The Long Term Causes of World War II World War Two was not caused solely by short term events in the 1930's such as Austria and Czechoslovakia. The anger and resentment that built up in Nazi Germany - and which was played on by Hitler during his rise to power and when he became Chancellor in January 1933 - also had long term causes that went back to the 1919 Treaty of Versailles. Patriotic Germans had never forgotten their nation's treatment in Paris in that year. The League had some successes in this decade (the Aaland Islands, as an example) but the weaknesses of the League had also been cruelly exposed on a number of occasions when an aggressor nation successfully used force to get what it wanted and the League could do nothing. This process set the mould for the 1930’s and any would-be dictator would have been very well aware that the League did not have the ability to enforce its decisions as it lacked an army. Those nations that were best equipped to provide the League with a military force (Britain and France) were also not prepared to do so for domestic reasons and the aftermath of the Great War in which so many were killed or wounded. From a political point of view, the British and French publics would not have tolerated a military involvement in an area of Europe that no-one had heard of. Politicians were responsive to the attitudes of the voters and neither Britain nor France were prepared to militarily support the League in the 1920’s - despite being the strongest nations in the League. However, the apparent stability in Europe after 1925 and its apparent prosperity, meant that conflicts rarely occurred from 1925 to 1929. In fact, Europe could have been confident in assuming peace would last as two treaties were signed that seemed to indicate that a new era of peace and toleration had been ushered in. The Locarno Treaties were signed in December 1925. The major politicians of Europe met in neutral Switzerland.
The world plunged into World War II in 1939, from the unsettlement between countries. Different countries had different ideas about world affairs. Some countries preferred appeasement and other countries preferred collective securities to solve problems such as the turmoil in Germany. According to the circumstances of Europe during 1939, from economic depression and unsettlement between countries, collective security was the best answer. Appeasement was attempted, but it turned out to be a failure.
The 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918, marks the day that WWI descended into armistice. However, the involved countries reached an agreement as to the events following the war on the 28th of June, 1919. The famous Treaty of Versailles was known for its role in ending war. But it was not known for being a double-edged sword, as the ending of war came with the consequence of causing future war. The Treaty consisted of uncontested biases due to Germany's unconditional surrender. The Allies held a gun to Germany's head, with their trigger finger tense. Each article of the Versailles Treaty only made Germany more restless, until 1933 when Hitler produced his own gun and pointed it at the Allies. The Treaty had a series of unproportional effects upon Germany and its people. It caused a rift between the two sides because of the alliances that it formed, brewing tension. The punishments enforced upon Germany were unrealistically huge and it increased the wish among the Germans for the nullification of the Treaty. Finally, the accumulated hatred amongst the people gave birth to potential for a revolution. The Treaty of Versailles is, therefore, an indirect cause to World War II, because of the alliances it caused, the punishments it enforced, and the hatred it developed.
In the words of John Green, “The truth resists simplicity”. Assigning the blame of WWII to the Treaty of Versailles is far too simple of an explanation. The Treaty of Versailles, which ended WWI while sanctioning and punishing Germany, forced Germany to pay reparations. These reparations are said to have caused economic challenges in Germany, which allowed Hitler to take control on nationalist fervor. Thus, the story goes, that the Treaty of Versailles made Hitler’s rise to power, and his starting of WWII, inevitable. However, this mode of explanation is a deeply flawed oversimplification. The Treaty of Versailles did not make WWII inevitable because the independent forces of the Great Depression and Japanese expansion also played key roles, and because nationalism was most likely to arise in Germany even if there were less harsh terms to the treaty.
from international affairs in the 1920s quieted the call for isolationism at home, such as its refusal to join the League of Nations or the International Court of Justice (in 1922 and 1927), failure to ratify the Treaty of Versailles and other isolationist policy like the restrictions on immigration and raised tariffs on European goods.
Hitler's Aims and Actions as the Cause of World War II When considering the reasons for the outbreak of war in 1939 it is easy to place the entire blame on Hitler’s aggressive foreign policy in the late 1930s. One British historian, writing a few years after the end of the war, claimed that ‘the Second World War was Hitler’s personal war, in that he intended it, he prepared for it, he chose the moment for launching it.’ In this assignment it is my intention to show that Hitler’s foreign policy was a major factor in causing the conflict but that other reasons, both long term and short term, need to be recognised as well. Probably the first factor that need considering is the Treaty of Versailles, of 1919.
