HISTORY 12 CAUSES OF WORLD WAR II Pacific and Europe NOTES Ben Lepore October 25, 2017(V2)
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Causes of World War II in the Pacific Japan and China China Chiang Kai-shek and the Kuomintang 1927 General Chiang Kai-shek becomes leader of the Nationalists Party/Kuomintang and Republic of China Mao Zedong and the Communist Party Mao Zedong lead the Communist Party who appealed to the peasantry Chiang attempts to destroy the communist and a civil war ensues between the Nationalists and Communists The Manchurian Incident Manchuria 1931/ Lytton Commission as the Nationalist movement grew the Japanese plotted to secure recognition of their claim to Manchuria before the Kuomintang became stronger and to this end went to war in 1931 Manchuria was crucial to Japan s economic prosperity and it could not lose its remaining source of raw materials and markets without risking economic collapse the Great Depression caused an economic crisis and proved the army s case that military expansion was essential to survival and that conquest could put an end to the desperate crisis in the Japanese economy Japan occupied Manchuria in 1931 Chiang refused to use his army against the Japanese because he wanted to maintain the pressure on Mao s communist forces and instead he appealed to the League to take action against Japan > it appointed the Lytton Commission the Commission recognized Japan s economic interest in Manchuria and financial investments, permitted it to maintain military forces in Manchuria to guard against Chinese or U.S.S.R attack and named Japan as aggressor Japan responded to the Lytton Report by withdrawing from the League which brought an end to any necessity of the League to take collective action the significance of Japan s response for global affairs was to undermine the League and render it ineffective against aggressive and expansionist nations unable to mount a military response Roosevelt proposed a principle of nonrecognition of any territorial changes made by aggression the Stimson Doctrine which made the U.S. a potential enemy of Japan Marco Polo Bridge July 1, 1937 and the Pacific War July 1, 1937 Japanese patrol guarding Marco Polo Bridge in Beijing fired at Nationalist soldiers and the incident escalated into an exchange of shots this event prompted a full-scale invasion by the Japanese army China s coastal cities fell to the Japanese army and by December the capital of Nanjing was threatened but Chiang refused to surrender Japanese invasion halted in front of the Yangtze gorges which was heavily defended and out of their aircraft range > the war entered into a six-year undeclared truce and major fighting would not resume until 1944 Chiang believed his allies (U.S., Britain) would defeat Japan and he would save his army s strength to fight the communist 3
by 1939 Japan controlled most of eastern China which provided vast resources but its armies were unable to eliminate the Kuomintang and so to bring about their final defeat it planned to cut off their supply links Japanese army supported a northern strategy and attacked the Soviet armies guarding Vladivostok but Soviet counter-attack was swift and the Japanese withdrew > a few months later the army attacked Nomonhan in Mongolia and again were forced to retreat Japanese navy supported an attack south across the Pacific Islands to capture the mineral wealth of Southeast Asia (especially oil) > admirals disguised their drive for hegemony in an anti-imperialist crusade known as the Co-Prosperity Sphere and Asia for the Asians > as the major powers were at war in Europe it was timely Japan and the U.S. at War spring 1941 Japanese Foreign Minister visited Germany and the Soviet Union > after visiting Stalin he was convinced that the U.S.S.R. would defeat Germany in a prolonged war and agreed to a non-aggression pact with the Soviet Union > Stalin could now withdraw Siberian armies in Asia and move them west against German forces July 1941 Japan seized French air bases in Indo-China and was now able to conduct air strikes against Malaya, Burma, and the Philippines British and Americans were alarmed by Japan s warlike intentions and tried to discourage Japanese aggression by a combination of air and sea power July 1941 British and Americans imposed economic sanctions restricting delivery of strategic war material and fuel oil by summer of 1941 Japan faced a critical oil shortage and decided if a solution to the fuel problem was not found by the end of November a war would result > Japan would have to attack to seize oil resources in Southeast Asia Americans demanded the Japanese respect the territorial integrity of China and withdraw from their occupation zones November 25, 1941 Roosevelt issued an ultimatum demanding Japanese withdrawal from mainland Asia > aware Japanese invasion fleets had been dispatched to sea U.S. did not expect the Japanese to attack all major cities in Pacific including Pearl HarbourW3 4
