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Lost Generation
Term is a nickname for the writers and artists of the 1920's and 1930's who used their art to express the anger of their generation who had suffered and died during the war.
Dada
A satirical and nonsensical art movement that began during World War I as a reaction against the horrors of the war.
Surrealism
An art movement of the 1920's and 1930's that tried to reflect the unconscious thoughts of the human mind.
Bauhaus
A modern architecture movement that developed in Germany during the 1920's and 1930's. It favors simple, angular design and were driven by the motto, "Form follows function."
Treaty of Versailles
The primary agreement that brought World War I to an end. The treaty forced defeated Germany to accept sole responsibility for starting the war, stripped Germany of 13% of its territory, limited the size of its military, and placed massive reparations on the country.
Weimar Germany
Name for the first German republic, established at the end of World War I in 1918 and lasting until the rise of Hitler's Third Reich in 1933.
Frei Korps
Paramilitary groups made up of angry German veterans who attacked communists and supporters of the Weimar Repubblic.
hyperinflation
Economic term for the rapid, excessive rise in prices. The worst one in history was in Weimar Germany during 1923.
Ruhr Crisis of 1923
When Germany was unable to make its reparation payments in 1923, French troops occupied the Ruhr, Germany's industrial heartland. The crisis led to a gradual easing of Allied restrictions.
Beer Hall Putsch (1923)
November 1923 failed attempt by Hitler and the Nazi Party to overthrow the Weimar government. Hitler was arrested an imprisoned after the coup failed.
Dawes Plan
In 1924 the US began to loan Weimar the money needed to stabilize its economy and still make its reparation payments to France and Britain. The Plan helped Weimar recover from the hyperinflation of the early 1920's.
Kellog - Briand Pact (1928)
An idealistic international agreement that pledged nations to never wage war as a means of resolving international disputes. It was quickly ignored.
Great Depression
A massive global economic collapse that triggered unemployment and the virtual end of international trade. It led to the rise of radical political movements, both fascist and communist, all over the world.
Indian National Congress (INC)
The oldest political party in India. The Congress Party was formed in 1885 and became the leading organization agitating for Indian rights and eventually independence.
Mahatma Gandhi
Famed Indian nationalist leader, he led the INC from 1920 until his assassination in 1948. He led a campaign of non-violence against British rule that resulted in independence in 1947.
Popular Front
Term for European governing coalitions that were made up of left-wing political parties, including socialist and even communist movements.
Old Bolsheviks
Term for the original early Bolsheviks who had fought against the tsarist government before and during the Revolution. They were close confidents of Lenin. Stalin targeted them for elimination because he viewed them as political rivals.
Show Trials
Term for the Soviet courts that were used to publically discredit well-known Bolsheviks who Stalin viewed as threats. The accused would frequently confess to being "enemies of the people."
Red Army
The military force that fought for the communists in the Russian Civil War and later the army of the Soviet Union.
gulags
A system of brutal Soviet concentration camps where political dissidents were sentenced to long terms of confinement. Millions perished in these camps.
collectivization of agriculture
The disastrous communist policy of seizing privately owned farms and forming massive, state-owned farms. Agricultural production fell dramatically following collectivization.
state farms
Term for large, state-owned farms formed by the collectivization of formerly privately owned farms. They proved to be huge failures and could not produce enough food to feed the nation.
kulaks
The kulaks were Russian peasants who were wealthy enough to own their own land and to hire farmworkers. They prospered under the NEP and were destroyed by Stalin.
Siberia
Geographic term for the massive region of Russia that is east of the Ural Mountains in Asia. It is noted for its size, savage beauty, natural resources, and bitter cold.
5-Year Plans
The term used by Soviet economic planners to describe their ambitious plans to grow every segment of the economy, especially manufacturing and agriculture. They were mostly failures.
Benito Mussolini
The Fascist dictator of Italy from 1922 - 1945. He established an authoritarian state that focused on nationalism and one-man rule.
Fascism
A political ideology that glorifies the nation, the people, the military, and is centered on the rule of a strong dictatorial individual.
Blackshirts
Term for the fascist paramilitary groups that battled anti-fascists in the streets of Italy. They were mainly angry young veterans.
March on Rome (1922)
The theatrical October 1922 event staged by Mussolini and the fascists that led to the King naming Mussolini as Prime Minister. It inspired Hitler's Beer Hall Putsch the following year.
Invasion of Ethiopia (1935)
In 1935 Mussolini attacked the independent Kingdom of Ethiopia in an attempt to avenge an Italian defeat in that nation in 1895 and to begin to build a new Italian empire.
National Socialism (Nazism)
A radical, racist political ideology that glorifies the nation, the race, the military, and is centered on the rule of a strong dictatorial individual. It is similar to fascism, but adds racism to its beliefs.
