The Causes of World War One and Two - Essay Example

Causes of the Two World Wars First topic First World War Diplomatic circumstances Various diplomatic circumstances between European powers led to the breakout of the First World War. To start with, there was the Franco Russian alliance of 1894. The imperial Germany first chancellor Otto von Bismarck formed the”the triple alliance” with Italy and Austria Hungary in 1882. He then maintained a non-aggression and cordial relationship pact with Russian. However, Kaiser Wilhelm 11, his successor, dismissed him in 1890. Kaiser Wilhelm 11 could not renew the pact arguing that it was logically inconsistent with Germany’s commitments to Austria Hungary. The Russian foreign affairs ministry maintained friendly relations with Germany. However, the Russian military insisted that a new alliance with France was more important for Russia’s national security. Consequently, the Tsar military aid opened direct talks between the French and Russian generals of staffs. Despite the reservations of professional diplomats, the generals persuaded Tsar Nicholas 11 and the French cabinet to sign the pact. The secret military convention was signed in 1892 and later ratified in 1894. There was the crow memorandum of 1907. This treaty gave rise to the Anglo-Germany antagonism. Influential career diplomat Sir Eyre Crowe spearheaded this treaty in 1907. This was brought about by the fact that Great Britain considered France as the most serious threat to its African and Asian interests. However, under a strong fear of Germany in 1904, the British concluded the “entente cordiale” with France. This was a friendly resolution of differences in Africa. The British inspired this resolution after they stood firmly beside France against Germany in the first Morocco crisis. Germany had protested forcefully against the creation of a French protectorate in Morocco. In the memorandum, Crowe sought to persuade British foreign secretary, Sir Edward Grey, to conclude a similar agreement with Russia. This led to” Anglo Russian entente” of 1907 that paved way for a diplomatic cooperation and joint military planning between France ,Russia and Great Britain. Crowe considered Germany as the greatest peace threat in Europe. There were four major diplomatic crises in Europe from 1905 to 1913. During this time, there was the likelihood of a war pitting the central powers of Austria Hungary, Germany, and Italy against the entente powers of Russia, Great Britain, and France. However, diplomats managed to contain the crisis until the assassination of the heir to the throne of Austria Hungary by pro-Serbian terrorists in Sarajevo in June 1914. What followed after that were diplomatic activities that guided the statesmen who made the crucial decisions leading to the war outbreak on fist day of August 1914. Political Rivalries There were various political rivalries between the European powers that set the stage for the outbreak of the First World War. There were colonial rivalries between the powers. The insatiable appetite for expansion and wealth creation caused these rivalries. European nations needed national resources to drive the growing industrialization. The European colonized any land that could be feasibly conquered. This left the colonial powers fighting over small remaining territories like Africa interior. By the end of the eighteenth century, there were bitter rivalries as colonial powers collided with each other. Secondly, there was the arms race that was brought about by economic rivalries and colonial competition. The European powers began building military arsenals at a very high rate. The arms race continued and spiraled out of control as the European powers try to gain a military advantage over one another. The former European kingdoms had given way to nations after the Napoleonic wars. This led to widespread support to military expansion and colonial expansion. The Napoleonic wars had taught the Europeans the importance of consolidating and strengthening a nation in relation to potential rival nations. Other nations like Germany and Italy, both under provisory foreign domination, were eager to reverse the situation. Their tactics turned out to be brutal and hostile as they felt compelled to catch up with other established colonial powers like Spain, Great Britain, and France. Due to growing tensions, complex network alliances were formed. Almost all the European powers mobilized and were ready for war any time. As Germany continued to grow in strength, Britain and France formed an alliance to keep Germany in check. France had lost a region to Germany after the Franco Prussian war of 1870. They felt threatened by the growing power along the eastern border. Russia and Austria Hungary did not trust each other due to their interest to control the Balkans. France joined with Russia and Britain, forcing Germany to two war battlefronts in case of hostility. On the other hand, Russians wanted to counterbalance the Austrian threat. Consequently, Germany and Austria Hungary formed an alliance and recruited Turkey to counter threats from Russia with the promise of taking back the lost Balkan territories. The Balkans had become a point of contention as both Russian and Austria had different agendas. When the heir to the Austrian throne was killed, Austria reacted very harshly. However, Serbia was ready to concede but Russia supported them causing Austria to declare war. This caused all the treaties to join and the Great War broke out. Second topic. The Circumstances and Events that Led the Second World War The Second World War began in 1938 after Britain and France attacked Germany following the invasion of Poland by Germany. Even though the outbreak was triggered by the Germany invasion, more complex political and other circumstances ignited the war. One of the political events that caused the war breakout was the treaty of Versailles. In 1919, the leaders of France, United States, England, and Italy met and discussed how Germany was to be made to pay for the damages caused during the First World War. The United States’ president Woodrow Wilson wanted a treaty on his point plan, which in his own opinion was to establish peace in Europe. The French leader, Clemenceau, wanted to revenge and to be assured that Germany will never start another war again. George of England agreed with Wilson, although he knew the British public favored Clemenceau’s proposals. He tried to reach a compromise between the other two leaders. However, Germany wanted a treaty based on Wilson’s points. Germans were not happy with the treaty of Versailles. However, they had no choice but to sign the document. The other political event involved Hitler’s election and his conduct after the elections. From the Versailles treaty, Germans were a very unhappy people. The viewed the treaty as too harsh. In addition, they could not afford to pay the reparations. The population became very poor, many jobs were lost, and the price of food and other basic commodities skyrocketed. They lost hope with the government. Consequently, they voted Hitler who promised to rip up the treaty. After he became the Germany chancellor in 1933, Hitler started to build Germany’s army and weapons secretly. He increased the size of his army, created the Germany air force, and built warships. He also introduced compulsory military service. Britain and France were aware of Germany’s actions. However, there feared the spread of communism and figured out that a stronger Germany would prevent the spread of communism to the West. Hitler went ahead to form the Rome-Berlin axis treaty with Mussolini’s Italy and the Anti-Comintern pact with Japan. He proceeded to annex Austria before invading Czechoslovakia and Poland. At this point, Britain and France declared war on Germany. The failure of League of Nations also acted as a cause to the war breakout. This organization was set up in 1919 to help keep world peace. The intention was that all countries would be members and that any dispute between the countries could be settled through negotiations rather than by use of force. However, the league of nation failed and could not prevent the Second World War. This was because not all nations were members of the League of Nations. The body had no power to enforce peace as it had no army. Further, the body responded sluggishly to the developing crisis. The council of the League of Nations used to meet four times a year. In addition, any decision had to be ratified by all nations. Failure of appeasement also caused the break out of the war. This means giving in to some one when their demands are reasonable. During 1930s, some politicians from France and Britain came to realize that the terms of the treaty of Versailles were unfair to the Germans and had a lot of restriction. So they viewed Hitler’s action as understandable and justifiable. . Read More