War in Europe the General

War in Europe

The general situation in Europe had become critical at the end of the 1930s, as the Nazis in Germany had advanced significantly, both in armored power and in influence. A strong hit to peace and to all the countries wanting to avoid the beginning of a new world war had come along with the invasion of Poland. The western powers had been aware that this had been the moment when their entering the war had become inevitable, thus deciding to declare war on the Axis forces. The German forces have had success in first years of the war, proving that the Blitzkrieg fighting technique had been very efficient.

The Allies did not show any interest in involving a large number of troops in the fight against Germany, even though the latter had clearly demonstrated that they had no regard whatsoever to the rules imposed by the Commonwealth of Nations. In spite of the fact that the Allies had limited support in fighting the Axis because the Soviets had displayed a tolerant nature towards the incidents happening in Poland, they could not accept the Nazis expanding throughout Europe.

While the British and the French had entered the war concomitantly with the German attack on Poland, matters had been different in real life, as no major incident took place between the Allies and the Axis until April 1940. The Allies had formerly been motivated to enter the war mainly because of their intention to assist countries that had been oppressed by the Germans. However, as the Nazis continued their advance, adding Denmark and Norway to their list of invaded nations, the Allies felt that had to act immediately, in order for Hitler to be stopped. Even though they provided support to Norway, the Germans had no trouble in conquering the country, the process only lasting two months.

Things seemed to be looking up for the Allies as Winston Churchill had replaced the former Prime Minister, Neville Chamberlain. Nevertheless, at the same time when Churchill took his place as leader of the British armed forces, the Germans had dealt an impressive blow by invading and eventually conquering Belgium, France, and the Netherlands. Standing as one of the greatest powers in the world at the time, France had only managed to hold off its oppressors for a month and a half before signing an armistice with the Axis forces and allowing the German and Italian troops to occupy its territory.

Being excited by their wonderful victory over France, the Germans went on a mission to invade Britain using various tactics. However, all efforts proved to be useless, as the British had managed to defend their country excellently. The United States had neuter at the time when the Germans had been sweeping across Europe. However, because of their connection to Britain, they backed the British by agreeing to a trade of destroyers meant to strengthen the British naval forces.