World war in the context of Cold War

World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers. Nearly all of the world's countries participated, with many nations mobilising all resources in pursuit of total war. Tanks and aircraft played major roles, enabling the strategic bombing of cities and delivery of the first and only nuclear weapons ever used in war. World War II is the deadliest conflict in history, causing the death of 70 to 85 million people, more than half of whom were civilians. Millions died in genocides, including the Holocaust, and by massacres, starvation, and disease. After the Allied victory, Germany, Austria, Japan, and Korea were occupied, and German and Japanese leaders were put on trial for war crimes.

The causes of World War II included unresolved tensions in the aftermath of World War I, the rise of fascism in Europe and militarism in Japan. Key events preceding the war included Japan's invasion of Manchuria in 1931, the Spanish Civil War, the outbreak of the Second Sino-Japanese War in 1937, and Germany's annexations of Austria and the Sudetenland. World War II is generally considered to have begun on 1 September 1939, when Nazi Germany, under Adolf Hitler, invaded Poland, after which the United Kingdom and France declared war on Germany. Poland was divided between Germany and the Soviet Union under the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact. In 1940, the Soviet Union annexed the Baltic states and parts of Finland and Romania. After the fall of France in June 1940, the war continued mainly between Germany, now assisted by Fascist Italy, and the British Empire, with fighting in the Balkans, Mediterranean, and Middle East, the aerial Battle of Britain and the Blitz, and the naval Battle of the Atlantic. Through campaigns and treaties, Germany gained control of much of continental Europe and formed the Axis alliance with Italy, Japan, and other countries. In June 1941, Germany invaded the Soviet Union, opening the Eastern Front and initially making large territorial gains.

The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a global series of conflicts fought by a fluctuating array of European coalitions against the French First Republic (1803–1804) under the First Consul followed by the First French Empire (1804–1815) under the Emperor of the French, Napoleon Bonaparte. The wars originated in political forces arising from the French Revolution (1789–1799) and from the French Revolutionary Wars (1792–1802) and produced a period of French domination over Continental Europe. The wars are categorised as seven conflicts, five named after the coalitions that fought Napoleon, plus two named for their respective theatres: the War of the Third Coalition, War of the Fourth Coalition, War of the Fifth Coalition, War of the Sixth Coalition, War of the Seventh Coalition, the Peninsular War, and the French invasion of Russia.

The first stage of the war broke out when Britain declared war on France on 18 May 1803. After some minor campaigns, Britain allied with Austria, Russia, and several minor powers to form the Third Coalition in April 1805. Napoleon defeated the allied Russo-Austrian armies in the subsequent war which climaxed in French victories at Ulm and at Austerlitz, leading to the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire and Austria being forced to make peace by the end of the year. Britain and Russia remained at war with France. Concerned about increasing French power, Prussia joined Britain and Russia in the Fourth Coalition, which resumed war in October 1806. Napoleon defeated the Prussians at Jena-Auerstedt and the Russians at Friedland, bringing an uneasy peace to the continent by July 1807, and again leaving Britain as France's sole major enemy. Britain was unable to dispute French dominance on the continent but obtained hegemony over the seas after a string of victories including Trafalgar. Russia used the interim peace to resolve wars with the Ottomans, Swedes, and Iranians.

World War I, or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Major areas of conflict included Europe and the Middle East, as well as parts of Africa and the Asia-Pacific. The war saw important developments in weaponry including tanks, aircraft, artillery, machine guns, and chemical weapons. One of the deadliest conflicts in history, it resulted in an estimated 30 million military casualties, and 8 million civilian deaths from war-related causes and genocide. The movement of large numbers of people was a major factor in the deadly Spanish flu pandemic.

The causes of World War I included the rise of the German Empire and decline of the Ottoman Empire, which disturbed the long-standing balance of power in Europe, the exacerbation of imperial rivalries, and an arms race between the great powers. Growing tensions in the Balkans reached a breaking point on 28 June 1914 when Gavrilo Princip, a Bosnian Serb, assassinated Franz Ferdinand, the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne. Austria-Hungary blamed Serbia, and declared war on 28 July. After Russia mobilised in Serbia's defence, Germany declared war on Russia and France, who had an alliance. The United Kingdom entered the war after Germany invaded Belgium, and the Ottoman Empire joined the Central Powers in November. Germany's strategy in 1914 was to quickly defeat France before transferring its forces to the east, but its advance was halted in September, and by the end of the year the Western Front consisted of a near-continuous line of trenches from the English Channel to Switzerland. The Eastern Front was more dynamic, but neither side gained a decisive advantage, despite costly offensives. Italy, Bulgaria, Romania, Greece and others entered the war from 1915 onward.

