Totalitarianism

Background Events Leading to World War II

• Totalitarianism emerged as a form of dictatorship in the 20th century, with absolute power held by one leader and only one ideology allowed.
• Secret police used extreme measures to instill fear, while censorship and propaganda were used to control the population.
• Italy's Benito Mussolini rose to power through the March on Rome, forming a totalitarian fascist state.
• Germany's Adolf Hitler blamed the Weimar Republic for the country's problems, rose to power through extreme nationalism and anti-Semitism, and promised to restore military might.
• Hitler was elected Chancellor in 1932 and passed the Enabling Act in 1933, giving him complete power and ending democracy in Germany.
• Hitler had 1,000 "enemies of the state" murdered in the Night of Long Knives and introduced laws and violence against Jewish people, leading up to Kristallnacht in 1938.
• The Gestapo were Hitler's secret police, serving the state under the Schutzstaffel (SS).
• Stalin's Soviet Union had a command economy, ending private ownership of land and investing in heavy industry.
• Stalin joined the League of Nations to protect the Soviet Union from becoming Hitler's target.
• The Great Terror of 1930 saw the execution of anyone considered an enemy of the state or objecting to communist rule.
• Totalitarianism and the rise of dictators with modern technology and control over populations were key factors leading up to World War II.
• Italy, Germany, and the Soviet Union were all governed by totalitarian leaders, with fascist and communist ideologies shaping their actions.

Think you know the background events leading up to World War II? Test your knowledge with our quiz on totalitarianism, dictatorships, and the rise of fascist and communist ideologies in Italy, Germany, and the Soviet Union. From the Night of Long Knives to the Great Terror of 1930, this quiz will challenge you to recall key moments and figures that ultimately led to one of the deadliest conflicts in human history.