Unit 7 WHAP Vocab (LHS)

Mexican Revolution (1910-1920)

A conflict fueled by opposition to economic inequality and dictatorship under Porfirio Díaz, leading to land reforms and political change.

Emiliano Zapata

A revolutionary leader in Mexico who fought for land redistribution through the Plan of Ayala and led peasant forces during the revolution.

Francisco "Pancho" Villa

A key Mexican revolutionary who led armed forces in northern Mexico, challenging government forces and advocating for social reforms. He also conducted raids into the U.S., prompting a failed military expedition led by General John J. Pershing to capture him.

Balfour Declaration (1917)

A statement by the British government expressing support for a Jewish homeland in Palestine, contributing to tensions in the region.

Bolsheviks

A radical socialist group in Russia led by Vladimir Lenin that seized power in the 1917 October Revolution, establishing a communist government.

Vladimir Lenin

Leader of the Bolsheviks and first head of the Soviet Union, implementing policies such as the New Economic Policy (NEP).

Sun Yat-sen

A Chinese nationalist leader who sought to modernize China and overthrow the Qing Dynasty, advocating for democracy, nationalism, and livelihood.

Militarism

The policy of aggressively building up armed forces and prioritizing military power, contributing to tensions before WWI.

Zimmerman Telegram

A secret German message to Mexico proposing an alliance against the U.S. during WWI, helping draw the U.S. into the war.

Triple Alliance (Central Powers)

A pre-WWI alliance between Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy (though Italy later switched sides).

Triple Entente (Allied Powers)

A pre-WWI alliance between Britain, France, and Russia, later including the U.S. and others.

Trench Warfare

A form of warfare characterized by soldiers fighting from deep trenches, leading to stalemates, particularly on the Western Front in WWI.

U-boat

A German submarine used in unrestricted warfare during WWI, sinking ships such as the Lusitania and escalating tensions.

Total War

A war strategy that mobilizes all aspects of society, including economies, industries, and civilian populations, to support the war effort. In World War I and World War II, this included the extensive use of colonial resources, labor, and soldiers to aid European powers in their conflicts.

Woodrow Wilson

U.S. president during WWI who proposed the Fourteen Points and advocated for the League of Nations.

Fourteen Points

Wilson's post-war plan emphasizing self-determination, open diplomacy, and peace, though only some elements were adopted.

League of Nations

An international organization founded after WWI to maintain peace, though it was weakened by the absence of the U.S. and other powers. Ultimately, this international body was unable to stop WWII.

Mandate System

A system established by the League of Nations after WWI to administer former territories of the Ottoman Empire and Germany. These territories were assigned to victorious Allied powers, primarily Britain and France, under the guise of preparing them for self-governance, though in practice they acted as colonies. Ex: British control over Palestine/Iraq and French control over Syria/Lebanon.

Treaty of Versailles (1919)

Officially ended WWI and imposed harsh conditions on Germany. It included the War Guilt Clause, which placed full responsibility for the war on Germany, forcing them to pay reparations. Germany also lost significant territories, including Alsace-Lorraine to France and all overseas colonies. Military restrictions were imposed, limiting the German army to 100,000 troops, banning conscription, and prohibiting tanks, submarines, and an air force. These provisions contributed to widespread anger in Germany and created conditions that led to the rise of Adolf Hitler and World War II.

Reparations

Payments and penalties imposed on Germany after WWI to compensate for war damages, contributing to economic hardship.

Weimar Republic

Germany's democratic government after WWI, struggling with economic crises and political instability before Hitler's rise.

Keynesian Economics

developed by John Maynard Keynes, advocates for government intervention to stimulate demand during economic recessions. Keynes believed that during downturns, the government should increase public spending and lower taxes to boost employment and economic growth. This approach challenges classical economics, which argued that markets should regulate themselves without intervention (laissez faire).

Great Depression

A global economic downturn that began in 1929 with the stock market crash in the US and lasted throughout the 1930s. It led to widespread unemployment, poverty, and a decline in industrial production across many countries. The crisis prompted governments to adopt interventionist policies, such as Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal, to stabilize economies and provide relief to struggling citizens.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt

U.S. president during the Great Depression and WWII, known for implementing the New Deal to address economic hardships.

New Deal

A series of programs implemented by FDR in response to the Great Depression, was influenced by Keynesian economics, which advocated for government intervention to manage economic cycles. The programs, such as public works projects and financial reforms, used government resources to boost the economy and reduce unemployment.

New Economic Policy (NEP)

Lenin's economic policy that allowed limited capitalist reforms to stabilize the Soviet economy post-revolution.

Five-Year Plans

A series of centralized economic goals set by Joseph Stalin in the USSR, starting in 1928, aimed at rapidly industrializing the country and transforming its economy from agrarian to industrial. The plans focused on increasing heavy industry, such as steel and coal production, while collectivizing agriculture to boost food production for the growing urban workforce. Effective at industrializing but large cost of life.

Collectivization

A Soviet policy of merging small farms into state-controlled enterprises, leading to resistance and famines.

Joseph Stalin

Soviet leader who ruled through totalitarian policies, industrialization, and purges, consolidating power after Lenin's death from 1924-1953.

Benito Mussolini

Italian fascist leader who established a totalitarian state, promoting nationalism and military expansion.

Fascism

A political ideology emphasizing authoritarian rule, nationalism, and state control, rejecting democracy and individual rights.

Totalitarianism

A form of government where the state controls all aspects of life, including economy, culture, and political opposition.

Adolf Hitler

Leader of Nazi Germany, promoting fascism, anti-Semitism, and military expansion, leading to WWII.

Nazis

The National Socialist German Workers' Party, led by Hitler, promoting fascist policies and responsible for the Holocaust.

Neville Chamberlain

British Prime Minister known for his policy of appeasement toward Nazi Germany before WWII.

Appeasement

A policy of conceding to aggressive demands to avoid conflict, exemplified by Britain and France allowing Hitler to annex Czechoslovakia.

Blitzkrieg

"Lightning war," a German military strategy using fast-moving attacks to overwhelm opponents.

Winston Churchill

British Prime Minister during WWII who led Britain through the war with strong resistance against Nazi Germany. He is best known for his ability to rally the British people & refusal to consider defeat.

Stalingrad

A major WWII battle where Soviet forces defeated the German army, marking a turning point in the Eastern Front.

Pearl Harbor

A surprise Japanese attack on the U.S. naval base in December 1941, leading the U.S. to enter WWII. This is famously referred to as "a day which will live in infamy"

Battle of Midway

A pivotal Pacific battle in which the U.S. crippled Japan's navy, shifting momentum in the Pacific Theater.

Hiroshima & Nagasaki

Japanese cities targeted by U.S. atomic bombs, leading to Japan's surrender and the end of WWII by August 1945

Genocide

The systematic extermination of a particular ethnic, religious, or cultural group. Examples include Holodomor, Armenian, & Holocaust)

Auschwitz

The largest Nazi concentration and extermination camp, where over a million people, primarily Jews, were killed.

Holocaust

The genocide of six million Jews and millions of others by Nazi Germany during WWII.