Many called the First World War (1914-1918) "the war to end war."1 And yet, only two decades later, most of the world was engaged in the biggest and deadliest armed conflict in recorded history, the Second World War (1939-1945). World War II was a complex event fought on different continents between the Allies and Axis Powers. In 1945, the world changed dramatically, not only because of the war's devastation but also because of the rearrangement of the global order.
Millions of flashcards designed to help you ace your studies
Sign up for freeTRUE OR FALSE: Operation Torch launched a second WWII front in continental Europe.
TRUE OR FALSE: The Soviet Union was responsible for up 80% of German WWII losses.
Which U.S. President used atomic weapons for the first time?
Which agreement harshly punished Germany for WWI?
Which one was NOT an Allied power during WWII?
_____was the name of Hitler's "super state."
Which country surrendered first, Germany or Japan?
Some historians consider the Munich Agreement to be_____?
Which battle was a major turning point for the Soviet Union in WWII?
Which one was NOT part of the Axis powers?
The German invasion of the Soviet Union was called_____?
TRUE OR FALSE: Operation Torch launched a second WWII front in continental Europe.
TRUE OR FALSE: The Soviet Union was responsible for up 80% of German WWII losses.
Which U.S. President used atomic weapons for the first time?
Which agreement harshly punished Germany for WWI?
Which one was NOT an Allied power during WWII?
_____was the name of Hitler's "super state."
Which country surrendered first, Germany or Japan?
Some historians consider the Munich Agreement to be_____?
Which battle was a major turning point for the Soviet Union in WWII?
Which one was NOT part of the Axis powers?
The German invasion of the Soviet Union was called_____?
Achieve better grades quicker with Premium
Geld-zurück-Garantie, wenn du durch die Prüfung fällst
Review generated flashcards
Start learning or create your own AI flashcards
Team WWII Teachers
Fig. 1 - Nazi German advance on Moscow in October 1941
The Second World War (1939-1945) was the bloodiest conflict in the history of humankind. The war was fought between the Allies and Axis Powers in Europe, Africa, and Asia. Its death toll is difficult to determine with some estimates being upward of 70 million.
The greatest loss of life occurred in the Soviet Union (an estimated 27 million) and China (an estimated 20 million).
Historians identify several long-term and short-term causes of World War II.
The Second World War was fought between the Allies and the Axis Powers.
| Name | Countries |
| Allied Powers |
|
| Axis Powers |
|
The Big Three (Grand Alliance) led several Allied countries to victory in Europe on May 8, 1945, and in Japan on September 2, 1945. The Allied leaders were:
The Allied leadership met at wartime conferences to discuss joint strategy as well as the global order after the war:
*excluding Stalin.
The Second World War was a very complex event fought in multiple war theaters, including:
Initially, the Axis Powers were successful.
For example, Germany invaded Poland on September 1, 1939, the Soviet Union on June 22, 1941, and Japan bombed Pearl Harbor, U.S. on December 7, 1941.
The Allies generally responded to these actions. As time went on, the momentum shifted to the Allied side.
For instance, the Soviet Union's Operation Bagration pushed Germany westward. Bagration overlapped with the Anglo-American Operation Overlord in the summer of 1944 forcing Nazi Germany to fight both on the eastern and western fronts.
Fig. 2 - German Luftwaffe bomber over East London, September 7, 1940
In addition to Germany occupying much of Europe and Africa, it is important to look at Japan and Italy briefly.
Japan annexed Korea in 1910 and Chinese Manchuria in 1931. Japan called its empire the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere. During the war, Japan invaded:
Japan primarily fought the United States in the Asia-Pacific theater.
Between 1922 and 1943, fascist Benito Mussolini ruled Italy. Mussolini sought to expand its African colonies by acquiring Tunisia and Algeria, but they were under the German collaborationist Vichy regime. Italy invaded places like Egypt and fought the British troops in Africa. The fascist government collapsed in 1943, and the Allied liberation of Italy began.
Many major events took place during the war, including:
| Date | Event |
| September 1, 1939 |
|
| September 3, 1939 |
|
| June 10-25, 1940 |
|
| June 22, 1940 |
|
| July 10-October 31, 1940 |
|
September 7, 1940–May 11, 1941 |
|
| December 7, 1941 |
|
| December 11, 1941 |
|
November 8-16, 1942 |
|
| June 22, 1941 |
|
| August 1941–May 1945 |
|
| June 4-7, 1942 |
|
| August 23, 1942-2 February 2, 1943 |
|
| June 6, 1944-August 30, 1944 |
|
| June 22-August 19 1944 |
|
| October 17–December 26, 1944 |
|
| January 27, 1945 |
|
| April 25, 1945 |
|
| April 16, 1945-May 2, 1945 |
|
| May 8, 1945 |
|
| August 6, 9 1945 |
|
| August 8, 1945 |
|
| September 2, 1945 |
|
Fig. 3 - Europe at the height of Nazi German occupation, 1941-1942, Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license
Adolf Hitler (1889-1945) came into power as Chancellor of Germany in 1933 after involvement with the Nazi (National-Socialist) Party for several years. Hitler's beliefs included:
Fig. 4 - Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini
In the lead-up to WWII, Hitler pursued his goal of the Third Reich "super state" by:
These actions contradicted the terms of the Treaty of Versailles, including:
When Hitler went to reclaim the historical German Sudetenland in Czechoslovakia, Britain, France, and Italy decided to acknowledge Germany's annexation of that territory through the 1938 Munich Agreement, on the condition that Hitler would not attempt any further expansion. Some historians called it appeasement. On September 1, 1939, Hitler's army invaded Poland. Britain and France declared war on Germany, and the Second World War began.
