The Interwar World

HIST 1112 World History II
Dr. Romero

Casualties of World War I:
- Approximately 15-22 million fatalities directly related to the war, with a near even split between soldiers and civilians. Nearly all casualties occurred in Europe.
- The Influenza of 1918 (Spanish flu) resulted in another 17-50 million deaths. This pandemic exacerbated the hardships following the war.
- Millions of individuals were displaced, facing continued violence primarily in Central and Eastern Europe.

Service in World War I:
- Around 65 million military personnel served in some capacity during the war. Following the conflict, these veterans returned to civilian life.
- In Germany and Russia, veterans played a crucial role in postwar domestic unrest, both supporting and opposing the newly established governments.
- In the United States, veterans organized the American Legion to claim service bonuses. In 1932, the Bonus Army—composed mainly of World War I veterans—was forcibly disbanded by the U.S. government.

A letter reflecting veteran sentiments regarding the treatment by the U.S. government was articulated through impassioned rhetoric, addressing actions taken by President Hoover and expressing outrage at the treatment of the Bonus Army during its protest:
- Emphasized a perceived betrayal of freedoms and the legacy of sacrifice by veterans, highlighting the disconnect between elected officials and their constituents.
- Criticized ineffective governance and the complacency of citizens regarding their political involvement.

U.S. Economic Position Post-War:
- The United States emerged as the world’s leading creditor after World War I. Benefiting from its strong position in the global economy, it entered a decade of prosperity.
European Economic Recovery:
- Recovery was considerably slower in Europe. Countries such as the United Kingdom, France, and various other nations gradually transitioned to economic rebuilding.
- By 1929, both Russia and Germany had either reached or surpassed their pre-war levels of economic output.
Labor Movement:
- In both Europe and the U.S., there were periods marked by significant labor power; unions and strikes were prevalent as workers fought for better conditions and rights, which they felt entitled to due to contributions made during the war.

Factors Leading to the Red Scare in the U.S.:
- The labor movement's growth, significant waves of immigration, and the Russian Revolution contributed to a heightened fear of communist ideologies.
- Resulted in mass arrests and deportations of suspected communists, a tightening of immigration laws, and an increase in xenophobia within the U.S.
- Race Riots (1920-1921):
- These events were suppressed with extreme force, coinciding with the era characterized by Jim Crow laws, widespread lynchings, the Great Migration of African Americans, and a peak in the activities of the KKK.

Economic Devastation from the War:
- The warring powers had expended tens of billions of dollars due to the First World War and emerged in 1918 with about 8 million military deaths and 20 million wounded.
- Both agricultural and industrial lands in Western and Eastern Europe were left devastated post-war.
Government Response to Economic Problems:
- Different political ideologies emerged regarding the economy:
- Communists sought to create a command economy.
- Fascists proposed the integration of capitalists and workers to meet the needs of the state.
- Democratic capitalist powers favored a limited government role in the economy, prioritizing the private sector.
- Global economies were interconnected, meaning that an economic collapse in one part of the world had the potential to trigger a wider global crisis.

Causes of the Great Depression:
- Resulted from multiple interrelated factors that worsened throughout the 1920s:
- Overproduction in agricultural sectors.
- Increasing rates of consumer borrowing coupled with questionable lending practices.
- Speculation on a variety of goods, particularly in real estate and consumer appliances.
- The involvement of banks in risky investment strategies.
- In 1929, the stock market experienced a dramatic halt in growth, leading to a catastrophic plummet that forced investors to sell depreciated stocks at massive losses, aggravating the situation.
- As stocks collapsed, financial institutions began calling back loans. Many average consumers attempted to withdraw their deposits from banks, which had depleted resources due to loans extended to investors, culminating in a wave of bank collapses.

For a significant portion of the 1930s, conservative governments predominated in Europe, prioritizing order over relief or new policy initiatives.
The Hoover administration was marked by a lack of favor towards extensive government intervention in the economy:
- Implemented the Smoot-Hawley Tariff in 1930, which further deepened the economic depression.
In contrast, Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR) proposed the New Deal as a response:
- Positioned as an alternative to both socialism that was emerging on the left and Nazism manifesting on the right, alongside contrasting the inaction of unregulated capitalism.
- Goals included ambitious aims to reconcile democracy with individual liberty while focusing on economic recovery and development.

Discussion of varied global reactions to the Great Depression and the subsequent course of political and economic action taken by different nations is implied; however, specific details are not provided in the transcript content available.