WORLD WAR AND WHAT FOLLOWED - Kerala 04.pdfhand in Egypt, she would admit the claim 55 WORLD WAR AND...

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WORLD WAR AND WHAT FOLLOWED

WORLD WAR ANDWHAT FOLLOWED 4

The First World WarIn the previous chapter we discussed the expansion ofimperialism and colonialism. When the imperialist powersentered into mutual competition, conflicts among them becamewidespread. The international problems which surfaced duringthis period caused mutual mistrust and enmity. The problemsbegan with the attempts of imperialist powers to occupy the eastEuropean regions under the control of the Ottoman Empire. Itwas known as the Eastern Question. Fearing that Russia wouldgain control over the Ottoman territories, an alliance was formedby Britain, Prussia and Poland. The Balkan Crisis was its

Balkan regions in 1908

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Standard X - Social Science I

immediate fallout. The Eastern Questionand Balkan Crisis are considered to be thecauses of First World War.

A campaign had already started to unite allGerman speaking people under one state.Regions in the Balkan peninsula were alsoincluded as part of the project. When Austrialaid claim over the Balkan peninsula,Germany supported it. But Serbia claimedthis region on racial grounds. Russiasupported Serbia. The conflict betweenRussia and Germany over this region wasknown as the Balkan Crisis.

Analyse the circumstances which led to the Eastern Question and BalkanCrisis by examining the map.

of France over Morocco. The French claimover Morocco was opposed by Germany.France agreed to transfer a part of FrenchCongo to Germany and Germany agreed toconcede Morocco to France in return. Thusthe problem was solved for the time being.

Balkan regions in 1914

Morocco and the FrenchCongo

Morocco is an Islamic state of North Africa.The Strait of Gibralter, connecting theMediterranean with the Atlantic, wascontrolled by Morocco. This was the reasonfor the crisis.

French Congo, colonised by France,consisted of the present Central Africanrepublics of Congo and Gabon. Aboutthirty French companies exploited theresources of this colony and treated thenatives like slaves.

Moroccan CrisisLet us now examine the Moroccan Crisis. Asecret treaty was concluded between Britainand France in 1904. A major provision of thetreaty was that if Britain was given a freehand in Egypt, she would admit the claim

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Baghdad RailThe construction of the Baghdad railway linewas started to connect the German city ofBerlin with the city of Baghdad in Iraq.Britain and Russia feared that it wouldenhance the commercial prospects of

Germany. Britain and France thought thatGermany would extend her influence toPersia and the Ottoman Empire, to Egypt.This became one of the causes of the FirstWorld War.

Mark the German city of Berlin and the city of Baghdad in Iraq on the politicalmap of the world and draw a line connecting the two cities. Explain how theconstruction of the Baghdad railway became a cause of the first world war.

Why did the imperialist powers fan thesecrises? It was to control the colonies andexploit their resources. Therefore, the FirstWorld War is described as the imperialistwar.

We have seen that the quarrels among theimperialist powers led to the formation of

military alliances. Not only did thesealliances lead to mutual suspicion and fear,but they also gave a clear indication that, ifa war broke out, it would not be confined toa region.

Algeria(French)

Morocco(French)

Morocco-France andGermany desired to controlthis area

Libiya(Italy)

Egypt(British)

TurkeyGreece

Bulgaria

Rumania

Albania

Montenegro

Bosnia SerajavoSerbia

Italy

SwitzerlandFrance

Great Britain

Nether lands

BelgiumLuxemburg

Alsace-Lorraine

Austria Hungary

Russia

Germany

Dual Alliance

Triple Alliance

Areas of conflict

Ottoman Empire

Areas of dispute

Spain

Ballkan areaAustria-Hungary,Russia and Turkeytried to control thisarea

Alsace-Lorraine Germany conqueredit in 1871. France tries to recaptureit.

Portu

gal

Free Nations

IndicationMilitary Alliances and Interests

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help of Serbia. Germany declared war on

Russia and France as the latter had an

alliance with Russia. Britain declared war on

Germany. Italy withdrew from the German

alliance and joined Britain while Japan,

Portugal, Greece and Romania joined

Britain. Turkey and Bulgaria joined

Germany. Thereafter, Britain and her allies

came to be known as Allied Powers and

Germany and her allies were called Central

Powers. The colonies were also dragged into

this war fought among the imperialist

powers.

