To commemorate the centennial of World War I, we present a selection of poets who served as soldiers, medical staff, journalists, or volunteers. Some poets glorified the cause patriotically—trumpeting the older, traditional notions of duty and honor, while mourning the millions of dead Sweden maintained its policy of neutrality during World War blogger.com the war began on September 1, , the fate of Sweden was unclear. But by a combination of its geopolitical location in the Scandinavian Peninsula, realpolitik maneuvering during an unpredictable course of events, and a dedicated military build-up after , Sweden kept its official neutrality status throughout the war One could make the argument that World War II was just a continuation of World War I, despite the fact a very late one. Approximately twenty years separated the two but the effects of World War I unquestionably contributed to the starting of World War II such as the — Treaty of Versailles — and the search for thorough ideas (Fascism and communism) due to the terrible conditions of
Causes of World War I - Wikipedia
Sweden maintained its policy of neutrality during World War II. Essays on world war 1 the war began on September 1,the fate of Sweden was unclear. But by a combination of its geopolitical location in the Scandinavian Peninsularealpolitik maneuvering during an unpredictable course of events, and a dedicated military build-up afterSweden kept its official neutrality status throughout the war.
At the outbreak of hostilities, Sweden had held a neutral stance in international relations for more than a century, since the end of the Napoleonic Wars in and the invasion of Norway. At the outbreak of war in Septembertwenty European nations were neutral.
Only eight other European nations were able, like Sweden, to maintain this stance throughout the entire war; these were IrelandPortugal[2] Spain[3] Switzerlandand the microstates of AndorraLiechtensteinVatican Cityand San Marino. The Swedish Essays on world war 1 made a few concessions, and sometimes breached the nation's neutrality in favor of both Germany and later, the Western Allies.
During the German invasion of the Soviet UnionSweden allowed the Wehrmacht to use Swedish railways to transport June—July the German rd Infantry Division along with heavy weapons from Norway to Finland. UntilGerman soldiers traveling on leave between Norway and Germany were allowed passage through Sweden—the so-called permittenttrafik.
Iron ore was sold to Germany throughout the war and Germany owned several mines in Sweden that had been bought by German companies before the essays on world war 1 of the war. These mines were called Tyskgruvorna German mines. For the Allies, Sweden shared military intelligence and essays on world war 1 to train soldier refugees from Denmark and Norway, to be essays on world war 1 in the liberation of their home countries.
Swedish neutrality is to date a subject of debate. Proponents argue that during the war, Sweden softened its policy against accepting refugees, admitting thousands of Jews and political dissenters from Norway and Denmark. Between and Sweden's final war with Russia ina state of war had existed between these two countries for 67 out essays on world war 1 those years.
Russia was seen as the historical hereditary enemy of Sweden. In the peace that followed the Finnish War inall of Finland had been ceded to Russia and Sweden was reduced to two thirds of its former size. As the end of the 19th century approached, and the beginning of the 20th began, Sweden, like many other nations, became beset by strikes and public disorder. Appalling working conditions were no longer tolerated and the working class was rising against the state.
In alone, there were about strikes in Sweden. Sweden had remained neutral during World War One but with a tendency to side with the Central Powers. Since the s, the socialist movement in Sweden had been divided into two opposing groups: the revolutionary socialistsa communist movement, and the reformistsa social democratic movement, the latter being the larger of the two. But even these reforms were seen as far too radical by some conservatives.
Some wanted strong leadership and did not believe in democracy. In the s and s, confrontations between employers and employees in Sweden continued. Inthis culminated with the Ådalen shootingsan incident where the military essays on world war 1 fire on a protest march.
In the same year, a secret right-wing militia, the Munckska kårenwas exposed. It had recruited about men and had access to heavy weaponry. It was disbanded the next year. At the other end of the political spectrum, following the Russian Civil War the Russian Empire had become the Soviet Union and many Swedish communists were cooperating with this new Soviet regime, seeking to realize a world revolution.
Compromise and a parliamentary system were thought to stand essays on world war 1 the way of a more equal and just society. A new cabinet led by the social democrats with Per Albin Hansson as Prime Ministertook control in A policy of cooperation and consensus was pursued, which led to a furthering of the divide between the two socialist factions: the communists and the reformist left.