Paul von Hindenburg
A retired general who served as the President of the Weimar Republic. He appointed Hitler as Chancellor in 1933 which led to the eventual rise of the Third Reich.
Adolf Hitler
The Nazi dictator of Germany from 1933 - 1945. He established an authoritarian state that focused on nationalism, aggressive foreign policy, anti-Semitism, and one-man rule.
Enabling Act
A law passed by the Reichstag (parliament) in 1933 that granted Hitler dictatorial powers.
Brownshirts
Term for the nazi paramilitary groups that battled anti-nazis in the streets of Germany. They were mainly angry young veterans.
Mein Kampf
A book, written by Hitler while in prison for the Beer Hall Putsch, it explains the beliefs and goals of the Nazi Party.
Remilitarization of the Rhineland (1935)
Hitler's first challenge to the terms of the Versailles Treaty, he ordered German troops to cross into the region of the Rhineland. The failure of France or Britain to oppose the action inspired Hitler's further aggressions.
Anschluss
German term for the unification of Germany and Austria in 1938, another violation of the Versailles Treaty.
Czechoslovakia
One of the new nations formed at the end of World War I from territory of the old Austria-Hungary. It was the most stable and successful of the new states, but it had a large German minority.
Czechoslovakian Crisis (1938)
A crisis that developed when Germany demanded Czechoslovakia surrender the region of the Sudetenland or risk a war.
successor states
Term for all the new nations that were created from Russian and Austro-Hungarian territory at the end of World War I.
Sudentenland
A mountainous region of Czechoslovakia that was home to about 3,000,000 ethnic Germans. It was the focal point of a crisis that nearly led to war in 1938.
Munich Pact
A controversial 1938 agreement that became the symbol of appeasement, or the policy of giving in to a dictator's demands. Hitler was given the Sudetenland.
Neville Chamberlain
The British Prime Minister who became the face of the failed policy of appeasement. Hitler's betrayal of the Munich Pact destroyed his reputation.
appeasement
The discredited policy of giving in to the threats of Mussolini and Hitler in the 1930's in hopes of preventing another war.
Nuremburg Laws
Anti-Semitic laws passed by the Nazi government that began the persecution of the German Jewish minority.
Kristalnacht
This violent attack on German Jews marked an escalation in the persecution that would eventually result in the genocide.
Spanish Civil War (1936 - 1939)
A brutal ideological civil war that pitted a leftist government against a fascist supported opposition. Germany and Italy sent extensive assistance to the fascist side. The fascists won the war.
General Francisco Franco
A Spanish military figure who became the leader of the fascist side during the Spanish Civil War. After winning the war, he went on to rule Spain until his death in 1975.
Republicans (aka: Loyalists)
The leftist, pro-government side in the Spanish Civil War. They were supported by the Soviet Union and anti-fascists from all over the world.
Nationalists
The fascist, anti-government side in the Spanish Civil War. They were led by Franco and received extensive support from Germany and Italy.
defensive alliance
A military alliance where each partner is pledged to defend every other member should any be attacked by another nation.
triple alliance
A Bismarck forged military defensive alliance between Germany, Italy, and Austria-Hungary. It lasted until the start of World War I in 1914.
Triple Entente
A military defensive alliance formed by France, Russia, and Britain to counter-balance the Triple Alliance of Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy.
Alsace - Lorraine
An historic region laying between France and Germany. The population is ethnically German, but had been under French control for centuries. It was fought over for decades.
Bosnia - Herzegovina
A region in the Balkan Peninsula that is populated by South Slavs (Bosnians, Serbs, and Croats). Austria-Hungary controlled the region, but Serbia was determined to gain control of the area.
nationalism
An emotional political philosophy that glorifies the nation as the most fundamental human bond that unites the people of a specific background to the land where they live.
Archduke Francis-Ferdinand
The heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary, his June 1914 assassination by Serbian nationalists triggered the outbreak of World War I.
"blank check"
A slang phrase that means to give someone the power to do anything they want. It comes from a banking term for presenting someone with a signed check that they can make out for any amount.
ultimatum
A final demand or list of demands with the threat of further action if it is rejected.
mobilize
The action of a government or country to call up military forces to prepare for active service. It is one step short of war.
von Schlieffen Plan
A German battle plan designed to win a war against both France and Russia. It called for a quick attack and victory over France while Russia was still mobilizing. It failed in World War I.
two-front war
A conflict fought in two distinctively separate regions forcing a combatant to divide their forces.
Allies
One side of combatants in World War I. The major participants were Britain, France, and Russia. Later, dozens of nations joined them.