The Bilderberg Meeting (also known as the "Bilderberg Group", "Bilderberg Conference" or "Bilderberg Club") is an annual off-the-record forum established in 1954 to foster dialogue between Europe and North America. The group's agenda, originally to prevent another world war, is now defined as bolstering a consensus around free market Western capitalism and its interests around the globe. Participants include political leaders, experts, captains of industry, finance, academia, numbering between 120 and 150.

Attendees are entitled to use information gained at meetings, but not attribute it to a named speaker—an arrangement, called the Chatham House Rule, that the club says is meant to encourage candid debate while maintaining privacy. Critics from a wide range of viewpoints have called it into question, and it has drawn conspiracy theories from both the left and right.

The Northern Isles (Scots: Northern Isles; Old Norse: Norðreyjar; Norn: Nordøjar) are an archipelago located off the north coast of the Scottish mainland. The climate is cool and temperate and highly influenced by the surrounding seas. There are two main island groups: Shetland and Orkney. There are a total of 36 inhabited islands, with the fertile agricultural islands of Orkney contrasting with the more rugged Shetland islands to the north, where the economy is more dependent on fishing and the oil wealth of the surrounding seas. Both archipelagos have a developing renewable energy industry. They share a common Pictish and Norse history, and were part of the Kingdom of Norway before being absorbed into the Kingdom of Scotland in the 15th century. The islands played a significant naval role during the world wars of the 20th century.

Tourism is important to both archipelagos, with their distinctive prehistoric ruins playing a key part in their attraction, and there are regular ferry and air connections with mainland Scotland. The Scandinavian influence remains strong, especially in local folklore and both island chains have strong, though distinct local cultures. The names of the islands are dominated by the Norse heritage, although some may retain pre-Celtic elements.

The Seven Years' War, 1756 to 1763, was a global war fought by numerous great powers, primarily in Europe, with significant subsidiary campaigns in North America and South Asia. The warring states were Great Britain and Prussia fighting against France and Austria, with other countries joining these coalitions: Portugal, Spain, Saxony, Sweden, and Russia. Related conflicts include the Third Silesian War, French and Indian War, Third Carnatic War, Anglo-Spanish War (1762–1763), and Spanish–Portuguese War.

Although the War of the Austrian Succession ended with the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle (1748), none of the signatories were happy with the terms, and it was generally viewed as a temporary armistice. It led to a strategic realignment known as the Diplomatic Revolution that ended the long-running rivalry between Austria and France. The two declared war on Britain after signing the Treaty of Versailles (1756), with a second agreement in 1757 bringing Prussia into the war.

Tanks were initially deployed in World War I, engineered to overcome the deadlock of trench warfare. Between the two world wars, tanks were further developed. Although they had demonstrated their battlefield effectiveness, only a few nations had the industrial resources to design and build them. During and after World War I, Britain and France pioneered tank technology, with their models generally serving as a blueprint for other countries. However, this initial advantage would slowly diminish during the 1930s, shifting in favor of the Soviet Union and, to a lesser degree, Nazi Germany.

Istrian Italians (Italian: istriani italiani; Slovene: Italijanski Istrani; Croatian: Talijanski Istrani) are an ethnic group from the Adriatic region of Istria in modern northwestern Croatia and southwestern Slovenia. Istrian Italians descend from the original Latinized population of Roman Histria, from the Venetian-speaking settlers who colonized the region during the time of the Republic of Venice, from the local Croatian people who culturally assimilated, and from colonization between the two world wars.

While nationalization processes were still underway, in 19th century Istria the west side of the peninsula had a majority of Italian language and Romance verniculars speakers, while Croatian language was spoken by the majority in the central and eastern regions and on the islands, and Slovene in the north. Italian language was the official language in the territories of the former Venetian Republic, which encouraged many Istrians to identify as Italians, in spite of their mother tongue and ethnic origins. Italian speaking population made up about a third of the population in 1900, and 36% in 1910. The Italian population growth was followed by a stark decline during the Istrian–Dalmatian exodus (1943–1960), with estimates of those who left ranging from 163,000, to 230,000 and 350,000. A significant Italian minority still lives in the Croatian County of Istria (5.01%) and in Slovenian Istria (3.3%), where they are granted minority rights. According to the official Slovenian and Croatian censuses conducted in 2001 and 2002 respectively, they number around 22,000.