The distance between these two, at least at the ideological level, became so great that the communists often referred to the social democrats as "the social fascists".
Apart from a period termed "the vacation government" Sw: semesterregeringen between June 19 and September 28,Per Albin Hansson was to be the Prime Minister of Sweden until his death in Sweden had very few tanks in the inter-war era. This was a design based upon a German First World War tank and had been secretly purchased by Sweden in the form of tractor assembly kits. In the "Defence resolution" Försvarsbeslut; a Swedish governmental decision made about every five years, concerning the military's organization and developmentit was decided to form two tank battalions.
Fale Burmanchief of "Army Procurement" Arméns utrustningsdetalj incommented: [8]. Härför krävdes total nyanskaffning av deras viktigaste innehåll, stridsvagnarna. Redan på ett tidigt stadium fick vi dock klart för oss att om vi enbart valde kanonutrustade vagnar skulle de högst komma upp till ett antal av 15 This required the purchase of their main piece of military hardware, tanks.
Already at an early stage, it was clear to us that if we simply chose the cannon-equipped tanks, we could have at most 15—20 of them. To make sure training at the battalion level would be possible, machine gun -equipped tanks were purchased as well. BySweden had 48 Czechoslovakian -built tanks with machine gun essays on world war 1 and about 20 Stridsvagn L tanks armed with a 20mm main gun. The Swedish army had been organized into four divisions since the s, with the regiments of northern Norrland and Gotland standing as essays on world war 1 units.
This was outdated, and ina new military organization was adopted. During World War II, Swedish industry had to supply an increased share of its own domestic goods owing to the British naval blockade of the North Seawhilst satisfying the vastly increased demand for essays on world war 1. Sweden's long-standing policy of neutrality was tested on many occasions during the s. The challenges came from a strongly rejuvenated, essays on world war 1, nationalistic Germany, essays on world war 1.
From untilessays on world war 1, Sweden had been an active supporter of the League of Nations and most of Sweden's political energy in the international arena had been directed towards the League's preservation.
The Swedish non-aligned policy during this period was founded on the assumption that there were two opposing powers in the Baltic, Germany and the Soviet Union; [11] Because these two powers needed to guard against each other, the hope was that they would only ever be able to deploy minor forces against Sweden or other non-aligned countries.
It was this expectation which made the defence of a small country feasible. The Molotov—Ribbentrop Pactsigned at the end of August between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union, essays on world war 1, upset this balance. Inthe Swedish government started to heighten its military preparedness as the international situation worsened.
Not only was the Swedish government buying material to strengthen its defenses, it began drafting conscripts. On May 6,the government called up all those aged 15 for short periods of training. In addition to this, the Swedish Cabinet ordered that one quarter of those conscripted in should be retained for further training, essays on world war 1. Inthe Home Guard was created.
Its units were small groups of former soldiers who were equipped with riflesmachine gunsammunition, medicine and uniforms. They had the option to buy additional materials such as skisessays on world war 1, sweaters and marching boots. The Swedish Women's Voluntary Defence Organization had already been in existence since While arming itself, Essays on world war 1 felt that it was necessary to articulate and enforce its policy of neutrality.
Friendly with all other nations and strongly linked to our neighbors, we look on no one as our enemy. There is no place in the thoughts of our people for aggression against any other country, and we note with gratitude, the assurances from others that they have no wish to disturb our peace, our freedom, or our independence, essays on world war 1.
The strengthening of our defense preparations serves merely to underline our fixed determination to keep our country outside the conflicts that may erupt amongst others and, during such conflicts, to safeguard the existence of our people. Georg Homin, a captain on the General Staffstated:. Without a defensive force we cannot follow any policy of our own, our declarations become merely empty words and we leave the country's fate to chance, or to the decisions of others.
With a defense as strong as Swedish conditions allow, we secure for ourselves the basis of a continued essays on world war 1 Swedish policy. When, in SeptemberGermany attacked Poland and both France and Britain declared war on Nazi Germany, Sweden declared itself a neutral country in regard to this escalating situation. An example illustrating this situation may be the failed Allied attempt to release Polish submarines ORP RyśORP ŻbikORP Sęp which were interned after they reached Swedish ports requiring repairs of battle damage, unable to break the German blockade and sail to Britain.
