Origins of the Second World War in Europe, The (2nd Edition) (Origins Of Modern Wars) (Paperback)

by P.M.H. Bell (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review
'...the accuracy, precision, and balance are outstanding... a remarkable synthesis.' "American Historical Review" 'Bell's new book transcends [A.J.P.] Taylor and can replace him.' "Albion"

Product Description
In this famous book Philip Bell examines the European origins of the Second World War from three different angles: first, he sets out the various explanations which have been offered for the war, and discusses the historiographical debates to which they have given rise; he then analyses the major underlying forces - ideological, economic and strategic - that were at work in Europe during the 1930s; and in his final section he traces the course of events from 1932, when Europe was visibly at peace, via the initial oubreak of hostilities in 1939, right through to June 1941, when the German attack on the Soviet Union marked the climax of the acceleration into general conflict. P.M.H.BELL is Senior Research Fellow at the University of Liverpool. Longman recently published his two-volume study of Franco-British relations in the twentieth century, as France and Britain 1900-1940: Entente and Estrangement and France and Britain 1940-1994: The Long Separation.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Longman; 2 edition (August 2, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0582304709
• ISBN-13: 978-0582304703
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #484,036 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Lucid Analysis, April 8, 2005

By	R. Albin (Ann Arbor, Michigan United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This concise and very well written book is thoughtful distillation of the enormous literature related to the onset of WWII in Europe. The simple question, who started WWII, has a simple answer. It was Adolf Hitler. The simple answer obscures a whole series of considerably more difficult questions. How did a marginal figure and 4th-rate ideologue like Hitler come to rule the most powerful state in Europe? Why wasn't there more initial resistance to Hitler? What was the role of the Great Depression? To what extent did the post-WWI settlement lead to WWII? What was the role of the Soviet Union and Stalin? Many other questions arise. Bell deals with many of these issues in a series of well crafted chapters. The book opens by framing the issues, including a short but worthwhile discussion of historiographic issues, follows by discussing underlying factors such as ideology, economics, the role of the depression, the roles of the military postures adopted by the major actors, and then concludes with a nice narrative of the outbreak of war. Bell very intelligently extends his narrative beyond 1939 to the 1941 invasion of the Soviet Union, pointing out that it is these later events that allow assessment of the role of key ideological factors in the coming of WWII. This book is worth reading just for the chapters dealing with the consequences of the Great Depression. A theme throughout the book is the limited options possessed by the leaders of France and Britain. Given their internal political situations, some form of appeasement was inevitable, though consistently unpalatable. I have a couple of minor complaints. I don't think Bell deals with the uncertain nature of politics in the Weimar Republic. Hitler's accession to power was not inevitable. While some form of reactionary German government bent on reversing the settlement of WWI was probably inevitable, it could have been one dominated by more traditional conservatives. This type of leadership would have been amenable to the type of accomodation and diplomacy attempted by Chamberlain and the French leadership. It is clear also, in retrospect, that few in Europe really understood the depth of the Nazi racial preoccupations and their bizarre model of history, a tragic though understandable mistake.

5 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, October 21, 2000

By	J.R.G. (Big Stone Gap, VA USA) - See all my reviews

Bell does a fine job of looking at just what brought about the Second World War. He explains its connections to the Great War, by first discussing the idea of a Thirty Years War, and by then examining how the first war and its results brought about the second. Bell also provides readers with the roles and views of the various ideologies and the many desires for and against war, and also the many strategies involved with each of the main players. An excellent book for anyone wishing to better understand the differing forces and actions which brought about this war.

3 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Stellar, March 14, 2000

By A Customer

This is a great book everyone should read, I salute it.