The use of toxic chemicals as weapons dates back thousands of years, but the first large-scale use of chemical weapons was during World War I. They were primarily used to demoralize, injure, and kill entrenched defenders, against whom the indiscriminate and generally very slow-moving or static nature of gas clouds would be most effective. The types of weapons employed ranged from disabling chemicals, such as tear gas, to lethal agents like phosgene, chlorine, and mustard gas. These chemical weapons caused medical problems. This chemical warfare was a major component of the first global war and first total war of the 20th century. Gas attack left a strong psychological impact, and estimates go up to about 90,000 fatalities and a total of about 1.3 million casualties. However, this would amount to only 3–3.5% of overall casualties, and gas was unlike most other weapons of the period because it was possible to develop countermeasures, such as gas masks. In the later stages of the war, as the use of gas increased, its overall effectiveness diminished. The widespread use of these agents of chemical warfare, and wartime advances in the composition of high explosives, gave rise to an occasionally expressed view of World War I as "the chemist's war" and also the era where weapons of mass destruction were created.

The use of poison gas by all major belligerents throughout World War I constituted war crimes as its use violated the 1899 Hague Declaration Concerning Asphyxiating Gases and the 1907 Hague Convention on Land Warfare, which prohibited the use of "poison or poisoned weapons" in warfare. Chemical weapons in World War II saw widespread use by Germany during the Holocaust and by Japan against China. Battlefield use against Western Allies was prevented by deterrence.

The history of Poland spans over a thousand years, from medieval tribes, Christianization and monarchy; through Poland's Golden Age, expansionism and becoming one of the largest European powers; to its collapse and partitions, two world wars, communism, and the restoration of democracy.

The roots of Polish history can be traced to ancient times, when the territory of present-day Poland was inhabited by diverse ethnic groups, including Celts, Scythians, Sarmatians, Slavs, Balts and Germanic peoples. However, it was the West Slavic Lechites, the closest ancestors of ethnic Poles, who established permanent settlements during the Early Middle Ages. The Lechitic Western Polans, a tribe whose name denotes "people living in open fields", dominated the region and gave Poland - which lies in the North-Central European Plain - its name. The first ruling dynasty, the Piasts, emerged in the 10th century AD. Duke Mieszko I, regarded as the creator of Polish statehood, adopted Western Christianity in 966 CE. Mieszko's dominion was formally reconstituted as a medieval kingdom in 1025 by his son Bolesław I the Brave, known for his military expansions. The most successful and the last Piast monarch, Casimir III the Great, presided over a period of economic prosperity and territorial aggrandizement before his death in 1370 without male heirs.

Brussels (Belgium) is considered the de facto capital of the European Union, having a long history of hosting a number of principal EU institutions within its European Quarter. The EU has no official capital but Brussels hosts the official seats of the European Commission, Council of the European Union, and European Council, as well as a seat (officially the second seat) of the European Parliament. In 2013, this presence generated about €250 million (8.3% of the regional GDP) and 121,000 jobs (16.7% of the regional employment). The main rationale for Brussels being chosen as "capital of the European Union" was its halfway location between France, Germany and the United Kingdom, the three countries whose rivalry played a role in starting the two world wars and whose reconciliation paved the way for European integration.

A case study is an in-depth, detailed examination of a particular case (or cases) within a real-world context. For example, case studies in medicine may focus on an individual patient or ailment; case studies in business might cover a particular firm's strategy or a broader market; similarly, case studies in politics can range from a narrow happening over time like the operations of a specific political campaign, to an enormous undertaking like world war, or more often the policy analysis of real-world problems affecting multiple stakeholders.

Generally, a case study can highlight nearly any individual, group, organization, event, belief system, or action. A case study does not necessarily have to be one observation (N=1), but may include many observations (one or multiple individuals and entities across multiple time periods, all within the same case study). Research projects involving numerous cases are frequently called cross-case research, whereas a study of a single case is called within-case research.

Field Marshal Harold Rupert Leofric George Alexander, 1st Earl Alexander of Tunis (10 December 1891 – 16 June 1969), was a senior and highly decorated British Army officer who served in both of the world wars.

Alexander was born in London and was educated at Harrow school before moving on to the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, for training as an army officer of the Irish Guards.

The University of Reading is a public research university in Reading, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1892 as the University Extension College, Reading, an extension college of Christ Church, Oxford, and became University College, Reading in 1902. The institution became a university with the power to grant its own degrees in 1926 by royal charter from King George V, and was the only university to receive such a charter between the two world wars. The university is usually categorised as a red brick university, reflecting its original foundation in the 19th century.

Reading has four major campuses. In the United Kingdom, the campuses on London Road and Whiteknights are based in the town of Reading itself, and Greenlands is based on the banks of the River Thames in Buckinghamshire. It also has a campus in Iskandar Puteri, Malaysia. The university has been arranged into 16 academic schools since 2016. The annual income of the institution for 2024–25 was £347.8 million of which £33.9 million was from research grants and contracts, with an expenditure of £366.1 million.