The Origins of the Second World War

E681501

The Origins of the Second World War is a controversial historical study by A. J. P. Taylor that challenges conventional views on the causes and responsibility for the outbreak of World War II.

All labels observed (1)

Label Occurrences
The Origins of the Second World War canonical 1

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (46)

Predicate Object
instanceOf book
history book
argues that Hitler was an opportunist rather than following a fixed master plan
that appeasement was a rational policy given the circumstances of the 1930s
that the Treaty of Versailles and interwar diplomacy created conditions leading to war
that the outbreak of war in 1939 resulted from diplomatic blunders and miscalculations
author A. J. P. Taylor NERFINISHED
controversy accused of exonerating or minimizing Hitler’s responsibility
criticized for alleged misuse and selective use of diplomatic documents
sparked intense debate among historians upon publication
countryOfOrigin United Kingdom
criticizes the moralistic interpretation of interwar diplomacy
the view that Hitler alone was responsible for the war
emphasizes continuities between Weimar and Nazi foreign policy
the role of misperceptions and miscalculations in diplomacy
focusesOn foreign policies of Germany, Britain, France, Italy, and the Soviet Union in the 1930s
genre historiography
political history
hasEdition paperback edition
hasInfluenceOn debates on appeasement
revisionist interpretations of World War II origins
hasReputation classic work of revisionist historiography
influencedBy A. J. P. Taylor’s revisionist approach to history
language English
libraryOfCongressClassification D741
mainSubject European diplomacy between the World Wars
Second World War NERFINISHED
causes of World War II
mediaType print
notableFor challenging the orthodox view of Hitler’s unique responsibility
controversial interpretation of the causes of World War II
placeOfPublication London, England
surface form: London
publicationDate 1961
publisher Hamish Hamilton NERFINISHED
questions the idea of an inevitable war caused solely by Nazi ideology
receivedCriticismFrom Gerhard Weinberg NERFINISHED
Hugh Trevor-Roper NERFINISHED
many orthodox historians of Nazi Germany
relatedWork The Struggle for Mastery in Europe 1848–1918 NERFINISHED
setsInContext Nazi foreign policy within broader European power politics
structure organized thematically around diplomatic crises of the 1930s
targetAudience general readers interested in World War II
scholars of international relations
students of history
timePeriodCovered 1919–1939
interwar period

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (1)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

A. J. P. Taylor notableWork The Origins of the Second World War