WHG Semestral

World History & Geo. 

Semestral Exam No. 3 

  1. Joseph Stalin 

    1. Rise to power 

  • Lenin’s death in 1924 → Stalin used his position as General Secretary of the Communist Party to build alliances and place loyal supporters in key positions.

  • Eliminates his rivals → Trotsky, Bukharin, Zinoviev, and Kamenev.

  1. Ideology (Stalinism)

  • Rooted on Marxism-Leninism → emphasized rapid industrialization through Five-Year Plans.

  • Peasants → forced into collective farms which led to massive resistance, repression, and widespread famine (example: Holodomor in Ukraine, 1932–1933).

  • Stalin → portrayed as an heroic leader through propaganda, art, and education.

  1. Elimination and opposition 

  • NKVD (secret police) → used to eliminate opposition and instill fear.

  • The Great Purge (1936–1938) → targeted party members, military officers, intellectuals; millions were executed or sent to Gulags.

  1. Foreign and domestic policies

  • Stalin

    • Expanded Soviet influence and used alliances (like the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact) only when they benefited Soviet security.

    • Pushed forced collectivization to turn the USSR into a major power, causing massive social and economic stress.

  1. World War II 

    1. The causes of WWII

  • Treaty of Versailles → Harsh reparations, territorial losses, and war guilt clause created deep resentment in Germany.

  • The Great Depression (1929) → destabilized democracies, fueled extremism, and strengthened fascist regimes.

  • Failure of the League of Nations → Inability to prevent aggression in Manchuria (1931) and Ethiopia (1935).

  • German expansionism

    • Remilitarization of the Rhineland (1936).

    • Annexation of Austria - Anschluss (1938).

    • Munich Agreement (1938) and the occupation of the Sudetenland.

    • Invasion of Czechoslovakia (March 1939).

  • Germany and the USSR agreed to divide Poland and not attack each other.

  1. Major incidents, progression of WWII 

  • 1939

    • Invasion of Poland: Blitzkrieg; Germany + USSR divide Poland.

  • 1940

    • Fall of France: Denmark, Norway, Belgium, Netherlands, then France collapses.

    • Dunkirk evacuation.

    • Battle of Britain: First major air battle; Germany fails to defeat RAF.

  • 1941

    • Operation Barbarossa: Germany invades USSR.

    • Pearl Harbor (Dec 7): Japan attacks U.S. → U.S. enters war.

  • 1942

  • Battle of Midway (Pacific): U.S. halts Japanese expansion.

  • El Alamein: Allies stop Germany in North Africa.

  • 1942–43

  • Battle of Stalingrad: Turning point on Eastern Front; Germany begins retreat.

  • 1943

  • Allied invasion of Italy: Mussolini removed; Italy surrenders.

  • 1944

  • D-Day (June 6): Normandy landings; liberation of France starts.

  • 1945

  • Fall of Berlin: Hitler dies; Germany surrenders (V-E Day, May 8).

  • Atomic bombs on Hiroshima & Nagasaki (Aug 6 & 9).

  • Japan surrenders (V-J Day, Aug 15).

  1. Causes: Hitler’s aims, Hiter’s actions, appeasement, the short term causes 

  • Hitler’s aims

    • Get rid of the Treaty of Versailles rules (stop paying money and build up Germany’s army again).

    • Bring all German-speaking people into one country.

    • Take land in the east (especially in Poland and the USSR) to give Germans more space.

    • Fight and stop communism.

    • Build a state based on their idea of a “pure” Aryan population.

  • Hitler’s actions (1933-1939)

    • 1933: Germany quits the League of Nations.

    • 1935: Hitler builds up the army again and brings back conscription, breaking Versailles.

    • 1936: Sends troops into the Rhineland; Britain and France don’t react.

    • 1938: Joins Austria with Germany (Anschluss).

    • 1938: Demands the Sudetenland; Munich Agreement gives it to him.

    • 1939 (March): Takes all of Czechoslovakia, showing he ignores his promises.

    • 1939 (Sept 1): Invades Poland, starting World War II.

  • Appeasement

    • Britain and France used a policy called appeasement, trying to avoid conflict.

    • They thought giving Hitler what he wanted would stop another war.

    • They were scared of repeating WWI and were still weak economically.

    • Munich Agreement (1938): they let Hitler take the Sudetenland.

    • This made Hitler feel bold and sure the Allies wouldn’t stop him.

    • Nowadays some say appeasement gave Britain time to prepare; others say it made everything worse.

  1. In what ways was WWII a total war? 

  • Whole economies got mobilized:

    • Factories switched to weapons, food was rationed, and every country pumped all resources into the war effort.

  • Civilians were fully involved:

    • People worked in industry, organized drives, faced bombings, and governments controlled daily life to keep the war machine running.

  • Global scale + every front active:

    • Land, sea, air, science, propaganda, and intelligence. Every tool a nation had was used to win.

  1. The end of war and its impact and consequences 

  • End of War: 

    • Europe: 

      • Allies from West, Soviets from East → Berlin falls. 

      • May 8, 1945: V-E Day (Germany surrenders). 

    • Asia: 

      • U.S. drops atomic bombs in Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

      • August 15, 1945: V-J Day (Japan surrenders). 

  • Impact and consequences: 

    • 80 million deaths.

    • Cities in ruins.

    • Millions displaced.

    • Nuremberg Trials.

    • Creation of the United Nations → 1945.

    • Beginning of the Cold War (USA & URSS).

    • Decolonization accelerates.

    • Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948). 

  1. Repartition of Germany 

  • Germany → split into four occupation zones controlled by the U.S., U.K., France, and the USSR.

  • Rising tensions led the three western zones to unite as West Germany, while the Soviet zone became East Germany.

  • Berlin → divided into four sectors, becoming one of the main flashpoints of the Cold War.