World War II simplified?

Question: World War II simplified!?

I need a simplified, accurate, easy-to-understand description of World War II!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:

German and Japan each launched wars of conquest to gain territory!. In the process they gained many enemies, most notable England, Russia and the USA!. After many years and huge effort the Allied powers managed to defeat the Axis!. Along the way, the Axis powers committed some heinous crimes against humanity, leading to the idea that the Allied struggle was the side of right!.

If you have any particular questions, feel free to e-mail me!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

was a war started by an evil dictator named Hitler who thoought that the german people were better than the rest of the world so he started a campaign to take over all of europe (and eventually the rest of the world if he could) and kill all people who wernt blonde hair and blue eyes and athletic!. And of course somebody had to stop him so England, France, and Russia declared war on him!.!.!.!.!.!.America wanted to stay out of the war because they thought it was only europes problem until the japanes attacked pearl harbor in hawaii!.!.!.!.the day after that america declared war on japan then germany declared war on america and thats how it happened!.!.!.!.!.hope this is simple enoughWww@QuestionHome@Com

It was comprised of many land, air and sea battles around the world!. It was fought from September 1, 1939-August 15, 1945!. Many people and countries were involved!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

A good site with lots of recommendations!.!.!.

http://www!.besthistorysites!.net/WWii!.sht!.!.!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

Date Late 1930s – September 2, 1945
Location Europe, Pacific, South-East Asia, China, Middle East, Mediterranean and Africa
Result Allied victory!. Creation of the United Nations!. Emergence of the United States and the Soviet Union as superpowers!. Creation of First World and Second World spheres of influence in Europe leading to the Cold War!. (more!.!.!.)
Help us provide free content to the world by donating today!
World War II
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from World war 2)? Learn more about using Wikipedia for research ?Jump to: navigation, search
World War II

Clockwise from top left: Commonwealth troops in the desert; Chinese civilians being buried alive by Japanese soldiers; Soviet forces during a winter offensive; Carrier-borne Japanese planes readying for take off; Soviet troops fighting in Berlin; A German submarine under attack!.
Date Late 1930s – September 2, 1945
Location Europe, Pacific, South-East Asia, China, Middle East, Mediterranean and Africa
Result Allied victory!. Creation of the United Nations!. Emergence of the United States and the Soviet Union as superpowers!. Creation of First World and Second World spheres of influence in Europe leading to the Cold War!. (more!.!.!.)

Belligerents
Allies Axis powers
Commanders
Allied leaders Axis leaders
Casualties and losses
Military dead:
Over 14,000,000
Civilian dead:
Over 36,000,000
Total dead:
Over 50,000,000
!.!.!.further details!. Military dead:
Over 8,000,000
Civilian dead:
Over 4,000,000
Total dead
Over 12,000,000
!.!.!.further details!.
[show]v ? d ? eCampaigns of World War II

Europe
Poland – Phoney War – Finland – Denmark & Norway
France & Benelux – Britain – Eastern Front – North West Europe (1944–45)
The Mediterranean, Africa and The Middle East
Mediterranean Sea – East Africa – North Africa – West Africa
Balkans (1939–41) – Middle East – Yugoslavia – Madagascar – Italy

Asia & The Pacific
China – Pacific Ocean – South-East Asia
South West Pacific – Japan – Manchuria

Other Campaigns
Atlantic – Strategic Bombing – North America
Contemporaneous Wars
Chinese Civil – Soviet-Japanese Border – French-Thai - Anglo-Iraqi
Invasion of Iran – Sino-Japanese – Ecuadorian-Peruvian

World War II or the Second World War[1] was a global military conflict, the joining of what had initially been two separate conflicts!. The first began in Asia in 1937 as the Second Sino-Japanese War; the other began in Europe in 1939 with the German invasion of Poland!.

This global conflict split the majority of the world's nations into opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis powers!. It involved the mobilization of over 100 million military personnel, making it the most widespread war in history, and placed the participants in a state of "total war", erasing the distinction between civil and military resources!. This resulted in the complete activation of a nation's economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities for the purposes of the war effort!. Over 70 million people, the majority of them civilians, were killed, making it the deadliest conflict in human history!.[2] The financial cost of the war is estimated at about a trillion 1944 U!.S!. dollars worldwide,[3][4] making it the most costly war in capital as well as lives!.[5]

The Allies were victorious, and, as a result, the Soviet Union and the United States emerged as the world's leading superpowers!. This set the stage for the Cold War, which lasted for the next 45 years!. The United Nations was formed in the hope of preventing another such conflict!. The self determination spawned by the war accelerated decolonization movements in Asia and Africa, while Europe itself began moving toward integration!.[6]

Contents [hide]
1 Background
2 Course of the war
2!.1 War breaks out
2!.2 Axis advances
2!.3 The war becomes global
2!.4 The tide turns
2!.5 Allies gain momentum
2!.6 Allies close in
2!.7 Axis collapse, Allied victory
3 Aftermath
4 Impact of the war
4!.1 Casualties and atrocities
4!.2 Home fronts and production
4!.3 War time occupation
4!.4 Advances in technology and warfare
5 See also
6 References
7 External links

