INDEX

I World War 1 --- 01

1. Introduction --- 01

2. Cause of World War --- 01

a. Alliances and Politics --- 02

b. Imperialism --- 03

c. Militarism --- 04

d. Nationalism --- 05
e. Assassination of Archduke Ferdinand --- 06

3. Effects of World War 1 --- 07

II Word War 2

1. Introduction --- 08
2. Cause of Word War 2 --- 09
a. Treaty of Versailles --- 10
b. Japan Expansion --- 11
c. Fascism --- 12
d. Hitler and the Nazi Party --- 13
e. Appeasement --- 14
f. Great Depression --- 15
3. Effects of World War 2 --- 15

III Conclusion --- 16

IV Bibliography --- 17
 WORLD WAR 1 & 2
I. WORLD WAR 1

1. Introduction:

World War I began in 1914, after the assassination of Archduke Franz

Ferdinand, and lasted until 1918. During the conflict, Germany, Austria-
Hungary, Bulgaria and the Ottoman Empire (the Central Powers) fought
against Great Britain, France, Russia, Italy, Romania, Japan and the United
States (the Allied Powers). Thanks to new military technologies and the
horrors of trench warfare, World War I saw unprecedented levels of
carnage and destruction. By the time the war was over and the Allied
Powers claimed victory, more than 16 million people—soldiers and civilians
alike—were dead.

2. Causes of World War I

There were many factors that led up to the start of World War I in
Europe. A lot of these factors were rooted in the deep history of the old
powers of Europe including Russia, Germany, France, Italy, Austria,
Hungary, and Britain. The real causes of World War I included politics,
secret alliances, imperialism, and nationalistic pride. However, there was
one single event, the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand of Austria, which
started a chain of events leading to war.

a. Alliances and Politics

In the years leading up to the war, the nations of Europe were

constantly jockeying for power and making alliances. Germany made
an alliance with Austria-Hungary and Italy in 1881. These countries
all agreed to protect each other in the event they were attacked by
France. However, Italy then went and made a secret alliance with
France saying they would not aide Germany.

In response to Germany's alliances, France and Russia established an

alliance in 1892. In 1904, Britain and France signed an agreement.
The Triple Entente was formed between France, Britain, and Russia
in 1907. Germany felt that this powerful alliance surrounding them
posed a real threat to their existence and power in the region.

b. Imperialism
Imperialism is when a country expands its influence and power into a
large empire. Some European countries, such as France and Britain,
had created large worldwide empires and had become very rich.
Other European countries, such as Russia and Germany, wanted to
create their own vast empires. This caused competition and conflict
between many of the countries throughout the world.

c. Militarism

Militarism means that the army and military forces are given a high
profile by the government. The growing European divide had led to
an arms race between the main countries. The armies of both France
and Germany had more than doubled between 1870 and 1914 and
there was fierce competition between Britain and Germany for
mastery of the seas. The British had introduced the ‘Dreadnought’,
an effective battleship, in 1906. The Germans soon followed suit
introducing their own battleships. The German, Von Schlieffen also
drew up a plan of action that involved attacking France through
Belgium if Russia made an attack on Germany. The map below shows
how the plan was to work.

d. Nationalism

Nationalism means being a strong supporter of the rights and

interests of one’s country. The Congress of Vienna, held after
Napoleon’s exile to Elba, aimed to sort out problems in Europe.
Delegates from Britain, Austria, Prussia and Russia (the winning
allies) decided upon a new Europe that left both Germany and Italy
as divided states. Strong nationalist elements led to the re-
unification of Italy in 1861 and Germany in 1871. The settlement at
the end of the Franco-Prussian war left France angry at the loss of
Alsace-Lorraine to Germany and keen to regain their lost territory.
Large areas of both Austria-Hungary and Serbia were home to
differing nationalist groups, all of whom wanted freedom from the
states in which they lived.

e. Assassination of Archduke Ferdinand

The immediate cause of World War I that made the aforementioned

items come into play (alliances, imperialism, militarism, and
nationalism) was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of
Austria-Hungary. In June 1914, a Serbian-nationalist terrorist group
called the Black Hand sent groups to assassinate the Archduke. Their
first attempt failed when a driver avoided a grenade thrown at their
car. However, later that day a Serbian nationalist named Gavrilo
 Princip shot the Archduke and his wife while they were driving
through Sarajevo, Bosnia which was part of Austria-Hungary. They
died of their wounds.

