Transcript World War II (1931-1945) - River Ridge Historypedia

World War II (1931-1945)
Lesson 1 Rise of Aggressive Dictators
World War II (1931-1945)
Lesson 1 Rise of Aggressive Dictators
Learning Objectives
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Explain the rise of dictatorships in the Soviet Union, Italy, Germany, and Japan
in the 1930s.
Summarize acts of aggression by Italy, Germany, and Japan.
Analyze the responses of Britain, France, and the United States to the
aggressive regimes.
World War II (1931-1945)
Lesson 1 Rise of Aggressive Dictators
Key Terms
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aggression
totalitarianism
Joseph Stalin
Benito Mussolini
Fascism
Adolf Hitler
anti-Semitic
Spanish Civil War
General Francisco Franco
appeasement
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Anschluss
Neville Chamberlain
Munich Pact
Peace Dissolves
The effects of World War I and the Great Depression touched almost every corner
of the world. In some countries, these upheavals led to the rise of a new kind of
brutal dictatorship—the totalitarian state. These states were led by absolute
dictators, leaders willing to use acts of aggression to invade other nations in order
to enhance their own power. Their actions would destroy the peace established
after World War I and spark a new, even deadlier, global conflict.
Peace Dissolves
The Paris Peace Conference met at the Palace of Versailles and lasted a year. The crowds of
delegates from participating nations wrote a series of treaties.
Peace Dissolves
Treaty of Versailles left many countries
bitter, angry, frustrated, and in come cases,
looking for revenge
 Totalitarianism – a government in which a
single party or leader controls the
economic, social, and cultural lives of its
people.
 Government controls the media and uses
propaganda to indoctrinate people and
youth organizations foster the state
ideology
 No opposition and all other ideas censored
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Strict Regimes in the Soviet Union and Italy
The 1917 communist revolution in Russia inaugurated the first totalitarian state.
The communist leader Vladimir Lenin created the beginnings of a totalitarian
system of control to maintain power. His programs resulted in civil war, starvation,
famine, and the death of millions of Russians.
Strict Regimes in the Soviet Union and Italy
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Stalin Rules the Soviet Union
Mussolini Establishes an Italian Dictatorship
Strict Regimes in the Soviet
Union and Italy
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Joseph Stalin – dictator of the Soviet Union starting
in 1924 after Lenin’s death.
 Ruthless – killed at least 10 million
 Great Terror – purge in the 30’3 of officers and others –
sent to Gulag
 Cult of personality – he was kindly
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Benito Mussolini – became prime minister of Italy in
1922 and later took over as a dictator
 Created fascism – supernationalism
 Blackshirts – marched on Rome
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Fascism – supernationalism/racially pure,
authoritarian, self-sufficent, national re-birth,
totalitarianism, and blended economy
 Men are warriors – women are child bearers and a threat
to unemployment
Strict Regimes in the Soviet Union and Italy
One of the most powerful dictators in history, Stalin ruled with absolute authority. Many
historians think that he was responsible for the deaths of some 20 million people.
Germany and Japan Change Leadership
After World War I, Germany became a democracy. The Weimar (VÌ mahr)
Republic (named after the town of Weimar where the government was created)
struggled throughout the 1920s to establish a functional democracy. However,
Germany was beset by severe economic troubles in the 1920s, including runaway
inflation. Anger over the Treaty of Versailles and internal disunity also plagued the
young government. The Weimar Republic’s ship of state was slowly sinking.
Germany and Japan Change Leadership
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Emergence of Nazis
Hitler Rules a German Dictatorship
Militarism Gains Support in Japan
The Japanese Empire Expands
Germany and Japan Change Leadership
Inflation ruined the Weimar Republic. Presses ran day and night printing paper money. By
1923, one dollar was equal to one trillion Marks. Here children play with stacks of worthless
money.
Germany and Japan Change
Leadership
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1889: born at Braunau am Inn, Austria.
Real name was Schicklgruber.
Failed to pass the entrance exam at the
Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna.
1914, Hitler volunteered for WWI, rejected first
time because he failed to pass physical.
Awarded the Iron Cross 2nd Class and later
Iron Cross 1st Class.
1918 suffered from a poison gas attack and
was in the hospital when the war ended.
War left him mad at Germany’s defeat and
the degrading terms of the Treaty of
Versailles – war guilt clause
Joined the Nazi Party and quickly became
the leader. (55th member)
Economy crashes
– Hitler joins DAP
 1920 – mark 100 to $1
 1921 – becomes Der Fuhrer
 1921 mark 180 - $1
 1922 mark 2000 - $1 dollar
 1923 mark 4,200,000,000 – 1$
 1919
1919 – joined the National Socialist German Workers
Party – (Nazis)
Nazism: political philosophy (fascist) about German
nationalism and racial superiority.
