Rise of WWII: Totalitarian, Fascism

  • Totalitarianism: government with total, centralized control over all aspects of politics, society and culture

    • On the rise in 20th century

    • one-party system (all other parties illegal)

      • ex. Germany: Nazi Party

    • dictatorship/authoritarian

    • censorship and propaganda

      • questioning ideas were eliminated

    • conformity

    • secret police

  • All fascist governments are totalitarian. Not all totalitarian states are fascist

  • Fascism: the nation is placed above all else

    • On the rise in the 20th century

    • extreme nationalism and militarism

      • aggressive: purpose to carry out war

      • imperialistic and restoration

    • attempt unity by ethnic, racial, cultural attributes

      • what ideology was used by Hitler contributing to racial superiority ideas - Social Darwinism “science”

    • Freedoms and rights lost for the benefit of the nation

    • anti-democratic and anti-communist

    • dictatorship/authoritarian

    • racist *Social Darwinism

Hitler’s Nazi Party rise to power by German citizens’ fears in the 1920s and 1930s

  • Fear of communism from the wealthy but Hitler could eliminate communist uprising or ideologies

  • Fear of economic downfall from the Great Depression but Hitler can make a comeback

  • Depression of all sorts within German’s citizens and Hitler seems to be the only resolution

Leading to WWII: Aggression and Appeasement 1930s

  • Aggression: warlike act without just cause

    • Germany, Italy, Japan

    • mostly unstopped due to appeasement from other nations

  • Appeasement: giving in to aggression in order to avoid war

    • League of Nations, Britain, France

    • Pacifists

    • Not willing to wage war

  • US isolationism

    • 1920-1941

    • Focus on American issues and stay out of war

Aggression actions within the Axis powers

  • Hitler Nazi Germany

    • Violates Treaty of Versailles 1935

    • draft and rearms Germany

  • Mussolini’s Fascist Italy

    • invades Ethiopia 1935

      • Italian Empire

  • Tojo’s Imperial Japan

    • Invades Manchuria 1931 > Manchukuo

    • Invades China and “Rape of Nanking” 1937

  • Hitler’s Blitzkrieg: rapid and disperse movement that catches everyone else off guard

    • modern army and ariel combat

  • Hitler annexes Austria 1938

    • use of earlier new German army and fascist ideology

    • Britain and Germany sign Munich Pact 1938

      • agreement to avoid war *appeasement

        • Germany gets Czechoslovakia as long as Hitler doesn’t attempt to gain more land

        • proves that appeasement doesn’t work

    • Germany invades the rest of Czechoslovakia 1939

    • Germany invades Poland 1939

      • split 50/50 with Russia

      • agree to never fight against each other

      • this invasion began WWII

WWII 1939-1945

  • Axis Powers

    • Germany: Adolph Hitler

    • Italy: Benito Mussolini

    • Japan: General Hideki Tojo & Emperor Hirohito

  • Allied Powers

    • Britain: Winston Churchill

    • France: Charles de Gaulle

    • United States: Franklin Roosevelt and Harry Truman

    • USSR: Joseph Stalin