Causes of World War II

World War II began in September 1939 when France and Great Britain declared war on Germany following the German invasion of Poland.

Although the outbreak of the battle was caused by the intrusion of Poland by Germany, the sources of the war are of a more complex nature.

During the writing of the Treaty of Versailles in 1919, Lloyd George of England, Orlando of Italy, Clemenceau of France and Woodrow Wilson of the USA met to discuss how Germany was to be punished for the damage that the First had caused. World War.

Woodrow Wilson needed a treaty based primarily on his 14-point program that he thought would bring peace to Europe.

Georges Clemenceau wanted revenge. He needed to make sure that Germany never started another battle again.

Lloyd George privately agreed with Wilson, but acknowledged that the British public agreed with Clemenceau. He tried to find a compromise between Clemenceau and Wilson.

Germany definitely wanted a treaty that depended on Wilson’s fourteen points and was not satisfied with the terms of the Treaty of Versailles. However, they had no other option to sign the document.

The main terms of the Treaty of Versailles were:

War guilt clause: Germany should accept blame for starting WWI

Repairs: Germany must spend 6.6 billion pounds due to damage caused by the battle

Disarmament: Germany was only allowed to obtain a small army and six warships. Tanks, submarines, and air forces were not allowed.

The Rhineland location ended up being demilitarized.

Territorial Clauses – Land was taken from Germany and provided to various other nations as well.

Anschluss (union with Austria) was prohibited.

The Germans were extremely unhappy with the treaty and the concept that it was too strong. Germany could not pay the payment in cash and in the 1920s people in Germany were extremely affected. People have been disappointed in the authorities and then voted in favor of a man who promised to break the Treaty of Versailles. His title was Adolf Hitler.

Hitler Actions

Adolf Hitler became Chancellor of Germany in January 1933. Almost quickly he began to secretly build the arms and army of Germany. In 1934, he increased the army, began building warships, and also developed a German air force. The compulsory military system had also been released.

Although France and Great Britain were aware of Hitler’s measures, they were more concerned about the rise of communism and thought that a much stronger Germany could help stop the spread of communism in the West.

In 1936, German troops were ordered by Hitler to go to the Rhineland. At this stage, the German army was not strong and could also have been quickly defeated. However, neither France nor Great Britain were prepared to start another battle.

Hitler also produced 2 essential alliances during 1936. The first was called the Rome Berlin Axis Pact and it allied Hitler’s Germany with Mussolini’s Italy. The next was known as the Anti-Comitern Pact and it allied Germany with Japan.

Hitler’s next action was to begin to take back the areas that were taken from Germany. In March 1938, German soldiers entered Austria. The Austrian leader was pressured to hold a vote asking people if they wanted to be part of Germany.

The voting results had been rigged and also showed that ninety-nine% of the Anschluss was desired by the Austrian people (union with Germany). The Austrian leader asked Italy, France and Great Britain for help. Hitler guaranteed that Anschluss was the conclusion of his expansionist objectives without wishing to start the war, the other places did nothing.

Hitler did not keep his word and 6 weeks later demanded that the Sudeten area of ​​Czechoslovakia be handed over to Germany.

Neville Chamberlain, Prime Minister of Great Britain, greeted Hitler three times during September 1938 to try to reach an understanding that would prevent war. The Munich Agreement mentioned that Hitler could get the Sudetenland area of ​​Czechoslovakia as long as he never invaded the majority of Czechoslovakia.

Hitler was not a figurehead for his word and in March 1939 invaded most of Czechoslovakia. Despite requests for help from the Czechoslovak authorities, neither Britain nor France were willing to undertake military activities against Hitler. However, a little action was essential at this point and assuming that Poland would be Hitler’s next target, both France and Britain promised that they would take military action against Hitler should Poland be invaded by him. Chamberlain thought that, faced with the possibility of a war against France and Great Britain, Hitler would stop the aggression. Chamberlain was wrong. Poland on September 1, 1939 was invaded by German troops.

Appeasement Failure Appeasement suggests giving in to someone as long as your needs are considered reasonable. During the 1930s, many political figures in both France and Britain came to discover that the conditions of the Treaty of Versailles had imposed unjust limitations on Germany. Hitler’s actions have been considered justifiable and understandable.

When Germany began to arm itself in 1934, many political figures felt that Germany had the right to arm itself to defend itself. It had also been argued that a much stronger Germany would halt the spread of communism in the West.

In 1936, Hitler argued that since France had signed a new treaty with the Russian federation, Germany was under threat from equal nations and this was essential for German security that the soldiers were stationed in the Rhineland. France was not robust enough to fight Germany without British help, and Britain was not ready to go down in battle at that stage alone. Furthermore, many thought that because the Rhineland was a component of Germany, it had been realistic that German soldiers should be stationed there.

In May 1937, Neville Chamberlain became Prime Minister of Great Britain. He thought that the Treaty of Versailles had treated Germany negatively, that there were several problems related to the Treaty that had been fixed. He felt that offering to Hitler’s needs would stop another war.

This policy, adopted by the Chamberlain federal government, was recognized as the policy of appeasement.

Probably the most important case of appeasement was the Munich Agreement of September 1938.

In May 1937, Neville Chamberlain became Prime Minister of Great Britain. He thought that the Treaty of Versailles had treated Germany negatively, that there were several problems related to the Treaty that had been fixed. He felt that offering to Hitler’s needs would stop another war.

This policy, adopted by the Chamberlain federal government, was recognized as the policy of appeasement.

Probably the most important case of appeasement was the Munich Agreement of September 1938.