HISTORY SECOND WORLD WAR STD.8 Answer the following questions: 1) When did the Second World War begin? State its immediate cause. Ans. The Second World War began on September 1 st, 1939, when German armies marched into Poland. 2) The First World War and its harsh peace treaties sowed the seeds for the Second World War. - Discuss with relation to the Treaty of Versailles. Ans. - The Treaty of Versailles, by which the First World War came to an end, created more problems than it solved. - The Treaty demanded the annexation of German territories & creation of many states. This sowed seeds of bitterness& conflict. - In fact, this Treaty was based on the spirit of revenge & Germany was forced to sign the Treaty. - All the German colonies were forcibly taken away from her and she was divided into 2 parts for the benefit of Poland. - Germany was burdened with huge war indemnity which she could never pay. - Her military power was reduced as well. - This humiliation gave rise to the spirit of revenge and Germany started looking for an opportunity to do away with the harsh treaty. But this was not possible without an aggressive policy and armaments. Hence the war became inevitable. 3) How was the non-intervention of the USA a long term cause of the Second World War? Ans. The USA did not join the League of Nations & followed a policy of non-interference in the political affairs of Europe. - It saw Europe only as a market for its goods. - This non-interference policy of the USA helped military rulers of Germany & Italy to adopt a violent & aggressive attitude. 4) Mention how the Japanese invasion of China was one of the causes of the Second World War. Ans. Being determined to dominate the Far East, Japan occupied and set up a government in Manchuria despite the League s opposition. China appealed to the League of Nations to declare sanctions against Japan when Japan started an undeclared war against her. However, when Britain & France (leading members of the League) ignored China s appeal, Japan joined the Berlin-Rome- Tokyo Axis to further its policy of expansion. As Britain & France thought the Japanese could be used to weaken China, they followed the policy of appeasement. Thus, Japan left the League of Nations and started occupying British & American properties in China. 5) With regard to the causes of the Second World War, show that the League of Nations was weak & ineffective. Ans. The League of Nations succeeded in allaying (relieving) the threat of war in cases where the 1
parties were small nations. - The League did nothing when Poland, with the backing of France, seized a part of Lithuania. - In 1923, there was a threat of war between Italy & Greece. Italy refused to submit to the League s intervention & the dispute was settled by direct mediation of Great Britain & France. - Thereafter, in every crisis, the League was either defied or ignored. - The authority of the League was flouted by Japan when it seized Manchuria in 1931 & by Italy when it conquered Ethiopia in 1936. - Thus, the League failed to maintain international peace and the countries of Europe lost faith in its usefulness. Thereafter they themselves entered into mutual political & military alliances. 6) Post the First World War, why were Germany & her allies treated harshly by France? Ans. France wanted to avenge her defeat in the Franco - Prussian wars & the subsequent isolation due to diplomatic policies of Bismark. - France was not satisfied with getting only the Valley of Saar. She captures the industrial zone of Ruhr in1923. - Because of this revengeful attitude of France, Germany and her allies were harshly treated. 7) Though the Second World War was not a continuation or a sequel to the First World War, the similarities in causes & characters was more than superficial. In this context, state how each of the following were causes of the Second World War. a) Revival of nationalism: - Germany s desire to become a world power and the adoption of policy of militarisation greatly contributed to the 2nd World War. - Hitler, after gaining power, embarked on the path of expansion of German empire. - He annexed Austria, occupied Rhineland & proceeded to occupy Czechoslovakia. - Thereafter he set his eyes on Danzig & Poland. - It was the aggressive nationalism of Hitler which led to the 2 nd World War. - Italy wanted to revive the glory of the Old Roman Empire. She joined the Anti-Comintern Pact in 1937 & formed a 10 years alliance with Germany in 1939 to strengthen her position. - Japanese policy of expansion was another cause of the World War. - Japan s ambitions rose after the 1 st World War. She was determined to dominate the Far East. - In 1931 Japan started intervened in Manchuria & in spite of the Leagues opposition, acquired it. - In 1931, Japan also started an undeclared war against China. - Japan joined the Berlin-Rome-Tokyo Axis to further its policy of expansion and conquest. - Thus, a war was inevitable under all these circumstances. b) Armament race: - The economic depression was also responsible for a marked increase in arms production. - In 1935 Germany took up armament expansion on a large scale. - This increased business & unemployment. - Despite the fears of Britain & France, Germany began to re-arm. - Other nations began to follow the German example in response to Nazi military power. - The big nations like Britain a& France asked the small nations to reduce arms, but they themselves were not ready to follow that policy, Germany, Italy & Japan had started making preparations for war & had increased the production of war material. 2
8) Prior to the Second World War what were the ideological differences that existed between the Fascist & Democratic states? Ans. The Fascist states like Japan, Germany & Italy wanted to expand their territory. - The Democratic states like Britain, USA & France wanted to maintain the contemporary political position. This was one of the long term causes of the Second World War. 9) Elaborate on the struggle for power in the international arena after the First World War. Ans. A neutralized zone consisting of the Baltic States-Poland. & Romania created as a buffer against the Soviet Union. - A Little Entente consisting of Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia & Romania was established to prevent the revival of Austrian power. - These combinations together with a Franco-Belgian alliance, a Franco-Polish alliance were formed to isolate Germany. - Under these circumstances, the Berlin-Rome-Tokyo axis was formed and later England & France formed another power bloc known as the Allies. 