Aftereffects of WW1 Flashcards
Why was Italy suffering from debt and inflation, how had the cost of living index risen and the value of real wages fallen pre-war to post-war?
How much was the avg daily wage in Milan but how much was needed by a family to meet their daily needs?
- Campaigns against Austria had been sustained by printing more money and foreign loans (16 bil lire in 1914 to 85 bil in 1919)
- 100 in 1914 to 264 in 1918
- Wages fallen to only 64.6% of 1913 levels
- 7 lire was wage but 75 was needed for a family
Contrastingly, give an example of a group who did benefit from the crippling economy, even though it wasn’t for long
- Fiat grew fivefold
- When inflation increased, industrialists just raised their prices and received high profits anyway as gov would continue purchasing as they were desperate for military victory
What decision did the gov make in 1919 that impacted unemployment and bankruptcy heavily and why? What were the impacts?
- Abruptly ended war loans
- Returned to free market economy
- Attempt to reduce national debt
- Many large companies went bankrupt
- By Nov 1919 –> Unemployment reached 2 mil
- Middle class Italians’ savings were wiped out
- State employees’ wages and pensions declined
Why were peasants who fought in WW1 unsatisfied and what happened to the number of peasant land owners?
- Not enough land was made available to peasants to purchase, as promised, to satisfy those demanding land for farming
- Many forcibly seized barren/uncultivated land from absent owners, raising flags and setting to work
- Increased dramatically to 3.5 mil
What was another reason for the increase in this number?
Some peasants had profited from war enough to buy more land due to wartime inflation
What were Labour Leagues and what was their aim?
- Rural TUs
- Create labour-owned collective farms
What stance did Giolitti take in terms of land reform?
- Seemed to support it
- Ordered prefects to legalise land confiscations by peasants
Who was there a growing divide between in the North and why?
- Returning soldiers (trinceristi)
- Exempted workers
- Many saw those exempted as cowards who got wealthier whilst the soldiers risked their lives on the frontline
What happened at the Paris Peace Conference, where and when was it and how did this worsen the anger in Italian society?
- Jan- Apr 1919 in Versailles
- Orlando argued that Italy should be given all the land agreed in Treaty of London + Fiume (Croatian coast), as it was apparently based on the ‘principle of nationality’
- Wilson, George and Clemenceau were condescending towards Italy
- Rejected request for Fiume, Brenner Pass, as well as parts of Treaty of London that had previously been agreed eg. Dodecanese Islands, parts of Balkans (between ITA and AUS), saying Italy’s contribution in war did not justify its claims
- Orlando argued he needed this to justify war efforts
- Claimed he would be assassinated if Dalmatia was not secured
- Sonnino feared country would go into anarchy
- Walked out of conference in April (this actually gained support of public)
What was promised in the Treaty of London that was not given to ITA?
- Dalmatia
- Colonies
What other issue did Italian negotiators face?
- American president Woodrow Wilson wanted national self-determination to be focus of negotiations
- Made it harder for ITA to gain German, Slav, Croat speaking lands
Why was Italy’s claim for Fiume weak and why did GBR and USA believe they did not need it?
- Majority of Fiume was not Italian (mixed pop of Croats + Italians + only 50% were Italian speaking)
- Believed newly founded Yugoslavia would need it as access to the Adriatic
What happened during Orlando’s period of absence in the conference and after when he returned? What did he have to do as a result?
- GBR + FRA took Germany’s African colonies without considering ITA’s demands
- May –> Returned
- Proposals ignored
- Jun –> Forced to resign
How was the liberal government undermined by the ‘mutilated victory’?
Failure to gain Fiume or any of Germany’s colonial territories in Africa
What had Italy actually acquired?
- 14,500 square km of land
- Trentino
- Trieste
- Istria
- Brenner Pass
- Northern Dalmatia (official territory in 1920)
What was Italy also allowed to participate in and what were they given?
- War reparations negotiations w/ GER
- Permanent seat in League of Nations
When was the League of Nations established?
How many member states did it have?
What were its aims?
What were its weaknesses?
What was it replaced with after WW1?
- Established after WW1
- 58 member states
- To prevent conflict through disarmament, collective security, negotiation
- USA + USSR not members, lacked armed force, relied on member countries implementing sanctions or using their army
How did Francesco Nitti, Orlando’s successor, play down Italy’s claims and why did he do this?
- Allowed newly formed nation of Yugoslavia to take Dalmatia
- Allowed Fiume to be deemed a neutral city under protection of League of Nations
- Reduced military spending
- Issued amnesty to Italian soldiers, who deserted in war
- Italy’s economy was weak + needed coal and money that only Allies could provide so a good relationship was necessary
