The Origins of World War II - Essay Example

of the of the Concerned History and Political Science 17 December World War I and World War II The two World Wars were events that included within their ambit a great number of the most populated and influential nations of the world. The battles affiliated to these two wars were fought in varied theaters spread across many countries and almost all the continents. The World War I and the World War II led to massive causalities, bloodshed and destruction in almost all the theatres in which they were fought. The number of people killed and wounded in these two wars amounted to millions. It also needs to be mentioned that in the two Wars the people who suffered were not merely soldiers but also included civilians, old people, women and children. The intensity of these two wars was so immense and grave that they did not try to differentiate between the soldiers and the civilians. The outcomes wrought by these two wars had global geo-political and economic ramifications. A great numbers of the European empires were dismantled, either owing to defeat or owing to the immense human and economic costs inherent in these two wars. New centers of power were established and the two wars led to the constitution of multiple international military and economic alliances and institutions. In that context it will be really interesting to go into the dynamics of the two World Wars. The World War I owes its origins to the long standing conflicts and hostilities rampant in the Central Europe in the period around 1914 (Higham & Showaltr 6). Most of these conflicts were intricately intertwined, spanning across many European nations. The political factors that played a pivotal role in the genesis of World War I were rampant militarism, burgeoning nationalism, alliances of convenience and vested imperialistic interests. The primary stimulant that initiated the World War I was the July Crisis of 1914, preceding a series of diplomatic clashes between multiple European nations like France, Russia, Germany, the Austria-Hungarian Empire and the UK (Higham & Showaltr 6). One other important factor was the augmenting tensions over the territorial claims in the Balkans (Higham & Showaltr 9). There existed a great rift between Russia, Serbia and Austria-Hungary, over territorial influence that eventually roped in the other major European powers as a result of the ensuing alliances and treaties. The reasons behind the World War II were inherent in the outcomes of the World War I and the following interwar period worsened by the impact of the Great Depression in 1930. The two major factors which led to the onset of the II World War were the invasion of Poland by the Soviet Union and Germany and the invasion of China by the imperialist Japan in 1937 (Eubank 20). Primarily it was the belligerent actions of the Nazi Germany and the top leadership of the Japanese Kwantung army that led to the formal declaration of War by the allied forces. The World War I brought in massive changes in the European geo-political mindset. It goes without saying that the World War I led to immense loses in terms of life and property. It pulled within its ambit almost all of the European nations, the United States of America and many of the African and Asian states. Shattering famine and pestilence took over the world in the aftermath of the World War one. The entire Europe got divided between varied powers as a consequence of the treaties that followed. Germany had to surrender large territories to the European power like France, Belgium, Denmark and Poland as per the provisions of the Treaty of Versailles (Von Strandman & Evans 95). The Treaty of St. Germain in 1919 led to the separation of Austria and Hungary and saw the creation of two new states that are Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia (Von Strandman & Evans 95). The World War I not only saw the annihilation of German, Russian, Turkish, Hungarian and Austrian empires, but also led to the creation of many new nationalistic states. In the same vein, the World War II not only involved massive losses in terms of life and property, but was also imbued with long lasting changes for the world. In the aftermath of the World War II, Germany was dissected into four quadrants that were administered and controlled by the United States of America, Soviet Union, the United Kingdom and France. World War II led to many local and pan-continental changes and alterations like the redrawing the boundaries of many European states, the emergence of a welfare state in the United Kingdom, the bifurcation of Korea, Germany and Vietnam, coming into emergence of Eastern European states, the creation of the state of Israel and the onset of Communist Revolution in China (O’Neill 371). The World War II also saw the coming into existence of many modern day international institutions like International Monetary Fund (IMF), the United Nations (UN), and the World Bank. The biggest consequence of the World War II was the coming into existence of a bipolar world with the United States of America and the Soviet Union being two dominant powers. It ought to be mentioned that in terms of damages and casualties and damages, the World War II was more gruesome than the World War I. It won’t be wrong to state that the two Wars, which are the World War I and the World War II, are interlinked in the sense that the seeds of the World War II were to a great extent sown in the theater of the World War I. In other words, the nations engaged in the World War II to accomplish the unfinished business of the World War I, albeit under different premises and banners. One commonality between the two wars is that in both of these wars, Germany fought against the United States of America, Great Britain, Russia and France and in both the wars it was Germany that lost and had to pay a massive price for its territorial ambitions. The Treaty of Versailles was believed by Germans to be a national ignominy and loss and within Germany their existed a deep seated verve to restore its nationalistic pride (Higham & Showaltr 35). The European nations and the United States of America fought the World War I for establishing control over varied colonies and to reap the profits accrued from the natural resources of these colonies. However, in the World War II, the territorial ambitions were never cited as a direct reason for engaging in war, and it was primarily about the inherent contradictions and conflicts in varied ideologies like Nazism, Communism, Capitalism and Fascism. In other words the World War I happened to be war between varied vested national interests; however, the World War II was more about a war between varied ideologies. Moreover, the World War II saw the emergence of almost similar national and ideological alliances as it happened in the World War I. The other thing common to these two wars were the genocides. In the World War I it were the Turks who committed a genocide against the Armenians, while in the World War II it were the Nazis who carried on genocide against Jews and Gypsies. The other thing that was different about the World War II was that it being technology intensive was more bloody and gruesome. In retrospect it is too difficult to conjecture as to whether the World War I and World War II have been prevented. However, again, it will be interesting to mull over this possibility in a theoretical context. In the case of the World War I, it would be safe and pragmatic to assume that it was not preventable. A hoard of factors existed in the Europe of those times which made the World War I inevitable. Most of the Western powers were involved in a series of delicate alliances aimed at securing their colonial interests. The situation was further aggravated by the existence of multiple and vicious national rivalries. Most of the nations were willing to spill blood. That is why a minor Balkan dispute saw the aligning of varied nations on each side. In it entered the public support stimulated by popular national resentments. In the case of World War II, it goes without saying that it was preventable. To begin with if the allies had not been so stringent on Germany while drafting the Treaty of Versailles, this would have ameliorated man reasons that led to the second War. Moreover, Throughout the 30s Hitler was engaged in acts of belligerence that violated the Treaty of Versailles. Besides, Britain and France instead of opposing and challenging Hitler rather resorted to a placatory attitude. This gave Hitler ample time to organize his army and augment his power. Had the allies dared to oppose Hitler, and had been willing to engage in a war if necessary, they would have certainly succeeded in stopping Hitler while he was weak. World War I and World War II were not only two historical events that are memorable, but also happened to be events that changed the world for ever. No doubt there existed many similarities and commonalities between the two wars. Yet, there is no denying the fact that had the allies shown more grot and commitment, they could have certainly prevented the World War II at least. Works Cited Eubank, Keith. The Origins of World War II. Wheeling: Harlan Davidson, 2004. Higham, Robin & Showaltr, Dennis E. Researching World War I. Westport, CT: Greenwood, 2003. O’Neill, William L. World War II. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999. Von Strandman, Hartmut Poge & Evans, RJW. The Coming of the First World War. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1990. Read More