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Causes of Second World War (Questions Raised (one or two wars?, did the…
Causes of Second World War
One War or Two?
One War
Margaret Lamb and Nicholas Tarling:
From Versailles to Pearl Harbour
'interconnection of events in East Asia and events in Europe'
Two Wars
RAC Parker:
The Second World War: A Short History
'two separate wars made up the Second World War: A European war and a Far Eastern war'
WWI largely fought in Europe - very limited fighting in Africa and Asia between European colonial powers
WWII truly a global conflict
hugely destructive warfare in both Europe and the Pacific (and North Africa)
historians disagree about where causes of war in Europe and war in Pacific are separate or interconnected
Questions Raised
one or two wars?
did the First World War make the Second World War inevitable?
what was the role of Hitler?
was Hitler a master-planner of opportunist?
was Hitler's foreign policy unique, or did he pursue similar objectives to those of earlier German governments?
was there continuity in German Foreign Policy (1871-1945)?
Did the First World War Make the Second World War Inevitable?
First World War is among the competing interpretations of the causation of Second World War
or the TOV following WWI
made WWII likely
Europe experienced a
'Thirty-Year Crisis'
(1914-1945)
Support
WWI and the subsequent peace settlements reshaped the map of Europe
created problems which destabilised international relations
series of weak successor states in central and eastern Europe were stuck between:
a resentful Germany - determined to break out of the chains imposed by Versailles and reassert itself as the greatest military and industrial European power
the USSR - isolated and ostracised during the 1920s, determined to emerge as an industrial power due to Stalin's Five Year Plans in the 1930s
Germany and Italy were dissatisfied with the 1919-20 peace treaties - sought to revise them
Italy: 'mutilated treaty'
Germany: 'diktat'
they (along with Japan) would become the aggressors in the 1930s - would undermine international order
Soviet leadership angry at Paris Peace Settlement and the creation of states out of former Russian territory (e.g. Poland)
in the 1920s USSR turned inwards - economic recovery priority
in 1930s Stalin looked to protect Soviet Union through collective security
League of Nations
establishing closer relations with Britain and France
then signed the Nazi-Soviet Pact (1939)
USSR then turned predator
acquired part of Poland
absorbed Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania
Britain and France wanted to preserve international peace re-established after WWI
disagreed on how to do this
USA, major in determining outcome of WWI and shaping subsequent peace treaties
retreated into isolationism
to keep out of political and military entanglements in Europe
problems unsolved by peace treaties, or created by them, made international relations tense in the 1920s
Ruhr Crisis (1923)
Corfu Incident (1923)
series of conflicts in central, easter and south-easter Europe in early 1920s
Russo-Polish War (1920-21)
Greek-Turkish War (1921-22)
as states sought to expand their borders at their neighbours expense
financial instability in the 1920s was a legacy of the war
reparation payments embittered relations between Germany and her former enemies
Counters
collective security (League of Nations) had some successes in 1920s
resolved the Aaland Islands dispute
effected the partition of Upper Silesia
Germany admitted as permanent member of League in 1926
Germany's relations with France and Britain improved to an extent in mid-1920s
Stresemann succeeded in gaining some revisions to TOV by pursuing policy of fulfilment
cooperating with Germany's former enemies in keeping TOV, then negotiating changes to Germany's benefit
Germany became more stable politically and economically in mid 1920s
1928: democratic Grand Coalition commanded over 60% of the seats in the Reichstag
1928: Germany's industrial output reached record levels
1928: Nazis, reviled TOV and Weimar Republic, had less than 3% of the national vote
the impact of the Wall Street Crash (1929) was needed to transform political fortunes of Hitter to undermine democracy in Germany
AJP Taylor
'the Second World War was, in large part, a repeat performance of the first... Germany fought specifically in the second war to reverse the verdict of the first and to destroy the settlement which followed it...the first war explains the second and, in fact, caused it, in so far as one event causes another'
Role of Hitler
despite multitude of causes, Hitler did have a central role and responsibility in causing WWII
Germany, one of the most powerful military and industrial states in Europe, was led by a dictator with a violent racial vision
meant another war in Europe was extremely likely
Eric Hobsbawm
'yet compromise and negotiation with Hitler's Germany were impossible, because the policy objectives of National Socialism were irrational and unlimited'
'expansion and aggression were built in to the system and, short of accepting German domination in advance, i.e. choosing not to resist the Nazi advance, war was unavoidable, sooner rather than later'
Ruth Hening: quotes Sir Horace Rumbled, the British ambassador in Berlin
'I have the impression that the persons directing the policy of the Hitler government are not normal. Many of us, indeed, have a feeling that we are living in a country were fanatics, hooligans and eccentrics have got the upper hand, and there is certainly an element of hysteria in the policies and actions of the Hitler regime'
main arguments revolve around 2 questions:
was Hitler a master-planner or opportunist?
