The Origins of the Second World War
Author: R J Overy
The Origins of the Second World War explores the reasons why the Second World War broke out in September 1939 and not sooner, and why a European war expanded into world war by 1941.
Richard Overy argues that this was not just Hitlers War but one that had its roots and origins in the decline of the old empires of Britain and France and the rise of ambitious new powers in Germany, Italy and Japan. Any explanation of the outbreak of hostilities must be multinational in scope taking into account the basic instability of the international system that had still not recovered from the shocks of the Great War.
In this third edition:
· The role of Italy in the approach to war has been re-evaluated
· Overy addresses recent revelations about Soviet policy in the 1930s, particularly exploring Soviet military planning and preparations
· Arguments about Chamberlain and his policy of appeasement are rethought and reassessed.
This new edition has now been completely overhauled, updated, expanded and reset. With a comprehensive documents section, colour plates, guide to whos who, a chronology and lists of further reading, The Origins of the Second World War will provide an invaluable introduction to any student of this fascinating period.
Richard Overy is Professor of History at the University of Exeter. He has authored 17 books on the Third Reich, the Second World War and air warfare which include:The Air War 1939-1945 (2nd ed, 2006),Why the Allies Won(2nd ed, 2006) and The Dictators: Hitlers Germany and Stalins Russia (2004)which won both the Wolfson and the Hessell Tiltman Prizes for History in 2005.
Table of Contents:
Chronology
Who's Who
Glossary
Maps
Pt. 1 Background 1
1 Explaining the Second World War 3
Pt. 2 Analysis 11
2 The International Crisis 13
3 Economic and Imperial Rivalry 31
4 Armaments and Domestic Politics 46
5 War Over Poland 62
6 From European to World War 82
Pt. 3 Assessment 93
7 Hitler's War? 95
Pt. 4 Documents 101
1 The Treaty of Versailles and Germany 102
2 The Covenant of the League 103
3 The search for a settlement 103
4 American 'appeasement' 104
5 Stalin anticipates war 104
6 The 'Hossbach memorandum' 105
7 Preparation for war before Munich 106
8 The Munich Conference 107
9 The Munich Agreement 108
10 Economic pressure on Japan 109
11 Mussolini's vision of empire 110
12 Hitler's dream of world power 111
13 Economic appeasement 112
14 Britain and Germany in the Balkans 112
15 The Four-Year Plan 113
16 Economic dangers for Britain 114
17 The crisis in France 114
18 'Peace for our time' 115
19 The change of mood in the west 115
20 Hitler plans to crush Poland 116
21 Chamberlain guarantees Poland 117
22 The Franco-British 'war plan', 1939 117
23 British intelligence on Germany 118
24 Stalin warns the west after Munich 119
25 The Franco-British failure in Moscow 119
26 The Soviet reaction to German advances, 1939 120
27 The German-Soviet Pact 121
28 Hitler gambles on western weakness 122
29 The last gasp of appeasement 123
30 Bonnet's doubts about war 123
31 Poland in the middle 124
32 The last days of peace 125
33 Chamberlain's 'awful Sunday' 125
34 Berlin proposes peace 126
35 The Tripartite Pact 127
36 Preparation for total mobilization in Germany 128
37 The Barbarossa Directive128
38 The German attack on Russia 129
39 Russia raises the price for co-operation 129
40 Japan decides on war 130
41 Creating the new world order 130
References 133
Index 145
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Multinational Enterprise and the Globalization of Networks of Knowledge
Author: Peter J Buckley
This book analyzes the role of knowledge within multinational enterprised (MNEs), its spatial dimensions and its transfer within enterprises. It includes conceptual pieces on the global networks of MNEs and pays special attention to Asian network firms. It introdues the concept of the 'global factory' - a framework for the understanding of spatially distributed activities under the control (though not necessarily the ownership) of a local firm. The book also critically examines the concept of globalization and contrasts this with the process of regional integration. It examines knowledge transfer processes in MNEs with particular reference to technology transfer to China. The Chinese theme is taken further by an analysis of the role of foreign direct investment in the transformation of China.