World War 1 (WW1)

World War 1 (WW1)

• Before WW1, the Triple Entente consisted of Great Britain, France, and Russia.
• The Central Powers were Germany, Italy, and Austria-Hungary.
• The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in June 1914 sparked the start of WW1.
• Italy switched from the Central Powers to the Triple Entente, also known as the Allies.
• Germany faced punishment via the Treaty of Versailles after the war.
• The Treaty of Versailles restricted the size of the German army and required Germany to return land and pay compensation to Britain and France.
• Austria-Hungary was divided into multiple countries.
• Poland was created from land split from Germany.

Effects of WW1

• There was a significant loss of young men.
• The loss of young men reduced the workforce needed to maintain profitable economies.
• Towns and cities faced widespread destruction.
• Destroyed infrastructure led to food and water shortages, causing malnutrition.
• WW1 began in 1914 because of the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand.
• Alliances caused heightened tensions between countries.
• The Triple Entente initiated war against the Central Powers.
• After 4 years, Germany surrendered and agreed to a ceasefire.
• The Treaty of Versailles, signed about a year after the ceasefire, penalized Germany with reparations and the loss of overseas territories.

Roaring 20's - America

Fun Facts

• Over 50% of Americans lived in urban areas.
• The sale of alcohol was illegal, leading to many illegal distributors.
• Women gained the right to vote in the USA in 1920.
• Electricity in homes increased from 20% to 70%.
• The number of cars in the US rose from about 10 million to 23 million, largely due to Henry Ford's production.
• Post-war, people had more disposable income for non-essential goods.
• The availability and quality of cars, telephones, and roads improved.

18th and 19th Amendments

• The 18th Amendment (Prohibition) prohibited the creation, sale, and transport of alcohol to reduce crime and corruption, but did not stop it.
• The 19th Amendment (Universal Suffrage) granted women equality and the right to vote on August 18th, 1920.
• Women started to reject traditional clothing styles, wearing shorter skirts and hair, and smoking and drinking, becoming known as 'Flappers'.

Great Depression – 1929-1933

• Rising unemployment due to decreased spending on non-essential items was an initial cause.
• Prices increased by 218% from 1922 to 1929.
• The government's price increases overwhelmed people who had little money.

Black Thursday

• The stock market crash began on October 24th, 1929, known as Black Thursday.
• Investors panicked as they lost money in the stock market.
• Brokers faced defaults when investors could not repay loans.
• The stock market began to recover on October 25th, 1929.
• The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped by 33% in 6 months.
• Decreased production of goods led to unemployment and business failures.
• Industrial production dropped by 50% by 1933.
• Unemployment reached 25% in 1933.

Hooverville

• President Herbert Hoover was initially praised but later criticized.
• Hoover decreased taxes and increased spending on public works.
• Unemployment and homelessness continued to rise.

The Dirty Thirties/Dust Bowl

• The dust bowl in Texas and Oklahoma was caused by poor farming practices.
• Strong dust storms covered towns, creating ghost towns.
• Affected people migrated to cities and faced unemployment.

Roosevelt and the New Deal

• Bank holidays were implemented to inspect banks.
• Monopolies in businesses were banned.
• Subsidies and minimum wages were introduced.
• Farmers were restricted in the number of crops they could grow.

Global Impacts – Germany

• Germany struggled after WW1, and the Great Depression further weakened the economy.
• Production of goods declined by 58%.
• Bank runs led to bank failures.
• Starvation was widespread because people could not afford food.

Global Impacts – Japan

• Japan was affected less severely, with the worst period from 1929 to 1931.
• Japan raised interest rates.
• Prime Minister Takahashi Korekiyo devalued the yen by 60% and increased government spending to stimulate the economy.
• Industrial production doubled in the 1930s.
• The government began purchasing new war material.