1919 Treaty of Versailles Causes of World War II in Europe General Causes - Underlying and Immediate Causes Germans resented the treaty it was imposed (diktat) and Germany was forced to sign or face invasion Germans thought the terms were harsh and unfair Article 231 (War Guilt clause) blamed Germany for starting the war it contributed to Hitler s rise to power Hitler violated the treaty and the League of Nations (who was responsible for enforcing it) did not stop him League of Nations the purpose of the League was to prevent war through collective security but it was weak and ineffective for several reasons: the U.S. was not a member council members had the power of veto Britain and France were the most powerful members of the League but were unwilling to enforce sanctions against aggressors the invasion of Manchuria and Ethiopia are examples that demonstrate the League s weakness to deal with aggressors 1931 Japan invaded Manchuria (China) and League did not impose sanctions 1935 Italy invaded Ethiopia; League imposed sanctions but oil was excluded Great Depression the Depression was a contributing factor to Hitler s rise to power the Depression prompted Japan to pursue territorial expansion by conquest to solve its economic problems 1936-1939 Spanish Civil War civil war pitted left-wing Republican government (Socialist, Communists, workers) against right-wing Nationalist forces (Franco, army, landowners, fascists, Church) Hitler and Mussolini supported Nationalists while Stalin supported Republicans Hitler used the civil war to test his new air force, the Luftwaffe, and bombing strategy (civilian targets such as Guernica) Hitler learned Britain and France were unwilling to use force to stop aggressors historians refer to the civil war as a dress rehearsal for World War II Hitler s Policies and Aggression Hitler wanted to expand German territory into Eastern Europe as part of his concept of lebensraum (living space) as indicated in Mein Kampf Hitler wanted to overturn the terms of the Treaty of Versailles March 1936 Hitler reoccupied the Rhineland March 1938 Hitler annexed Austria (Anschluss) October 1938 Hitler annexed Sudetenland (Czechoslovakia) March 1939 Hitler occupied Czechoslovakia September 1939 Hitler invaded Poland (World War II begins) 5
Appeasement appeasement was the policy adopted by British PM Chamberlain and supported by France in dealing with Hitler s aggression appeasement means to grant concessions in order to maintain peace the idea was that Hitler had certain reasonable demands and that if these demands were granted then he would be satisfied and a war would be avoided the annexation of the Sudetenland in Czechoslovakia by Germany October 1938 is an example of appeasement 6
Spanish Civil War 1936-1939 Spanish Civil War 1936-1939 the war started in June 1936 and diverted world attention from the major powers the major powers (not all) became involved and prolonged the war distracting attention from Middle Europe and Asia Causes workers demand better working conditions and redistribution of wealth of the Church and landowners and a republican form of government peasants demand the breakup of large estates held by aristocracy Catalonia and Basque regions wanted self-government (autonomy) 1931 elections brought a left-wing government (socialists and liberals) to power promising reforms > Church would have less control of education, provinces given powers of self-government and land reform the nation was divided: cities supported the republic while rural areas supported the monarchy > 1931 King abdicated the pace of change was too slow for many people and violent strikes, riots and church burnings were organized by the extreme left and shifted public support against the left and a right-wing government was elected in 1933 the left organized general strikes aimed at bringing down the government and were brutally suppressed by the army led by General Francisco Franco and as a result public opinion swung back to the left and a left-wing coalition government was elected in February 1936 called Popular Front (socialists, communists, anarchists) government moved to break up the landowners' estates and it supporters went on a rampage plundering churches and abusing churchmen and women > propertied classes retaliated with equal violence and the streets became battlegrounds June 1936 General Franco and the army moved in to restore order and overthrow republican government and thus began three years of civil war between Republican government and the