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Introduction
World War II was a global war that lasted between 1939 and 1945. It was fought between two military alliances that included the Allies and the Axis. The Axis alliance comprised Japan, Italy, and Germany while the Allies alliance constituted France, the United States, Great Britain, and China. The war broke out two decades after World War I, which set the stage for another global conflict that would be more devastating.
The rise of Adolf Hitler to power created the foundation for the conflict. He became the leader at a time when Germany was economically and politically unstable. His National Sociality (Nazi) Party enhanced the nations military capacity, and Hitler entered into strategic agreements with Italy and Japan to support his world domination agenda. The conflict lasted for 16 years and led to millions of deaths and the massive destruction of property. Approximately 45-60 million people were killed, including the 6 million Jews that were murdered during the Holocaust. Despite its dire ramifications, World War II could have been avoided had the Allies stopped Hitler from expanding his empire.
The Treaty of Versailles
One of the major reasons given as a contributing factor to World War II was the Treaty of Versailles that was signed on 28 June 1919 in order to bring an end to World War I. It concluded the five-year bloody conflict between the Allied Powers and Germany and laid the foundation for what later became the Second World War (Freeman 34). Germany was viewed as a major antagonist in World War One and on the losing end.
Therefore, the Allied Powers included certain clauses in the Treaty of Versailles to punish the Germans for the atrocities that they had committed in the previous war. Moreover, the Allied Powers held the belief that Germany and its allies were responsible for the war and they would rearm their military and cause more damage if stringent measures were not implemented to avoid such an outcome (Overy 44). The terms of the treaty required Germany to give up 10 percent of its territory, undergo disarmament, pay reparation in ships, gold, securities, and commodities, and relinquish its overseas empire to the Allied powers (Freeman 35).
Germany gave up several empires and suffered a ruined economy after paying the reparations, according to the requirements of the War Guilt Clause (Overy 46). The financial depression that ensued thrust the government into chaos and the nation faced starvation as it was incapable of affording enough food for its population. Conscription was proscribed and the size of the German military was greatly limited (Freeman 35).
Clauses that demanded Germany to take responsibility for the war were included in the agreement. These clauses attained the intended objectives of their inclusion: reparations for the destructions cast Germany into a huge debt and consequent depression. As a result of the poor economic state, Germany had to find a way to revive the economy. War is a profitable endeavor, and Germany initiated a war to remedy its poor economic situation. World War II was caused by a myriad of factors. However, one of them was the Carthaginian peace that emanated from the Treaty of Versailles.
Impact of the Treaty
The treaty was aimed at ending the war and resolving the disputes that had led to the First World War. However, it prevented cooperation among European nations and intensified the underlying issues that had led to the conflict. The Germans, Austrians, Bulgarians, and the Hungarians viewed the Treaty as punishment (Overy 48). Therefore, they violated the limiting provisions of the agreement. The situation created a fertile ground for the rise of Hitler to power as his party promised the people that they would rearm the military, reclaim German territory, and gain prominence in international politics (Freeman 40). The promise to restore the economy and Germanys prominence in international politics led to the election of Hitler, whose actions contributed to World War II.
Some historians argue that had the Treaty of Versailles not been as harsh to the Germans as it had been, the Second World War could have been avoided. Hitler was against the treaty because it had crippled Germany by placing numerous restrictions that hampered its economic and military expansion. The moves to rearm Germany, sign treaties with Italy, and expand his empire originated from a need to restore Germany (Overy 51).
Many Germans were against the radical tenets that the Nazi party held. However, the promise to restore Germanys prominence among world powers motivated them to vote for Hitler. Had the Treaty of Versailles been fair to both Germany and its allies, the Second World War would never have occurred. Probably, Hitler would not have ascended to power because his election was founded on the hope of economic restoration that he offered to the people.
Adolf Hitlers Rule
Hitlers promise to restore Germany was his claim to power as the Germans wanted someone to revive the economy, empower the military, and reclaim the nations dignity. It was clear from the early days of Hitlers rule that his major goal was to conquer the world and dominate. As mentioned earlier, the Allies created the Treaty of Versailles to punish Germany for its involvement in World War I. They pushed Germany into desperation and laid a foundation for future conflicts. The Allied powers did not respond accordingly when Hitlers intentions of global domination became apparent. They should have stopped him and prevented the massive loss of lives and destruction of property that ensued from the Second World War.
Hitlers actions were planned and strategic since the beginning of his rule, and his intentions became clearer as the years passed. For example, Germany violated the Treaty of Versailles regarding military training and armament, enlarged the army, nullified the treaty, and withdrew from the Conference for the Reduction and Limitation of Armaments (Freeman 56). In 1936, Hitler invaded and demilitarized Rhineland, thus violating the Locarno Pact that had been signed in 1925 (Overy 57).