The crises created deliberately by the

imperialist powers led the world to a war.

Serbia reacted sharply to the Austrian

imperialist designs. The Austrian heir

apparent, Archduke Francis Ferdinand and

his wife were shot dead at the Bosnian capital

of Sarajevo on 28th June 1914 by a Serbian

national Gaverilo Prinsep. Austria issued an

ultimatum demanding explanation from

Serbia within twenty-four hours, which

Serbia ignored. Thereupon Austria declared

war on Serbia on 28th July 1914. Thus the

First World War began. Russia rushed to the

Way to the War - Thought and Action

31st July, 1914, Russiaprepares to help Serbia.

Ist August, 1914 Germany declares waron Russia. On 3rd August she declared

war on France. Her army marchedthrough Belgium.

If we wage war with Russia, Franceshould join her. Therefore, first weshould avoid her. A lightning attack

can be launched on her throughBelgium.

We are a little bit afraid. Germany hasstrengthened her navy. It is better thatwe should exclude ourselves from it.

We had already agreed to helpBelgium. If Austria wins the war

she would get control ofthis region. But we should

control this region.

Serbia had committed a crime.She should be punished Germanyhad promised to help in the event

of an intervention by Russia.

July 23rd, 1914. Serbia shouldpermit the arrest of those who

were involved in theassassination of the Archduke.Otherwise we should invade

Serbia.

We should not surrender toAustria. This should lead tothe complete domination of

Austria.

24th July, 1914, Serbiaseeks the help of Russia

Let us wait and see whowins the war. It is better to

join them.

28th June, 1914. TheAustrian heir apparent

Archduke France ferdinandwas shot dead at Bosnia.Serbia desired to occupy

Bosnia.

We hate Germany. In thelost war she defeated usand occupied out territory.

14th August 1914. Britaindeclares war on Germany.

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Which were the countries involved in the international crisis thatprecipitated the First World War?

Though Germany initially made greatadvances in France, she was finally defeated.In the naval front ultimate victory was wonby Britain. Though America kept aloof fromthe war in the beginning, she later joined theAllied Powers when her ships were sunkrepeatedly by Germany.

This was a relief to Britain and her allies.After the Revolution, Russia withdrew fromthe war in 1918. The Central Powers facedrepeated defeats. Finally, Germanysurrendered.

The strategies adopted in the First WorldWar were new and the technologies used

were destructive. For the first time in history,battles were fought on land, sea and air.Tanks, shells and mines were used in the War

Scenes from the War front

First World War - Deaths

Ententemilitary

36%

Ententecivilian

20%

CentralPowers

civilian 22%

CentralPowers

military 22%

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on land. Germany used poisonous gas likechlorine with no ethical consideration. Shipswere sunk by using torpidoes. One of thecharacteristics of the First World War wasthe use of aeroplanes to drop bombs. About

The improvement of military weapons and the invention of new ones affectthe human race. Discuss.

Peace EffortsEven as the World War was going on, effortswere on to bring about peace. The FourteenPoints put forward by the AmericanPresident, Woodrow Wilson, was part of thiseffort. A Peace Conference was convened atParis in 1919 at the end of the war. England,

France, America and Italy attended theconference. The vanquished countries werenot invited. These four big powers imposedtreaties on other countries to suit theirinterests. Let us examine the most importantof these.

Fourteen Points of Woodrow Wilson

1 No more secret treaties

2 Freedom of voyage through seas both in wartime and peace time

3 Free trade among the countries

4 All countries should endeavour fordisarmament

5 Right to national self-determination forcolonies

6 Withdrawal of German army from Russia

7 Independence of Belgium

8 Restoration of Alsace-Lorraine to France

9 Delimitation of the boundaries of Austriaand Italy

10 National self-determination of the EastEuropean people

11 Freedom of Serbia for passage to the sea

12 Right to self-determination of the people ofTurkey

13 Poland to become a free state with access tosea

14 Formation of a League of Nations

Treaty of VersaillesAmong the treaties signed following thePeace Conference in Paris, this was the mostimportant. It was signed with Germany.According to this highly humiliating treaty,many territories controlled by Germanywere given to France, Belgium and Denmark.The size of her military strength was

drastically reduced. She had to surrender herbattleships. Restrictions were imposed onthe production of arms and ammunition.Above all, war guilt was imposed onGermany. She was forced to pay 6.6 milliondollars as war indemnity.

one crore of soldiers lost their lives. Worldeconomy was shattered. Poverty andunemployment became acute. Agricultureand industry declined.

