Chapter 23 Reading Flashcards
2 ways nations moved
democracy and totalitarianism
totalitarianism
type of government in which a single party or leader controls the economic, social, and cultural lives of its people
Soviet Union
produced the first totalitarian state; headed by Vladimir Lenin
Joseph Stalin
took Lenin’s place in 1924 as the communist party’s head
troubled Italy
postwar economic depression
1922 king asked
Mussolini to form a government
Benito Mussolini
founder of the Fascist Party; turned Italy into a fascist country with a controlled press, secret police, and no political parties; led an invasion into Ethiopia
following WW1 Germany became
a democracy
the Great Depression in Germany
caused severe economic troubles
Nazi party
national socialist German worker’s party; led by Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
criticized people, political programs, and ideologies; sharpest assaults against jews and communists; antisemitic; appointed chancellor of Germany and became president in 1933; reclaimed the Saar region from French control and sent troops into Rhineland
communists
supporting communism for everyone owning their own things and each person is paid and works according to their abilities and needs
antisemitic
prejudice against jews
the Great Depression in Japan
ended a period of increased democracy and peaceful change
military leaders argued
expansion throughout Asia would solve Japan’s problems
Japan attacked
Manchuria and established a puppet state (government that appears independent but is actually controlled by another country) in 1931; attacked China
rape of Nanjing
Japan attacked China raiding the capital city with such brutality
1930’s Italy and Germany resorted to
acts of aggression similar to those of Japan and Asia
League of Nations
did almost nothing to stop the aggression within Rhineland and Ethiopia
France, Britain, and the US pursued
policy of appeasement toward fascist leaders; only encouraged the leaders to become bolder and more aggressive
appeasement
granting concessions to a potential enemy to maintain peace
after Japan’s attack on China
FDR criticized the Japanese aggression
US continued to
back away from intervention in foreign conflicts
1939 Germany invaded
Poland despite a military alliance among France, Britain, and Poland
Britan and France
declared war on Germany beginning WW2
axis powers
Germany, Italy, Japan, and several other nations
allies
Britain, France, Soviet Union, China, and the US
blitzkrieg
lightning war; Germany used; tanks and planes attacked in coordinated effort and quickly conquered Poland
April 1940
Denmark and Norway fell to blitzkrieg
May 1940 Germany
took the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg, and invaded France; attacked Britain from the air
Winston Churchill
prime minister of Britain; convince America to join the allies
Edward R. Murrow
news reporter; reports of the bombing of London shocked the American public; emphasized the Germans were bombing civilians, not armies or military sites
US policies
isolationist; despite this they slowly moved toward involvement
neutrality act of 1939
helped the allies buy goods and munitions from the US
isolationists policies
advocated non-involvement in European and Asian conflicts and non-entanglement in international politics
isolationists believed
getting involved in a bloody European war would be wasteful and dangerous
most Americans
wanted to remain neutral
FDR argued
helping Britain; met with Churchill to discuss the war
lend-lease act
gave the president the power to sell, give, or lease weapons to protect the US
Atlantic Charter
document that endorsed national self-determination and an international system of “general security”; signaled the deepening alliance between the two nations
Hitler in fall of 1941
ordered German U boats to attack American ships for their support of the allies
