Rise of WWII (part 2) Flashcards
What took place throughout Hitler’s political career?
- Hitler joined the German Workers party after WWII, quickly became leader, and changed the name to National Socialists (Nazis)
- Committed the Munich/Beer Hall Putsch in November 1923 which came close to overthrowing the government but was put down
- From 1924 - 1929, Nazi party did not get much support as Hitler was imprisoned and banned from public speaking and the economic situation improved for Germany when USA gave loans
- In 1929, USA stopped giving loans and people blamed the Weimar Republic
- Hitler took this as an opportunity to gain support and promised the situation would improve if they gave him support
- Hitler then thrived and blamed Jews and communists for Germany’s trouble
- He used lots of meetings, propaganda and marches to win people
- In 1933, Hitler was elected chancellor
- When Reichtag (parliament) was burned down, Hitler blamed communists
- This led to him getting more support and was able to pass an enabling act that allowed him to pass laws without supervision
Name 2 terms of the Versailles treaty within each category of BRAT.
Look at table
Explain the ideologies of the national socialists.
Economy:
- Wanted to give workers a better standard of living
- Wanted to end mass unemployment and insecurity
- Wanted economic self-sufficiency
- Wanted to not be vulnerable to economic sanctions
Politics:
- Wanted independence
- Wanted to organise and control lives
- Wanted powerful authority
- Could use violence when needed
- Wanted all class to work together for the state
- Used name National Socialism (Nazi) to attract people of the working class
- No criticism
Wanted to restore national pride
Militarism:
- Wanted to achieve greatness through war
- Wanted to create a big arms industry
Ideologies:
- Believed Aryan race was the master race
- Believed pure Germans were superior
- Believed races from Eastern Europe were a slave race
- Jews should be eliminated
- Other groups like homosexuals and gypsies were unfit for society
What did Hitler do against the Treaty of Versailles?
1935: rearmed military after 2 years
1936: move military to Rhineland
March 1938: Austrian government overthrown by Germans and Austrians through a coup d’ètat as
many Austrians supported Nazism (known as unification/Anschluss)
September 1938: interest in putting German-speaking areas of Czechoslovakia under German control (Sudetenland). Munich agreement signed without consulting government, granting control over that area
1939: Czechoslovakia is now a protectorate of Germany
September 1939: invasion on Poland that leads to the start of WWII
Explain what the appeasement was and whether it was good or bad.
Appeasement=peacekeeping
The appeasement before WWII was a period of time beforehand when the Allied powers chose not to interfere with Germany going against the terms of the Versailles Treaty to avoid another war starting and they saw Germany’s actions as understandable due to how harsh the treaty was. However, this was a mistake as it allowed Hitler to get away with a few things and be encouraged to begin a war.
Who created the Versailles Treaty and what did they believe?
France: Georges Clemenceau (wanted treaty to be as harsh as possible)
Britain: Lloyd George (neutral)
USA: Woodrow Wilson (wanted to avoid making the treaty too harsh to the point where it would cause WWII)
What was the League of Nations?
It was an international organisation made on the 10th of January 1920 by Woodrow Wilson after WWI to solve conflict and avoid warfare.
48 countries joined the League of Nations and based in Geneva, Switzerland, however, USA does not take part as the president died and isolationists were against the idea of joining.
Used principle of selective security (cooperation of countries to strengthen security)
Goals:
Stop war
Improve people’s lives and Jobs
Encourage co-operation in trade
Economic and social agencies.
Disarmament
Enforce the Treaty of Versailles
What were the League of Nations’ weaknesses?
1) League of Nations was dominated by Italy, Japan, France, and Britain
2) Four main council members had a veto, meaning that they had a right to reject decisions
3) Assembly met at least once a year and council met 3-4 times per year
4) Assembly decisions were unanimous, meaning that there was no compromise.
5) League didn’t have its own army
6) Structural problem: league had too many structural issues
7)
8)
Explain Chamberlain and the Munich agreement.
- Signed by Neville Chamberlain (prime minister of Britain) and the prime ministers of Italy, France, and Hitler
- Signed on 29-30 of September 1938
- Led the the Sudetenland of Czechoslovakia becoming a protectorate of Germany also known as ‘Protectorate of Bohemia and Morvia’
