What Caused WWII?

by Bhuvana on June 28, 2009

Hey guys!

So we heard the Norman Leach presentation today, and he talked about how the Treaty of Versailles was considered to be ‘the first shot fired’ in WWII. To recap, basically, according to the terms of the Treaty of Versailles, which was the peace agreement signed to end WWI, Germany was forced to make harsh reparation payments to Britain and France. This happened largely because there was an intent during the signing of the Treaty to crush Germany, particularly on the part of France, so that it could never be a great power to threaten them militarily. The roots of this resentment stretched all the way back to the Franco-Prussian War in the 19th century, where France lost the province of Alsace-Lorraine, and the states of Prussia (which would later unify to become Germany) won this war and asserted their military might against France. So, France had a vested interest in ensuring that Germany would never again be able to attack them as it had done previously – especially since France shared a border with Germany. So, all in all, the Treaty of Versailles forced some pretty hefty burdens on the Germans through the “War Guilt Clause”, where the Germans were blamed for starting WWI (which they found unfair, since the conflict had itself started with Austria-Hungary and Serbia).

John Maynard Keynes was a famous economist who accompanied Woodrow Wilson, the American president of the day, to the meeting that discussed the terms of the Treaty of Versailles. He said – unheededly, of course – that if the Allies pushed this crippling economic burden upon the Germans, then there would certainly be a second world war. He was correct – or was he?

The work of a (relatively obscure) French economist, Etienne Mantoux, suggests that Keynes was actually incorrect – that he had anticipated some economic downturns in the prices of commodities that never actually happened. In fact, reasoned Mantoux, Germany was able to make the reparation payments – it just ended up not wanting to. English historian A. J. P. Taylor brought Mantoux’s work into more mainstream historiography, and used it for his theories. He suggested that the poor economic conditions in Germany were partially manufactured by the government in the case of, for example, the Ruhr Valley strike, during which German workers were paid without doing any work, as the government attempted to passively resist France and the terms of the Treaty of Versailles. As well, the printing of additional money led to runaway inflation, which was also used by Taylor as evidence. His conclusion? The Treaty of Versailles did contribute to WWII. But not because it crippled Germany too much – because it crippled Germany without making it totally unable to reemerge as a military power.

Sorry guys, I know that this has a lot of random details, and you may be confused. Drop a comment, and I’d love to answer your questions, or comment upon your ideas! =)

P.S. My mother was getting angry that I’d stayed up so late, but I had another post planned for tonight that I may or may not get to…

P.P.S. I forgot about listing sources. Hm. This is tough, because I gathered most of the stuff previously, and I’m using my notes about interesting details to come up with it. Most of this is from A. J. P. Taylor’s book The Origins of the Second World War, which was written in the early 1960s.

P.P.P.S. A. J. P. Taylor had a famous feud with a fellow historian, Hugh Trevor-Roper. The following story is entirely from Wikipedia, so trust it with discretion … Taylor’s books contained many radical ideas that made him quite controversial as a historian. In one exchange, Trevor-Roper told him, “I’m afraid that your book The Origins of the Second World War may damage your reputation as a historian.” Taylor replied, “Your criticism of me would damage your reputation as a historian, if you had one.”

Food, Glorious Food!

by Curtis on June 26, 2009

Soooo this post is here just for you guys to drool over the stuff we’re gonna eat for the (appx.) 30 meals we’re having while we’re in Europe .

First stop, Netherlands – The area is well-known for its varieties of cheese and the origin of “Dutch Process Chocolate”(treated(alkalized) to be more mild), traditional Dutch cuisine consists mostly of vegetables and limited meats. Dinner starts usually at 6:00 p.m., so that isn’t much of a change. It’s kind of hard to explain, so I’m just going to list some well-known Dutch dishes: “Hutspot” (made with potatoes, carrots, and onions served with meats like smoked sausage), “Snert” (Dutch pea soup), and “Boerenkoolstamppot,” curly kale (cabbage) mixed with potatoes, served with gravy, mustard, and rookworst sausage. Some traditions – Washing your hands, being on time, and starting to eat at the same time is respectful and important. ‘eet smakelijk’ (pronounces ATE smahk-A-lick) means the same as “bon appetit” and is used by the host to start. And finally, it is respectful to keep the hands above the table (elbows off).

Secondly, Belgium – Traditional foods include waffles, chocolate, mussels, fries and others (sweet!).

