended when GR invaded USSR Poland

Made a deal to split poland and the Baltics.
USSR had huge supplies of natural resources that they were supplying GR’s huge fucking economy with. (you are not able to wage war against an industrial power, if you are unable to supply your factories with needed raw materials

Question 3

Norway WWII

Answer 3

Invaded by Germany for Iron Ore

Spring 1940 went to Denmark + Norway for iron… Tronheim

Sweden stayed neutral in WWII and supplied GR with iron ore… they did not stand up and help Norway! this was seen as evil neutrality.
Finland later aligned with GR for protection against the USSR

Question 4

Iceland WWII

Answer 4

Geostrategic location bc of sealines of communication

May 10 1940 Royal Navy secured Iceland

UK was scared that from Norway that GR could attack all the North Atlantic sea lines of communication

Question 5

France WWII

Answer 5

Fell after 7 weeks

May 10 1940 GR invaded FR and Belgium, France fell in June

Strongest branch of FR army was navy, and GR was a land power.
Mussolini waited until GR invaded France to join GR.
French Navy had to leave Europe led to some conflict with UK and air raids in Gibraltar.
Fall of FR left the UK as the only GP against GR

Question 6

Neutral Countries in WWII

Answer 6

Sweden, Switzerland, Ireland, , Yugoslavia, Greece (conq. later), Slovakia (later puppet state), Spain, and Portugal

Sweden was offered the choice of supplying GR with iron or being invaded (evil)
Switzerland was a safe haven for secret services of all countries.
Spain and Portu were more politically similar to GR and IT, but were tired and poor respectively to be of much use to GR (Franco refused to invade Gibraltar for GR).

Question 7

Affects of the Washington Naval Treaty

Answer 7

Royal Navy was in its weakest condition in the last 100 years

entire length of Euro Atalntic coastline was controlled by GR spring ‘40

Question 8

Operation Catapult

Answer 8

Royal Navy against French ships and France’s retaliation

1st airraids in Gibraltar was done by the French
largest losses in french navy were bc of their armed ships in UK territory
France had to get boats to US carribean

Question 9

USA early neutrality

Answer 9

laws during the Great Depression limited congress’s ability to get involved

US was still neutral at the fall of France

law: US can’t aid any country that hasn’t paid its debt from WWI -> Roosevelt couldn’t aid BR or FR>

Question 10

Battle of the Atlantic

Answer 10

Sep 3rd 1939

GR ships operating in every km2 of Atlantic hurting UK ability to import

since 1860s UK was heavily depenedt on ability to import food.
Italy was able to stop Uk oil shipments for the Middle East

Question 11

Greece WWII

Answer 11

Originally neutral, attacked by Italy in 1941 (won), attacked bt Germany later (defeated)

Spring 1941 Italian invasion of Greece failed, but Hitler came to help

Mussolini was desperate and asked GR for help and they jointly attakced Yugoslavia and went thru the entire Balkan peninsula and Greece was successfully invaded.

Question 12

Hitler and Mussolini relationship

Answer 12

Allies but jelaous of eachother

Question 13

The Indian Question

Answer 13

Nazi Generals were trying to convince Hitler to change the course of the war and fight the UK in the Middle East all of the way to India

Karl haushofer of the GR school of Geopol suggested this

it was the nightmare of the Brit imperialists that someone frome Europe would invade India int he footsteps of Alexander the Great.
USSR was going to invade Iran/Iraq at the same time as GR moved to the UK areas in the ME (USSR gets lots of oil from Azerbaijan) - there were plans to attack these reserves that never happened despite how important they were

Question 14

Operation Barbarossa

Answer 14

the German invasion of USSR (post-Fall of France) started June 22, 1941 - ended Dec 5, 1941 right outside of Moscow

very ill prepated and failed - USSR warned of GR invasion didn’t believe

plan was made by only 1 general and 2 colonels
very ill-informed about the size fo the arms of the Red Army
Plan was for the entire Red Army to be destroyed in 6-8 weeks in the West of the USSR.
The huge fucking size of the USSR territory and lack of roads/bridges really helped Stalin.
GR + allies divided into 1- Group Army North 2- Group Army South (most imp. bc resource rich Ukr 3- Group Army Centre (went all the way to Moscow).
Took 14 days to get thru Soviet Poland (welcomed as liberators) (within 2 months had advanced more than the entirety of W Euro).
Had help from Finland, Romania, Poland. and Hungary.
2 miracles: 1- GR was srutggling with supples but was still able to penterate deeper into USSR territoy and there were more and more dead USSR soliders 2- USSR regimes didn’t collapse, they were permanently retreating but didn’t hesitate to pay the price in solidiers or civilans for survival.

