World War II

The Great Depression

• Countries around the world felt the hardships of the depression during the 1930s

• Roosevelt introduced the New Deal– Economic and social programs– Government directly involved in people’s lives– Eased people’s hardships

• Many people lost faith in democracies for not solving the problems of the depression

Fascism in Italy

• Italy faced broken promises, unemployment and declining trade after WWI

• Benito Mussolini emerged as a leader out of the Fascist Party– Named symbolized unity– Mussolini focused on nationalism in Italy– Wanted to return to “Roman Glory”

• Why would Mussolini continue to bring up Rome in his speeches?

• Would Italians find this appealing?

• Mussolini’s supporters were organized into “combat squads” called Black Shirts– Believed in violent action not democracy– Used terror to oust government leaders– Many Italians supported these actions

• Led the March on Rome demanding governmental changes

• King Victor appointed Mussolini prime minister

Mussolini’s Rule

• Mussolini gave himself the title Il Duce, or the leader– Suppressed rival parties– Censored the press– Rigged elections– Replaced officials with fascists

• Italy was a parliamentary monarchy in theory, but was in fact a dictatorship

• Mussolini brought the economy under state control– Representatives in business and government

controlled the economy– The upper class prospered while the working

class was kept down

• Loyalty to the state was more important then individual goals

• Italians were bombarded with slogans and posters glorifying the state

• Children belonged to youth groups that taught them to obey and follow the state– Learned about the past glories of Rome– Marched in parades, sang patriotic songs– Believed Mussolini was “always right”

Explaining Fascism

• Mussolini built the first totalitarian state– One party dictatorship controls every aspect

of life

• Fascism describes any centralized, authoritarian government that glorifies state over individuals– Extreme nationalism– Glorify action, violence, discipline to the state– Anti-democratic

• Fascist governments promise order and strength– “He got the trains running on time.”

• Fascists and Communists are enemies– Fascists work with business leaders– Fascists wanted society with defined classes

The Soviet Union Under Stalin

• Karl Marx predicted the state would dissolve• Under Stalin, the Soviet Union became a

powerful totalitarian state

Stalin’s Five-Year Plan

• Stalin put government in control of the economy

• Proposed a “Five-Year Plan” to build heavy industry, improve transportation and increase farm output

• Turned USSR into a command economy where government officials made all economic decisions– Owned all businesses– Distributed all resources

• High production goals were set on industry– Bonuses were given for success, punishment

given for failure

• Factories were built, oil, coal, and steel production grew

• Soviet workers had little to show for their work

• Central planning was inefficient– Surplus of some things, shortages in others– Large quantities of low quality goods– Consumer goods (cars, clothes, refigerators)

were scarce

• Agriculture was brought under government control– Wanted to produce ore grain

• Farmers worked on state owned farms or collectives, large farms owned and operated by peasants as a group– Peasants kept personal items– Farm animals and equipment belonged to the

collective– State set al farm prices

• Some peasants did not want to sell at low prices– Killed animals, destroyed tools, and burned

crops

• Stalin blamed wealthy farmers, Kulaks, for the resistance– Government took Kulak land and sent them to

labor camps

• Angry peasants only grew enough to feed themselves– Government seized all grain leaving peasants

to starve

• Poor harvest led to the Terror Famine– Millions of Soviets died

• Farm output did not improve, control over peasants increased

Stalin’s Terror Tactics

• Spies were everywhere to keep dissent at bay

• Government controlled everything published

• Critics were sent to the Gulag, a system of brutal labor camps, where many died

• Stalin feared government officals were out to get him

• Launched the Great Purge against “enemies”– Old Bolsheviks, early revolutionaries, army heroes,

industrial managers, writers, ordinary citizens

• “Show Trials” took place where crimes were confessed

• Over 4 million, maybe more, were killed by Stalin

• Stalin gained power through the Purge– Citizens saw consequences of disloyalty

• Best and brightest were killed in the Purge

Communist Attempts to Control Thought

• Stalin wanted to control the hearts and minds of Soviet citizens

• Propaganda was used to make Stalin seem God like

• Radio, movies, billboards and posters were used

Censorship and the Arts

• Government controlled books, movie and art

• Artists had to use the socialist realism style– Showed soviet life positively

• Artists who spoke out were persecuted

Russification

• Stalin promoted russification, making a nations culture more Russian– Effected non-Russian Soviet republics– Appointed Russians to high-ranking positions– Required Russian language at schools and

businesses

War on Religion

• Atheism belief there is no God, became official state policy– Meant to gain control of people’s minds

