World War II: Fronts, Leaders, and the Holocaust

The Second World War was fought by two camps. The Axis was led by Hitler, Mussolini and Japan’s military leaders. The Allies were led by Churchill, Stalin and Roosevelt.

Inside that war sits a darker story, the Holocaust. This lesson covers the leaders, the fronts, and how the Nazi state moved step by step towards genocide.

1Who led the Axis and the Allies?

The Axis powers were led chiefly by three men. Adolf Hitler ruled Germany. Benito Mussolini ruled Italy. Japan was run by its military leadership.

The Allied side had its own big three. Winston Churchill led Britain. Joseph Stalin led the Soviet Union. Franklin Roosevelt led the United States.

Why does this matter? Exams like to ask who stood where. Learn the two trios as a pair.

• Axis: Hitler, Mussolini, Japan’s military.
• Allies: Churchill, Stalin, Roosevelt.

2Why did the war have two starting points?

Japan invaded China in 1937. That was two years before the German attack on Poland. So war in Asia began long before war in Europe.

The Soviet Union fought its own early war too. The Winter War against Finland began on 30 November 1939 and ended on 13 March 1940. The Soviets won on paper, but they suffered heavy losses at first.

In November 1942 the Allies opened a new front. Operation Torch landed troops in French North Africa from 8 November. Planners chose it as a lower-risk step before invading German-held France.

Why does this matter? The wars in Asia and Europe slowly merged into one world war. The Winter War and Barbarossa are separate events.

• Japan invaded China in 1937.
• Winter War: USSR against Finland, 1939-40.
• Operation Torch: French North Africa, November 1942.

3How did Montgomery and MacArthur differ?

British General Bernard Montgomery fought in North Africa. He is best known for the victory over Rommel’s forces at El Alamein in late 1942.

American General Douglas MacArthur fought in the Pacific. He is linked with “island hopping”. The idea was to skip strongly held islands and seize the ones that mattered more.

Why does this matter? Exam questions often ask which commander matches which theatre. Montgomery means North Africa. MacArthur means the Pacific.

• Montgomery: El Alamein, North Africa, 1942.
• MacArthur: the Pacific, island hopping.

4What did the Nuremberg Laws do?

The Nuremberg Laws were passed on 15 September 1935. Two measures made up the package. They were announced at a Nazi Party rally in Nuremberg.

The Reich Citizenship Law limited citizenship to people of “German or related blood”. Jews were reduced to subjects without full rights. A second law banned marriage and sexual relations between Jews and Germans.

Three years later came the pogrom of 9-10 November 1938. People call it Kristallnacht, the Night of Broken Glass. Synagogues were burned and Jewish shops were wrecked.

Why does this matter? Persecution moved from law to open violence. The state looked on and did not stop it.

• 15 September 1935: citizenship for “German or related blood” only.
• Marriage between Jews and Germans banned.
• 9-10 November 1938: Kristallnacht.

5How did persecution grow into genocide?

Historians often describe it in stages. In the first years, from 1933, Jews were attacked, robbed of their rights and pushed to leave Germany.

In the next stage, Jews in occupied lands were forced into crowded ghettos, such as those in Lodz and Warsaw. Many were made to wear a yellow Star of David.

In the last stage, Jews from across occupied Europe were sent by train to killing centres. A key meeting was held at Wannsee, near Berlin, on 20 January 1942. Senior officials planned how to carry out the “Final Solution”.

Why does this matter? The genocide was not a sudden event. It was organised by the state, step by step.

• Stage one: terror and pressure to leave.
• Stage two: ghettos and the yellow star.
• Stage three: deportation to killing centres; Wannsee, 20 January 1942.

6How large was the Holocaust?

About six million Jews were murdered. The killing used ghettos, mass shootings and camps. Auschwitz is the best known of the killing centres.

Jews were not the only victims. The Nazis also killed Roma, Polish civilians, and disabled people. Historians give different numbers for these groups, so exams usually avoid exact figures.

Why does this matter? Learn the six million figure for Jews. Remember that other groups were targeted too.

• About six million Jews murdered.
• Other victims: Roma, Polish civilians, disabled people.
• Best-known killing centre: Auschwitz.

7How did the world answer at Nuremberg?

After the war the victors held trials in Nuremberg. France, the Soviet Union, Britain and the United States ran the first one. The International Military Tribunal sat from 20 November 1945 to 1 October 1946. It tried 22 leading Nazis.

Later US courts held twelve more trials. One was the Einsatzgruppen trial of 1947-48. It charged 24 SS commanders over the mass killing of more than a million people on the Eastern Front. Two did not stand trial, so 22 were tried. All 22 were convicted on at least one count. Its chief prosecutor, Benjamin Ferencz, was then in his late twenties.

Why does this matter? These trials helped create modern international criminal law. They also rejected the plea “I was only following orders”.

• Main tribunal: 20 November 1945 to 1 October 1946.
• Einsatzgruppen trial: 1947-48, prosecutor Benjamin Ferencz.
• Legacy: international criminal law.

8What are the exam traps?

• Torch (1942, North Africa) is not D-Day (1944, Normandy).
• Montgomery means North Africa. MacArthur means the Pacific.
• The Winter War (Finland, 1939-40) is not Barbarossa (1941).
• The Holocaust was not only about Jews. Other groups were targeted too.