|
Adolf
Hitler and the Nazi Party came to power
in Germany in 1933 and quickly established
a ruthless dictatorship. Germany seized
Austria in 1938, and occupied Czechoslovakia
in 1938-39. Italy, another dictatorship,
attacked Abyssinia (Ethiopia) in 1935
and occupied Albania in 1939. After invading
Manchuria in 1931, Japan attacked China
in 1937. Britain and France appeased
these brutal regimes in an effort to
avoid another world war – a policy
supported by most Canadians.
The
Nazis’ military aggression led
directly to the Second World War. In
August 1939, Germany insisted on territorial
concessions from Poland. Finally abandoning
‘appeasement’, Britain and
France pledged to assist the Poles and
stop Hitler. On 1 September 1939, Germany
invaded Poland and, two days later, Britain
and France declared war on Germany. The
Second World War had begun.
|
 |
