There are many specifics that prompted World War II. One of them being the Non-Aggression pact, which was signed by Hitler and Stalin in 1939. Its purpose was for Hitler to allow Stalin to take over countries in Eastern Europe. Also, for the men to agree to never attack each other, which was later made a broken promise by Hitler. As a result, Stalin was no longer on good terms with Germany. Moreover, the Treaty of Versailles also could be named a cause because it crushed Germany and allowed Hitler to rise to power. He was able to train a military and secretly build machines for war. Another major cause was the attack on Pearl Harbor, which was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii Territory. This forced the United States to fight back and no longer be neutral. In addition, Blitzkrieg, a German term for “lightning war,” was a military tactic designed to create disorganization among enemy forces through the use of mobile forces and locally concentrated firepower. An attack on Poland was made because Germany would win more living space and gid rid of Hitler’s non-supporters. Furthermore, the Japanese also played a part, their government believed that the only way to solve their demographic and economic problems was to expand into a neighbor’s territory and take over their import market. So, they declared war on China in 1937.
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Section 1 (Causes)The Holocaust began because of anti semitism beliefs that Hitler often preached to the people of Germany. He put it into the heads of the youth that Jewish people don’t contribute to architecture and they don’t compare to Aryans. Moreover, they were believed to have no culture and people thought they were out to destroy Germany. Hitler later took away the rights of the Jews with what were called Nuremberg Laws. It was stated that Jews couldn’t marry non-Jews, they couldn’t have ownership of businesses, and were not allowed to walk on the sidewalk of other Germans. In addition to the Nuremburg Laws, Hitler created concentration camps and ghettos where Jews were sent to ultimately die, whether it be in the gas chambers, by sickness, starvation, or an armed soldier. It is estimated that about 9.9 million adults and 1.1 million children died during the Holocaust. Almost two-thirds of the Jewish population in Europe, was killed.
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Section 2 (Turning Points)Turning points of the war can be determined by major battles that have happened. For example, on august 1942 Hitler had an unsuccessful attack on the Soviet Union. It was a turning point because Russia left the Axis to go to the Allies since Hitler broke the non-agression pact. June 6, 1944 called D-Day Led by Eisenhower, over a million Allied troops invaded the beaches at Normandy, France. Hoping to re-take France. Its a turning point of World War II because the Allied Force re-took France and beat Germany. On December 16, 1944 the Germans had attacked American troops in the Ardennes forest in Belgium. This is also significant because the battle was Hitlers last major offense in WWII. On April 1, 1945, Lieutenant General Simon Buckner, launched the invasion of Okinawa, a Pacific island located midway between Japan and Formosa. Possession of Okinawa would give the United States a base large enough for an invasion of the Japanese home islands. Three days later, on June 22 Japanese resistance effectively came to an end. In each battle it would be important to win because with each win they become stronger and closer to their goal.
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Section 3 (Outcomes)The US decided to drop an Atomic Bomb on Japan for a few reasons. For one, they believed that it would end the war quicker than going out on the battle fields because Japan would not surrender. In addition, they would save many of their troops from harm in battle. It was more beneficial for the US to sacrifice Japan's civilians over their troops. As a result of the bombing, there were thousands of casualties and long term side effects. It was estimated to about 150,000 killed in Hiroshima and Nagasaki 75,000.
From 1945 to 1949 there was a series of 13 trials of Nazi Party Officials and high ranking military officers. Those who were involved with any Nazi crimes were held accountable for their actions and sentenced to death. This was a step forward for the establishment of international law because it established that all of humanity would be guarded by an international legal shield and that even a Head of State would be held criminally responsible and punished for aggression and Crimes Against Humanity. |