Contemporary History Exam

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nationalism: feelings of pride for and devotion to oneÂ’s country
- both French and British were high in this
- created a rivalry between France and Germany after the Franco-Prussian war (which France the Alsace-Lorraine lost in)
- Italy also had strong these feelings
Triple alliance: Germany, Italy, and Austria-Hungary during WWI
The Three EmperorÂ’s League: - Originally created by Otto Von Bismarck
- Russia backed out of this due to rivalry between Austria-Hungary over the Balkans
- Russia signed the Reinsurance Treaty which maintained the alliance between Germany and Russia (and successfully isolated France)
Triple entente: - (Background info) William II became Kaiser in 1890 after he forced Otto Von Bismarck to resign and William let the Reinsurance Treaty with Russia lapse
- France then allied itself with Russia, which Russia accepted because of their rivalry with Austria-Hungary and worry over the amount of power Germany had and signed a military pact in 1894, in which both countries promised to come to the aid of each other in the event of a military threat
- Britain remained out of the alliance system until Germany expanded its navy and denounced British imperialism in Africa
- In 1904 Britain signed a entente cordiale with France or Â“friendly understandingÂ” which settled colonial issues
- In 1907 Britain signed an agreement with Russia which completed the loose coalition known as __________________________
Archduke Francis Ferdinand: heir to the Austria-Hungary throne who was assassinated by Gavrilo Princip while visiting in Sarajevo because the Serbs felt that the Austrians were sending the archduke into a province that they had illegally annexed (his death started WWI), his death was the immeadeate cause of WWI
President Wilson: US president during WWI who wanted peace agreements and to set up a committee that would prevent further wars like WWI but many European nations were to busy bargaining to get something for their country
14 Points: WilsonÂ’s goals for a postwar settlement which he released in 1918 and offered work for a just peace and hope that it would prevent the international tension which led to the war in the first place. The European nations accepted the 14 Points as a basis for peace talks, but they soon became impatient with WilsonÂ’s idealism
Versailles Treaty: The peace treaty with Germany and Â“The Big FourÂ” (US, Germany, France, Britain)
- France received Alsace-Lorraine but lost the Rhineland
- Germany forbidden to maintain military, lost over seas colonies,
League of Nations: a organization made up of different nations created post-WWI to prevent a WWII, the Us helped create it but was not apart of the organization
Treaty of Brest-Litovsk: the treaty Russia signs (now led by Vladimir Lenin) with Germany, which took Russia out of the war and caused Russia to lose 25% of its land and caused concern amongst the Allies
Lustainia: - a British ship carrying American passengers and is sunk by a German submarine. A deciding factor in the USÂ’s cause to go to war
Arthur Zimmerman- GermanyÂ’s foreign minister who sent a telegram to Mexico about regaining land in the US, which was intercepted by the British and handed over to the US. This is a breaking point for the US and causes the US to get involved in the war
Armistice: - an end to fighting
- when Germany tried to create an armistice, the German people revolted againdt the government
- war ended on 1l/11/1918
Reparations: - war damages that Germany had to pay for by itself
- Germany forced to take all the blame for WWI
- Also had to pay for the total cost of the war and broken into madates or territories that were administered by the Allied countries, and lost their colonies
Â“powder keg of EuropeÂ”: - The Balkans where the Slavs established Serbia and Montenegro in the late 1800s and waned all the countries around them that had Slavic people to be administered by Slavic government. but at the Congress of Berlin, Austria Hungary was given the right to administer Bosnia and Herzegovina, both west of Serbia, which infuriated them. Russia denounced the move because they wanted access to the warm water sea ports and wanted to increase their influence in the Balkans.