The assassination was in protest to Austria-Hungary having control of

this region: Serbia wanted to take over Bosnia and Herzegovina. The
assassination of Ferdinand led to Austria-Hungary declaring war on
Serbia. When Russia began to mobilize to defend its alliance with
Serbia, Germany declared war on Russia. Thus began the expansion
of the war to include all those involved in the mutual defense
alliances.

3. Effects of World War 1

WW1 caused the downfall of four monarchies: Germany, Turkey,

Austria-Hungary and Russia.

The war made people more open to other ideologies, such as the
Bolsheviks that came to power in Russia and fascism that triumphed
in Italy and even later in Germany.

WW1 largely marked the end of colonialism, as the people became

more nationalistic and the one country after the other started
colonial revolts in Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Africa.

The war changed the economical balance of the world, leaving

European countries deep in debt and making the U.S. the leading
industrial power and creditor in the world.

Inflation shot up in most countries and the German economy was

highly affected by having to pay for reparations.
 With troops travelling all over the world, influenza was spread
easily and an epidemic started which killed more than 25 million
people across the world.

With all the new weapons that were used, WW1 changed the face
of modern warfare forever.

Due to the cruel methods used during the war and the losses
suffered, WW1 caused a lot of bitterness among nations, which also
greatly contributed to WW1 decades later.

Social life also changed: women had to run businesses while the
men were at war and labor laws started to be enforced due to mass
production and mechanization. People all wanted better living
standards.

After WW1, the need for an international body of nations that

promotes security and peace worldwide became evident. This caused
the founding of the League of Nations.

WW1 boosted research in technology, because better transport and

means of communication gave countries an advantage over their
enemies.

The harsh conditions of the Treaty of Versailles caused a lot of dissent

in Europe, especially on the side of the Central Powers who had to
pay a lot for financial reparations.
 II. WORLD WAR 2 (1939 – 45)
1. Introduction:

World War 2 was a global military conflict that lasted for nearly 6
years and resulted in heavy losses for all that were involved all over the
world. World War II thus far, has been the deadliest and bloodiest war to
date. More than 38 million people died by the end of the war, many of
them innocent civilians. It was also the most destructive war in our current
history. The fighting raged on in many parts of the world, with the brunt
of it being in Europe and Japan. More than 50 nations took part in this war,
which changed the world forever. For Americans, World War II had a clear-
cut purpose; they were fighting to defeat tyranny. Most of Europe had been
conquered by Nazi Germany, which was under the evil control of Adolf
Hitler. The war in Europe began with Germany’s unprecedented invasion
of Poland in 1939. It seemed that wherever the Nazi army went, they came
down with a vengeance on the Jews of that area. They also went after
anyone that didn’t fit in to their idea of the “Master Race”, Aryans.

In Asia and the Pacific, the Japanese armies invaded countries and
islands. On December 7, 1941, The Japanese planes bombed Pearl Harbour,
Hawaii. Within hours the U.S. Congress declared war against Japan,
plunging the U.S. headfirst into World War II.

2. Causes of World War 2

There were many events throughout the world that led to the beginning of
World War 2. In many ways, World War 2 was a direct result of the turmoil
left behind by World War 1. Below are some of the main causes of World
War 2.

a. Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles ended World War I between Germany
and the Allied Powers. Because Germany had lost the war, the
treaty was very harsh against Germany. Germany was forced to
"accept the responsibility" of the war damages suffered by the
Allies. The treaty required that Germany pay a huge sum of
money called reparations.

The problem with the treaty is that it left the German economy
in ruins. People were starving and the government was in chaos.

b. Japanese Expansion
In the period before World War II, Japan was growing rapidly.
However, as an island nation they did not have the land or the
natural resources to sustain their growth. Japan began to look to
grow their empire in order to gain new resources. They invaded
Manchuria in 1931 and China in 1937.

c. Fascism
With the economic turmoil left behind by World War 1, some
countries were taken over by dictators who formed powerful
fascist governments. These dictators wanted to expand their
empires and were looking for new lands to conquer. The first
fascist government was Italy which was ruled by the dictator
 Mussolini. Italy invaded and took over Ethiopia in 1935. Adolf
Hitler would later emulate Mussolini in his takeover of Germany.
Another Fascist government was Spain ruled by the dictator
Franco.

d. Hitler and the Nazi Party

In Germany, Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party rose to power. The
Germans were desperate for someone to turn around their
economy and restore their national pride. Hitler offered them
hope. In 1934, Hitler was proclaimed the "Fuhrer" (leader) and
became dictator of Germany.