was Hitler's foreign policy unique or was it a continuation of earlier German governments?
Britain and France
AJP Taylor:
Britain and France failed to stand up to Hitler's aggression - even presented him with opportunities for expansion
Winston Churchill:
'there never was a war more easy to stop'
Britain should have prevented German rearmament
appeasement was wrong
if Britain and France had intervened to prevent Hitler's remilitarisation of the Rhineland (1936), then Hitler would have suffered a major humiliation and lost power
Counter to AJP Taylor
Britain and France trying to make international peace by making agreements
by the time they realised this wasn't working, Hitler ignored their 'bluffs' that they would defend Poland
critics of AJP Taylor say that if Britain and France had used aggression with respect to Germany and Czechoslovakia, it still would have caused a general European War
Britain and France didn't always agree on policy
would have made a united front against Hitler difficult
Why were Britain and France Reluctant to Stand Up to Germany?
1920s, British politics began to realise TOV had been too harsh
Britain supported changes such as the Dawes and Young Plan
sought to appease Hitler by agreeing to revisions of the treaty
Britain and France had suffered in WWI - wanted to avoid war by any means
especially with the emergence of new technologies - demonstrated in Spanish Civil War
Britain concerned about Far East and Japanese and Italian expansion
were also experiencing nationalism within their empire
did not want to be threatened by Germany too
Wall Street Crash (1929) and the economic issues it caused meant Britain and France couldn't afford a war
didn't reinitiate serious rearmament until mid 1930s
USA's isolation meant Britain and France couldn't rely on her for support against German aggression
France didn't want to revise TOV - USA and Britain disagreed
therefore, France began building alliances and constructing a series of defensive forts
France politically divided - could not worry about world politics
many of the right in France more concerned with French Communists than Germany
short, weak French governments made French resistance to Hitler much less likely
League of Nations
League unable to prevent Japan, Italy and Germany from undermining the international order in the 1930s
weaknesses of League:
USA never joined
biggest problem
without her the League could not impose effective sanctions
Germany was only a member 1926-1933
Japan left in 1933
Italy left in 1937
USSR only a member from 1934-1939
no clear mechanism for raising a peacekeeping force
voting procedure were slow
Consequences
Manchurian Crisis (1931-33)
League failed to end Japanese aggression
encouraged other aggressors such as Hitler and Mussolini
Abyssinian Crisis (1935-36)
Leegue's sanctions on Italy collapsed the Stresa Front
this facilitated the coming together of Hitler and Mussolini in the Rome-Berlin Axis (1936)
Hitler exploited this crisis to remilitarise the Rhineland in March 1936
Great Depression
brought Hitler and the Nazis to power
the final straw for Weimar rule
1928: Nazis had 2% of the vote
1932: 37% of the vote
effected the Japan's economy - facilitated militarism
led Japan to invade Manchuria
saw expanding into the resource-rich Manchuria as a solution
Japan's silk exports halved
potentially contributed to the radicalisation of Mussolini's policy
his invasion of Abyssinia as a distraction from economic issues
Tariff wars had a negative impact on foreign relations and contributed to isolationism
led to Hitler assuming that he could act at will
Summary
democratic states prioritised tackling their own economic problems above dealing foreign aggression
shaped British appeasement towards Hitler
Mussolini
less of an impact than Hitler
why Italy was a second rate power
disrupted international peace
Mussolini Foreign Policy
peaceful in 1920s - despite Corfu Incident and bullying Greece in 1923
Mussolini was consolidating his power
from the 1930s, he was undermining international peace
Invasion of Abyssinia (1935)
undermined League
provided Hitler a distraction to remilitarise the Rhineland
disrupted the Stress Front with Britain and France
if he had not done this, it is possible the Stress Front would have been prepared to take unified action against Hitler
