Out of all the wars in history, why do people mostly study World War II?

Question

Is it because of its powerful military strategies and tactics, and its advanced operations?

Answer 1

If I had to guess, they probably wanted to see why one person would want to establish a master race and wipe out tens of millions of people in the process using cruel execution methods.
And why the US turned a blind eye until the Japs attacked.

Answer 2

I think some important reasons are radios, magazines, newsreels and newspapers. This war not only engulfed the world, but people were getting their information live via the radio. There was instant communication and then later in the movie theaters, MovieTone newreels. So for the first time people could see the war.

This led to a lot of information available to people for research. Many World War II vets are still alive and giving interviews. Plus it was a war when much of the civilized world banded together to stop aggression.

But the main reason I think is it was truly a World War. World War I was mostly European. There were flare-ups elsewhere, but most of the battles were European.

Look at where the battles of World War II were fought. It started in Europe. It spread to Africa, then the Pacific. It reached all the way down to Australia and north to Alaska, Finland and there were naval battles north of the Arctic Circle. There were great naval battles in both the Atlantic and Pacific.

If you will notice in World War I, for much of the time there was very little movements in the trenches. For several years troops moved as little as a few hundred yards back and forth. That isn't exciting to study. In World War II, lines moved all the time.

Finally, look at the personalities of World War II. Here's a partial list.

Stalin, Roosevelt, Hitler, Hirohito, Tojo, Eisenhower, Mussolini, Patton, Montgomery, Nimitz, McArthur, Marshall, DeGaulle, Churchill, McAuliffe, Wainwright, Bradley. The list could go on.

In Conclusion - it truly was a world war and there is so much information out there, it is easy to study.

Answer 3

I began by studying World War II, on my own, and for fun when I was in elementary school. The originaI attraction for me was the "Blood and Iron" of the Prussian military. I moved on to reading about the war in VIetnam later when I was in high school, and then I expanded the field into other areas of military history. Along the way I did learn about "the powerful military strategies and tactics, and advanced operations." One other reason why people mostly study World War II is the idea of millions of people living under Hitler and the Nazis, or Stalin and the Communists - the political conditions under which millions of Europeans lived and struggled. Despite its relevance, and the amount of interested readers there are - it is truly disappointing that military history is not taught in any schools outside of military academies.

Answer 4

It was a World War. The scale of the conflict is enormous. That's part of the fascination. It's hard to imagine that level of carnage now. The other aspect is the very clear us versus them, good versus evil dynamic. Nobody doubts that the Nazis and the Japanese needed to be stopped. So it's easy to get into the cause.

And of course it was also when modern tactics were first developed. Armored warfare, Air power, Paratroops etc. Studying many other wars gets too mired in the political mess that caused or perpetuated the war.

Answer 5

World War Two did have the advanced military equipment and therefore was even more destructive but also more countries in the world were involved both directly or indirectly in the conflict. That means the effects of the war were more widespread and have affected more lives than the other wars. The effect is still ongoing as those that lived and fought in that era are now gradually dying off.

Answer 6

I didn't know it was. From a casualty point of view, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_II_casualties lists almost 73 million deaths, half being civilian, representing 3.7% of the population of affected countries.

There were tremendous technological advancements during the war in almost every discipline from medicine to aviation to communication and more.

Viet Nam and actions since then were in our homes on a daily basis so they are more familiar to us. WWII on the other hand was presented in News Reels, newspapers and radio. Also we can still relate to survivors, I'm sure we all know at least one Veteran or person who was affected by it.

WWII also upset the balance of power in Europe and Asia. It began the end of Foreign Rule in many former Colonies.

I thought I knew a lot about the war but internet has disclosed many aspects I was not aware of; again often with contributions of participants.

So maybe your answer is it has living history coupled with new disclosures.

Answer 7

Glamor, WWII is documented with film instead of oil paintings. WWII is the high point in America's history that transformed the country from an agricultural economy into a world power with a rising middle class. But, in my day, the schools ignored WWII because it was too recent (facts need and should be 50 years old to be in the history books) and we covered the Civil War in dreary detail, battle by battle, and ignored the Indian Wars.

Answer 8

for me,one thing intererstin bout World War II is Japan. their military power is out of expectation.ppl like 2 study bout WW II becuz that's the time when we can clearly see how cruelty,greediness etc. effected d whole world.d black n white of humanity....

Answer 9

people mainly study world war 2 because it is a fairly recent war and there were more deaths and injuries in that war than any other wars that America has been involved in

Answer 10

i was wondering too
hehe, i saw your answer
OK, What I wondered was why there is so little study about recent wars like vietnam or gulf war compared with ww2?

Well you can say it was the last WORLD War, that involved all countries.
It is also interesting that some people find thrilling what happened there, there is a (morbid) fascination about nazis.