These moves should have signaled Hitlers aggression to the Allies. However, they ignored the overt violations of the treaties and overlooked his move to annex Austria into Nazi Germany. A preventive war against Hitler could have prevented the Second World War.
The Munich Agreement was another failure on the side of the Allies. It involved France, Germany, Great Britain, and Italy, and it allowed Germany to annex Sudetenland, without attacking Czechoslovakia (Overy 63). Hitler announced that the conquest would be his last bid to expand the German empire and the agreement was lauded as a peace milestone. However, several months later, Hitler took over Czechoslovakia, Slovakia, and the port city of Klaipeda (Freeman 58).
The Allied Powers foresaw Hitler conquering Poland because by this time, his intention of dominating the world had been made clear by his acts of aggression. However, they did not stop him as they chose to avoid a recurrence of the events of World War I. They adhered to a policy of appeasement as weaker nations suffered under the ruthless rule of Hitler. His actions were supported by the declaration of President Franklin D. Roosevelt that each nation had a right to determine its destiny (Overy 73). A war against Hitler was declared too late after he invaded Poland in 1939. ermany conquered Norway and Denmark and invaded France and Russia. During these invasions, the US ignored the conflicts but joined in later.
Anschluss in 1938
The annexation of Austria into a Greater Germany is one of the occurrences that could have been prevented, and as a result, avoided World War II. The annexation was an overt violation of the Treaty of Versailles that Hitler had unsuccessfully tried earlier, but failed because he had a weak army (Overy 77). In 1938, Hitler had a stronger army that was ready for war. Moreover, he did not meet with resistance from Italy because he had united with Mussolini and signed the Anti-Comintern Act a year earlier. Therefore, he was prepared for Anschluss. Hitler rallied the Nazi party in Austria to cause riots while demanding unity with Germany.
As the riots continued, Hitler pressured Chancellor Schuschnigg into giving in to his demands. Unsure of the decision to make, he reached out to France and Britain for assistance (Overy 91). However, the two nations made it clear that they were proponents of unity. After being ignored, the Chancellor held a vote so that the Austrian people could decide on the matter. Hitler gave the responsibility of overseeing the vote to German soldiers, whose main goal was to intimidate the voters. 99.75% of the people who participated in the practice voted to have Austria and Germany unite (Freeman 67).
The win was proof enough to Hitler that he was powerful enough to expand his empire and that the Allied powers would not oppose his moves to contravene the statutes of the Treaty of Versailles. If France and Britain had offered military assistance to Austria in order to stop the annexation, they would have stopped Hitler from advancing his agenda of conquering the world and creating tensions that caused another war. The outcome would have been different had the Allies declared war on Hitler during this moment rather than after he invaded Poland because by then, it was too late.
Hitlers invasion of Poland in 1939 was followed by a 6-month period of the Phoney War that was characterized by conflicts on a minor scale. During this period, no bombs were dropped and fighting was minimal. Hitler had successfully expanded his empire without much opposition. Therefore, he did not expect the Allies to declare war on him after invading Poland (Freeman 76). At this time, Germany was not prepared for a major war, and Hitler could have been stopped.
World War II could have been avoided had the Allied Powers declared war on Hitler at this point. He would have probably backed down and signed peace treaties because his army was not strong enough to fight a major war. The Allies should have used their power to compel Hitler to adhere to the stipulations of the Treaty of Versailles. This could have led to a shorter and less disastrous war as Germany would probably fight back. The Phoney war was an indication that Germany was unwilling to fight after recovering from the aftermath of World War I. The Allies should have taken that as an indication that Germany was ready to avoid another war at all costs for purposes of self-preservation.
Conclusion
World War II was one of the most destructive global wars that could have been avoided. Millions of people were killed, including more than 6 million Jews. After the defeat of Germany in World War I, clauses were appended to the Treaty of Versailles to punish Germany as one of the main aggressors. The treaty was aimed at bringing peace. However, it treated Germany harshly, and as a result, destroyed its economy and military. The people starved and the economy disintegrated.
Hitler was elected because he gave the people hope by promising them to restore the economy and the nations former glory. The Allies could have stopped the War had they acted on Hitlers infringement of the Treaty. However, they allowed him to rearm and expand his military, as well as invade other countries. They should have opposed his agenda of conquering the world, which was evident from the actions he took during the early years of his rule. World War II could have been avoided had the Allied Powers declared war on Hitler before he had rearmed his military and gained confidence by conquering other nations. For example, the Anschluss could have been stopped by France and Britain ignored Austrias requests for assistance.
Works Cited
Freeman, Richard Z. A Concise History of the Second World War: Its Origin, Battles, and Consequences. Merriam Press, 2016.
Overy, Richard. The Origins of the Second World War. 4th ed., Routledge, 2017.
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