What caused World War II and what were its effects?

The primary cause of the Second World War was the increased aggression of Nazi Germany and her allies. The European powers had believed that they could appease Hitler and prevent war by granting certain of his territorial ambitions.

The high watermark of appeasement took place at the Munich Conference in 1938, where Hitler was awarded the German-speaking region of Czechoslovakia known as the Sudetenland. However, it soon became clear that Hitler's territorial ambitions lay beyond what he could obtain by negotiation. When Hitler invaded Poland in 1939, it was patently obvious that he could no longer be trusted to keep his word, and so there was little choice but for France and Great Britain to go to war in order to put a halt to his ambitions.

Although the War began in Europe, it quickly spread to other parts of the globe, most notably North Africa and East Asia. This is what made the conflict a genuine world war and not just a European one. The internationalization of the conflict helped to ensure that it had a devastating effect on the world, leading to widespread death, destruction, and suffering on a truly unimaginable scale, including the systematic murder of over six million Jews by the Nazis.

World War I was the main cause of World War II, for several reasons. First, the German people reacted very badly to the German surrender, which many regarded as a backstab, and even more so to the Versailles treaty, which they were forced to sign without negotiation. The treaty made them take complete blame for the war, demanded onerous reparation payments, and severely limited the size of the German military. These were perceived as humiliating conditions. Almost as soon as the war was over, demagogues, notably Adolph Hitler, were able to use the circumstances of the defeat to blame Jews, advocate for fighting back to avenge the German people and eventually to seize political power.

World War I also led to World War II because it caused an enormous distaste for war among the political classes and average citizens in countries like France and England, who could have stopped Hitler early on if they had had the will. The political leadership, however, wanted to avoid another disastrous bloodbath like World War I at all costs. Therefore, rather than confronting Hitler when he first began his land grabs, they let him get away with his aggressions. Each time he took territory, they thought he would finally be satisfied, not realizing that each victory simply whetted his appetite for more. Further, many leaders were terrified of communism and believed a strong, large Germany would provide a good buffer between Western Europe and Russia.

The Western leaders (except for Churchill, who was not in power at the time) misread Hitler as being ruled by the same rational desire to avoid a world war that drove their own thinking. They learned too late that he had a completely different worldview.

One effect of the war was to force the United States to finally accept the mantle of the world's superpower. Other results were the creation of the United Nations and a forty-year division of Europe into two spheres, communist and capitalist.

There are many causes and effects of World War II. One cause was the aggressive actions of Germany, Japan, and Italy were ignored. When Japan invaded Manchuria and China, little was done to deal with these invasions. The same was true when Germany and Italy took land or violated the terms of the Versailles Treaty.

Another cause of World War II was the anger the harsh Versailles Treaty created. Germany was angry with the $33 billion in reparations they had to pay to the Allies. Germany also resented having to accept responsibility for World War I. Adolf Hitler played upon this anger, promising to restore German pride in the future. Italy felt they weren’t given enough land from the terms of the Versailles Treaty.

The Great Depression played a role in the start of World War II. Some countries turned to authoritarian leaders during the Great Depression. These leaders promised the people a return to the glory days of the past. Mussolini and Hitler both promised the people of their countries a better life economically and a restoring of pride in their countries. Countries like the United States, Great Britain, and France were so preoccupied with dealing with the effects of the Great Depression that they weren’t able to pay close attention to what was happening in Germany, Japan, and Italy.

As a result of World War II, several things changed. One thing that changed was that we now entered the atomic age. When the atomic bombs were dropped on Japan, a new military element and threat were introduced to the world. People now lived in fear of possible nuclear attack. Another change was the development of the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union. There would be conflicts and confrontations between these two countries over the next 45 years as a result of the Cold War.

A final effect of World War II was that countries with democratic governments are able to respond to serious crises. We proved that it isn’t necessary to turn to a dictator when times are bad. Our response to the threat presented by World War II showed that democratic government does work.

What were the causes of World War II?

There were many events that led up to the start of the second World War.  Some historians argue that World II was simply a continuation of World War I.  This topic is extremely complex, so I will highlight some of the main causes.

The Treaty of Versailles stated that Germany was to blame for World War I.  Germany was ordered to pay reparations to France and to Great Britain.  The country had already suffered greatly during World War I.  In order to pay the money, they printed a massive amount of German marks.  This led to significant inflation, and German money became practically worthless.  Some people even burned German marks as fuel because it was cheaper than purchasing firewood.  The amount that Germany had to pay was so large that they did not finish payments until 2010.  Germany also lost land and territories after the war.  The Treaty called for land to be annexed to neighboring countries.  The Germans had to de-militarize the Rhineland, which was an area along the border of Belgium.  During World War I, the Germans had destroyed coal mines in France.  After the war, France ordered Germany to repay back the coal they had destroyed.  They requested an enormous amount of coal.  At this time, coal was used heavily as fuel.  The devastation in Germany after the war led many people to seek a powerful leader to make Germany a strong country again.  Adolf Hitler came to power in 1933.  With him came a rise of anti-Semitism and a view of the superiority of the "Aryan race."  Many Germans were bitter toward countries like Britain and France because they felt that they had been punished for World War I.  The late 1910s saw a rise of Communism.  The Fascist regimes in both Germany and Italy were strongly anti-Communist.

