SECOND WORLD WAR: SUMMARY, CAUSES, CONSEQUENCES, COMBATANTS - HISTORY - 2024

The Second World War was a warlike conflict in which a large part of the countries of the world participated. The confrontation began in 1939 and ended in 1945, with the victory of the Allies and the defeat of the Axis Countries (Germany, Italy and Japan, mainly).

This conflict is considered the bloodiest in history. Historians estimate that between 50 and 70 million people died, 2.5% of the world's population. Among the bloodiest episodes are the Holocaust, the bombardment of civilians in numerous cities or the atomic bombs dropped on Japan.

Allied landing in Normandy. Source:

According to experts, there were several antecedents that ended up causing the conflict. The end of the First World War and the subsequent Treaty of Versailles, the economic crisis, the emergence of fascist and ultranationalist movements and imperialist movements were some of those causes that would lead to war.

The end of the Second World War gave rise to a totally different world than before. Two great superpowers, the United States and the Soviet Union, shared their areas of influence, leading to the Cold War.

Great Britain and France lost power, despite being among the victors and Germany, although divided, managed to recover in a few years.

Background

The Europe that emerged from the First World War had very different borders from those before that conflict. The Austro-Hungarian Empire was divided into several countries, Alsace and Lorraine returned to French hands, and some territories were dislodged from the former Tsarist Russia, converted into the Soviet Union.

Treaty of Versailles

The Treaty of Versailles determined how Europe was to look after the First World War. Although the meetings were attended by as many as 32 countries, in reality the agreement was the work of the United States, England and France.

All historians agree that the compensation imposed on Germany, as a defeated country, decisively influenced the arrival of the next world conflict. They were not only territorial losses, but also heavy financial compensation.

For its part, Italy also felt humiliated by the Treaty. Despite being part of the victorious coalition, almost none of its demands were met.

Weimar Republic

Germany felt humiliated by the conditions of the Treaty of Versailles. The compensation was considered abusive and the fact of having to reduce her army raised the fear of an attack by the USSR.

The unrest against the winners was joined by the bad economic situation. The so-called Weimar Republic, the political regime that emerged in Germany after the conflict, was being overcome on all fronts. Inflation reached sky-high levels and ruined part of the middle class.

On the other hand, numerous paramilitary groups appeared, especially the Freikorps. The country suffered from a great instability, with constant uprisings of labor and leftist groups. These were violently repressed by the paramilitaries, often with the collaboration of the government.

The general population demanded stability and order, and a party soon emerged that promised to implant them and make Germany a great power again.

Hitler

In 1923, Adolf Hitler's National Socialist Party, still a very minority, had tried to stage a coup. That attempt ended the party outlawed and Hitler in jail.

The 1930s began with a downturn in the economy. The Weimar Republic was unable to maintain order and conflicts were escalating.

The Nazi Party took advantage of the discontent of the population. His proposals were aimed at allowing Germany to regain its military might. He blamed the foreign-led Communists, the Jews, and the Allies for the country's situation.

They also promised to recover the lost territories and expand their borders until they made sure what they called Lebensraum, the living space.

With these ideas they presented themselves to the elections of 1932, obtaining 33.1% of the votes and being the most voted party. Hitler was appointed chancellor and the president commissioned him to form a government. The Reichstag fire the following year gave the excuse to declare a state of exception and outlaw the Communists, their main rivals.

After this, Hitler returned to call elections, obtaining 43.9% of the votes. In a few months, he ended democratic structures and established a dictatorship.

Italy

In Italy, a party with an ideology similar to Hitler's had taken power. It was the National Fascist Party of Benito Mussolini, which proclaimed itself a nationalist, expansionist and militarist. Already in 1936, Italy invaded Ethiopia and, in 1939, it occupied Albania.

Mussolini, like Hitler, wanted to expand the Italian borders. Once in power, he ended individual liberties and eliminated his opponents. He signed the Steel Pacts with Germany.

Spain

Although, later, Spain would not participate directly in World War II, the Civil War (1936-1939) is considered as a testing ground for the conflict. Germany and Italy lent support to Franco's troops.