Question 15

The Atlantic Charter

Answer 15

Summer 1941 Churchill and Roosevelt met in New Foundland to sign these 9 points that became the major principples of the UN charter

this became the UN - very anti-colonial and against imperialism

1. UK and US seek no territorial gains from the war
2. any changes to a country’s territory should only happen w/ the agreement of those living there
3. it is the rifh of everyone to choose their gov (anti-colonial use in the future)
4. Self-gov should be restored to those who have lost it
5. there should be free trade btw nations
6. improvements in the econ and in living standards should be made available to all
7. there should be peace following what the charter calls “the end of Nazi tyranny”
8. peace shoild eneable freedom and movement aroind the world
9. a belief that the agressive nations must be disarmed if the world is to live in peace

Question 16

The Founding of the UN

Answer 16

Declaration of United Nations Decemeber 1941 (from the Atlantic Charter in summer 1941)

all founding members of UN had to be at war w/ either Japan, GR, or IT

December 1941- Declaration of United Nations accepted by: USA, UK, USSR, Belgium, CZ, Guatemala, Greece, Luxembourg, Norway, Yugo, South Africa, Nicaragua, India, Poland, Panama, NZ, Netherlands, Honduras, Haiti, Cuba, El Salvador, DR, Costa Rica, Australia, Canda, and Chile
Europena gocs in exile were all located in London which made Churchill feel more powerful than the US

Question 17

WWII as industrial warfare

Answer 17

access to resources contributing to determining the outcome

US was a major industrial base not hurt by WWI and established in Europe

US industiral strength during WWII led to the 1st time that the map was centered on the US. post-wwII buisness HQs were moved to the US.
US was shipping war amterials across the world.
USSR was able to make almost all of the arms it needed, but needed tech in communication, food, and other sipplies form the west. Most importantly, the west sent locomotives which gave them the power to mobilize and move the resources they already had

Question 18

The First Corridor

Answer 18

Supply route to USSR thru the Persian Gulf, Iran

golf -> shore of Caspian estab. railroad = vital comm used by UK/US

Volga river was why GR deceieded to attack USSR form the south. (goroup fo GR attakcing USSR split in 2 to conquer both volga and oil fields in AzB) GR was successful in blockign shipping up the Volga
Stalingrad = vital in blocking the convoys on the Volga (next target for GR)

Question 19

The Second Corridor

Answer 19

Supply route for the USSR thru North Pacific

shipments from US/Can across Pacific to Vladivostok etc.

No war btw Japan and USSR until 1945
Safest corridor thru the entire WWII. (USSR promised Japan that no mil eqip woudl be shipped thru this corridor but tons on uniforms/food/med were)
Alsib road: Alaska-Siberia road, the corridor where US/Can produced plances were transported to the USSR
Little success from the Soviet-Artic

Question 20

The Third Corridor

Answer 20

Supply route to USSR from USA from the North Atlantic

the least successful corridor

Question 20

Battle of Kursk

Answer 20

Last German attempt to regain strategic initiative on the Eastern Front (GR v. USSR in SW USSR)

since summer ‘43 GR was in permanent retreate to Berlin untik end of war

At the Battle of Kurisk, USSR had large losses, but maintained the advantage.
1943 was the turning point on the Eastern Front
Also when GR army fialed in stalingrad they retreated fromt he Caucasus and Ukraine

Question 20

Teheran Conference

Answer 20

Nov 1943 - Churchhill, Stalin, and Roosevelt met in person

Stalin demanded that the territories surrounding the USSR from which it had been attacked (Rom, CZ, Pol, etc) need to be under USSR control for security reasons. This was capitualted to bc Stalin made it clear that this would happen one way or another.
What will be libetated by UK/US forces or USSR will be controlled by the liberators.
In return Stalin disassemmled the Comintern

Question 21

Yalta Conference

Answer 21

4-11 Feb 1945: US, UK, USSR meeting to discuss the post war reorganization of Germany and Europe

Question 22

The Postdam Conference

Answer 22

July 17 - Aug 2 1945: US, UK, China calling for the unconditional surrender of Japan

