WW2- The Build-Up To War (Part 3)

 

The Build-Up To War

In the years preceding World War 2(WWII), it was evident that Germany had military ambitions, simply because of the rhetoric (a technique that is used to convey a point to the audience) used by Adolf Hitler. There was also a considerable increase in the manufacture of arms and machines of war, as well as the active recruitment of young men into the Nazi Party and German Forces.

However, politicians in other European countries had the naive (innocent) idea that avoiding conflicts was a matter diplomacy. They invested a great deal of time and efforts into visiting Hitler, thinking that he would be swayed by their good will. In fact, they were making a mistake of judging him by their own standards, for the truth was that Hitler had every intention of putting his plans of conquest into action regardless of these gestures.

He was merely pulling the wool over their eyes as he prepared for an all-out warfare. When the time was right, Hitler simply got on with what he had always intended, confident that nothing and no one could stop him.

A German Tank Factory

A German Weapons Factory

A similar situation had arisen in Japan. There too, military resources were being amassed to set the wheels of territorial ambition in motion. With the Japanese Emperor on the throne, the regime itself didn't need a particular personality to take the lead, but the intent was clear. As the Japanese already had a foothold in Manchuria, they had a pre-prepared platform from which to launch their campaign.

 Japanese Aircraft factory

THE WAR BEGINS

Germany's first move was to annex an area of territory in 1938, known as Sudetenland, which was home to German speaking populations in Czechoslovakia. Then in 1939, the German prepared to invade Poland for the purpose of expanding the German living space. The British warned Germany that war would be declared if the Germans set foot in Poland, so Hitler as expected instructed his army to encroach Polish territory on September 1st.

German Troops Removing The Border Barrier, 1939

German forces invaded Poland on September 1st, 1939. Thus as per their warning, Britain declared war on Germany, two days later on September 3rd.

As the Germans moved into Poland from the west, the Russians invaded Poland from the East as a counter measure, fearful of Hitler's underlying ambitions.

A newspaper seller carries a hoarding showing the declaration of war by Britain

  A newspaper headline pronouncing the declaration of war by Britain, 1939

The Japanese began the second phase of their invasion of China in 1937 by capturing Beijing. They then progressively took further swathes of territory. This was known as the Second Sino-Japanese War, and Japan didn't enter the Second World War(WWII) until 1940 when it joined the Axis, having invaded he colony of French Indo-China, which is now known as Vietnam.

The Second Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945)

This was the starting of the most bloodiest war in mankind's history, The Second World War. The war which changed the way of traditional warfare and replaced it with modern and conventional warfare. The Second World War saw the use of war machines like tanks, artillery, aircrafts, warships etc. This was just the starting.

Thank you all for once again reading this article. I will be publishing more blogs relating to WW2. Also make sure to check out the previous articles, Part-1 and Part-2.