On the outbreak of the Winter War between Finland and the Soviet Union in NovemberSweden declared itself to be " non-belligerent " in regard to this particular conflict, actively siding with Finland. This allowed Sweden to aid Finland economically, and with armaments. Sweden and Finland also jointly laid minefields in the Sea of Åland to deter Soviet submarines from entering the Gulf of Bothnia, essays on world war 1.
Sweden was not directly attacked during World War II. It was, however, subject to British and German naval blockades and accidental bombings from the Soviets on some cities e. Strängnäswhich led to problems with the supply of food and fuels. When Germany invaded Denmark and Norway in Aprilcoupled with a German blockade of the North Seaevery shipment had to be negotiated with both British and German authorities, which drastically reduced the volume of trade.
Other critical items were natural rubberalloy metals and food. This situation led to extensive rationing of fuels and food in Sweden and substitutes were developed and produced. Wood gas was used as a fuel for motor vehicles and shale oil as a substitute for bunker oil, essays on world war 1. At the beginning of the war, agreements had been signed between Sweden and the United Kingdom and Nazi Germany in order to sustain vital trade; but in spite of this, and the fact that Sweden had declared itself a neutral countrySwedish shipping came under attack.
For very important goods such as ball bearings from SKF for the British aircraft industry, delivery was made by blockade runnersusing rebuilt Motor Gun Boatswhich could use winter darkness and high speed to penetrate the German blockade of the Skagerrak straits between Norway and the northern tip of Denmark. Before the outbreak of the war, the Swedish Ministry of Defense Royal Swedish Air Force Materiel Administration had ordered some combat aircraft from the United Statesprimarily Seversky Ps and P Vanguards.
Inhowever, the US administration halted these exports. Only about 60 aircraft had been delivered. Sweden succeeded subsequently in buying aircraft from Italya fascist ally of Germany at the time; these aircraft were primarily Fiat CR. War broke out between Finland and the Soviet Union in November In Sweden, the Liberal, Conservative and Agrarian parties were concerned about a perceived threat from the Soviet Union, essays on world war 1.
The Social Democrats were in the main equally concerned. Leading social democrats like Rickard Sandler and Torsten Nilsson played a prominent role in mustering support for Finland.
The Communists were openly loyal to the Soviet Union and supported its Molotov—Ribbentrop Pact with Germany. However, when Germany invaded the Soviet Union in Juneessays on world war 1, they swung around to a pro-Allied view.
When the Soviet Union attacked Finland in Novembermany Swedes favored some sort of involvement in the conflict, both on a humanitarian and on a military basis. Sweden's interest in Finland lay in the fact that Finland had been an integrated part of Sweden for more than six hundred years, with Sweden losing control of its eastern provinces in Despite several pleas from the Finnish government, the Swedish government declined to engage militarily with the Red Army as it advanced during the Winter War.
However, Sweden declared itself "non-belligerent" rather than neutral during the conflict and as many as 8, Swedes voluntarily went to Finland to fight. The Swedish government and public also sent food, clothing, medicine, weapons and ammunition to aid the Finns during this conflict. This military aid included: [16].
How Europe Went to War in 1914. Tans Lecture Maastricht University
, time: 1:47:26Sweden during World War II - Wikipedia
African Americans and World War I Chad Williams – Hamilton College. World War I was a transformative moment in African-American history. What began as a seemingly distant European conflict soon became an event with revolutionary implications for Sweden maintained its policy of neutrality during World War blogger.com the war began on September 1, , the fate of Sweden was unclear. But by a combination of its geopolitical location in the Scandinavian Peninsula, realpolitik maneuvering during an unpredictable course of events, and a dedicated military build-up after , Sweden kept its official neutrality status throughout the war To commemorate the centennial of World War I, we present a selection of poets who served as soldiers, medical staff, journalists, or volunteers. Some poets glorified the cause patriotically—trumpeting the older, traditional notions of duty and honor, while mourning the millions of dead
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