Similarities and Differences between World War 1& 2

This article explores the similarities and differences between World War 1 and World War 2 in terms of militarism, alliances, nationalism, imperialism, objectives, strategies, policies and more. It discusses how the wars were conducted, the reasons behind them, and the impact they had on the world. The article cites various sources to support its claims.

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Similarities and Differences between World War 1& 2
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similarities and differences between world war 1 & 2 2
Similarities and Differences between World War 1& 2
INTRODUCTION
World war I and World war II are the most renowned wars in all history due to the
massive scale that they were conducted. No wars like those had been experienced before. Most
of their similarity lied in nationalism, imperialism, militarism and also alliance. There was a
great power balance that was experienced in Europe due to the countries that sought to keep the
power for their own.
LITERATURE REVIEW
SIMILARITIES
Militarism
Japan, Italy and German were some of the countries that sought to take desirable tracts of
land from Europe and also other resources. Being that most land was occupied and more had
been taken over by the residents, the remaining land created chaos as the countries used
aggressive means to attain the land. One of the aggressive strategic plans taken up was engaging
in war. Most of these counties were quite aggressive in the war as they each believed in their
own victory. This saw military training commence and more and more countries build up on their
military manpower and martial arts as well as other skills that would enhances their chances for
victory (Murray 2).
Alliances
There was a great surge of sympathy extended to countries that allied with the fighting
giants than to the central and axis powers. The United States started as onlookers that didn’t fully
participate in the war. However, in the middle of the war it played key roles in forming alliances
with other countries that served their best interests. In world war I it got into an alliance with

similarities and differences between world war 1 & 2 3
winning countries and in specifically with Great Britain, after German resumed sinking of its
merchant ships. There was creation and signing off of alliance deals like the Lend-Lease Act that
would give Great Britain more power and better advantage against Germany in the war. In the
second war, it allied with fighting countries after Japan south to attack them at the Pearl Harbor.
These alliances were also seen in the trade between the United states and Great Britain together
with France. The bonds were much stronger than those of Germany and Austria-Hungary before
the war commenced. This was the reason behind Germany attack against the United states that
saw Germany use submarines to distort and negatively affect the trade between The United
States and Great Britain (White 2).
Nationalism and Imperialism
There was great tension between the European nations in the wake of World War I over
imperial territories which included Africa and South America amongst other continents. There
was a great deal of loyalty for the leaders who sought to conquer more land to increase on the
country’s affluence, pride and prove patriotism to one’s mother country for the colonialists. Land
acquisition was seen as an act of loyalty to one’s country. Therefore, this brought about war to
conquer more land for countries that desired the already acquired lands and resources. For this
reason, great alliances were seen between sting and weak nations in order to increase on weapons
and military power. Countries that had more industrial revolution proved to be great threats due
to the massive production of weapons that would put the rest of the countries at a great
disadvantage and lead to massive deaths. Through Germany got defeated in World War I it rose
back in World War II after the Versailles Treaty was signed. This is because it sought more land
for itself especially in Poland and Czechoslovakia to which it gained. It was at a better advantage
in World war II as their more alliances and greater military power as well. This led to a great

similarities and differences between world war 1 & 2 4
imbalance in the European power. Due to the great leadership offered by Mussolini of Italy and
Adolf Hitler of Germany, Italy and Germany experienced massive development under the fascist
rule. This is because they both believed that their nationalism made them a superior race both
mentally and physically (Waller 2).
DIFFERENCES
Objectives and Strategies.
Due to the great power that Great Britain had over the seas, German felt that its power
was undermined and that Great Britain Power prevented it from gaining colonies. This was the
great reason behind the World War One. However, World War Two would be created from
nationalism after the Versailles Treaty was signed. German’s military development due to its
highly industrialized nature was able to make It a stronger army against its rival the Great
Britain. Germany fought for control over sea to gain more dominance against imperial colonial
territories like Africa. On the other hand, Japan fought to gain more land so as to increase its war
factories especially in the pacific region (Jerrod 1).
Alliances
The other main difference between the two wars was the alliances formed. For a long
time, European countries viewed themselves as superior countries individually. This was mostly
due to the levels of industrialization experienced. However, they also realized that alone, they
would stand at a loosing end and thus needed the help of other countries to increase in military
power. In fear of Germany military capability, Great Britain formed alliances with France and
Russia under the name Triple Entente. This caused Germany to join forces with Italy and
Austria-Hungary. This was taken as a strategic measure to avoid war by creating fear against the
other party. Though America offered help, it wasn’t much involved in World War I than it was in

similarities and differences between world war 1 & 2 5
World War II as it believed in keeping off other countries affairs. This created World War II
(Casey 1).
Policies
The policy of appeasement gain control in gaining territory and power and this wasn’t the
case in world War I. In fear of communism, the people of German didn’t dare go against Adolf
Hitler and this made more politicians acceptable of his rule and even more sympathetic of some
of his actions. This was because they saw the Versailles treaty as being harsher on German and
believed that it needed some of the lost territories returned to it. This saw some of Hitler’s
greatest victims especially then British Prime Minister Chamberlain, support the appeasement
policy. He did this as it was the only war he truly believed would be capable of avoiding another
even greater war. Thus, he was in support of giving in to some of Hitler’s demands, to which he
would realize in the end served none of his true intentions as Hitler was an untrustworthy leader
(Avery 2).

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Works Cited
Avery, S. John. "Lessons from World War I." Cadmus Journal 2.2 (2014): 5. Document. 23 July
2018. <https://www.cadmusjournal.org/article/volume-2/issue-2-part-3/lessons-world-
war-i>.
Casey, Steven. Paying with their bodies: American War and the problem of the disabled veteran.
Taylor and Francis Online, 2017. Document. 23 July 2018.
HistoryPlex Staff. "A Definitive Comparison Between World War 1 and World War 2." 1 March
2018. History Plex. Document. 23 July 2018. <https://historyplex.com/comparison-of-
world-war1-world-war2>.
Jerrod, Verdurd. "Similarities and differences of world war 1 and world war 2." 22 April 2014.
Prezi. Document. 23 July 2018. <https://prezi.com/o3pn93pt1ejy/similarities-and-
differences-of-world-war-1-and-world-war-2/>.
Murray, Nicholas. British infantry battalion commanders in the First World War. Taylor and
Francis Online, 2017. Document.
Strachan. "The first world war as a global war." Taylor and Francis Online 1.1 (2010): 5.
Document. 23 July 2018.
Waller, John. "Exploring World War I through the lens of a historic journal." Elsevier (2014): 5.
Document. <https://www.elsevier.com/connect/exploring-world-war-i-through-the-lens-
of-a-historic-journal>.
White, M. James. "British infantry battalion commanders in the First World War." Taylor and
Francis Online (2017): 93-113. Document.