Totalitarianism – Germany, Italy and Japan

• Totalitarianism is a dictatorial system of government with complete control over private and public life.
• Totalitarianism requires complete loyalty to the state
• Totalitarianism restricts freedom of speech.
• Totalitarianism uses the military to enforce authority.
• Nations are more vulnerable to totalitarianism during war, natural disasters, and economic crises.

Fascism – Dystopian world

• Fascism is a set of beliefs and values attributed to a person or group.
• Fascism limits individual freedoms and promotes a single set of beliefs.
• Fascism targets enemies of the state to maintain unity.

Fascism – Germany

• Germany was susceptible to totalitarianism due to WWI losses, economic crisis, and a desire for leadership.
• Hitler rose to power and adopted the Hakenkreuz as the symbol.
• Hitler promised his totalitarian government would last 1000 years.
• Fascism prioritizes national superiority and punishes those who impede it.

Timeline 1918-1925

• 1918: Hitler joined the German Workers Party.
• 1920: The Nazi Party was formed.
• 1921: Hitler became the leader of the Nazi Party.
• 1923: The start of a national revolution.
• 1924: Hitler was jailed for 9 months where he wrote Mein Kampf.
• 1925: Mein Kampf was published; the Schutzstaffel (SS) was founded as Hitler’s personal bodyguards.
• 1933: The Gestapo started working for Nazi Germany.
• 1934: Hitler became Fuhrer after the past Fuhrer died.
• The Nazi Party created 25 points, called the National Socialist Program, focused on German nationalism and preparing for war.
• The Enabling Bill allowed the Nazi Party to pass laws without government approval.
• The Gestapo was the secret state police force which punished those who did not follow Nazi rules.
• The SS (Schutzstaffel) were Hitler's bodyguards, formed from voluntary workers.

Fascism – Italy

• Italy desired a dictatorship due to unemployment, economic crisis, and lack of national pride.
• 1921: Mussolini formed the Fascist Party.
• Benito Mussolini led Italy as a fascist dictator from 1922 to 1943.

Definitions

• Fascism is a political ideology with a dictator in power, controlling all aspects of life, suppressing dissent, and prioritizing national power.
• Authoritarianism is a system where a strong leader enforces strict obedience, limiting personal freedom.
• Dictatorship is a form of government where a single leader makes all decisions without input from others.
• Extreme nationalism is the belief that one's country is superior, justifying any action to ensure its dominance.
• The Gestapo was the secret police of Nazi Germany, enforcing Nazi policies through fear and violence.
• Communism is a system where the government controls all land, machinery, and resources, aiming for a classless society.
• Militarism is the belief in maintaining a strong military, prepared for defense or aggression.
• Imperialism is a policy where a powerful nation extends its control over weaker nations for its own benefit.

WWII

The Battle of Blitzkrieg

• The battle of Blitzkrieg was initiated by Germany to invade Poland.
• Blitzkrieg meant 'lightning war', aimed at quickly attacking Poland with heavy artillery.
• The war started in September 1940 and continued until May 1941.
• Great Britain and Germany did not begin direct involvement in the war until Poland had been invaded.
• Russia sided with Germany, dividing the conquered land.
• German aggression led other countries to intervene.
• Poland ceased to exist as it was divided between the USSR and Germany.
• Poland was invaded due to the effectiveness of the Blitzkrieg strategy.
• The Blitzkrieg strategy involved surprise attacks, overwhelming enemies before they could prepare.
• Germany had 1.5 million troops ready for battle.
• Germany had 2315 aircraft and 9000 guns.
• Poland had ~1 million troops but was unable to mobilize quickly.
• Poland had half the resources of the German military, and most were outdated.
• Stalin led Russia.
• The German forces suffered 14,000 dead or missing and 30,000 wounded out of 1,250,000 troops deployed.
• The Polish forces suffered 66,000 dead, 130,000 wounded, and 400,000 captured, out of approximately 800,000 troops.