Nationalists forces The Civil War: Republicans vs Nationalists the Republicans were supported by socialists, communists, anarchists and any supporters of the existing government Nationalists were supported by the army, landowners, Church, Falange (fascists) during the war the Nationalists dominated the south and rural areas while the Republicans held the cities and Basque region Franco wanted to take Madrid and achieve a quick victory but was unsuccessful both sides armed the workers and peasants changing the nature of the fighting and extreme acts of violence and atrocities were committed Republicans (left) Popular Front Government (socialists, communists, anarchists) Basque & Catalonia Cities International Brigade Soviet Union Nationalists (right) Army (Franco) Church Landowners Falange (Fascists) Rural areas Germany Italy 7
Foreign Intervention the role of the major powers is important to the background to WW II because it pitted fascism against democracy and communism which would eventually become the alignment in WW II Germany became involved because Hitler saw the war as an opportunity to give his armed forces some experience and test bombing strategies so he provided the Nationalists the support of the Luftwaffe > Hitler hoped to receive military support in WW II from Franco in return for his support of the Nationalists > Hitler also saw the war as a crusade against communism Italy became involved because Mussolini saw the war as an opportunity to expand Italian influence in the Mediterranean so he provided 60, 000 troops > Mussolini also saw the war as a crusade against communism France did not become involved because it adopted a policy of non-intervention because Prime Minister Leon Blum was afraid that French involvement may provoke French fascists and start a civil war in France > there was also no public support for military intervention Britain also adopted a non-intervention policy because it still wanted to maintain good relations with Italy to prevent an alliance with Germany and it did not want to be involved in a European war and there was no public support for military intervention Luftwaffe air attacks on cities like Guernica influenced British and French non-intervention policy U.S.S.R. became involved in part because it wanted mutual defence agreements with France and Britain to oppose Germany but when this did not happen the Soviets dropped their support for the Republicans which ultimately led to the Republicans defeat in 1939 International Brigades were composed of communists, socialists, idealists and others from various European countries, U.S. and Canada and joined the Republican army > after winter 1937 the brigades were taken over by Soviet officers Significance and Impact on European Affairs Hitler learned that the democracies, Britain and France, were unwilling or unable to use force to resist aggression by the Nazis and Fascists Mussolini hoped to expand his influence in the Mediterranean but this would bring him into conflict with Britain and France who also had interests in the Mediterranean so Mussolini hoped that his involvement in the civil war would bring him closer to Hitler and he would encourage Hitler to defy Britain and France > Mussolini believed that German expansion could be restricted to northern Europe leaving the south for Italy partly because of their involvement in the civil war Italy and Germany established closer relations > the Rome-Berlin Axis Stalin learned that if Germany attacked the U.S.S.R. Britain and France would not intervene Stalin did not achieve his objective and obtain mutual defence agreements with France and Britain and this influenced Stalin s decision to enter an agreement later with Hitler (Nazi-Soviet Pact) British attitude began to shift about the possibility of future involvement in a war in Europe as the Liberal and Labour parties supported rearmament > people believed that non-intervention avoided war or made it more likely by encouraging further aggression by the Nazis and fascists but the government at the time, the Conservatives led by Neville Chamberlain, adopted a policy of appeasement 8
