What is the debate about history?

To me, one of the most interesting debates about history is the debate about whether "great men" cause history to happen or whether "structures" or "conditions" cause history to happen.

The "great men" theory (I put this in quotes because we would no longer accept the use of "men" since it excludes women) argues that, for example, WWII happened because of who Hitler was.  His existence and his particular combination of talents and madness pushed Germany to start the war.

By contrast, the other view of history says that individuals are more or less irrelevant.  It argues that WWII would have happened even if Hitler had been killed in WWI.  It says that the circumstances facing Germany and the other European countries would have led to the outbreak of war.

This is a very important debate because it affects how we think about history and what we think about how we can use the lessons of history to give ourselves a better chance at making the future better than the past was.