Causes of World War II

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Causes of World War II

• 1939- 1945

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1) The Great War

• Germans feel they never really lost the war
• Treaty of Versailles- Germans feel they are
  unfairly blamed, cannot pay money owed
• Italy and Japan feel they do not gain enough for
  their efforts

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2) Great Depression

• 1929 the US Stock Market crashes, leading to a
  US depression, which leads to a worldwide
  depression
• During hard times, people look for strong
  leadership

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3) Dictators

• leader with absolute (all) power

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Italy

• 1922 Benito Mussolini
• his political party was called the Fascists

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USSR

• 1924 Joseph Stalin
• He led the Communists

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Germany

• 1933 Adolf Hitler
• his party was fascist and called the Nazis

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Spain

• 1939 Francisco Franco
• His party was the Nationalists (fascists)

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Japan

• 1941-44 Hideki Tojo
• he leads a military dictatorship (junta)

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4) Expanding empires

• control lands
• people used for labor
• natural resources
• power

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Germany

• lebensraum- living room. Hitler said they
  needed more space. Wants to control Europe.
• 1938 Austria joins with Germany (Anschluss)
• 1938 Allies give away Czechoslovakia without a
  fight (Munich Conference)
• 1939 wants Poland

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Japan

• wants to rule Asia and the Pacific Ocean
• 1931 Manchuria (northern China) defeated
• 1937 China invaded (war continues until 1945)

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Italy

• Mussolini wants to revive the Roman Empire
  (control the Mediterranean area)
• 1935 Ethiopia invaded and taken over
• 1939 Albania invaded

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5) Why didnt the Allies do anything?

• World War I killed so many they were afraid of
  another war
• US would not help (isolationism)
• thought dictators would go away

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WWII Maps
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United Kingdom
Winston Churchill 1940-45
Neville Chamberlain until 1940
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France
Henri Petain until 1940 Vichy France 1940-44
Charles de Gaulle Free France 1940-45
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USA
Franklin Roosevelt until 1945
Harry Truman 1945
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China
Mao Zedong Communists
Chiang Kai-Shek Nationalists