5 Major Causes of World War Two in Europe
1. The Treaty of Versailles and the German desire for revenge 2. Economic downturns Economic downturn can always be relied upon to create conditions of civil, political and international unrest. Hyper-inflation hit Germany hard in 1923-4 and facilitated the early development of Hitler’s career. 3. Nazi ideology and Lebensraum Hitler exploited the Treaty of Versailles and the dents in German pride that it and defeat in war had created by instilling a renewed sense of (extreme) national pride. This was predicated in part by ‘us and them’ rhetoric that identified the German nation with Aryan supremacy over all other races, amongst whom particular disdain was reserved for the Slavic, Romany and Jewish ‘Untermenschen’. This would have dire consequences throughout the years of Nazi hegemony, as they sought a ‘final solution’ to the ‘Jewish question’ . 4. The rise of extremism and the forging of alliances Europe emerged from World War One a very changed place, with swathes