World War II - Analysis

First World War - Explained

Introduction

Europe in 1914

 In 1914, a war began in Europe which soon engulfed almost the entire world with the battles fought in Europe, Asia, Africa and the Pacific. This war was different from the wars fought earlier in terms of its scale and it's repercussions. It was fought on a worldwide scale and affected almost all countries in the world. During this war new methods of defence and destruction were used. Moreover, in the earlier wars the civilian population was generally not involved. But this war was fought by the people as a whole. Thus, the war marked the turning point in the history of the world. Because of the unprecedented extent of its spread, impact and damage an it's total nature, it is known as the first world war.

French people protesting for public demand regarding boost I'm economy and power of nation, a clear sign of aggressive nationalism which was one of the causes of WW1

CAUSES OF THE FIRST WORLD WAR

1. Nationalism and Imperialism: Nationalism refers to the sense of unity felt by the people, who share a common history, language and culture.

Imperialism refers to the state policy or practice by which a powerful nation establishes it's control over another country, either by direct territorial acquisition or by gaining political or economic control.

Even though, nationalism is itself not harmful however hatred for other nations is and is called aggressive nationalism.

SS Imperator was a German ocean liner built for the Hamburg America Line (Hamburg Amerikanische Paketfahrt Aktien Gesellschaft, or HAPAG), launched in 1912. At the time of her completion in June 1913, she was the largest passenger ship in the world by gross tonnage, surpassing the new White Star liner Olympic.

2. Race for Armament: This was yet another cause for the world war. Various europian countries begam stockpiling armaments after France-Pressian War, in the name of self defence and preservation of peace. If one country increased its arms stockpile then other countries were compelled to do the same. By 1914, Germany had left Britain and France far behind inthe production of iron and steel and in many other manufactures. One of it's ships, the Imperator, built in 1912 was the largest in the world. Moreover, the Germans dug the Kiel canal deeper so that battleships could enter it's waters. Britain and France were concerned with Germany's growing military strength.

 The Kiel Canal was one of the chief mobility centres for the German military both in WW-1 and

WW-2

3. Division of Europe into Two hostile groups: In the Early 20th century, Europe was divided into two kinds of States - single Nation-States like France, Germany, Holland and Imperial States like Austria-Hungary and the Russian Empire. Moreover, the dispute over colonies created rivalries. These rivalries created created suspicion, tension and wars, which finally culminated in the first world war.

Assassination of Archduke Ferdinand at Sarajevo, capital of Bosnia by a secret society called 'Black Hand' or 'Union of Death' on June 28, 1914

4. Sarajevo crisis(immediate cause): Archduke Francis Ferdinand, the heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary was assassinated at Sarajevo, capital of Bosnia on June 28, 1914. The assassination was organised by a secret society called Black Hand' or 'Union of Death' formed by extremist Serbian nationalists whose aim was to unite all Serbians into a single Serbian State. Austria served an ultimatum on Serbia on July 23 making eleven demands. Serbia accepted most of the demands except those that would have led to the loss of her sovereignty. Austria declared war on Serbia on July 28, 1914. Russia started preparation for war to support Serbia. On August 1, 1914 Germany declared war on Russia; and on August 3, on France. German troops marched into Belgium to press on to France on August 4 and on the same day Britain declared war on Germany. Many other countries soon joined and the war was now fought in different areas called fronts. Two power spheres- The Allied Powers and The Central Powers were fighting the war which was already a world war.

EVENTS of the World War

1. War on Western front:

German soldiers marching into Belgium and movin ahead towards France unknown of the upcoming ferocious Battle of Marne where many of them would die.

The German forces initiated the war on western front by invading Belgium and entering southern France. The war between France and Germany has been named Battle of Marne after the river near which the battle was fought, some 15 miles from Paris.

French soldiers holding position in a ditch in the Battle of Marne

The German soldiers were defeated in the battle and their dream to crush France was foiled.

2. Trench warfare:

Pathetic living conditions in trenches in World War 1

Machine guns and artillery fire made life above ground too dangerous. Trenches were dug to protect soldiers, however the condition was pathetic. The soldiers suffered from food shortages, lice, rat, cold amd the stench of dead soldiers made it even worse. Rain and snow turned the trenches into mud caves.