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Return of the territories conquered byGermany

• All German colonies were dividedamong Britain and France.

• Germany lost Alsace-Lorraine and theSaar basin.

• The connection between Germany andAustria was severed.

• Poland was given Western Prussia andupper Silesia.

• Danzig became a free city under thesupervision of the League of Nations

League of Nations• Formation of the League of Nations as

an international policy. But nomembership to Germany till it becamea country of peace.

Treaty of Versailles - Main ProvisionsWar guilt

• Germany was held responsible for thewar.

Disarmament• The number of soldiers was restricted

to one lakh.• No more conscription• No production of tanks, submarines

and war planes.Indemnity

• Germany should compensate for theloss incurred by France, Belgium andBritain till 1921.

• It was not a silly amount (about 6.6million dollars). It amounted to about2% of the national product of Germany.

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Versailles was not the only treaty which wassigned in 1919. According to the Treaty ofSt.Germaine concluded with Austria-Hungary, Hungary was severed fromAustria. As part the Treaty of Sevres, signedwith Turkey in 1920, Turkey lost all herclaims over Africa and West Asia. TheCaliphate of Turkey was abolished.

Through these various treaties new statesemerged in Europe. They were Poland,

Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, Rumania andAlbania.

The Fallout of the WarThe consequences of the First World Warwere far-reaching. Many European dynastieswith several centuries of standing such asHohenzollerns of Germany, Hohenstaufensof Austria and Hapsburgs of Spain lost theirthrones. The Romanov rule came to an endin Russia. It accelerated the democraticprocess in the world. In Turkey the rule ofKhalif came to an end, and the countrybecame a republic under Mustafa KamalPasha. After the Russian Revolution of 1917the balance of power among the nationsunderwent a thorough change. Cracksappeared in the foundations of imperialism.

Versailles Peace Talks

Russian RevolutionYou know about the French Revolutionwhich influenced the world so greatly. TheRussian Revolution which happened duringthe First World War was a similar one. Russiawas ruled by emperors known as the Tsars.Under the Tsars of the Romanov dynasty,Russia tried to become an imperialistpower. Big landlords called the Kulaksharrassed the peasants greatly. Theindustrial development of Russia on theWestern style made the exploitation of theworking class possible. The peasants andworkers protested against the despotic ruleof Russia which supported the exploitation.The Social Democratic Labour Party wasformed in 1898. Its main leader was Vladimir

Do you think that the peace treaties concluded at the end of the war werejustifiable?

Cartoon showing the Tsarist system

The royal family(‘We rule you’)

The Church(‘We mislead

you’)

The Army(‘Weshootyou’)

The capitalists“’We do the

eating’)

The workers (‘We work for you. We feed you’)

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Illych Ulyanov, otherwise known as Lenin.Later this party got split into two asBolsheviks (majority faction) or Left Wingand Mensheviks (minority faction) or RightWing. Lenin became the leader of theBolsheviks. The Bolsheviks appealed to itsmembers to become well organisedrevolutionaries to fight against theimperialist government of Russia. Theystrived for propagating revolutionary ideasamong the workers and pursued strikes andrevolutionary activities as the means toachieve their goal. The Mensheviks partedways with the Bolsheviks by putting forwardreform and election as a substitute forrevolution.

Following the defeat of Russia in the warwith Japan in 1905, a revolution wasorganised against the Tsar. The emperorNicholas II agreed to constitute theparliament called ‘Duma’. When povertyand unemployment became acute, theyformed Soviets, which were councils of theworkers and the peasants. The police triedto suppress them. The leaders of theBolshevik party went underground. Manywere arrested and jailed. Lenin went toSwitzerland to evade arrest andimprisonment. During the course of the FirstWorld War poverty was widespread and in1917 strikes broke out. The workersdemanded the withdrawal of Russia fromthe World War as well as the abolition of

Lenin with his followers

Tsardom. On 12th March, 1917, severalregiments of the army mutinied and joinedthe striking workers. They released thepolitical prisoners and captured the capitalcity of Petrograd. This incident, which tookplace in the March 1917, was known as theFebruary Revolution. (As per the oldRussian calendar, it was in February).