They tried to have another new ally for the future world war, breaking the non-intervention agreement that the European powers had signed.

Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact

Despite the apparent ideological differences and the repression that Hitler had unleashed against the Communists, Germany and the USSR signed a non-aggression pact. In the agreement, the areas of influence in Central Europe were also distributed.

Some historians claim that Stalin was trying to buy time to modernize his army. The Pact allowed Germany to focus on preparing for war without worrying, in principle, about the eastern front.

Japan

Far from Europe, Japan was the protagonist of the so-called War of the Pacific. It was a heavily militarized country, where the War Ministers had autonomy of action even before the Prime Minister.

At the end of the 19th century, the Japanese showed their imperialist intentions by attacking and defeating China. The intervention of Russia and the Western powers prevented part of the conquered territory from being annexed. Shortly after, Japan managed to defeat Russia in another war and establish itself as a great Asian power.

In the 1930s, Japanese militarism and nationalism had been on the rise. Thus, in 1931, he invaded Manchuria and turned the region into a protectorate.

The League of Nations condemned the event, but Japan simply left the organization. In 1937, a new war with China began. Britain and the United States reacted by supporting the Chinese, with trade embargoes that greatly affected the Japanese.

Start

World War II had two main geographical fronts: Europe and the Pacific. In the first case, the start date is usually marked in 1939, with the invasion of Poland by German troops.

In the Pacific, the conflict between Japan and China had begun in 1937, although it was the attack on Pearl Harbor (USA) in 1941 that ended up globalizing the confrontations.

Europe

During the months leading up to the outbreak of World War II, the tension in Europe did not stop increasing. Germany claimed the Sudetenland, a region of Czechoslovakia. The reason was that there were a large number of inhabitants of German origin.

The western powers, France and Great Britain, ended up giving in to Hitler's claims. In September 1938 the annexation took place through the Munich agreements. The French leader, Daladier, and the British, Chamberlain, thought that by accepting the agreement, the German imperialist pretensions would calm down.

Reality denied that belief. In March 1939, German troops occupied Prague, taking control of the rest of Czechoslovakia.

Given this, Poland refused to give up Danzig (a territory that Germany also claimed) and signed a mutual defense agreement with France and Great Britain. This seemed to slow down the already determined invasion of Poland.

However, the agreement between Poland, France and Great Britain only delayed the invasion. The Germans simulated an attack by Polish troops on a radio antenna to give themselves an excuse to occupy the country.

On September 1, 1939, the Polish city of Wileun was bombarded by the Germans, starting World War II.

Asia

The Second War between Japan and China had started in 1937. During the following years, the Japanese occupied Indochina, then in French hands, and other Asian territories.

The reaction of the Western powers was to declare an economic embargo that was very negative for the Japanese economy, especially due to the lack of oil and raw materials. The militarism and imperialism of the country were the other ingredients for the reaction to be global war.

Without prior declaration, on November 7, 1941, Japan bombed the US base at Pearl Harbor, provoking a reaction from the United States. Within hours, Germany and Italy, allies of Japan, declared war on the Americans.

In this way, World War II became a planetary conflict.

Causes

The causes of World War II were a combination of different social, political and economic events that occurred in previous decades.

World War I and the Treaty of Versailles

The end of the First World War changed the map of Europe. The signing of the Treaty of Versailles, with which this conflict was closed, reordered the European borders. These changes caused resentment in some countries, eager to regain lost territories.

On the other hand, the compensation that Germany had to pay was seen as a humiliation by the majority of its population. To this must be added the obligation imposed to demilitarize the country, since the Treaty imposed a large reduction in its army.

Economic crisis

Although the 1929 Crisis and the Great Depression were global phenomena, Germany suffered enormous economic problems. The payment of war compensation was coupled with the loss of industrial fabric. The hyperinflation that appeared in the 1930s caused the ruin of a good part of the middle and upper class.

This, in addition to other considerations, created an environment conducive to the emergence of ideologies that advocated a return to Greater Germany and blamed the "other" (English, Communists, Jews…) for what was happening.

