Why World War 2 Happened? And how it ended? The Real Reason-Part 2

 

After conquering many countries, Britain was the last one in Europe opposing Germany. In 1940, Hitler invaded and took over Austria, Poland, Norway, Belgium, Denmark, and France. Down in the south of Europe, there was another dictator, Mussolini, who had joined forces with Hitler. Only three major countries were left in Europe: Germany, the Soviet Union, and Britain. Germany and the Soviet Union had made a peace agreement, so Hitler didn't have to worry about them attacking. This meant that Britain was the only country left opposing Germany in Europe. On the other side of the world, the United States didn't want to get involved in the war.

Hitler thought the fighting was finished, but Winston Churchill wanted to make a peace deal with him. Churchill didn't want to put his country in danger because Germany was much stronger. Churchill made it clear that there would be no peace treaty with Hitler, and the war against Germany would go on. This speech by Churchill meant that Hitler wanted to invade Britain.

How Hitler faced his first significant defeat in World War II?

Hitler had a plan called "Operation Sea Lion" to invade Britain. The problem was there was no land connection between Britain and mainland Europe, so they couldn't send an army. If they tried to send ships, the British Royal Navy had more ships, so Germany would be in trouble. To solve this, Hitler decided to gain control of the airspace over Britain.

In 1940, the German air force, known as the Luftwaffe, had 2,600 aircraft, while the UK had only 700 planes. On July 10, 1940, Hitler ordered the Luftwaffe to attack Britain from the sky. Their goal was to destroy British aircraft, airfields, and factories. The smaller British air force, only a quarter of the size of the German one, fought hard to defend their country, but they suffered heavy losses. On August 24, 1940, there was a night when some German pilots accidentally bombed London, and this resulted in the deaths of many innocent civilians. This incident shocked Winston Churchill. In response, the UK began bombing Berlin.

Hitler, seeing this, decided to destroy London. On September 15, 1940, he ordered an all-out attack with more than 1,000 fighter jets to destroy London. Imagine what it must have been like for people who witnessed this. Specifically, the German attack force included 1,120 aircraft, with 620 fighters and 500 bombers, while the British had 630 planes. The British Royal Air Force managed to shoot down more than 60 Luftwaffe aircraft, while the British lost 29. British forces successfully stopped the German air force attack. This day is known as the Battle of Britain Day. By the end of October 1940, Hitler called off his planned invasion of Britain and the Battle of Britain ended. Both sides suffered enormous loss of life and aircraft. Still, Britain weakened the Luftwaffe and prevented Germany from achieving air superiority. It was the first major defeat of the war for Hitler.

Why did Britain win the battle of Britain even though German had more planes?

The German Luftwaffe had more airplanes, but they encountered problems when trying to attack Britain for several reasons:

Distance:

 Germany had to send its planes a long way to reach Britain, which made their missions more challenging and tiring for their pilots.

Strength of the British RAF: 

The British Royal Air Force (RAF) had well-trained pilots and effective planes. These pilots showed great courage and determination in defending their country against the German attacks.

Radar: 

The British had a new technology called radar, which helped them spot incoming German planes early. This early warning allowed the British to prepare their defenses and be better prepared.

Determination: 

Winston Churchill, the British leader, and the people of Britain were very determined to resist the German attacks. Their strong will played a crucial role in defending their homeland.

Mistaken Bombings: 

Sometimes, German pilots accidentally dropped bombs on London, causing harm to innocent civilians. This made the British public even more angry with the Germans and motivated them to fight back. All these factors, along with the determination and bravery of the British RAF, were major reasons for the German defeat during the Battle of Britain.

 Hitler's first major defeat in the Battle of Britain led him to change his plans. He postponed Operation Sea Lion, which was the plan to invade the UK, and instead, he shifted his attention to the Soviet Union.

What are the Axis of Power?

