From 1939 to 1945, the largest war in human history unfolded on a global scale. About 85 million people died, and the world order was completely reorganized.
Basic Knowledge
On August 23, 1939, Germany and the Soviet Union concluded the Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact. On September 1, 1939, Germany began the invasion of Poland, and Britain and France declared war on Germany on September 3, beginning World War II. Germany defeated France through blitzkrieg in 1940 and began the German-Soviet War (Operation Barbarossa) on June 22, 1941. On December 8, 1941 (Japan time), Japan made a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, beginning the Pacific War; Germany and Italy also declared war on the United States, turning it into a world war. Among the Allies, the Atlantic Charter (F. Roosevelt and Churchill) was concluded in August 1941, followed by the Declaration by United Nations in January 1942. In the Battle of Stalingrad in February 1943, the Soviet Union defeated Germany, and the Western Front was restored through the Normandy landings (D-Day) on June 6, 1944.
August 1941 Atlantic Charter (F. Roosevelt and Churchill)
November 1943 Cairo Conference (United States, Britain, and China; policy toward Japan)
November-December 1943 Tehran Conference (United States, Britain, and Soviet Union; opening of a second front)
February 1945 Yalta Conference (United States, Britain, and Soviet Union; postwar settlement; secret agreement for Soviet entry into the war against Japan)
July 1945 Potsdam Conference (United States, Britain, and Soviet Union; demand for Japan's surrender)
August 1945 Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Soviet entry into the war against Japan, Japan's surrender
October 24, 1945 Establishment of the United Nations (headquartered in New York)
In Depth (Background and Effects)
War casualties reached approximately 50 million-85 million (more than five times those of World War I). Particularly high were the victims of the Holocaust (the systematic murder of six million Jews by the Nazis, including at the Auschwitz concentration camp), the atomic bombings (about 140,000 deaths in Hiroshima and 70,000 in Nagasaki), and the Soviet losses (about 27 million). Germany surrendered on May 8, 1945, and Japan signed the instrument of surrender on September 2, ending the war. In June 1945, the United Nations Charter was adopted at the San Francisco Conference, and the United Nations (UN) was established on October 24 (now United Nations Day). Its headquarters is in New York, and the five permanent members of the UN Security Council—the United States, Britain, France, Russia (the Soviet Union), and China—possess veto power. In 1945-46, war crimes were tried at the Nuremberg Trials (against Germany) and the Tokyo Trials (against Japan). In 1948, the UN General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which became a starting point for postwar human-rights thought.
- Outbreak of World War II = September 1, 1939, Germany's invasion of Poland
- Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact = August 1939 (included a secret agreement)
- German-Soviet War begins = June 22, 1941
- Pacific War begins = December 8, 1941
- Normandy landings = June 6, 1944 (D-Day)
- Germany surrenders = May 8, 1945; Japan surrenders = August 15, 1945 (signing on September 2)
- United Nations established = October 24, 1945
- Universal Declaration of Human Rights = 1948
Points to Note (Easily Confused)
① Distinguish the Cairo Conference (1943, United States, Britain, and China), Tehran Conference (1943, United States, Britain, and Soviet Union), Yalta Conference (February 1945, United States, Britain, and Soviet Union), and Potsdam Conference (July 1945, United States, Britain, and Soviet Union) by participants and year. ② It was unusual that Germany invaded the Soviet Union in 1941 despite having concluded the Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact in 1939. ③ The League of Nations (1920, unanimity, United States absent) and the United Nations (1945, majority voting + veto power, centered on the United States) were different organizations. ④ The day commemorating the end of the war differs by country: in Japan it is August 15 (the Imperial Rescript broadcast), while in Europe and the United States it is May 8 (VE Day) or September 2 (VJ Day).
Practice
- What event on September 1, 1939, triggered World War II?
- What was the name of the international organization established on October 24, 1945?
- Name the five permanent members of the UN Security Council.