 Although very flexible, Belgians seem to take their eating very seriously (sometimes they will have one meal a day which extends over 5 hours!). According to http://www.settler-international.com/belgium/habits.htm, “Eating is considered as one of the greatest pleasures in life. Expect to spend two to three hours for lunch. If you want to be quick, select the dish of the day or ask the waiter what can be served quickly.” Eating raw meat is actually a delicacy there as well, and horse meat is available (just great ) (:s).

Finally, Paris – ummm… Paris is known for a lot of foods. There are a lot of cafes. I guess they’re famous for truffles (turns out they’re underground mushrooms, not chocolates like I thought ), croissants, escargot, and their cheese and wine, and crepes. Also, in Paris, food is a subject of great influence and importance in the people’s lives. Water is traditionally never on the table – wine is served to everyone, regardless of age.

Well… that’s all I have for now. I know there are probably some misconceptions above, so please leave any suggestions/corrections in the comments. Thanks.

Rise Against

by Curtis on June 24, 2009

The American band “Rise Against” really has some interesting viewpoints and recordings on war. Mostly all of their songs deal with the horrors and realities of what happens, not necessarily in WWI or WWII but in present day conditions. (Check out some of their other songs such as “Prayer of the Refugee and “Savior”) But in this particular song, “Hero of War,” it describes the young soldier taking pride in his flag (country) and serving in the army. Then he goes on to participate in the beating of an innocent, and finally, the consequences and effects of taking another’s life in battle. Enjoy hmmmmmm… sorry guys the mp3 version doesn’t seem to want to work with me here so I’m just going to post the youtube link until I can figure something out :s

Anyways, here it is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PpnWgCVfAxw&feature=fvst

Sydney Thiessen Bio

by Sydney on June 16, 2009

Hey everyone!!!!  As you already may know my name is Sydney Thiessen, I am a grade 11 student at Morinville Community High School.  You’re probably wondering, where the heck is Morinville? Haha.  It is about 25 min north of Edmonton or about 3 and a half hours north of Calgary.  It is a small town of about 9,000 and my school has only about 600 students, grades 9-12.  There are no words in the entire dictionary to explain just how excited I am to go to Europe!!  The farthest I have been out of the country is California when I was 8, so I’m am definately ready to say bye bye to Canada for 9 days.

My entry for the student research contest was a poem titled “Blood December.”  It was about the Battle of Ortona that discussed the brutality and effects on the soldiers who fought.  As well as bringing awareness to the fact that we have become ignorant, forgetting what are men sacrificed.

Well my interests…  I am a pretty athletic person.  I play basketball, volleyball, and try to ski as much as I can.  Skiing is probably my favorite.  I’m not much of a reader, but I LOVE movies!! Haha… I work at a movie store .  Music is also a huge part of my life, I play the clarinet in my school band and have the played the piano for about 9 years.  I also love animals I have a dog, named Sadie, and a cat, named Sammy, (who follows me around everywhere… haha).  But if you noticed there names both begin with “S,” as does mine, so my parents too often enough mix my name up with one or both or my pets names.

O!! I have to warn you all… I’m a bit of an odd ball and a clutz.  So don’t be surprised if I have a few cuts and bruises by the end of the trip… haha. 

 

P.S.  Sorry this took so long to post up, our computer was down and I was down with a terrible flu for like 10 days (don’t worry is wasn’t H1N1).

 

Jasmine’s Intro

by Jasmine on June 14, 2009

Hi everyone! My name is Jasmine. I attend the Calgary Arts Academy middle school and I am in grade 8 and I love horses. I am an avid rider, and i currently am taking bareback lessons.(no saddle or pads)

I have six pets at home. Two Bichon Shihtzu dogs, two Budgies, one Cockiteil and a Blue and Gold Macaw.(Buddy and Toby, Blue and Goldie,Crissie,and Cleopatra.)

My fave. things are: horses, sushi, dogs, swimming, and hurdles, and I want to be an Equine vet when I am older.

D-Day remembered: 65 years ago yesterday

by Chris on June 7, 2009

Yesterday was the 65th anniversary of D-Day. Each year we get a little further away from these events, with fewer witnesses still alive to remember them. But quite literally, this day was critical to the successful Allied victory in the European war. Here are a few videos that bring it a little closer to home just how historic and unprecedented the events of June 6, 1944 really were.

D-Day in Colour
Some excellent colour footage from the Second World War. It’s easy to picture history only in black and white, so seeing things in colour adds a bit of “reality” to these events.

 

Band of Brothers US Paratroopers Jump
This video does an excellent job of hinting at the massive scale of the landing armada and the ensuing chaos of night time jumps over Normandy.

