1. Between the Wars

2. Europe in 1919
The former governments of Germany, Russia, Austria-Hungary and Ottoman Empire (Turkey) were gone.
New nations were created in Europe:
Poland
Czechoslovakia
Yugoslavia
Baltic States

3. Europe in 1919
Russia was in the midst of a civil war

4. The first years after the war were not easy ones.
Famine in Central Europe
Returning soldiers faced unemployment
Farms ,cities and railroad lines had been torn up in the fighting
Europeans spent the next five years rebuilding and recovering from the war.

5. Germany
Based on the Treaty of Versailles, Germans had to make huge reparations payments for the war to France and Great Britain.
This slowed the Germany economy.
Germany printed extra money to pay the debt, which triggered hyper-inflation.

6. Germany
After WW I– A new German democratic republic known as the Weimar Republic was established.
Weak
Industrialists / Wealthy / landowners /military leaders all opposed the Weimar Republic
Wanted a single leader rather than rule by the common people

7. Germany Fear of communist take over
Blamed the leaders of the Weimar Republic for accepting the Treaty of Versailles

8. Soviet Union
Joseph Stalin becomes new leader in 1924 upon the death of Lenin
Stalin quickly moved to eliminate other rivals in a series of “purges” accusing them of disloyalty to Communist ideals. .

9. Soviet Union Stalin established a totalitarian state.
Opponents were sent to ice gulags in Siberia.
Began collectivization of agriculture
This fear led some in Europe to support extreme anti-Communist leaders like Mussolini and Hitler.

10. 1920s—New Values
The 1920s also saw the expression of new values because of the war.
Women received the right to vote in the United States, Great Britain and other countries
More people pursued higher education
Affordable automobiles changed society

11. 1929
1929– The Stock Market crash in New York started a chain reaction that sent the world economy into the Great Depression.
American bankers and investors recalled their loans from Europe and the depression quickly spread world-wide.

12. 1929 .
40 Million people were soon unemployed in United States, Germany, Japan and other industrialized countries.
Farmers in Eastern Europe, Asia, Africa and Latin America could no longer sell their cash crops.

13. Reactions of Governments to the Great Depression
Most government leaders reacted poorly to the Great Depression
Many stopped spending, tightened credit and cut off international trade—This only made the depression worse.
People had no safety net– unemployment insurance or Social Security.

14. The Rise of Fascism
Fascism refers to the new militant political system that appeared in Europe after WWI.
Emphasized loyalty to the state and obedience to its leader (authoritarian)
Promised to revive the economy and punish those responsible for hard times
Restore national pride

15. Beliefs of Fascists Extreme Nationalism
Peaceful states were doomed to be conquered (Social Darwinism—”survival of the fittest”
Extreme Militarism—Fascists used violence to defeat their political opponents and prepared wars for national expansion. Fascists saw war as a glorious experience.
Anti-communist

16. Beliefs of Fascists Wore uniforms of a certain color
Used special salutes
Held mass rallies
Disliked labor unions
Mainly aristocrats, industrialists, war veterans and lower middle class

17. Fascists Dictators
Benito Mussolini—Italy

18. Fascists Dictators
Adolph Hitler—Germany

19. Fascists Dictators
Hideki Tojo--Japan

20. Fascists Dictators
Francisco Franco--Spain