After the Second World War in all developed countries
West, the MMC system was formed and developed. (
State monopoly capitalism -
"a form of monopoly capitalism for which
characterized by the combination of the forces of the capitalist
monopolies with the power of the state")
The United States has stepped up its economic and military
power.
Increased government intervention in
economy (development of the state military
industry, the nationalization of a number of enterprises and
industries, construction of infrastructure facilities,
credit and tax policy
Western Europe after World War II
In the 50s. there is an economic recovery("economic miracle" in Italy, Germany, etc.).
The structure of the economy is changing
associated with NTR. Integration
processes (ECSC - 1951, Treaty of Rome 1957).
The rise of economics was facilitated by the creation
Bretton Woods Monetary System (1944) and
implementation of the "Marshall Plan" (1948 - 1952).
A "consumer society" is being created. going on
"white collar revolution".
Western Europe after World War II
There is a recovery in political lifedemocratic institutions. Strengthening democratization
Society takes place on the wave of anti-fascist resistance.
All political parties (with rare exceptions) are in favor of
reforms.
Reborn under the flag of religious ideology
conservative parties (CDU / CSU in Germany, CDA in Italy, etc.).
Liberal parties are less influential, but from their position
depended on the alignment of political forces (Italy, France, etc.).
There is a strengthening of the positions of the communist, social democratic parties, socialist, labor
parties (Italy, France, Belgium, Finland, Great Britain
and etc.). England in the 2nd half of the 20th century
Queen Elizabeth
II
Great Britain
Great Britain -"Connected
Kingdom") - insular
state in northwestern Europe.
UK is one of
largest states
Europe, nuclear power,
permanent member of the Council
UN security.
British heiress
empire, the largest
states in history
existing in the XIX -
the beginning of the 20th century. After World War II, to power from
labor party came
Clement Atley
(1945-1951)
Political activity:
1. Nationalization of industries
economy (transport, banks,
power plants)
2. Development of the national
health, education
3. Grant of independence
India, Ceylon, Palestine, Jordan
Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill(1951-1955)
Came to power from the party
conservatives. One of
masterminds of the campaign
unleashing the "cold
war." Carried out a policy
denationalization
industry,
transport. With him England
acquired a nuclear
weapons (1952)
Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Thatcher(1979-1990)
Leader of the Conservative Party
Prime Minister
"Thatcherism":
1. Encouragement of private
entrepreneurship
2. Tax cuts
3. Restriction of the state
intervention in the economy
4. Reducing costs in
social sphere
John Major
M. Thatcher's successorin 1990 became
conservative john
Major (19901997). He kept
main
directions
socioeconomic
ironclad policy
lady".
Tony Blair
After defeatconservatives in elections
1997 to management
the Labor Party came
led by Anthony Blair
(1997-2006).
Political activity:
1. established bodies
self-government in
Scotland and Wales
2. changed the system
leadership of the country
David Cameron
David CameronDavid William Donald
eurone - british
cam
politician, leader
the conservative party
current Prime Minister of the United
Kingdoms.
France
France (- state inWestern Europe. Motto
Republic - "Freedom,
Equality, Brotherhood", her
principle - rule
people, people and for
people. Capital - city
Paris.
France is nuclear
power and one of the five
permanent members of the Council
UN security. From the 1950s
France is
one of the states
participating in the creation
European Union. France in the 2nd half of the 20th century
"The smallest of the great powers and the greatest
among the small" - so called France after II
world war. In 1947 she agreed to take
American assistance under the Marshall Plan, and in 1949
joined NATO. Conducted a course on integration
Western Europe, the decolonization of their territories.
Charles de Gaulle
Charles de Gaulle (1944-1946)Carried out the policy:
nationalization of industries
economy
Developments and adoptions
new constitution
Proposed to create
a republic with a strong
executive branch
IV republic in France
1. Economic recovery2. Joining NATO (1949)
Cambodia, Morocco, Tunisia
Charles de Gaulle
Charles de Gaulle (1958-1969)1. Adoption of a new constitution
(1958), Institution V
republics
2. Creation of nuclear weapons
(1960)
3. Modernization of the economy
4. Withdrawal from NATO
5. Rapprochement with the USSR
6. Provision
African independence
colonies (1960)
IV republic in France
1. Economic recovery2. Joining NATO (1949)
3. The course towards the integration of Western Europe
4. Granting independence to Vietnam, Laos,
Cambodia, Morocco, Tunisia
5. Problematic issue with Algeria (1 million immigrants from
France did not want separation from the mother country.
Supporters of "French Algeria" rebelled
and demanded the return to power of de Gaulle
Georges Pompidou
Georges Pompidou (19691974)1. Decentralization
management
2. Empowerment
trade unions, social
legislation
3. Introduced continuous
professional
education
4. France is a member of the EU
(1973)
Francois Mitterrand
Francois Mitterrand(1981-1995)
1. Expansion
state
intervention in
economy
2. Inflation - regime
"austerity"
3. Moderate exchange rate
market development
regulation and
mixed economy
Jacques Chirac
Jacques Chirac(1995-2007)
1. Reduction
presidential term from
7 to 5 years
2. Change from franc to
Euro
3. Continuation of the course
European
integration
Francois Hollande
Francois Gerard GeorgesNicolas Hollande -
current president
France, political
and state
activist, first
Secretary
Socialist
parties of France
Germany
́ iya - state inHermann
Central Europe. Capital -
city of Berlin (location
Bundestag and government
some ministries
located in Bonn). The form
board - parliamentary
republic, form
state structure -
symmetrical federation16
autonomous lands.