 

Opening Scene from Saving Private Ryan
The US suffered the worst landing of all of the Overlord beaches at Omaha Beach, as depicted in these scenes. Less well know, is the fact that the Canadians at Juno Beach faced similarly brutal resistance . As author Mark Zuehlke has noted, it is “indisputable that the battle for Juno beach was won at a loss in men killed or wounded that was only exceeded by that of the Americans at Omaha.” (Zuehlke, Mark, Juno Beach: Canada’s D-Day Victory, Douglas and McIntyre, 2004, pg. 335) If Canada had the same well-funded and successful entertainment industry as our neighbours south of the border, I might have been able to post a video from a popular Canadian film about our D-Day contribution. Unfortunately there is no such film.

 

First Video back from the Overlord Landings – the Canadians at Juno

A chance for perspective: Langemark German Cemetery

by Chris on June 5, 2009

If we could read the secret history of our enemies, we should find in each man’s
life sorrow and suffering enough to disarm all hostility.

- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Necessarily, on any battlefield tour, cemeteries and memorials will tend to dominate the itinerary. I know each of these places individually has the power to evoke an intellectual and emotional response from thoughtful and empathetic visitors. But I also fear that visited in quick succession, one cemetery may start to blend into the next in a whirlwind of stops that leave only a superficial impression. For this reason, and others, Langemark German Cemetery should provide an excellent counterpoint to the numerous Allied and Commonwealth cemeteries we will be visiting.

Located a short drive outside of modern Ypres, Langemark is one of three major First World War German cemeteries. Although it now holds or commemorates 44,234 German war dead, the cemetery began modestly in 1915 as a small graveyard. Burials increased throughout the war and into the ’20s and ’30s, when thousands of bodies were exhumed and moved to the cemeterry from smaller burial sites throughout the Flanders area.

Understandably, the Belgians and French were loathe to give up home territory to bury their enemy’s dead, especially due to the widespread notion that war guilt belonged to Germany alone. Because of this shortage of real estate, many graves in the Langemark cemetery contain up to eight bodies, “stacked” vertically under a single, flat headstone. There is also a mass burial site, the Kameraden Grab (Comrades Grave), which contains the remains of 24,917 German soldiers who were unidentified at the time of their internment. The Volksbund (German wargraves commission – warning: website is auf Deutsche) has since identified 17,000 of the soldiers in the grave, and their names now adorn granite blocks near the burial. Perhaps the most recongizable thing about Langemark is the sculpture Mourning Soldiers by Emil Krieger, inspired by a photograph of four comrades mourning at the grave of a fellow soldier in 1918. Perhaps the most valuable thing about visiting Langemark is the chance to step outside of our preconceived notions of identity as Canadians.

In war, it is essential to de-humanize your enemy, in order that your soldiers will be able to commit the acts of violence deemed necessary to the larger campaign. It’s not surprising then, that memorials of war tend to perpetuate this de-humanizing effect, whether intentionally or not. They are by nature commissioned by, and devoted to, one side or the other, and tend to frame their perspective in terms of the victories won and sacrifices made by their side. They don’t often mention enemy casualties, or that the glory of their own victories was facilitated through the suffering of their enemies’ defeats. War is a zero-sum game: one side’s gains will always be the other side’s losses.

For these reasons, I’m really looking forward to visiting Langemark. While individuals can strive to look objectively at past conflicts as an impartial observer, we are all Canadians, raised under the patriotic banner of our country and heritage. Like it or not, we will all have a tendency to identify with “our” side as we look back at this history. And while the crimes of the Nazi regime make it easy to de-humanize Hitler’s Germany and side ourselves firmly on the side of the “good guys,” the First World War is much more difficult to simplify. In a war based on national pride and the glory of empire, can we honestly say that a Canadian grave deserves more introspection than a German one?

It is interesting to note that the only German cemetery on our itinerary holds the largest number of burials of any cemetery on our itinerary. It doesn’t take much imagination to realize that the German teenager buried here–shot, dismembered, maybe blown up or gassed–was motivated by the same things as the Canadian teenager killed and buried elsewhere: patrioitism, a chance for adventure, a sense of duty, a job.

Both were human. And both were killed far from their home and family, wishing things could be different.

Main Source:

www.greatwar.co.uk’s entry on Langemark.

