The « living space » theory
The Second Word War, 1939 - 1945, began on September 1, 1939 when German troops invaded Poland after having annexed Austria (Anschluss) and entered Czechoslovakia.
Adolf Hitler, then Chancellor of Reich, intended to forcefully increase the «living space» of Germany and also free her from the sanctions of the 1919 Treaty of Versailles.
According to their respective alliance treaties, many other countries soon joined the war on either distinct military block :
On the one hand, the totalitarian Axis forces and their satellites, led by the dictatorial regimes of Germany, Italy and Japan, while on the other, the Allied forces led by the democratic regimes of France, Great Britain and Commonwealth countries, Belgium, Holland, Yugoslavia, Norway, Denmark and Greece, who were subsequently joined by the Soviet Union, the United States and the majority of Latin American countries.

Apart from isolated incidents of incursions and ‘’hit and run attacks’’ made by the French, no giant stride was taken by any of the sides. This period of grace perfectly dovetailed Hitler's plans, as during this time he massively mobilized his troops in the East to crush Poland.

In Spring of 1940, the German launched their offensive in the West.

And the « blitzkrieg » started.
German troops by-passed the Maginot line, pushed aside the Belgian army and penetrated into the northern provinces of France.
The fast manner in which they were gaining ground revealed the regrettable inferiority of Allied forces and their inability to ward off the « blitzkrieg » from the powerful German armoured divisions who were using the tank-plane tandem concept.
Despite their desperate resistance, the French army and her allies were subdued. British troops, under German gunfire, were forced to withdraw and re-embark at Dunkirk. Before the end of June 1940, an armistice was signed.

Elsewhere, this dismal picture was just as gloomy. The war claimed the lives of 8 000 000 Chinese, 2 000 000 Japanese, and 300 000 Americans.

The Role played by Volunteer Combatants

The contribution made to the victory of the Allies by volunteer combatants who fought from within the Résistance Française (French resistance), the Forces Françaises Libres (French liberation forces) and the powerful reconstituted African army, and who were operating within the provisional governmental framework put in place by General de Gaulle, cannot be over emphasized.

It is thanks to the commitment of these volunteers, and the blood many of them shed, that France, soon after the Liberation of Europe in 1945, was able to reposition herself as a world power like the United States, the Soviet Union and England.

• History of the second World War
• The june 18, 1940, Speech
• The battle of London
• French Aces in England
• The internal resistance
• The Normandy-Niemen Saga
• Italian campaign
• June 6, 1944 : D-Day
• The Provence Landing
• The liberation of Paris
• French and German Campaign
• Capture of the Eyrie
• May 8, 1945 : Surrender of Nazi Germany