Left wing, Right wingIt was during the French Revolution thatthe terms Left wing and Right wing cameto be used widely. In the NationalAssembly those who supported the kingwere seated on the right side of thePresident and those who supported therevolution on the left. In the BritishParliament the ministers sat on the rightside of the Speaker and the opposition onthe left. Subsequently those who followedprogressive ideology came to be knownas the Left.

Bloody Sunday

Russian factoryworkers, who hadto work for ten oreleven hoursc o n t i n u o u s l y ,o r g a n i s e dthemselves under

the leadership of Fr. George Gapon in 1903demanding improved conditions oflabour. Under his leadership, about onelakh workers struck work and marched tothe palace of the emperor on 22nd January,1905. The police assaulted them brutally.More than one hundred workers died.With this incident, also known as BlackSunday, the Revolution of 1905 is said tohave began.

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What were the changes brought about by theFebruary Revolution in Russia?

When the Revolution broke out, the Tsar wasnot in the capital. He made an attempt todissolve the Duma but in vain. The Dumaassumed power and on 15th March formeda provisional government. The Tsarabdicated. However, the Mensheviks andtheir leader Alexander Kerensky who ledthe provisional government failed to solvethe problems faced by the people. Theirdecision to continue the war was opposedby the Bolsheviks.

While the February Revolution broke out,Lenin was away in Switzerland. He cameback to Russia secretly. He declared war onthe provisional government at Petrograd.The other leaders who joined him were LeonTrotsky and Joseph Stalin.

Lenin declared that what the people neededwas not war and poverty but peace and food.

On November 7, the united force of theworkers, soldiers and the Soviets under theleadership of the Bolsheviks captured allstrategic cities including Petrograd. Leninaddressed the people through the radio thatthe provisional government wasoverthrown. He promised land to thepeasants and control of production tolabourers, power to the Soviets and peaceto all. He declared that a socialist orderwould be implemented in Russia. Thoughthis incident occurred in November,according to the Russian calendar it was inOctober. Hence it is known as OctoberRevolution. Kerensky escaped but themembers of the provisional government.were arrested. By February 1918 the newgovernment established its powerthroughout the country. The Bolshevik Partywas renamed as the Communist Party ofRussia.

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The condition of common man during Tsarist regime

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Ä Why did the Revolution of1905 fail and that of 1917succeed?

Ä In the picture is given theimportant events which ledto the revolution of 1917.Examine the role played bythese incidents in the victoryof the revolution.

Economic ReformsRevolutionary Russia had to face severalproblems. The Civil War in Russia whichlasted from 1917 to 1921 worsened thesituation. The White Army, organised by theold landlords and capitalists, was givenassistance by the Western powers whichfeared the Communist regime. They attackedRussia. This was known as the War of

Intervention. Lenin adopted urgentmeasures to strengthen the war torneconomy of Russia. Agricultural land andestates were distributed among thepeasants. Surplus products were taken overby the state and distributed among theneedy. Industrial products were distributedamong the factory workers in lieu of wages.It came to be known as War Communism.

Failures inthe war Tsar Emperor

The mutinyin the army

Formation ofsoviets

Discontentin the

countryside

Duma settingup alternative

parliament

Strikes Food shortages

War Communism New Economic Policy

Government takesall surplus

Hard-workingpeasant

Lazypeasant

Grows

Left with

Governmenttakes none

The difference between War Communism and New Economic policy

Left with

Grows

Left with

Governmenttakes 50%

Grows

Left with

Peasant sells

Governmenttakes 50%

Grows

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In 1921 Lenin introduced the New EconomicPolicy (NEP). According to this, the peasantswere permitted to cultivate the crop of theirchoice and sell their products in the openmarket. The workers were paid in cash.Certain industries were started in privatesector. These measures enabled Russia tostrengthen her economy.

Formation of the Soviet Union

In 1924 a new Constitution waspromulgated. Accordingly, the Union ofSoviet Socialist Republics (USSR) wasformed by including the republics ofGeorgia, Armenia, Ukraine and Azerbaijan.The Russian Communist Party became theSoviet Communist Party. In 1936 theConstitution was revised by includingeleven republics. These republics,consisting of various nationalities and ethnicgroups, functioned as equals under thesoviet constitution.

