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Road to War: WWII Nationalism and Imperialism

Explore the causes of WWII, from the Treaty of Versailles and the Great Depression to the rise of totalitarianism and imperialism. Learn about Hitler's fascist regime, the alliance between Japan, Germany, and Italy, and the atrocities committed by Japan in Nanking. Discover the concept of Lebensraum and the discriminatory laws enacted against Jews in Nazi Germany. Finally, understand the failure of appeasement and Hitler's steps to war.

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Road to War: WWII Nationalism and Imperialism

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  1. Road to War: WWII Nationalism and Imperialism in Europe and Asia Causes of WWII

  2. How did we get to this point?

  3. CAUSES OF WWII

  4. 1. Terms of Treaty of Versailles • Reparation payments crippled Germany • Bitterness and anger lead to a desire for revenge – National Socialism • Strict terms made German compliance difficult. (War Guilt Clause, restricted military. • Creation of new countries like Czechoslovakia and Poland meant that many Germans were left living as minorities in new countries - ex. Sudetenland

  5. 2. Great Depression • Massive unemployment, many people could not support their families • Many supported dictators like Hitler and Mussolini because they promised opportunity • Poverty + Unemployment = Instability  extremist governments emerge

  6. German Hyperinflation

  7. 3. Rise of Totalitarianism Dictators • Totalitarian dictators control all aspect of society – education, military, politics, economy, art, etc. • Advances in technology allowed dictators to be able to control their populations more fully. • Allowed no opposition, used secret police to terrorize the population.

  8. Totalitarian Dictators Mussolini - Italy Gen. Franco - Spain

  9. More dictators… Hideki Tojo – Japan (not really a dictator) Josef Stalin - USSR

  10. And finally, Hitler’s version of fascism ~ Nazism

  11. Totalitarian Alliances Japan joins forces with both Hitler and Mussolini during World War Two 1936 – Rome-Berlin Axis 1939 – Nazi-Soviet Pact

  12. 4. Imperialism • Imperialism: Empire building in order to gain access to resources, land and financial wealth. • Imperialism was visible in the lead-up to WWII: • 1. Japan – Asia (Korea, China) • 2. Italy – Invasion of Abyssinia • 3. Germany – Poland

  13. 'Asia for Asians' • Japan tried to justify their imperialistic plans to take over Asia by claiming that they were 'saving' other countries from being taken over by the United States

  14. The Rape of Nanking • In 1937, Japan attempted to take over Nanking, another region of China • The Nanking Massacre is considered to be one of the worst war crimes of the 20th century • The casualty estimates exceed 300,000 while historians estimate that 80,000 women were raped, including infants and the elderly.

  15. Lebensraum – Living Space • Hitler was voted into power in 1933, on a political platform that was extremely nationalistic, anti-democratic, anti-semitic (hatred of Jews), and a desire to restore Germany’s military might • Hitler also believed in the superiority of the Aryan race – blond, blue-eyed, athletic (irony!) • He also believed that the Slavic peoples of Eastern Europe/Russia were inferior, and that Eastern Europe should be taken over so that the Germans could have more “living space” • This explains why he invaded Czechoslovakia/Poland first

  16. Hitler Youth & the Aryan Race

  17. Life in Nazi Germany • Hitler was able to pass the Enabling Act which gave him absolute authority to pass any law he chose. • Night of the Long Knives – Hitler ordered the murder of over 1000 people over the course of one weekend. These were all political opponents or potential threats • Nuremburg Laws – Hitler enacted discriminatory laws against Jews including the wearing of the Star of David, loss of property and careers, loss of citizenship, and the creation of ghettos where Jews were forced to live

  18. Life in Nazi Germany • 4. Kristallnacht – The Night of Broken Glass: Nazis encouraged citizens to attack and vandalize Jewish shops and property. People were beaten in public, and imprisoned • 5. The Gestapo (German secret police) and the SS became all-powerful. Children were also encouraged to join Hitler Youth • 6. All trust in society was lost, children were encouraged to spy and report their parents for crimes, and anyone could be imprisoned without reason

  19. 5. Appeasement – Failure of the League of Nations • Hitler watched as the League of Nations did nothing to stop Japan in Manchuria, or Italy in Abyssinia • From these experiences, he concluded that in the face of aggression, Britain and France would choose appeasementat all costs in order to avoid war • As a result, once he had achieved full power as Fuhrer in Germany, he set about expanding his empire and preparing for war.

  20. Hitler’s Steps to War… • 1. Remilitarization of the Rhineland • 2. Anschluss - Union of Germany and Austria • 3. Annexation (taking over) of the Sudetenland (border region of Czechoslovakia) – Munich Pact • “I have secured peace for all time” - Chamberlain • 4. Annexation of Czechoslovakia – Everyone now knew that appeasement as a policy had been a failure • 5. Nazi-Soviet Pact – Alliance with Stalin • Invasion of Poland – Start of WWII

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