“The most important causes of war were economic.” With reference to two wars, to what extent do you agree with this statement?

The question requires that candidates consider the merits or otherwise of the statement that the most important causes of two wars were economic. The wars may or may not come from the same region. Causes may predate the timeframe but they must be clearly related to the topic raised in the question. Candidates may offer equal coverage of both wars or they may prioritize their evaluation of one of them. However, both wars will be a feature of the response. Candidates may refer to wars which were a diversion from domestic economic difficulty, such as the Malvinas War (Falklands War). Nations may have been protecting or advancing their economic interests, for example British protection of Empire in 1914 and Russo–Japanese competition over Manchuria and Korea in 1905. Some civil wars, such as in Ireland and China, may partly have been caused by the economic disadvantage of sections of the population. Other relevant factors may be addressed, such as ideological, political and strategic factors, but with a focus on the issue in the question. Candidates’ opinions or conclusions will be presented clearly and supported by appropriate evidence.

The question required that candidates consider the merits or otherwise of the statement that the most important causes of two wars were economic. Quite a few responses were seen, although candidates struggled to identify economic causes even when discussing the two world wars. Many responses were descriptive of causes, in general, but seemingly unable to determine that, for the First World War, for example, imperialism could be seen as driven by the desire for economic gain. For the Second World War, a few more candidates were able to identify Japanese expansionism and the US response to be economic in nature. Unfortunately, many candidates resorted to describing the emergence of the authoritarian state in Germany, linking this to economic factors and narrating how Hitler caused the Second World War. Other candidates were able to identify some specific economic causes of their chosen examples but, failing this, resorted to describing others they considered more important.