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Great speaker
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Beerhall Putsch: November 1923, tried to take over
Munich – sentenced 5 years – served 9 months
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Wrote Mein Kampf (My Struggle) – wrote about the
problems of Germany and who to blame – Jews and
Communists
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Anti-semitic – violently prejudice against Jewish people
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Called for Lebensraum – living space
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Called for purifying the “master race” – blond blue-eyed
Germans called Aryans
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When the Great Depression hit in the 1930’s Hitler
promised to stabilize the country, rebuild the economy,
and restore the empire. (Reich)
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1932 Nazis largest party in Reichstag
Herman Goering calls for a no-confidence
vote of chancellor von Papen
New elections – tried to ban Nazis –
1933 President Hindenburg makes Hitler
Chancellor
Reichstag burns down – blames
communists
Hitler evokes Article 48 in German
Constitution – emergency powers –
becomes dictator
Hindenburg dies – declares himself Der
Fuhrer (the leader)
Japan Expands
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Japan’s government was very liberal
 Military cut
 All men right to vote
 Unions allowed
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Great Depression ruined all of that and the
military took over
Media was censored and schools taught
students to be obedient to the nation
1931 Japan attacked Manchuria for its natural
resources
1937, killed over 200,000 in the “Rape of
Nanjing”
Dictators Move to Gain Territory
In the 1930s, the Italian and German dictatorships resorted to acts of aggression
similar to those of Japan in Asia. Throughout the decade, neither the League of
Nations nor democratic nations succeeded in stopping the aggression. It was a
time that recalled a line from Irish poet William Butler Yeats: “The best lack all
conviction and the worst are full of passionate intensity.”
Dictators Move to Gain Territory
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Weakness of the League of Nations
Hitler and Mussolini Challenge the Peace
Dictators Support War in Spain
Dictators Move to Gain Territory
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League of Nations weak
 No standing army
 No real power
 Relied on members resolve – lacking
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Hitler violated Treaty of Versailles
 Built up army
 Occupied the Rhineland
France and the League did nothing
1935 Italy invaded Ethiopia – asked the League for help –
nothing
 Spanish Civil War – fascist dictator Franco took control of
Spain to 1975
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 Germany used this to practice Blitzkrieg
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General Francisco Franco – Nationalist (fascist) leader of
Spain
Dictators Move to Gain Territory
Analyze ChartsWhat was the world reaction to these aggressive actions? What was the effect
of this reaction on the aggressors?
Dictators Move to Gain Territory
In a display of strength and pride, German troops marched into the Rhineland.
Aggression Meets Appeasement
The policy that France and Britain pursued against aggressive nations during the
1930s is known as appeasement. It is a policy of granting concessions to a
potential enemy in the hope that peace can be maintained. Unfortunately,
appeasement only spurred the fascist leaders to become more bold, adventurous,
and aggressive.
Aggression Meets Appeasement
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Appeasement – policy of granting concessions to a potential
enemy in the hope that peace can be maintained.
 Only makes aggressor more aggressive
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FDR – US president who followed a policy of isolationsism due
to the Great Depression in the early 30s.
Anschluss – 1938 when Germany annexed Austria (without
Austria’s consent)
Neville Chamberlain – British Prime Minister who followed
appeasement.
Munich Conference/pact – Chamberlain, Daladier, and Kennedy
allowed Hitler to have the Sudetenland of Czechoslovakia if he
promised to not take anymore.
“peace of our time”
He was wrong
Why did the Allies use
appeasement
1) WWI was so horrible no one wanted
to see WWII.
 2) believed USSR was a worse threat
than Germany and needed Germany as
a buffer.
 3) lacking in resolve
 4) Great Depression and isolationists
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Aggression Meets Appeasement
Analyze Political Cartoon Who do the small men represent? What point do you think the
cartoon was making with this image?
Quiz: Peace Dissolves
The Treaty of Versailles
A. created bitterness and resentment among the nations who had signed the
agreement.
B. established totalitarian regimes in many European countries following World
War I.
C. led to increased prosperity and cooperation among the nations who had fought
in the war.
D. was an attempt by the Allies to appease fascist dictatorships in Europe
following World War I.
Quiz: Strict Regimes in the Soviet Union and Italy
In the Soviet Union, a “cult of personality” developed around Stalin
A.
B.
C.
D.
through massive propaganda campaigns.
as a result of his collective farming policies.
among his perceived enemies in the Red Army.
in response to his brutal purges in the Communist Party.
Quiz: Germany and Japan Change Leadership
How did the Nazi regime differ most from the Japanese government in the 1930s?
A.
B.
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It followed a policy of military expansion.
It was controlled by a charismatic dictator.
It suffered from widespread economic instability.
It demanded strict obedience on the part its subjects.
Quiz: Dictators Move to Gain Territory
When Hitler stationed troops in the Rhineland in 1936, it was a direct violation of
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B.
C.
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the Geneva Convention.
the Treaty of Versailles.
the German constitution.
the League of Nations charter.
Quiz: Aggression Meets Appeasement
Which of these countries took an isolationist approach to foreign policy in the
1930s?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Britain
Germany
the Soviet Union
the United States