Effects of World War 1 and World War 2
WW1
WW1 was the first modern human-caused catastrophe.
-9 Million soldiers were killed (15% of all forces)
-Millions physically or mentally disabled (41k Brits lost a
limb)
-“Lost Generation:” UK, France, Ger lost a generation of
men 18-25. This crippled them economically (lack of a
workforce) and made them militarily weak (Particularly
UK/France.)
Civilians were not directly targeted in the conflict. They often
died accidentally. However, the Spanish Flu (1918-19) killed
around 20 million people worldwide.
Europe was economically devastated because of the war.
-UK/France borrowed extensively from the US to finance
the war.
-The UK lost its place to the US as chief lender to the world
-Blockade and battle had damaged industry, infrastructure,
and farmland. However, damage was confined to where
the fighting happened (Western/Eastern Front)
-Ger was crippled by the effects of the UK blockade, loss of
territory, and reparations.
-Eastern European states were economically weak. They’ll
start to collapse in 1921-22 (Hyperinflation)
France and UK didn’t experience any dramatic political
changes. The losers/weak empires all collapsed (Russia,
Ottoman, A-H, Ger)
-German gov’t broke down. There were a series of Left-Wing
Uprising. Parts of the army and navy mutinied. The Kaiser
abdicated and fled to Holland
-Russian Tsarist gov’t was overthrown. In their place was a
Provisional Gov’t that was overthrown by the Bolsheviks.
The Bolsheviks create the USSR. The Russian Civil War
soon follows.
-Austria-Hungary dissolves into a series of smaller states.
The T of V eventually creates Austria, Hungary,
Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, Estonia, Finland, Latvia,
Lithuania, and Poland.
-The Ottoman Empire splits. Turkey gains its independence.
Bulgaria, Romania, Greece gain land from them. The Middle
East is split between winners
-The T of V also creates the mandate system and divided up
former colonies amongst the winners
Wilson is the key driver during the T of V to create an
international system. Prior to its creation, there was no formal
system to resolve disputes amongst nations. His 14 Points
Analysis
Human Cost
Unfortunately WW1 was only a preview of the
horror to come in WW2.

The major shift between wars involves
the targeting of civilians. In this sense,
WW2 is a much more “total war”

The human devastation in unbelievable.
Russia alone lost 20 million people
(Famine/Disease/Invasion)

Besides those killed, the huge numbers
of displaced populations further
destabilized Europe.
Economic Cost
The difference between WW1/WW2 is
scope and size of the economic loss.
Almost everyone is crippled in WW2.

The only power not economically
devastated by WW2 was the US.
Because of the Marshall Plan and
Cold War US military spending
remained high. Since the US was
rebuilding most of Western Europe
industrial demand was high. Plus, they
had no competition.
Political Costs

Key Difference: In WW1, boundaries
were moved. In WW2, people were
moved (most of the time involuntarily)

A lot of the ethnic tension created by
diverse states post-WW1 was stopped
by harsh policies during and after the
war
o
Nazi/Stalin displaced or killed
millions
o
Anti-German sentiment
pushed many German people
back to Germany

Because of the Cold War, the US
maintained its direct involvement in
European affairs. (There is no
isolationism like in WW1)
Since European powers were displaced, it
was really the US and USSR determining the
map of Europe (Yalta/Cold War)
Changes to the International System