Germany is a member
European Union and NATO,
is one of the Big Eight
apply for permanent
membership in the Security Council
UN.
Germany after the war
Germany was divided into 4 zones. Her managementcarried out CMFA (Council of Ministers of Foreign Affairs). In 1947
A peace treaty was signed with Germany, 1955 with Austria.
By decision of the Control Council, Germany must no longer
was to be a threat to the world. In Germany it was necessary
spend:
1
2
3
DEMILITARIZATION and DENAZIFICATION.
(disarmament and liquidation of Nazism)
DEMOCRATIZATION.
DECARTELIZATION.
(destruction of cartels and monopolies) Control zones in
Germany The controversy about the future of Germany was becoming more and more. the USSR is not
suited the Soviet plan for Germany, and the US Soviet. Confrontation
led in 1949 to the formation of the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) in the West
and the German Democratic Republic (GDR) in the East. Thus in
3/2 of Germany appeared in Europe, and if it’s real, then three, since it turned out to be divided
and Berlin. Berlin
GDR
Bonn
Germany Reichstag five years after the war. BERLIN
GDR
GDR
West
Berlin
GDR The decisive factor in the collapse of Germany was the introduction of Western
zone of the western mark, also joining the western zone to the plan
Marshall. The answer of the USSR was the introduction in the Eastern zone of its
currencies. In August 1949, elections to the Bundestag / parliament /, 7
September 1949 in the Western zone proclaimed the Federal Republic of Germany, Chancellor
became the leader of the CDU Konrad Adenauer. In 1955, Germany joined NATO.
GDR stamp
Western stamp
Federal Chancellor
Germany Konrad Adenauer,
1949-1963 German economists let the country's economy into free
swimming. It gave results. 50s, 60s called
years of the "German economic miracle". Over 55%
West Germans considered themselves to be middle class. This
spoiled only by world economic crises.
West Berlin,
10 years after
war. Germany has a three-party system. key role
played the Christian Democratic Union /CDU/ and
Social Democratic Party of Germany /SPD/,
which alternately changed, this "political
pendulum” is typical for capitalist countries in the 20th century.
CDU, 1949-1969
K.Adenauer,
Chancellor of the CDU.
CDU, 2005…
SPD, 1969-1982
W. Brandt,
chancellor of the SPD.
A. Merkel,
Chancellor of the CDU.
G. Kohl Chancellor
CDU.
SPD, 1998-2005
CDU, 1982-1998
G. Schroeder
Chancellor of the SPD The reason for the “pendulum” was the unstable economic
situation in Germany, the number of unemployed exceeded 3 million.
people With the coming to power of the SPD, Chancellor V. Brand went to
rapprochement with the GDR, the USSR, Czechoslovakia, Poland.
Secretary General L. Brezhnev and Chancellor W. Brandt.
Federal Chancellor of Germany
Willy Brandt. Coat of arms and flag of Germany
BONN is the capital of Germany.
Automotive giant FRGMERCEDES Benz, 1970s. After the formation of the GDR on October 7, 1949, power there passes into the hands of
Socialist Unity Party of Germany /SED/, model
the construction of socialism becomes the Soviet model.
Nationalization, industrialization, collectivization begins.
The card system is introduced.
Coat of arms of the GDR
"Soviet"
city
Oriental
Berlin, capital
GDR. Flag of the GDR
V Festival of Youth Friendship
USSR and East Germany in Karl-MarxStadt, 1980.
GDR
GDR
West
Berlin
GDR
GDR
East Berlin, the capital of the GDR All these measures caused mass discontent in the GDR. June 17, 1953
there were unrest in Berlin, Leipzig, Halle and other suppressed
Soviet troops. The Germans continued to flee to the Western
Berlin. In 1961, there is " Berlin Crisis”, the result
was the construction of the Berlin Wall.
Berlin Wall The flight of Germans from the GDR to the FRG
wall construction
Wall
E. Honecker and
L. Brezhnev
Berlin wall. "Stagnation" in the USSR, caused stagnation in the GDR, it is associated with the name of the president
E. Honecker. The gap in living standards between the GDR and the FRG widened. IN
late 80s. the crisis has reached a climax. On the wave of restructuring
The USSR did not support Honecker and on October 18, 1989 he went to
resignation, the "velvet revolution" began.
Honecker and Brezhnev on a GDR stamp
GDR President E. Honecker, 1979-1989 5. On November 8, 1989, it was announced that a checkpoint would open in
the Berlin Wall, this led to riots and falling
walls. On December 20, German Chancellor G. Kohl arrived in the GDR. Union
The GDR and the FRG acquired a spontaneous character. After the March 18 elections
1990 in the GDR, on July 1, 1990, the Western mark was introduced in the GDR, finally
On October 3, 1990, the unification of Germany took place, in fact the GDR
became part of Germany.
Fall of the Berlin Wall 8
November 1989
Chancellor of Germany and
united Germany
G. Kol, 1982-1998 5. On December 2, 1990, the first all-German elections after the war were held,
CDU won. September 12, 1990 USA, USSR, France and
Great Britain in Moscow signed an agreement on the final
settlement with Germany.
After the signing of the contract 12
September 1990 Moscow. 5. After unification in the former GDR, an accelerated
privatization, dozens of plants and factories are closed, thousands
Germans travel from east to west to work. Quantity
unemployed in Germany reaches 4 million people. This leads to failure in
the 1998 elections of the CDU and the coming to power of the SPD. Government
G. Schroeder, reduces taxes, education reform is being carried out,
help to youth.