Italy, Germany, and Japan all expanded their military in the years leading up to World War II.  This gave them the capability to wage war against strong military powers, such as the United States and Great Britain.  

In 1936, the Germans re-militarized the Rhineland.  This violated the Treaty of Versailles.  Japan invaded Manchuria in 1937 to gain economic power.  Western countries had economic influence in China.  Japan wanted this influence to end.  They wanted to gain from China's economy.  The U.S. stepped in and sought to negotiate with Japan.  When they continued to invade other areas, the U.S. stopped all shipments of oil to Japan.  The United States government would start shipments again if the Japanese removed their troops, but they refused to do so.  Germany annexed Austria in 1938 and invaded Czechoslovakia in 1939.  

Despite the tensions between the United States and Japan, it was not until 1941 that war was declared between the two countries.  On December 7th, 1941, the Japanese Navy attacked Pearl Harbor.  Other Japanese military forces attacked the Philippines and several British territories.  The next day, England and Britain declared war on Japan.

World War II had many contributing causes. First, a growing sense of nationalism began moving many nations towards aggressive and belligerent foreign policy choices. The resulted in a wave of expansionism that would contribute to Japan, Italy and Germany moving to take over neighboring countries.

Another cause was the rise of Fascism. The main leaders in the fascist movement said that this particular political ideology didn’t lend itself to lasting peace, since conflict was at the core of its philosophy.

These issues came to a head thanks to the Treaty of Versailles. This treaty bankrupted Germany by placing blame for the conflict squarely on its head. Germany was required to pay huge war debts, which bankrupted the country and provided fertile ground for the rise of the Nazi party who preached a gospel of German pride and revitalization. Thanks to the crippling economic crisis caused by the treaty, the legitimate government of Germany lost power and was replaced by Adolph Hitler’s party.

What are the causes of World War II?

There were many causes for World War II. So, I will limit my answer to the most important factors.

1. The treaty of Versailles that ended World War I was something that caused great bitterness among the German people. They were expecting a treaty based upon President Wilson's plan, which was more lenient, but what they got was a treaty that humiliated the Germans. Moreover, they could not afford the treaties terms. Hence, they decided to vote for a person who wanted to rip with the treaty, Hitler.
2. When Hitler became the Chancellor of German in 1933, he started to build up his army and navy, which was against the treaty of Versailles. He also made two important pacts, one with Italy and the other with Japan. He also took back land that was taken from Germany.
3. Most of Europe sought to appease Germany. They knew that what Hitler was doing was wrong according to the treaty of Versailles, but they turned a blind eye. Even Neville Chamberlain, the Prime Minister of Britain believed that the Germans were treated too harshly.
4. The League of Nations, which was set up after World War I to keep peace did nothing. In fact, they were powerless. All the while, there was tension brewing among the nations and Germany's invasion of Poland in 1939 marks the beginning of the war.

Based on thes four points Germany and Japan began World War II with invasions.

What are some causes of World War II?

There were several causes of World War II. One cause was the German anger with the harsh Versailles Treaty. Germany believed the Versailles Treaty treated them unfairly. This treaty required Germany to pay the Allies $33 billion in reparations. It also required Germany to accept the responsibility for World War I. Germany felt this was unfair because Austria-Hungary started the war by declaring war on Serbia.

Two additional causes of World War II were the Allies ignoring the violations of the Versailles Treaty by Germany and the aggressive actions of the Axis Powers prior to the start of the war. Germany began to violate the Versailles Treaty by building up its military. It also moved its military into the Rhineland. Both actions weren’t allowed in the Versailles Treaty. The Axis Powers became aggressive in the 1930s. Japan invaded Manchuria in 1931 and China in 1937. Italy invaded Ethiopia in 1935. Germany annexed Austria in 1938. Very little was done when these actions occurred. Then, the leaders of Great Britain and France appeased Germany by allowing Germany to take the Sudetenland in 1938 with an agreement called the Munich Pact. When Germany broke their promise to take no more land by taking the rest of Czechoslovakia in 1939, the stage for World War II was set. Italy also invaded Albania in 1939.

