ABSTRACT
The Second World War which came to an end in 1945 had caused more destruction, human as well as material, than any previous conflict. Europe had suffered most, together with Japan, but there was massive destruction also in China and south-eastern Asia, there had been much fighting which ravaged North Africa, and all maritime nations had sustained grievous losses at sea. The United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, among others, had devoted enormous resources to the war though they had been spared actual warfare on their territory, and, together with the colonial dependencies of the European powers, they mourned many killed and injured in the forces. Few areas of the globe outside Latin America were left unaffected.