Five Year PlansAfter the death of Lenin in 1924 the Partyand Government were led by Joseph Stalin.

In 1929 for the first time in the world FiveYear Plans were implemented in SovietUnion. At the end of he Second Five Year

Levels of production under the Tsar

Grain

Cattle

Pigs

Coal

Steel

Electricity

FirstWorld War

WarCommunism

NewEconomic Policy

Production under the New Economic Policy, 1921 - 25

United StatesUSSR

GermanyBritain

1929

Gra

ph s

how

ing

shar

e of

wor

ld m

anuf

actu

ring

out

put

1932 1937 19380

10

20

30

40

50

Global production and countries of the world 1929-38

Revolution

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Plan, Soviet Union became apowerful industrial andmilitary state. It was underthe direct control of the stateand by utilising the nativeresources that Soviet Unionattained this progress.Enterprises under privateownership were taken overby the state. The privateentrepreneurs were kept outof industry and commerce.Soviet Union was the onlycountry in the world whichwas not affected by theEconomic Depression in1929.

A different ForeignPolicySoviet Union adopted freshpolicies in internationalrelations. She had no role inthe Peace Conferences atParis. She concludedseparate treaties with Iran,Turkey and Afghanistan. Thetreaties were meant to ensurethe sovereignty of thesestates. In 1934 Soviet Unionbecame a member of theLeague of Nations. It wasSoviet Union that opposedcolonialism and imperialism.

The achievements of the five year plans during the first four years.

• We had no iron and steel industries. Now we have one.

• We had no machine tools factories. Now we have one.

• We had no modern fertiliser factories. Now we have one.

• We had no agro-industrial factories. Now we have one.

(Speech delivered by Stalin in 1932 about the first five year plan)

Production in 1927 - 28First Five-Year Plan

Target and actualproduction in 1933

Second Five-Year PlanTarget and actual

production in 1937

Merits of Five Year Plans

ELECTRICITY(thousandmillion kilowatthours)

COAL(million tons)

OIL(million tons)

PIG IRON(million tons)

STEEL(million tons)

TargetActual

Actual

Target

TargetTarget

Actual

Actual

Actual Actual

Actual Actual

ActualActual

Target

Target

TargetTarget

TargetTarget

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The government and policies of SovietUnion influenced the history of the world ina big way. Freedom movements began togather momentum in the colonies. Workingclass all over the world had a new sense ofdirection. Communist Parties and workers’unions were formed in many countries. Thesocialist planning of the Soviet Union wasadopted by many countries. The 'New Deal'of America and the economic theories ofKeynes were in some ways influenced bySoviet Union. Jawaharlal Nehru adopted theSoviet model of planning after India becameindependent.

First World War and America

You know about USA which is popularlyknown as America. America did not joinWorld War when it broke out. The War wasconcluded according to the Fourteen Pointsprepared by the American PresidentWoodrow Wilson. It advocated a peacesettlement of no territorial loss or annexation.The League of Nations was foundedaccording to the Fourteen Points. But the USSenate rejected the treaty of Versailles anddeclared that she would not join the League.

America achieved tremendous economicgrowth at the end of the First World War.American Dollar replaced the British Poundto become the standard of world economicexchange.

Though America had refused to join theLeague of Nations, she tried to expand hersphere of influence over the rest of the world.This had severe consequences for Europe.America lent money to many Europeancountries including Germany. ThoughGermany was demilitarised, Americafinanced her heavily in manufacturing armsand ammunitions. In 1922, she concludedtreaties with Japan, Britain, Italy andGermany. In China she adopted the Open

Door Policy by enabling all nations tointerfere in her affairs and thus to preventJapan from extending her influence there.But later, when Germany and Italy beganinvading the neighbouring states, Americadid not prevent them. This enabled thegrowth of Nazism and Fascism.

World Economic DepressionWe have seen the economic growthachieved by America. But the world wasthrown into an economic crisis in1929.Though capitalism had gained much,majority of people were suffering fromstarvation. Though production wasincreased by the use of science andtechnology, the people had no purchasing

A cartoon that ridicules the non-participation ofAmerica in the League of Nations

How do you evaluate the Americanpolicy of not joining the League ofNations which was founded onAmerican initiative?

