World History Practices: WWI to WWII

Vocabulary and key identification flashcards covering World War One, the Russian Revolution, Nationalism in China and India, the Interwar Years, and World War Two based on lecture notes.

Kaiser Wilhelm II

The militaristic Emperor of Germany who led the nation into WWI.

Franz Ferdinand

Archduke of Austria-Hungary whose assassination in Sarajevo acted as the immediate spark for the war.

Woodrow Wilson

US President who proposed the Fourteen Points and advocated for the creation of the League of Nations.

Balkans/Balkan Peninsula

A region in Southeast Europe known as the "powder keg" due to intense ethnic nationalism and political instability.

Western Front

A deadlocked battle zone in northern France characterized by stationary trench warfare.

Eastern Front

A more mobile battlefield along the German and Russian border.

Militarism

The policy of glorifying military power and maintaining a large standing army always ready for war.

Triple Alliance / Central Powers

Originally Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy; later included the Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria.

Triple Entente / Allies

Originally Britain, France, and Russia; later joined by Italy, Japan, and the United States.

Schlieffen Plan

Germany's strategy to quickly defeat France in the west before rushing east to fight Russia.

Trench Warfare

Combat where soldiers fight from deep ditches; resulted in stalemates and horrific living conditions.

Unrestricted Submarine Warfare

German policy of sinking any ship (including neutral ones) in British waters without warning.

Total War

A conflict where nations devote all available resources—human and material—to the war effort.

Propaganda

One-sided information designed to persuade or keep up morale for the war.

M.A.I.N. Causes

The long-term causes of World War One: Militarism, Alliances, Imperialism, and Nationalism.

Zimmermann Telegram

One of the specific events that led to the US entering World War One.

Sinking of the Lusitania

A key event that contributed to the United States joining the conflict in WWI.

Treaty of Versailles

The post-WWI agreement that focused on punishing Germany with "war guilt," massive reparations, and loss of territory.

Czar Nicholas II

The last Russian Czar; he resisted reform and was forced to abdicate during the revolution.

Vladimir Lenin

Leader of the radical Bolsheviks who seized power to establish a communist state.

Leon Trotsky

Revolutionary who brilliantly organized the Red Army during the civil war.

Joseph Stalin

Ruthless successor to Lenin who transformed the USSR into a totalitarian state.

Bloody Sunday

A 1905 massacre where czarist troops fired on peaceful protesters, destroying public faith in the Czar.

Duma

Russia's first parliament, which Nicholas II created but later stripped of power.

Soviets

Local councils of workers, peasants, and soldiers that often had more influence than the government.

Red Army vs. White Army

A bloody civil war from 1918 to 1921 between the Bolsheviks (Red) and pro-Czarist/anti-communist forces (White).

Sun Yat-sen

Known as the father of modern China; he overthrew the Qing Dynasty in 1911.

Mao Zedong

Leader of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) who focused on mobilizing rural peasants.

Chiang Kai-shek

Nationalist leader (Kuomintang) who fought Mao for control of China.

Mohandas K. Gandhi

Leader of India's independence movement; pioneered non-violent resistance.

May 4th Movement

A 1919 protest against foreign imperialism and the Treaty of Versailles.

Long March

A 6,000-mile retreat by Mao's communists to escape Nationalist forces.

Civil Disobedience

Deliberate, public refusal to obey an unjust law through non-violent means.

Salt March

Gandhi's 1930 protest against the British salt tax, where followers walked 240 miles to the sea.

Benito Mussolini

Fascist dictator of Italy; he used terror and extreme nationalism to rule.

Adolf Hitler

Totalitarian leader of Nazi Germany who came to power promising to restore national pride.

Great Depression

A global economic collapse triggered by the 1929 US stock market crash.

Fascism

A militant political movement that emphasizes absolute loyalty to a dictator and extreme nationalism.

Nazism

The German brand of fascism based on racial supremacy and antisemitism.

Five-Year Plan

Stalin's aggressive goals to rapidly industrialize the Soviet economy.

Appeasement

The policy of giving in to an aggressor (like Hitler) to avoid war.

Great Purge

A period under Stalin's regime where millions were executed or sent to Gulags.

Winston Churchill

British Prime Minister who rallied the nation during the Battle of Britain.

Harry S. Truman

US President who authorized the atomic bombings of Japan to end the war.

Hiroshima & Nagasaki

Japanese industrial cities destroyed by atomic bombs in August 1945.

Normandy

Site of the D-Day amphibious landings that opened the Western Front.

Blitzkrieg

"Lightning war"; German strategy using fast tanks and air support to overwhelm enemies.

Holocaust

The systematic, state-sponsored genocide of six million Jews.

Final Solution

The Nazi plan for the physical annihilation of the entire Jewish population in Europe.

Island Hopping

The US strategy of seizing strategic islands to build airfields closer to Japan.

Nuremberg Trials

Post-war courts that prosecuted Nazi leaders for "crimes against humanity".

Battle of Britain

A turning point battle that prevented a German invasion of the UK.

Stalingrad

A crushing defeat for Germany on the Eastern Front that forced a retreat.

Midway

A pivotal battle that broke Japanese naval dominance in the Pacific.

D-Day

The massive Allied invasion to liberate occupied Europe.