Examine the reasons why the invasion of Poland in 1939 developed into a major European war by 1941.

The question requires candidates to consider the interrelationship between the invasion of Poland and the expansion into a Europe-wide war by 1941. Candidates may examine why Britain and France declared war on Germany and also why Hitler did not believe in their guarantees to Poland. Candidates may refer to Hitler invading Poland because the Nazi-Soviet Pact meant that he would not have to face a war on two fronts. By 3 September 1939, three major powers were at war, but conflict was limited. There may be some examination of how conflict spread in 1940 with Blitzkrieg attacks on the Netherlands, Denmark and Norway and the fall of France. After Dunkirk, Britain continued to fight with aid from the US (“Cash and Carry” and Lend Lease), Britain's refusal to discuss peace meant that war continued. Candidates may refer to Italian campaigns in the Balkans which extended the conflict to the Mediterranean. Some may argue that early successes meant that Hitler felt confident enough to launch Operation Barbarossa in June 1941, thus facing a war on two fronts and hugely increasing the scale of the conflict. Candidates’ opinions or conclusions will be presented clearly and supported by appropriate evidence.

The question required that candidates consider the interrelationship between the invasion of Poland in 1939 and the expansion into a Europe-wide war by 1941. This was a popular question and some good responses were seen. However, some candidates only wrote about events in the 1930s and were not able to make this material relevant to the question. They tended not to have enough knowledge about what happened between September 1939 and 1941; (e.g. Operation Barbarossa launched in June 1941).