Humanity has been shaken by wars from time immemorial. But in antiquity they were not as large-scale as they were in the 20th century. How many world wars have there been on planet Earth? There were two such conflicts: World War I and World War II. A huge amount of destruction, the death of millions of soldiers and civilians are the results of such military campaigns.
World War Concept
Modern man mostly knows about military conflicts from history textbooks and feature films and documentaries. But not everyone understands the meaning of the term "world war". What does this expression mean, and how many world wars have there been?
An armed conflict involving several continents and involving at least twenty countries is called a world war. As a rule, these countries are united against one common enemy. In modern history, there were two such conflicts: at the beginning of the 20th century, the First World War began, and at the end of the 30s of the same century, the Second World War. Many countries were involved in both armed conflicts: Germany, France, Italy,UK, Russia, USA, Japan. All participating countries suffered huge losses, causing much grief, death and destruction to the population. How many world wars there were, their duration and outcome excite everyone who is interested in history.
Premonition of conflict
European countries at the beginning of the new century were in a state of division into two opposing camps. The confrontation was between France and Germany. Each of these countries was looking for allies in a future war. After all, it requires huge resources to do so. In this confrontation, England supported France, and Austria-Hungary supported Germany. The unrest began in Europe long before that shot was fired in Sarajevo in 1914, which became the start of hostilities.
To overthrow the monarchy in countries such as Russia and Serbia, the Masons of France led an inflammatory policy, pushing states to war. How many world wars and non-world wars have been, they all began with a single event that became the starting point. So the assassination attempt on the Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, committed in Sarajevo in June 1914, was the reason for the introduction of Austrian troops into Serbia. Austria-Hungary officially declared war on Serbia on July 15, 1914 and bombed Belgrade the next day.
World War I
Slavic Serbia is an Orthodox country. Russia has always acted as its patroness. In this situation, the Russian Tsar Nicholas II could not stand aside and asked the Kaiser of Germany not to support Austria-Hungary in this"ignoble" war. In response, the German ambassador, Count Pourtales, handed the Russian side a note declaring war.
In a short time, all the major states of Europe entered the war. Russia's allies were France and England. Germany and Austria-Hungary fought against them. Gradually, 38 states were drawn into the war, with a total population of almost a billion people. How long did the world war last? It lasted four years and ended in 1918.
World War II
It seemed that the experience of the First World War, the terrible human losses, should have been a lesson for the countries participating in the conflict. How many world wars there were is written in all school textbooks. But humanity is stepping on the same rake for the second time: the Treaty of Versailles concluded following the results of the First World War did not satisfy countries such as Germany and Turkey. Territorial disputes followed, which increased tensions in Europe. The fascist movement has intensified in Germany, the country is sharply starting to increase its military potential.
On September 1, 1939, Germany took military action and invaded Poland. This was the start of World War II. In response to Germany's actions, France and England declared war on the aggressor, but did not provide any support to Poland, and it was occupied very quickly - within 28 days. How many years did the world war last, which drew 61 states of the world into confrontations? It ended in 1945year, in September. Thus, it lasted exactly 6 years.
Main steps
World War II was the bloodiest war in human history. It was in this war that nuclear weapons were first used. Many states rallied against Nazi Germany. It was an anti-Hitler bloc, whose members were: the USSR, France, Greece, England, the USA, China and a number of other countries. Many of them did not take part directly in hostilities, but provided all possible assistance by supplying medicines and food. There were also many countries on the side of Nazi Germany: Italy, Japan, Bulgaria, Hungary, Finland.
The main stages in this war are the following periods:
- German European Blitzkrieg - September 1, 1939 to June 21, 1941.
- Attack on the USSR - from June 22, 1941 to November 1942. The failure of Hitler's Barbarossa plan.
- From November 1942 to the end of 1943. At this time there is a turning point in the strategy of war. The Soviet troops went on the offensive. And at a conference in Tehran with the participation of Stalin, Churchill and Roosevelt, a decision was made to open a second front.
- From 1943 to May 1945 - the stage marked by the victory of the Red Army, the capture of Berlin and the surrender of Germany.
- The last stage - from May to September 2, 1945. This is the period of fighting in the Far East. Here, American pilots used nuclear weapons and attacked Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Victory over fascism
So, in September 1945, World War II ended. How many soldiers and civilians died, one can only say approximately. Until now, researchers are finding burial places that have remained since the time of this cruel and destructive war for all mankind.
According to a rough estimate of experts, the losses of all parties to the conflict amounted to 65 million people. Most of all the countries participating in the war lost, of course, the Soviet Union. This is 27 million citizens. The whole blow fell on them, since the Red Army offered stubborn resistance to the fascist invaders. But according to the Russian estimate, the number of dead is much higher, and the figure presented is too low. How many world wars there were on the planet, but history has not yet known such losses as in the Second. Foreign experts agreed that the losses of the Soviet Union were the most enormous. The figure is 42.7 million human lives.
