Study Guide 9 Flashcards
When Lenin seized power in Russia, what subsequent actions in January 1918 shocked Russia’s former allies, Britain and France and the United States ?
- making peace with Germany 2. Lenin’s government calls for revolution in all countries, for workers to overthrow their governments everywhere.
Wilson’s 14 Points were in part a response to Lenin’s proclamations. What were the key principles of the 14 Points, and what did they seem to promise to Germany and Austria-Hungary ?
Key principles: national self-determination, fairness to winners and losers, and seems to promise to Germany and Austria-Hungary that they will not be dismantled.
The establishment of the Weimar Republic:
a.What was the role of the German High Command in bringing about the fall of Imperial Germany in 1918, and why have some historians called this a “revolution from above” ?
b. Why did the German Emperor abdicate and to where did he flee ?
c. How did the Weimar Republic get its name – that is, why did the Constituent Assembly
(in charge of writing a new constitution) leave Berlin and move temporarily to Weimar ?
d. Which 2 political parties were the largest in Germany at that time, which meant they now
carried the Weimar Republic ?
e. What reputation does the Weimar constitution have among political scientists, and what were
some of its key features ?
f. Which city was the capital of the Weimar Republic ?
g. To which party did the first President belong, and who was its second (and last) President ?
a. They are the ones that decide the war is over and Germany is going to lose, and they are the ones that call for a restructuring of the German government and force the emperor to flee (that’s why “revolution from above”)
b. He flees to Holland (which offers him safety, which is interesting because it was not actually involved in WWI)
c. The Parliament assembled to write a Constitution moves to Weimar to get away from Communist uprisings in Berlin
d. The Center party (Roman Catholics) and the Social Democratic Party (the two parties created accidentally by Bismarck’s policies)
e. Considered to be one of the best constitutions ever written, because it gives not only rights to the people but opportunities to balance government (referendum, people voting on a law already passed, which is significant because it is a check and balance against Parliament; and initiative, people can call for a law to be made); recall means you can dismiss an elected official
f. NOT DONE
g. NOT DONE
The Paris Peace Treaties did not turn out as anyone had hoped. Why was everyone disappointed, the victors as well as the vanquished ? For example, what had the representatives from Italy, France, Germany hoped for and what did they actually receive ?
Why did the German delegation call their treaty “a Carthaginian Peace” ? And why was it significant that representatives of the Weimar government (like elsewhere in Central Europe) and not members of the Imperial German government were asked to sign this peace treaty ?
Because everyone had been promised something and no one got one they wanted. Italy wanted land, France, security, and Germany hoped for no punishments. They called it this because it means a peace which is meant to punish, not actually to create peace. Significant because they were not actually responsible for the war.
How did the principle of “national self-determination” turn into a weapon against the vanquished powers, for example, Germany, Austria, Hungary, and the Ottoman Empire ?
Used to break apart Germany (especially Austria-Hungary and Ottoman Empire) but it was not used if it came to the ADVANTAGE of those countries; only used to make the countries smaller and weaken them.
Wilson’s primary goal was the establishment of a League of Nations. What was its intended purpose, and why did this fail to be achieved – that is, why was the League of Nations doomed to be ineffective after 1919 ? In which city was the League located ? What happened to Wilson in 1919, and who assumed a crucial role in guiding the President of the United States ?
His reasoning was to provide peace and stability by providing an organization whereby countries could negotiate. This does not work because U.S. does not join League of Nations. Wilson has a series of strokes and his wife runs the country. WHAT CITY?
One of the key provisions of the 14 Points was demilitarization. Only two countries actually demilitarized after the Great War. Which two were these ?
De-militarization. TWO countries: U.S. and Germany.
What happened in 1919 to the great German navy, which had been the source of so much anxiety and envy in Britain ?
The British are supposed to get the navy, and the German sailors SINK IT FIRST.
What problems did the war propaganda create after 1918 ? What did some of the propagandists of the war try to do resolve these problems, and what effect did this have upon the European populations ? In general, what was the mood of the early 1920s ?
Hard to turn off the propaganda. Leading members try to counter the effects of it by saying that it was all lies. They also travel and hold lecture tours. Response of the European populations is that they refuse to believe it, and they also become skeptical of their own governments. Furious and frenzied happiness in populations in Europe, anxiety and frenzy.
Terms: Please be able to explain the following terms :
Armistice Day
the “stab-in-the-back” legend
the Treaty of Versailles and Article 231
NOT DONE
Who were the two man opposition forces during the Civil War in Russia ? What was the Red Terror in Russia, and what was its effect in Europe ? When did Lenin die, and who won in the ensuing power struggle that ended in 1927 ?
Whites (Pro-Lenin Bolsheviks) and the reds
Terrorize the Bolsheviks into obedience. The wealthy people flee, including Bolsheviks. The power struggle: Stalin dies
In which country did the first genocide occur in the 20th century ? Which population is attacked, and which prevailing ideology helped to precipitate this genocide ?
Turks against the Armenians
Nationalism for Turks
NOT DONE
What were some of the “economic dislocations” which so tormented European countries after 1918 ?
War production ends, businesses start to fail, leads to greater unemployment, soldiers are decommissioned, which leads to even greater unemployment, and all of this increases inflation as well. (Less products, great demand, raises the prices)
What was the Great Inflation in Germany in 1923 ? What were its causes ? And what effect did this have upon the German middle and working classes ?
It pretty much wipes out people’s monetary assets. (Savings, pension, etc.) This impoverishes the German middle and working classes.
Why did the aristocrat-dominated German army work together with the Communist Soviet Army after 1919, what effect did this have upon both militaries, and why was this cooperation so odd ?
Both countries are shunned by the Europeans; the two militaries cooperate because each needs the other for assistance in the war effort.
