The Extent of Hitlers Responsibility for the Second World War

Many factors led to the outbreak of the Second World War the most direct, obvious action was Britain, and France declaring war on Germany after Hitler invaded Poland. However, without certain motivations and scenarios that occurred between 1919 and 1939, such as the Treaty of Versailles, failure of appeasement and the Great Depression, World War II could have been avoided. A main factor that contributed to Hitler seeking revenge was The Treaty of Versailles. The Treaty of Versailles was signed on the 28th of June 1919. The Treaty put large restrictions on Germanys military, forced it to take full responsibility for the First World War, and forced Germany to pay the equivalent of 132 billion Marks in reparations to the allied countries (about $425 billion Australian in todays money). In addition, Germany had to give back territories that it had gained in completely unrelated wars and treaties. Some of these territories contained German-speaking civilians. Germany also had to give its African and Pacific colonies to the Allies. This caused huge amounts of resentment in the German population. The three main countries (UK, USA, and France) that negotiated the terms of the treaty were not content either. Frances premier, Georges Clemenceau, wanted massive reparations to completely crush Germany, but the UK valued Germany as a potential trading partner, and although it still demanded reparations, it did not want to completely crush Germany. Woodrow Wilson, the president of the USA wanted his fourteen points to be implemented, but the UK and France wanted Germany to pay reparations for the war, and give back territory, among other punishments. Wilsons Fourteen Points detailed peace for Europe by introducing freedom of the seas, abolishing secret alliances between different countries, and a League of Nations. The German Imperial Chancellor, Prince Maximilian of Baden, sent a request to Wilson for an armistice and discussions for peace according to Wilsons Fourteen Points. This caused large amounts of anger in Germany when the entire responsibility of the First World War was bestowed on them. The Treaty of Versailles may have stopped World War I, but as a way to prevent future wars, it was a failure. It did not suppress Germany enough so that it could not build an army to exact revenge, nor did it forgive Germany so that it would not want to exact vengeance and start another war. The French Major General Ferdinand Foch thought that the restrictions on Germany were too soft, and described the Treaty of Versailles not as peace, but an Armistice for twenty years. Foch was quite accurate with this remark, as the Second World War began 20 years and 33 days after the treaty was signed. Massive unemployment, hyperinflation, and the Great Depression in 1920s onwards caused Germanys economy to collapse. Unemployment trebled in Germany, and the German Mark went from being worth 4.2 Marks/US$ in 1914, to being worth 4 200 000 000 000 Marks/US$ (4.2 trillion Marks/US$) in 1923. Adolf Hitler used the Great Depression to gain publicity and used his excellent public speaking skills to convince the majority of the population to vote for him. He claimed that he would fix the Great Depression, reverse the effects of the Treaty of Versailles, and restore Germany to how it was before World War I. In March 1935, Hitler violated the Treaty of Versailles by introducing conscription and by building an Air Force and a Navy. This lowered unemployment rate substantially, and improved the economy. When Hitler came into power in the 1930s, started large infrastructure improvements, including

autobahns, dams, and railroads. This created many more jobs and by the time WWII started, Germany was rebuilt and prospering. On the 29th September, 1938, Adolf Hitler, along with the British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain, French Prime Minister douard Daladier, and the Italian head of government Benito Mussolini met in a conference in Munich. This led to the Munich Agreement, which appeased Germany by letting it annex the Sudetenland in Czechoslovakia, without any permission from the Czechoslovakian Government. In return, Hitler promised not to invade the rest of Czechoslovakia. When Chamberlain returned to the UK, he declared the result of the Munich Agreement peace for our time. Little did Chamberlain know that Hitler would defy the agreement, invade Poland, and subsequently start World War II in only a few months. Hitler described the Munich agreement as just a scrap of paper, and did not plan to keep to the terms of the agreement. Overall, Adolf Hitler was not completely responsible for the outbreak of World War II, but it was his responsibility to some extent. Ultimately, Hitler was the one who ordered the invasion of Poland. Although he was angered by the unfairness of the harsh punishments of the Treaty of Versailles, Hitler could have resolved it peacefully, through diplomacy and negotiations. He was an excellent public speaker, and so he could have asked England and France to change the conditions of the Treaty of Versailles.

Bibliography:
http://www.historyonthenet.com/WW2/causes.htm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Versailles http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Munich_Agreement http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appeasement_of_Hitler http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/long_term_causes_of_world_war_tw.htm http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Was_Adolf_Hitler_responsible_for_World_War_2 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Causes_of_World_War_II http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Versailles http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/League_of_nations http://www.historyguide.org/europe/lecture11.html http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005425 http://www.johndclare.net/RoadtoWWII_Great_Depression.htm