Editing Second World War (section)

== Background ==
The First World War ended on 11 November 1918 and left Europe politically unstable. The German Empire, Austro-Hungarian Empire, Russian Empire, and Ottoman Empire collapsed or lost territory. The Treaty of Versailles restricted Germany's military power and became a central grievance for German nationalist politics.

[[Adolf Hitler]] became Chancellor of Germany on 30 January 1933. The Nazi government removed political opposition, made Germany a one-party dictatorship, and began open rearmament. Germany introduced military conscription on 16 March 1935 and remilitarized the Rhineland on 7 March 1936.<ref name="ushmm-holocaust-dates">{{cite web |title=The Holocaust and World War II: Key Dates |url=https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/the-holocaust-and-world-war-ii-key-dates |website=United States Holocaust Memorial Museum |access-date=12 June 2026}}</ref>

The expansion of German armed forces affected later wartime family histories. [[Humphrey van Hetten]] moved to Germany and joined the [[Luftwaffe (Nazi Germany)|Luftwaffe]] in 1935. Jan Paap joined the Wehrmacht in 1936 and later served in campaigns in France and the Soviet Union.<ref name="humphrey">{{cite web |title=Humphrey van Hetten |url=https://vriendenuniverse.org/wiki/Humphrey_van_Hetten |website=Vrienden Universe Wiki |access-date=12 June 2026}}</ref><ref name="jan-paap" />

Italy invaded Ethiopia on 3 October 1935 and completed the conquest in May 1936. Germany and Italy announced the Rome-Berlin Axis on 1 November 1936. Germany and Japan signed the Anti-Comintern Pact on 25 November 1936, and Italy joined that pact on 6 November 1937.<ref name="ushmm-key-dates" />

Japan had occupied Manchuria in 1931. On 7 July 1937, the Marco Polo Bridge Incident developed into full-scale war between Japan and China. Japanese forces captured Nanjing in December 1937, while the Chinese government continued the war from the interior.<ref name="ushmm-key-dates" />