German Chancellor Gerhard
Schroeder 1998-2005 5. During foreign policy rapprochement between Germany and Russia. Germany
actively participates in NATO programs. In 1994, Russia withdraws
troops from Germany. In 2005, the SPD loses in the elections and Schröder
resigns. Government for the first time in German history
occupied by a woman, Angela Merkel. She continues to fight
unemployment, conducts a moderate, soft foreign policy.
German Chancellor Angela
Merkel 2005-…
Italy after World War II.
Italy
Italy - a state in the southEurope, in the middle of the Mediterranean.
It borders with France in the northwest (the length of the border is
488 km), with Switzerland (740 km) and
Austria (430 km) - in the north and
Slovenia - in the northeast (232
km). Also has internal
borders with the Vatican (3.2 km) and San Marino (39 km).
Occupies peninsula
, Padan Plain, southern
the slopes of the Alps, the islands of Sicily,
Sardinia and a number of small islands
Republic proclamation.
The resistance movement, which played an important role inliberation of northern Italy from German troops, and
removal of the dictator Mussolini from power were those
reasons why Italy, being the aggressor and
ally of Germany, has not lost its
statehood. The Italians were given the right
restoration of a democratic regime.
The question of the form of government was decided on
referendum on June 2, 1946. The Italians were in favor
republic.
The elections made it possible to assess the positions of the main
political parties: Christian Democratic
party (CDA) received 35% of the votes, the socialist
party (ISP) - 20%, communist party(IKP) -
19%.
Thus, in Italy, a parliamentary
republic with a multiparty system.
Centrism.
Feature of the Italian party-politicalsystem had a dominant position on
for nearly half a century of the Christian Democratic Party. Opposition Left
the flank was represented by the communists and
socialists who, since the movement
The resistance and until 1954 were allies.
On the extreme right flank they took a place
neo-fascists are a national legal party.
In 1960, Italy experienced a serious crisis. HDP
lost the support of a number of small parties and
tried to rely on neo-fascists.
Prior to this incident, the CDA had rejected alliances and with
left, and from the right flank of the party-political system.
Such a position was assessed as centrism.
Italian "economic miracle".
Italian economic miracle - periodrapid economic growth in Italy between
mid-1950s and mid-1970s, during
whom
economy of the country from the agro-industrial
turned into one of
most industrialized in the world and entered into
number of world leaders.
Italy emerged from the Second World War among
most affected and destroyed European
countries. is the modernization of the economy and its
development to the level of one of the largest economies
peace. The boom was driven by
the foresight and economic savvy of the Italian
entrepreneurs, as well as the discovery
methane and hydrocarbonate deposits in Padansk
oh plain that gave impetus to the new
development of ferrous metallurgy. Rise of the Italian
steel smelting was also facilitated by US assistance,
rendered in accordance with the Marshall Plan and
aimed at restoring the main industries
industry. The main purpose of these injections
was the development of industrial sectors of the economy
to a level that would allow them to be
competitive in the Common
Market.
Beginning of European integration
1949 - Creation of the Council of Europe (Strasbourg)1951 - European Coal and Steel Community
1957 - creation of the EEC, or "Common Market"
1979 - creation of the European monetary system
1986 - adoption of the Single European Act with the aim of
transition from the "Common Market" to a single
free movement
1993 - Creation of the EU
1997 - adoption of a single currency - the euro
THE SECOND WORLD WAR. THE BEGINNING OF THE WAR IN EUROPE 1939-1940
Capture of Poland. On September 1, 1939, Germany invaded Poland without declaring war. Two days later, Britain and France declared war on Germany. Two German air force bombed the already weak Polish air force on the airfields before the Polish planes could take to the air. After that, the German aircraft attacked Largest cities and military facilities in Poland, destroying bridges, supply points on railways, transport hubs and power plants. Significant in terms of numbers, the Polish armed forces were defeated in fact before they had time to take up combat positions. Within 30 days, the resistance was almost broken. The last act of unprecedented brutality in the Polish campaign was the prolonged bombardment of Warsaw, where thousands of refugees had gathered. When the German armies closed the ring behind Warsaw and their victory was beyond doubt, on September 17, Soviet troops entered Poland. The Poles did not try to resist this; Soviet troops stopped, occupying a line on the border with East Prussia and stretching south along the Bug River, and then west of Lvov, including Galicia. Thus, the German and Soviet troops reached the border, stipulated in the secret protocol of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact and confirmed by subsequent decisions of the governments of both countries. On September 28, Germany agreed to recognize the new borders between the Soviet Union and the territory it had conquered. On October 5, after Warsaw fell, Hitler announced the annexation by Germany of Western Poland (Silesia), where 10 million Poles lived, and the establishment of a "protectorate" over the central regions of the country. The USSR held a plebiscite in the territories it occupied and, announcing its positive result, on November 1-2, annexed to the USSR Western Ukraine and Western Belarus, which were part of Eastern Poland, whose population numbered 12 million people - mostly Belarusians, Ukrainians and Jews.
The reaction of Great Britain and France. During the Polish campaign, Great Britain and France did not provide effective assistance to their ally. The British army was just beginning to advance to the Continent, where it was to take up positions in Flanders along the western salient of the Maginot Line. By the end of October, 4 divisions of the expeditionary force were to arrive from England. The French army defended the Maginot Line - a continuous belt of long-term fortifications with barbed wire and anti-tank traps. For several weeks, French troops attacked the German advanced fortifications in the Saar, but these attempts were purely symbolic. The "strange war" dragged on through the winter of 1939-1940.
