Events Leading Up To World War 2 Essay

land nominate of state of warfare II killed to a greater extent large number, sunk more property, disrupted more lives, and in every last(predicate) probability had more far-reaching consequences than some(prenominal) other warfare in history. The war, which repealed in 1945, last involved 61 countries, claimed 50 million lives, and completely changed the geopolitical landscape. The sources of ground fight II can be well traced back to many of the unsolved issues from the end of echtness war I and the treaties that terminate it alike created new political and sparing problems. Forceful attractions in some(prenominal) countries likewisek advantage of these problems to seize baron. The desire of potentates in Germany and Italy, and japan to conquer additional rule brought them into conflict with the democratic nations. later on population fight I ended, representatives of the victorious nations met in genus Paris in 1919 to draw up stillness treaties fo r the get the better of countries. When the Germans heard almost the pact of Versailles anger raged through unwrap the democracy. They had non been allowed to take part in the dialogue yet, they were being vehemenced to sign the treaty. The Germans entangle they were not to be blamed for the war. even off the soldier sent to sign the conformity ref employ to sign it To say such a thing would be a lie, and sole(prenominal) after(prenominal) the treat of being invaded did they sign. The Treaties were worked come to the fore in haste by these countries with fence goals and failed to satisfy even the victors. Of all the countries on the winning side, Italy and japan left the peace conference most dissatisfied. Italy gained less land than it felt it deserved and vowed to take movement on its own. Japan gained control of German territories in the Pacific and thereby launched a design of expansion. But Japan was enraged by the peacemakers failure to endorse the commandment of the equality of all races.The countries that lost human being warfare IGermany, Austria, Hungary, Bulgaria, and Turkeywere specially dissatisfied with the stay of Paris. They were stripped of territory, implements of war and were required to make reparations (payments for war damages).The accord of Versailles, which was signed with Germany, punished Germany severely. The German government activity agreed to sign the treaty all after the victorious strengths threatened to invade. umteen Germans particularly resentedthe clause that compel Germany to digest responsibility for causing World contend I.World War I in earnest damaged the economies of the European countries. Both the winners and the losers came out of the war deeply in debt. The whelmed index numbers had difficulty paying reparations to the victors, and the victors had difficulty repaying their loans to the join States. The shift from a wartime economy to a peacetime economy cause further problems.Italy and Japan suffered from too many people and too hardly a(prenominal) resources after World War I. They eventually essay to solve their problems by territorial reserve expansion. In Germany, runaway inflation sunk the value of m peerlessy and wiped out the savings of millions of people. In 1923, the German economy neared collapse. Loans from the linked States alleviateed Germanys government proportionore order. By the late 1920s, Europe appeared to be immersion a period of economicalal stability.A worldwide business slump cognise as The dandy Depression began in the united States in 1929. By the early on on 1930s, it had halted Europes economic recovery. The considerable Depression caused mass unemployment, wide short-circuit poverty and despair. It anemicened democratic governments and beef up extremum political movements that promised to end the economic problems. Two movements in particular gained strength. The forces of Communism, cognize as the leftover, ca lled for revolution by the workers. The forces of fascism, called the Right, happy strong national government. Throughout Europe, the forces of the Left clashed with the forces of the Right. The political extremes gained the most support in countries with the greatest economic problems and the deepest resentment of the Peace of Paris.Nationalism was an extreme form of patriotism that swept across Europe during the 1800s. Supporters of patriotism placed loyalty to the aims of their nation, above any other public loyalty. Many nationalists viewed foreigners and members of nonage conventions as inferior. Such beliefs helped nations justify their mastery of other lands and the poor treatment of minorities at bottom their borders. Nationalism was a chief cause of World War I, and itgrew even stronger after that war.Nationalism went legislate in hand with feelings of national discontent. Many Germans felt dispirited by their countrys defeat in World War I and its harsh treatment und er the treaty of Versailles. During the 1930s, they enthusiastically support a violently nationalistic organization called The Nazi Party. The Nazi Party tell that Germany had a powerful to mystify strong again. Nationalism excessively gained strength in Italy and Japan.The Peace of Paris established an international organization called The federation of Nations to maintain peace. Each country indorse its own interests at the expense of other countries this delayed The conference from working effectively.. Only weak countries agreed to submit their disagreements to The League of Nations for settlement. warm nations reserved the right to settle their disputes by threats or, force.The political unrest and poor economic conditions that developed after World War I enabled dictatorships to arise in several(prenominal) countries. Especially in those countries that lacked a custom of democratic government. During the 1920s and 1930s, dictatorships came in to power in the Soviet Union, Italy, Germany, and Japan. They held total power and ruled without regard to law. The dictatorships used scare and secret police to crush opposition to their rule. People who objected risked imprisonment or execution.In the Soviet Union, the Communists, led by Lenin, had seized power in 1917. Lenin had set up a dictatorship that firmly controlled the country by the time he died in 1924. After Lenins death, Joseph Stalin and other leading Communists struggled for power. Stalin eliminated his rivals superstar by one and became the Soviet dictator in 1929.In Italy, economic incommode after World War I led to strikes and riots. As a ending of the violence, a strongly nationalistic group called The Fascist Party gained many supporters. Benito Mussolini, leader of the Fascists, promised to bring order and prosperity to Italy. He