The First World War (1914-1918) was the deadliest, most destructive war that had occurred in history up to that time; it was of a scale unknown to previous generations. Nonetheless, the Second World War (1939-1945) proved to be by far deadlier than the First One. Both World War I and World War II were total wars fought between the major industrial nations and their empires and both were wars of attrition, in which any means and weapons became justified in order to make the enemy unconditionally surrender. Understanding the differences of the causes of both wars is important to determine why two conflicts of a similar nature occurred under different circumstances and therefore be able to prevent other worldwide catastrophes of that kind. The long-term causes of the Second World War differ in some ways from those of the First World War: World War I was caused by imperial rivalry and rivalry over trade and markets while World War II was triggered by the impact the Treaty of Versailles had on the defeated nations; the alliances and treaties that existed between the Great Powers were another long-term cause of World War I, while the League of Nations was a cause World War II. The short-term causes of the Second World War also differ in some ways from those of the First World War: political and social unrest in the Balkans caused World War I, while the economic and political factors after 1929 caused World War II; mobilization led to WWI vs. appeasement that led to WWII; however, the Second World War was triggered by a unique short-term cause: ideology. Both World War I and World War II were caused by long-term tensions between the Great Powers of Europe: the impact the Treaty of Versailles had on defeated nations was one of the main long-term causes of the Second World War, which differs from the imperial rivalry and rivalry over trade and markets that were a main
The First World War (1914-1918) was the deadliest, most destructive war that had occurred in history up to that time; it was of a scale unknown to previous generations. Nonetheless, the Second World War (1939-1945) proved to be by far deadlier than the First One. Both World War I and World War II were total wars fought between the major industrial nations and their empires and both were wars of attrition, in which any means and weapons became justified in order to make the enemy unconditionally surrender. Understanding the differences of the causes of both wars is important to determine why two conflicts of a similar nature occurred under different circumstances and therefore be able to prevent other worldwide catastrophes of that kind. The long-term causes of the Second World War differ in some ways from those of the First World War: World War I was caused by imperial rivalry and rivalry over trade and markets while World War II was triggered by the impact the Treaty of Versailles had on the defeated nations; the alliances and treaties that existed between the Great Powers were another long-term cause of World War I, while the League of Nations was a cause World War II. The short-term causes of the Second World War also differ in some ways from those of the First World War: political and social unrest in the Balkans caused World War I, while the economic and political factors after 1929 caused World War II; mobilization led to WWI vs. appeasement that led to WWII; however, the Second World War was triggered by a unique short-term cause: ideology. Both World War I and World War II were caused by long-term tensions between the Great Powers of Europe: the impact the Treaty of Versailles had on defeated nations was one of the main long-term causes of the Second World War, which differs from the imperial rivalry and rivalry over trade and markets that were a main