Year 10 History: Australia and World War II

Causes of World War Two

• The Treaty of Versailles was a negotiated agreement between nations to ensure lasting peace after WWI, signed on June 28, 1919, requiring Germany to pay reparations, disarm, lose territory, and give up colonies.

• The treaty was drafted by the "big four" - David Lloyd George, Georges Clemenceau, Woodrow Wilson, and Vittorio Orlando.

• The treaty led to Germany losing 13% of its land, 12% of its people, 48% of its iron resources, 15% of its agricultural production, and 10% of its coal.

• Hitler used the treaty to gain support by appealing to soldiers who felt conned, and Germany was forced to accept guilt, pay reparations, lose land, and was prohibited from having a large military.

• The treaty's harsh punishment led to German anger and loyalty to Hitler.

• The Great Depression was an economic downturn that led people to look for a strong political leader, with Adolf Hitler promising to return Germany to its former wealth and power in 1933.

• German Militarism saw Hitler secretly build up German soldiers and weapons, with Britain and France thinking it would stop the spread of communism from Russia.

• Hitler created alliances with Japan and Italy, forming the Axis powers.

• In 1936, Hitler ordered German troops to enter German-speaking areas of France, Austria, and Czechoslovakia.

Failure of Appeasement

• Appeasement was the policy of agreeing to demands of another nation to avoid conflict.
• In the 1930s, France and Britain thought the Treaty of Versailles was unfair to Germany and Hitler's actions were understandable.
• In September 1938, Britain and France allowed Germany to invade German-speaking areas in Czechoslovakia.
• Germany broke its promise not to invade the rest of the country in 1939.
• Britain and France weren't prepared to take military action, leading to Germany invading Poland in September 1939 and Britain and France declaring war.

Failure of the League of Nations

• The League of Nations was an international organization set up in 1919 to keep world peace.
• It failed because not all countries joined, and there was no army to prevent military aggression.
• Examples of its failure include Italy invading Ethiopia in Africa and Japan invading China.

Japan's Militarism

• In 1931, Japan was in economic depression, and people turned to the army for a solution.
• Japan invaded China for its natural resources, ignoring the League of Nations' requests to stop.
• Japan invaded other areas of southeast Asia, including Vietnam, and the US became worried about its Asian territories.
• Japan felt threatened by the US and attacked Pearl Harbor and Hawaii in 1941, beginning WWII in Asia.

Australian Involvement

• Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies made a speech on September 3, 1939, declaring Australia at war with Germany, following Britain's declaration.
• Menzies stated that Australia stands with Britain and the entire British world.