In April 1941, Hungary, Romania, and Bulgaria in Eastern Europe joined an alliance with Germany. They became part of the Axis Powers. As they moved eastward, Yugoslavia and Greece were already under German control. Meanwhile, Italian dictator Mussolini was occupied with trying to take over Libya and Greece, but the British presence in the Mediterranean Sea made it difficult for the Italians. So, to help the Italians fight the British forces, Hitler sent some German troops to Libya. Eventually, Yugoslavia and Greece also fell under German occupation.

Why did Hitler want to invade soviet union when there was already a peace treaty sign?

The main reason for Hitler's actions was his ideology. He strongly disliked communists, and he thought that if he could take over a big country like the Soviet Union, Germany would become the most powerful nation in the world. Essentially, Hitler was suffering from megalomaniac. Attacking the Soviet Union turned out to be a major mistake for Hitler, and it's where World War II really began.

What was Hitler's plan to invade Soviet Union?

Hitler's plan was straightforward. Just like the way he invaded France, he intended to invade the Soviet Union. He divided the German forces into three groups. The first group would move through the Baltic region toward Leningrad, where Stalin resided. The second group was to attack Moscow, and the third group would approach from the south, passing through Ukraine. This operation began on June 22, 1941.

The Soviet Union had a much larger army than Germany during World War II. They had 20,000 tanks while the Germans only had 600. However, the key difference was that German technology was superior. That's why Hitler had an advantage. To protect themselves from Germany, the Soviet Union formed an alliance with Britain and became part of the Allied Powers. Together, they planned to send supplies to the Soviet Union through Iran. The problem was that the Iranian government favored Hitler. So, Britain and the Soviet Union invaded Iran together.

However, this invasion didn't bring much benefit because Hitler's Blitzkrieg strategy allowed the Germans to advance quickly, coming within 100 km of Moscow in just two days and occupying a large part of Soviet territory. Around this time, Hitler and his military commanders had disagreements, which delayed the next German advance until October. By then, it had started getting colder. The cold weather gave the advantage to the Soviet Union, as their soldiers were accustomed to fighting in such conditions.

In addition, the Soviet Union had an advantage in the East, where they had signed a non-aggression treaty with Japan. This meant that Soviet troops stationed in the East to fight Japan could return to the West and help defend their country against the German invasion.

How United States got involved in World War II ?

In December 1941, another twist was added to the story when Japan unexpectedly attacked the United States' Pearl Harbor without any provocation, resulting in the deaths of over 2,300 American troops.

Before the attack on Pearl Harbor, the United States didn't want to be part of World War II. They weren't very concerned about what was happening in Europe. But when Japan unexpectedly bombed Pearl Harbor and killed many American troops, the United States got angry and decided to join the war. This marked the moment when the United States declared war on Japan and entered World War II.

The United States also formed an alliance with other countries that were fighting against the Axis Powers. These allies included the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union, and China. So, the United States and these other countries worked together to fight against the Axis Powers during the war.

Why Japan attack Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941?

I will share detailed information about the attack on Pearl Harbor in an upcoming article soon.

 What happened after attack on Pearl Harbor?

In the early months of 1942, the United States took some time to get ready for the war. During this time, countries like Thailand and Cambodia were already taken over by Japan. By the middle of 1942, Hitler decided to shift his focus to the Soviet Union. They wanted to disrupt the supply route from Iran.

A major and devastating battle took place in the city of Stalingrad. The Soviet Union's army successfully defended itself against the German army. On the other side of the world, the Allied Forces and America attacked Japanese territories in the South Pacific, and this is known as the Battle of Midway. In June 1942, they destroyed four important Japanese aircraft and supply carriers. By the end of June 1942, the British army had managed to drive out German and Italian forces from Egypt.

what was biggest turning point in world war II?

The Battle of Stalingrad was a long and brutal conflict that lasted for several months. In November 1942, winter came, making it even more challenging for the German army to fight. At one point, it seemed like the German army was close to taking full control of Stalingrad. However, the Soviet forces never gave up and continued to fight until the very end. The Battle of Stalingrad is known as one of the deadliest battles of World War II.

In the end, the Soviet Union was successful. In February 1943, nearly 300,000 German troops in Stalingrad found themselves surrounded by Soviet soldiers, and they surrendered. This event marked the most significant turning point in World War II.

