What was the Historical Circumstances (Context) Surrounding World 1 and 2 conflict?
1 Answer
See below
Explanation:
World War One: tensions in Europe were very strong between Gerrmany, France and the UK. The control of oil in Iraq(with the Bagdad-Bahn) is one of the major issues that led to WWI. Indeed the German empire would have made Great Britain dependent for its oil supply with the creation of that railroad from Koweit to Germany(it went through the Balkans or what became Yugoslavia).
France and the UK had become World empires and Germany was jealous of that prestige and Bismark launched what is known as the Weltpolitik in the late nineteenth century. Its purpose was to increase German world influence. The race to arms was raging between those three powers. In 1914 Europe ws divided between the Triple Entente(France, Great Britain, and the Russian Empire) created in 1905 and the Triple Alliance(The German Empire, the Austrian Hungarian Empire and Italy).
World War II: WWII context was marked by two things- the Great Depression and the rise of fascism and nazism in Europe. Germany and Italy were humiliated after WWI, despite the recovery that followed 1924, their economies collapsed after 1929. It helped Hitler rise to power in 1933, Mussolini had already become the Italian duce in 1922. These regimes became allies in 1936, Japan joined them (they became known as the Axis forces) and in 1939, Hitler decided to invade Poland and this is how World War II started.
France and Great Britain declared war to Germany, France was overwhelmed and capitulated. The war was ended thanks to the intervention of both the USSR and the USA in 1941 which joined the war after being attacked by respectively Germany and Japan.