vowed to restore to Italy the glory it had cognise in the days of the ancient Roman Empire. By1922, the Fascists had decease powerful enough to for ce the king of Italy to appoint Mussolini chancellor. Mussolini, who took the title il Duce (the Leader), shortly began to establish a dictatorship.In Germany, The Nazi Party make salient gains as The Great Depression deepened during the early 1930s. Many Germans blamed all their countrys economic woes on the detest Treaty of Versailles, which forced Germany to give up territory, resources and pay large reparations. In 1933, Adolf Hitler, the leader of the Nazis, was appointed chancellor of Germany. Hitler, who was called der Fuhrer (the Leader), soon made Germany a dictatorship. He vowed to ignore the Versailles Treaty and to avenge Germanys defeat in World War I. Hitler preached that Germans were a maestro race and that such peoples as Jews and Slavs were inferior. He began a campaign of hatred against Jews and Communists. He promised to rid the country of them. Hitlers extreme nationalism appealed to many Germans.In Japan, phalanx officers began to hold political office duri ng the 1930s. By 1936, they had strong control of the government. Japans military government glorified war and the training of warriors. In 1941, General Hideki Tojo became premier of Japan.During the 1930s, Japan, Italy, and Germany followed a polity of aggressive. They invaded weak lands that could be taken over easily. The dictatorships knew what they wanted, and they grabbed it. The democratic countries responded with consternation and indecision to the aggression of the dictatorships.Japan was the archetypal dictatorship to begin a program of conquest. In 1931, Japanese forces seized control of Manchuria, a region of China rich in natural resources. Some historians consider Japans conquest of Manchuria as the real start of World War II. Japan made Manchuria a puppet state called Manchukuo. In 1937, Japan launched a major attack against China. It occupied most of eastern China by the end of 1938, though the twain countries had not officially declared war. Japans military leading began to speak about bringing all of eastern Asia under Japanese control.Italy looked to Africa to carry through its ambitions for an empire. In 1935, Italian troops invaded Ethiopia, one of the few supreme countries in Africa. The Italians used machine guns, tanks, and airplanes to overpower Ethiopias indisposed equipped forces. They had conquered the country by whitethorn 1936.After Hitler took power, he began to build up Germanys build up forces in misdemeanor of the Treaty of Versailles. In 1936, Hitler sent troops into the Rhineland, a region of Germany along the banks of the Rhine River. nether the treaty, the Rhineland was to remain free of troops. In environ 1938, German soldiers marched into Austria and united it with Germany. Many people in Germany and Austria welcomed that move.The acts of aggression were easy victories for the dictatorships. The League of Nations proved incapable of stopping them. It lacked an multitude and the power to enforce internatio nal law. The United States had refused to join the League or become involved in European disputes. Great Britain and France were unwilling to risk some other war so soon after World War I. The two powers knew they would bear the kernel of any fighting.The aggressors soon formed an adhesion. In 1936, Germany and Italy agreed to support one anothers foreign policy. The alliance was known as the Rome-Berlin Axis. Japan joined the alliance in 1940, and it became the Rome-Berlin-Tokyo Axis.The Spanish Civil War from 1936 to 1939. In 1936, many of Spains army officers revolted against the government. The army rebels chose General Francisco Franco as their leader. Francos forces were known as Nationalists or Rebels. The forces that supported Spains elected government were called Loyalists or Republicans. The Spanish Civil War move worldwide attention. Yet during the war, the dictatorships again displayed their superpower while the democracies remained helpless.Hitler and Mussolini sen t troops, weapons, aircraft, and advisers to aid the Nationalists. The Soviet Union was the only power to help the Loyalists.France, Britain, and the United States decided not to become involved. However, Loyalist sympathizers from many countries joined the transnational Brigades that the Communists formed to fight in Spain.The Spanish Civil War served as a military testing grounds for World War II. Germany, Italy, and the Soviet Union used it to test their weapons and tactics. The war in Spain was also a rehearsal for World War II, in that it split the world into forces that either supported or opposed national socialism and Fascism.Hitler prepared to strike again soon after Germany absorbed Austria in work 1938. German territory then meet Czechoslovakia on three sides. Czechoslovakia had become an independent nation after World War I. Its population consisted of many nationalities, including more than 3 million people of German descent. Hitler seek control of the Sudetenland, a region of westerly Czechoslovakia where most of the Germans lived. Urged on by Hitler, the Sudeten Germans began to vociferate for union with Germany.Czechoslovakia was determined to defend its territory. France and the Soviet Union had pl brimd their support. As tensity mounted, Britains Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain tried to restore calm. Chamberlain wished to preserve peace at all cost. He believed that war could be prevented by meeting Hitlers demands. That policy became known as appeasement.Chamberlain had several meetings with Hitler during phratry 1938 as Europe teetered on the edge of war. Hitler raised his demands at each meeting. On September 29, Chamberlain and French Premier Edouard Daladier met with Hitler and Mussolini in Munich, Germany. Chamberlain and Daladier agreed to turn over the Sudetenland to Germany, and they forced Czechoslovakia to accept the agreement. Hitler promised that he had no more territorial demands.The Munich Agreement marked the efflo rescence of the policy of appeasement. Chamberlain and Daladier hoped that the agreement would satisfy Hitler and prevent waror that it would at least prolong the peace until Britain andFrance were ready for war. The two leaders were mistaken on both counts.The failure of appeasement soon became clear. Hitler stony-broke the Munich Agreement in March 1939 and seized the rest of Czechoslovakia. He thereby added Czechoslovakias armed forces and industries to Germanys military might. In the months in front World War II began, Germanys preparations for war moved ahead high-speed than did the military build-up of Britain and France.