...The signing of the Treaty of Versailles marked the end of the first world and was the starting point of the chain of events that enabled Germany to spark the second war shortly after. Many components of the Treaty of Versailles and the actions of the Allies contributed the toxic climate that was developing in the German state. The German economy left destroyed in the wake of World War I and the citizens of Germany feared the worst for their country’s future. The establishment of the Treaty of Versailles at the end of World War I enabled the Nazi Party to rise to power in the German state and form a Fascist dictatorship in place of the democratic system. The Treaty of Versailles was established and signed on June 28, 1919. The treaty was the...
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...leading up to the Great War, many European nations were struggling with the emotions of nationalism, the competition of imperialism and militarism, and the tensions of the alliance systems that were developing across the continent. The countries involved in the “War to End All Wars” suffered tremendous loss of life and property during the four year struggle. Ironically, it is the harsh and punishing conditions of the very document, The Treaty of Versailles,(that was drawn up to officially end the war) that created the atmosphere for a Second World War to occur. The treaty had many weaknesses such as the war guilt clause, the required demilitarization of Germany, the loss of colonies for Germany, unrealistic reparations amounts for Germany and the overall desire by some allied nations to punish Germany all contributed to an unstable situation in Europe. The war guilt clause required Germany to accept sole responsibility for the war. In other words, all the lives lost, all the damages, and all the grief that resulted from World War I was Germany’s fault. The Treaty of Versailles states that no countries were responsible for the Great War, except Germany. The document is not true, because the ideas of imperialism, militarism, nationalism, and the Alliance System started the war. The war...
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...Ellie Smith POSC 344.03 Dr. Faegri September 23, 2014 Events Precipitating World War Two The subject of war has always been a touchy one. War, and all of its unpleasant components- death, fighting, and destruction- are never suitable for an agreeable discussion. Acts of war are invariably followed by suffering, which is exactly what Europe was doing in 1918 and the following years. The burden of World War I was so oppressive that it left Europe, in its entirety, in ruins. The countless efforts to ease the strain generated by the war had ultimately failed, sending Europe into a perpetual state of angst. The downfall of post World War I Europe gave way for World War II- a disaster that changed the global spectrum with enough significance...
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...World War II Do you remember a time in our world history that we were in desperate need for a change? World War II was a devastating time in our world history. During this time period there was a lot of hardships and innocent blood spilled. All across the world people were in war fighting for a better life. The economic consequences of World War I was most important in causing World War II, because of The Treaty of Versailles and The Great Depression It all started when The Treaty of Versailles was signed to end World War I. This document blamed Germany for the war and made them pay a very heavy fine for it all. This made Germany very mad, so mad that they wanted to take revenge. Adolf Hitler was a very powerful man during this time period. He craved power...
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...To a certain extent, Hitler was to blame to the outbreak of World War II. The fact that he strongly believed he could reclaim the German losses under the Treaty of Versailles without any interference from the League of Nations, and the signing of the Nazi-Soviet Pact show that Hitler was determined, and wouldn’t settle for anything less than what he wanted. Hitler wasn’t the only one who was to be blamed for the second world war – the failures of the League of Nations and Treaty of Versailles, the practice of isolationism in countries such as the US, Britain and France, and appeasement were also to blame. The fact that Germany was limited to an extremely small army, 6 naval ships, and no air force, submarines or tanks at all was something that encouraged Hitler to build up an army, regardless of what the Treaty of Versailles stated. By 1936, the Germans had a total air force consisting of 5,116 planes, and were extremely close to overtaking the size of the British air force. This was eventually accomplished, as the Germans ended up with 5,606 planes in 1937. One of the main reasons for the outbreak of the war was that Hitler was certain he could regain everything that Germany lost as a result of the Treaty of Versailles. His certainty was appealing to the German people, as they felt they needed a strong leader who would provide them with ‘lebensraum’, or living space. With the growing amount of aircraft in possession of the Germans, Hitler, an extremely aggressive...
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...Causes of World War II World War II resulted from a series of issues, many of which were caused by World War I (previously called “The Great War”). While the roots of World War I stemmed from the move towards nationalism during the late Nineteenth Century, the roots of WWII came from the way countries dealt with each other at the end of the Great War. This paper will discuss the causes of World War II. A significant cause of the war was the treaty that ended it. The Treaty of Versailles was signed in 1919; it discussed the terms for the defeat of Germany. However, the treaty was both too strong and not strong enough. The treaty was too strong because it placed all blame for the war on the Axis nations, of which Germany was dominant. The harshness of the treaty led to a strong level of revanchism in parts of Germany. Revanchism refers to the movement among individuals in a country in which they display unusually strong feelings towards “lost” sections of their country. As is obvious to anyone who has examined the changing maps of Europe during history, the borders of the various countries have changed significantly over the centuries. Countries that existed (such as Prussia) no longer do. The country was dissolved and absorbed into other countries. These various regions that are “lost” may create a sense of nationalism in others. Germans began to desire the provinces and regions that they had lost as a result of their defeat. The Treaty led to Germany losing...
