1918-1939: What Really Started World War 2? - Jack Writes War

Did you know that the "peace" signed in 1919 killed more people than the war it ended? While the world celebrated on November 11, 1918, the logistics of the next apocalypse were already being drafted in the calorie deficits of starving children and the ink of diplomatic vengeance. This audiobook narrative is an autopsy of the interwar years. It dismantles the myth that World War II was caused solely by one man. Instead, we trace the "machinery of resentment" -- the economic collapse of the Weimar Republic, the arithmetic of hunger, and the inevitable physics of a world squeezed until it shattered. In this video, we move beyond the newsreel villains to understand the systems that allowed a modern, industrial civilization to commit suicide twice in one generation. From the wheelbarrows of cash in 1923 to the Pervitin-fueled tank drivers of 1940, this is the story of the twenty-year armistice that was never really a peace. In this video, I cover: The Starvation: How the Allied naval blockade and the "Pirquet Index" deformed a generation of German children. The Inflation: The psychological trauma of 1923, where a loaf of bread cost 4.2 trillion marks and savings were wiped out in weeks. The Economics: How Hjalmar Schacht used the "Mefo bills" Ponzi scheme to buy a world war on credit. The Technology: The testing ground of the Spanish Civil War, the invention of the Stuka siren, and the use of Methamphetamine (Pervitin) in the Blitzkrieg. The Gamble: How Hitler bluffed the West during the Rhineland occupation and the tragedy of Chamberlain’s appeasement. The Reckoning: From the frozen horror of Stalingrad to the firestorms of Hamburg and the final silence of "Hour Zero." 00:00 The Peace That Killed 04:15 The Blockade & The Pirquet Index 10:30 Treaty of Versailles: A Formula for Resentment 17:45 The 4.2 Trillion Mark Disaster (Hyperinflation) 25:20 The Beer Hall Putsch & The Prison Manifesto 32:10 The Great Depression: Fuel for the Fire 38:45 The Hinge of History: 1933 & The Reichstag Fire 44:30 Secret Rearmament: Gliders & Tractors 49:15 The Rhineland Gamble: The Point of No Return 54:40 The Condor Legion: Testing Terror in Spain 59:20 The Tragedy of Munich & The Betrayal of Prague 01:03:45 Blitzkrieg: Radio, Speed, and Pervitin 01:07:30 Operation Barbarossa & The Hunger Plan 01:10:15 The Turning Tide: Stalingrad to Hiroshima 01:12:00 Conclusion: The Legacy of the 20th Century KEY FIGURES MENTIONED: John Maynard Keynes: The economist who predicted the Treaty of Versailles would lead to war. Hjalmar Schacht: The financial wizard who funded the Third Reich using "ghost money." Neville Chamberlain: The man who tried to buy peace with the currency of Czechoslovakia. Heinz Guderian: The architect of the Blitzkrieg who ignored orders to stop. Friedrich Paulus: The Field Marshal who surrendered the 6th Army at Stalingrad. ABOUT THE CHANNEL: "Jack writes war" brings you narrative history and audiobooks focused on the human element of conflict. If you found this analysis of the interwar period valuable, please consider subscribing and leaving a like. #WWII #Interwar #History #WeimarRepublic #Hyperinflation #Blitzkrieg #Stalingrad #Documentary #Audiobook #1929Crash