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power. Amidst the economic growth inAmerica about one half of the families werestarving. It was the crash of the share marketwhich led to the economic crisis. About tenthousand banks crashed between 1929 and

The growth of the US economy in the 1920s

1932. The cultivators could not sell theirproducts. They lost their land also. This isknown as the Great Depression.

The crisis which originated in Americaspread to the rest of the world.

Economic Crunch here also

The world economic crisis of 1929-33 affected our country also. Hundreds of peasants became leaseholders and hutment dwellers. The Economic Enquiry Committee appointed by the Government ofTravancore narrates those things. It deals with the fall of prices of farm products, increase in debtsand interests, wage cuts, increase of unemployment, increase of poverty, loss of work to labourers,etc. About 50% of the workers employed in tea and rubber plantations were retrenched. The price of1000 coconuts in 1928 was Rs.65; it declined to Rs.15 in 1931. The price of paddy, 24 chakrams perfive maunds, was reduced to 15 and the price of pepper, from Rs.650 to Rs.140. This was the casewith all other commodities. (28 chakrams =Re.1)

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America started remedial measures after1933. It was Franklin D. Roosevelt, thePresident of America who initiated this. Heintroduced a programme of action known

as New Deal. He tried to redress thegrievances of the people by launchingwelfare measures. But the Blacks in Americadid not gain anything from them.

New Deal was the recognition of the needfor a national planning policy. Relief to theunemployed and the poor, Recovery of theeconomy and Reform to ensure that therewas no such crunch in future were the threecomponents of this programme. The theoriesof the British economist John Maynard

Keynes were the guiding principles of theNew Deal. He put forward the idea of mixedeconomy by suggesting that the privatesector need not always be successful andthat the public sector should be givenpriority.

New Deal

• New Deal enabled lakhs to getemployment

• It improved the position of the Americanbanking sector

• It halted the decline of business concerns• Projects like the Tennessey Valley

Authority enhanced the standard of lifeand employment potential of backwardareas.

• New projects like schools, roads, hydro-electric projects, etc. were started

• However, the basic economic issues werenot resolved

• Compared to the European countries therecovery of American economy was slow.

Unemployment and the performance of the US economy during the 1930s

• People had no faith in the economicgrowth. They were ready to deposit only75% in 1933 compared to the deposits in1929.

• When President Roosevelt stoppedassistance to New Deal in 1937 thecountry rolled back to economicrecession.

• Production fell by 67% between May1937 and May 1938.

• There were six million unemployedpeople in America in 1941

• Unemployment was controlled onlyafter America joined the Second WorldWar.

Did excessive privatisation cause economic crisis? Discuss in the light of theEconomic Depression of 1929.

New Deal startsSecond

New Deal

Rooseveltcuts New

Deal budget

War breaksout in

Europe

Americaenters war

Levels of production in the USA

(1932 = 100%%

of t

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labo

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unem

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Anti-Imperialist Struggles in theColoniesThe first world war and the RussianRevolution influenced the anti-imperialiststruggles in the colonies in Asia and Africa.In March 1919 thousands of people revoltedagainst the Japanese in Korea.

The decision of the Paris Peace Conferenceto transfer Shan Tang to Japan was opposedby the Chinese who revolted in 1919. TheChinese Communist Party was founded in1921 under the influence of RussianRevolution. At the end of the First WorldWar there existed a government at Cantonunder the Koumintag Party and theleadership of Dr. Sun Yat Sen. In 1924 aNational Revolutionary Army was formedunder the united leadership of theKoumintang and the Communist Partieswhich was assisted by the Soviet Union.They waged war against the warlords andthe monopoly of industrial houses fromJapan and Britain. Chiang Kei Shek, whoassumed the leadership of the Koumintangafter the death of Sun Yat Sen, tried tosuppress the Communist Party which led toa long civil war between the two in China.

You have already studied the anti-colonialstruggle which took place in India duringthis period. The protest against theJallianwalabagh massacre, the Non-Co-operation Movement, boycott of the SimonCommission, Civil Disobedience Movementetc. were part of the struggle for Indianindependence.

Fascism and NazismThe First World War ruined Germany andItaly economically. Unemployment andpoverty threw up peoples' protests. Thegovernment of both the countries had to facepopular unrest. Italy got nothing though shewas with the victors. It was in thesecircumstances that the Fascist Party in Italy

A hoarding showing the publication of Hitler’sautobiography Mein Kampf in 1925

under Benito Mussolini and the Nazi Partyin Germany under Adolf Hitler gainedpopular support.

