Why this matters now
WWII is tested for: Versailles Treaty 1919 + Great Depression 1929 + rise of Hitler 1933 + appeasement (Munich 28-29 Sept 1938); Nazi-Soviet Pact 23 Aug 1939; Polish invasion 1 Sept 1939; Pearl Harbor 7 Dec 1941; Stalingrad turning point 1942-43; D-Day 6 June 1944; Yalta+Potsdam conferences 1945; Holocaust 6 million Jews; atomic bombs Hiroshima 6 Aug + Nagasaki 9 Aug 1945; UN founded 24 Oct 1945; impact on India (INA Subhas Bose, Cabinet Mission, Partition, Independence).
Causes
- Treaty of Versailles 1919 humiliations bred German resentment.
- Great Depression 1929-33 triggered economic collapse + radicalisation.
- Rise of Hitler: Nazi Party formed 1920; Hitler appointed Chancellor 30 January 1933; Reichstag Fire 27 Feb 1933 → Enabling Act 24 March 1933 (dictatorship); Führer of Germany Aug 1934.
- Italian Fascism: Mussolini March on Rome 28 Oct 1922; invaded Ethiopia 1935.
- Japanese militarism: Manchurian Incident 1931; full Sino-Japanese War 1937 (Nanjing Massacre Dec 1937).
- Appeasement: Rhineland remilitarised March 1936; Anschluss with Austria 12 March 1938; Munich Conference 29-30 Sept 1938 (Chamberlain “peace for our time”; Sudetenland to Germany); Czechoslovakia annexed 15 March 1939.
- Nazi-Soviet Pact 23 August 1939 (Ribbentrop-Molotov) — non-aggression + secret protocol partitioning Poland.
War in Europe (1939-45)
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 1 Sept 1939 | Hitler invaded Poland — Blitzkrieg. |
| 3 Sept 1939 | UK + France declared war on Germany. |
| 17 Sept 1939 | USSR invaded Poland from east. |
| April-May 1940 | Denmark + Norway + Netherlands + Belgium fell. |
| 10 May 1940 | Winston Churchill became UK PM. |
| 22 June 1940 | France surrendered — Compiègne, same railway car as 1918. Vichy regime (Petain). |
| Jul-Oct 1940 | Battle of Britain — RAF defeated Luftwaffe. |
| 22 June 1941 | Operation Barbarossa — Germany invaded USSR (3 million troops). Hitler’s biggest blunder. |
| Sept 1941 - Jan 1944 | Siege of Leningrad — 872 days, 800,000 killed. |
| Aug 1942 - Feb 1943 | BATTLE OF STALINGRAD — Soviet victory; 2 million casualties. Turning point. |
| 10 July 1943 | Allies invaded Sicily; Mussolini deposed 25 July 1943. |
| 6 June 1944 | D-DAY NORMANDY — largest amphibious invasion ever (Eisenhower; 156,000 troops 5 beaches). Operation Overlord. |
| April 1945 | Soviet Red Army entered Berlin; Hitler suicide 30 April 1945. |
| 8 May 1945 | VE DAY — Germany unconditional surrender (Eisenhower at Reims 7 May; Soviet repeat at Berlin 8 May). |
Pacific War + Atomic Bombs
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 7 Dec 1941 | PEARL HARBOR — Japanese surprise attack on US Pacific Fleet, Hawaii. 2,403 killed. USA declared war 8 Dec. |
| Feb 1942 | Singapore fell to Japan (80,000 Allies surrendered). |
| 4-7 June 1942 | Battle of Midway — USA defeated Japan; Pacific turning point. |
| Aug 1942 - Feb 1943 | Guadalcanal. |
| Oct 1944 | Leyte Gulf (Philippines). |
| Mar-June 1945 | Iwo Jima + Okinawa. |
| 6 August 1945 | HIROSHIMA ATOMIC BOMB “Little Boy” — B-29 Enola Gay; 140,000 killed by year-end. |
| 8 August 1945 | USSR declared war on Japan. |
| 9 August 1945 | NAGASAKI ATOMIC BOMB “Fat Man” — 74,000 killed by year-end. |
| 15 Aug 1945 | VJ DAY — Emperor Hirohito announced surrender. |
| 2 Sept 1945 | Formal surrender on USS Missouri, Tokyo Bay. |
Aftermath
Holocaust: ~6 million Jews + 5 million others (Roma, Slavs, disabled, gay, communists, POWs) systematically murdered in Nazi concentration + extermination camps (Auschwitz, Treblinka, Sobibor, Belzec, Chelmno, Majdanek). Final Solution adopted Wannsee Conference 20 Jan 1942.
Yalta Conference 4-11 Feb 1945 — Roosevelt + Stalin + Churchill at Crimea. Potsdam 17 July-2 Aug 1945 — Truman + Stalin + Attlee. Divided Germany + Berlin into 4 occupation zones.