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...Tanja Jahn Professor McBride ENG 090 05 April 2011 Democratization Processes in Post-War Germany Germany’s first attempt at democracy occurred under the government of the Weimar Republic. It was unsuccessful for several reasons; it was forced under uncertain defeat, and the population had little faith in democracy. Democratization after World War II was a completely different scenario, and it flourished due to international support and the willingness of the German people to assimilate to a democratic government. The Treaty of Versailles negotiated the terms of defeat for Germany after the First World War. The Weimar Republic, established in 1919, was a democratic government with parliamentary and federal systems. Frank Wilson indicates that the Weimar Republic looked great on paper and appeared to contain important features for democracy to succeed. For example, the constitution offered extensive rights and universal suffrage (128). “However, in practice the Weimar Republic was a failure. Reparation costs placed on Germany by the Versailles Treaty were astronomical” (Goldman 1). These demands were designed to punish them, and blame was placed entirely on Germany for causing the war. In additions to reparations, Germany had to concede much of its territory. Inflation further disabled the economy. Democracy was thus viewed as being detrimental to economic growth. The constitution also had its weaknesses. “First, it...
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...appeasement and diplomatic means when dealing with Germany, choosing not to believe that Germany had “made up its mind to dominate the world by fear” already. Unfortunately, by the time Great Britain, France, and Italy, had no choice but to knowledge this, plunging into WWII was their only chance of stopping Germany and Adolf Hitler’s reign of terror. There were many instances where one would hope that the international community would step in. The League of Nations was created by the Treaty of Versailles. However this organization did not react to earlier similar aggressions. For example,Italy attacked Ethiopia in 1935. Haile Selassie was the emperor of Ethiopia at the time. He approached the League of Nations and asked them to defend them with military sanctions. They did nothing. Selassie’s response was that “God and history will remember your...
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...a highly disturbing chapter in the history of civilization. The key development was not only the resurgence of authoritarian rule but also the rise of a particularly ruthless brand of totalitarianism that reached its full realization in the Soviet Union, Nazi Germany, and Japan in the 1930’s. Stalin, Hitler, and Japan’s military leaders intervened radically in society and ruled with unprecedented severity” (McKay, History of World Societies, p. 907). Hitler came to power in 1933 in Germany. There are a few reasons why Hitler came to power from his incredible speaking to his many promises. Germany had just been through a war and had lost. With the ending of the war the Treaty of Versailles was a step toward establishing order. “More harshly the Allies declared Germany (with Austria) was responsible for the war and had therefore to pay reparations equal to all civilian damages caused by the war” (McKay, History of World Societies, p. 863). The government opposed and protested this Treaty, but there was no alternative. With this treaty in effect, living in Germany was very hard. The people of Germany were poor and needed someone to lead them out of this depression they had fallen into. Hitler promised to restore hope and to solve the problems of the depression. To Germans at the time Hitler made sense, uniting everyone. With Adolf Hitler came his National Socialism movement. National Socialism was shaped by Hitler’s beliefs in German racial superiority and dangers of communism...
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...Historians have stated that World War II could have been avoided, considering the events prior to Germanys invasion of Poland I disagree with this statement. I strongly believe that Hitler wanted war and to spread communism and the events prior to Poland only made it more apparent another war was inevitable. The reasons why I support my position are The Treaty of Versailles, The Appeasement Policy, and the failure of The League of Nations. 2) Body - First I will argue that the Treaty of Versailles was a indirect cause of the second world war. Although the treaty seamed fair from ally standpoint at the time the punishments handed down on the German country were undesirable, as the losing side they were forced to sign, neither Germany nor Russia were invited to the hearings. Though the Treaty did not start a war I believed it played a big role in Germanys downfall and economic disaster in which landed Adolf Hitler in power. Some say the treaty was a way to get revenge on Germany, it placed all the blame of the war, made them sacrifice land, and forced them to pay the war wages. This in turn led to a hate for the government and officials for signing this treaty and the country left vulnerable economically and loyally, and looking for a leader. So basically the treaty left a bad taste in the Germans citizens mouth, left them demoralized and they couldn’t do anything about it. Adolf Hitler who fought in the first world war and felt the treaty was unfair and unjust, he even...
