WWII If there is a period that will always be remembered in the history of the 20th century, it is the Second World War. Although it was blamed for deaths of hundreds of thousands, it is also a period that stimulated technological advancement and prepared the world for the social changes that ensued after the war. Some of the most notable social changes include the termination of European colonial rule in some countries. It is also the period that marked heightened civil rights movements in the U.S.A. and the emergence of women's movements. The programs that set the pace of the exploration of outer space also started in this period. The warring groups involved a split on the axis of Nazi Germany, imperial Japan, Fascist Italy and some relatively smaller allies versus the allied group that involved Britain along with the commonwealth nations, the Soviet Union, and USA[footnoteRef:1]. The allies emerged victorious over their sworn counterparts. The emergence of the super powers is a result of the war too. Two main superpowers emerged, i.e. USSR and USA. These powers were soon caught in the melee that was the cold war. [1: World War II]

The era of European colonialism was effectively ended by the advent of the Second World War. The war weakened European powers significantly. The people of these European nations were weary of the war. Revolts from leftist movements within colonies run by European nations emerged and gained momentum after the war. These events forced the European nations to withdraw from the lands they had occupied and established colonial rule. The withdrawal of these European nations from their colonies was not always peaceful and uneventful. There are many instances where it took the efforts of guerilla warfare for the colonialists to surrender fully. Indeed, the rebel movements had been fanned and triggered by the fact that the members of such groups had gained sufficient combat experience in the course of the Second World War. It has been noted that the best armed and, often, the most experienced rebels came from the communist wing[footnoteRef:2]. The activities of these well-armed and well trained communist rebel movements sent cold chills amongst world leadership and people that communists were set to take over the world. These fears were aggravated by the fact that USSR had taken over most of Eastern Europe, soon after the war. The Chinese Civil War in 1949 was also won by the communist. These events led to further cold war tactics in which Western nations supplied food and military supplies to try and suppress the surging communist rebels. [2: The European Theater]

The African front also has more than its fare share of the complications that emerged as a result of the Second World War. When the African-Americans who took part in combat during the war returned home, they were shocked to find the old discrimination against them still perpetuated without a sign of ending. Dr. Martin Luther King evolved a civil Rights Movement that worked to stop the officially sanctioned discriminatory practices that happened in a myriad of ways; employment discrimination in employment, and a range of social ills. India, it was Mahatma Gandhi, who paved the way for the mushrooming of civil rights movements. Gandhi was also instrumental in the awakening of such consciousness among citizens in other places such as the U.S.A. On the African front, conservatives narrowly defeated the coalition that led the country in the course of the Second World War. The new regime established tougher racial policies under the apartheid banner. This system continued until 1994.

The European Theater in WW -- The background

In an effort to deal a destructive and decisive blow against the Nazis, the U.S. concentrated their allied support in England and consequently launched an onslaught through the English Channel to Europe's mainland. Plans for such an onslaught were made in 1942 to take place in 1943. They had even intended to strike as soon as possible in September of the same year. They had planned in case Russia or Germany indicated even tale-tale sign of collapse[footnoteRef:3]. The English people agreed to the plan in principle, albeit tentatively. The Americans started building war supplies and troops within the UK after the British agreed to the plan. The onslaught did not take place until 1944. The British proposed an invasion of North America and the Americans accepted the plan in mid-1942. Following the heavy fighting that took place in Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia, the allies became victorious in the campaign in North America in the middle of 1943. [3: The European Theater in WWII: The Eastern Front, Western Front & Fight for North Africa]

The UK prime Minister,

president, Mr. Roosevelt, in a meeting in Casablanca, decided to target Sicily in Italy as their next operation. In late July of the same year, the allies lived true to their plan in the island of Sicily. They started with invading mainland Italy. This was not an easy war. The war led to the death of 114 Americans. The German forces in the region refused to surrender until May 1945. However, tactically, this strategy by Germans failed them because it is the same troops that could have shielded them against the Allies fighting in France.
The Nazi war machine overran, Luxemburg, Norway, Belgium, Netherlands and Denmark, in a period of one month in 1940. They made France their next target. It only took a six-week fighting onslaught to invade Paris. France surrendered to the Nazi attack in June 1940 while on the same railroad car as it was located in the same spot where Germany had earlier given in to France at the peak of WWI. It was, indeed, sweet revenge for the veterans of the earlier war, who were still Germans. Britain withdrew almost 350000 troops from French soil by all means. They generally directed all their resources to this exercise. The core of the British Expeditionary Force was saved by the famous Miracle of Dunkirk. Their numbers were great though and so they put up stiff resistance. There were several planes and boats lost in the encounter[footnoteRef:4]. Some 35000 French soldiers were left and the BEFs heavy weaponry and machinery was captured by the Germans. [4: World War I vs. World War II - Difference and Comparison]

Comparing the WWII European Theater to WWI

The 1st world war started in earnest in 1914. On 28th July 1914, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. They sought to reassert their dominance and authority as the strongest Balkan power. This breakout of war made Europe to fall back into the initial alliances that had been formed[footnoteRef:5]. Germany and Austria-Hungary were in the same alliance. Serbia, on the other hand, was Russia's ally, as it was with France. Russia provided support to Serbia and attacked Austria. Therefore, Austria-Hungary alliance was forced to fight on two fronts. This made it hard for them. They eventually lost on both fronts. Germany attacked France in an effort to rescue Austria-Hungary and in fear of being attacked by France. The bid for a balance of power in Europe is what actually led to the break out of the Second World War. The immediate trigger of this conflict was the demand of Germans for Danzig to be returned and areas of the Polish Corridor that were given to Poland in the Treaty of Versailles of 1919. Poland declined to yield to German's demands. German forces, consequently invaded Poland on 1st September 1939. They defeated Poland in a record time of 3 weeks. Russia also invaded the Eastern part of Poland. Poland was then split into two parts[footnoteRef:6]. France and Britain had guaranteed Poland its sovereignty in March 1939. Therefore, they naturally demanded that the Germans withdraw from Poland. On 3rd September, they declared war against the Germans. The Americans were bound by the Neutrality Acts of 1935 and 1937 not to intervene in conflicts overseas. [5: ] [6: ]

Most of the Weaponry that dominates the operations of military formations today was invented in the course of the First World War. Some of these include the tank, specialized aircraft and the machine gun.

The central powers came against a series of treaties imposed on them after the First World War by the Paris peace Conference. The treaty of Versailles in 1919 formally ended the war. Wilson's 14th point helped the Treaty of Versailles to bring into existence the League of Nations on the 28th of June 1919. Germany formally acknowledged being responsible for the war when they signed the treaty. They agreed to pay a large sum in reparations and award the claimed territory to the victorious allies. This action led to a lot of bitterness. Austria-Hungary was consequently split into several successor states. Much of the western frontier that had been in the hands of Russia was also lost. Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Poland and Finland were the products of this process of cutting off a large chunk of the territory that was under the Russians. The WWII came to an end after the Germans…