- Later on, Serbia, Bulgaria and Greece all waged war with the Ottoman empire in the First Balkan War and Algeria is created
- The Second Balkan War breaks out when Bulgaria attacks Greece and Serbia over the spoils from the war (they lose)
Mobilization: - the calling of troops into action
trench warfare: -long trenches with mines and barbed wire, which were used as shelters, headquarters and first aid stations
- consisted of shelling the defenses and then scrambling across Â“no manÂ’s landÂ” trying to attack the enemy
- both sides had thought that the war would be short
- during trench warfare threw was heavy losses but no changes in the battle
- countries had also started using tanks and airplanes by the end of the war
- airplanes not that useful during this war (they were just invented)
- Germans also used zeppelins, a gas filled balloon, to attack the English coast
- Germans also used submarines to attack ships in the Atlantic
propaganda: the spreading of ideas or beliefs that further a cause or damage an opposing cause (considered a weapon)
central powers: Germany, Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire
Trotsky: - LeninÂ’s right hand man who tried to gain power after Lenin died but Stalin criticized him for undermining the state and so Stalin won support and Trotsky was exiled to Siberia
- also organized the Red Army
- sent to Mexico in 1927
- killed in 1940 by political adversaries
Lenin: - originally living in exile, he came back to Russia, created the Russian Social Democratic Party or the Bolsheviks, led a revolution against the Provisional Government, and created the New Economic Plan
- lived in exile in Switzerland
- he was contacted by German angents and they helped him return to Russia
- Why? Because they wanted Russia to be their ally again by becoming communist
- Born into a middle class society
- Lenin became a revolutionary after his brother was executed for plotting against the czar
- He read Carl Marx, who said that oppressed workers should overthrow capitalism (b/c capitalism is to blame) and an establishment of communism would begin
- Kenin though that a revolution could occur despite that there was some industrialism in Russia and he thought that peasants would support the reolution
- Created the Russian Social Democratic Party in the 1900s and called themselves the Bolsheviks
- Divided Russia and made it into 4 self governing states and changed its name to the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics or the Soviet Union
Stalin: - started off as the secretary for the Bolsheviks he gained power in 1927 after he used a statement by Trosky and said that he was undermining the state
- believed the only way for the Soviet Union to survive an attack would be to build up the Soviet UnionÂ’s industry
New Economic policy: - LeninÂ’s plan to rebuild the Russian Economy
- allowsed the practice of some capitalistic practices
- the government stopped seizing grain and peasants were encouraged to sell surplus grain
- government kept control of industry, railroads, and banks but also allowed small manufacturers to run their own businesses
- the NEP lasted until 1928 and helped improve economy
Cheka: - StalinÂ’s secret police who enforced his rules and suppressed any opposition to his government
Collective farms: - all peasants had to give their land for collectivization or collective farms, large government run enterprises
- CollectivizationÂ’s goals were to increase agriculture, give the government control of the land, free the people up so they can go work in the industry and to bring socialism to the country side
- As a result, when far production fell, a famine occurred in the 1930s and millions of people died
- Afterwards, Stalin compromised and allowed peasants working on collective farms to have their own small gardens
Five year plan: - a plan created by Stalin to build up the USSRÂ’s industry so that they could survive a foreign attack
- poured the countryÂ’s resources into building steel mills, electric power stations, chemical plants, cement plants, and oil refineries
- quadrupled steel production and became the 2nd largest oil producerÂ’s in Europe
- money to pay for industrialization came from heavy hidden taxes
- basic needs were sacrificed
Fascism: - the glorification of the state, aggressive nationalism, one party system guided by one strong ruler, despised socialism and communism
- defended the right to private property and private enterprises were regulated by the government
- condemned democracy because they believed that rival powers destroyed the unity of the state
- strong nations had the right to take over smaller nations
- aggression represents action
- glorification of military sacrifices
- appealed to WWI veterans because of the glorification of militarism
- Upper and middle class liked it because they yearned for a strong leader and they were fed up with the parliamentary government
- Liked private property
- Nationalists liked it for its aggressive nationalism and for a strong leader for the state
- Business people liked it because of their hatred for communism and socialism
- Youth liked it because it was Â“excitingÂ” aggressive nationalism
- Considered countries weak for wanting peace
- Â“social DarwinismÂ” (survival of the fittest country)
Mussolini: - the leader of Italy, started off socialist but became a nationalist after WWI broke out
- after WWI he gathered WWI veterans into the Fascist party