Language of the Trenches

by Laura on June 3, 2009

A unique culture formed in the trenches during the First World War. It become an underground city, where men lived, slept, laughed, cried, fought, sat, missed, ate, and died. With this culture came the trench dialect, which playfully put together French and English words and sayings, for example:

“No bon” which “was a common expression for something that was “no good, “…other choice usage included “compree” and “napoo” to signify death, the latter drawn from “il n’y en a plus” (“there is no more”)…A soldier was not killed; instead, he “went west”… Attacking the enemy was called “going over the top” or “hitting the bags”…”Cooties” were lice, and “coffin nail” a cigarette..All the deadly weapons of war [were renamed] “pineapples”, “rum jars”, “toffee apples”, “flying pigs”, “Jack Johnsons”, “Black Marthas”, “fish tails”, and “whizbangs” (Cook, 2008: 191).

They made up phrases, used particular words and wrote about certain topics such as the “allure of the French farmer’s daughter or a lack of alcohol” to help deal with their urges. The soldiers songs and poems were a way of releasing their emotions and communicating through satire and parody. It was one of their coping mechanisms, as was their seemingly gruesome humour. Written to popular melodies of the time, the soldiers augmented the original lyrics with their own.

For example, “We’re Here Because” was sung to the melody of “Auld Lang Syne”:

We’re here Because
We’re here Because
We’re here Because, we’re here.

“Far, Far From Wipers” was sung to the melody of “Sing Me to Sleep”:

Sing me to sleep where bullets fall;
Let me forget the war and all.
Damp is my dugout, cold are my feet,
Nothing but bully and biscuits to eat.
Sing me to sleep where bombs explode
And shrapnel shells are a-la-mode.
Over the sandbags you find,
Corpses in front of you, corpses behind.

Far, far from Ypres I long to be,
Where German snipers cannot pot me.
Think of me crouching where the worms creep,
Waiting for someone to sing me to sleep.

Sing me to sleep in some old shed;
The rats are running around my head.
Stretched out on my waterprooof,
Dodging the raindrops through the roof.
Sing me to sleep where the camp fires glow,
When nights are cold and spirits are low,
Dreaming of home and days in the West,
Somebody’s overseas boot on my chest.

Far from the star-shells I long to be,
Lights of old London I’d rather see;
Think of me crouching where the worms creep,
Waiting for someone to sing me to sleep.

“Behind the Lines” was a song that took a shot at superior officers who ordered infantry into dangerous situations, but who never shared in the danger:

We’ve got a sergeant-major,
Who’s never seen a gun;
He’s mentioned in dispatches
For drinking privates’ rum;
And when he sees old Jerry,
You should see the bugger run
Miles and miles and miles behind the lines!

Source:

Cook, Tim.  Shook Troops Canadians Fighting the Great War, 1917-1918. 2008. Penguin Group Publishing, Ontario, Canada.

Before the Gas at Hill 145

by Laura on

Thirty-nine days before the Canadians infamous and victorious attack on Vimy Ridge from April 9-12, 1917 there was a disastrous reconnaissance raid.

On March 1, 1917 at 3:00 am the gas sergeants took their positions to release the phosgene gas from the hundreds of gas canisters, referred to as “rats”, they had placed prior to the scheduled raid date. Every night they had lugged the heavy, poisonous gas canisters four miles to the front lines. They dug holes in the ground, nicknamed “rat traps”, where the canisters were carefully placed and held in position with dirt and sandbags. A rubber hose connected to the canister would be maneuvered away from the trench, into No Man’s Land towards the enemy. The Canadians knew all too well what poisonous gas did to the human body from their experience at the Ypres Salient in 1915 when they were hit with gas for the first time.

For those of you who are not familiar with just how horrible gas is, imagine your throat tightening up and it being increasing harder for you to breath. Your heart starts racing at an abnormally fast pace. Your skin turns pale and your lips blue. Men are vomiting and gasping all around you. Your eyes, skin and lungs are burning. Your bodies reaction to the burning is the creation of fluid. The “lethal agents of the gas caused liquid discharge and within a few hours victims either coughed their insides out or asphyxiated from the fluid buildup in their lungs” (Barris, 2008:15). The gas eats at everything, from your flesh, your eyes, your lungs to even the brass of your uniform buttons and regimental badge which would turn green from the corrosive gas.