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...and 20th centuries, nationalism played a crucial role in shaping the world, both constructively and destructively. Throughout history, nationalism can be found almost everywhere, with the desire for self-determination and independence as its primary catalysts. Nationalism can take form in politicians, national leaders, propaganda and mass media. In the last two centuries, the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, the emergence of independent nations, the two most influential wars of all time, World War I and World War II, and the rise of the worlds’ superpowers, the United States of America and the Soviet Union can all be partially attributed to strong sense of nationalism and played an important role in shaping the world. The phenomenon of nationalism hit Europe in the 19th century. For example, self-determination, and the desire to be independent and dominant, fueled the Ottoman Empire. However, this longing proved destructive and led to the Ottoman Empire’s collapse in 1829, because of nationalist revolts. Although the Ottoman Empire ceased to exist, “The collapse led to the independence of Greece in 1830, and many countries pursued the same independence that Greece had obtained a few decades later. These countries included modern day Serbia, Romania, and Bulgaria. Slavic peoples’, who included Poles and Serbs, also jumped in on the nationalist movement”. With the Ottoman Empire no longer in control, Greece was able to gain its independence and inspire other countries to also strive...
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...The political causes of World War 2 World War 2, famously known as the most devastating war, had causes dating back to WWI as well as,pre . Some people refereed it because of the Treaty of Versailles which most of the people agreed one that it was too unfair for Germany and that their anger was going to appear sooner or later. The people thought it will create fascism. Some historians saw that the failure of The League of Nations was also another factor. The Treaty of Versailles was the origin of all the problems that occurred to ignite the WWII. The treaty of Versailles was originally done to spread peace between countries and cool down the aggression that was spreading all over Europe. The treaty was believed to be an agreement between the winning sides of World War 1 powers. They were meeting up to decide what they were going to do with the losing allies of the war. They were mainly Germany and Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, and the Ottoman Empire. It was supposed to make Germany literally a neutral country because of all the power it was abusing which was beginning to affect the whole balance of power in Europe. The power that Germany was beginning to acquire was going to have a negative effect on all the European countries that had power and didn’t want it to be loosened at all. As with Germany rising to more and more powerful state, that would mean they would have to start powering up their armies which will cost them more money that they didn’t have at the moment...
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...clear and concise manner. Limit your submission of the Timeline Part III to a maximum of 13 pages (not including a reference page). Be sure to cite all sources. Major Event/Epoch in American History Time Period/Date(s) Description and Significance of the People/Event(s) to American History 1) The evolution of the causes of World War I. 1914-1918 Serbians protested the Austrians in Bosnia thus causing the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary. This event set off the war between Austria-Hungary and Serbia. Mutual defense alliances caused an explosion in several countries supporting the others. Russian as an ally of Serbia mobilized causing Germany to react through Belgium, pulling Britain into the war. The governments of Germany and Austria-Hungary were very militaristic and aggressive when expanding their armed forces. German military Generals decided in addition to the 2,220,000 active duty forces they already had, they would also train all young men so that if there was a war they could call on a huge number of reservists if needed. Germany had over 8.5 million men active and reserve. (The Causes of World War I, 2012) When the war moved to the sea submarine warfare against...
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...already weakened rock. Its beginning was especially difficult in that Germany was weary and devastated after four years of unprecedented warfare. By 1918 the world had been shocked with over 8.5 million killed on both the Allies and Axis sides (WWI Casualty and Death Tables) with many more severely mangled and scarred – body, mind and spirit. This shows evident through the experiences of German Soldier, Ernst Simmel; he writes, “when I speak about the war as an event, as the cause of illness, I anticipate something has revealed... namely that it is not only the bloody war which leaves such devastating traces in those who took part in it. Rather, it is also the difficult conflict in which the individual finds himself in his fight against a world transformed by war. Either in the trenches or at home can befall a single organ, or it may encompass the entire person” (Simmel, 1918). For Ernst, and millions of other participants, the war had forever changed their world, including the foundation of their country. An armistice was finally signed on November 11, 1918. Allied nations didn’t hesitate to execute their idea of justice for Germany. By January 1919, hundreds of Allied leaders and their staffs assembled in Paris. They formed committees in which every aspect of the war would be examined, evaluated and weighed. The mass gathering of worldwide leadership entered the history books as the Paris Peace Conference, from which, the Treaty of Versailles was created. These meeting were unusual...
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