Germany War II in Europe. In response to Hitler's actions, two days later, on 3 September, after a British ultimatum to Germany to cease military operations was ignored, Britain and France declared war on Germany. In the spring of 1940, Germany conquered Denmark and Norway, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, and France forcing the French government to sign an armistice after German troops occupied most of the country. The British repelled German air attacks in the Battle of Britain in the same year. In 1941, German troops invaded Yugoslavia, Greece and the Soviet Union. By 1942, Germany and other Axis powers controlled
Nazi Germany conquered territories were incorporated into Germany as part of Hitler's long-term goal of creating a Greater Germanic Reich. Several areas, such as Alsace-Lorraine, were placed under the authority of an adjacent "Gau" (regional district). Beyond the incorporated territories were the "Reichskommissariate" (Reich Commissariats), quasi-colonial regimes established in some occupied countries. Areas placed under German administration included the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, "Reichskommissariat Ostland" (encompassing the Baltic states and Belarus), and "Reichskommissariat Ukraine". Conquered areas of Belgium and France were placed under control of the Military Administration in Belgium and Northern France. Belgian Eupen-Malmedy, which had been part of Germany