The causes of World War II can be attributed to the following ideas or events: the mentality of power is strength by Heinrich von Treitschke, the Treaty of Versailles, the global depression following the end of World War I, and Nazi Imperialism.
World War Two was the most devastating conflict in the history of humanity. It crippled many nations and caused millions of people to die. One of the major causes of this disastrous war was the Treaty of Versailles which ended the First World War. This treaty was destructive towards the Germans. Germany had to pay large amounts of reparations to the Allied nations at the end of World War One resulting in a Great Depression in Germany. Additionally, the Treaty of Versailles’ war guilt clause forced Germans to admit full responsibility for starting the war. Furthermore, to gain the support of the German populace, Adolf Hitler adopted an effective propaganda campaign. Adolf Hitler employed a successful propaganda campaign to gain the support of the German people combined with the Treaty of Versailles harsh economic and political sanctions ignited World War Two.
The Treaty of Versailles, initially created to keep peace in Europe and ensure that another war like World War I wouldn’t happen again, had in fact, backfired and spiraled the world down into a deeper, bloodier battle. The treaty discriminated strongly against Germany, with the loss of territories, military restrictions, economic reparations, and the War Guilt Clause. It caused humiliation and anger within Germany, and led to Hitler and the Nazi Party coming to power. World War II was not only started by Adolf Hitler and Germany, but had a lot to do with the humiliation that Germany felt when the terms for the Treaty of Versailles were laid down. The harsh terms of the Treaty of Versailles may be indirectly related to the cause of World War II, but nonetheless was a huge factor in starting the war.
During World Ward Two, all of the European countries were still making questionable and reckless decisions, for example: Treaty Of Versaill...
Long and Short Term Causes of WWI There were several long-term events that led to the outbreak of World War One. The most prominent factors include: nationalism, militarism, imperialism, the Balkan and Morocco crises, and the alliance system. Ironically, these things were either started in response to, or upheld because of, one of the other factors. The alliance system was one of the last factors to emerge before the war. Consequentially, the contributions of this system to the beginning of the Great War have to be considered.
There were many causes that led to World War Two, some of them being: The Treaty of Versailles, the rise of Japan as a world power, the rise of fascism in Italy and Germany, and The League of Nations. However, the main reason that the Second World War was inevitable was unquestionably due to the rise of Adolf Hitler. WWII was directly brought about by his actions in the 1930s. Even though the League of Nations had set measures in place to avoid this happening, they were unable to prevent the war due to the fascist thinking that led Hitler to believe that Germany could win the war.
War is used as a solution to a conflict; two countries that are not getting along usually fight each other for power or to show which is stronger. Many different things cause war, but it all starts with the government. A government that is hungry for power and money would do anything to get what it wants. The more power the government has, the more power they’ll want. Another cause of war is believed to be religion, different religions describe different ideas and understandings, but those different ideas are disagreements over many things. If a government didn’t like another’s idea it causes disagreement, and that means war.
If you think about it, throughout the course of several years a country could possibly run into hundreds of disputes and small wars. If America had to come to that country’s aid time and time again, it could get very draining on the population, economy, and government. Joining The League may also have allowed foreign hands to grasp hold of America and possibly try to take over. If one of the countries had tried this, there would have been another, very large war much sooner than
After the First World War that led to death of millions of people, many countries decided to put measures to avoid any future conflict. The League of Nations in the 1920s came up with the idea of collective security where countries acting together would discourage aggression and act to stop the aggressor. This did not work out well as countries failed to agree on common policies. As a result, appeasement was considered. It was a policy that was adopted by the British government in the1930s. It was formulated from the belief that some countries such as Germany were unfairly treated in the Versailles treaty of 1918-1919. Adolf Hitler came into power in Germany on January 1933 after exploiting the depression-afflicted economy and the vehement popular resentment against Versailles treaty. The Nazi leader started by alarming the diplomats on his hatred towards the parliamentary system of governance and democratic government. The policy of appeasement had good intentions, but failed to put measures against aggression by the Germany government, which eventually led to World War 2.
World War II had a large effect on America, on how we were regarded in the world, on how our culture would grow and develop, and on how our citizens would develop and settle the land on their return. It brought people together for a while that were later torn apart, and changed the way Americans looked at higher education. Perhaps most importantly, it brought America to the world and served it up to them as something that could grow and become part of their culture, call it the Coca-Colonization of the world (Marling).