WW2- The Axis (Part 2)

The Axis 

The term 'Axis' was used by the Allies to describe the enemy nations in World War 2 (WWII). It was because Germany, Austria and Italy formed a central line of axis running north to south, dividing Europe in two. The term remained in use when Japan allied with Germany as a matter of convenience.

Axis powers and their leaders (WWII)

What Germany and Japan had in common was their delusion of superiority towards other races which was an expression of 'insecurity' and 'inferiority'.

In the case of Germany, the prime targets were the Jews and all the other people who were not 'Aryan'. They also had disdain for any societies, culture and politics that clashed with Nazi ideals and nations that were not 'Teutonic'  (i.e. denoting the German branch of Indo-European language family). In addition, they had quasi-Darwinian notions about racial purity and perfection, which prompted them to purge their own population of individuals with physical and mental disabilities.

Th Japanese cultivated particular hatred for Chinese, because they were the traditional enemy across the sea. Their culture included unquestioning reverence for their Emperor, whom they allowed to believe that they were a divine race. In turn, this gave the Japanese a quasi-Darwinian understanding of strength, which meant that most were prepared to fight to the death as a matter of honour. This furbished them with a marked disdain for enemy forces that were prepared to surrender, rather than fight to the end.

- Main reason for the alliance of Germany and Japan -

The famous Tripartite Act, 27th Sep. 1940

As both Germany and japan had a very clear delusions of racial supremacy, they would have loathed one another had they not had political reason to become allies. It was in both of their interests to ally because their geographical separation meant that the enemy forces would have to fight two wars efficiently, which would have been very difficult. This was a very attractive option as both were very well aware that the Central Powers of World War 1 (WWI) had ultimately lost the war due to attrition(weakening) of finite resources against an enemy able to source further resources. The fundamental strategy for both(Germany and Japan) was to capture new resources and utilize them along the way, thereby preventing attrition from becoming a major factor and allowing both nations to permanently secure new territories. 

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