Rome-Berlin Axis
led Hitler to believe Britain and France would not stop him breaking the treaty without Italian support
Mussolini supported Hitler's Anschluss
had previously opposed the idea
Acting as a Brake on Hitler
Mussolini moved troops to Brenner Pass (1934) to warn off Hitler from intervening in Austria
Mussolini persuaded Hitler to agree to negotiations over the Sudentenland at the Munich Conference
delayed his invasion of Czechoslovakia
1939: Mussolini declared Italy a non-belligerent state
sat on the fence about entering the war
June 1940: Mussolini committed Italy, delared war on France
assumed that Hitler was on the verge of victory
Historians
Denis Mack
Mussolini was purely an opportunist. There was no inevitability of Mussolini being Hitler's ally
MacGrego Knox
Intensionalist. Mussolini's aggressive policy from mid 1930s was the logical outcome of Fascism
he was waiting for the right opportunities to expand and go to war
USSR
Stalin made it easier for Hitler to come to power
he had ordered the Comintern to attack other socialist parties rather than the Nazi Party
Soviet foreign policy was overwhelming focused on security
Nazi-Soviet Pact in August (1939) encouraged Hitler to invade Poland
Stalin had become concerned about war on 2 fronts (with Germany and Japan)
led to dynamic foreign policy
Japan seemed to pose the biggest threat to the Soviet Union
Japan had invaded China and Manchuria
Japan had signed the anti-Comintern pact with Germany
Russian and Japanese forces clashed at Khalkin-Gol on the Mongolian-Manchurian border
resulted in tens of thousands of casualties
Historians/Schools of Thought
Collective Security
Soviet histoirans
AJP Taylor
Geoffrey Roberty
Stalin genuinely wanted international peace
he took an active role to reduce the threat of Hitler
Joined League in 1934
Pact with France and Czechoslovakia
Stalin's faith in this policy of collective security shaken by Britain and France's appeasement in Munich conference
Stalin not invited to Munich conference - despite his pact with France and Czechoslovakia
Stalin feared they were appeasing Hitler so he wouldn't focus on the West but rather expand into Eastern territories
therefore, Stalin felt the need for a pact with Hitler
Hitler was becoming increasingly interested in the East, and it was clear Britain and France wouldn't defend this territory
Frank McDonough
Soviet documents opened in 1991 point out that Stalin did genuinely want collective security
Cynical and Aggressive Predator
American historians during Cold War (William Langer and S Everett Gleason)
Stalin was somewhat responsible for the outbreak of WWII
Stalin's pleas for collective security were a sham to foment divisions in capitalist states
e.g. the Nazi-Soviet pact was part of a plan to lock Britain, France and Germany in a war - leaving USSR stronger comparitvely
Frank McDonough
Soviet documents opened in 1991 point out that Stalin did genuinely want collective security
German
Robert Tucker
the consistent objective of Stalin's foreign policy was an alliance with Germany
and to revive the terms of the Rapallo Pact (1922) and the Treaty of Berlin (1926)
Influence of Internal Party Politics
Jonathan Haslam
Stalin prioritised domestic policy
foreign policy was determined by the power struggle between
Maxim Litvinov (soviet foreign minister 1930-39)
favoured close links with Britain and France
Vyacheslav Molotov (soviet foreign minister 1939 onwards)
favoured an agreement with Germany
the changing foreign policy of Russia was determined by factional struggles for power within the party
often Comintern and Foreign Ministry had differing policies
Foreign Ministry pursued non-ideological methods to secure Soviet security (French-Czech Pact of 1935)
Comintern sought to promote worldwide revolution - undermining governments
USA
isolated
their isolation meant Britain and France had less confidence to deal with threats
undermined the strength of the League of Nations
Historiography
John Wheeler-Bennett:
'Chamberlain was unable to deal with Hitler's aggressive policy'
AJP Taylor:
'appeasement was a logical and realistic policy, but the mistakes made by Chamberlain when he abandoned this policy brought war on'
'Hitler was a man of improvisation and opportunism'
Ernst Topitsch:
The USSR gave Hitler the 'green light' with the Nazi-Soviet Pact