Europe in Crisis: The World Wars in Europe

A European soldier lies on his stomach aiming a rifle. There is rubble around him and a sign pointing towards Caen Centre.

A soldier keeps a lookout for snipers in the ruins of Caen, France, July 9, 1944. (Image courtesy of the United Kingdom Government.)

Instructors

Michelle Bentivegna
(Student Instructor)

Cite This Course

Course Description

Course Features

Course Description

World War I and World War II are often seen as one large war by historians. We will look at both wars from a political, military and social perspective, focusing on the effect that these wars had on Europe. We might also discuss non-European aspects on the war, though in less depth.

Topics include the buildup to WWI, trench warfare, the Treaty of Versaiiles, the rise of the Nazi party, re-armament, and the entrance of America into WWII, among many other topics relating to the two world wars.

This class is designed for students who have not studied European history in-depth before.

Michelle Bentivegna. Europe in Crisis: The World Wars in Europe. Summer 2008. Massachusetts Institute of Technology: MIT OpenCourseWare, https://ocw.mit.edu. License: Creative Commons BY-NC-SA.


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