Description
The destruction of World War II had finally come to an end on September 2, 1945. The end of World War II officially occurred when the Japanese surrendered to General Douglas MacArthur. It was a victory for the Allied powers, but a devastating loss all across Europe of millions of lives. Two-thirds of European civilians died out of forty million deaths in Europe. Aside from that the cities of Europe laid in ruins caused by factors like bombing and shelling. Eastern Europe and Germany were most affected by World War II as the capital of Poland, Warsaw had ceased to exist. In Berlin, ninety-five percent of the central city was demolished by twenty-five thousand tons of Allied bombs. Despite that many civilians remained in their homes to try to get their lives back on track. Many lived in destroyed apartments and homes and others crowd into caves and cellars underneath the rubbles. Hunger again was a problem; there was no water, no electricity and limited food because people were not making money and factories were demolished. Even after the war ended, the problems in Europe still remained as a result of World War Two’s effect. Agriculture had been disrupted by the destroyed transportation system and lack of farmers resulting in thousands of deaths caused by famine and diseases. Furthermore, the rise of communism continued as country leaders in Germany, Italy, and France had led Europe to its disaster and people were not willing to return to those prewar governments. The Communist Party promised to create changes and to take Europe out of its miseries; people were desperate and ready to have faith in communism. As a result Communists had won major votes for the first postwar elections. However, the Communist who was anxious to acquire power had staged a series of violent attacks that damaged their popularity amongst the French and Italians and votes for the Communist Party began to decline rapidly. However, as all across of Europe was recovering from economically and politically issues, Nazi responsibilities for causing the Holocaust was not forgotten. In 1946, Nazis were put on trial in Nuremberg, Germany with twenty-three representing countries under the International Military Tribunal. Twenty- two Nazi leaders were charged with causing a war of aggression, violating laws of war, and violating humanity by murdering eleven million people in the first trial. However, out of the twenty-two Nazi leaders only twelve were executed and in Dachau their bodies were burnt at a concentration camp and cremated in the ovens they had burned their targets. Although, World War II had left Europe in devastation, Japan had suffered under the same damages from the defeat of war. Japan had lost two million lives and the major cities had been wrecked by the Allied bombing raids. Hiroshima and Nagasaki had ceased to become a blackened wasteland and the Allied Powers had taken away Japan’s colonial empire and territories they had owned for years. On August 15, 1945, Emperor had urged his citizens to put down their weapons to rebuild Japan from its ruins. Following that event MacArthur had developed a process of taking away the Japanese military and reducing their only protection to a small police force. In February 1946, the American political advisers and MacArthur had drawn up a new constitution for Japan to become a parliamentary democracy which went into effect on May 3, 1947. Japanese society had deeply been reconstructed, the emperor was no longer allowed to be seen as a divine figure and his power was reduced heavily with the new government system. The World War II ended with the formal peace treaty signed between the United States and forty-eight other countries in September 1951. World War II had completely changed Europe forever; it had weakened and strengthened nations with the changes in political and economic aspects all across Europe.
Ten Best Articles
- Nuremberg Trials After World War II Nazi leaders were put on trial, this article is explanation of the Nuremberg Trial. “In December 1942, the Allied leaders of Great Britain, the United States and the Soviet Union issued the first joint declaration officially noting the mass murder of European Jewry and resolving to prosecute those responsible for violence against civilian populations.”
- The Nuremberg Trials A brief description of the Nuremberg Trials and the important events of the trials. “Judges from the Allied powers -- Great Britain, France, the Soviet Union, and the United States -- presided over the hearings of twenty-two major Nazi criminals.”
- European Refugee Movement This article is about what happened in Europe after World War II and many Europeans had fled Europe. “The end of the war in Europe was only the beginning of the suffering for millions of people left homeless by the fighting, released from captivity or expelled as an act of vengeance.”
- Oh! What a Lovely War! An analysis of the lessons World War II had to teach and a way to look at the war in a positive way. “World War II is the great natural experiment in the effects of large increases in government spending, and as such has always served as an important positive example for those of us who favor an activist approach to a depressed economy.”
- The Hope that Flows from History An article about the way to look at World War II as an economic lesson for the world. “Everyone understood then why the nation was racking up so much debt: we were fighting for survival, and for the survival of our allies.”
- WWII and Its Legacy An article about the necessity of international laws after World War II. “Three major developments occurred immediately following the end of hostilities in Europe and Asia: the creation of international military tribunals to try individuals for violations of the laws of war; the whole-scale revision of the major conventions governing armed conflict; and the creation of conventions prohibiting genocide.”
- WWII Atrocities Following the war the Allied Powers created two major tribunals; this article explains the two Tribunals and a reflection of major violations that occurred during World War II. “As the Allied Powers developed the constitutions of these military tribunals, the existing international legal framework's limitations became apparent.”
- Overview of the Post-War Era An article about the United States following World War II and how they went from poverty to prosperity, America was much more stable than Europe. “Following World War II, the United States began an economic boom that brought unparalleled prosperity to a majority of its citizens and raised Americans expectations, breeding a belief that most economic and social problems could be solved.”
- The Reconstruction of Europe An article about the fears and struggles in Europe after World War II. “Because so much had been destroyed during the war, many European countries were heavily in debt to the United States and could not afford to rebuild.”
- Internal Pressures for European Integration Even after World War II the countries of Europe were still competing, this article is about the internal struggles for Europe to become integrated. “The great powers in Europe, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and Russia competed fiercely with each other even in peacetime for economic and military dominance.”
Audio/Video
Allied forces land in Japan, 1945. U.S. occupies Japan.
The Nuremberg Trials
An explanation of the aftermath of World War II
Primary Source Documents
- Emperor Hirohito Accepting the Potsdam Declaration A document about the emperor of Japan, surrendering to the Governments of the United States, Great Britain, China and the Soviet Union. "Indeed, we declared war on America and Britain out of our sincere desire to insure Japan's self-preservation and the stabilization of East Asia, it being far from our thought either to infringe upon the sovereignty of other nations or to embark upon territorial aggrandizement."
- Executive Order 9547 A document about charges against Axis Power leaders in Europe on war crimes they committed during World War II. "Associate Justice Robert H. Jackson is hereby designated to act as the Representative of the United States and as its Chief of Counsel in preparing and prosecuting charges of atrocities and war crimes against such of the leaders of the European Axis powers and their principal agents and accessories as the United States may agree with any of the United Nations to bring to trial before an international military tribunal. He shall serve without additional compensation but shall receive such allowance for expenses as may be authorized by the President."
- The Constitution of Japan The document of which Japan accepts to surrender for peace with the Allied Powers. "We, the Japanese people, acting through our duly elected representatives in the National Diet, determined that we shall secure for ourselves and our posterity the fruits of peaceful cooperation with all nations and the blessings of liberty throughout this land, and resolved that never again shall we be visited with the horrors of war through the action of government, do proclaim that sovereign power resides with the people and do firmly establish this Constitution."
Maps
Map of World War II in Post-War Europe
The Division of Germany amongst the Allied Powers
Location of Territories Germany Lost
Europe after World War II
Post-War Europe