The Interwar Years

The Interwar Years Unrest in Asia and Africa

1. China after World War I • The May Fourth Movement • In 1917 China declared war on Germany • They had hoped that after the war the Allies would give German controlled Chinese territory back to China • Japan got these territories under the Treaty of Versailles • The Chinese saw the treaty as a sign that the world still saw China as a weak nation

iii. On May 4, 1919, thousands of angry students in Beijing demanded change • The strikes and protests that followed became known as the May Fourth Movement

b. An Uneasy Partnership • Guomindang nationalist still had the support of some Chinese • Others thought that Communism was the best way to strengthen and modernize China • 1921, the Communist Part of China was formed

iii. Communists and the Guomindang formed an uneasy partnership • They worked together to fight the warlords of China • Made many gains by the early 1920s

iv. Led by Jiang Jieshi (a.k.a. Chiang Kai-Shek) continued to fight imperialism and warlords

v. Jiang will eventually turn on his communist allies vi. The partnership had expanded communist influence in China vii. 1927, Jiang had his armies attack Communists in several cities, killing thousands of people • This began the Chinese Civil War

C. The Long March i. Mao Zedong • Leader of the Communist Party of China • Tried to rebuild the organization • Was under pressure by the Guomindang

4. Led 100,000 Communist supporters on a 6,000 mile trek through China • Purpose of what is now known as the Long March, was to find a safe place for them in China that was outside the influence of the Guomindang • Only 8,000 survived

2. Changes in India • India and World War I • Some 800,000 Indians served with the British in WWI • This did not gain India any new freedoms from Great Britain

iii. 1919 • British passed the Rowlatt Acts • They allowed the British to deal harshly with the growing opposition in India • April 1919 • British soldiers opened fire into a crowd protesting in the city of Amritsar • Nearly 400 were killed • The Amritsar Massacre helped convince many Indians that they must rid themselves of their British rulers

b. Gandhi’s Protest • Mohandas Gandhi • Started organizing protests against Britain • Believed in two important concepts • Ahimsa (non-violence toward living things) • Civil disobedience (the refusal to obey unjust laws)

3. 1920, he began his boycotts against British rule • Encouraged Indians to boycott all British products 4. 1930, he launched a protest against the British monopoly on salt • This lead thousands to start to produce their own salt

c. Gandhi’s Progress • Inspired millions to resist British rule • 1935, the British Parliament gave Indians a limited degree of self-rule • This was far from the full independence Gandhi sought

3. The Middle East • Turkey and Ataturk • Treaty of Sevres • The Ottoman Empire agreed to give up control of much of its territory • Included the homeland of ethnic Turks • Allies planned to give these lands to Greece and other nations

ii. Kemal Mustafa • Led Turks to fight against the Allies for their homeland • Defeated Greek forces sent to claim their homeland • October 1923, Mustafa announced the establishment of the Republic of Turkey • Later became known as Kemal Ataturk (Father of the Turks)

iii. Ataturk • 1st president of Turkey • Sought to modernize the nation • Believed to achieve modernization, he had to end the influence of the Muslim religion on government and personal life • Made Turkey’s government completely secular (non-religious)

b. Persia • Reza Khan • Overthrew Persia’s shah in 1921 • Became shah in 1925 • Wanted to make Iran into a modern and fully independent nation • Sought to advance industry and to improve education • 1935, changed Persia’s name to Iran

c. French and British Mandates • Belfour Declaration • Issued in 1917 • The British government declared support for a Jewish homeland in Palestine, while respecting the rights of existing non-Jewish communities • Post war agreements set up French and British mandates in the Middle East

iii. France gained control of: Syria and Lebannon iv. Britain gained control of: Iraq and the Palestine mandate • 1921, British gave eastern part of the Palestine mandate to Abdulla, as the kingdom of Transjordan (Jordan) v. Will expand area population of Muslims and Jews vi. Will lead to religious tensions in the area that are still on going today

4. Nationalism in Africa • Nationalist Feeling Grows • Many believed they had earned their independence through their war effort • War effort also caused great economic hardships in Africa as well • Trade with Europe had dried up • Treaty of Versailles • No Africans were involved in the negotiations • European’s gave German colonies in Africa to other European nations

b. Working for Independence • Pan-African Congresses began in 1919 • Organized by people of African heritage living around the world • Led to a series of demands for African independence • North African Arabs took action to win independence in Egypt • Protests over arrests swept the country • Forced Britain to recognize that they could not maintain full control of Egypt • February 1922- Egypt gained its independence

The Great Depression

1. The U.S. Economy in the late 1920s • Economic Growth • American farms and factories supplied much of the world with the foods and supplies necessary to fight the war during WWI • Had steady economic growth throughout the 1920s • Much of this growth came in industry….i.e. automobiles • Success of American industry was reflected in the stock market

iv. Many Americans rushed to buy stock, so as to not miss out on the prosperity v. The increasing investment drove prices higher

b. Hidden Problems • Wealth was not distributed evenly • Easy availability of credit allowed Americans to increase their spending on consumer goods • Credit- the arrangement in which a purchaser borrows money from a bank or other lender and agrees to pay it back over time • By the end to the 1920s many consumers were reaching their credit limit and could no longer afford buying the products that had expanded the U.S. economy

c. The Stock Market Crashes • By the fall of 1929, consumer spending had slowed • Fears began to grow that stock prices might soon drop • By the end of October, some investors began selling off their stocks

iii. Black Tuesday • Occurred Oct. 29, 1929 • In a single day, investors had sold off 19 million shares • This flooded the market and stock prices collapsed • Many investors wee forced to sell stocks at a loss to repay their loans

