This essay examines Adolf Hitler's central role in causing and escalating the Second World War. Drawing on historical sources including John Lukacs, Peter Neville, and Hitler's own Mein Kampf, the paper traces how Hitler rose to power on the discontent generated by the Treaty of Versailles, transformed Germany into a fascist state, and pursued a methodical plan for war. The essay argues that while Germany's grievances were real and widely acknowledged—even by the British—Hitler's extreme aggression, including his unprovoked invasion of the Soviet Union and his declaration of war on the United States, went far beyond any rational redress of those grievances, ultimately destroying the very country he claimed to champion.
There is a common notion that the war of 1939 is a continuation of the war that ended in 1918. The Second World War was, in fact, a return to the unfinished business of the First World War — which is precisely why they are numbered I and II. The idea of a progression from World War I to World War II is unavoidable. The same nation, Germany, is the belligerent most actively responsible for both conflicts. In the 1914 war, German aggression was rooted in alliances, panic, and fear of not making the first move. In 1939, however, it was the result of a methodical plan of one man: Adolf Hitler.
Hitler had actually fought in the First World War, by which point he had already become a "rabid German nationalist" (Neville, 2006, p. 4). According to what he wrote in his book Mein Kampf, Hitler became a nationalist after reading about the Franco-Prussian War and wondering why his father's generation of German Austrians had not done more to fight for the Germans (Hitler, 1925).
Signs that war was brewing on the horizon were evident ever since Hitler took power, effectively putting an end to the Weimar Republic and transforming Germany into a fascist state. As Christabel Bielenberg describes:
"The Weimar Republic, which had succeeded the monarchy after the First World War, succumbed without much ado to the demagogy, the bullyragging tactics, and the subtle political manipulations of one man. It became the Third Reich. The countless political parties of the post-war years having finally fought and argued themselves to a standstill, were successfully buried under a muddy brown avalanche: The National Socialist German Workers Party, with Party member no. 7, Adolf Hitler, at its head" (Bielenberg, 1972, pp. 17–18).
It should be noted, however, that Hitler did not merely seize power; he had the full support of the majority of Germans. Humiliated by their defeat in the First World War and by the subsequent sanctions imposed by the Treaty of Versailles, the German people were anxious to seek revenge against their perceived enemies.
"In March 1935, Hitler formally announced that he would no longer abide by the disarmament clauses of the Treaty of Versailles" (Wilkinson and Hughes, 2003, p. 281). This was a direct provocation to the French. Hitler, along with many other Germans, felt that the Treaty of Versailles had been excessively harsh — and he was not alone in that opinion. Even the British felt that the French were being unduly aggressive in imposing such severe sanctions on Germany. As Neville writes:
"The immediate reaction inside the British [delegation] was that these terms were manifestly unfair. The Germans had been given the right to plead their own cause at a later stage, but there was a widespread British perception that the French were being ruthless and unforgiving. Germany was deprived of its colonies and forced to give up territory to France, Belgium, and Poland, as well as having to accept military clauses which restricted its army to 100,000 men and prevented its use of military aircraft and submarines. Worse still for some members of the British delegation was the infamous Article 231. This obliged Germany to accept responsibility for starting the war and the threat of punitive reparations that might, in the eyes of British critics, cripple the German economy for years to come" (Neville, 2006, p. 6).
"Hitler breaks non-aggression pact, attacks Soviet Union"
"Hitler declares war on U.S., overextending Germany fatally"
It is clear that Hitler had planned to go to war from the moment he seized power. Violent metaphors abound throughout Mein Kampf. Few would have imagined that he would prove so destructive in the way he drew his country into the Second World War — let alone that he would be responsible for perpetuating the horrors of the Holocaust. In trying to restore dignity to Germany, Adolf Hitler completely destroyed it, inflicting far greater damage on the country than the First World War ever had. It is through studying the lessons of history — and the ruthless actions of tyrants such as Adolf Hitler — that we may learn from the mistakes of the past and, hopefully, use those lessons to resist the destructive impulses that lead to world war.
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