• All religions were outlawed and the practice was a crime– Some Russians still practiced underground

• Communist ideology replaced religion

Soviet Society Under Stalin

• The communist Party became the new elite– Many joined to get ahead– Enjoyed benefits like housing, vacations,

shopping

• Purges were often done on the elite

• All children went to government funded schools

• Free medical care, daycare, housing and recreation– Housing and food other then grain were

scarce

Hitler and the Rise of Nazi Germany

• After World War I, German leaders drafted a constitution– Created the Weimar Republic, a democratic

government– Set up a parliamentary system led by a

chancellor– Women got the right to vote

• Government was very weak– Too many small parties trying to gain power

• Moderate democratic socialists were in power– Communists wanted radical changes– Conservatives thought the government was

too liberal and weak

• Germans wanted a strong leader like Bismark

• The Weimar Republic was blamed for the Treaty of Versailles

• Many blamed Jews for all of Germany’s problems

• France took control of the coal rich Ruhr Valley as payment of reparations– German workers went on strike to protest

• Government continued to pay workers by printing more money

• Inflation went out of control making the mark almost worthless– 100 marks = 944,000 marks– Salaries rose by the billions– Savings were wiped out

• U.S. loans helped the economy recover– France pulled out of the Ruhr

• Great Depression wiped away all progress

The Nazi Party’s Rise to Power

• Adolf Hitler was born in Austria• Moved to Vienna at 18 and developed

anti-sematic views• Fought for Germany in World War I

– Afterward, believed Weimar government was too weak

• Became leader of the National Socialist German Worker’s Party, Nazi Party– Formed squads of “storm troopers” to fight

against enemies

• 1923, Hitler was arrested for leading the Beerhouse Putsch– Found guilty of treason and sent to prison

• In prison Hitler wrote Mien Kompf (my struggle)– Showed extreme nationalism, racism and anti-

semitism– Germans were the master race, Jews were

the enemies

• Jews were persecuted throughout history

• Jews seen as a race (at least one Jewish grandparent)

• Blamed World War I defeat on Marxists, Jews, corrupt politicians and businessmen

• Urged all Germans to unite into one great nation– Germany needed lebensraum, or living space

• All “inferior races” must bow to German needs

• Hitler spent less then one year in prison

• Great Depression led almost one million to join the Nazis

• Promised to end reparations, create jobs, and rearm Germany

• Nazis and communists won seats in legislation

• Fearing communists, conservatives turned to Hitler

• Hitler was named chancellor legally in 1933

• Hitler was dictator within a year– Suspended civil rights– Destroyed communists– Executed Nazis he felt were disloyal

The Third Reich Controls Germany

• Hitler gained support by calling for return to past glories

• Claimed the Third Reich, or empire, would last 1000 years

• Created large public works programs

• Worked to rearm Germany and unite with Austria

• Nazis controlled all areas of life

• Elite troops called SS enforced Hitler’s rule

• The Gestapo, or secret police, rooted out opposition

• Masses applauded Hitler; those who didn’t were killed

• Hitler worked to force Jews out of Germany

• 1935, Nuremberg Laws deprived Jews of German citizenship– Could marry non-Jews– Attend German schools– Hold government positions– Practice law or medicine– Publish books

• Many German Jews fled to other countries

• 1938, a young Jew shot a German diplomat in Paris– Hitler used this to start attacking Jews

• Kristallnacht, or “Night of Broken Glass”, was were Nazi mobs attacked Jews– The first step in Hitler’s “Final Solution”

• Nazis indoctrinated youth with their ideology

• Hitler Youth were urged to destroy enemies without mercy– Pledged absolute loyalty to Hitler

• Schoolbooks were rewritten to reflect Nazi racial views

• Women were expected to stay at home in the upperclass– Factory workers were needed; women filled

positions

• Women were given rewards for having kids

• Nazis wanted to purify German culture– Denounced modern art, too Jewish– Condemned Jazz, too African

• Glorified old German works

• Hitler despised Christianity– Wanted to replace it with Nazi ideology

• Combined all churches into one state run church– Catholic churches were closed

• Some clergy spoke out against Nazis