3. This not only impacted the stock market but also the banks • Banks that had lent money to investors were in financial trouble as well 4. Crash delivered a blow to American industry as well

d. Overall Causes of the 1929 Stock Market Crash • Increasing speculation in the stock market • Stock prices at unrealistic levels • Declining consumer spending • Struggling businesses

2. The Depression Spreads • The Great Depression • The period that followed after the stock market crashed • American economy took a downward turn • Resulted from a number of complex factors

b. Industry slows • Industry slowing was one cause of the depression • Had begun before the crash but only grew worse afterwards • Workers lost jobs (1 out of 4 people were unemployed) • Consumer spending was reduced which only hurt the industry more • Bank failures • Meant people could lose their life savings • Many came to withdraw life savings, forced banks to close

c. Government Response • Herbert Hoover • U.S. President at the time of the crash • Did not believe government should interfere with the economy • Saw the crash as a healthy adjustment to the overheated economy • Eventually will put forth reforms but it was a little to late

d. Roosevelt Elected • Franklin Delano Roosevelt • Elected president in 1932 • Pushed for a program called the New Deal, in response to the Depression

3. Believed government spending could help start an economic recovery 4. New Deal • Established public works programs that gave jobs to the unemployed • Provided government money for welfare and other relief programs

e. New Economic Theories • John Maynard Keynes • A British economist • Believed government could limit or prevent economic downturns • Done by spending money, even if it created an unbalanced budget

3. The Worldwide Depression • Before the Crash • Some areas in the world were already having economic difficulties before the American stock market crashed • Countries in Europe were still struggling to recover after WWI • Many countries were in debt to the United States

iv. Great Britain • High interest rates led to decreased spending and high unemployment v. Germany • Steep reparations, led to severe inflation, making German money virtually worthless and crippled the economy vi. Japan Had a severe economic depression hit in 1927 that forced many banks to close

b. A Slowdown in Trade • 1930, President Hoover signed the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act • Placed heavy taxes on imported goods • It was an attempt to encourage Americans to buy goods and products made in the United States • Backfired, other countries raised tariffs on imported American goods • Result, world trade slowed to a stand still • This crippled many foreign economies

c. Political Impact • Postwar era had been challenging for many European governments • Difficult peace process and formation of new states life many countries politically unstable • Will lead to several new governments in places like Great Britain and France • Extremist political groups will gain strength in other countries as the economies worsened

Japanese Imperialism

1. Japan in the 1920s • Economic Challenges • Rapid industrialization in the late 1800s into the 1900s had created problems within society • Peasant and rural workers had not shared in the nation’s prosperity • After WWI ended many industries started to slow down • Businesses began laying off workers • Strikes and labor disputes increased in the 1920s

ii. Other Economic Challenges • Did not have the natural resources needed to supply modern industry • Forced to import these materials • Paid for these materials with their own products against foreign competion • Other countries had put tariffs on imports to protect their own products against foreign competition • Both of these factors will lead Japanese leaders to believe that they needed to expand

b. Social Change • New ideas from the West began to influence Japanese society • Democracy flourished • Political parties emerge • Adopted western fashion • Question traditional Japanese values • i.e Obedience and respect for authority • Conservative Japanese, resented these changes and believed that straying from traditional Japanese beliefs and interest had corrupted the country

2. Growing Military Influence • Foreign Relations • Military influence grew as public opposition to the Japanese government’s foreign policy increased • Civilian leader had made several treaties with the West to limit size of the Japanese navy • 1924, United States passed a law banning Japanese immigration • This deeply offended the Japanese and lead some to question their policy of cooperation with the west • Japanese public began to put its faith in their military

3. Japanese Aggression • Building a Fighting Spirit • WWI had shown that modern war would rely on technology and industrial power • Japanese realized they would have difficulty contending with the world powers • They did no have the industrial capacity • They had been forced to limit the size of their navy

iii. Japanese military leaders focused on creating the best soldiers to combat these two problems • Promoted the fighting spirit among the troops • Removed the words of surrender, retreat, defense from their training manual • These were no longer an option • Placed military personal in schools to instill the fighting spirit in the public as well

b. Taking Over the Government • A group of Japanese military leaders plotted to take over the government and put into place a military dictatorship • Believed aggressive nationalist leadership was vital to Japan’s future • During the 1930s Japanese soldiers and military leaders carried out assassinations of government officials • i.e. the prime minister and cabinet members • Japanese government slowly gave into the military’s demands for power

c. Conquering Manchuria • The Manchurian Incident • Happened in 1931 • Japanese military leaders decided to conquer Manchuria in northeastern China • Area was rich in natural resources like iron and coal • Many believed it would help free Japan from economic reliance on the west • Japanese public supported this action, civilian government was virtually powerless to stop it

6. Japanese troops will eventually set up a government in the region 7. Announced that Manchuria was a new state under Japanese control called Manchukuo

The Interwar Years