Rise of fascism

The emergence of fascism and leaders like Hitler or Mussolini had a lot to do with the two previous causes. The German and Italian leaders promised a return to the splendor of their respective countries, both military and economic or territorial.

In the case of Hitler, a large ethnic component also joined his ideology. The Nazis advocated the superiority of the Aryan race and its right to lead those considered inferior.

Colonialism and Imperialism

In Japan, despite cultural differences, there was also a strong belief in their superiority over other Asian peoples. His society, militarized and hierarchical until he reached an Emperor who declared himself a God, provoked part of his imperialist policy.

Colonialism and Imperialism

The mixture of economic interests and ethnic considerations caused some countries to struggle to increase colonies or create empires. This collided with other nations, which increased the pre-war tension.

Combatants: the sides of World War II

Countries from all continents participated in World War II. In one way or another, the entire planet was directly or indirectly affected in the conflict.

Allied countries

Among the Allies, the main countries were the United Kingdom, the United States, and the Soviet Union. France also usually joins this group, despite having been invaded in the first moments of the war.

To these we must join other nations such as China, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Belgium, Holland, Poland, Greece, Yugoslavia or Norway. Latin American countries entered the conflict after the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Hub Countries

Flag of Nazi Germany. (By Fornax, from Wikimedia Commons).

The three main combatants belonging to the Axis were Germany, Italy and Japan. Some governments in Eastern Europe initially supported the Nazis, as happened in Romania, Hungary or Bulgaria. These, with internal partisan movements fighting against the occupation, ended up changing sides on many occasions.

In addition, they had the support of Thailand and Finland. Finally, Libya, Ethiopia and other countries that were Italian colonies also contributed troops to the conflict.

Development

The "blitzkrieg"

Hitler saluting officers

The first phase of the conflict is known by many historians as "Blitzkrieg". Poland was invaded in just a month by Germany, although the eastern part of the country was left in the hands of the Soviets under the Non-Aggression Pact signed with the Nazis.

France and Great Britain declared war on Germany, but it was not until March 1940 that they took any war initiative.

For its part, Germany occupied, in just a few days in April of that year, Norway and Denmark. The intention was to ensure the iron that both Nordic countries produced and that was essential for the war industry.

Hitler's next step was much more ambitious. In May he launched an offensive against France. Despite the military power of the French, in less than a month, the entire country was in the hands of Germany. On June 14, Nazi troops entered Paris. France was divided into two: an occupied zone and another with a collaborationist government.

The speed of these campaigns was the origin of the name "Lightning War." In just nine months, Hitler had occupied much of continental Europe. Only Great Britain was left to face it.

Bombings over London

The Nazis intended to end the war quickly. According to historians, Hitler was determined to attempt the invasion of Great Britain, but his generals convinced him that it was impossible without first controlling the airspace. This caused that, during several months, the battle between both countries developed in the air.

One of the tactics used by both countries was indiscriminate bombardment of cities. The Germans dropped thousands of bombs on London and the British responded by doing the same on Berlin. The final result favored the British who thus managed to stop the possible invasion.

Meanwhile, Italy had also begun to launch its own attacks. Mussolini tried to occupy Greece, but was rejected by the Greeks and the British. This forced Hitler to dedicate troops to help his ally.

Starting in April 1941, new rapid operations allowed German troops to control Yugoslavia and Greece, causing the British to withdraw.

The "total war"

The Pact signed by Germany and the Soviet Union was going to fall apart very soon. Stalin had taken advantage of the war to annex Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and southern Finland, which clashed with Hitler's wishes.

The fiercely anti-communist Nazi leader began to prepare Operation Barbarossa with the purpose of invading the USSR. On June 22, 1941, the Germans entered Soviet territory through three different zones and Stalin signed a new treaty with the British. On the military level, the Soviets began to apply the scorched earth tactic.

Although the first German movements were successful, their advance soon slowed down. Winter caught the Nazi troops unprepared. Temperatures reached minus 32 degrees, killing thousands of soldiers and paralyzing the offensive.

The Germans, however, managed to hold out until spring. In September 1942 they reached the gates of Stalingrad, where the harshest and bloodiest siege of the entire Second World War took place. After months of battle, the Germans had to surrender on February 2, 1943, which changed the course of the war.

