Events 1900-1920

In 1900, the countries of Europe, the USA, and Japan dominated the world. They
were suspicions of each other, and made alliances with one another for safety. The
powers settled in two groups. The Triple Alliance linked Germany, the Austrian
Empire, and Italy. The Triple Entente brought together Britain, France, and Russia.
There was some previous tension in the area but what really triggered the First
World War happened in the Balkans. The Archduke Franz Ferdinand, next in line to
the Austrian throne, was assassinated in Sarajevo. Austria used this event as an
excuse to humiliate Serbia. Serbia resisted so Austria declared war on Serbia. Russia
mobilized its army so Germans declared war on Russia. War was also declared on
France, which was Russias ally. Germany was afraid that it could not win a war
against Russia and France, so they planned to quickly defeat France and then turn
on Russia. This was called the Schlieffen Plan. It nearly worked. When Germany
invaded Belgium to attack France, Britain (which had a treaty with Belgium) entered
the war on the side of France and Russia. The war in France (the Western Front) was
in deadlocks and neither side could find a way to break it. Germany had been trying
to starve Britain out of the war by using submarines to sink supply ships for two
years when it announced that their submarines would attack any ships, even those
from a neutral country. As a consequence, the USA entered the war in the side of
the Allies. After two revolutions, Russia pulled out of the war. Germans made a
mayor attack in France which finally broke through the trenches but were pushed
back by American troops. Germany realized they could not win the war, and that
invasion of Germany was only a matter of time. The Germans negotiated an
armistice with the Allies. On 11 November, 1918 the war was over. Germany
thought the peace treaty would be based on the Fourteen Points by Woodrow Wilson
but the peace treaty was imposed on losers by victors. Many of the terms of the
treaties seemed unfair to the losers, especially for Germany, and they were to cause
much trouble in Europe in the next 20 years.
The Effects of the First World War
The treaty imposed on the losers was called Treaty of Versailles. The main things
the Germans objected were:

The Diktat: The treaty was dictated, not negotiated.

War guilt and reparations: Germans were forced to accept that the war
was their fault. They were also forced to pay reparations, money to
compensate the Allies for the cost of the war Germany had caused.
Loss of territory: German land was taken and given to other countries.
Disarmament: The treaty limited the size of the German army and navy.

Events 1919- 1936

In 1920, the problem was how to turn peace into stability. Industry needed to find
new things to make. Women had grown used to new independence during the war,
and did not want to go back to the old ways. The physical damage of war needed
repairing and land needed to be made safe for farming. In the western world, the
key problems were created by the economy. There was unemployment and poverty.
Following the Wall Street Crash of 1929 was a depression spread from the USA to
Europe. In some countries, democracy was not strong enough to survive this
challenge and it was replaced with dictatorship. Communism and Fascism were
political systems which both offered solutions to the economic problems of the time,
but very different ones.

Mussolini and Fascist Italy

Most Italians were not happy with the treatment they got at the end of the war.
They blamed their government for being too weak. Promises made to encourage
recruiting during the war were broken, and there was much unemployment. Groups
of ex-soldiers took over factories or country estates. Communists organized a
general strike but it was a failure. Fascists, led by Benito Mussolini, were very
violent. The violence of the fascist group, the Blackshirts, beat up opponents and
burned down the buildings of parties or newspapers which disagreed with them. The
fascist group was gaining power. They announced a march on Rome. The
government asked the king to proclaim martial law, and had enough loyal soldiers
easily to have stopped the Blackshirts. The king at first agreed then refused.
Instead, he invited Mussolini to become Prime Minister. Mussolinis government
developed three features. It was a dictatorship. Mussolini ruled the country himself
with no real part in decision-making for any parliament. New roads were built, major
agricultural changes were made, and industry was encouraged. Violence still played
an important part in fascist politics: opponents were beaten up or murdered, while
the fascist thugs were not punished.
Hitlers Germany
The Nazi party had few seats in the German Parliament (Reichstag) during the
relatively prosperous 1920s. When the Depression started, however, support for the
Nazi grew. Hitler became an important politician. Nazis used normal methods of
politicians: speeches, marches, books. They also used violence and intimidation.
Hitler did not actually come to power through violence, however. He was invited to
become chancellor by President Hindenburg. Hitler found an excuse to suspend the
constitution. The Reichstag building had been burned down and the Nazis blamed
the Communists and said this was the start of a major attack on Germany. Hitler
proposed Enabling Law which stated he could govern for 4 years without the
approval of the Reichstag. Hitler created a totalitarian state. It controlled almost all
aspects of life through Gestapo. The Propaganda Ministry controlled newspapers,
radio, and films. They taught that the Germans were Aryans, race destines to
dominate the world. The race should not become adulterated with that of slave
races. They blamed the Jews for most of Germanys problems.
Events 1931-1939
A number of countries had aggressive foreign policies during the 1930s. The
increase in warlike feelings was seen as being linked with the growth of Fascist and
other undemocratic political system. The first sizeable war was the Japanese
invasion of Manchuria in 1931. During the late 1930s the world was clearly not at
peace.
Events 1939-1945
When war broke out in 1939, Poland was quickly defeated. In the spring of 1940,
Germans had captured Denmark, Norway, the Netherlands, and Belgium. France
surrendered and was divided in two: a German occupied area and Vichy France- part
of the South ruled by a government acceptable to the Germans. Germans were
defeated by Britain in the Battle of Britain. Germany began a massive invasion in
Russia. The USA declared war on Germany and Japan. Atomic weapons were used
and the dangers of the split of the world into Communists and Non- Communists
blocs, and the danger of nuclear war marked the end of war.

Events 1945- 1986: The Super-powers

Before the Second World War, Western Europe had seemed to dominate world
affairs; ever since 1945, the dominant countries have been Russia and the United
States. Relations between the Western powers (led by the USA) and the East
European states (led by Russia) were so hostile that they are referred to as the Cold
War. The main reason was the difference in political ideas. Super-powers have been
keen to see their own political systems used in other countries. This has led to
conflicts and crises. The super- powers have competed for world leadership in a
variety of ways. In the space race, the Russians were the first to put a manned
spacecraft into orbit; the USA landed men on the moon in 1969. The Russians were
the first to establish an earth- orbiting space station; the USA was the first to
develop a reusable spacecraft- the space shuttle. They have also competed in the
arms race. In the Third World, the Americans have prevented most attempts to
create communist governments in South America. The USA and Russia agreed to
hold Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT). The USA, Russia, Great Britain, France,
and China signed a Nuclear Non- Proliferation Treaty which it was hoped would stop
the spread of nuclear weapons. The movement towards arms control has led to
talks at Geneva since 1984 and the summit between President Reagan and Premier
Gorbachev.
Propaganda
It is a fairly normal human reaction to try to get other people on your side.
Countries at war often spread stories about their opponents. Propaganda is the
deliberate spreading of stories or ideas which are intended to influence what people
think. The enemy could be made to seem utterly evil; problems could be minimized
while successes were concentrated on. Propaganda could also be used on other
countries, justifying the war and trying to get those countries to join in.