3. War on Eastern front:

The invasion of Russia by Austria-Hungary in 1914 marked the beginning of war on the Eastern front. Germany and Austria-Hungary succeeded in repulsing Russian attack and captured parts of the Russian Empire. Japan occupied German possessions in East Asia and Britain and France seized most of the German colonies in Africa.

German colonies in Africa before World War 1 in 1913

4. The Policy of Blockades:

British blockade mobilizing in 1915

The war involved total mobilization of all the resources of the warring parties with all economic activities subordinated to the needs of the war. It also required that no goods including food, raw materials and war materials should be allowed to enter the enemy territory from anywhere. In 1916, Germany started the submarine warfare and sunk many British warships but the French defeat her in the Battle of Verdun. Germany was also defeated in the Battle of Dogger Bank.

5. War against Turkey:

Towards the end of the year 1914, Turkey joined the war on the side of Germany. The German fleet controlled the Baltic Sea, Turkey held Dardanelles which led to the Black Sea. Thus, Russia was cut off as it could not get any help from the Entente powers. The British Indian Army attacked Turkey and the Turks surrendered in October 1918.

6. Entry of USA in the War:

In 1915, the German U-Boats had sunk a British ship Lusitania. Among the 1153 passengers killed, 128 were Americans. The Americans were generally sympathetic to Britain, and this incident further roused anti-German feelings in the USA. The Allied Powers had raised vast amounts of loans in the USA to pay for the arms and other goods bought by them. Therefore the USA feared that if Germany won the war, she would become a serious rival to the USA. On 6 April, 1917, the United States of America declared war on Germany.

7. Exit of Russia in 1917:

Another major development that took place in 1917 was the withdrawal of Russia from the War after the October Revolution. The Russian Empire had suffered serious reverses in the War. Over 600,000 Russian soldiers were killed. The day after the Bolshevik Government came to power under the leadership of Lenin, it issued the Decree on Peace with proposals to end the War without any annexations and indemnities.

8. Treaty of Brest-Litovsk (March 3, 1918):

Russian and German delegates signing up the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk on March 3, 1918

Russia signed a peace treaty with Germany on 3rd March 1918, known as the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk. Germany imposed harsh terms on Russia and the Russian government accepted them.

END OF FIRST WORLD WAR

Tanks used in the First World War

Britain, France and the USA launched military offensive in July 1918 and Germany and her allies began to collapse.

• September, 1918 - Bulgaria withdrew from the war

• October, 1918 - Turkey surrendered

• November 3, 1918 - Austria-Hungary surrendered

• November 11, 1918 - New German government signed armistice

• 53 million to 70 million people died in the First World War

• The Allied Powers spent nearly about forty-one thousand million pounds

• The Central Powers spent nearly about fifteen thousand million pounds

RESULTS OF THE WORLD WAR

1. Treaty of Versailles (June 28, 1919)

The then British Prime Minister Lloyd George signing the Treaty of Versailles in Paris on June 28, 1919

The victorious Allied Powers, met in a conference first in Versailles, a suburb of Paris, and later in Paris, between January and June 1919. They were to sign a treaty to prevent Germany from going to war again. The terms of the treaty was decided by Lloyd George (PM of Britain), Woodrow Wilson (President of USA), and George Clemenceau (PM of France).

As per the terms of the Treaty:

• Germany was required to pay for the loss and damage suffered by the Allied Powers

• Germany had to give away multiple territories and coal mines to countries such as Belgium, Denmark, etc.

• Germany lost all her colonies to the Allied Powers

• The military power of Germany was forcefully decreased

2. Territorial Rearrangement

Map showing Europe before and after First World War. Large empires such as Austria-Hungary was divided into independent territories such as Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia.

After the end of war, three ruling dynasties were destroying - the Romanov in Russia during the War itself, the Hohenzollern in Germany and the Hapsburg in Austria-Hungary. The ottoman rule in Turkey came to an end. New independent States were formed by division of Austria-Hungary

3. Formation of the League of Nations

The League of Nations was formed in 1919 which aimed to prevent further World Wars and maintain peace which later it failed to achieve leading to the Second World War

The League of Nations was created as a world organization of all independent states in 1920. It's chief aim was to prevent future escalations and World wars which later on it failed to achieve leading to the second World War.

The rise of dictatorship in Italy and Germany led to the weakening of the League of Nations and it failed in its basic object of maintaining peace in the world. Unfortunately the league came to an end as Hitler committed aggression on Poland which began the World War 2 (1939-1945).