The Rise of Dictators and World War II Aggression

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The Rise of Dictators and World War II Aggression
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TOTALITARIANISM(a govt. that has total control
over its people)

• Shared
• Characteristics
• extreme
• nationalism
• one strong leader
• one political party
• strong military
• secret police
• censorship
• propaganda
• indoctrination
• (teaching young
• people accepted
• ideas of the govt.)

• Communism
• government owns the businesses and land
• Soviet Union

• Fascism
• individual people own the businesses and land
• Germany, Italy

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Absolute Dictators Methods of Control

• Dictators often used propaganda tools to maintain
  power (books, radio, the press, films)
• People were forbidden from criticizing their
  government

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Nazi Propaganda
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Benito Mussolini (Italy)

• Preached a government called Fascism movement
  emphasizing loyalty to the state and its leader
• Deeply anti-Communist strong support for Italian
  corporations
• Deep desire to make Italy a great world power
• Active Secret Police would jail political
  opponents
• Linked to racism and cultural superiority

Mussolini called himself IL DUCE (The Chief)
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Adolf Hitler (Germany)

• Joined politics after WWI wanted to avenge
  Germanys loss
• Organized Nazi Party tried to seize power in
  1923 but was arrested
• While in prison wrote Mein Kampf
• Spoke about Germany racial superiority (German
  Aryans were superior all others like Jews,
  Slavs, Gypsies were inferior)
• Stated German need for Lebensraum living space

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Hitler in Power

• During 1920s-30s a severe depression in
  Germany, Civil War broke out
• Politicians in Germany believed they could use
  Hitler so the German president named him
  Chancellor in 1933
• Once in office, he used fear effectively to allow
  the Nazis to win a majority in Parliament
  (Reichstag Building Fire)
• Rule became known as The Third Reich

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Hitlers Policies

• Banned all political parties
• Created a black-uniformed, secret police unit
  called the SS (Schutzstaffel)
• Massive building program put millions to work
  ending the Depression in Germany

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Hitlers War on the Jews and other races

• Nazi beliefs stressed the purity of the Aryan
  race
• Policies enacted to purify the German race
  (sterilization of undesirables like mentally ill
  and disabled)
• Anti-Semitism (hatred of the Jews) was a major
  part of Nazi beliefs
• Jews were used as scapegoats (blamed for
  Germanys problems) especially blamed for
  Germanys economic problems after WWI
• Nuremberg Laws deprived Jews of their citizenship
• Nazis first attempted isolating Jews in ghettos,
  then resorted to official, blatant attacks on
  Jewish homes and synagogues

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The Road to War 1919-1939
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The Versailles Treaty
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A Weak League of Nations
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The Ineffectiveness of the League of Nations

• No control of major conflicts.
• No progress in disarmament.
• No effective military force.

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The Stab-In-The-Back Theory
German soldiers are dissatisfied.
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International Agreements

• Locarno Pact 1925
• France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy
• Guarantee existing frontiers
• Establish DMZ 30 miles deep on East bank of
  Rhine River
• Refrain from aggression against each other
• Kellogg-Briand Pact 1928
• Makes war illegal as a tool of diplomacy
• No enforcement provisions

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The Great Depression
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Movements Toward War

• We need to understand the Aggressiveness in
  four countries/events to discover how and why the
  war began
• Japan
• Italy
• Spain
• Germany

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New Government for Japan

• Japan seemed peaceful and had a democratic
  government in the 1920s
• However, few in government could control the
  military (who reported directly to the emperor)
• When hard economic times hit Japan (caused by the
  Depression), the military installed a new
  government that was centered around the Emperor
  who the military would rule in the name of

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Goals for Japans Militarists

• Expand empire overseas
• Improve economy through imperialism
• Begin a Pacific Empire that included China
• BENEFITS OF THE EMPIRE ARE
• ?Could access much needed raw materials
• ?Could have an empire that included billions of
  people to trade with
• ?New empire would give living space for rising
  population

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Japan Invades Manchuria, 1931
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Japans invasions

• 1931 Japan invaded Manchuria (Northeastern
  China - rich in natural resources)
• League of Nations protested action, but did
  nothing to stop Japan
• Japan left League of Nations in 1933
• 1937 Japan invaded China (captured Beijing and
  Nanjing where thousands of civilians were
  killed) Rape of Nanjing

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Manchuria
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Mussolinis Discontent

• Mussolini saw the League of Nations do nothing to
  stop Japan
• Envious of Britain Frances Africa holdings
• Invasion of Ethiopia in 1935 the spears and
  swords of Ethiopia no match for tanks, guns, and
  planes of Italy
• League of Nations no action taken to stop Italy

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Germany Prepares

• 1935 Hitler announces that Germany will start
  to rearm their military
• 1936 Confident by lack of response, Hitler
  ordered troops to re-conquer the Rhineland
  (Buffer zone between Germany and France)

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German-Italian Alliance

• Germany and Italy form the Axis Powers in 1936
• Now two dictators with stated goals of
  expansion are good friends
• Japan soon joined the alliance as well

Mussolini and Hitler
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Spanish Civil War

• Gen. Francisco Franco (Fascist) revolted against
  the elected government in 1936
• Civil War lasted for three years
• With Italy and Germanys help Fascists won in
  Spain by 1939

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La Guernica
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Hitler Expands Empire

• 1938 Hitler and the Germans invaded Austria
  (most Austrians spoke German and welcomed
  becoming a part of Germany)
• ButHitler and the Germans were expanding and
  Versailles told them not to
• Britain and France do nothing

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The Sudetenland

• After taking Austria Hitler wanted more
• His next desire is the Sudetenland in
  Czechoslovakia
• Small area of Western Czech where many
  German-speakers lived
• The Czechs didnt want to give this area to
  Germany nor did France and Russia

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Appeasement at Munich

• The British step in to offer a peace and avoid
  war
• British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain meets
  with Hitler in Munich, Germany
• They agree to give Hitler the Sudetenland
• Hitler has to promise he is done seeking territory

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Appeasement The Munich Agreement, 1938
British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain
Now we have peace in our time! Herr Hitler is a
man we can do business with.
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Reactions to Munich

• Neville Chamberlain, the British Prime Minister
  who came up with the agreement, said that he had
  achieved peace in our time

• Winston Churchill, the future Prime Minister,
  said Britain and France had to choose between
  war and shame. They chose shame. They will get
  war, too.

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Hitler breaks his promise Germany Starts the War

• After being given Sudetenland Hitler takes the
  rest of Czechoslovakia
• Hitler signs a Non-Aggression Pact with Stalin
  and the Soviet Union (they agree to not make war
  on each other) now France and Britain have lost
  an ally in Stalin
• Immediately after Germany invades Poland
  (France Britain declare war on Germany) WWII
  officially begins

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Hitler breaks his promise Germany Starts the War

• After being given Sudetenland Hitler takes the
  rest of Czechoslovakia
• Hitler signs a Non-Aggression Pact with Stalin
  and the Soviet Union (they agree to not make war
  on each other) now France and Britain have lost
  an ally in Stalin
• Immediately after Germany invades Poland
  (France Britain declare war on Germany) WWII
  officially begins

The Non-Aggression Pact was publicly a peace
treaty, but in reality just a ploy by Hitler and
Stalin to divide up Eastern Europe