By the middle of 1940, Germany was occupying much of Western Europe. They had achieved this feat by engaging in a military tactic that came to be called Blitzkrieg ("lightning war") which combined the elements of speed, surprise, and military power. Some historians consider Blitzkrieg to be highly effective and responsible for Germany's swift occupation of Europe.
German tactics involved:
Despite these initial successes, the Allies were able to challenge Germany all the way to victory.
Shortly after Hitler came into power in 1933, the Dachau concentration camp was opened. Labeled as a camp for political prisoners, it soon became one of the death camps where thousands of Jewish people were killed during the war. The Nazis targeted the Jews and other minorities based on their hierarchic racialist ideas.
The Jews were one of the key targeted groups during WWII with a staggering six million killed. Out of the other minority groups, the Romani people were also heavily targeted. Hundreds of thousands of Roma were killed at camps alongside Jews, Slavs, disabled people, LGBTQ+, and others perceived to be inferior by the Nazis.
Fig. 5 - the Romani people
The Nazis used:
for those they perceived inferior.
Some locations include:
In camps, people died from overwork, starvation, and disease or were killed in gas chambers.
Did you know?
The largest ghetto during the Nazi occupation was in Warsaw, Poland.
Fig. 6 - Prisoners in the Ebensee concentration camp
Medical experimentation was also a frequent occurrence in concentration camps. Thousands fell victim to the cruel and frequently deadly experiments by German doctors done on behalf of the German army, pharmaceutical companies, and sometimes for the doctors' own interests.
For example, Doctor Josef Mengele performed deadly medical experiments on people in the Birkenau camp. After the war, Mengele managed to evade the Nuremberg war crime trials and died in South America in 1979.
Fig. 7 - Montgomery (UK), Zhukov (Soviet Union), and Rokossovsky (Soviet Union) at the Brandenburg Gate, Berlin, 1945
After the launch of the second front in continental Europe through Normandy Landings, the Allies wore down the Nazi war machine. The Americans and Soviets linked up in Germany in April 1945. A victory was declared on May 8, 1945 (V/E Day) by the western Allies, and May 9 (Victory Day) for the Soviet Union.
In the Asia-Pacific theater, Japan was suffering defeat after defeat but did not officially surrender. Some scholars believe the latter to be linked to Japanese culture. President Harry Truman ordered the use of atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki on August 6 and 9, 1945, respectively. Their use led to a large civilian death toll of up to 200,000 and injuries, cancer, and radiation birth defects.
Some historians believe that Truman wanted to show off these new weapons to its wartime ally and a new ideological rival, the Soviet Union. On September 2, 1945, Japan signed official surrender documents, and WWII came to an end.
Fig. 8 - Mamoru Shigemitsu signing the Instrument of Surrender on September 2, 1945
Sign up for free to gain access to all our flashcards.
Who were the allies of WWII?
The Soviet Union, Britain, and the U.S. were the Big Three (Grand Alliance). They led dozens of countries, including China, Canada, and many others.
What happened in World War II?
The Second World War was a very complex event. It took place in multiple locations, such as Europe, Asia, and Africa. It led to a death toll of more than 70 million people according to some estimates. The Allied Powers (the Soviet Union, Britain, and the US) fought against the Axis Powers (Nazi Germany, Japan, and Italy).
Why was World War II started?
The Second World War had many causes. Some went back to the terms of the Treaty of Versailles (1919) which assigned the war-guilt clause to Germany after WWI. Germany lost territories, and industries, and was ordered to pay massive reparations. This postwar settlement sent Germany into economic turmoil and hyperinflation in the 1920s. Such grievances motivated Adolf Hitler. German Nazism and militarism were also contributing factors in Europe, and Japanese imperialism and militarism drove the war in Asia. When Germany invaded Poland in September 1939, the war began.
Why did Japan surrender in World War II?
Japan was unable to continue fighting but did not officially acknowledge surrender. The US dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945, and the Soviet Union entered the war against Japan. These circumstances forced Japan's Emperor Hirohito to announce surrender in August, and the country signed the official documents on September 2, 1945.
How did World War II actually end?
WWII ended after Germany signed a military surrender on May 8, 1945. Japan signed a surrender on September 2, 1945. However, the war crime trials in Nuremberg, Tokyo, and elsewhere continued into the late 1940s. Reconstruction and resettlement of displaced persons also continued for years.
At StudySmarter, we have created a learning platform that serves millions of students. Meet the people who work hard to deliver fact based content as well as making sure it is verified.
Lily Hulatt is a Digital Content Specialist with over three years of experience in content strategy and curriculum design. She gained her PhD in English Literature from Durham University in 2022, taught in Durham University’s English Studies Department, and has contributed to a number of publications. Lily specialises in English Literature, English Language, History, and Philosophy.
Get to know Lily
Gabriel Freitas is an AI Engineer with a solid experience in software development, machine learning algorithms, and generative AI, including large language models’ (LLMs) applications. Graduated in Electrical Engineering at the University of São Paulo, he is currently pursuing an MSc in Computer Engineering at the University of Campinas, specializing in machine learning topics. Gabriel has a strong background in software engineering and has worked on projects involving computer vision, embedded AI, and LLM applications.
Get to know Gabriel