10) What is meant by the Policy of Appeasement? Ans. Appeasement meant a Policy of conciliating an aggressive power at the expanse of some other country. - The Western powers followed the policy of appeasement because they felt that the dictators had a real cause of grievance, and if their grievances were removed, they would leave the others alone. - The western powers allowed Germany to re-arm and re-militarize the Rhineland and capture Austria and Czechoslovakia because they wanted to check the rising tide of the Communism and Russian Bolshevism. 11) What was the significance of the Munich Pact? Ans. Hitler occupied Czechoslovakia in 1938. Soon after this, France & Britain made a Pact with Germany; known as the Munich Pact. According to it, they accepted German occupation of Sudetenland (Czech-western border area) in return for Hitler s promise not to attack other neighbouring countries. - Hitler took this as a sign of weakness. He then went on to capture the rest of Czechoslovakia. - The Munich Pact convinced the Soviet Union that the western powers were trying to appease Germany to direct German aggression against the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union signed a Non- Aggression Pact with Germany in August 1939. 12) Give reasons why U.S.A joined the Second World War. Ans. The only military force that Japan had to fear was the US Pacific Fleet based at Pearl Harbour in Hawaii. - On December 7 th, 1941, Japan under the Premiership of General Tojo, ordered a surprise aerial attack on Pearl Harbour. - The battleships were sunk and the important airfields were destroyed. 3,700 people were killed. - The Japanese made two crucial mistakes at Pearl Harbour. They did not destroy the ship repair facilities at the base, nor did they seek out and destroy the US carriers at Lexington and the Enterprise. As a result, most of the damaged ships were soon back in action. - Therefore, on December 8 th, 1941, USA joined the Second World War. 3
13) What was the effect of the dropping of the atom bomb on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki? Ans. - Long before the invasion on Japan was planned, scientists in USA were working on the most powerful weapon ever conceived the atomic bomb. - In July, 1945, the first atomic bomb was detonated in the desert near Alamogordo, New Mexico. - After much debate, the decision to use the bomb was taken. - Days before the first bomb was dropped on Japan, American planes dropped leaflets warning them about the deadly weapon and urging the Japanese people and government to end the fighting. - On August 6 th, 1945, the first atomic bomb ever to be used on humans was dropped on Hiroshima. - It destroyed half of the city killing thousands of people. - Despite the terrible destruction, the Japanese still refused to surrender. - On the 9 th of August, 1945, another atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki. On September 2 nd, 1945, Japan surrendered unconditionally. After 6 long years, World War II was finally over. 14) State and briefly explain the consequences of the Second World War? Ans. 1) Defeat of Axis Powers At the end of the war, Germany was divided into two zones: a) The Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) commonly known as West Germany, was administered by France, U.K and U.S with Bonn as the Capital. It came under the capitalist ideology. b) The German Democratic Republic (GDR) commonly known as East Germany, was administered by the Soviet Union with East Berlin as the Capital. It came under the influence of communist ideologies. Japan & Italy also became weak. The American army was to occupy Japan till 1952. Emperor Hirohito was now a mere constitutional monarch at the throne and the Japanese Parliament retained some of its law-making powers. 2) Formation of the U.N. Roosevelt, Stallin & Churchill resolved to convene a conference of the representatives of all nations at San Francisco to draw up the Charter of the United Nations. This led to the establishment of the United Nations Organization on 24 th October, 1945. 3) The Cold War: Despite prior cooperation with each other, towards the end of the war U.S.A. & the Soviet Union emerged as two great powers representing contrasting ideologies. They divided the world into two power blocs: - the Capitalist/Democratic Bloc led by U.S.A. (a.k.a. the Western/American Bloc) believed in liberal democracy based on capitalism. - The Communist Bloc led by U.S.S.R. (a.k.a. the Eastern/ Soviet Bloc) believed in Communism based on the Marxist Theory. There was a state of extreme political tension between the two even though they did not engage in an actual war. This is known as the Cold War. 15) In relation to the Cold War, answer the following questions: a) What is meant by the Cold War? Who coined the term? Ans. The Cold War is defined as the atmosphere when there is no armed struggle but the rivals continue to maintain their peace time diplomatic relations along with their hostility. It is known as the state of tension between countries in which each side adopted policies designed to strengthened itself and weaken the other without armed conflict. The term Cold War was coined by Bernard Baruch in 1946. 4
b) Mention the main characteristics of the Cold War. Ans. A bitter state of tension. - Absence of armed struggle. - Ideological hatred & political distrust. - Neither an era of peace nor that of war prevails. c) Mention the basic differences between the ideologies of the two super powers. Ans. When the 2 rival blocs U.S.A & U.S.S.R emerged, they tried to draw as many countries as possible into their fold. 1) The Capitalist/Democratic Bloc led by U.S.A. (a.k.a. the Western/American Bloc) believed in liberal democracy based on capitalism. - The American bloc comprised Australia, Belgium, Britain, Canada, France, Greece, Italy, Pakistan, Turkey & the Netherlands. - U.S.A played an active role in the development of international policy in Western Europe. - They projected USSR as the enemy of world peace & communism a grave threat to freedom and liberty throughout the world. - USA tried to maintain her influence by giving economic aid to different countries. - USA, as the leader of the Free World, took upon itself, the responsibility of preventing Communism from spreading. 2) The Communist Bloc led by U.S.S.R. (a.k.a. the Eastern/ Soviet Bloc) believed in Communism based on the Marxist Theory. - The Soviet comprised Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Poland, Moscow & Romania. - The USSR countries considered the Western Style democracy as a farce, meant only for the rich & upper middle class. - Thus, they wanted to spread communism in the world & bring about a change in the social system of all the countries of the world. - U.S.S.R was determined to maintain political, economical & military control of the countries in Eastern Europe which had been liberated from Nazi control. ******************************************************************************** 5