Causes of World War II Before the U.S. Got Involved

After World War 1, Europe was desperately trying to recover from the effects of World War 1. Their economies were just getting worse and worse. Germany was paying thousands of dollars in reparations and the Austro-Hungarian Empire split into different
countries.

In 1931, Japan took over Manchuria which is above China. Then, 6 years later, Japan attacked and invaded China and killed many people. Japan continued to try and take over different countries, such as Indochina.

While all of this was happening in Asia, Europe was also undergoing extreme changes. Italy and Germany’s governments both became fascist, which means that they had dictators to control them. Fascists believe that there is a certain superiority within a
group that others do not have. They do not support equal and individual rights. Italy’s dictator was Benito Mussolini and Germany’s dictator was Adolf Hitler.

All of these governmental changes led to countries continuing to invade other countries. Italy, Japan, and Germany were planning to invade half of their respective continents.