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World War II....
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Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini
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World War II, or the Second World War, was a truly global conflict
which by most accounts began on 1 September 1939. It lasted until 1945,
and involved the majority of the world's countries and every inhabited
continent. Virtually all countries that participated in
World War I were
involved in World War II. It was the most extensive, expensive and
bloodiest armed conflict in the history of mankind.
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Attributed in varying degrees to the Treaty of
Versailles, the Great Depression, nationalism, and militarism, the causes of
the war are a matter of debate. On which date the war began is also debated.
The most common citation is the German invasion of Poland on 1 September
1939, but the formal British and French declarations of war were issued
first on 3 September 1939. Other candidates for the war's commencement
include the entry of Hitlerīs armies to Prague in March 1939, the Japanese
invasion of China on 7 July 1937 (the start of the Second Sino-Japanese
War), or earlier yet the 1931 Japanese invasion of Manchuria. Still others
argue that the two world wars are in fact one conflict separated only by a
20-year "ceasefire". Some historians who support this opinion also argue
that this conflict continued through the Cold War in one Long War ending
with the fall of the Soviet Union. |
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Fighting occurred across the Atlantic Ocean, in Western
and Eastern Europe, in the Mediterranean Sea, Africa, the
Middle East, in
the Pacific and South East Asia, and it continued in China. In Europe, the
war ended with the surrender of Germany on 8 May 1945 (V-E and Victory
Days), but continued in Asia until Japan surrendered on 15 August 1945 (V-J
Day). |
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Pearl Harbor attacked on 7
December 1941
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PostWorld War II Europe was partitioned into Western
and Soviet spheres of influence, the former undergoing economic
reconstruction under the Marshall Plan and the latter becoming satellite
states of the Soviet Union. This partition was, however, informal; rather
than coming to terms about the spheres of influence, the relationship
between the victors steadily deteriorated, and the military lines of
demarcation finally became the de-facto country boundaries. Western Europe
largely aligned as NATO and Eastern Europe largely as the Warsaw pact,
alliances which were fundamental to the ensuing Cold War. In Asia, the
United States' military occupation of Japan led to its democratisation.
China's civil war continued through and after the war, resulting
eventually in the establishment of the People's Republic of China. The war
sparked a wave of independence for colonies of European powers. |
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