Pearl harbor

As the Germans invaded the Soviet Union, another vital event took place in the outcome of the war: the entry of the United States into the conflict. At first, he opted for neutrality, although he covertly supported the allies by allowing them to buy weapons on credit.

Japan had signed a treaty with Germany and Italy in 1940. Within its expansionist campaign in Asia, it had occupied several French, British, and Dutch colonies. Furthermore, their imperialism went against American business interests, which responded by imposing severe economic and trade sanctions.

The Japanese attack, without prior declaration, on the US naval base at Pearl Harbor destroyed part of the US fleet and caused the US to declare war on Japan and, shortly after, on Italy and Germany.

At the beginning of 1942, the situation seemed favorable to the Japanese. They had conquered Singapore, Indonesia, Burma and the Philippines, but during the summer of that year the situation changed completely. The Americans won the Battle of Midway, sinking all enemy aircraft carriers.

From then on, the Japanese defeat was only a matter of time. However, the fierce resistance of the Japanese prolonged the conflict for many months.

Defeat of the Axis

The Allies, in full advance, organized one of the best-known actions of World War II: the Normandy landings. It took place on June 6, 1944 and, despite the casualties, allowed his troops to penetrate France from the northwestern beaches.

On August 1, the German front collapsed. Days later, on August 25, Paris was liberated. Meanwhile, to the east, the Soviets began an offensive that liberated Poland, Romania and Bulgaria.

Hitler's death

Despite these defeats, Hitler did not want to surrender. Until the end, he was waiting for some supposed secret weapons that would turn the war around. In early 1945, his attempted counterattack in the Ardennes failed and the road to Berlin was open to the Allies. The Soviets arrived first, but Hitler had already committed suicide.

The official theory is that Hitler committed suicide with his partner, Eva Braun. However, there are unofficial hypotheses that affirm that he may have fled to Latin America. A body of a doppelganger found at the alleged suicide site and the non-confirmation by DNA of a skull found by the Soviet Union fueled suspicions.

In fact, the FBI of the time and the British intelligence services spent years looking for Hitler after the end of the war, since they thought that the bodies found in the bunker where the suicide took place were part of a strategy of deception and escape

Atomic bombs

In the Pacific, with Japan already on the defensive, the news of German defeat did not stop the conflict. Two atomic bombs dropped by the Americans, on August 6 and 9, 1945, caused the Japanese to surrender.

Consequences

The consequences of the Second World War were not only limited to the huge number of deaths and the destruction of an entire continent, but also marked the history of the world for the following decades.

Devastation of Europe

The bombings and the conquests of each city left the European continent totally devastated. After the war, the economic investment to rebuild was immense and the United States, with its Marshall Plan, was one of the most prominent contributors. This also earned him influence and become the great world superpower.

In addition to the material damage, the number of casualties was incalculable. Between 50 and 70 million people died during the conflict. The majority of this figure was made up of civilians.

Bipolar world and Cold War

World geopolitics, already affected by the First World War, totally changed after the Second. The old powers, Great Britain, France and Germany, were weakened and their power almost disappeared.

The world then became bipolar. The United States and the Soviet Union appeared as great global powers, agglutinating the rest of the countries around them. The competition was ideological, economic and, although not directly, military.

This situation, which lasted until the 90s of the 20th century, became known as the Cold War. The confrontations between the two powers developed indirectly, but the fear of a nuclear catastrophe was present during those decades.

The Holocaust

Hitler's racist policy especially affected the Jews. The Nazis had singled out them as one of the culprits for the interwar situation in Germany, and the racial laws took precedence over them.

With the so-called “final solution” a meticulous plan of extermination of the Jews in Europe was carried out. An estimated 6 million died in concentration camps or elsewhere.

In addition to the Jews, peoples such as the gypsy, groups such as homosexuals or political tendencies, such as the communist, also suffered from these policies of extermination.

Geo-political changes in Europe

All the Axis countries lost extensions of their territory to pay compensation to the Allies. This caused a reordering of the world map. The USSR, for example, took countries from Eastern Europe and implemented communism in these territories.