The major change to the international
WW2
The Human cost of WW2 was tremendous. An estimated 50
million people were dead by 1945 (40 Million in Europe).
-2/3 of the dead were civilians
-Civilians became targets of bombing and attacks. Both with
bombings and direct attacks.
-German, Russia, UK, France had extensive military and
civilian casualties. The US had only military.
-During the war 30 million people were displayed by conflict
or by persecution
-Hitler and Stalin both moved very large populations of
ethnic and religious groups.
After the War, 16 million Germans were expelled from Eastern
Europe and had to return to Germany (Which was in ruins).
The WW2 was devastating for both Allies & Axis powers
-Aerial bombing and attack had destroyed population
centers, industry, farmland and infrastructure (roads,
bridges, communications systems).
-There were extensive food shortages. 150 million people
depended on direct relief to survive.
-Millions of people were dead or displaced
-20-25 Millions were homeless.
All major powers had extensive debt from fighting the war.
-England was bankrupt and didn’t begin to recover until
1947-48
Unlike the Versailles Treaty, WW2 left most borders
unchanged. The only nation with significant changes was
Poland.
During the war, the Allies (Big Three: UK, US, USSR)
negotiated the map of Europe: First at Yalta then at Potsdam.
At Yalta:
-The Polish Border was changed: Traditional Prussian
territory was given to Poland. Eastern Poland was given to
Russia.
-It was agreed that Ger. should be temporarily divided
between Western Allies (US/UK) and the USSR.
Germany itself was divided into East & West and so was its
capital Berlin. With the beginning of the Cold War, these
divisions became permanent. Germany was finally unified in
1989.
-Yalta called for free elections in all liberated states.
However, USSR took direct control over the states they
liberated and did not all democratic movements (Czech.
Poland, Hungary, Bulgaria). This led to the formation of the
Eastern Bloc (Soviet Satellite States loyal to the USSR)
WW2 led to the end of the “Age of Europe” and the dominance
of European nations.
-The British and French Empire dissolved in a series of anti-
Effects of World War 1 and World War 2
call specifically for a League of Nations to guarantee a
permanent peace.

As we have seen, the League is not consistently effective in
its role.
-It lacked true enforcement power
-The veto system prevented any challenging resolution
from passing
In the 1920s, the US retreats into isolationism. It failed to
ratified the T of V, join the L of N, or get directly involved in
international crises. Because of this, responsibility falls to
UK/France. Neither has the strength nor resolve to make the
international system work.
The T of V called for the establishment of a tribunal system to
try war criminals. While some are set up, they are largely
ineffective/unproductive.

system is the leading rule the US plays
as a super power.
While the UN is very similar to the L of
N in terms of powers and
responsibilities, US involvement and
engagement makes it “mostly”
successful.
A major criticism of the UN is that it is
really dependent on the US to do
anything. This criticism does seem to
be true in a lot of cases.
With the beginning of the Cold War, much of
the post-WW2 world has to be seen as
influenced by the conflict between the US and
USSR. This conflict began during the WW2
and continued till 1989.
colonial movements (Gandhi in British India/Ho Chi Min in
French Indochina (Vietnam)
-WW2 led to the rise of the USSR and US as global
superpowers. With the traditional powers permanently
weakened, the US and USSR had tremendous influence
over the post-war settlement. This tension led to the Cold
War.
-End to US isolationism
-Marshall Plan: Direct US investment into the European
economy to prevent the spread of Communism
-US supported the establishment of multi-party democracies
in Western Europe.
-Growth of the modern social service welfare state in
Europe
The overall effect of this intervention was years of
sustained growth and peace in the 1950s & 1960s
Prior to direct US involvement in the war, US/UK agreed to the
Atlantic Charter, which set up principles and vision for the
post war world.
-It was very similar to Wilson’s 14 Points because it also
called for self-determination, no territorial gains in Europe,
freedom of the seas, free trade. It also renewed the call for
an international organization to resolve disputes and keep
the peace. This was the birth of the United Nations.
Officially, the UN was created at a conference in San
Francisco (1945). Representatives from various nations met a
created the United Nations Charter.
-The Charter established its mission of peace keeping, arms
reductions, and missions against poverty, disease, and
hungry
-The structure was very similar to the L of N. There was a
security council, which was made up of the 8 “Super
Powers” who had veto power. There was also a General
Assembly of Nations.
-The UN is based in NYC
Following the war, military tribunals were established to try
and execute war criminals.
-The Nuremberg Tribunals tried and executed leading
Nazis
-The US International Tribunal in Tokyo tried and
executed J. war criminals.