The attack of the Soviet Union on Finland. Even before the final partition of Poland, the USSR took steps to strengthen its position in the Baltics. After 1918, when the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was concluded, the Soviet leadership did not accept the loss of Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia. Following the partition of Poland, the USSR in late September - early October 1939 forced these three countries to sign non-aggression pacts; in August 1940, units of the Red Army entered their territory. Finland turned out to be more intractable, even when in October 1939 Moscow demanded that its government conclude a friendship treaty and cede to the USSR the strategically important Finnish territories on the Karelian Isthmus, adjacent to Leningrad from the north. The USSR also demanded that Finland give it free access to the polar village of Pechenga, near which the non-freezing port of Liinakhamari is located, and agree to lease naval bases located on the Finnish coast along Baltic Sea and the Gulf of Finland. On November 30, the USSR began hostilities with the bombing of Helsinki. Finland had a well-trained 330,000-strong army. At first it seemed that this was quite enough, given the weak concentration of Red Army units in the region. By December 12, the attempts of Soviet troops to bypass the powerful Mannerheim defensive line from the south in the area of Lake Ladoga, which covered the approaches to Finland from Leningrad, were unsuccessful, and the attacking troops were repulsed with heavy losses for them. A week later, in the battles of Salla, the Finnish ski division bypassed and practically destroyed the second Soviet grouping. At the same time, the Soviet forward units invaded the country in a different direction with the aim of delivering strikes against the most vulnerable targets in Finland. On December 21, in the battle of Suomussalmi, these forces were driven back by the 2nd Finnish Corps. The successes of the Finns showed the weakness of the military leadership of the Red Army. After the failure of the offensive in January, the fighting was suspended, but the Soviet troops, having regrouped, launched a new offensive on February 11, which determined the outcome of the war. Step by step, at the cost of heavy losses on both sides, the Mannerheim Line was broken through. On March 13, 1940, the USSR and Finland, through the mediation of Germany, signed an armistice agreement. Under its terms, Moscow received the entire Karelian Isthmus, fortified Vyborg (Viipuri), as well as a long narrow strip of territory north of Lake Ladoga. The naval base on the Hanko Peninsula was leased to Moscow for a period of 30 years. The Soviet Union pushed back its border in the Pechenga region.
Fall of Norway and Denmark. Germany's next act of aggression was unexpected. In Norway there was a strong pro-Nazi party headed by V. Quisling; he made several trips to Berlin to convince Hitler that if there was no coup in Norway, then Great Britain would occupy its coast. Germany's decision to occupy Norway was also influenced by the attempts of England and France to help Finland. On February 16, 1940, the British destroyer Kossak entered the coastal waters of Norway in order to capture the German transport Altmark, on which British sailors were captured. Hitler decided that Norway was collaborating with England and used the incident as a pretext to invade Norway. On March 8, at a meeting of the War Cabinet, Churchill outlined a plan for the defense of Norway, adhering to the principle of "a demonstration of force in order to avoid its use." The Allies planned to mine Norwegian waters on April 5, and then on April 8 to land troops in Narvik, Trondheim, Bergen and Stavanger. But for a number of reasons, the operation was postponed, and the Nazis were ahead of the Allies. In the early morning of April 9, German troops landed from warships near the major ports of Norway in the strip from Oslo to Narvik and captured them without much effort. Aircraft joined the swift actions of the amphibious assault, which on the whole ensured the success of the campaign, although only 25 thousand military personnel of the ground forces took part in it. Norwegian batteries sank the German cruiser Blucher. During the operation, the Germans lost 3 cruisers, 10 destroyers, 4 submarines, an artillery training ship and 10 small craft. The Allies lost 1 aircraft carrier, 2 cruisers, 1 patrol ship and 6 destroyers. The government moved from Oslo to the central part of the country. As for the Norwegian army, the country had 25 thousand poorly armed and poorly trained soldiers. On April 14 in the north near Narvik and on April 17 in Namsos and Åndalsnes in central Norway, a French-British amphibious assault landed. The last two operations were purely reconnaissance in nature. The Allies managed to take Narvik in early June, but incessant air raids from Trondheim, occupied by the Germans, forced them to leave the city. From 3 to 8 June, the Allied troops were evacuated, and on 8 June the Norwegian army capitulated. Simultaneously with the attack on Norway (April 9), Denmark was subjected to aggression, it was occupied without resistance, and the country's government capitulated.