Other factors led to the start of World War II. Intense feelings of nationalism emerged in Germany, Japan, and Italy. These countries believed they were superior to other countries and could do almost anything they wanted to do. They also build up their military and had plans to use it. Along with the desire to gain more land, these factors were very significant in leading to the events that were involved in the start of World War II.

There were many factors involved in the start of World War II.

What caused World War II?

If one had to name a particular cause of World War II; it would be the Treaty of Versailles that ended World War I. Germany was treated most unfairly by the terms of the treaty. Germany was forced to accept full responsibility for the cause of the war, and full financial responsibility for its costs. This caused so much bitterness and resentment among the German people that it provided a ready platform for Adolf Hitler. Hitler railed about the unfairness of the Treaty, and also the need of the German people for Liebensraum, or "breathing space." This was the basis for his marching into the Rhineland, and his taking of all of Czechoslovakia when he had been promised the Sudetenland. This should have been sufficient warning to those who opposed him that he would not keep his word, but they were more inclined to appease him. Finally, on September 1, 1939, he invaded Poland, and the war in Europe began.

Strangely enough, the war in Asia with Japan was also largely the result of the Treaty. Japan had entered World War I on the side of the Allies hoping to gain large amounts of German held territory in Asia, but walked away empty handed. This played into the hands of the militant war party in Japan who started a campaign to take Manchuria and large areas of Indochina. When the United States stopped shipments of oil and scrap metal to Japan, the Japanese high command saw war with the United States as inevitable. Adm. Isokuru Yamamoto, who commanded the fleet that attacked Pearl Harbor, had reasoned that the United States did not have a "warrior heritage," and did not have the stomach for a long war. He believed that if the Pacific Fleet could be eliminated, the United States would make peace before the Atlantic Fleet could be repositioned. It was for this reason that Japan attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941.

Japan had previously signed the Tripartite Pact with Italy and Germany as a result of which, when the United States declared war on Japan, Italy and Germany declared war on the United States within 72 hours.  And the full war was on.

The invasion of Poland in 1939 in usually given as the beginning of World War II, although there were three other wars often seen as the beginning of what is often referred to as the "era of Hitlerian wars."  The Spanish Civil War was one, as was the Italian invasion of Ethiopia, both in 1936.  The following year fighting broke out between Japanese and Chinese troops the night of July 7 at an ancient stone bridge outside Beijing called the Marco Polo Bridge, probably incited by agents of Mao Zedong in his struggle with Chinese Nationalists.  The fighting was seized upon by the Japanese Army in China as an excuse to start a full scale war (the Second Sino-Japanese War), in defiance of the Japanese government.  There had been fighting between the Japanese and Chinese off and on since the 1931 incident in Mukden.

The real root cause of WW II, however, was the outcome of World War I.  The collapse of German morale (due largely to the British blockade) and the military reverses in France due largely to the massive influx of American troops led the German high command to ask for an Armistice.  This was not an actual surrender by the Germans, and their troops were never pushed back to German territory.  The humiliating terms of the Armistice, the political collapse of Germany's government(s), and the economic disaster following the war left the German nation feeling they were undefeated but treated unfairly.  The feeling that the Army did not lose the war but was "stabbed in the back" by socialists (and "Jewish bankers and businesses") at home led to a belief shared by many that the German nation essentially deserved a sort of rematch.  This and the armed rebellions by socialists, put down by the Freikorps, led to the rise of ultranationalist groups such as the Stahlhelm and the National Socialist Worker's Party.  All these groups espoused a rebuilding of industry and the military, and an eventual new war with France and her allies.

Ironically, this was very much the same reaction of France following the Franco-Prussian War of 1870.  The humiliation of the French Army and the seizure of Alsace and Lorraine were actually the true cause of the First World War, as the humiliating terms of the Armistice led to the Second.

What are the causes of World War II?

Many causes for World War II exist in history and you would have to consider both the European theatre and the Pacific theatre in your answer.  Several simple causes can be easily seen, the first being the Treaty of Versailles.  This treaty truly punished the German people for World War I, and because the punishment was so severe, the German people were willing to follow a man like Hitler who wanted to restore German pride and dominance, in effect setting up World War II.  Another cause was the rise of Hitler who was ELECTED chancellor in 1933 and immediately began building his army and navy against the terms of the treaty.  The weary of war nations simply appeased Hitler hoping that what they ignored would be enough to content him.  When he took over Austria, the world ignored it.  The League of Nations which was  set up after World War I was powerless and therefore could do nothing.  World War II causes are far more than I have described here.  With more research on your part, you should be able to determine if there is enough to write 1500 pages.  Whole books have been written, so my guess is that there is enough.  You could look at the principal people involved, the Japanese Pacific war or whatever else you found in your research.  Good luck.