1. TOTALITARIAN DICTATORSHIPS
RISE OF THE
TOTALITARIAN DICTATORSHIPS

2. Essential Questions:
Who were the major totalitarian leaders in the 1920s and 1930s?
What were the basic ideologies of Fascists, Nazis, and Communists?

3. After WWI, many nations were struggling to rebuild
A global depression in the 1930s led to high unemployment and a sense of desperation in Europe
The Treaty of Versailles created bitterness among many nations

4. In this climate of post-war uncertainty, nationalism increased; more and more, citizens turned to strong totalitarian dictators to rule their nations

5. Totalitarian leaders are dictators who control all aspects of government and the lives of the citizens
Totalitarian leaders gained support by promising jobs, promoting nationalism, and using propaganda
Dictators held on to their power by using censorship, secret police, denying liberties, and eliminating opposing rivals or political parties

6. Among the first totalitarian dictators was Joseph Stalin of the Soviet Union

7. He used a secret police and the Great Purge to eliminate rivals
Stalin was Communist and seized all property, farms, and factories in order to control the economy and create equality
He used a secret police and the Great Purge to eliminate rivals

8. Stalin’s Five Year Plans and collective farms improved the Soviet Union’s industrial and agricultural output, but at great cost in Russian lives

9. Not all totalitarian dictators were Communists
In Italy, Germany, and Spain, people turned to an extremely nationalist type of government called fascism

10. Fascist governments were controlled by dictators who demanded loyalty from citizens
Fascists did not offer democracy and used one political party to rule the nation
But unlike Communists, fascists believed people could keep their property

11. Benito Mussolini and Adolf Hitler believed in fascism: the idea that nations need strong dictators, total authority by one party, but that people can keep private property (as long as they remain loyal)
In some ways, fascism was similar to communism. Both systems were ruled
by dictators who allowed only their own political party (one-party rule). Both
denied individual rights. In both, the state was supreme. Neither practiced any
kind of democracy. However, unlike Communists, Fascists did not seek a classless
society. Rather, they believed that each class had its place and function. In
most cases, Fascist parties were made up of aristocrats and industrialists, war veterans, and the lower middle class. Also, Fascists were nationalists, and
Communists were internationalists, hoping to unite workers worldwide.
Joseph Stalin was a Communist who believed that the government should control all property and business

12. In Italy, Benito Mussolini formed the Fascist Party

13. Mussolini gained popularity by promising to revive the economy, rebuild the military, and expand Italy to create a new Roman Empire

14. Mussolini named his Fascist Party after the fasces, a Roman symbol of authority and power

15. Mussolini created the Blackshirts (his own private army) to enforce the goals of his Fascist Party

16. By 1922, Mussolini was popular and powerful enough to lead a “March on Rome”, forcing the Italian king to name him prime minister of Italy

17. As prime minister, Benito Mussolini was known as “IL DUCE” (the chief)
Mussolini ended democracy and all opposition parties
Mussolini built up the military to create new jobs
He planned to conquer new territories in North Africa for Italy, creating a new Roman Empire

18. The Nazis were a fascist group in Germany that wanted to overthrow the weak Weimar Republic

19. Adolf Hitler was an early Nazi recruit and quickly rose to power in the party
Hitler was impressed by Mussolini and used many of his ideas to make the Nazi Party strong in Germany

20. For example, the Nazis created their own militia called the Brownshirts

21. The Nazis attempted a violent takeover of the local government in Munich, but Hitler was arrested and jailed for 9 months

22. While in jail, Hitler wrote Mein Kampf (My Struggle) which outlined his plans for Germany
Hitler wrote that Germans were members of a master race called Aryans and all non-Aryans were inferior subhumans
While in jail, Hitler wrote Mein Kampf (My
Struggle). This book set forth his beliefs and his goals for Germany. Hitler asserted that the Germans, whom he incorrectly called “Aryans,” were a “master race.” He declared that non-Aryan “races,” such as Jews, Slavs, and Gypsies, were inferior. He called the Versailles Treaty an outrage and vowed to regain German lands. Hitler also declared that Germany was overcrowded and needed more lebensraum, or living space. He promised to get that space by conquering eastern Europe and Russia.

23. Hitler also declared that Germans needed lebensraum (living space) and should get it by conquering Eastern Europe and Russia
He called the Versailles Treaty an outrage and vowed to regain land taken from Germany after World War I

24. When Hitler was released from jail in 1924, he spent years organizing the Nazis into Germany’s most powerful political party

25. In 1933, Hitler was named chancellor (prime minister) of Germany
As chancellor, Hitler used his power to name himself dictator

26. He called his government the Third Reich (3rd German empire) to promote pride and nationalism

27. Hitler put Germans to work by building factories, highways, weapons, and increasing the military

28. He created a new private army called the SS (Schutzstaffel, or “protective squad”) and a secret police called the Gestapo to eliminate rivals and control all aspects of Germany

29. In 1935, Hitler began a series of anti-Semitic (anti-Jewish) laws called the Nuremburg Laws that deprived Jews in Germany of the rights of citizens, forbade mixed German-Jewish marriages, and required Jews to always wear a yellow star

30. In 1938, Hitler ordered Kristallnacht (“Night of Broken Glass”), an organized series of attacks on Jewish people, their synagogues, and their businesses 30

31. After WWI, Japan was the strongest nation in Asia and was ready to conquer new lands in Asia and the Pacific to provide resources for Japanese industry
Emperor Hirohito gave full control of the Japanese military to Hideki Tojo, who served as a military dictator

32. Italy invaded Ethiopia and Albania
In the 1930s, Japan, Italy, and Germany began aggressively expanding into new territories; these actions led to World War II in 1939
Japan invaded Manchuria and northern China, then invaded Indochina and the East Indies
Italy invaded Ethiopia and Albania

33. Germany annexed Austria and Czechoslovakia
In the 1930s, Japan, Italy, and Germany began aggressively expanding into new territories; these actions led to World War II in 1939
Germany annexed Austria and Czechoslovakia

34.  Brooks Baggett Revamped and redone by Christopher Jaskowiak
Originally created by
Brooks Baggett