World War example essay topic

8 Aug 2002 WAR AFTER NAPOLEON TO WORLD WAR II After the defeat of Napoleon and the French Empire, the world looked favorably upon options for peace. The greatest sea power of the time was Britain, and with the goal of controlling the free trade, the island country looked to make the waters more advantageous. The British government realized that a countries wealth was not going to be possessed by an expanding empire, but by the profitable growth of commercial trade. The oceans were looked at as a boulevard to other markets for supplies and for sales. The long period of peace was due to the British navy being out on the oceans and controlling waters for it's lines of communication. The industrial age brought about a need for different countries to work together in order to maintain each other's call for supplies.

With the British having the greatest navy, they were able to control where and who was granted access to the waters. During the American Civil War the North explored a tactic of economic warfare by a blockade of ships against the South in order to prevent the transportation of goods to the non-industrial geographical location. It was soon discovered that the stronger ironclad ships could withstand a tremendous amount of firepower from another vessel, and by the end of the nineteenth century the tactics of controlling the waters included submersible vessel that were used to either go around, or under, or to engage the hull of another vessel. In the nineteenth century a military theorist named Carl von Clausewitz studied extensively every lesson that had been learned up to that point about war and produced a written thesis, On War. His writings pointed to the actual reasons behind war: The total submission of the opposition. Furthermore, Clausewitz defined the execution of war as an extension of political conference and the goal of this confrontation is the extinction of the opposition.

Granted the total annihilation of another group is considered inhumane, but the theories of Clausewitz are true and apply to war then and now. The definition of total war would be pushed to the extreme and the industrial revolutions around the world gave ample opportunity for even subordinate countries to rise up and seek to gain "total control" of another country. Furthermore, Clausewitz's idea of war as a political tool also implies that negotiations do not cease during a war and are actually a continuous process. During the industrial revolution many inventions made the effort to employ a large armed force a possibility. The cotton gin and sewing machine made uniforms for masses feasible and the iron industry's change to steel and new forms of production lines, spawned from the idea of interchangeable parts, produced large amounts of artillery. The greatest invention of the industrial age was the railway system, which enabled faster transportation of supplies and manpower, whose energy would not be depleted from forced march.

The testing grounds for the railway system was American soil during the Civil War. It was learned that units could be supported even if they were far from the supply base. General Grant's ability to maneuver the supply line and army through the rivers and railways was one of the factors in the North's overall victory. Grant was also able to effectively conduct war on battlefronts from three to twelve miles wide, and while this large area of operation would drive most commanders away from the front, Grant could be found along his line and even had his horse shot out from under him in one engagement. The use of the railway was observed all over the world as an effective line of communication and was exploited by the Prussian army.

During the 1860's, the wars with Denmark, Austria, and France brought about the unification of Germany in order to combine the efforts of industrialization and spring the nation into a major world power. The rivals over the British control of the seas drew Germany into making the first move in the events that lead to World War I by taking over Belgium and threatening to overrun the French boarders. The main reason that the Germans were unsuccessful was that a change was made halfway through the German's tactic of offensive strategy and after the death of Schlieffen, the tactic was moved to a defensive position. The war brought new weapons from the industrial revolution: poisonous gas shells, the tank, and aircraft. The aircraft brought a new factor and was first recognized as a reconnaissance asset that blossomed into bombers and fighters. The German blockade in the waters included an effort against all neutral countries as well.

American policy of neutralism was temporarily put on hold by the Germans attack without warning on any vessel that tried to trade with Britain. The United States entered the war with intentions of keeping the oceans free from any blockade and the fact that a lot of money was lent to Britain to fight the Germans. The timeliness entrance of a fresh American fighting force (similar to a Napoleonic theory of reserves) spelled the defeat of the battle weary Germans in 1918. One of the problems that were recognized with the multiple countries in a single engagement is that of command. During World War I, the constant struggle of the allied forces to work together as one was a forced effort. The British wanted the French to be subordinate and both countries wanted to control the maneuvers of American forces.

After the war had ended a league of nations was introduced. The League of Nations was to be the organization to end all future wars. This institute would be a dumping ground of diplomatic matters for resolution prior to the announcement of war. War was viewed by now the evilest of all acts and the European nations embraced the idea of no more global conflicts; the United States returned to its policy of isolation. The main problem with the League of Nations was the still lingering distrust between the European nations and disarmament was discomforting. The events of World War I and as a result of the German impress on Russia, the country was put into an economic upheaval.

By 1917 the communist revolution was about to take control of the government and developed the Red Army and without much opposition developed the socialist movement to sustain the economy. One of the fundamental doctrines of socialism is that the communist party is always at war against capitalism, and the transition to socialism could only be achieved by force. The fascist revolution in Germany was based on the same theory of war as communism. The end of the war also affected the Germans that were forced seek economic structure with socialism. The fascist movement was based on a political single-party theory and the Nazis gained control of the country. Instead of relinquishing the control of the armed forces the Nazi leader, Adolf Hitler, assumed the role of head of military as well as head of the nation.

The Nazi party was able to convince the Germans that they had been betrayed in World War I and they were ready for rearmament. The army of Germany would need all the weapons that it could muster in order to work the new strategy of combat, which consisted of a quick attack with as much firepower as possible. The Germans began their campaign for Europe with Poland and then moved into Denmark, Norway, Holland, Luxembourg, Belgium and France. After the Nazi party had taken control of France, the United States realized that Britain was probably going to be next target. President Roosevelt quickly stocked Britain with the weapons that they needed, but the American policy of neutralism wouldn't allow them to enter the war. Hitler was stopped from taking over Britain and turned his eyes upon Russia.

The United States and Britain combining efforts worked to supply Russia in order to stop the Nazis from success. It worked and the Germans would not be able to go any further East. The United States and Britain combined concentration would remain focused on Germany and until the move to the Pacific with Japan. The Japanese forces were not going to be as patient as the Americans and sought to take the United States off guard and by bombing Pearl Harbor and delaying them from participation against their conquest.

This action had an opposite effect and guaranteed United States involvement against the Japanese empire, which had been taking control of many properties throughout Southeast Asia and appeared to be linking up with Hitler. The kamikaze attacks and the garrison bases, which were left isolated to fight to the death on the islands throughout the Pacific, are the best example of the Japanese doctrine of totalitarianism in war. The Japanese warriors were honored to die for the empire and not many were actually captured as prisoners of war. The main reason for the Japanese loss of World War II was economic.

The country did not have the means to support the expanding empire to fully replace the aircraft and naval vessels that were lost in combat. The United States increased military vehicle construction consistently throughout the war and always had more net count than the previous year. The final blow that ended all resistance during World War II was the use of atomic power. Spawned by the industrial revolution and developed since the First World War, the atomic weapon was the greatest and most dangerous weapon of the twentieth century.

Once its powers were unleashed by the United States onto the Japanese, the war was officially over and a new era of fear would begin. SOURCE USED Brodie, Bernard and Fawn. From Crossbow to H-Bomb. (Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University, 1973). Chap 7-8 Keegan, John. Mask of Command.

(New York, New York: Viking Penguin, 1988). Chap 3-4 Preston, Richard A., Alex Roland, and Sydney F. Wise. MenIn Arms: A History of Warfare and its interrelationships With Western Society. (Belmont, California: Wadsworth / Thomson Learning, 2001). Chap 14-18.