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WW1
The killing of Franz Ferdinand is largely regarded as the last straw that precipitated World War 1. Part of the reason for America's engagement in WW1 was due to the German bombardment of American ships. In this example, America joined the war due to physical aggression, but in cold conflicts such as Vietnam, America participated due to political considerations. The cold conflicts are distinguished from hot wars by these features. -
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WWI
The Central Powers (Germany, Austria-Hungary, and turkey) and the Allies fought the first major international war (France, Great Britain, Russia, Italy, Japan, and, from 1917, the United States). This war was fought on foreign soil in practically every front, and it was widely recognized as a global event that was hazardous. -
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WWI and WWII were Hot Wars
The "Hot" wars were a period of time and a series of conflicts that occurred during that time. These battles were global in scope and had the potential to alter the course of history for the whole globe. The United States' engagement in both battles altered the trajectory of both wars since its assistance against the Axis was crucial to how the wars ended.
Germany's attack on American supply boats was an obvs conflict that was another factor in America's overall involvement in WWII. -
Array of U boat bombings against America
Germany's attack on American supply boats was an obvious conflict that was another factor in America's overall unwanted involvement in WW1 -
The Zimmermann Telegraph
The Zimmermann Telegraph was a telegram written by German Foreign Minister Auther Zimmermann to a German Minster in Mexico, requesting their assistance in WW1 by joining them in guns in exchange for land in America. Great Britain intercepted and decrypted the communication, revealing Germany's plot and informing America, prompting the latter to join the war and assist the allies. if the telegram had not been intercepted, the war may have ended differently. -
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WW2
WWII was the second international struggle between the allies and the axis (Italy, Germany, and Japan) (Great Britain, the Soviet Union, and America). The conflict began with the Nazi invasion of Poland and ended with Japan's capitulation following the events of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. During WWII, the Nazis, led by Adolf Hitler, Germany's ruler and the president were the principal adversary. THis conflict, which involved more than 30 countries, was the largest and bloodiest in history. -
The Nazi invasion of Poland
The Nazi invasion of Poland sparked an international uproar, resulting in World War II. The "justification" was Polands' charge that it was punishing ethnic Germans residing in the nation. Along with the accusation, Germany also claimed that Poland intended to break apart the country, which was incorrect -
The invasion on Britain
The German attack on Great Britain left the world at risk of the Nazis having total control of Europe. Obviously, America wanted to prevent this from happening to avoid Germany winning the war. If the Germans had gained control of the country the war could've gone extremely different as it would give the Germans a front in Great Britain thus giving them a devastating advantage against the rest of Europe and the world. This conflict would lead to America's speculation in the possible war effort -
The bombing of Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor was by far the biggest reason America joined WWII in the first place, and thus, technically, changing the course of the war. The attack was led by Japan, whose intention was to cut off America's access to Japan's coastline through Hawaii and prevent American attacks. While America was neutral in the war before the attack, this caused them to join the war the very next day -
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The Cold War
The Cold War was a period shortly following WWII when there were additional hostilities, but not on the same magnitude as in the previous years. The Cold Wars differs from the "Hot" wars in that most of them were fought on a domestic level inside countries rather than on a global scale like the world wars, and some were not even fought physically. Furthermore, America's engagement in the Cold Wars did not begin as a result of physical aggression, but rather as a result of political strife -
NATO
NATO was a post-World War II alliance made up of 30 nations founded with the goal of maintaining security in the soviet union, since communism and the soviets, in general, were being watched for their potential to be hazardous. throughout both the Hot Wars and the Cold Wars, a recurrent element was the formation of several diverse coalitions, each with its own set of goals. -
Vietnam
Vietnam was another cold war conflict, but unlike the Cuban Missile Crisis, it was fought physically. This conflict was categorized as a "cold war" since it was fought entirely within Vietnam's borders, rather than on a national scale. This war was fought because the United States did not want communism to expand throughout Vietnam and the rest of Asia -
The Cuban Missile
The Cuban Missile Crisis was a tense 13 day period of political and social stress throughout the USA because of the information that Russia had acquired the nuclear bomb. This war wasn't fought physically but rather politically, as Russia was preparing on using nuclear bombs on American cities. This war caused panic throughout the entire country, this makes the cold war similar to the hot wars as panic and anxiety were prominent during both, however, not a single troop was sent on either side.