The Beginning of the Second World War Essay -- Adolf Hitler, WWII

When the First World War started to come to an end, many people hoped that it would be the last war that Europe had to endure. Unfortunately to many people who lived through the first war, the Second World War surpassed the first in death, scope, brutality, and by the number of people it reached. The roots were not only buried in the First World War, but also in the precious years after it. It was also the result of Axis aggression, a failed peace treaty after the First World War, and the failure of the Allies to stop the expansion and influence of Axis powers. When the First World War started, many people believed that it would be a quick war (Wilkinson 35). To many who looked the combatants, the Entente powers appeared the strongest (35). Though when push came to shove, Germany's industrial might and cracked army came to a shock for the Entente powers (35). The failure of Germany's invasion plan into France, developed by Count Alfred von Schlieffen, lead to trenches being dug by both sides on the Western Front (40). With casualties mounting on both sides, the Germans risked everything in one last offensive into France (68). Defeat would be the collapse of the Central Powers (68). Victory was almost in reach, although the German army could no longer field enough men to attack (69). On September29, 1918, General Erich Ludendorff of the German General Staff, said that only an immediate armistice could save Germany now (69). With mutinies in the navy, revolutions in Bavaria, and the emperor abdicating, Germany signed an armistice ag reement in terms with the Entente powers.( 70). On November 11, 1918, the First World War came to an end.( 70). The end of the war brought a peace treaty that was signed in the Hal... ...sualties. As the Allies slowly pushed the German’s back to Germany, evidence of the Nazi’s racial polices was slowly uncovered. Mass graves and concentration camps slowly began appearing. Soon, people began to realize what they were fighting for and why it was so important to fight that battle. Hitler, with all hope lost, retreated into his bunker in Berlin where he committed suicide during the last few days of the war. Works Cited Mazower, Mark. â€Å"Dark Continent – Europe’s Twentieth Century†. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc, 1998 Wasserstein, Bernard. â€Å"Barbarism & Civilization – A history of Europe in our time†. New York: Oxford University Press, 2007 Wilkinson, James. â€Å"Contemporary Europe, A History Ninth Edition†. New Jersey: Simon & Schuster, 1998 Wright, Mark. â€Å"What they didn’t teach you about World War II†. Navato, CA: Presidio Press, 1998