At 5:00 am the gas sergeants were to release the chlorine gas and 45-minutes later the 1,700 troops assigned to the raid were to go “over the top”. Of course things didn’t work out. For a gas attack, the velocity and direction of the wind is crucial. Secondly, gas is heavier then air. This meant that even if the gas sergeants managed to release the gas from the canisters and through the hose into No Man’s Land, the gas then had to travel up the hill to kill the Germans. (I shake my head at this, as I’m sure you are too). Gas is heavier than air, therefore it is logically impossible for it to flow up hill. Rather, they would find that the gas would settle in the pot-marked landscape and trenches, the very places our soldiers would seek protection from German fire. The idea was that the first gas release would kill most of the Germans. The second release, of chlorine gas, would surely finish off the Germans. 45-minutes after the chlorine gas release, a proposed sufficient amount of time for the gas to dissipate, our soldiers would walk in, finish off the few struggling Germans, collect the information they were sent for and then return.If I, a civilian, can see flaws in this plan, I cannot help but question, almost scream, “How did anyone ever let this plan go further than its first mentioning?!”

The Germans realized a gas attack has been launched. They sounded the alarms, and released hell on No Man’s Land. A German artillery barrage and a steady pumping of rifle and machine gun fire rained down on the Canadians. The shells smashed into buried gas cylinders, causing our own trench to instantly fill with poison gas. With a tremendous rupture a wave of yellow gas plummeted from our trenches. The chlorine gas cylinders had been hit. “Making matters worse, the wind had changed direction. The release of the second wave of gas to supposedly finish off the German defenders began blowing back in the faces of the Canadian brigades.” (Barris, 2008: 13).

In about 5 minutes we lost 190 men and two company commanders. It total, there were 687 casualties. Only 5 men actually reached the German trenches. Those that somehow managed to stay alive in No Man’s Land, were captured and spent around 21-months in a German prison camp.

On March 3 an extraordinary event took place. No Man’s Land had been eerily silent after the attack, but out of the mist a “German officer carrying a Red Cross flag walked out into No Man’s Land in front of Hill 145. He called for and was met by a Canadian officer to discuss a two-hour truce –from 10:00 am until 12:00 noon — during which time Canadian stretcher bearers and medical staff could carry back casualties and remains. What seemed even more remarkable [was]…the Germans said they would assist by bringing Canadian casualties halfway.

“In all our time in Frace, I never saw anything like it.”

Sgt. Maj. Jack

Sources:

Barris, Ted. Victory at Vimy: Canada Comes of Age April 9-12, 1917. 2008. Thomas Allen Publishers, Ontario, Canada.

Photo courtsey of Canadian War Museum

There Was Only One Way: The Walcheren Causeway

by Laura on

For background information on the objective and purpose of the Walcheren Causeway read Jordan Glass’s informative post titled “The Walcheren Causeway”. I found some more information about this Second World War battle in David J. Bercuson’s book titled, Maple Leaf Against the Axis: Canada’s Second World War.

It was a one way road for the allies. We wanted to get from the mainland and down the peninsula. The only way to get there was across the Walcheren Causway, which essentially was a thin strip of land pot-filled with shell craters and surrounded by mud. The allies could not approach this area by boat due to the simple fact that there was not enough water surrounding it. The option of vehicles and infantry making their way across these salty marches on either side of the causeway was also out of the picture, for the mud would swallow them whole. This left only one option in attacking Walcheren. They would have to fight their way across the almost completely exposed causeway.

The Germans held the west end of the causeway. About 2/3 of the way down the causeway, near the west end, the Germans had blown a tank trap (an extremely large crater spanning the width of the causeway). They had also constructed brick-lined trenches for the protection of their troops.

Soldiers from the Black Watch regiment were the first to advance. They attacked on October 31, 1944 (Halloween). By night fall, they had to retreat. The Calgary Highlanders were next in line. The Germans used hand grenades and flame throwers to hold back the advancing Highlanders. At 3:00 am they pulled back, regrouped and devised another plan. Three hours later, they attacked “under cover of a new and more extensive fire plan” (Bercuson, 1995: 251). Later that day, the Highlanders had to pull back again. As a last resort, the Maisonneuves attacked Walcheren on November 2, 1944. They didn’t get more than 200 metres before they had to be rescued by the Scottish troops of the 52nd (Lowland) Division.

Miraculously, the Scottish troops of the 52nd (Lowland) Division found another way. They found a strip of mud flats that could support the weight of advancing troops. They managed to access the west end of the causeway. When they arrived, they found that they out flanked the Germans. The battle was done. With the taking of the Walcheren Causeway, the Battle of the Scheldt Esturary was over. The men were a few days shy of settling in for their sixth Christmas of the war.

Source:

Bercuson, David. Maple Leaf Against the Axis: Canada’s Second World War. 1995. Red Deer Press, Calgary, Canada.

Photo courtesy of Library and Archives Canada