Test 4/4/25 Flashcards
Triple Alliancemilitary alliance between Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy (though Italy later switched sides), which formed the core of the Central Powers in WWI.
Triple Alliance
Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy
Central Powers
A military alliance between France, Russia, and Britain, which later expanded into the Allied Powers during WWI.
Triple Entente
France, Russia, and Britain
Allied Powers
Causes of the war
Long-term militarism, alliances, imperialism, and nationalism, combined with the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, led to WWI.
Schlieffen Plan
Germany’s strategy to avoid a two-front war by quickly defeating France in the west before turning to fight Russia in the east.
Rape of Belgium
The brutal German invasion of Belgium, marked by atrocities against civilians, which fueled anti-German sentiment.
Marne
first major Allied victory in World War I, halting the German advance into France and preventing a quick German victory.
Verdun
France vs germany, attrition warfare, french held ground. Trench warfare ending
Somme
british/french vs germany, relive pressure of battle on verdun, draw germans away, break the stalemate, biggest british offensive up to that point, turned into trench warfare, weakend germany
Gallipoli
failed Allied attack on Ottoman Empire
Treaty of Brest-Litovsk
A 1918 peace treaty between Soviet Russia and Germany, ending Russia’s involvement in WWI
Lusitania
A British passenger ship sunk by Germany in 1915, killing 1,198 people, including Americans, and increasing U.S. anti-German sentiment.
Zimmerman Telegram
A secret German message urging Mexico to attack the U.S. in exchange for lost territories, which led the U.S. to join WWI.
Weimar Republic
The democratic government of Germany from 1919 to 1933, struggling with economic crises and political instability.
Treaty of Versailles
The 1919 peace treaty that ended WWI, imposing heavy reparations and blame on Germany.
Clemenceau
Key Allied leaders at Versailles: Clemenceau (France, harsh on Germany)
Lloyd George
Key Allied leaders at Versailles (Britain, moderate stance).
Wilson & 14 Points
U.S. President Wilson’s plan for post-war peace, emphasizing self-determination and the League of Nations.
National self-determination
The idea that ethnic groups should have their own nations and govern themselves.
War guilt clause
Article 231 of the Treaty of Versailles, which placed sole responsibility for WWI on Germany.
Erich Maria Remarque
A German author best known for All Quiet on the Western Front, a novel depicting the horrors of WWI.
All Quiet on the Western Front
A novel portraying the brutal realities of WWI through a German soldier’s perspective.
Wilfred Owen
A British soldier-poet whose works, including Dulce et Decorum Est, exposed the horrors of WWI.
Dulce et Decorum Est
Owen’s poem condemning the idea that dying for one’s country is glorious.
Mustafa Kemal Ataturk
Founder of modern Turkey, who secularized and modernized the country.
Young Turks (1908)
A reformist group that overthrew the Ottoman sultan and sought modernization.
Comm. Of Union & Progress
The ruling faction of the Young Turks, responsible for radical reforms and the Armenian Genocide.
“three pashas”
The main leaders of the Ottoman Empire during WWI, responsible for war policies and mass killings.
turkification
A policy to assimilate minorities into Turkish culture, often forcefully.
Emanc. of women
Atatürk’s reforms granted women more rights, including suffrage and education.
Armenian Genocide
The mass killing of Armenians by the Ottoman Empire during WWI.
Criteria for genocide
Defined by the UN as the intentional destruction of a group based on ethnicity, nationality, religion, or race.
Gallipoli
A failed Allied invasion of the Ottoman Empire in WWI.
sharia law
Islamic legal system, which Atatürk abolished in Turkey.
Hamidian Massacres
The killing of Armenians under Sultan Abdul Hamid II in the late 19th century.
Diaspora
The forced dispersal of an ethnic group from its homeland.
War of Turkish Indep.
The war (1919-1923) led by Atatürk to establish modern Turkey.
Goodbye, Antoura
A memoir about Armenian children abducted during the genocide.
Totalitarian
A government that seeks total control over all aspects of life.
Authoritarian
A government with strong central power and limited political freedoms.
