The start (and end) of World War Two
In two days time, events in Britain will mark the country’s declaration of war on German exactly 70 years ago. For the Poles, however, the war started on 1 September 1939 when the German battleship “Schleswig-Holstein” opened fire at point-blank range on the Polish fort at Westerplatte. Events to mark the occasion have been held today in Poland – see here – and you can read about the seven-day Battle of Westerplatte here.
We tend to think of major wars – and World War II was overwhelmingly the most destructive in history – as having neat start and end dates. But, in reality, when the Second World War began and ended depends on one’s national perspective.
For China and Japan, the war effectively started with the so-called Manchurian Incident on 18 September 1931. For Czechs and Slovaks, the war began on 15 March 1939 when the Germans occupied those parts of the country not already ‘given’ to Hitler at the Munich conference six months earlier.
Following Germany’s invasion of Poland, Britain declared war at 11 am on 3 September 1939 and France followed suit at 5 pm the same day. Italy did not declare war on France until 10 June 1940. The Soviet Union only entered the war when invaded by Germany on 22 June 1941. The United States did not enter the war until the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941.
The Americans only declared war on the Japanese; on 11 December 1941, Hitler and Mussolini declared war on the USA for reasons that remain obscure but which effectively sealed the outcome of the war. The Soviet Union only declared war on Japan on 8 August 1945 (after the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima).
For most of Europe, the war ended on Victory in Europe (VE) Day 8 May 1945 but, for the Soviet Union, VE Day was 9 May 1945. This was because the allies had agreed to celebrate victory on 9 May, but journalists broke the news prematurely. For military forces in Asia, the end of the war was on Victory in Japan (VJ) Day 15 August 1945.
September 1st, 2009 at 2:25 pm
“The Soviet Union only entered the war when invaded by Germany on 22 June 1941.”
This is not true; the Soviets entered the war in September 1939 but — as the current Russian leaders are not happy to admit — as allies of Nazi Germany. They occupied the eastern part of Poland. In addition, Soviet aggression against the three Baltic republics and Finland may also properly be included in the opening moves of the war.
September 1st, 2009 at 6:33 pm
Fair correction, Eric – thanks.
In a sense, it underlines the point that when one thinks the war started depends often on a national perspective.