World Cultures Quartely 4 2023

Pacifism

Opposition to all war.

Kellogg-Briand Pact

An international agreement, signed by almost every nation in 1928, to stop using war as a method of national policy.

Avenging of Treaty of Versailles

Germany got the harsh end of the treaty, and many of their actions were spurred to avenge it.

Soviet Union

Stalin takes charge after Lenin dies, created the 5-Year-Plan to improve economy, communist government, used collectivization for agriculture, control through terror, totalitarian ruler, censorship, russified all republics in the USSR, supported atheism, women had greater equality, Stalin feared Germany and formed alliance with France and Britain, but other countries rejected since they questioned Stalin’s motive; decides to ally with Germany instead.

Joseph Stalin

Leader of Soviet Union, totalitarian ruler, collectivization, created 5-Year-Plan, ruled through terror, one of “The Big Three”.

Communism

Soviet Union practiced this form of government, controlling every aspect of people’s lives, many people feared communism.

5-Year-Plan

Created by Stalin to build heavy industry, improve transportation, and increase agricultural output by using collectives.

Collectivization

Use of collectives for agricultural purposes; large farm land owned and operated by peasants as a group, part of Stalin’s 5-Year-Plan.

Kulaks

Wealthy farmers targeted by the government when people were resisting collectivization.

Totalitarian Government

Relating to a system of government that is centralized and dictatorial and requires complete subservience to the state, Italy and USSR had one.

Comintern

Formed by Lenin, AKA Communist International, used to encourage worldwide revolution, made people suspicious of USSR.

Cult of Personality

Stalin, Mussolini, and Hitler all had this, which drew people to them for seemingly no reason.

Fascism

Any centralized, authoritarian government system that is not communist, whose policies glorify the state over the individual and are destructive to basic human rights, Italy had a fascist leader, Mussolini.

Italy

Fascist government with Mussolini, chaos due to poor economy and not many job opportunities, control by terror, used Black Shirts (party militants) to destroy resistance or anything they deemed unloyal to the country, March on Rome where Fascists stormed the capital which gave Mussolini power, totalitarian state, Italy invades Ethiopia as imperialism grows.

Benito Mussolini

Leader of fascist Italy, overtook Ethiopia, organized Black Shirts party militants to destroy resistance against him, created totalitarian state.

Rise to Power - Mussolini

Mussolini got power by King Victor Emmanuel III giving him power due to the fear of rising fascist protest in the March on Rome.

Germany

German people blamed Weimar Republic for the Versailles Treaty, whom is return looked for scapegoats (helped build later racism), faced economic hardship and hyperinflation, Hitler voted into power due to his promises of more jobs, avenging the Treaty of Versailles, and ending reparations, people feared communism, so many turned to Hitler because they thought he could control him, Hitler became dictator, Hitler created Third Reich.

Economic Problems - Germany

Falling behind in reparation payments, government printed more money to pay people at Ruhr Valley mine, which caused hyperinflation.

Hyperinflation

An extremely rapid and sharp rise in prices that causes money to lose value.

Reparations

Payments that countries have to make after war.

Adolf Hitler

Leader of Germany during WWII, wrote Mein Kampf displaying his racist ideology, voted into office because he had promising ideas and people thought he could control him, unlike communist leaders.

Mein Kampf

Book written by Hitler displaying his racist ideology.

Rise to Power - Hitler

Built a cult of personality, used speeches to convince people of his values, created a program that appealed to many people, Nazis and communists won more seats in the Reichstag, lower house of the legislature, and people turned to Hitler because they thought they could control him, instead of a communist government.

Gestapo

Hitler’s secret police force that rooted out opposition.

Appeasement

Many nations gave in to demands in order to prevent conflict.

Neville Chamberlain

British prime minister, signed Munich Pact, an appeasement that gave Germany Sudetenland, in favor of appeasement.

Munich Conference

September 1938, British and French leaders met to discuss Germany’s want for Sudetenland, and chose appeasement to avoid conflict with Germany.

Spain

Had a civil war that would be the outline of WWII.

Francisco Franco

A Spanish military leader that came to power during the Spanish Civil War, dictator of Spain from 1939 to 1973.

Manchuria

Japan invaded Manchuria due to imperialistic wants.

Nazi-Soviet Non-Agression Pact

Agreement between Germany and Soviet Union in 1939 in which the nations promised not to fight each other and divide up land in Eastern Europe.

Axis Powers

Germany, Italy, Japan.

Allies

Britain, US, Soviet Union, France.

Invasion of Poland

September 1 1939, Germany invades Poland, which leads Britain and France to declare war on Germany since they swore to protect Poland.

Invasion and Conquest of France

German forces surprise British and France troops by invading through a forest in Belgium, caused British troops to have to leap into boats in Dunkirk, France surrenders, British try to free France during D-Day.

Anti-Semitism

Racist idea that Hitler had, main cause of Holocaust.

Final Solution

Made up by Germany, plan to exterminate all European Jewish people.

Holocaust

Systematic genocide of about six million European Jewish people planned by Germany.

Heinrich Himmler

Person in charge of concentration camps and Holocaust.

Victims of the Holocaust

\~ 6 million Jewish people, 220,000 Roma, 1.9 million Non-Jewish Poles, 3.3 million Soviet POWs, 200,000 disabled people.

Pearl Harbor - December 7, 1941

Surprise attack ordered by General Tojo, Japanese airplanes bombed an American fleet in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, in response, US declares war on Japan.

Battle of El Alamein

Battle in North Africa in November 1942, British forces led by General Bernard Montgomery fought Rommel, halting the advance, Allies drove Axis back across Libya into Tunisia.

Battle of Coral Sea

Japan suffered major setbacks, five days in May 1942, ships battled without seeing each other, planes launched from aircraft carriers (ships that transport planes), Allies prevented Japan from seizing important islands.

Dwight D. Eisenhower

Took command of a joint British and American force in Morocco and Algeria, advanced into Tunisia from the west and the Allies destroyed Rommel’s army.

Battle of the Bulge

December 1944, Germany’s last major attack, occurred after freeing France and Ally armies marching into Belgium.

Manhattan Project

Code name for the project to build the first atomic bomb in WWII, tested in New Mexico by Allied scientists.

Hiroshima

City in Japan where the first atomic bomb was dropped in August 1945 by an American plane.

Nagasaki

A coastal city in southern Japan on the island of Kyushu, where the second atomic bomb was dropped in August 1945 by the US.

Hideki Tojo

Extreme militarist, became Japan prime minister in 1941, wanted to seize more lands in the Pacific and Asia, directly responsible for the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Harry Truman

Became president of US after FDR, decided to attack Japan.

V-E Day

Victory in Europe Day, May 8 1945, the day the Allies won WWII in Europe due to German surrender.

V-J Day

Victory in Japan Day

Winston Churchill

Opposed appeasement, judged the Munich Pact, part of “The Big Three”.

United Nations

An international organization formed in 1945 at the end of WWII, permanent members are US, China, Britain, Russia, France, place to resolve conflict between countries.

Total War

When countries put all effort and resources into the war effort.

Propaganda

Media trying to convince someone to do or support something, used to persuade people.