"A Comprehensive History of World War II: From the Invasion of Poland to the Atomic Bombs"
World War II was a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945 and involved the majority of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis. It was the most widespread war in history, and directly involved more than 100 million people from more than 30 countries. In a state of "total war", the major participants threw their entire economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities behind the war effort, erasing the distinction between civilian and military resources. Marked by mass deaths of civilians, including the Holocaust (in which approximately 11 million people were killed) and the strategic bombing of industrial and population centers (in which approximately one million people were killed), it resulted in 50 million to over 70 million fatalities.
The war began with the invasion of Poland by Germany and the Soviet Union, followed by the British and French declaration of war on Germany in September 1939. From late 1939 to early 1941, in a series of campaigns and treaties, Germany conquered or controlled much of continental Europe, and formed the Axis alliance with Italy and Japan. Under the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, Germany and the Soviet Union partitioned and annexed territories of their European neighbors, including Poland, Finland, and the Baltic states.
In June 1941, Germany turned on the Soviets, opening the largest and the deadliest theater of war in history. Nazi Germany acquired additional territories in eastern Europe, invaded the Soviet Union, and embarked on a massive campaign of extermination and enslavement, eventually committing the genocide of over 3 million Soviet and Polish Jews, as well as various Romani peoples, gay people, disabled people, priests, political opponents, and others deemed "unworthy of life" by the Nazi regime. In response, the Soviet Union, along with the United States, China, and the other Allies, eventually defeated the Axis powers and liberated Europe from Nazi domination.
The United States entered the war in December 1941 after the Japanese attacked on the American naval base at Pearl Harbor. In December 1941, Japan seized much of Southeast Asia, and quickly conquered much of the Western Pacific. However, Japan's advances were halted in 1942 after defeats in the Coral Sea and at Midway. In 1944, Allied offensives in the Pacific, combined with Japan's ineffective defense of its conquered territories, soon confined the Japanese to the islands of Japan and a few small territories in Southeast Asia and the Pacific.
The war in Europe concluded with the capture of Berlin by Soviet and Polish forces, and the subsequent German unconditional surrender on 8 May 1945. Following Germany's surrender, the war in the Pacific ended with the dropping of the atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945. The dropping of the bombs, along with the German surrender, resulted in the end of World War II.
The United Nations, formed in the aftermath of the war, and including many of the victorious powers, became the first international organization to address issues of global concern, including decolonization, human rights, and disarmament. The victorious great powers—China, France, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, and the United States—became the permanent members of the United Nations Security Council. The Soviet Union and the United States emerged as rival superpowers, setting the stage for the Cold War, which lasted for the next 46 years.
During the war, the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union were referred to as the "Big Three". The other Allied powers, including China, France, and Poland, were referred to as the "Co-belligerents". The Western powers, including the United States, the United Kingdom, and France, were opposed to the Axis powers, which included Germany, Italy, and Japan.
The causes of World War II are complex and varied. The war had its roots in the aggressive actions of Nazi Germany, led by dictator Adolf Hitler, and the Axis powers in the 1930s, as well as the failure of the international community to effectively address these actions. Hitler's ambitions for territorial expansion and the creation of a "new order" in Europe, as outlined in his book "Mein Kampf'', led to the invasion and annexation of Austria in 1938, the annexation of the Sudetenland in Czechoslovakia in 1938, and the invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1939. Hitler also signed a nonaggression pact with the Soviet Union in 1939, which some argue emboldened him to take further aggressive actions.
The failure of the international community, including the League of Nations, to effectively address these actions and deter further aggression is also seen as a cause of the war. The appeasement policies of the United Kingdom and France towards Hitler, including the Munich Agreement in 1938, are often cited as a factor in the build-up to the war.
Other factors that contributed to the start of the war include the rise of militarism, nationalism, and imperialism in the 1930s, as well as the effects of the Treaty of Versailles following World War I. The treaty, which ended World War I, imposed heavy reparations on Germany and reduced its military capabilities, contributing to resentment and a desire for revenge among some in the country.
The war had a significant impact on the course of history, leading to the defeat of the Axis powers and the rise of the United Nations. It also had a major impact on the global economy, with countries suffering significant damage to their infrastructure and industry. The war also had a significant impact on the development of new technologies, including the use of nuclear weapons and the advancement of rocket science.
The aftermath of the war also saw the rise of the Cold War, as the United States and the Soviet Union emerged as rival superpowers in the post-war world. The war also had a significant impact on the decolonization process, as many colonized countries gained independence following the war.
The memory of the war and its events, including the Holocaust, continue to have a significant impact on the world today. The war and its consequences are still studied and discussed in schools and universities around the world, and the events of the war are remembered through ceremonies and memorials.