Question 23

Operation Market Garden

Answer 23

US/UK failed offensive in BENELUX region where major rivers controlled by GR were

surprise attack against GR west flank

Securing bridges thru paratroops, tanks from Bel sent to go thru GR positions. Stikes from the north which leads to Berlin. Ideal terrain fro tank warfare. GR was able to amintain control of the last Bridge at Arhelm

Question 24

Churchill x Stalin discussions of the fate of the Balkans

Answer 24

dividing the influence of the USSR and the West in Romania, Greece, SFRY, Hungary, Bulgaria

Romania mostly USSR bc was the biggest ally to GR b4 changing sides.
Greece, CZ, and Bulgaria also split in favor of USSR bc they were the liberators (US wanted to promte democracy and free elections)
Greece was an exceptions bc they went into a civil war btw Communists and Royalists (ended in 1948 and never fell to communisim)

Question 25

Japan WWII

Answer 25

Expanding into China and South Asia (on the side of Germany)

needed to expanded bc lack natural resources for indusrty

Japan’s land forces were concentrated in China (resources, labor, market).
1910 - annexed Korea 1931- Manchuko
Japan was 1st GP to violate the LoN (Manchuko)
Dutch Indonesia for oil.
Very shocked by the molotov-ribbentrop pact (USSR GR)

Question 26

USSR in Asia

Answer 26

Expansion into Mongolia and conflict with Japan

1934 Mongolia = USSR satellite state (2nd puppet state in the world)

Lake Khasan ‘38 and Khalkhyn Gol ‘39 were bloody border disputes btw J and USSR
Russia had the tank advantage iver J thus haulting Japanese northern expansion (J had few tanks bc china was ill-suited for tank warfare)

Question 27

The Rape of Nanking

Answer 27

Disgusting act of violence Japanese army in China

published worldwide changing opinions on Japan

b4 the Rape of Nanking, J got oil from US, but in response congress adopted an emargo (no tanks or ammo to any country at war and no oil to Japan). Lack of US oil meant J went looking for oil in Indonesia. J was annoyed about all the Euro islands btw them and their oil, so they took them (easy bc europe was so busy)

Question 28

Pearl harbor

Answer 28

Dec 7, 1941 Japan launched a surprise attack against US naval base

US is now in WWII

Pearl Harbor was part of a larger scale attack agaisnt the west.

Question 29

April 1941 Neutrality Pact

Answer 29

Neutrality pact btw Japan and USSR

Japan knew to expand south they needed things calm in the north

This was sort of a momic of the anti-Commintern pact.
No war btw Japan and the USSR from 1941-1945
1945 April when war in Europe ended Russia promised to join the US against Japan within 3 months. Russia came from Manchuria in to Manchukuo and all the way to the Korean penninsula steam rolling with thier tanks. There were no pre-established rules when it came to conquering so Russia was greedy.

Question 30

Japan in the Asian Islands

Answer 30

Taiwan, Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines, Dutch Indonesia

had much success here from 1941-1942

Singapore was the largest mil defeat in BR history. It was a major naval strong hold in this part of the war and was super unprepared for attack
From Taiwan, Japan attacked the US in the Philippines.
Attacked UK in Malaysisa and Singapore

Question 31

Japan in Continental South Asia

Answer 31

In Burma bc roads/rails to China and tried and failed to intiate an uprising in India

had Burma, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam

Split French Indochina into Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia

Question 32

Operation Ichi-Go

Answer 32

Summer 1944 goal to open a route from French Indochina to mainland China

very successful

Question 33

Stalin and Mao

Answer 33

Suspicious Allies

Mao demanded that Stalin give back the parts of China that were taken

Stalin thought that Japan out of china was a victory for communism but it was also intimidating to have this large and populous communist neighbor.
Stalin didn’t want to give land back to Mao bc they built railroads there. He refused until he died (1955) and 2 yrs later the lands were returned.

Question 34

USSR and Turkey

Answer 34

Stalin wanted to expand USSR influence into Turkey

Azerbaijan became part of the USSR. US withdrew beofre USSR from Iran

The Kurds were the largest stateless nation in the world and have been fighting for a nation state since the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire (they are largely in Turkey).
Thruout WWII Turkey was neutral.
Territorial dispute btw Turkey and USSR in the east border of Turkey.
Both were hated by the international community which made them get along a little bit.
USSR wanted access to Turkish Straits (siad that they had every right to protect themselves but Turkey successfully used UN repsect of sov of territory to protect land - this was the 1st time it worked for anyone)