Revolution, causes of
Economic crises, political oppression, and public dissatisfaction often spark revolutions.
The political spectrum
A classification of political ideologies from left (communism) to right (fascism).
Communism
A political and economic system advocating classless society and state control of resources.
Soviet
Local workers’ councils that played a key role in the Russian Revolution.
Petrograd
The former name of St. Petersburg, central to the Russian Revolution.
Nicholas II
The last Russian Tsar, overthrown in 1917.
Nicolai Gogol
Russian writer whose works influenced Russian literature.
Alexander Pushkin
A Russian poet and playwright, considered the father of Russian literature.
Khodynka Field (1896)
A deadly stampede during Nicholas II’s coronation.
Bloody Sunday (1905)
A massacre of protestors by the Tsar’s forces, sparking unrest.
Tsarina Alexandra
Nicholas II’s wife, unpopular due to her influence over the Tsar and reliance on Rasputin.
Rasputin
A mystic who gained influence over the Russian royal family.
Russo-Japanese War
A 1904-1905 conflict in which Japan defeated Russia, weakening the Tsar’s rule.
Problems with WWI
High casualties, economic strain, and political instability in Russia.
Alexander Kerensky
Leader of the Russian Provisional Government before the Bolsheviks took power.
Social Revolutionaries
A political party advocating land redistribution.
Cadets
Russian liberals supporting constitutional monarchy
Social Democrats
A Marxist political group, split into Mensheviks and Bolsheviks.
Mensheviks
A moderate Marxist faction
Bolsheviks
A radical Marxist faction led by Lenin that took power in 1917.
peace, bread, land
Lenin’s slogan promising an end to war, food for the people, and land reforms.
Vladimir Lenin
Leader of the Bolsheviks who led the October Revolution and founded the Soviet Union.
Leon Trotsky
A key Bolshevik leader, organizer of the Red Army, and rival of Stalin.
Josef Stalin
Lenin’s successor, who ruled the Soviet Union with totalitarian control.
Proletariat
The working class, which Marxist theory sees as the revolutionary force against capitalism.
October Revolution
The working class, which Marxist theory sees as the revolutionary force against capitalism.
Coup d’etat
A sudden and illegal seizure of government power.
February Revolution
The 1917 uprising that led to the abdication of Tsar Nicholas II and the formation of the Provisional Government.
Provisional Government
The temporary Russian government after the February Revolution, overthrown by the Bolsheviks.
Russian Civil War
The conflict (1917-1922) between Bolshevik “Reds” and anti-communist “Whites.”
Cheka
The Bolshevik secret police, responsible for political repression.
War Communism
A harsh economic policy where the Bolsheviks seized resources to support the war effort.
NEP
Lenin’s temporary policy allowing some private enterprise to revive the Soviet economy.
Red Terror
A campaign of political repression and executions by the Bolsheviks.
Machiavelli
Renaissance thinker whose ideas on power influenced totalitarian leaders.
Comintern
The Communist International, promoting worldwide communist revolution.
Party-state
A system where the ruling political party controls the government completely.
Five year plans
Stalin’s economic programs to rapidly industrialize the Soviet Union.
Collectivization
Stalin’s forced consolidation of private farms into state-run collectives, leading to famine.
Kulaks / dekulakization
Wealthy peasants targeted by Stalin’s policies and often executed or sent to gulags.
Literacy
The Soviet Union promoted mass literacy to spread communist ideology.
Socialist Realism
State-approved art and literature glorifying communism.
Party-minded
Soviet expectation that all aspects of life serve communist ideals.
Anna Akhmatova
A Russian poet persecuted under Stalin
“write for the drawer”
A phrase describing censored writers who hid their works.
cult of personality
The glorification of a leader, seen under Stalin’s rule.
purges
Stalin’s mass executions and imprisonments of political enemies.
show trials
Public trials of political enemies, often based on false charges.
Gulags
gulags
Soviet labor camps for political prisoners.
Zhenotdel
The Soviet women’s department advocating for gender equality.