Beginning of the German occupation of Western Europe. With the German invasion of Norway and Denmark, the "strange war" ended. Hitler's intention to take over Western Europe became clear. On May 10, 1940, Minister of the Navy W. Churchill replaced N. Chamberlain as Prime Minister. The positions of the allies were very vulnerable due to the vulnerability of the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg, through which German troops could strike at France. Fearing to irritate the Nazi government, neutral Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg rejected proposals for cooperation with France and Great Britain and did not even dare to take effective measures to organize self-defense, although the governments of these states already had irrefutable evidence of impending aggression from Germany. The armies of the three countries were in a state of semi-readiness and only demonstrated their presence on the borders, in places of concentration of German units. Thus, by May 10, 1940, when Germany launched an invasion of their territory, with a further attack on France in mind, they did not have a common plan for joint defense. Germany attacked these countries without warning, without recourse to any preliminary diplomatic procedures. Planning the next seizure, Germany concentrated large military forces on this sector: 136 divisions, including 10 tank and 6 motorized, 2580 tanks, 3824 aircraft, 7378 field guns. The Allied forces numbered 111 divisions on the northeastern front, approx. 3100 tanks, 1648 French and 1837 British aircraft. The French army mobilized 97 divisions; 49 of them held the defense on the Maginot Line. The armored units had approximately the same number of vehicles as the Germans, but many French vehicles were outdated. All military formations and positions occupied by the army, except for the Maginot line, were poorly equipped with anti-tank and anti-aircraft weapons. The British Expeditionary Force in France consisted of 12 divisions, three of which were still in preparation. The Belgians mobilized 23 divisions, 12 of which were on the defensive on the Albert Canal. The Netherlands, which did not have heavy combat vehicles at all, were able to put 8 divisions on the defensive line. The German command of a number of disinformation actions supported the confidence in the allied generals that the Germans would repeat the "Schlieffen plan" of 1914, when their armies with their right wing attacked the left flank of the French defense through the Netherlands and Belgium. This time, the German troops delivered the main blow in the center of the Western Front through the difficult terrain in the Ardennes - in order to force the Meuse River and reach the sea - and broke through the Allied defenses where the Germans were least expected.
Fall of the Netherlands. In the early morning of May 10, 1940, the then capital of The Hague and its main port of Rotterdam were attacked by airborne forces. In general, only 16 thousand people were employed in the operation. At the same time, on the eastern border of the Netherlands, which was at a distance of 160 km, an offensive began in three directions with infantry forces. On May 14, after a massive bombardment of Rotterdam, the Dutch army capitulated, and the government moved to London.
Attack on Belgium. After the fall of the Netherlands, it remained for the German airborne forces to break open the Belgian castle in order to facilitate the advance of the 6th Army under the command of General W. von Reichenau. The Dutch blew up the bridges across the Meuse near Maastricht, which somewhat slowed down the advance of the Germans. As soon as this direction was blocked, the troops quickly turned in the direction of Belgium. The Belgian army left its fortified border lines and retreated to the west, where it was planned to join the Franco-British forces already heading to the Dil River. Before linking up on this line, the allies withdrew to a defensive line beyond the Scheldt. The German 6th Army continued its advance towards Brussels almost without hindrance. Meanwhile, the German tank corps of General Geppner faced French lungs mechanized divisions near Annu and Gembloux; the next day, German tanks carried out a successful maneuver against the defending tank units and threw them back to the Dil River. Then the German tanks were transferred to the Sedan area. The French armored units did not move in the same direction for a pitched battle, but remained in Belgium, since the high command mistakenly believed that the German tank corps was still near Gembloux and represented the main threat to the invasion of France here. Almost all the mobile units of the allies have already been drawn into the battle for Belgium. They included a British expeditionary force of 350 thousand people, as well as two French armies with a total strength of approx. 1 million troops. The 9th French Army under the command of General A. Korap held the most vulnerable section of the border with France, adjacent to the southeastern Belgian ledge. Leaving a poorly camouflaged and poorly protected sector under Sedan, Korap sent his main forces to Namur. When they were already on the march, the main power of the German army, bypassing their right flank, fell upon France. Her goal turned out to be precisely those positions that the French general had just left.
Invasion of France. To break through to France, 86 German divisions concentrated in a narrow corridor on the border with Luxembourg. On the front line were three tank corps under the command of General P. von Kleist. The advance of these forces, which began on the morning of May 10, 1940, looked more like a race than a military operation. In two days, the advancing troops covered a distance of 122 km through the territory of the Ardennes and reached the Meuse. On the morning of May 13, the infantry advanced to the river bank. Around noon, bombers appeared over Sedan, shooting and bombarding the French defensive lines. The few French defenders were completely demoralized. In the middle of the day, the German infantry crossed the river in boats and rafts; by midnight the engineering troops had finished building the bridge between Sedan and Sainte-Meinge. At night, tank units crossed the river and occupied a deep foothold in the southern part of the city. Behind the tanks, infantry divisions advanced to the captured lines. So, with one blow, almost without resistance, the fate of the battle for France was decided. All the events that followed - the advance of tanks to the sea, the defeat of the allies in Belgium, the evacuation from Dunkirk, the surrender of France - are only the consequences of this operation of the German Army Group "A".
