Life Throughout the Wars

Journal 4.1.3

Life Throughout the Wars

        In 1914, world war 1 was just beginning. This was the first battle to be considered a total war because the countries fighting engaged as much of their population as possible in the warfare. This war was fought between two “teams”; the Central Powers- Germany, Austria, Hungary, Ottoman Empire, and Bulgaria- versus the Allies- Britain, France, Russia, Italy, and the United States. This war continued for four years, killing over 25 million people, until the Treaty of Versailles in 1919 that officially commenced the war and declared that the Allies defeated the Central Powers, and placed the blame for the war onto Germany. After this major war, a new world war started approaching. Some of the key events leading to the second world war was Adolf Hitler’s establishment of the Nazi party in 1920. Hitler then wrote a famous book, “Mein Kampf”, in 1925 which stated that the only reason the Germany was defeated in the previous world war was because of their weak economy. He blamed the Jews for causing the weak economy that led them to defeat in World War 1. Then in 1929 the Great Depression begins in America and spreads world-wide. This gave Hitler an opportunity to seize power in Germany by promoting his ideas on how he will be able to fix the economy and lead Germany to become the strongest country. This won him the election and he became dictator in 1933 and passed the Enabling act which allowed him to make decisions on his own without having to consult the Reichstag. This is when Hitler ignored the treaty of Versailles and began his creation of the Third Reich, creating a massive army and establishing an air force.

        Subsequently, Hitler’s massive army and power led him to begin invasions and persecution of Jews. These invasions began with his capture of Austria, which was what stirred up surrounding countries and prepared them for an unwanted World War 2. Hitler created an alliance with Italy in 1936, and his next major invasion is what started the international conflict. Hitler invades Poland in 1939 which brings Britain and France against the axis powers. Germany then invades Russia and Japan’s Pearl Harbor strike, both in 1941 causing them to join in the fight against the Axis Powers. This war was fought until Germany’s surrender in 1945, killing around 45 million people as well as over 6 million Jews in German concentration camps.