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World War 2 Causes

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World War 2 Causes

Read the briefing, study the timeline, then complete the questions. Use evidence from the briefing and your own historical reasoning.

Briefing: A world moving towards war

World War 2 did not begin because of one event alone. Several pressures built up over many years. After World War 1, the 1919 Treaty of Versailles made Germany accept responsibility for the war, give up territory, reduce its armed forces and pay reparations. Many Germans regarded these terms as unfair and humiliating. The treaty did not by itself make another war inevitable, but resentment created an opportunity for extreme political movements. The Great Depression began in 1929. Businesses closed and unemployment spread across many countries. In Germany, hardship and anger helped the Nazi Party gain support by promising jobs, national strength and the rejection of the Versailles settlement. Adolf Hitler became German chancellor. His dictatorship persecuted people, promoted racist ideas and rapidly expanded the armed forces in defiance of the treaty. In the 1930s, Germany took control of Austria and then demanded the Sudetenland, a region of Czechoslovakia where many German speakers lived. Britain and France agreed to Germany taking the Sudetenland at the 1938 Munich Agreement, hoping this concession would prevent a wider war. This policy is often called appeasement. In March 1939, Germany occupied the rest of the Czech lands, showing that Hitler's expansion would continue. Other countries also pursued expansion. Fascist Italy invaded Ethiopia in 1935. Japan had occupied Manchuria in 1931 and launched a full-scale invasion of China in 1937. The League of Nations, created to help countries settle disputes peacefully, could not stop these invasions. Its weakness made collective security—the idea that countries would act together against aggression—less convincing. On 1 September 1939, Germany invaded Poland. Britain and France declared war on Germany on 3 September. Australia, as a member of the British Empire, also declared that it was at war with Germany on 3 September 1939.

1919 — Treaty of Versailles

1929 — Great Depression begins

1931 — Japan occupies Manchuria

1933 — Hitler becomes German chancellor

1935 — Italy invades Ethiopia

1937 — Japan launches full-scale invasion of China

1938 — Munich Agreement; Germany takes the Sudetenland

March 1939 — Germany occupies the rest of the Czech lands

1 September 1939 — Germany invades Poland

3 September 1939 — Britain, France and Australia declare war on Germany

Investigate the causes

Consider long-term causes as well as the events that immediately preceded war.

1.Which statement best describes the Treaty of Versailles?

It was a 1919 peace treaty that imposed terms on Germany after World War 1.
It was an agreement that created the League of Nations after World War 2.
It was a 1938 agreement dividing Poland between Germany and Britain.
It was a military alliance between Germany, Italy and Japan.

2.Which two conditions were imposed on Germany by the Treaty of Versailles?

Germany had to reduce its armed forces and pay reparations.
Germany had to join an alliance with Poland and give up all its industries.
Germany had to invade Austria and take control of Italy.
Germany had to fund the League of Nations and occupy France.

3.Match each event with the country most closely connected to it in the briefing.

Invasion of Ethiopia in 1935
Occupation of Manchuria in 1931
Invasion of Poland in 1939

Germany
Italy
Japan

4.True or false: The Great Depression began before Adolf Hitler became German chancellor.

TrueFalse

5.Complete the chain of events: Economic hardship during the Great Depression helped the Nazi Party gain support by promising jobs and national strength. Hitler became German chancellor in .

6.The Munich Agreement allowed Germany to take the Sudetenland. In this context, what does appeasement mean?

7.Give one example from the briefing that showed the League of Nations was unable to stop aggression, and explain why this mattered.

8.Put these events in chronological order by writing 1, 2 and 3: Germany invades Poland; the Munich Agreement; Hitler becomes German chancellor.

9.Why did Germany's occupation of the rest of the Czech lands in March 1939 make the policy of appeasement seem unsuccessful?

10.On what date did Australia declare that it was at war with Germany, and what event had happened two days earlier?

11.Explain how two different causes in the briefing helped create conditions for World War 2. Show how each cause contributed; do not just list two events.