World War II: Origins, Axis Formation, and Path to Conflict
Origins and Causes of the War
Two decisive factors contributed to the origins of World War II: the expansionism of fascist dictatorships and the economic crises of the 1930s.
Early Nazi Initiatives
Nazi Germany withdrew from the League of Nations. Hitler violated the restrictions imposed on Germany by the Treaty of Versailles. The German dictator planned to dominate all of Europe, creating a large National Socialist racial state (Great Reich). In 1935, Hitler annexed the Saar after a plebiscite favored its incorporation into Germany. The Nazi government then announced its intention to restore conscription.
Collaboration and Aggression
Between 1935 and 1936, Fascist Italy invaded and conquered Ethiopia. The League of Nations condemned this action and imposed economic sanctions against Italy. Mussolini responded by drawing closer to Germany and leaving the League of Nations. In 1936, Hitler ordered the occupation of the demilitarized Rhineland. The Spanish Civil War, which began in 1936, led to a non-intervention agreement signed by 25 countries, including Germany, Italy, and the USSR. This agreement soon became ineffective as Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy aided the insurgents against the Republic, while the USSR supported the Republic with arms and technicians.
The Axis Alliance
In 1936, Hitler and Mussolini forged an alliance known as the “Axis” Rome-Berlin. Shortly after, Germany and Japan signed the Anti-Comintern Pact against the Soviet Union, which Italy and Franco’s Spain joined in 1937.
The Road to War
Fearing war, democracies adopted a policy of appeasement, making concessions to dictators to avoid conflict. Hitler argued that to achieve autarky and rearmament, it was necessary to apply the idea of “living space” drastically: Germany needed new lands for raw materials for its war industry and food for its population. This expansionist policy was intended to lead to war.
Expansion and Annexation
In 1938, German troops entered Vienna, and Hitler announced a plebiscite to ratify the annexation of Austria into the German Reich. The next target was Czechoslovakia. The pretext was the Sudetenland, a region rich in mines and industries with a large German population. The pro-Nazi Sudeten German Party demanded its annexation to the Third Reich. The heads of government of the United Kingdom, France, and Italy attended the Munich Conference in 1938, where they accepted the annexation of the Sudetenland to the Reich. This did not end the matter.
Further Aggression
In March 1939, Slovakia declared its independence, and German troops entered Bohemia, forming the “Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia” as a satellite state of the Reich. In the same month, Hitler annexed the port of Memel (Lithuania), and in April, Mussolini occupied Albania. The annexation of Czechoslovakia highlighted the failure of appeasement by Britain and France, who then changed their attitude. The two powers offered assurances to states threatened by German and Italian expansionism. In August 1939, they signed a pact with Poland.
The Nazi-Soviet Pact
In 1939, the Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact was signed. It included a secret protocol that provided for the partition of Poland between Germany and the Soviet Union and recognized the USSR’s rights in Finland, the Baltics, and Bessarabia. Hitler wanted to avoid a two-front war in case of conflict with France and the UK, ensuring the neutrality of the USSR. Stalin justified the deal to avoid isolation and prevent possible German aggression. The deal shocked Western democracies.