Questions and Answers
What event marked the beginning of World War II?
German troops invading Poland on September 1st, 1939
Which country faced hyperinflation, political instability, and economic depression between 1919-1932?
Weimar Republic in Germany
What book did Adolf Hitler write in 1925, outlining his anti-Semitic and expansionist views?
"Mein Kampf"
What event in 1928 in the United States heralded the onset of the Great Depression?
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Which country seized Manchuria in 1931, despite condemnation from the League of Nations?
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Who organized a right-wing nationalist party, the Fascists, in Italy in the 1920s?
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What event confirmed the democracies' impotence to resist aggression and emboldened Hitler in Europe?
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What did Hitler demand from Poland that eventually led to the invasion of Poland and the start of World War II?
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Which two countries signed a non-aggression pact in 1939, with a secret agreement to divide Poland?
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What significant event occurred on August 31, 1939, that plunged the world into war?
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Study Notes
- September 1st, 1939: German troops invaded Poland, marking the beginning of World War II.
- November 11, 1918: World War I ended, leading to the Treaty of Versailles and the creation of the League of Nations.
- 1919: New countries formed in Europe, including Austria, Poland, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia. Some contained significant German minorities.
- 1918: Germany was forced to pay massive reparations to France and Britain.
- 1919-1932: Weimar Republic faced hyperinflation, political instability, and economic depression.
- 1923: Adolf Hitler attempted a coup against the Weimar government, but failed and was sentenced to prison.
- 1925: Hitler wrote "Mein Kampf," outlining his anti-Semitic and expansionist views.
- 1928: Stock market crash in the United States heralded the Great Depression.
- 1930-1932: Unemployment in Germany reached over six million.
- 1932: Hitler's Nazi Party became the largest in Germany's parliament.
- 1933: Hitler was named chancellor of Germany and used the Reichstag fire as an excuse to ban all other political parties.
- 1933: Hitler declared himself president of Germany.
- 1933: Germany began rebuilding its economy and rearming in secret.
- Late 1930s: Japan faced economic, political, and population issues.
- 1931: Japan seized Manchuria and established a puppet state.
- 1932: League of Nations condemned Japan for its actions in Manchuria.
- 1936: Japan invaded China, using brutality and indiscriminate killing.
- 1937: Over 300,000 civilians were estimated to have been massacred during the invasion of Nanking.
- 1937: Japan signed a pact with Germany to guard against Soviet Russia.- In the 1920s, Italy was on the brink of anarchy with strikes and land seizures.
- Benito Mussolini, a war veteran and journalist, organized a right-wing nationalist party, the Fascists.
- Mussolini led his followers in a march on Rome in 1922, and was appointed prime minister by King Victor Emmanuel III.
- Mussolini's first acts included stamping out political opposition and eliminating corruption.
- Italy's armed forces were built up, including an advanced modern air force and a bigger navy than the British and French combined.
- In the 1930s, Italy invaded Abyssinia (now Ethiopia) despite the League of Nations' protests.
- Britain and France, both weakened by the Great Depression and the cost of maintaining their empires, did nothing to stop Italy's aggression.
- Germany and Italy supported Francisco Franco in the Spanish Civil War, while the Soviet Union sent military advisors and equipment to the Republicans.
- The international brigades, mostly made up of left-wing volunteers from various countries, fought for the Republicans.
- The Nationalists were able to open two fronts and Madrid was surrounded, leading to its eventual surrender in March 1939.
- Franco's victory proved disastrous for Europe as it confirmed the democracies' impotence to resist aggression and emboldened Hitler.
- In 1933, Hitler revealed the existence of the Luftwaffe and began expanding the German army, with a focus on mobile, combined arms tactics.
- Germany reintroduced conscription and Europe protested but did nothing as Hitler took back the Rhineland and Sudetenland.
- In 1938, Hitler demanded Austria's unification with Germany and sent in troops in a bloodless invasion.
- Czechoslovakia was threatened with force if it refused to grant autonomy to the Sudeten Germans, leading to the Munich Agreement.
- Hitler demanded the return of Danzig and the Polish Corridor from Poland, leading to the eventual invasion of Poland and World War II.
- In 1939, the Soviet Union and Germany signed a non-aggression pact, with a secret agreement to divide Poland and give Stalin a free hand in the Baltic states.
- Hitler ordered the invasion of Poland on August 31, 1939, plunging the world into war.
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Description
Test your knowledge on the events leading up to World War II and the interwar period, including the rise of fascist leaders like Hitler and Mussolini, the League of Nations, Japan's aggression in Asia, and key events that led to the outbreak of the war in 1939.
