Neville Chamberlain, the British Prime Minister, and other leading Politians in Europe followed a policy of appeasement towards Germany and Hitler during the 1930s.  They hoped that Hitler would become contented and stop his expansionary foreign policy. With hindsight this seems naive, but Europe was still recovering from the greatest war in History, which had killed millions and was still within living memory, nobody wanted a repeat of such events. By 1939 Hitler had publically rearmed, breaking the Treaty of Versailles (the peace treaty following WWI), remilitarised the Rhineland (the German border with France), taken over Czechoslovakia, annexed with Austria and was now looking towards Poland. Britain and France promised Poland that it would invade Germany, should Hitler invade them. Hitler, believing that they would break this treaty, as they had allowed him so much already, invaded Poland on the 1st September 1939; Britain and France did not break the treaty and declared War on Germany.

Involving 61 countries and killing approximately 40-70 million people (of which around 20-30 million were military), the war is a great stain on our history. It consisted of many great battles (see individual pages for specific conflicts) and the continual change of territory. By 1940 Germany was occupying France, the British had lost many in Dunkirk  and Germany was planning an invasion of Britain, contrary to any plans Hitler had before the war (he never wanted to take Britain), which Britain stoppeds after winning the Battle of Britain. The following year Japan bombed Peal Harbour and America, much needed, entered the war.  By 1943 the war was turning on Germany. Germany suffered their first major defeat at Stalingrad, the D-Day offensive was a success for the Allies and Paris, including much of France was liberated. Following this Italy surrendered and Germany was struggling. 1945 saw the Russians reach and take Berlin and the end of the War through the dropping of American nuclear bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Despite the events in Europe, America was waging a war upon Japan in the Pacific and conflicts in North Africa, the Middle East and Asia were all taking place and their memories should not be forgotten any more than the events described above.

Alongside the actual fighting, the war was also fought on the home front. Civilians kept factories working, hospitals open, the fire brigade operational and much more. Despite these enormous achievements, rationing had been implemented in Britain, while major cities suffered heavily from the blitzkrieg bombing which killed thousands. Life in Britain was severely disrupted and altered, but for the French the war saw occupation. Soldiers on the streets, movements prohibited for many, continual stops and searches, vanishes and arrests daily. For Germans, the war was in two parts; having suffered in the lead up to the war through Hitler’s policy of autarky (being self sufficient) and having little access to goods, such as butter, which couldn’t be made in Germany, the conquering of countries, such as France and Belgium, saw consumer goods flooding into German cities and the standard of living improving or at least remaining the same. However, once bombs were dropped by the British and Americans and the Allies advances became successful, life in Germany became far worse, especially throughout 1945.

The obvious affect of the war was the catastrophic loss of life and the grief that ensued. The loss of men meant that the male workforce was drastically reduced and lead to the permanent employment of women, similarly to the aftermath of the First World War. The other major effect was the destruction of cities, especially in Germany where places, such as Cologne, were severly damaged. Different to 1918 was the allies position towards Germany; rather that imposing terms upon the country, they decided to occupy it. This consequently lead to the division of Germany, the spread of communism and the building of the Berlin Wall. The aftermath of the War is still remembered today and is not likely to be forgotten.


(For the effect upon the Jews and other minorities persecuted by Hitler, see the Holocaust page.)