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World War 2 saw many terrible events. The war also created many controversies which still rage today. One of the biggest controversies is the mass murder of Jews and other groups in Nazi death camps. Then and now, some critics argued that Britain and its allies did not do enough about these war crimes. Common criticisms are that the Allies should have:
Your task is to create a presentation using our sources on why Britain did not bomb the death camps. Insert a new slide if there is not enough room to say what you have found out. Use or adapt the following plan for your presentation:
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This is a letter written by a Polish woman living in London in 1943. After the Germans invaded Poland in 1939 large numbers of Poles were able to escape to Britain. Many served in the Armed Forces.
After the German invasion the Polish leaders who escaped formed the Polish government in exile. This was based in London.
Throughout the 1930s Nazi leader Adolf Hitler carried out two main policies. One was to create a German empire, more “lebensraum” or living space for the Germans. The other main policy was to persecute groups that he saw as inferior races, particularly Jews. In 1939 he invaded Poland and took control of the western half. Conditions were bad in 1939 but they would get far worse as the war went on.
A large percentage of the population of Poland was Jewish. At first they were rounded up and put into areas of the big cities called ghettoes. Many died here from starvation and disease. Many others were used as slave labour in camps in Poland or back in Germany. From 1942 so many Jews were under Nazi control that the Nazi leaders came up with plans for a ‘Final Solution’. This involved building camps that were used to execute millions of Jews and other groups the Nazis regarded as inferior.
The Poles who were living in Britain were usually well informed about what was happening back in their homeland. Many Poles served in the armed forces or served as agents for British intelligence. See our investigation on the SOE and find out about Christine Granville.
In 1939 the Germans invaded western Poland and the Russians invaded from the east. Hitler later attacked the USSR through Poland in 1941. This made the USSR an ally of Britain but it also made Poland’s position very difficult and very complicated. Many Poles regarded the USSR as being as big an enemy as Germany.
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