«The World War I and the World War II» - Free Essay Paper

Part I

Germans invaded France in 1870, which created tension that could lead to war. The enmity between France and Germany grew with time. Otto von Bismarck signed a treaty that transferred all the Alsce and much of their Lorraine to Germany. Germany celebrated its triumph over France through the demonstration of gunfire in the city of Metz. Some people including Ferdinand Foch refused to accept their victory by claiming that he had not yet gone to the battlefield and later inflamed the war (Gilbert 2). The war already started but in a subtle form. Not all people in the newly united Germany were happy about German’s declaration of victory over France. The eruption of war was accelerated by German’s race for power and influence, and they saw that military warfare was the only way to achieve this.

The people in Europe thought that the war would be the only way to solve the challenges they encountered though it would cause a lot of harm. ‘When mighty population are impelled on each other’, a European war could only end in the ruin of vanquished and less fatal commercial dislocation as well as exhaustion of the conquerors.’ By 1911, German war fever was being whipped up against France and Britain over their claim for a port and Atlantic coast of Morocco. There existed various rivalries and sentiments of war between the nations for whom trade, peace, industry, and national prosperity was a true necessity and both an opportunity and challenge. These influences contributed to the aggravation of World War I. He states that ‘democracy would be more vindictive than the courts and cabinets of old’ (Gilbert 3).

Part II

Many people died during the world war. Despite the numerous deaths, other factors also contributed to the numbers of the recorded lost lives as illustrated by Gilbert. For instance, about 62000 soldiers died of influenza compared to those who were killed on the battlefield (Gilbert 540). The readings capture the numbers of deaths recorded in various regions during the war, and this leads to the disagreement in the numbers recorded in the readings. John Ward cites the number of people who died from Canada Tim Cross records the number of military casualties who died in the battles. Also, much emphasis is put on the number of deaths recorded in British Empire and the United States.

Gilbert states that the memories of the World War I were used as a point of reconciliation between Germany and France. The destructiveness of the First World War killed many soldiers; however, after the Second World War,  there were ceremonies to bring back the memories of the first world. The irony comes out clearly in the history of world war as people use the most destructive war to reconcile despite recording the highest number of casualties. Photographs were taken at the bitter scenes of the First World War. Also, it is ironic that the winners lost the highest number of soldiers of about 5,100,000 men compared to Germany who lost only 3,500,000 men (Gilbert 541).

According to Tim Cross, various talents were lost during the First World War. It is true that the artists who died might have accomplished greater things in the current world. The war adversely affected the twentieth century literacy works.

The UK, Canada, and the United States conduct memorial events to reflect on the effects of the world war. Canadians took the remains of the soldiers killed during the war and reburied them as a sign of their honor. Americans adopted the poppy as an official symbol of memories of the war. Ceremonies are occasionally held to remember those who suffered from the world war.