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Over the last thirty years or so, it's been increasingly popular to see WW1 and WW2 as the same conflict, but with a pause for populations to stabilize and stoc
by MilStdJunkie 3y ago
Over the last thirty years or so, it's been increasingly popular to see WW1 and WW2 as the same conflict, but with a pause for populations to stabilize and stocks to be rebuilt.
It's sometimes called "The Second Thirty Years' War", although I feel that labelling is misleading, as is, potentially, the core thesis. Careful reading of the diplomatic history illustrates that WW2, despite our popular notions, was not entirely inevitable, but, at least so far as Poland was concerned, was one more in a very long list of NSDAP f#ckups. 30 Year War Part II is a workable paradigm when considering the large scale causes of the 20th century conflicts. It's deeply, bitterly ironic that Europe was done in by the same intellectual framework that allowed them to dominate the rest of the world. Turns out, once you start throwing subhuman labels around, it's just a matter of time before the label lands on your neighbors.
- golergka 3y ago> by the same intellectual framework that allowed them to dominate the rest of the world People consisted other nations and ethnicities subhuman as long as they existed. Europe was, AFAIK, the first place on Earth that (1) considered subjugated people equal before the law (if they converted), (2) banned slavery and (3) imposed slavery ban on other nations.
- triceratops 3y ago> considered subjugated people equal before the law (if they converted) The Mongols and the ancient Persians didn't even make anyone convert. > banned slavery If you don't count all the colonies... > imposed slavery ban on other nations It is a very admirable thing to do, but who else could do it? They had the most powerful militaries in that era.
- golergka 3y ago> If you don't count all the colonies... Colonies are exactly what I'm talking about. > It is a very admirable thing to do, but who else could do it? They had the most powerful militaries in that era. Nobody else even wanted to.
- triceratops 3y ago> Colonies are exactly what I'm talking about. Tell me more about how slavery was outlawed in Haiti - especially during the French Revolution with its "liberté, égalité, fraternité". Tell me about Belgian Congo. Tell me about the close relative of slavery, indentured servitude, in the British Empire.
- jdougan 3y agoI prefer to think of the history of the 20th Century as The Great War plus repercussions.
- giraffe_lady 3y agoI have heard a historian half-joke that we already know world war 3 started in 1914.