- lead the Â“march on RomeÂ” to protect the country from a communist revolution (even though there wasnÂ’t any)
- he marched to the capital made the government surrender, and the king made him prime minister and after a few years he became the leader of which consisted of Mussolini followers in black shirts
- fascists slowly started controlling Italy
- had the slogan Â“Mussolini is always rightÂ”
- blamed ItalyÂ’s economy on the world economy after the Great Depression
Weimar Republic: - GermanyÂ’s new government that was created right before WWI ended
- faced major problems as soon as it was created
- it signed the Versailles treaty in WWI which caused hatred from Germans because it blames the war on Germany
- economic depression due to repatriations
- war veterans and nationalists claimed that they were stabbed in the back by communists, Jews and liberals
- extreme political unrest caused problems because on one side there were fascists who denounced the Versailles treaty and the Weimar republicÂ’s democratic goals and GermanyÂ’s communists who supported the idea of World revolution
Hitler: - leader of the Nazi party of Germany during WWII
- born in Austria
- moved to Vienna to be an artist but he didnÂ’t get into art school
- he enlisted in the Germany army in WWI but he did bad
- settles in Munich
- becomes a nationalist
- picks up a hatred for Jews from extreme German nationalists
- becomes a charismatic speaker
- gains interest and power in the Nazi party
- he attacked the Weimar Republic and denounced the Versailles Treaty
- He tried to lead an uprising but he didnÂ’t have enough supporters so he was sent to prison for 5 years for treason
- He wrote Mein Kampf while in prison. It outlined his ideas for political ideas for Germany and his Â“final solutionÂ”
- believed that Aryans were superior and everyone else was inferior
- He blamed Jews for GermanyÂ’s economic problems and accused them of plotting with communists for a revolution against the world
- Said the USSR was in the way of German expansion
- After he got out of prison he promised benefits to peasants, workers, and the middle class
- He also gained support form wealthy business leaders
- the power of the Nazi party grew because it told the people what they wanted to hear
- in 1933 the president of Germany, Paul von Hindenburg asked Hitler to become chancellor of Germany and Hitler swiftly increased his power
- a week before elections for president comes up the Nazis (supposedly) set fire to the Reichstag building and Hitler accused communists of planning a revolt and used it to convince President Hindenburg to abolish freedom of speech and assembly and thus Hitler gained power as a dictator and eliminated all opposition
- used the Gestapo or secret police to take out anyone suspected of opposing the Nazi power
- passed laws that made the importance of state more important than the rights of an individual
- controlled every aspect of life through press, schools, and religion
- passed the Nuremburg laws which took away citizenship and jobs from Jews and did not allow them to marry non-Jews
- builds up the army despite violation of the Versailles Treaty
- commits suicide on April 30, 1945
Third Reich: - the German empire ruled by Hitler
- created a fascist totalitarian state
Bolshevik: - LeninÂ’s Russian Social Democratic Party who called themselves the Bolsheviks ( means Â“majority in Russian)
- Lenin builds up the support of this group by criticizing the provisional government
- Takes over the government in 1917 and met with little resistance from the provisional government
- Also known as the communists (they were renamed that in 1918) and also called the Â“RedsÂ” because of their battle uniform
- Had to fight off anti- Communist parties, also known as the whites and consisted of army officers, nobles, the middle class and peasants
- Whites lose to disunity and Russian nationalism
- Â“war communismÂ”- when the government took control of all the industries and agriculture during war
- created the Communist International or Comintern which helped various communist revolutions in Germany and in E. Europe
Provisional government: - set up after the overthrow of the czar
- wanted to stay in the war (WWI)
- introduced liberal reforms including freedom of speech and religion and equality of law called for the redistribution of land from large estates
- many want to withdraw from WWI
- peasants demanded land
- city workers demanded higher paying wages
- demands are to high for the provisional government and they are overthrown by the Bolsheviks in 1917 (their headquarters are taken over on Nov. 6, 1917)
Alexander Kerensky: led the provisional government
Totalitarian state: a single party dictatorship that controls ever aspect of peopleÂ’s lives
- Common characteristics of a totalitarian state include:: a) totalitarian leaders promise to achieve glamorous ideological goals
b) always had a scapegoat for which they blamed all the problems of the country
c) the leader and his party gained power and stayed in power by violence and a considerable use of terror
d) each leader and party eliminated all active opposition once in power
e) serious competition from within the party against its leaders was eliminated by the use of purge which came at the unpredictable intervals
f) the government controlled if not monopolized the mass media
g) many organizations were either abolished into the party or government or surpassed or neutralized
h) individual citizens were subordinated to the state and its aims