Central Powers
One side of combatants in World War I. They included Germany, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire, and Bulgaria.
poison gas
A devastating weapon used by both sides in World War I in hopes of breaking the stalemate on the Western Front. Mustard Gas and Chlorine Gas were the most common.
U-Boat
The German term for a submarine. It was first used on a large scale in World War I.
HMS Lusitania
A British luxury ocean liner that was sunk by a German submarine off the coast of Ireland in May 1915. Over 1,100 civilians died in the tragedy, including over 120 Americans.
reconnaissance
The action of trying to observe the movements and actions of an enemy.
dogfight
The nickname for combat between two or more airplanes.
genocide
The act of trying to kill a specific group or race of people.
Armenian Genocide (1915 - 1917)
Considered the first mass murder of the 20th century, over 1,500,000 Armenian Christians were killed by the actions of the Ottoman Empire.
total war
Term for a conflict that impacts every part of a combatant's economy, resources, and population.
"Canary Girls"
A British nickname for the young women who worked in the munitions industry producing the bombs needed at the front. Their skin was turned yellow by exposure to dangerous levels of sulfur.
Easter Rebellion
A large uprising by Irish nationalists seeking the end of British rule. It took place during Easter Week in 1916. The British crushed the uprising and executed the leaders of the revolt, but promised to begin negotiations to create a free Ireland after the end of the war.
unrestricted submarine war
German government policy of using its U-Boats to sink ANY vessel, Allied or neutral, conducting trade with Britain. The policy helped push the US into the war against Germany.
Zimmerman Telegram
A German government message sent to Mexico encouraging that nation to attack the US. The British intercepted the telegram and turned it over to the US.
President Woodrow Wilson
Leader of the US during World War I. He kept the nation out of the war until 1917.
14 Points
A 14-point plan created by President Wilson as a pathway to bring the war to an end. Among the points were arms limitations, borders drawn along ethnic lines, an end to secret treaties, the formation of a League of Nations, and the return of Alsace-Lorraine to France.
League of Nations
An international organization created to be a way for nations to peacefully resolve disputes and avoid future conflicts.
armistice
A temporary truce between warring combatants while a treaty is negotiated.
Big Four
Nickname for the four major Allied nations (Britain, France, Italy, and the US) and their leaders (PM Lloyd-George, Premier Clemenceau, PM Orlando, and President Wilson).
reparations
Term for money paid by the defeated to the victors following a war.
Russian Revolution of 1917
One of the most important political events in history, it began with the overthrow of the old tsarist Romanov monarchy and to the eventual establishment of the first communist government. There were actually two separate uprisings, one in March and a second in November.
Provisional Government
The new government established after the overthrow of Tsar Nicholas II in March 1917. It was led by Prince Lvov and Alexander Kerensky. It lost the support of the public because it continued to fight in World War I.
Duma
The parliament of Russia
Bolshevik
An early name of the communist movement in Russia. They led a long underground fight to bring down the tsarist monarchy and eventually established the world's first communist state, the Soviet Union.
Vladimir Lenin
The leader of the Bolshevik revolutionaries and the first ruler of the new Soviet Union.
Petrograd
The wartime name of the Russian city of St. Petersburg.
Treaty of Brest-Litovsk
A harsh 1918 peace treaty negotiated by the new Soviet government and the Central Powers. The Soviets were forced to surrender huge amounts of territory to Germany and Austria-Hungary. It was undone by Germany's defeat.
Russian Civil War
A brutal, destructive civil war fought between communists and anti-communists in Russia. It left much of the country in ruins. The communists won.
Reds
A nickname for supporters of the communists.
Whites
A nickname for opponents of the communists.
Red Army
The military force that fought for the communists in the Russian Civil War and later the army of the Soviet Union.
Leon Trotsky
An early Bolshevik and close aide to Lenin, he organized the Red Army. He later lost a power struggle with Stalin and was forced into exile. Stalin had him assassinated in 1940.
New Economic Policy (NEP)
Lenin introduced a radical economic reform designed to help the nation recover from the destruction of World War I and the Russian Civil War that marked a complete break with traditional communist economics.
kulaks
Russian peasants who were wealthy enough to own their own land and to hire farmworkers. They prospered under the NEP and were destroyed by Stalin.
Josef Stalin
An early Bolshevik colleague of Lenin and Trotsky, he emerged as a key rival of Trotsky. He won the struggle and ultimately ruled the Soviet Union from 1926 - 1953.
totalitarian
A governmental system in which the state exercises total control over every aspect of their citizens' lives. The Soviet Union under Stalin was one of the most in history.
gulags
A system of brutal Soviet concentration camps where political dissidents were sentenced to long terms of confinement. Millions perished in these camps.
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