1 6 Tensions Rise in Europe and the Pacific army Hitler wanted to gain more land for Germany His army began to invade other countries World War I ended in 1919 It was called the war to end all wars But it did not live up to its name The war left many countries in ruins Their governments were weak A new political system rose up out of the ashes It was called fascism Dictators came to power in Italy Japan Germany and other countries They promised to make their countries mighty again The most powerful fascist leader was Adolf Hitler Great Britain France and Italy signed the Munich Agreement with Germany in September 1938 The deal gave Germany control of land in western Czechoslovakia In return Number of months Hitler kept to the terms of the Munich Agreement Hitler became the chancellor of Germany on January 30 1933 With his Nazi Party he created a strong police force He also built up a large THINK ABOUT IT Find out more about the causes of World War II Which do you think was the most important Give reasons for your answer In 1933 Hitler became the dictator of Germany Hitler began to build up Germany's armed forces In 1938 Germany signed the Munich Agreement Hitler agreed not to claim more territory In March 1939 Hitler invaded Czechoslovakia breaking the Munich Agreement 4
Great Britain France United States Soviet Union and their allies Germany and its allies Neutral Controlled by Germany and its allies This map shows the parts of Europe Germany controlled throughout World War II Hitler said he would not use force to take over the rest of the country But in March 1939 Hitler broke the terms of the Munich Agreement The German army moved into Czechoslovakia Then Hitler set his sights on Poland The British government vowed to help the Polish people if Hitler attacked them The British feared Germany would try to take over more of Europe 5
2 War Begins as Hitler Invades Poland On September 1 1939 German forces bombarded Poland Adolf Hitler wanted to rule there too British leaders kept their promise to the Polish people They declared war on Germany two days later France was another ally of Poland It also declared war on Germany World War II had officially begun lightning war Hitler lined up his armies along a narrow piece of land His ground and air forces stormed enemy lines Then German tanks drove in They roamed freely behind the lines This caused chaos for Germany's opponents They were easily defeated Hitler did not want a long war He used a new military strategy It was called the blitzkrieg or Hitler's blitzkrieg swept through nine European countries in nine months On September 1 1939 62 German divisions and 1,300 aircraft invaded Poland
2 Number of days from the time Germany invaded Poland until World War II began THE PHONY WAR For nine months after Hitler invaded Poland Great Britain and France did little fighting with Germany This period became known as the Phony War British bombing raids over Germany dropped leaflets instead of explosives The leaflets explained the evils of the Nazi Party The Phony War came to an end in May 1940 when Hitler invaded France On September 1 1939 Germany invaded Poland Great Britain and France declared war on Germany on September 3 This was the start of World War II Hitler's security force began to kill anyone who disagreed with Nazi beliefs They included Denmark Belgium and Greece He invaded France in May of 1940 By April 1941 he had captured much of Europe Germany invaded Belgium on May 10 1940 Hitler set up a security force or SS in each country They began to kill anyone who disagreed with their Nazi beliefs People began to fear the SS especially people of the Jewish faith Hitler hated the Jews He wanted to wipe them out entirely He would stop at nothing to get rid of them 7
