The Economic Causes of War and Changes in Post-War Economic Thought: From Keynes to Beneš

The paper deals with various economic interpretations of World War I which are often followed by changes in economic theory. It is shown, that most prevailing interpretations are still influenced by Karl Marx and his theories. Then, the sequential shift in economic or social policy and thinking is inevitably influenced by Marxism too. Authors writing in this tradition summarized that the capitalism leads to the monopolist structure of the economy and to the imperialism in economic policy. The war is then result of the struggle for foreign markets and resources. Using the economic theory and clarifying basic definition (for example competition, capitalism, socialism) the paper shows that it is not the "invisible hand" of capitalism what is a cause of war, but the "visible hand" of the state.