NKVD
The Soviet secret police, responsible for enforcing Stalin’s purges.
Sun Yat-sen
The first leader of the Republic of China, who advocated for modernization.
Three People’s Principles
Sun Yat-sen’s political philosophy of nationalism, democracy, and people’s livelihood
Nationalism
Democracy
People’s Livelihood
Jiang Jieshi
The nationalist leader of China who fought both communists and Japan.
Kuomintang
The Chinese Nationalist Party, led by Sun Yat-sen and later Jiang Jieshi.
May 4th Movement
A nationalist movement protesting foreign interference in China.
Mao Zedong
The communist leader who eventually established the People’s Republic of China
CCP
The party that led China’s communist revolution.
Long March
The Chinese communists’ retreat from the KMT, strengthening Mao’s leadership.
Lu Xun
A Chinese writer known for critiquing traditional society.
Diary of a Madman
A short story by Lu Xun exposing the corruption of Confucian values.
Hirohito
Emperor of Japan during WWII.
Meiji Restoration
Japan’s modernization movement in the late 19th century.
Constitutional monarchy
A system where a monarch’s power is limited by a constitution.
Kokutai
The Japanese national identity emphasizing loyalty to the emperor.
Zaibatsu
Large Japanese industrial conglomerates controlling much of the economy.
Greater East Asia Co-Prosp. Sphere
Japan’s vision of regional dominance, justifying expansion.
State Shinto
The state-endorsed religious ideology in Japan, promoting nationalism.
Mukden Incident
A staged attack by Japan to justify invading Manchuria.
Spanish Civil War
A conflict (1936-1939) between fascists and republicans, with Franco’s victory leading to dictatorship.
Francisco Franco
The fascist leader of Spain from 1939 to 1975.
Pablo Picasso
A Spanish artist who painted Guernica, depicting the horrors of war.
Guernica
A Spanish town bombed by German forces during the Spanish Civil War.
Mussolini
Italy’s fascist dictator, allied with Hitler in WWII.
Fasces / Fascism
An authoritarian ideology promoting nationalism, militarism, and dictatorship.
Blackshirts
Mussolini’s paramilitary force.
March on Rome
Mussolini’s 1922 seizure of power.
Rome-Berlin Axis
The alliance between Mussolini and Hitler.
Paul von Hindenberg
The German president who appointed Hitler as chancellor.
Economic conditions
Post-WWI economic collapse in Germany fueled extremism.
Reasons for Nazi acceptance
Economic crisis, nationalism, and fear of communism led to Hitler’s rise.
Adolph Hitler
The Nazi leader who started WWII.
Lebensraum
Hitler’s policy of territorial expansion.
Mein Kampf
Hitler’s book outlining his ideology.
Blitzkrieg
A fast-moving warfare strategy used by Germany in WWII.
Demographic shifts
WWII led to massive population displacement.
Night of the Long Knives
Hitler’s purge of political rivals
Nat’l Socialist Party
Hitler’s fascist party.
Gestapo
The Nazi secret police.
Fuhrer
The title Hitler assumed as Germany’s dictator
Reichstag Fire
A suspicious fire Hitler used to justify eliminating political opposition.
Scientific Racism
Pseudoscience used to justify Nazi racial policies.
Nuremberg Laws
Anti-Jewish laws in Nazi Germany.
Nanking
The mass killing and rape of Chinese civilians by the Japanese army in 1937.
Chang vs. Yamamoto
A debate over military leadership and responsibility in the Pacific War.
“command irresponsibility”
The concept of military leaders avoiding accountability for war crimes.
Abyssinia (Ethiopia)
The 1935 Italian invasion of Ethiopia, showing the weakness of the League of Nations.
Rhineland
demilitarized zone reoccupied by Germany in 1936, violating the Treaty of Versailles.
Alsace-Lorraine
A historically contested region between France and Germany.
Anschluss
Hitler’s 1938 annexation of Austria into Nazi Germany.
Sudetenland
A German-speaking region of Czechoslovakia given to Hitler in the 1938 Munich Agreement.
