Imperialism and imperial rivalry provided both a cause and context for both World War I and World War 2. Nations wanted to expand their power by obtaining colonies (resources and new markets for their goods).
Imperialism is a system where a powerful nation controls and exploits one or more colonies. In most cases the imperial nation, euphemistically referred to as the ‘mother country’, establishes control over its colonies by coercion – for example, through infiltration and annexation, political pressure, war and military conquest. Once conquered, this territory is claimed as a colony.
Prior to World War I the world’s largest, richest and most dominant imperial power was Great Britain. The British Empire famously occupied one quarter of the globe (“the sun never sets on Britain” was a famous slogan of the mid-19th century).
Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan unleashed World War II with the intention of establishing, by military conquest, a permanent dominance over Europe and Asia respectively. These two nations were the most significant members of the Axis partnership, which was based on anti-Communism and dissatisfaction with the world order after World War I.
To learn more, see:
Alpha History - Imperialism as a cause of World War I
Ushmm.org - World War II: In Depth (GERMAN AND JAPANESE EXPANSION)
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