United Nations founded 24 October 1945 (UN Day) at San Francisco Conference (April-June 1945; UN Charter signed 26 June 1945, in force 24 October 1945). Replaced failed League of Nations.
Bretton Woods Conference July 1944 created IMF + World Bank.
Nuremberg Trials Nov 1945 - Oct 1946 — 24 senior Nazi leaders tried for war crimes + crimes against humanity. Tokyo Trials 1946-48 — 28 Japanese leaders.
India: 2.5 million Indians served in British army — largest volunteer force ever. INA / Azad Hind Fauj formed by Subhash Chandra Bose 1942-43 in Singapore + Burma; INA Trials 1945-46. Wavell + Cabinet Mission + Mountbatten led to Independence + Partition August 1947.
UPSC angle
Know WORLD WAR II (1939-1945) — deadliest war 70-85 million deaths; ALLIES (UK+France+USSR 1941+USA 1941+China) vs AXIS (Nazi Germany+Fascist Italy+Imperial Japan); CAUSES Versailles 1919 + Great Depression 1929 + Hitler Chancellor 30 Jan 1933 (Reichstag Fire 27 Feb + Enabling Act 24 March + Führer Aug 1934), Mussolini Rome 28 Oct 1922 + Ethiopia 1935, Japan Manchuria 1931 + Sino-Japanese 1937 Nanjing Dec 1937, APPEASEMENT: Rhineland March 1936, Anschluss Austria 12 March 1938, MUNICH CONFERENCE 29-30 Sept 1938 (Chamberlain “peace for our time” Sudetenland), Czechoslovakia 15 March 1939, NAZI-SOVIET PACT 23 AUGUST 1939 Ribbentrop-Molotov partitioned Poland; WAR EUROPE: 1 SEPT 1939 invaded Poland Blitzkrieg, 3 Sept UK+France war, USSR east 17 Sept, France fell 22 June 1940 Compiègne same car as 1918 Vichy Petain, Churchill 10 May 1940, BATTLE OF BRITAIN Jul-Oct 1940 RAF defeated Luftwaffe, OPERATION BARBAROSSA 22 June 1941 (3 million troops, Hitler biggest blunder), Leningrad Siege Sept 1941-Jan 1944 872 days 800k killed, STALINGRAD Aug 1942 - Feb 1943 TURNING POINT 2 million cas, Mussolini deposed 25 July 1943, D-DAY NORMANDY 6 JUNE 1944 Operation Overlord Eisenhower 156000 troops 5 beaches, Hitler suicide 30 April 1945, VE DAY 8 MAY 1945 Reims 7 May; PACIFIC: PEARL HARBOR 7 DEC 1941 USA war 8 Dec, Singapore Feb 1942 80k Allied surrender, MIDWAY 4-7 June 1942 Pacific turning point, Iwo Jima+Okinawa Mar-Jun 1945, HIROSHIMA 6 AUGUST 1945 Little Boy B-29 Enola Gay 140k killed, USSR war on Japan 8 Aug, NAGASAKI 9 AUGUST 1945 Fat Man 74k killed, VJ DAY 15 AUG 1945 Hirohito, formal surrender USS Missouri 2 Sept 1945; HOLOCAUST 6 million Jews + 5 million others (Wannsee 20 Jan 1942 Final Solution, Auschwitz/Treblinka); YALTA 4-11 Feb 1945 Roosevelt-Stalin-Churchill, POTSDAM 17 Jul-2 Aug 1945 Truman-Stalin-Attlee (divided Germany 4 zones); UN 24 Oct 1945 San Francisco Conference + Charter signed 26 June 1945; BRETTON WOODS July 1944 IMF+World Bank; Nuremberg Nov 1945-Oct 1946 + Tokyo Trials 1946-48; INDIA: 2.5 million served largest volunteer force, INA/Azad Hind Fauj Subhash Bose 1942-43 Singapore-Burma + INA Trials 1945-46.
Frequently asked questions
What started WWII?
Hitler’s invasion of Poland on 1 September 1939. UK + France declared war on Germany on 3 September 1939.
What was the Munich Conference?
29-30 September 1938 conference where UK PM Neville Chamberlain + French PM Daladier appeased Hitler by handing over Czech Sudetenland. Chamberlain claimed “peace for our time.”
When were the atomic bombs dropped?
Hiroshima on 6 August 1945 (Little Boy, 140,000+ killed) and Nagasaki on 9 August 1945 (Fat Man, 74,000+ killed). Japan surrendered 15 August 1945 (VJ Day).
When was the UN founded?
24 October 1945 — UN Charter signed at San Francisco on 26 June 1945 came into force on this date. Replaced the failed League of Nations.