Battle for Flanders. Panzer group Kleist made a throw from the Sedan bridgehead to the ports in the English Channel. The French 3rd Panzer Division went into action south of Sedan, but was itself flanked and routed. The 4th Panzer Division under the command of General de Gaulle launched a counterattack, but was driven back. Of the two remaining French panzer divisions, one found itself in a difficult position due to a lack of fuel, the other lost its combat power, being divided into small units for outposts. Thus, the main offensive force of Germany - tank troops - did not meet active resistance, and on May 20 its advanced units reached the coast near Abbeville. By that time, German mechanized columns, turning north along the coast, cut off Boulogne and Calais, and on May 22 one of the task forces reached the Eure line - the Saint-Omer Canal 32 km from Dunkirk, the only remaining port that still connected the British Expeditionary Force with homeland. On May 16, the commander-in-chief of the French troops, General M. Gamelin, was replaced by General Weygand. Overly optimistic about the situation, he ordered General Gort to strike from the north against the enemy's flank, in cooperation with the French troops, who were ordered to attack from the south. However, the French advance faltered, while on the left flank of the British army, the Belgians retreated under the onslaught of the Germans. On May 25, Gort, under his own responsibility, decided to immediately stop the offensive in a southerly direction, and with the two divisions intended for this, fill the widening gap between the left flank and the Belgians. Thus - according to the official English historiography - he saved british army. On May 28, the Belgian army capitulated, while the British continued their fighting retreat to Dunkirk. German tank forces after the breakthrough threatened Dunkirk already from the west; On May 23, on the orders of General Rundstedt, commander of Army Group A, they stopped at the Bethune - Saint-Omer - Gravelines line. This order was later attributed to Hitler and became the subject of many discussions, however, as the operational documents of the German army testify, Hitler only approved the actions of Rundstedt on May 24, who decided to save the armored formations already battered in battles for delivering a final blow to France. Rundstedt decided that he had done his job, believing that the British troops would be surrounded and pressed to the sea, and the Luftwaffe (air force) would not allow them to use the sea route for rescue. But as a result of fierce fighting and at the cost of heavy losses, the British still managed to carry out the evacuation of the allied forces, called the "Dunkirk miracle." By the morning of June 4, ca. 215 thousand British, as well as 123 thousand French and Belgian troops landed on the coast of Great Britain. The total losses of Great Britain during the operation amounted to 69.6 thousand people. The defeat of the broken left flank of the French army ended after the Dunkirk operation with the surrender of the encircled military units. As a result, France lost 30 divisions, including armored ones. For the construction of a new line of defense with a length of 240 km - from the central part of France to the English Channel - only 49 divisions remained at the disposal of General Weygand.
Capitulation of France. Germany did not leave the French time for a respite. On June 5, German troops curtailed their final operations in Flanders and struck south and southwest of the Somme. The German panzer divisions advanced rapidly, scoring one victory after another over the French, defenseless against tank attacks. The defensive lines north of Paris were destroyed, and the French army was completely defeated and demoralized. The French made no attempt to defend Paris and, in order to save the city from bombing, surrendered it on June 14 without a fight. The fate of France was actually decided. On June 10, when Germany's victory was no longer in doubt, Italy declared war on France and attacked her along the entire length of the common border. For some time, the French managed to hold their positions. On June 10, the French government moved from Paris to Tours, from where it soon moved to Bordeaux. German troops entered Paris, while continuing to push the French army to the Loire. On June 11, French Prime Minister P. Reynaud turned to British Prime Minister Churchill with a request to release France from mutual obligations, according to which neither side had the right to conclude a separate peace without the consent of an ally. On June 14, German Army Group C attacked the Maginot Line in a narrow sector of the front south of Saarbrücken and broke through the French defenses. On June 16, acknowledging the ally's inability to fulfill its obligations, Britain agreed to release France from them on the condition that its navy was not handed over to Hitler. Britain's attempt to induce France to continue the war in the African theater of operations also failed. June 16 most of The French government voted for an armistice. Reynaud retired and was replaced by Marshal Pétain. On June 17, he requested an armistice from Hitler. On June 22, 1940, a peace treaty was signed in a railway car in the same Compiègne forest, where in 1918 Marshal Foch received a German military delegation that had come to ask for peace. Two-thirds of French territory was occupied. While nominally independent, France became a de facto satellite state of the Axis. Germany benefited more from the partial occupation of France than from its complete capture. The Germans held the industrial north and occupied the entire northern and western coast of France, turning it into the main base for the fight against Great Britain. The Italians received only what they managed to capture before June 24, when the act of capitulation of France was signed. The naval base at Toulon was to remain neutral. All French warships were ordered to arrive at their home ports, where they were disarmed. The new French government settled in Vichy; Pétain became head of state. Official France surrendered to the mercy of the victor, but the symbol of resistance remained outside the country - General de Gaulle, who at the end of June 1940 created the Free (Fighting) France Committee in London at the end of June 1940.
THE SECOND WORLD WAR. MILITARY CONFLICT GROWS 1940-1942
On June 28, 1940, the USSR turned to Romania, which had previously received "guarantees" from France and Great Britain, and demanded that Bessarabia be separated from it and Northern Bukovina. Romania complied with this demand, and then turned to Germany for help, but was refused. In early September, under pressure from Hitler, Romania agreed to the transfer of Northern Transylvania to Hungary, and Southern Dobruja to Bulgaria. At the same time, Germany pursued the goal of drawing Hungary and Bulgaria into the camp of the Axis states, which she succeeded in doing. In the middle of 1940, the USSR also annexed the three Baltic states - Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, which corresponded to a secret agreement with Germany (additional protocol to the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact). On the Far East Japan capitalized on France's defeat by demanding and obtaining from her special concessions in French Indochina. Japan thus took the first step in its planned advance towards British Malaya. Under the guise of inspectors who allegedly monitored the cessation of arms smuggling to China, the Japanese military penetrated into Indochina and created their strongholds there. To appease Japan, Great Britain closed the Burmese road, which carried military supplies to the Chinese government in Chongqing. All these events prompted Japan on September 27, 1940 to join the Berlin-Rome axis as a full military partner. At the same time, in relation to the USSR, she adhered to the strategy of non-aggression. Immediately after the surrender of France, for the first time, a loud alarm sounded in the United States. Legislative and practical measures were taken to organize the defense of the Western Hemisphere. The US also warned all European powers to maintain the status quo with respect to colonial possessions in the Americas. This primarily concerned Martinique, where a significant part of the naval forces of France had accumulated. Portugal became the center of intelligence activity in Western Europe, especially Lisbon, the hub of air communications between Great Britain, the USA and the Vichy government. German troops stood on the borders of Spain, and Madrid was covered by a network of German military missions; while Spain provided all possible assistance to the Axis powers, trying not to lose the status of a neutral state. After the defeat of France, England took decisive action to ensure its own security. In early July 1940, the British captured French ships anchored in Portsmouth and Plymouth; at Oran they attacked and neutralized the French fleet; in Alexandria, they forced the French admiral Godefroy to internee the ships and hand them over safe and sound. On July 8, the battleship Richelieu was torpedoed and damaged in Dakar. Great Britain averted the threat from the sea, but things were not so successful on land. Except for the water barrier, the islands were practically unprotected. For the defense of its territory, England had only air and anti-aircraft forces. The army returned from Dunkirk without weapons or vehicles. On the entire island, there were only about 500 guns of all types and less than 200 obsolete tanks. Great Britain turned to the United States with a request to provide it with weapons and ammunition. Rifles, machine guns, artillery pieces and other weapons were sent to England. This armament began to arrive in mid-July; at the same time, the first local self-defense units from the civilian population were formed.