The Fascio de Combatimento founded byMussolini in 1919 was reorganised as theNational Fascist Party in 1921. Adolf Hitler

The war of 1914 was certainly not forced on themasses; it was even desired by the whole people.

There was a desire to bring the general feeling ofuncertainty to an end once and for all. And it isonly in the light of this fact that we canunderstand how more than two million Germanmen and youths voluntarily joined the colours,ready to shed the last drop of their blood for thecause.

For me these hours came as a deliverance fromthe distress that had weighed upon me duringthe days of my youth. I am not ashamed toacknowledge today that I was carried away bythe enthusiasm of the moment and that I sankdown upon my knees and thanked Heaven outof the fullness of my heart for the favour ofhaving been permitted to live in such a time.(Mein Kampf by Adolf Hitler Volume 1 Chapter 5 Page

155)

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Jewish women who were imprisonedfrom Budapest in Hungary

• Strong propaganda campaign under JosephGoebbels. Hitler toured around the country in aspecial aircraft in 1932 for election campaign.House - to - house campaign was organised.Posters bearing the picture and ideas of Hitlerwere circulated.

• The Brown Shirts organised to combat the Communists and the 'Hitler Youth'became popular in Germany.

• The Brown Shirts physically assaulted politicalopponents. Public meetings of political parties weredisrupted.

• Hitler was a good orator. He became the symbol ofstrength. Several party workers were trained inoratory.

• Hitler addressed the middle class, peasants,unemployed, youth, etc. who were the victims of the economic ruin of Germany.

• He promised houses to the houseless, job to the jobless and trade to the tradersand they were assured job and security. His sloganwas 'Bread and Work'.

• Hitler denounced the Versailles Treaty and declaredthe restoration of the grandeur of Germany whichwas a morale booster to those who were agitated bythe humiliation of Germany.

• To those who looked for those responsible forGerman ruin, Hitler pointed at the Jews and theCommunists.

• The German industrialists were afraid of theCommunists. They supported the militarisation ofGermany. They longed for a strong government.Therefore, they financed the Nazis. In return, Hitlerpromised them the liquidation of trade unions.

• Hitler's friendship with the media magnate AlfredHugenberg helped him to boost his image throughstrong propaganda in the newspapers. Hugenbergwas the owner of a large number of newspapers inseveral countries.

The march of Nazi army

Adolf Hitler is welcomed by a crowd of Nazisupporters in 1933

Steps which increased popular support for Nazism in Germany

The wedding rings of those, who wereassassinated in Nazi concentration

camps

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who joined the army and fought the war wasdisappointed at the defeat of Germany. In1922 he was deputed to observe theactivities of the German workers' party. Laterhe resigned from the army and became theleader of the National Socialist Party (Nazi)of Germany.

The ideology put forward by both Fascismand Nazism was similar. Hero worship,racism, glorification of the past, craze for waretc. were some of them. The Fascists workedamong the people by projecting the glory ofthe ancient Roman empire. Hitler projectedthe purity of the Aryan race, and held thatAryans should rule Germany and that theGermans should rule the world.Accordingly, the Jews were to beexterminated. The Nazis argued that theJews were responsible for the economic ruinof Germany. Both the Fascists and Nazisopposed the socialists, Communists and thedemocrats. Freedom of the press,parliamentary democracy, class war andanti-war movements were all said to havebeen conspired by the Jews to belittle theAryans. The Fascists organised a militiaknown as Black Shirts and the Nazisorganised a similar one called Brown Shirts.

In the elections held in Italy in 1921, theFascists did not get the majority. Even thenthey marched to Rome, threatened theEmperor and captured power. In theelections of 1924 the Fascists scored amajority and they consolidated power. Italysuffered the brutalities of Fascist regime. TheCommunist Party and labour unions wereprohibited. Censorship was imposed on thepress and the cinema. The media was usedgreatly to propagate Fascist ideology.Provisional governments were dismissed.Several Socialist and Communist leaderswere executed. Thousands were

imprisoned. Misery of the people increased.Economy deteriorated.

