Germany And The World War II

Once in power Hitler quickly established himself as dictator. He started hauling off thousands of anti-Nazis to concentration camps. The economy, the media, and all cultural activities were brought under Nazi authority by making an individual’s livelihood dependent on their political loyalty. His desire was to establish German rule over Europe and other parts of the world. He realized that this would lead to a European conflict and so he started his plan to conquer Europe by invading Poland in 1939 and started World War ll . The war started off good for the Germans but once the United States entered the war they started to lose. As time passed, defeat became more certain, but Hitler refused to give up. Finally with all of Germany overrun by Allied

World War II was full of conflicts between countries all over the world. Although most people only know things about the holocaust or Hitler 's affect on the World War II, there are other important events that have affected many countries. The Battle of Moscow was a major battle between the Soviet Union and Germany. Ironically, the Soviet Union and Germany previously had a secret agreement (the nonaggression pact) not to go to war on each other, but the promises turned to be broken when Germany 's plan to capture Moscow went into action. (German-Soviet Nonaggression Pact, History Site)

Joseph Stalin used the early years of WWII to gain Territory, which include Finland and Baltic States. (WorldWar2history.info). Later they signed a neutrality pact with Japan. “On June 22, 1941, Germany invaded the Soviet Union, thereby beginning Operation Barbarossa,” because of the invasion Soviet Union joined the war (WorldWar2History.info).

World War II plays a very important part in the history of the world. It still has effects that we deal with today. So, what events could have possibly started such a monumental world war? Well, the events are: World War I, Great Depression, expansion of imperialism, Versailles Treaty, and the rise of Germany. This was a dangerous chain reaction of events that lead to the devastating effects of the war.

During the 1930’s Germany was at an all time low as the worldwide economic depression hit Germany hard. The confidence in Germany from the people was lacking due to the fresh memory of their defeat in World War I. This caused great need of a new leader, someone who could give the people change, and Adolf Hitler knew he could do just that. His rapid rise to power began when he started to promise things that intrigued the German people. He promised the hopeless and needy a better life, and promised opportunities that were exactly what the people needed. This caught the attention of so many young unemployed and middle class people. His party, known as the Nazi Party, won 33 percent of the votes in the 1932 elections. And by January 1933, Hitler was appointed chancellor, which was the head of the German government. Germany started to feel like they might've found the leader they'd been so desperate for.

Many things that happen also have a trigger event – the final straw, or the

During the attack on the morning of December 16th, there were approximately 80,000 United States Army Soldiers in the Ardennes Forest. The Allied Forces had fewer than 250 pieces of armor and nearly 400 artillery guns laid across the 75-mile front. German forces were comprised of a combination of battle-hardened veterans who had fought along the Eastern Front and units filled with inexperienced young men and Soldiers who would usually be considered too old for service. Approximately 250,000 German Soldiers advanced along a 50-mile-long front of Allied Forces with the support of 100,000 tanks and assault guns, including the new 70-ton Tiger II tanks and 1,900 artillery guns. Germany’s 2,000 aircrafts would remain ready for deployment when permitted by weather.

The impact of bombing on the alliance between the Soviet Union and Britain played a crucial role. Before the idea of strategic bombing, the relationship between the Soviet Union and Britain was very tense, especially after 6 October 1942. This culminated in the height of the dangerous struggle on the Don steppe in

With the war looming large at the end of November the first act of hostility was when Soviet Union broke of all diplomatic ties with Finland on November 28th. On November 30th at first light the Soviet troops sent 4 divisions of its army with over 450,000 men over the borders of Finland. The Finns however could only muster around 180,000 men initially against the world's largest army. The Soviets also had the advantage in machinery with Soviet armoured tanks outranking the Finnish 6541 to 32 and aircraft 3880 to 114 (History Learning Site) (Hickman). To make matters worse the majority of the Finnish machinery was severely outdated compared to the Soviets, which were all cutting edge at that time. In Finland bullets were also scarce and soldiers

German invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941 marked a new level of brutality in warfare.

After the fall of Poland in September of 1939, Russia sought to expand further over the Baltic between September and November of the same year. Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia were all made to sign treaties “of mutual assistance" that allowed Russia to establish military bases in each of the three Baltic states. On October 5th, the Soviet Union invited Finnish ambassador,  J.K. Paasikivi, to negotiate Russia’s demands of moving borders, destroy all fortifications on Karelian Isthmus, etcetera. Accepting Soviet demands would have forced the Finns to dismantle their defences and the offer divided the Finnish government, but was eventually rejected. On November 30, 1939, Soviet forces attacked Finland with 21 divisions with

The Winter War, a conflict between the Soviet Union and Finland during the winter of 1939, is one of the most exceptional and lesser known conflicts of the second World War. This seemingly unimportant conflict, had a completely unexpected result where a smaller, weaker nation of Finland repulsed a large Soviet Invasion force, changing the political landscape of the Eastern Front and pushing the Nazi Germany towards making a decision about invading Russia. If not for the Winter War, “Operation Barbarossa”, would have never been authorized by Hitler, therefore changing the possible outcome of World War II.

The Winter War began due to a false flag operation in Mainila in which the Soviet Union bombarded its own city and falsely accused Finland of launching the attack. This attack was due to increasingly sour political relations between Finland and Russia,

The Rise of Hitler During the 1920's and early 1930's Germany was trying to recover from World War. It had to pay reparations and try to rebuild the economy from bankruptcy. It was because of the weaknesses of the economy and the Weimar Government, together with the growing popularity of the Nazis that Hitler was able to become Chancellor.

The Russo-Finnish War, or Winter War, began on 30 November 1939 when the Soviet Union invaded Finland. The objectives of the Red Army were simply, conquer and subjugate all of Finland and re-establish the borders that existed prior to the First World War. The Soviet Union held the advantage in manpower, equipment, and resources, but the Finnish Army inflicted casualties on the Red Army that far exceeded their own. Not a single Red Army unit reached its initial objectives and Stalin was forced to come to the negotiation table and make a peace that left Finland as a sovereign state. The Finnish military was successful because the Red Army lacked competent leadership, didn’t have the proper equipment to fight in subzero temperatures, and the Finnish Army was able to adapt to a changing environment and use their smaller numbers to their advantage. The gaping holes in Soviet military capabilities helped fuel Hitler’s willingness to initiate Operation Barbarossa. Additionally, by invading Finland the Soviet Union turned a disinterested and essentially neutral into an enemy that had the capabilities to strike into the heart of Russia.