Germany Division

Germany was divided in two after the war. The western zone, at first controlled by the United States, England and France, was later included under the American umbrella. The eastern part was renamed the German Democratic Republic and came under the Soviet area of ​​influence.

New world legal and diplomatic order

First Session of the UN

The League of Nations had failed as an instrument to prevent wars. It was replaced by the United Nations. In this, the countries that have won the Second World War (plus China) have the right to veto over decisions.

In addition, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the Warsaw Pact were created. There were two military mutual defense treaties, the first controlled by the US and the second by the Soviet Union.

Beginning of decolonization

The colonies of the European countries took advantage of the loss of power of their metropolises to initiate decolonization processes. In this area, the Cold War was also very influential. In almost all cases, some of the groups calling for independence were controlled by one of the two great powers.

Economic crisis

As a consequence of an exorbitant expenditure on military power and resources, the leading countries in the war were hit by a severe economic crisis. Germany, France, and England declared bankruptcy.

This in turn caused France and England to renounce their colonies (such as India or Algeria), thus creating multiple new independent nations that today are part of the so-called third world thanks to their history of economic and territorial dispossession.

Scientific and technological advances

Historically, wars have always been a source of scientific and technological advancement. The need to overcome the enemy, without hindering budgets or efforts, has led to each conflict producing a series of advances that, at times, have continued to be used during times of peace.

Chemistry, aeronautics and rockets

The need for raw materials prompted scientists to work to find artificial substitutes. In this regard, the production of synthetic rubber for industry stood out.

Another product that appeared because of the conflict was nylon. It was used as a material for parachutes, especially in Germany. To make it they used the prisoners of the concentration camps.

In the field of aeronautics and ballistics, the advances were endless. New propulsion systems for bombers and fighters, such as jet engines, marked a milestone in this field.

Similarly, the systems created for self-propelled rockets were later used to advance the space race.

Mathematics, cybernetics and informatics

Starting from research on radar, scientists created a new field in mathematics: operations research. This used to deal with complex optimization problems.

In the field of computing, World War II witnessed the first use of computers applied to war. Konrad Zuse's German computer was used for aviation. In Britain, Colossus was a digital computer built to break German codes.

The radar

One of the best known inventions produced in World War II was the radar. Already Nikola Tesla in 1900 had suggested the possibility of using waves to detect objects in 1900, but it was not developed until the 1940s.

Materials Science and Defense

As was logical, it was in the field of arms that more inventions appeared. The race to find better weapons for combat and defense led to the development of new materials, such as those incorporated into tanks.

Nuclear fission and the atomic bomb

Since December 1938, after research carried out in Germany on uranium fission, the possibility of using this process as a military weapon became evident.

All powers began a race to create the first atomic bomb. The Germans seemed to have the upper hand, but it was the Americans who got ahead. The first bombs were dropped in August 1945 on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

The destructive power scared the world, which feared for decades that a war would begin that would end the planet.

End

Nuremberg trials

After Hitler's alleged suicide in his bunker, Karl Dönitz replaced him as head of the German government. Its function was, basically, to surrender to the allied forces. Thus, he surrendered Berlin to the Soviets on May 2, 1945.

On May 7, the German High Command also surrendered. The next day, the Allies celebrated Victory Day, as did the Soviets the next day.

After this, the leaders of the victorious countries held some meetings to discuss the end of the war. Stalin, Roosevelt and Churchill met in Yalta, who planned what the European borders would be like after the conflict.

On the other hand, the German leaders who remained alive were tried in the town of Nuremberg. Some were sentenced to death, others to life imprisonment and, finally, there were those who were released.

These trials were the germ of subsequent international law regarding war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Asia

The atomic bombs dropped by the United States on Hiroshima (August 6, 1945) and Nagasaki (August 9) accelerated the surrender of Japan.

On August 15, Emperor Hirohito announced his surrender. This was formally signed on September 2, on an American battleship. Japan was, in principle, ruled by the victors. Hirohito, who had to renounce his status as God, retained the throne.

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