- differs from absolute monarchy because the dictator in a totalitarian state has more power
- Stalin used the media for propaganda and used censorship
Great purge: the killing of many women and men intellectuals in the Soviet Union who wrote against or opposed Stalin
Fuhrer-: HitlerÂ’s official title
Il duce: MussoliniÂ’s official title
Rasputin: - an uneducated corrupt monk who was the main advisor of Czarina Alexandra, Czar NicholasÂ’s (ruler during WWI) wife who was in charge of the home (while Nicholas was off helping rally the morale of soldiers)
- only listened to because he seemed to be the only one who could help her son
- died in 1916 by nobles who were angry at his meddling in government affairs
- 6 months later the Russian Revolution occurs
Bread Riots: 1917 in Petrograd, Russia, hungry rioters storm bakeries and calls for a Russian Revolution
Russian Revolution: - March 12- they overthrow the czar and set up a provisional government
- Provisional government met with mixed feelings as they introduced freedom of speech and equality of law and wanted to continue fighting in Germany (in WWI)
- Radical revolutionaries who had been living in exile returned to Russia and made up a group called the Soviets, councils of workers, soldiers and intellectuals who claimed right to rub factories and issue orders to soldiers in the armies and undermine the provisional government
Kulaks: prosperous peasants in Russia who did not want to lose their farm lands (opposed collective farming) from collective farming and so they burned all of their livestock and crops so the government could not use it
- Stalin responded by executing and sending kulaks to prison camps
Appeasement: a policy used by BritainÂ’s Chamberlain as a means of making concessions to an aggressor in order to preserve the peace, or giving a country what they want to keep them from further doing something (it Failed and Chamberlain resigned)
Free French: soldiers who escaped from Dunkirk and fought in the invasion of France or D-Day; led by De Gaulle
- the French created the Maignot Line in the Northeast, hoping to use it as a buffer against a German attack however the Germans easily penetrated these forces and into Dunkirk, a French port on the English Channel and occupied France
- Germany set up a puppet government in Southern France called the Vichy
Lend-Lease Act: a congress approved act in 1941, which allowed the president to furnish military supplies to nations vital to the defense, and thus allowed the US to lend supplies to Britain
arsenal for democracyÂ”-: what the US considered itself as it helped the Allies with whatever they needed to survive
Isolationism: - the Us policy which kept them out of the worldÂ’s political affairs and stick to their own problems
- Congress passed neutrality laws that barred the US from selling any arms to a country involved in war and prohibited American ships from carrying arms into warring nations
Holocaust: systematic killing of Jews and other minorities in E. Europe carried out by Nazis
Blitzkrieg: literally Â“lightening warÂ” in German it was a new attack developed by the Germans in which they combined the forces of planes, tanks, artillery, and mechanized infantry to invade Poland
- after the invasion of Poland many people thought it was a Â“phony war Â“ because nothing happened for several months
- by 1940 Hitler controlled Demark, Norway, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and Belgium
Churchill: - became BritainÂ’s prime minister after Chamberlain
- Hitler planned an attack on Britain called the Battle of Britain which lasted for six months as Britain was bombed night after night
- the British Royal Air Force (RAF) attacked German planes and had the advantage because they had radars
- British forces defeated the Germans
- Boosted rather than destroyed British morale
Franklin D. Roosevelt: US president during WWII
D-Day: the invasion of France by all forces (including the Free French) under the leadership of General Eisenhower on June 6, 1944
- massive invasion by air and sea
- 8/25/1943- Paris liberated
- In the Battle of Bulge German force pushes the allies back by April 1945 German and Italian resistance dwindled
MacArthur: - leader of US armies in Asia during WWII
- tried to unsuccessfully defend the Philippines
- famous quote: Â“I shall return.Â”
Hiroshima: the site where the first atomic bomb, Enola Gay was dropped on August 6, 1945
- Japan refused to surrender
Nagasaki: the second atomic bomb in Japan dropped on August 9, 1945
- Japan surrendered on August 14, 1945and ended WWII
Spanish Civil War: - the king is forced out in 1931 and a republican government is set up
- socialist and liberals are fighting for power,
- the Catholic church loses its status, and much of its land was confiscated
- the government reduces the size of its army
- Francisco Franco leads a the Nationalists, a group who calls for the creation of a fascist Spain
- Defenders of the government were called Loyalists or Republicans
- The Italy and Germany supplied arms to the Nationalist party to test their weapons
- Italy and Germany set up an alliance called the Rome-Berlin Axis in 1936
- Stalin sent arms to the Republicans
- US remained neutral
- The Spanish Civil War ended up with the Nationalists claiming victory and the failure of the democratic powers to defeat the Axis powers encouraged them to intervene elsewhere

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