-
The Austrian Anschluss
The Austrian Anschluss was when Hitler wanted all German-speaking nations in Europe to be a part of Germany. The invasion started on March 12, 1938. Hitler believed that Germany could expand its territory by resorting to force with its attendant risks. He threatened to invade German speaking Austria unless Austrian Nazis were given important posts. The chancellor of Austria gave into Hitler’s demands , but then he tried to get a democratic vote and then Hitler decided to invade. -
The Munich Conference
At the Munich Conference, Britain and France agreed to Hitler’s demands. The Munich Conference took place on September 29, 1938. Hitler’s demands which Britain and France agreed to were known as appeasement. Britain and France thought that if they gave Hitler what he wanted, they could avoid war. Appeasement ended up failing and Germany sent troops into Czechoslovokia and divided the country. -
Hitler demands Danzig
A month after the Munich conference, Hitler wanted the city of Danzig to be under control by the Germans. On March 31, 1939, Britain said that if Poland went to war to defend their territory, Britain and France would support them. Poland ended up refusing Hitler’s orders and Hitler then ordered the German army to get ready to invade Poland. Hitler was not planning to fight the soviets if Germany was going to fight Britain and France. -
The Nazi-Soviet Pact
The German officials proposed a non-agression treaty to the soviets which Stalin agreed and believed it was the best way to protect the USSR. If this treaty worked, then Germany would go to war against Britain and France. On August 23, 1939, Germany and the USSR signed the treaty and everyone was shocked. Hitler made this deal to free himself for war against their countries and Poland. No one knew but the treaty had a secret deal in it to divide Poland between Germany and the Soviet Union. -
The Invasion of Poland
On September 1, 1939, Germany invaded Poland and two days later Britain and France declared war on Germany and this was the start of World War 2. Germans used a new type of warfare called the lightning war. This new warfare used large numbers of massed tanks which broke through and encircled enemy positions. The Polish army could not back off from the attack and Warsaw, the Polish capital fell to the Germans on September 27. On October 5, 1939, the Germans have over come the Polish military. -
The Fall of France
After WWII,the French built the Maginot Line along the German border. For the Germans to get around the line, they would have to invade the Netherlands,Belgium,and Luxembourg. On May 10, 1940,while German troops went into the Netherlands,tanks rolled into Belgium and Lux.The British and French expected the German attack and,the two forces went quick to Belgium.The British and French armies were still in Belgium and couldn't move into France quickly enough so they were trapped in Belgium. -
The Evacuation of Dunkirk
Germans were out to catch the last port known as Dunkirk.As the German forces went to close in on Dunkirk, Hitler had ordered them to stop and caused a three day delay.This gave the British time to strengthen their lines and begin the evacuation. When the evacuation ended on June 4, an estimated 338,000 British and French troops had been saved. This became known as the “Miracle at Dunkirk.” Three weeks later, on June 22, 1940, Hitler accepted the French surrender. -
The Battle of Britain
In the summer of 1940,after Hitler swept through France and drove the British army out of the European mainland,the people of Britain got ready for a Nazi invasion. Before Hitler could conquer the country he needed to gain power.The Luftwaffe set up a large scale attack, planned to wipe out Britain's air defences. The pilots became known as "The Few", who stood up wave after wave of German fighters and bombers to send a clear message to Hitler that Britain would never surrender.
