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Treaty of Versailles

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The end of World War I was finalized by the signing of the Treaty of Versailles on June 28, 1919. It was signed by Great Britain, France, Italy, and Japan but not the United States, as the U.S. drafted its own treaty with Germany in 1921. Many historians argue that the Treaty of Versailles was the major cause of World War II which occurred twenty years later. On the Treaty’s most superficial level, the extreme punishment and fines that were levied by the Allied Powers on the Germans were causes enough for war. Historians argue that this and the international fallout that resulted most notably with the United States were simply too powerful to avoid war at all. The ramification of the Treaty sent the German economy into a severe depression …show more content…

He became emboldened as each of his new advances into Europe met little to no opposition in the international community. He began by sending 35,000 troops to occupy the Rhineland, a strategically important area between Germany and France. Observing no opposition, Hitler then began testing weapons and tactics by providing aid to right wing militarists fighting the Spanish Civil War. Each of Hitler’s increasingly brazen moves had far reaching unforeseen consequence. His actions in the Spanish Civil War brought him into collaboration with Benito Mussolini. Resulting treaties brought about the Axis Alliance between Germany, Italy, and Japan. Britain became involved in the Munich Agreement of 1938 which allowed Hitler no resistance to German occupation of part of Czechoslovakia. Less than six months later, Germany conquered all of the country. Little did the Allied Forces know that Hitler had not even begun to warm up with these small conquests. His hatred reached far and wide, and through delusions of grandeur he envisioned his revitalized Germany conquering most of the Eastern Hemisphere stopping along the way to annihilate those who he viewed as inferior.      World tolerance for German actions reached its end in September of 1939 when Germany made the decision to attack Poland. Hitler justified his actions to

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