The Similarities Between World War I And World War II

Many might think World War II was a great war but out of the two was it the best war? World War I began in 1914 and ended around 1918 whereas World War II began in 1939 and ended around 1945. In both World War I and World War II, Germany and its allies played a huge role in the continuation of the wars. Although the world wars happened in different eras, they have many similarities and differences that are often overlooked. They had similarities in the way that the wars were caused, who lost, and how they initially ended. The cost, military tactics, and transportation however, were some of the major differences between the wars.

World War I and World War II had similar causes including: nationalism, imperialism, alliances, and militarism. Germany,

Japan, and Italy all had the need for more land and resources. However, the land that they wanted had already been taken. The only way to obtain the land was through aggressive behavior and/or by going to war.

Each country also believed that their military, government, and way of life were above any other country. Therefore, none of them were afraid to proceed with war because they all felt they would come out on top. Because of their raging confidence, countries began advancing their militaries in preparation for war. Upon the United States playing an important role in the world wars, they didn’t join either right away. The United States joined World War I when Germany continued to follow through with their policy of sinking our ships without any kind of warning. The United States joined World War II when Japan surprisingly bombed pearl harbor leaving nothing but fear distilled in the minds of civilians. Besides engaging in combat, the United States supported the allies in both wars by supplying the resources needed for them to achieve victory. Another similarity would be that the United States was willing to help the allies more than the central and axis powers in World War I and World War II. With our government being like Great Britain we held more control of our own decisions. The United States was trading with France and Great Britain more so than that of Austria-Hungary and

Germany before they had officially joined World War I. Because of this, Germany resumed using submarines to stop these trades aiding their enemy, Great Britain. Germany also used this underwater attack in World War II to stop the United States, once again, from helping Great Britain. The United States was trying to stay out of the war by doing under the table deeds, but in the end, Germany had put a stop in our trades with Great Britain which forced the Unites States to enter the war. In both wars Germany was responsible for our enter into the war. Policies put in place at the beginning of World War I had drastic impacts on both wars. Some policies include but are not limited to: The Lend Lease Act, Destroyers for Bases, and the established hemispheric defense zones. These are all ways the Unites States tried to help throughout both world wars, even though they had minor setbacks from competing countries.
World War I’s military combat weapons were considerably different than those of World War II.

During World War I the weapons they were composed of were normal weapons like pistols, rifles, and shotguns. More advanced weapons for this time frame were machine guns and deadly gases. They also had planes, tanks, and blimps. World War II weaponry consisted of rifles that were more up to date: Anti-Aircraft guns (AA guns), mines, and hand grenades. During World War I when they started using deadly gases it would get into their lungs and fill them with a heavy liquid causing them to choke on air, which led to them essentially drown from the inside out. They were not prepared for gases, so they didn’t have gas mask to protect themselves, and all they could do is run from the affected area. Although they both had the same type of guns, like rifles and pistols, they were built completely different and had different capabilities. For instance, a rifle that was used in World War II would shoot a lot quicker, it would reload faster, and it was a lot more reliable than a rifle used in World War I. The vehicles like tanks and planes were built different during the two wars. Each had its own purpose and reason for being built. For example, a light tank would be built different from an infantry tank. Each had different weapons, and different armor all at different levels of advancement. Most of the weapons during World War II had similar concepts of those used in World War I. Most weapons

used in World War II were redesigned weapons from World War I to match the growing technological field. They were refigured to be more durable and accurate to avoid jams during open fire in World War II. Although both wars had weapons, those used during the second world war were considerably better due to the advancement the came from technology advancing over time.
Considering all the similarities and differences between World War I and World War II, the second world war was obviously better. Reasons for this are the weaponry used, the length of time and the improvements made. The weaponry was improved to out gun the enemy more so than the previous war. The length of the second war was about two years longer than the first war. Which means that both sides had to withstand the weather conditions, and the constant fighting over a long period of time. This meant that they had to be more physically, mentally and emotionally stable. Both the allies and axis powers during World War II made major improvements from the previous world war. Improvements would include but are not limited to: weapons, vehicles, clothing, and warfare techniques. The warfare techniques that war improved from the previous World War, are that they found better strategic locations, did not use trench warfare, and knew what to expect and how to prepare for it. During the first World War they did not know what to do or how to plan it out because it was the first World War, so there were many things they did wrong, but in the second World War they knew what they did wrong and took the precautions necessary to help give them a higher advantage. Even though part of the reason we joined the second World War was because Germany cut off our trade routes to Great Britain, the Unites States had bigger and better plans in place because of the technological advancements since World War I. The main reason that the second world war was better than the first world war is because of the advancements in transportation. They had access to more railroads that distanced out farther which aided in transporting food and supplies throughout the war. Even though the war didn’t last as long as the first world war, the advancements in place caused it to be more destructive. Because the advancements in place did more destruction they were needing more and more health supplies and weaponry to make it through a short period of time. During the second world war our allies had more advanced weaponry that aided our countries, which helped us out in the long run. The fighting led to more tragedies than expected due to a more gruesome fight. The aftermath was considerably worse compared to that of the first world war. Taking in account all the damage and little planning done in World War I, World War II was well thought out and well planned to do maximum damage and destroy all our enemies.
Wars have tremendously changed throughout history. They have advanced with time and how they occur. The devastation war has caused to the land and its people is continuing to become worse. The technology is advancing leaving nothing but ashes on the ground. Nowadays countries take extreme precautions to avoid devastation, but it didn’t used to be that way. It was either a war between two countries or a war within a country. Some were fought to expand their power, some were fought to gain independence, and some were fought because they were allies to the threatened countries. At this point the reason didn’t matter because pervious wars have left an unimaginable impact on the concepts of war today. World War I and World War II were the two most breathtaking wars throughout history and are responsible for the shaping of wars fought today. Despite that the wars differed in technology, military, weaponry, transportation, planning, and warfare techniques, they were also very similar. They were similar in the ways of how they were caused, how they initially ended, and how and when the united states became involved in each. The leaders, expectations, and ideology that came from both wars has left the world with a remarkable history.