Hitler s Aggression and Appeasement 1936-1939 Rhineland and Austrian Crisis 1936-1938 1933 Geneva Disarmament Conference German representatives walked out of conference when it was decided Germany could not have proscribed weapons and withdrew from the League of Nations January 1934 German-Polish non-aggression pact Germany signed a non-aggression pact with Poland to undermine France's influence in Eastern Europe by 1939 Central and Eastern European nations entered into trade agreements and adopted pro-german policies July 1934 Anschluss (union) Austrian Nazis attempted to overthrow government of Chancellor Engelbert Dolfuss who was killed but the revolt failed after Mussolini threatened to use Italian troops > Kurt von Schuschnigg became chancellor March 1935 German Rearmament Goering announced the existence of the Luftwaffe (air force) and a week later Hitler announced compulsory military service both of which violated the Treaty of Versailles April 1935 Stresa Front Germany's violation of the Treaty of Versailles resulted in an agreement between Italy, France and Britain to guarantee Austrian independence May 1935 French-Soviet Alliance/Franco-Soviet Pact February 1936 after the collapse of the Little Entente France resurrected its alliance with Russia and entered into an agreement of mutual assistance against aggression however neither of them could strike at Germany without going through other countries June 1935 Anglo-German Naval Agreement Germany agreed to limit its naval forces to 35% of Britain s Britain wanted to ensure that Germany's navy was smaller but it was accomplished by violating the Treaty of Versailles and damaged the Stresa Front October 1935 Italian invasion of Ethiopia League of Nations and British and French attempts to resolve the crisis failed and Italy completed its conquest by May 1936 > the crisis ended the Stresa Front March 1936 Rhineland Crisis German troops occupied the demilitarized area in violation of the Treaty of Versailles and 1925 Locarno Pact France wanted to retaliate but the British did not support military action and without British support France was not willing to go it alone British believed Hitler was retaking German territory that should not have been taken away in the Treaty of Versailles > first example of appeasement as a result the Treaty of Versailles no longer applied as far as Germany was concerned, the last guarantee France had against Germany was removed, appeasement became the accepted policy to avoid war, France was unwilling to do anything without British support, and Hitler realized Britain and France were unwilling to act 9
1936-1939 Spanish Civil War Nationalists defeated the Republicans and Franco established a dictatorship October 1936 Rome-Berlin Axis partly as a result of their involvement in the Spanish Civil War Mussolini and Hitler developed a closer relationship and after coming to an understanding over previous differences (ie Austria) formed an axis November 1936 Anti-Comintern Pact Germany and Japan agreed on a mutual non-aggression pact that did not include any military commitments and was intended to halt the spread of communism Japan wanted German assurances of support for an attack on the U.S.S.R. and Germany wanted Japanese support in keeping Britain and the U.S. occupied in Asia and distracted from Europe > Italy joined November 1937 Britain was concerned because it linked together the aggressive nation that may soon threaten their empire in the Far East with the power that started to undermine peace in Europe July 1937 Japan and the Pacific War Japan invades China again to crush Chiang Kai-shek's Nationalists and starts the Pacific War British concerned about their colonies in the Far East and when Italy joined Anti- Comintern Pact in November the British become even more concerned any attempt to halt Japanese expansion however required American support but the U.S. remained isolationist 1938 Anschluss: Austria February Hitler forced Austrian Chancellor Schuschnigg to accept the Austrian Nazi leader, Arthur Seyss-Inquart, into his government Schuschnigg was concerned about Austrian independence and seeking support to resist Hitler he called for a plebiscite on independence Hitler threatened to invade if the plebiscite wend ahead and as a result Schusnigg resigned and was replaced by Seyss-Inquart and the plebiscite was cancelled March 12 German forces invaded and faced no resistance and on March 13 Hitler announced the Anschluss of Germany with Austria the significance of the Anschluss was that Austria no longer existed, it proved the effectiveness of Nazi methods, and Hitler now gave the impression that he was interested in conquest because he had to use force the road to war began with Anschluss 10
1. Re-occupation of the Rhineland March 1936 2. Annexation of Austria March 1938 11
