Why had international peace collapsed by 1939?

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Why had international peace collapsed by 1939?

When Hitler came to power in 1933 he had three main aims, the abolishment of the treaty of Versailles, to expand German territory and to defeat communism.

  Like most of the German population, Hitler believed that the Treaty of Versailles was unjust. The treaty was a constant reminder of Germany’s defeat in World War One and their humiliation by the Allies. Hitler promised that he would reverse the treaty. The terms of the treaty, although tampered with for the self-interest of ‘the big 3’ was meant to secure peace and so by abolishing it, Hitler had started to crack the security in international peace between nations.

  The treaty had taken land away from Germany and Hitler pledged to take this territory back. He wanted to unite with Austria and wanted to carve out an empire in Eastern Europe to give extra Lebensraum (living space) for Germans. For this, war was inevitable and so the chances of lasting peace diminished.

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  A German empire carved from the Soviet Union would also help Hitler in another of his aims, the defeat of Communism or Bolshevism. Hitler was anti-communist and believed that the Bolsheviks helped defeat Germany in WW1 and still wanted to take over Germany.

  In the 1930s there were two incidents that really tested the League of Nations, the Manchurian and Abyssinian crisis’.

  Both the Manchurian and Abyssinian Crisis’ made it easier for Hitler to achieve his objectives because of the falling of the League’s sense of authority and power. Hitler’s ambitions and dreams had been spurred on ...

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