Transcript The Rise of Totalitarianism and the Causes of WW2 - ms

The Rise of
Totalitarianism and
the Causes of WW2
Ms. Campbell
Socials 11
The Rise of Totalitarianism

A dictator is a ruler with unrestricted power
who has no democratic restrictions. A
totalitarian philosophy is one that puts the
state above all else

Thus a Totalitarian State is a dictatorship
where the government uses violence,
intimidation, and a police force to control all
aspects of life
The USSR

In 1924 Joseph
Stalin was leader of
the Communist
Party in the USSR
The USSR

The Five Year Plan was how Stalin
planned to develop the economy of the
USSR
The USSR

In the late 1930s there was the Great
Purge  Stalin eliminated anyone he
believed opposed the communist
government or his power
 Millions
convicted of crimes against the state
 hundreds of thousands executed
Italy
In Italy Benito
Mussolini took
control after World
War One by
establishing the
Fascist Party
 This party was a
totalitarian and
nationalistic
authoritarian
government

Italy

Mussolini created the Blackshirts  a gang
of fascists who intimidated opponents and
attacked Communists in the streets
Italy
The National Fascist Party won 35 seats in
the 1921 election
 The 1922 March on Rome was when
26,000 Blackshirts demanded the
government be turned over to Mussolini
 Soon after Il Duce (The Leader) turned
Italy into a totalitarian state

The March on Rome
Germany

After World War One a democratic
government called the Weimar Republic
was established in Germany

People distrusted this government
because it had signed the Treaty of
Versailles
Germany

In 1920 Adolf Hitler
joined the National
Socialist German
Workers’ Party (the
Nazis) and in 1921 he
became the leader

The gained support by
criticizing the Weimar
Republic
Germany

Hitler promised to make Germany a great
nation again

In 1932 the Nazis became the largest party
in the Reichstag
Germany

In 1933 Hitler
became chancellor
of Germany and
called himself the
Fuhrer (The Leader)

He rules through
intimidation and fear
Germany

A secret police called the Gestapo are
formed
Germany

Hitler defied the terms of the Treaty of
Versailles
 stops
reparation payments
 begins to rebuild the German military
Germany

The Nazi Party believed Germans were a
“master race” of Aryans

The master race” did NOT include Jewish
people, Roma, or Slavs; people with mental or
physical disabilities; Communists; and
homosexuals

As early as 1933 the Nazis created
concentration camps to isolate these people
from the larger German society
Germany

Hitler particularly hated Jewish people

The Nuremberg Laws forced Jewish people to
wear the Star of David at all times, banned
marriage between Jews and Aryans, and
restricted employment for Jews

Violence against Jewish people was also
encouraged
Germany

November 9, 1938: Kristallnacht

Nazi mobs attacked Jewish homes,
businesses, and synagogues

Sidewalks everywhere were covered with
broken glass
Kristallnacht
Kristallnacht
Spain

Fascist rebels led
by General Franco
(called Nationalists)
tried to overthrow
the Socialist
government that
had been elected in
1936
Spain

The Spanish Civil War would last three years
Guernica - Picasso
Spain

More than 1200 Canadian volunteers
fought even though the government
passed a law that made it illegal for them
to fight in foreign wars

Franco won the war and became ruler in
1939 and was in power until 1975
Japan

Japanese
totalitarianism was
influenced by
European Fascism
Japanese Emperor Hirohito
r. 1926-1989
Causes of WW2

Hitler wanted lebensraum – or “living space”

Hitler slowly took over areas that had been
banned by the Treaty of Versailles (p. 124 map)
 1)
Rhineland (1936)
 2) Anschluss with Austria (1938)
 3) The Sudetenland (1938)
 4) Czechoslovakia (1939)
Causes of WW2
Causes of WW2

Britain and France used a policy of
appeasement  essentially giving Hitler
whatever he wanted
Causes of WW2

In 1939 Hitler and Stalin signed the NaziSoviet Non-aggression Pact
 They
promised not to attack each other
 They decided to divide Poland between them
Causes of WW2

On September 1, 1939 Germany invaded
Poland

Britain and France responded immediately
and by September 3, 1939 Europe was at
war again
Causes of WW2
Causes of WW2

1931 Japan invaded
and the Chinese
government appealed
to the League of
Nations but they took
no action other than
condemning Japan’s
 by 1937 Japan and
China were at war
Causes of WW2

The League of Nations imposed sanctions
but did not include oil!