Battle for England. One of the most strategically important events of the war was the Battle of England, during which Great Britain managed to repel air attacks from Germany. The air raids formed the initial stage of the planned Operation Sea Lion, which was supposed to end with the invasion of the British Isles by German ground forces across the English Channel. The command of the German army insisted on an invasion along a broad front; the command of the naval forces of the Third Reich claimed that it would be able to provide an amphibious landing and effective support only in a narrow area. In any case, at the initial stage, the Royal Air Force should have been defeated. The head of the Luftwaffe, Reichsmarschall G. Goering, was convinced that the British will to resist could only be broken by air attacks. On August 8, 1940, Luftwaffe bombers launched intense attacks on coastal fortifications in England and ship anchorages; this phase of the offensive lasted ten days. On August 12-13, German planes made the first massive raids on British airfields and bombarded them for 16 days. From September 7, London became the main target of raids that continued for two months. However, by October, the German command was convinced that it was impossible to defeat England with the help of aviation alone. The British Air Force consisted of 704 aircraft (including 620 fighters), another 289 were in reserve. Against them, Germany fielded two air fleets, which included 2,200 aircraft, including 1,200 bombers. Sometimes 500 or more aircraft participated in the attacks. During three months of uninterrupted raids in London alone, 12,696 people were killed by bombs. In one month - September - more than 10 thousand air bombs were dropped on the capital. From August to October, 1,103 German aircraft were shot down; British losses during this period amounted to 642 vehicles.
Expedition to Dakar. In mid-September the British Marines made a swift rush to the port of Dakar with the aim of landing on the coast of the Free French units under the command of General de Gaulle and creating an operational base there to advance deep into Africa. The French naval forces, which were subordinate to the Vichy government, arrived at the port before the expedition, so the expedition ran into resistance.
Africa and the Balkans. At the beginning of 1940, the British command in the Middle East had under the command of General A. Wavell 36,000 soldiers in Egypt, 9,000 in Sudan, 5,500 in Kenya, 1,475 in British Somalia, 2,500 in Aden, 27,500 in Palestine and 800 in Cyprus. They were opposed by 215 thousand Italians in Libya under the command of Marshal I. Balbo and 200 thousand in Italian East Africa under the command of the Duke of Aosta. With the fall of France, both Italian armies were given a free hand and directed their combat power to the British garrisons in the Middle East. Duke Aosta swiftly crossed Somalia and invaded Sudan and Kenya. During an English air raid on Tobruk, Balbo was killed, and Marshal R. Graziani took his place. On September 13, he launched an offensive against Egypt. Having advanced to Sidi Barrani - now only 120 km separated the British line of defense at Mersa Matruh - Graziani stopped in early October and built a fortified camp, as well as a chain of forts along communications with Libya. On October 20, Wavell ordered the commander of the troops in Egypt, General G. Wilson, to prepare a counteroffensive. For no apparent reason and without coordinating his actions with Berlin, Mussolini declared war on Greece. In this regard, the British in Egypt had to delay the counteroffensive, as they had to bring a garrison to Crete and send three air squadrons to help the Greeks. On October 28, 5 Italian columns, in the forefront of which were armored units, from the territory of Albania, occupied by Italy in 1939, attacked the defensive positions of Greece. Soon the Italians began to suffer one defeat after another. The Greeks advanced 25-60 km into the territory of Albania, after which the war took on a positional character. In Egypt, British troops under the command of Major General R. O "Connor, numbering 31 thousand soldiers with 120 guns and 275 tanks, on December 9 delivered a lightning strike on the Italian bridgehead in Sidi Barrani. The Italians did not have time to come to their senses as they were surrounded. Pursuing the retreating and having traveled 800 km in 62 days, the British armored units completed the defeat of the Italian forces.This extremely daring and successful operation ended on February 9, 1941, when the British troops gained a foothold near Western Cyrenaica.England still held the vital Mediterranean line of communications of the British Empire. Lisa was still in its infancy and had not yet become a significant source of supply, and attempts to hold Egypt had become an almost unbearable burden on the British naval and air forces. Malta was subjected to frequent air bombardments, although Italy refrained from invading the island. On November 11, British naval aviation attacked the Italian fleet from the air and disabled half of its ships for 6 months. As a result, the British Navy received several more freedom operations in the Mediterranean. However, on the other hand, the German U-boats and the Air Force inflicted heavy losses on the British Navy; in a month they sank many ships with a total displacement of 350 thousand tons. A week before the successful British strike at Sidi Barrani, Wavell gave the order to launch an offensive in the opposite direction to eliminate the forces of the Duke of Aosta in East Africa. The 30,000th army moved against the Italian garrisons in Eritrea, Somalia and Ethiopia, while the small forces of O "Connor continued to push the Italian units to Cyrenaica. In four months, the task was completed. At the very time when the British won final victory in East Africa, the British forces in the north of the continent found themselves in