Background
Main article: Causes of World War II
In the aftermath of World War I, the defeated German Empire signed the Treaty of Versailles!.[7] This caused Germany to lose a significant portion of its territory, prohibited the annexation of other states, limited the size of German armed forces and imposed massive reparations!. Russia's Civil war led to the creation of the Soviet Union which soon was under the control of Joseph Stalin!. In Italy, Benito Mussolini seized power as a fascist dictator promising to create a "New Roman Empire!."[8] The ruling Kuomintang (KMT) party in China launched a unification campaign against rebelling warlords in the mid-1920s, but was soon embroiled in a civil war against its former Chinese communist allies!. In 1931, an increasingly militaristic Japanese Empire, which had long sought influence in China[9] as the first step of its right to rule Asia, used the Mukden Incident as justification to invade Manchuria; the two nations then fought several small conflicts until the Tanggu Truce in 1933!.

German troops at the 1935 Nuremberg RallyNational Socialist Adolf Hitler became the leader of Germany in 1933 and soon began a massive rearming campaign!.[10] This worried France and the United Kingdom, who had lost much in the previous war, as well as Italy, which saw its territorial ambitions threatened by those of Germany!.[11] To secure its alliance, the French allowed Italy a free hand in Ethiopia, which Italy desired to conquer!. The situation was aggravated in early 1935 when the Saarland was legally reunited with Germany and Hitler repudiated the Treaty of Versailles, speeding up remilitarization and introducing conscription!. Hoping to contain Germany, the United Kingdom, France and Italy formed the Stresa Front!. The Soviet Union, concerned due to Germany's goals of capturing vast areas of eastern Europe, concluded a treaty of mutual assistance with France!.

Before taking effect though, the Franco-Soviet pact was required to go through the bureaucracy of the League of Nations, rendering it essentially toothless[12][13] and in June of 1935, the United Kingdom made an independent naval agreement with Germany easing prior restrictions!. The United States, concerned with events in Europe and Asia, passed the Neutrality Act in August!.[14] In October, Italy invaded Ethiopia, with Germany the only major European nation supporting her invasion!. Italy then revoked objections to Germany's goal of making Austria a satellite state!.[15]

In direct violation of the Versailles and Locarno treaties, Hitler remilitarized the Rhineland in March of 1936!. He received little response from other European powers!.[16] When the Spanish Civil War broke out in July, Hitler and Mussolini supported fascist Generalísimo Francisco Franco in his civil war against the Soviet-supported Spanish Republic!. Both sides used the conflict to test new weapons and methods of warfare!.[17]

With tensions mounting, efforts to strengthen or consolidate power were made!. In October, Germany and Italy formed the Rome-Berlin Axis and a month later Germany and Japan, each believing communism and the Soviet Union in particular to be a threat, signed the Anti-Comintern Pact, which Italy would join in the following year!. In China, the Kuomintang and communist forces agreed on a ceasefire to present a united front to oppose Japan!.[18]

Course of the war
See also: Timeline of World War II

War breaks out

Japanese forces during the Battle of WuhanIn mid-1937, following the Marco Polo Bridge Incident, Japan began a full invasion of China!. The Soviets quickly lent support to China, effectively ending China's prior cooperation with Germany!. Starting at Shanghai, the Japanese pushed Chinese forces back, capturing the capital Nanjing in December!. In June of 1938 Chinese forces stalled the Japanese advance by flooding the Yellow River!. Though this bought time to prepare their defenses at Wuhan, the city was still taken by October!.[19] During this time, Japanese and Soviet forces engaged in a minor skirmish at Lake Khasan; in May of 1939, they became involved in a more serious border war!.[20]

In Europe, Germany and Italy were becoming bolder!. In March 1938, Germany annexed Austria, again provoking little response from other European powers!.[21] Encouraged, Hitler began making claims on the Sudetenland; France and Britain conceded these for a promise of no further territorial demands!.[22] Germany soon reneged, and in March 1939 fully occupied Czechoslovakia!.

Soviet and German officers in PolandAlarmed, and with Hitler making further demands on Danzig, France and Britain guaranteed their support for Polish independence; when Italy conquered Albania in April, the same guarantee was extended to Romania and Greece!.[23] The Soviet Union also attempted to ally with France and Britain, but was rebuffed due to western suspicions about Soviet motives and capability!.[24] Shortly after the Franco-British pledges to Poland, Germany and Italy formalized their own alliance with the Pact of Steel; following this, in a move that shocked all other major powers, Germany and the Soviet Union concluded a non-aggression pact, including a secret agreement to split Poland and eastern Europe between them!.[25]

By the start of September 1939, the Soviets had routed Japanese forces and the Germans invaded Poland!. France, Britain, and the countries of the Commonwealth declared war on Germany but lent little support other than a small French attack into the Saarland!.[26] In mid-September, after signing an armistice with Japan, the Soviets launched their own invasion of Poland!.[27] By early October, Poland Www@QuestionHome@Com