World Wars: Impacts, Causes, and Key Events
The Age of Anxiety: Post-World War I
The twenty years following World War I were considered an Age of Anxiety because of the negative impacts the war had on most aspects of life at the time. While millions of lives were lost during the war, it was the post-war era that caused just as much, if not more, suffering and death. The cost of this war was not only financial but also physical. There was a lack of trust in leadership, lack of food, an increase in disease, and a lack of finances; all of which caused this time in history to become an Age of Anxiety.
After the war was over and the lives were lost, the public learned why so many people had died during the war: the lack of leadership. These leaders led millions into ‘No Man’s Land,’ knowing that they would die—leaders who led with the idea that they could beat the enemy no matter what; they just had to wait them out. This was incompetent leadership, at the least. The people realized that these leaders of theirs could not be true leaders if they had led millions of men to their deaths with no regard for human life. This was certainly one of, if not the main cause, which led to the lack of trust in leadership during the post-war era.
Furthermore, during this period, millions died because of malnutrition, especially in Europe. There were British blockades that weren’t lifted until Germany agreed to the terms of the Paris Peace Conference. This caused hunger and death throughout Europe. This deprivation of the essentials of life allowed a disease such as the Spanish Flu to sweep through and kill tens of millions of people across the world.
In conclusion, this post-war era, which was considered an Age of Anxiety, caused a significant amount of casualties, distrust, illness, and physical and mental hardship. This era showed us that the lack of competent leadership builds distrust, and the lack of food builds disease-ridden environments, all of which have the capability of destroying nations by the millions.
Appeasement: A Political Tactic
Appeasement is a political tactic used to avoid war. Most nations don’t want to go to war, but some certainly are willing to at any time. Appeasement allows certain powers of the world to negotiate terms in order to avoid war, in order to please other nations. No one wants another World War, yet some act as if they do in order to receive what they want from other countries. These countries launch rockets, build nuclear facilities, and other massively destructive materials, not because they will go to war, because they know the consequences, but to allow other countries and the UN to give them what they want in order to satisfy the “threat” of not attacking another country. Nations threaten military actions all the time, and superpowers appease them in order not to attack. Although the actual legitimacy of the threats is debated, no one is willing to take the risk of more wars breaking out.
Pearl Harbor: A Turning Point in World War II
The Pearl Harbor attack was a critical moment in World War II. At this point, the United States wasn’t militarily involved in the war. Japan was taking over territories all over the Pacific and Asia. They also wanted to take over the United States, but they knew that couldn’t happen due to the power of their military. The Japanese assumed that if they attacked Pearl Harbor, then it would send a devastating blow to the U.S. military and the citizens of the U.S., who had been opposed to being a part of the war. Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, killing thousands of people. This did exactly the opposite of what the Japanese thought would happen. It infuriated the American public and made them want to be a part of the war. This was what brought the United States into World War II, and the United States was the main cause of the end of World War II when they forced the Japanese to surrender after dropping two atomic bombs, which had the destruction power that no one in the world had ever seen before.
No Man’s Land: A Symbol of Futility
‘No Man’s Land’ was a term created by soldiers in World War I. During the war, there were trenches built along both factions’ sides. These trenches were built to hide from the powerful weapons that the Industrial Revolution had allowed industrialized societies to create, such as machine guns. Every time a soldier was sent to leave their trench to advance on the enemy’s trenches, they would die due to these weapons. After a period of time, soldiers realized that it was a lost cause, and by going over the trenches, they would die just like every other person who previously did. Thus, they named the areas between the trenches ‘No Man’s Land.’ This area, which was created by military tactics (or a lack of), was the cause of millions of deaths, the cause of the creation of deadlier weapons as the war went on, and it was also a learning experience for future wars to come.
Fascism: An Ideology of Turmoil
Fascism was a result of the lack of faith in other ideologies because the world seemed to be in such turmoil. Leaders such as Mussolini took advantage of the unrest in order to gain followers. These leaders promised stability and other things the population wanted. Fascism is, first and foremost, military-minded. Businesses are state-run and run like the military, which is strict. Fascists are against any other ideology. They believe that you’re either with them or against them.
Treaty of Versailles: Seeds of Resentment
The Treaty of Versailles was a direct result of the hard feelings France and Great Britain had towards Germany because of World War I. They felt that the war was Germany’s fault and that they should pay what the total war cost to make amends and to make sure that Germany would refrain from doing this again. However, the cost of the war was more than Germany could ever pay, and consequently, they were forced to sign this treaty (with the threat of more war if they didn’t) that resulted in them losing economic and military control. The actions taken in the Treaty of Versailles angered the Germans.
The Great Depression: A Global Crisis
The Great Depression was initiated by the collapse of the United States stock market. This caused banks, businesses, and other institutions in the U.S. to collapse. In order to secure what money was leftover in the market, banks and other financial lenders did whatever they could to get the little money that was out there, including taking houses that weren’t fully paid for. During this time, unemployment dropped to a historic low, and people were unable to feed their families. This didn’t only have an impact on the U.S. but was felt worldwide since the U.S. was lending Germany money to pay their debts from World War I. During the Great Depression, the U.S. could no longer afford to send money to Germany, thus creating a financial crisis around the world. In order to stop something like this from happening again, the stock market and financial institutions became highly regulated.
Collectivization: Stalin’s Iron Grip
After World War I, the Soviet Union was under Stalin’s control. At that time, the country wasn’t as industrialized as other countries, such as the United States. Stalin wanted to fix this, so he instituted collectivization. Stalin took over private land for the state, using the profits for the state’s benefits. Peasants were forced to work in state-run factories and other manual labor industries that produced resources. Those who resisted were either shot, put on starvation diets, or sent away to labor camps. Eventually, profits were used to build an industrialized society for the Soviet Union. This point in time shows the neglect of human rights in the Soviet Union, which is still apparent today, just not to that extent. It also paved the way to the industrialized superpower, which is now Russia.
Battle of Stalingrad: A Turning Point
The Battle of Stalingrad was a critical factor in Nazi Germany’s defeat. Hitler wanted to finally destroy the Soviet Union, and one key to this was by taking Stalingrad, which had massive oil fields. The Germans didn’t account for the freezing weather in the region. They were ordered to hold their ground, which in turn was a mistake as they did not have the supplies for this type of battle. Not only were they battling the Soviet Union, but Mother Nature; they lost both wars.
The Holocaust: A Stain on Humanity
The Holocaust was part of World War II. Nazi Germany had gathered millions of people (mainly Jews) and sent them to concentration camps. People were separated by age, sex, race, and health. If you weren’t of a certain age, or you were too sick, then you were instantly burned alive; this happened by the millions. Those who were left to live were forced into labor with barely any clothes and little food. They died from many things, such as starvation, diseases, and mental diseases that made them useless. This was genocide, and it killed millions of people while a lot of the world just watched it happen.
Proxy Wars: The Cold War’s Hidden Battles
Proxy wars were a part of the Cold War. While the United States and the Soviet Union never went to war with each other, there was political maneuvering throughout the world between these two giants that only created more hostility. This was done by taking sides in other countries’ wars. An example being, the United States would supply arms, troops, and other military support in order to help defeat a country that the Soviet Union was fond of. This explains why political tensions have been so high between the United States and the Soviet Union since the end of World War II.
Paris Peace Conference: Shaping the Post-War World
The Paris Peace Conference was held by the winning parties of World War I in order to make Germany agree with certain terms, which all favored the winners of the war.
Bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki: The End of WWII
The Bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki led to the end of World War II after Japan attacked Pearl Harbor and brought the U.S. into the war.