Czechoslovakia, Poland, Denmark, Norway, Holland, Belgium and France were invaded and occupied by Nazi Germany in 1940. Yugoslavia and Greece got the same a year or two later. Poland, Hungary, Austria, Czechoslovakia, Latvia, Estonia, and Lithuania were invaded and occupied by the Soviets. Germany and Italy were heavily bombed and then invaded and occupied by the Anglo Americans. A few countries managed to stay neutral, but darn few.
We, America, won without taking too much damage. The British won but suffered a lot more. The Russians won at a terrible cost.
So on balance we have three winners, and a whole lotta losers. Right after the war, 1946, the survivors (losers all), determined never to do a World War again, set out to build a United States of Europe to prevent another catastrophe. It started small, just six members. It went thru a bunch of name changes, but it kept growing, and now everyone is in it, except the Russians. They set up a Common Market, the Euro, and a government of sorts in Brussels. Up until this summer it looked like a winner, despite some boondoggles like Greece.
This summer the Brits pulled out. That's a setback for the United Europe idea. Britain is the second biggest economy in the EU, right after Germany, they are very good diplomats, and they have the enormously strong American connection, far stronger than anyone else in the world. Britain will be missed.
It will take some years for Brexit to sort out. If no other country follows the Brits, then it's a minor setback. If some minor players bail out that's a bad thing. If a biggie, France say, bails out, that's a very bad thing.
Time will tell.
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