I have always been fascinated with the period of history that focuses around the Second World War. Thus, it seemed only fitting that I chose the Soviet Union's role in World War II. I have divided this paper into several sections to help complete this task. The first section will deal with the fundamental, underlying causes of the war and how they relate to or involve the Soviet Union. The next section will deal with the immediate causes of World War II and the Soviet Union's role in them. The third section will deal with the battles the Soviet Union was involved in during the war, excluding the Battle of Stalingrad. That will be covered in the fourth section of the paper. The fifth section will deal with the Soviet Union's role in ending the war in Europe and its brief role in the war with Japan. The final section will discuss the Soviet Union's role in the peace talks at the end of the war. I will conclude with my paper with facts such as the total amount of casualties in the Soviet Union and a few concluding remarks.Underlying Causes of WWIIThis first section is going to deal with the fundamental, underlying causes of the Second World War and the Soviet Union's role in them. There are four of these of fundamental, underlying causes of the War and they are similar to those of the First World War. These causes are nationalism, imperialism, the formation of alliance systems, and the arms, naval, and air races. I will deal with each of these causes individually.The first underlying cause of World War II is nationalism. Although not as much a factor as in the First World War, it is still very important to understanding why the war occurred. First, there is the case of Hitler and Nazi Germany. Hitler used nationalism as his rational for Germany's annexation of Austria and for demanding the return of the Sudetenland to Germany from Czechoslovakia and, finally, for invading the Polish corridor. Nationalism was also thrivin...