League of Nations
A failed international organization meant to prevent war.
Appeasement
Britain and France’s policy of conceding to Hitler’s demands to avoid war.
Danzig
A disputed Polish city that Hitler used as a pretext for invading Poland.
volksdeutsche
Ethnic Germans living outside Germany whom Hitler sought to reunite.
Lebensraum
Hitler’s policy of territorial expansion into Eastern Europe.
Maginot Line
France’s defensive fortifications along its German border.
Phony War
The early months of WWII (1939-1940) with little actual fighting.
Dunkirk
The 1940 evacuation of Allied soldiers from France
Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggr. Pact
A 1939 treaty between Germany and the USSR to divide Eastern Europe.
Anti-Comintern Pact
A 1936 agreement between Germany and Japan against communism.
Pact of Steel
A military alliance between Germany and Italy.
blitzkrieg
German strategy of fast-moving warfare
Luftwaffe
The German air force.
Operation Sea Lion
Germany’s failed plan to invade Britain.
Winston Churchill
Britain’s Prime Minister who led the fight against Nazi Germany.
Battle of Britain
Germany’s failed air campaign against Britain.
Royal Air Force (RAF)
Britain’s air force, which defended against the Luftwaffe.
Turning Points
WWII
Stalingrad
The brutal battle (1942-43) where the Soviets defeated the Germans, marking a turning point.
Scorched earth tactics
The Soviet strategy of destroying resources to deny them to the enemy.
Pearl Harbor
Japan’s surprise attack on the U.S. on December 7, 1941, leading America into WWII.
December 7, 1941
The date of the Pearl Harbor attack.
Midway
A crucial 1942 naval battle where the U.S. defeated Japan, shifting the war in the Pacific.
Battle of El Alamein
A major battle where the British defeated Germany in North Africa.
Midway Miracle
The unexpected U.S. victory at Midway, which crippled Japan’s navy.
D-Day (June 6, 1044)
The Allied invasion of Nazi-occupied France.
Winning the War
War
Operation Overlord
The code name for the D-Day invasion.
Normandy
The region in France where D-Day landings occurred.
lebensraum
Hitler’s policy of territorial expansion into Eastern Europe.
The Blitz
Germany’s bombing campaign against British cities.
Radar
A crucial British technology in detecting enemy aircraft.
Dwight Eisenhower
The Supreme Allied Commander who led D-Day.
B. Montgomery
A key British general in WWII.
Omaha Beach
One of the primary landing sites on D-Day.
Tehran, Yalta, Potsdam
The major WWII conferences where the Allies planned postwar Europe
Battle of the Bulge
Germany’s last major offensive in WWII, ultimately failing.
Harry Truman
The U.S. president who ordered the atomic bombings of Japan.
Hiroshima, Nagasaki
The Japanese cities destroyed by atomic bombs in August 1945.
Dehumanization
The process of stripping people of their humanity, often used in propaganda and genocide.
Utilitarianism
The ethical theory of maximizing overall good, often used to justify wartime actions.
Dresden, Hamburg
German cities heavily bombed by the Allies.
Tokyo, London
Cities heavily affected by bombings during WWII.
Incendiary bombing
Bombing designed to create firestorms.
Napalm
A flammable weapon used in bombing raids.
“Just War” theory
The philosophy concerning the justification of war.
Morale bombing
Bombing civilians to break their will to fight.
Proportionality of means
A concept in war ethics about using force in proportion to the objective.
Norden bomb sight
A U.S. device used for precision bombing.
Comfort Women
Women forced into sexual slavery by the Japanese military.
Chongsindae
The Korean term for “comfort women.”
Bataan Death March
The forced march of U.S. and Filipino prisoners by Japan, leading to thousands of deaths.
Palawan Massacre
The execution of U.S. POWs by the Japanese in 1944.
Cabantuan
A Japanese POW camp in the Philippines
August 1 Kill-All Order
A Japanese order to execute all POWs in the Philippines.
POW stats
Statistics on the high death rates of prisoners of war.
Lost Names
A book about Korean identity under Japanese rule.
