Was World War Two Inevitable
Was World War Two inevitable?
The origins of the Second World War have been a contentious issue ever since the conflict ended in 1945. It is a topic which continues to provoke furious debate more than sixty years later. It was unquestionably Hitler’s war and was directly brought about by his actions in the 1930’s. However opinion is divided as to whether his actions were meticulously planned or was he simply an opportunist who pragmatically took each step as they arose naturally. Marshal Foch described the Treaty of Versailles “as a 20-year armistice, rather than an enduring peace” (www.timeshighereducation.co.uk). I will examine the events between the wars to determine if these events were preordained or if the horrors inflicted by the Nazis could have been avoided.
Many historians believe that the Second World War was simply a continuation of the First World War. A.J.P. Taylor claimed that Germany fought to reverse the verdict, as did all German chancellors, which they were forced to accept in Versailles in 1919 and that her opponents less consciously fought to defend that settlement. The Treaty of Versailles was widely blamed for causing mortal damage to Germany and for being the main cause of the crises faced by the new Weimar Republic during its early years. The treaty stripped Germany of a large amount of territory in Europe and of all its overseas colonies, which in turn not only isolated a large amount of Germans from their home country but also removed a large amount of their access to valuable raw materials held within those territories. However this was based on the belief that as Germany had started the war they were a problem country and there was therefore a need to disable Germany in order to provide France with security and to prevent future conflict.
Germans felt that as they were given no say in the details of the 1919 Treaty that is was a ‘diktat’ (dictated peace) and that it was not in line with their vision of what had been promised
The origins of the Second World War have been a contentious issue ever since the conflict ended in 1945. It is a topic which continues to provoke furious debate more than sixty years later. It was unquestionably Hitler’s war and was directly brought about by his actions in the 1930’s. However opinion is divided as to whether his actions were meticulously planned or was he simply an opportunist who pragmatically took each step as they arose naturally. Marshal Foch described the Treaty of Versailles “as a 20-year armistice, rather than an enduring peace” (www.timeshighereducation.co.uk). I will examine the events between the wars to determine if these events were preordained or if the horrors inflicted by the Nazis could have been avoided.
Many historians believe that the Second World War was simply a continuation of the First World War. A.J.P. Taylor claimed that Germany fought to reverse the verdict, as did all German chancellors, which they were forced to accept in Versailles in 1919 and that her opponents less consciously fought to defend that settlement. The Treaty of Versailles was widely blamed for causing mortal damage to Germany and for being the main cause of the crises faced by the new Weimar Republic during its early years. The treaty stripped Germany of a large amount of territory in Europe and of all its overseas colonies, which in turn not only isolated a large amount of Germans from their home country but also removed a large amount of their access to valuable raw materials held within those territories. However this was based on the belief that as Germany had started the war they were a problem country and there was therefore a need to disable Germany in order to provide France with security and to prevent future conflict.
Germans felt that as they were given no say in the details of the 1919 Treaty that is was a ‘diktat’ (dictated peace) and that it was not in line with their vision of what had been promised
References: www.firstworldwar.com www.secondworldwar.com