WW2 in the briefest.

The Full Story

World War 2 was the deadliest world conflict in history and claimed the lives of around 85 000 000 lives, both civilians and military. Between two alliances, the Axis alliance and Allied alliance, the Second World War had officially started on the 3rd of September 1939 when Germany had invaded Poland, after which they had signed a pact, Molotov-Ribentrop pact, with the Soviet Union, who would also occupy half of the country in order to prevent a 2 front war. 

​

But to explore further into the 2nd World War, we must take a look at some background information. After the First World War, in which Germany had lost, The Treaty of Versailles, a 440 article long treaty, which was signed by Germany had come down on it hard. After a series of domestic issues such as hyperinflation - after not being able to pay out war reparations from WW1, Adolf Hitler rose to power and was elected Chancellor of Germany, from the Nazi Party. Hitler was absolutely furious with Germany's defeat in WW1 and wanted greatness back. In 1938, in full violation of the Treaty of Versailles, the first Luftwaffe squadrons were set up and conscription was introduced. The same year, again in total violation of the Treaty, Germany took Austria, who showed no resistance and demanded an annexation of the Sudetenland.

​

Before the invasion of Poland, the idea of "appeasement" which would basically give Hitler the lands that he wanted in order to remain satisfied with them, was played out. This was due to the cold tensions between the forces of France and Great Britain after the reunification of Germany with Austria. Hitler, who demanded the Sudetenland, an area of ethnic Germans within Czechoslovakia was given it under circumstances that he would not invade the rest of the country, which he ideally did and therefore broke the treaty. Chamberlain and Édouard Daladier had clearly warned Hitler that the invasion of Poland, something that he was looking into keenly, would be considered as the declaration of war as Poland was in an alliance with the Allies. On the 3rd of September 1939, Hitler invaded the state of Poland and the 2nd World War came to a start. 

​

After this, Italy, whose leader, Benito Mussolini, who wanted the resurrection of the Roman Empire, had signed the Pact of Steel just before on the 22nd of May 1939 so a war in Europe was looking likely before Hitler had given orders to take Poland. 

​

After the so called Phoney War, in which basically all allied powers were inactive, Hitler took Norway in Operation Weserubung, the reason that former British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain had resigned. 

​

In the period of time known as the Phoney War, Axis forces of Italy and Germany were scoring multiple victories across Europe and North Africa. By 1940, France had fallen to German hands with the southern being open to democracy but under the rule that they would allege their support to Germany and the rest of the Axis. After Germany Double crossed the Soviet Union by continuing with Operation Barbarossa, the USSR declared war on Germany as well Germany would take Paris while Italy would take parts bordering herself and Switzerland. The rest would be for Vichy France, the Axis Puppet state.  In 1941, after the consequence of various tensions rising between Japanese and western forces regarding rapid expansion across Eastern Asia, Japan attacked  the US Pearl Harbour Naval Base situated at Hawaii hoping to fully demilitarise the Pacific Fleet but had failed to strike multiple parts of the base such as oil storages, repair facilities and the submarine base. This meant that the US Fleet would be ready at its peak in no time whatsoever. This attack was the entry of the US into the war. However, in the dawn of the outbreak of this global war, everyone suffered, ethnic minorities were target of mass murder, as they were put in concentration camps, civilians were subject to harsh fighting and air raids and soldiers were on the front line. Axis forces scored multiple victories in North Africa, the Pacific, Europe and the Mediterranean. 

As time went on, the British army became stronger and now with America in the war, an industrial giant, things were getting easier, as time went on the Axis forces in North Africa were squeezed out in 1943, and after the allied invasion of Sicily, Italy finally surrendered. In 1944, the Allies in Europe landed in Normandy, with operation Neptune and finally liberating France. In the far East, The British, Australian, American and Chinese forces were defeating Japan in multiple naval battles and amphibious battles and in 1944, after the Battle of Leyte Gulf, the Philippines were liberated. By May 1945, the outcome of the war was very clear and as the Polish and soviet forces reached Berlin, the infamous dictator Adolf Hitler committed suicide in his bunker this bringing a close to the European theatre of the war. In the Pacific, after the allied forces had reached the Japanese home islands of Okinawa and Iwo Jima, president Truman gave clearance for the Atomic Bomb to be dropped on Japan. And finally, on the 6th and 9th of August 1945, 2 A-Bombs were dropped on Hiroshima Port and Nagasaki and Japan finally surrendered on the 14th of August 1945, bringing an end to the most fatal armed conflict in history.