The picture shows the German army after surrendering in the Battle of Stalingrad:-

What had happened to dictator Mussolini?

Few month later, Benito Mussolini, the dictator of Italy during World War II, was captured and arrested in 1943. He was initially rescued from prison by German forces and established as the leader of the Italian Social Republic in Northern Italy, a puppet state of Nazi Germany. However, his rule was short-lived, and in April 1945, as Allied forces advanced into Italy, Mussolini attempted to flee but was captured by Italian partisans. Partisans are civilians who takes up arms to fight for some causes 

Mussolini and his mistress, Clara Petacci, were executed by firing squad on April 28, 1945. Their bodies were then hung in a public square in Milan, which marked the end of his rule and his life.

After the execution of Mussolini, a new government was formed in Italy. This government decided to cease fighting against the Allied forces. As a result, confidence among the Allied countries began to grow, as they believed they could defeat Hitler. In November 1943, Stalin, Roosevelt (President of US) , and Churchill met in Tehran to discuss how to bring World War II to an end.

What is D-Day?

On June 6, 1944, a historic day known as D-Day, the Allied forces initiated a terrifying operation to land on the battlefield. Over 150,000 British, American, and Canadian soldiers landed on the beaches of Normandy in France. Their mission was to fight the German army and liberate France from German occupation.

This was a significant moment because, after the Dunkirk evacuation a few years earlier, it was the first time British forces were back on the ground to directly confront the German army. It put Hitler in a difficult position because his forces were already engaged on the Eastern Front, facing losses due to the harsh winter conditions, and they couldn't completely defeat the Soviet Union. Now, they were also being attacked from the western front, creating a challenging situation for Hitler and his army.

This is a picture captured on D-Day:

Hitler decided to pull his army back from the eastern front to focus on a counterattack against the Allied forces advancing from the west. Once he did this, the Soviet Union launched a major offensive and quickly regained about 600 kilometers of territory from Germany. The Soviets also occupied countries like Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, and Romania. Meanwhile, the Allies landed in southern France and began liberating other countries.

Germany found itself under attack from three sides, and Hitler planned one last major offensive, which is known as the Battle of the Bulge. This was a significant battle in the later stages of World War II.

How Adolf Hitler and Nazi Germany lost World War II?

In the forested area of Ardennes, the German army planned to push the Allied forces back. Before the Allies could invade Germany, they launched destructive air raids on German cities.

The bombing of Dresden was a joint British and American aerial bombing attack on the city of Dresden, the capital of the German state of Saxony, during World War II as shown in picture:

In February 1945, there was a meeting called the Yalta Conference in Crimea as shown in this image. During this meeting, it was announced that any country that declared war on Germany could join the Allied forces to fight against Germany. As a result, several countries, including Venezuela, Uruguay, Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Lebanon, and Paraguay, declared war on Germany.

The last four months of World War II were very painful. Almost 30,000 people were killed every day. As the Allied forces advanced, they discovered Hitler's concentration camps where hundreds of thousands of Jews had been brutally killed. The Allied forces also continued bombing German cities. Later, some people criticized this, saying it was unnecessary to bomb cities where civilians were killed. One city, Dresden, was severely damaged.

By this time, Hitler was close to losing the war. Finally, in May 1945, Berlin was surrounded by the Soviet army. Two days before, on April 30, 1945, Hitler killed himself. On May 8, 1945, the German army surrendered, marking the end of World War II in Europe.

What happened after Hitler and Nazi Germany lost World War II ?

After World War II, Germany was divided into East and West Germany. West Germany, or the Federal Republic of Germany, was officially established in May 1949. East Germany, or the German Democratic Republic, was established in October 1949. Under their occupying governments, the two Germanys followed very different paths. 

Poland's borders were changed, and the borders of several other countries were redrawn.

In October 1945, the United Nations (UN) was created to prevent future wars like World War I and World War II. However, at that time, World War II hadn't ended yet.

It took Japan two months to surrender after the United States dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which effectively brought World War II to an end.

I hope you find this article very interesting.

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