Mussolini entered into an agreement withthe Catholic Church of Rome and declaredit the official Church. This earned for himthe support of the Church. The Pope wasmade the head of the newly formedindependent state of Vatican. Mussolini'scraze for war led him to conquer Abyssinia(Modern Ethiopia), Spain and Albania. Atlast the dictatorship of Mussolini was

Mussolini

Ideology of GoebbelsThe most trusted confidantof Hitler was JosephGoebbels. He was thearchitect of the Nazi policyof ethnic cleansing. He wasappointed as PropagandaMinister to propagate Naziideology. He extended hispropaganda project byutilising newspapers, radio,cinema, music andliterature. His theory wasthat if a lie was repeated onethousand times, it wouldbecome truth.

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overthrown due to internal disturbances.Hitler, who propagated that only the Naziscould solve the problems of Germany, wasably assisted by Goebbels. Huge amountsof money were spent on ideologicalpropaganda.

According to the Weimar Constitution ofGermany, sovereign power rested with thePresident. Hitler, who was holding the post

of Chancellor, took over the office of thePresident when Hindenberg died. Hitlervowed to liquidate both the Jews and theCommunists. Jewish migration to Germanywas prohibited. Jews were dismissed fromjobs. Lakhs of Jews were tortured andexecuted in concentration camps and gaschambers. Hitler refused to pay for warreparation.

What were the strategies adopted by he Fascists to make theirprogramme successful?

Spain and FascismAfter the First World War, Spain became thearena of the encounter between Fascists andCommunists. Monarchy, republicasm andFascist imperialism were experimented inSpain one after the other. In 1931 Spain wasdeclared a republic after putting an end tomonarchy. There were several politicalparties in Spain with reputation andCommunist ideologies. But there was nounity among them. Civil war broke out

consequent on the breakdown of law andorder. In the elections of 1936 the Left andthe Right won equal number of seats in theParliament. When a Fascist member ofParliament was murdered, Civil War brokeout. General Franco took over the leadershipof the Fascists. Russia, Mexico and Francesupported the Republicans. Germany andItaly supported Franco. It is worthy of notehere that Jawaharlal Nehru visited Spain andsupported the Republicans. The revolt of

Guernica

The painting of the great spanishpainter of the twentieth century,Pablco Picasso. Guernica was aspanish town crushed by thebombings of the Fascists. Picassowas reacting to the brutal Fascistregime through his paintingentitled ‘Guernica’.

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Franco was characterised as the Fascist waragainst Communism. Finally Franco becamevictorious and the Fascist dictatorship underthe title of Falangism was imposed on Spain.

Fascism in JapanMention has already been made of thevictory of Japan over Russia in the war of1905. Japan grew into an imperialist state.After the First World War, she entered intoseparate treaties with England, America andFrance at the Washington DisarmamentConference. It led to a controversy in Japan.Baron Tanaka, a former soldier who becamethe Prime Minister of Japan, pleaded forimperialist expansion. He appraised theJapanese Emperor that imperialism was

magnanimous and recommended a forwardpolicy. He declared that if one shouldconquer the world China should beconquered; the conquest of China would bepossible only through conqueringManchuria and Manchuria should beacquired. Manchuria can be conquered onlythrough the imperialist expansionist policyof conquest of Korea. This was known asTanaka Memorial. The conquest ofManchuria in 1931 emboldened Japan tobecome more aggressive. A Fascist regimewas established under Tojo who succeededTanaka as Prime Minister. In 1936 Japanjoined Germany in the anti-Communistalliances and thus became a partner in theFascist expansionist policy.

Examine the role of Tanaka Memorial in transforming Japan as an imperialistpower?

Activities

• Prepare a seminar paper about the emergence of Fascistregimes after the First World War and the circumstanceswhich led to the Second World War.

• Discuss the violation of human rights in the First WorldWar.

• Prepare an essay on the influence of Russian Revolutionand the growth of Soviet Union on the world.

• What were the international issues which led to the FirstWorld War?

• How will you differentiate between War Communism andNew Economic Policy?

• How did the Five Year Plans influence the progress of Sovieteconomy?

• Fascism and Nazism were the most brutal phase ofnationalism. Examine the statement.

WORLD WAR AND WHAT FOLLOWED - Kerala 04.pdfhand in Egypt, she would admit the claim 55 WORLD WAR AND...

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