Australian Prisoners of War

• 30,000 Australians were prisoners of war (POW) in WWII.
• 8,591 Australians were captured by the Germans.
• 97 of the 8,591 Australians captured by the Germans survived.
• Out of the 21,467 men captured by the Japanese, almost 8,000 died.
• The causes of death for Australians captured by the Japanese include: executions, beatings, slave labour, starvation, and disease.
• Australians captured by the Japanese were held in South-East Asia, Korea, and Japan.
• Japan had little respect for the rights of prisoners because they believed surrender was a disgrace deserving death.
• Able-bodied prisoners worked at least 12 hours a day with little food.
• Prisoners were forced to build projects like the Burma-Thailand railway.
• Prisoners were exposed to tropical diseases.

Sandakan Death March

• The Sandakan Death March occurred in North Borneo.
• Australian and British POWs were sent to construct an airport.
• It was the worst single atrocity in POW history.
• Prisoners were forced to march 260km to Ranau.
• Out of 3000 prisoners, 350 survived.
• The remaining 500 were sent with only 203 surviving the journey.
• 6 months later, in July 1945, there were only 30 POWs left, who were killed in August.
• Of the 3000 POWs 7 escaped.
• 6 out of the 7 POWs who escaped survived with the help of a nearby village.

South-East Asia

• The Japanese considered prisoners as disgraced for surrendering and were therefore mistreated.
• Prisoners were given small portions of food, not enough to survive.
• Executions were implemented for attempting to escape.
• Prisoners were sometimes paid in cigarettes, leading to an illegal black market.
• Punishments included beatings, confinement in bamboo cages and execution.
• Camps were disease-ridden due to malnutrition, poor sanitation, and overwork.
• There was a lack of hospital facilities and nurses for sicknesses and injuries.
• Some prisoners had medical training but barely any supplies.
• Mateship kept Australian and other POW's together, by sharing food and supplies.

The United Nations

• Before WWII, there was the League of Nations, but it failed to prevent WWII.
• After WWII, the United Nations was formed to create alliances between countries to prevent further wars.
• They sought to prevent future wars because of the catastrophic events of WWI and WWII.

The Geneva Convention

• The Geneva Convention was established to restrict what could occur in wars.
• The Geneva Convention restricted actions in war to protect innocent civilians and prisoners of war.
• The Geneva Convention was largely ignored during WWII, especially the war crimes committed by Nazi Germany and the Japanese military.

Nazi and other Fascist Crimes

• Racism was a major cause of WWII.
• Nazi Germany sought racial purity and persecuted Jews.
• The Germans targeted North African troops fighting for France, even after France's surrender.
• SS forces were ordered to kill Jews.
• Around 9 million Soviet soldiers and twice as many Soviet citizens died during the war.
• Of 5.7 million Soviet POWs in Nazi Germany's hands, almost two-thirds were murdered, starved, or worked to death at concentration camps.

The Holocaust

• The holocaust was the most systematic of all Nazi war crimes, aimed at eliminating European Jews.
• The killing of Jews escalated at the start of WWII, peaking from 1941 to 1945.
• Jews were forced into small areas where survival was a struggle.
• The Nazi forces used Mustard Gas to execute people, often enclosing Jews in sealed rooms or vans.
• The Nazi referred to the Holocaust as the ‘final solution to the Jewish problem’.
• Jews were detained in large camps with no personal belongings and destined to be killed.
• Gas chambers were disguised as showers.
• Over 6 million Jews were murdered.

End of WWII

• The end of WWII was characterized by vicious fighting as Japan and Germany were determined to continue the war.
• Germany retreated through Europe as Britain launched attacks.
• D-Day landings occurred on 5 beaches on the French coast, pushing Germany back and liberating Paris.
• The Allies tried to attack Berlin with the Soviets simultaneously attacking from the east.
• The Allies and the Soviets took over cities in Germany.
• Hitler and his partner committed suicide while in hiding.
• Germany signed an unconditional surrender in May 1945, ending WWII after 6 years.