Tuesday- Talk about new forum posts. Start presentations- Video on Italy. Notes on bottom.
Wednesday- Finish notes on Italy, and start presentation on Japan.
Thursday- Continue presentations/notes
Friday- Continue presentation/notes
Axis Powers: Japan, Germany, Italy
Italy’s WWII Story 1919-1945
Benito Mussolini- Was in newspaper business. Born to Catholic family (Mother Catholic, Father atheist)
Despised Catholic school and religion
Got in trouble at school for stabbing a kid
Struggled in school
Became an elementary school teacher prior to journalism
Was a pacifist
‘Transformed’ in WWI
Italy after WWI
Italy was very displeased with the Treaty of Versailles
Wanted to get more land than they got
Italy joined the League of Nations and was a member from 1919 until they withdrew in 1937
Apart of Washington Naval Conference
Signed 5 Power Pact
-Signed by GB, US, Japan, France, and Italy
-Designed to prevent an arm’s race
It limited the construction of battleships, battle cruisers
9 Power Pact
-Guaranteed Chinese independence and upheld the Open Door Policy
Kellogg-Briand Pact
-Countries pledged not to use war as a way to settle disputes
March on Rome- Oct 1922
A march by Mussolini’s National Fascist Party
Mussolini and the Fascists won and took over Italy
King Victor Emmanuel
Did not fight Mussolini’s takeover in Italy
Wanted to avoid a civil war and also wanted to keep communists out of Italy
Established Fascism in Italy
A government led by a strong dictator
Stresses strong nationalism, militarism, and imperialism
Uses intimidation to get what they want
Ethiopia invaded by Mussolini in 1936
Italy lost its Ethiopia colony in Africa as the 1896 Battle of Adua
One of the worst colonial disasters of modern history
Italy/Ethiopia Invasion
Nov 18, 1935, League of Nations sanctions begin
-arms embargo, financial embargo, non-importation of Italian goods
May 5- Italy occupied Addis Ababa- annexed all Ethiopia on May 9
Generalissimo Francisco Franco and the Spanish Civil War- 1936
Hitler and Mussolini sent troops and weapons to help Franco win the Civil War against the communists
This war served as an important training ground for Hitler’s and Mussolini’s troops
Rome-Berlin Axis
Japan
In the 20’s
Joined League of Nations
Signed 4, 5, 9 power pacts
4 power pact
5 power pacct
9 power pact
Signed the Kellogg-Briand Pact
Japanese Invasion of Manchuria
The League of Nations condemned the action but could not enforce its authority as it had not military force
The message sent to aggressive countries was that a major power could get away with using force because GB and France did not want war
Japan dropped out of the League of Nations shortly after invasion
China Incident July 1937
Rape of Naking Late 1937-early 1938
A mass killing of Chinese people (up to 300,000)
Mass raping of Chinese women
Mass looting and arson
Some in Japan have denied that the military killed civilians for no reason
Still causes tension between the two countries today
There were war crimes trial after the war to try Japanese soldiers for participation
Tripartite Pact is signed forming Axis Powers in 1940
Axis Powers:
Germany, Italy, Japan
Other Powers: Albania, Bulgaria, Finland, Romania, Thailand, Hungary
Soviet-Japanese Neutrality Pact
The USSR and Japan signed an agreement to night fight one another on April 1, 1941
Japan considered breaking this once Germany (their ally) invaded the USSR in June 1941, but did not
- The USSR broke this treaty when they declared war on Japan in August 9, 1945
Why did Japan attack Pearl Harbor?
After Japan invaded French Indochina in 1940, US stopped trading with Japan
Japan signed Soviet Japanese Neutrality Pact in April 1941 guaranteeing USSR would not go to war
Japan realized they needed US trade to be successful in war
Only way to force US hand was to hit them hard in a surprise attack forcing them out of the war
Summer 1945 Preparing for Invasion
Operation Downfall
Planned for Oct 1945
Estimated 1mil casualties
Didn’t happen because atomic bomb
Potsdam Conference July 1945
On July 26, the US , GB, and China issued Potsdam Conference
Announced the terms for Japan’s surrender
“We will not deviate from them. There are no alternatives.”
Potsdam Declaration
Dismantle the current government of Japan excluding Emperor Hirohito
The Allies (US) will occupy Japan
Japan will consist only of the major islands. It will lose all territory gained in WWII and years leading up to it
Japanese military forces will be disarmed and allowed to return home
There will be war crimes trials for the atrocities committed by Japan throughout WWII
Democracy will be promoted as well as freedom of speech, religion, and of thought, as well as respect for fundamental human rights
Japan will be allowed to have industry so they can make money to pay for reparations. World trade will also be enabled at some point
Allied occupation of Japan will end once Japan accomplishes all the above points
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