Second World War

When George V died, he was succeeded by his son Edward VIII, who abdicated after only ten months in favor of his brother George VI.
At the end of World War I the Treaty of Versailles had imposed impossible conditions on defeated Germany: this helped the Nazi Party’s rise to power, that, in 1930s, begun to invade some states of Europe.
Britain wanted most of all avoid another world war and it ignored the Spanish Civil War.
In 1939, with the Munich Agreement, Britain and France allowed to Germany taking of most of Czechoslovakia and gave a guarantee of support to Poland if Germany invaded.
This happened on the 1st of September 1939 and France and Britain declared war to Germany; one year later Italy also declared war on Western Powers.
So France capitulated and the invasion of Great Britain seemed certain: Germany prepared to destroy the bases of the Royal Air Force in the south of England, so broke out the Battle of Britain, that was won by the pilots of the Royal Air Force, who strenuously attacked the German fighters. In these difficult times Britain found in Prime Minister Winston Churchill an ideal leader who kept up the country’ spirit.
1941 was a decisive year: the Soviet Union and United States entered the war.
From this year to 1943 German and Italian troops were defeated many times.
In June 6, 1944 the Allied Force occupied Normandy and invaded Germany. From April to May 1945 Germany was finally defeated and surrendered.
In February 1945 Roosevelt met Stalin and Churchill for a conference at Yalta: they decided the policy their nations were to follow after the end of the conflict, agreeing on the division of Germany in two zones and on the creation of the United Nations Organization.

During the Battle of Britain Winston Churchill pronounced a famous radio speech to the nation in which incited the people. The Battle was fought mostly in the air but also at sea and on the ground, in Europe and in the most distant corners of the earth.
Churchill was a born orator, as is shown on the way he managed to stir his listeners to acts of high patriotism using a clear, balanced and direct language.