20th Century Totalitarianism

Communism, Militarism,Fascism, and Nazism

The Stock Market Crash

• In 1929, the Wall Street stock market crash ushered in a worldwide financial crisis.

The Great Depression

• Nation after nation fell victim to:• Industrial decline• Bank failures• Deflated prices and profits• Commercial stagnation

Personal Hardship

• People the world over suffered from:• Lowered standards of living• Unemployment• Hunger• Fear of the

future

Policies of Self-Sufficiency

• In desperation, governments sought economic recovery by adopting restrictive policies of self-sufficiency:• High tariffs• Import quotas• Barter agreements

Planned Economies

• Governments experimented with new plans for internal economies.

Great Britain

• Great Britain adopted far-reaching measures in the development of a planned national economy.

The New Deal

• The United States launched the New Deal with its objectives of:• Relief• Recovery• Reform

FDR’s 1st Inaugural Address• “So first of all let me

assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is . . . fear itself. . . nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance.”

The Rise of Dictators

• Elsewhere, the hardships of the depression formed a dismal backdrop on a political stage where dictators seized the leading roles.• Extremist groups took advantage of widespread

discontent to rise to power.

• They preached that bold actions and strong leaders were necessary to restore prosperity.

Joseph Stalin• Established a Communist

dictatorship in Russia.• Advocated government

ownership of property and capital.

• Set up three Five-Year Plans for:• Industrialization• Collectivization of agriculture• Restricted manufacture of consumer

goods

• Sent those who opposed him to firing squads or labor camps.

Stalin on the Worker’s Paradise

• "If there had been a crisis in our country, if there had been unemployment - the scourge of the working class, if there had been abject poverty, if output hadn't gone up, if our workers and peasants didn't have such a good government who looked after them, who cared about them - in a word, if you lived badly, joylessly - we would not have heroes and heroines of socialism, I can assure you."

Emperor Hirohito• Influenced by Japanese militarists, was

committed to extension of Japan's borders by military force.

• Pursued these major foreign policy objectives: • To resist Russian pressure on Japan's empire from

the north. • To undertake the military conquest of the whole of

China. • To seize the wealth and raw materials available in

the Southeast Asian colonies of Britain, France, and Holland.

Hirohito’s Surrender Speech

• To our good and loyal subjects:  After pondering deeply the general trends of the world and the actual conditions obtaining in our empire today, we have decided to effect a settlement of the present situation by resorting to an extraordinary measure….We have ordered our Government to communicate to the Governments of the United States, Great Britain, China, and the Soviet Union that our empire accepts the provisions of their joint declaration…. We are keenly aware of the inmost feelings of all of you, our subjects.  However, it is according to the dictates of time and fate that we have resolved to pave the way for a grand peace for all the generations to come by enduring the unendurable and suffering what is unsufferable.

This is a very long speech. I suggest you move on when you have heard enough to appreciate the Japanese intonation.

Benito Mussolini• Established a Fascist

dictatorship in Italy.• Permitted private ownership of

property and capital.• Placed strict government rules

on the people and the economy.• Glorified the state and used

force to achieve his ends.• Punished individuals not

conforming to Fascist practices.

Mussolini on End of Ethiopian War

• An English-speaking Italian commentator, in all candor, refers to the end of Italy's seven month war against barefoot, passive Ethiopians, which Mussolini has just announced in his speech, as "one of the greatest military feats known in history".

Adolf Hitler• Established a Nazi dictatorship in Germany.• Changed Germany into a police state.• Controlled every area of life – the economy,

schools, labor unions, newspapers, radio, films.

• Pursued economic recovery through:• Rearmament• Conscription• Public works

• Preached the idea of a “super race” and began a carefully planned program to eliminate Jews.

You Must Obey

• The evening that Hitler became Chancellor of Germany, he spoke to his S.A. and S.S. troops: "SA and SS, Heil! The great time has now begun. Germany is now awakened. We have won power in Germany. Now we must win over the German people. I know, my comrades, it must have been difficult at times, when you were desiring change which didn't come, so time and time again the appeal has to be made to continue the struggle - you mustn't act yourself, you must obey, you must give in, you must submit to this overwhelming need to obey."

Listen to how the audience reacts to Hitler after he has finished speaking. How would you react if someone had just said to you: “… you mustn't act yourself, you must obey, you must give in, you must submit to this overwhelming need to obey?"

The Choice

• Communism

• Militarism

• Fascism

• Nazism

• New Deal

The Political Spectrum

Left Right

Another Perspective

Left Right

Freedom

Coercion

The Aftermath

World War II Death Toll

COUNTRY MILITARY CIVILIAN DEATHSUSSR 13,600,000 7,700,000 21,300,000China 1,324,000 10,000,000 11,324,000Germany 3,250,000 3,810,000 7,060,000Poland 850,000 6,000,000 6,850,000Japan - - 2,000,000Yugoslavia 300,000 1,400,000 1,706,000Rumania 520,000 465,000 985,000France 340,000 470,000 810,000Hungary - - 750,000Austria 380,000 145,000 525,000Greece - - 520,000United States 500,000 - 500,000Italy 330,000 80,000 410,000Czechoslovakia - - 400,000

COUNTRY MILITARY CIVILIAN DEATHSGreat Britain 326,000 62,000 388,000Netherlands 198,000 12,000 210,000Belgium 76,000 12,000 88,000Finland - - 84,000Canada 39,000 - 39,000India 36,000 - 36,000Australia 29,000 - 29,000Albania - - 28,000Spain 12,000 10,000 22,000Bulgaria 19,000 2,000 21,000New Zealand 12,000 - 12,000Norway - - 10,262South Africa 9,000 - 9,000Luxembourg - - 5,000Denmark 4,000 - 4,000TOTAL: - - 56,125,262