Question

Describe briefly the Nazi conquest of Europe from the invasion of Poland, 1939 to the fall of France in 1940.

Answer 1

1. The Nazi conquest of Europe from the invasion of Poland in 1939 to the fall of France in 1940 was swift and brutal, driven by Hitler’s strategy of Blitzkrieg (lightning war).
2. The operation began on 1st September, 1939, when Germany invaded Poland with rapid attacks by tanks and planes. Germany swiftly defeated Poland.
3. In line with the Nazi-Soviet Pact, the Soviet Union attacked Poland from the east on 17th September. Germany and the USSR split Poland by the beginning of October.
4. After this, from late 1939 to early 1940, there wasn’t much fighting in Western Europe. This was called the Phoney War. On the other hand, Hitler attacked Denmark and Norway in April 1940, taking control of these countries to protect German naval lines and gain resources.
5. In May 1940, Germany invaded Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg from the west, going around the highly fortified French Maginot Line. The Allies thought the Ardennes Forest would be impossible to get through, but German troops quickly did so.
6. In June 1940, German troops had reached Paris, and on 22nd June, France gave up. The country was split into two parts: one was directly occupied by Germany, and the other was run by a fake government called Vichy France.
7. During this time of conquest, Nazi Germany’s military strategies were shown to be very successful, and much of Western Europe that Hitler had controlled quickly fell apart.