an extremely difficult situation. The failures of the Italians in Africa and Greece prompted Germany to take a number of decisive actions. In February 1941, the German Expeditionary Force "Africa", which arrived from Italy, landed in Tripoli under the command of Lieutenant General E. Rommel. It consisted only of reinforced tank division and ancillary parts. German forces were clearly targeting the poorly equipped outposts of the British defense line stretching across Eastern Libya (Cyrenaica). This plan had a dual purpose: Germany supported the Italian ally and launched an independent invasion of the Mediterranean. The Nazi command demanded from Bulgaria and Yugoslavia permission to place German bases in these countries. On March 1, 1941, the corresponding agreements were signed by Bulgaria, and the next day the Wehrmacht troops entered Bulgarian territory. The Yugoslav government intended to sign a similar agreement with Germany, but this was prevented by the outbreak of the uprising. Up to this point, Britain had provided little assistance to Greece. Now the London government felt the need to take more serious steps in the Balkans, not limited to supporting the Greeks in the war with Italy. The British wanted to strengthen Yugoslavia in order to thereby, if possible, discourage Germany from further advancement. When the Afrika Korps had landed and posed a clear threat to British positions in North Africa, 74 thousand British troops were already ready to be sent on ships to Greece. March 31, 1941 Rommel struck in Libya. The British began a retreat, which, due to tactical miscalculations, ended in flight. The retreating British troops, almost devoid of tanks, withdrew from the border of Egypt and established a line of defense at the line of Es-Sallum - Bardia. By that time, German plans for Africa and the Balkans had changed, the task of invading the USSR came to the fore. The forces intended to support the Afrika Korps were transferred to the borders of the Soviet Union, so Rommel suspended the advance to Alexandria and the Nile. On March 25, 1941, Yugoslavia signed a protocol on accession to the Berlin Pact of 1940. On March 27, General Dušan Simović carried out a coup d'état and rejected the alliance with Germany, which worsened the position of the Axis powers in the Balkans. It was aggravated by the unsuccessful outcome of the naval battle at Matapan for them, when the English fleet under the command of Admiral E. Cunningham sank 6 Italian warships. At that time, the German 12th Army stationed in Bulgaria under the command of Field Marshal V. List was preparing to invade the USSR. The British Expeditionary Force, which had just arrived in Greece, took up positions west of the Vardar Valley. They consisted of combat-ready units under the command of General Wilson, whose number was 57 thousand people.
strikes from Bulgaria simultaneously against Yugoslavia and Greece. The tactics of the Germans turned out to be successful - the passage of German troops through Yugoslavia to central Greece was carried out at the speed of a forced march. Three weeks later, both countries capitulated. 43,000 British soldiers were evacuated, but, as at Dunkirk, they lost all their heavy weapons. On April 27, 1941, the Germans entered Athens. Another blow followed. With a lightning operation on May 20 - June 2, carried out exclusively by the air and airborne forces, Germany captured the island of Crete. There were 42.5 thousand soldiers here, of which 27.5 thousand were English, mostly unarmed, since they were evacuated from Greece. Against them, the Germans abandoned the aviation corps, 1 parachute and 1 mountain rifle divisions, transported by planes and gliders. On the seventh day of the battle, the defenders of the island realized that there was no way to keep it, and a decision was made to evacuate them. A total of 14,580 soldiers were sent to Egypt. On May 23-24, the British fleet suffered heavy losses from German air raids and withdrew to Alexandria. Simultaneously with the events in Crete, the situation in the Middle East escalated. For several months, German agents engaged in subversive activities in the oil fields of Iraq and in April 1941 provoked the Arabs to revolt against British rule. At the same time, Germany demanded bases in Syria, and the collaborationist government in Vichy was ready to meet this demand. After the defeats in Libya, Greece and Crete, the loss of the Middle East was extremely dangerous for the Allies. But the victories of the British troops in Eritrea made it possible to clear the Red Sea from the Italians, thereby opening the way for the British to transfer to Egypt additional forces from the UK and shipments from the US, even if routes across the Mediterranean were completely blocked. The road of life now ran in that direction. In addition, Great Britain was much more active than before in seeking rapprochement with Turkey. An English motorized group moved from Palestine to Iraq, and by June 1, the British crushed the uprising. On June 8, ahead of Germany, British troops and units of the Free French invaded Syria from Palestine, but were soon stopped by the Vichy. From Iraq, a British motorized group moved to their aid, which for the second time had to travel a distance of 640 km, and attacked Syria from the east. On June 21, the Allies took Damascus. But this success faded into the background before the event that happened the next day and eclipsed everything else. On June 22, 1941, German armies invaded the USSR. German attack on the Soviet Union. Plan Barbarossa. Hitler always considered his main goal to capture the vast lands of the USSR for German colonization. On December 18, 1941, he approved Directive No. 21, the so-called. the Barbarossa plan, which set the following task for the German army: to defeat even before the end of the war with England Soviet Union in a fleeting military campaign
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