Hitler s Aggression and Appeasement 1936-1939 Czechoslovakian Crisis, Munich Conference and Poland Munich Crisis: Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia was the cornerstone of the French security system as it was the strongest member of the Little Entente that along with France was supposed to contain German expansion in Central Europe September 12 1938 Hitler demanded self-determination for the Sudeten Germans prompting British PM Neville Chamberlain to meet with Hitler at Berchtesgaden on September 15 > Hitler told Chamberlain he would risk war to bring the Sudeten Germans into the Reich alarmed at the possibility of a general war France, which had treaty commitments to defend Czechoslovakia, and Britain urged the Czechs to negotiate a settlement September 18-21 Chamberlain and French PM Eduard Daladier persuaded Czech President Edward Benes to agree to give the Sudetenland to Germany September 22 Chamberlain met Hitler at Godesberg and Hitler announced that German forces would occupy the Sudetenland by October 1 and the Czechs must also accept Polish and Hungarian claims the British and French were concerned because the Czech army would resist a military occupation and war would result Mussolini proposed a conference to settle the crisis and France, Britain, Germany and Italy met in Munich on September 29 at the Four Power Conference (refer to GF p.65) in the Munich Pact it was agreed that German forces would occupy the Sudetenland by October 10 and other regions where the population was more than 50% German September 30 Chamberlain returned to London and referring to the success of the conference proclaimed, "I believe it is peace for our time." March 1939 the Czechoslovakian government dismissed the local Slovak government who wanted autonomy (Hitler encouraged Slovak independence) and the Czech army prepared to move in but on March 13 German forces moved into Moravia and Bohemia to assist the Slovaks March 15 Hitler forced new Czech President Emil Hacha to agree to surrender Czechoslovakia's independence and after German troops march into Prague Hitler announced the creation of the German Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia on March 16; one week later Slovakia placed itself under the protection of the Reich as a result Hitler lost credibility, appeasement was finished as the events of March proved Hitler was an aggressor March 30 Chamberlain announced an official end to appeasement when he guaranteed Poland's independence 12
Poland 1939 Hitler demanded self-determination for the Germans in Danzig and the Polish corridor but Poland refused to negotiate April 13 Britain and France guaranteed Romania and Greece's independence April 18 U.S.S.R. asked Britain and France to join them in a treaty of mutual military assistance but the British and French refused because they were suspicious of Stalin's motives, unsure of the effectiveness of the Red Army because of Stalin's purges and could not persuade Poland to allow Soviet troops to enter Poland if and when war broke out Stalin wanted to reclaim areas in Eastern Europe (i.e. Poland) lost in 1918 and Japan was a threat and he wanted to avoid a two front war so Stalin agreed to an non-aggression pact with Germany August 23 Nazi-Soviet Pact Germany and the U.S.S.R. agreed not to fight one another and divide Poland (secret part of the pact) September 1 Germany invaded Poland September 3 Britain and France declared war on Germany 1. Annexation of Sudetenland October 1938 2. Occupation of Czechoslovakia March 1939 3. Danzig and Polish Corridor threatened July-August 1939 4. Invasion of Poland September 1939 13
Appeasement: Reasons Britain and France appeased Hitler Britain and France saw Hitler as a defence against the spread of communism Britain and France were democracies and could not declare war without public support and most people in Britain and France did not want war until 1939 the slaughter of World War I was still fresh and motivated Britain and France to avoid war many British thought the Treaty of Versailles was unfair and Hitler s demands were reasonable the Depression was the primary focus for the British and French and the cost of rearmament meant higher taxes and difficult to justify during the Depression Britain and France were military weaker than Germany and appeasement provided time to rearm German bombing of cities in the Spanish Civil War - Guernica - demonstrated that British and French cities could also be subjected to German bombardment Hitler s remilitarization of the Rhineland was accepted by the British (and French) and he justified it on the grounds of national rights to security Chamberlain believed negotiations can bring peace Chamberlain believed Hitler could be appeased Britain and France accepted the German annexation of Austria - Anschluss - on the grounds of self-determination Hitler uses the argument of self-determination which Britain and France accepted to justify taking the Sudetenland Hitler promised the Sudetenland was his last territorial demand after the Munich Conference and Chamberlain believed Hitler would keep his promise Britain and France could not effectively provide military assistance to Czechoslovakia if Germany attacked because of its geographical location Source: http://www.johndclare.net/ 14