Hitler resented the restrictions put on Germany by the Treaty of

Versailles. While talking about peace, Hitler began to rearm
Germany. He allied Germany with Mussolini and Italy. Then Hitler
looked to restore Germany to power by expanding his empire. He
first took over Austria in 1938. When the League of Nations did
nothing to stop him, Hitler became bolder and took over
Czechoslovakia in 1939.

e. Appeasement

After World War 1, the nations of Europe were weary and did not
want another war. When countries such as Italy and Germany
became aggressive and began to take over their neighbors and
 build up their armies, countries such as Britain and France hoped
to keep peace through "appeasement." This meant that they tried
to make Germany and Hitler happy rather than try to stop him.
They hoped that by meeting his demands he would be satisfied
and there wouldn't be any war.

Unfortunately, the policy of appeasement backfired. It only made

Hitler bolder. It also gave him time to build up his army.

f. Great Depression:
The period before World War II was a time of great economic
suffering throughout the world called the Great Depression. Many
people were out of work and struggling to survive. This created
unstable governments and worldwide turmoil that helped lead to
World War II.

3. Effects of World War 2

Many things changed once World War II was over. Much of Europe and Eastern Asia had been
destroyed by the fighting and bombings that had taken place over many years. Also, many
country's borders needed to be set and governments re-established where Germany
or Japan had taken over.

 Germany had occupied much of Europe during World War II. Many of the countries in the
west returned to the same governments and borders they had prior to the war. However,
Germany was divided up into Eastern and Western Germany. The Eastern part was
controlled by the USSR (Russia) and the Western part by the Allies.
 The USSR also took control of many of the countries in Eastern Europe where they had
fought the Germans. These included Poland, Romania, Bulgaria, Albania, Hungary, and
Czechoslovakia.

Europe was in much need of financial aid due to all the roads, bridges, buildings and more
that had been destroyed in the fighting. The United States offered Aid in the form of the
Marshall Plan to help Europe recover.

 The US and the Allies occupied Japan. They maintained control as Japan recovered from
the war. Japan would become an independent nation again in 1952.

In Korea, the Allies and the USSR (Russia) divided up the country into North and South
Korea. The plan was for Russia to control the North and the Allies the South until a free
election could be held for the entire country. This never happened as Russia later refused
and the country is still split to this day with North Korea controlled by communists.

In China, a civil war continued that had started prior to World War II. It was between the
communists and the nationalists. The communists won and the nationalists fled to
Taiwan.

 After the war, many leaders from Japan and Germany were brought to trial. They had
violated the rules of war according to the Geneva Convention and had also committed
crimes against humanity. These crimes included the Holocaust, slave labor, and the
terrible treatment and torture of prisoners of war. Many of these leaders were executed
for their crimes.
 The Allies formed the United Nations in order to try and prevent World War III from
happening. The United Nations was formed on October 24, 1945. There were 51 original
member nations including 5 permanent Security Council members: China, France, the
Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
 Europe became divided into the Eastern Bloc of nations and the West. The Eastern Bloc
was led and controlled by the Soviet Union (Russia). These countries were run by
communist governments and had their own alliance called the Warsaw Pact. The Western
countries, including the United States, formed an alliance against communism called
NATO.
 These two alliances, NATO and the Warsaw Pact, would take part in an arms race war
called the Cold War. The Cold War never escalated into full war due to the fear of what
would happen to the world if many countries started dropping atomic bombs. The Cold
War would last for the next 45 years.

III. Conclusion.
In conclusion, war began when Germany attacked Poland. Little were
known about the time Russia as well moved into Poland on September
1939. Poland was presently isolated between these two war-time
associates.

It is intriguing to see what the reactions of the major partnered

countries were to these two periods. At the point when Germany
invaded the western segment of Poland, Britain and France
announced war on Germany. When Russia moved onto eastern
Poland, no war was declared by either country.
 IV. Bibliography
World War 1.

1. https://www.historyonthenet.com/world-war-one-causes-2

2. https://www.historyhit.com/the-4-m-a-i-n-causes-of-world-war-one/

3. https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-i/world-war-i-history

4. https://www.ducksters.com/history/world_war_i/causes_of_ww1.php

5. https://www.thoughtco.com/causes-that-led-to-world-war-i-105515

World War 2.

6. https://www.ducksters.com/history/world_war_ii/causes_of_ww2.php

7. https://www.ukessays.com/essays/history/the-causes-of-world-war-2-
history-essay.php

8. https://www.seeithistory.com/worldwar2/causes-of-ww2/