The+West+Between+Wars

__**1914-1939**__ __**Matt & Dolan**__ "Anyone who sees and paints a sky green and fields blue ought to be sterilized."

- [|Adolf Hitler]

After World War I many people were left unhappy with the conditions set at the Treaty of Versailles. The League of Nations had promise, but became very weak without the United States joining. The french also demanded strict following of the Treaty of Versailles. Germany owed 33 billion U.S. dollars to the French alone. In Germany many people went of strike leading to revolts and want of revolution. Inflation was skyrocketing faster than ever before.

Soon came the Great Depression. This happened because of a series of downturns in the economy and the international ties to the U.S. stock market crash. With many other countries invested in our __stocks__ it pulled almost the whole world into a depression. This caused the government to become greatly involved in the economy. This went across many traditions of countries leaving distance between the government and the economy.

With the world's bad economy people looked for definite answers. With this came the rise of Fascism, or the belief that the government is above the person. Mussolini was a great example of this in Italy. He suppressed all that were against him and soon gained all power of Italy. Lenin also introduced the "New Economic Policy" to Russia. This act saved the Soviet Union from a total economic disaster. His success came with a price though. Due to farming collectivization, up to ten __million__ peasants died during the famines of 1931 and 1932.

Timeline 1. 1922- Communists create the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. 2. 1924- __Hitler__ writes first volume of Mein Kampf. 3. 1925- Treaty of Locarno. 4. 1926- Mussolini creates a Facist dictatorship in Italy. 5. 1929- Stalin establishes dictatorship in Soviet Union. 6. 1929- The Great Depression begins. 7. 1932- Franklin Delano Roosevelt is elected president of the United States. 8. 1933- __Hitler__ becomes chancellor of Germany. 9. 1936- Spanish Civil War begins. 10. 1936- John Maynard Keynes's General Theory of __Employment__, Interest, and Money is published.

__**10 Important Terms:**__ __**5 Important People:**__ __**5 Links:**__ media type="custom" key="15419492" media type="youtube" key="tXgls-vOUtY" height="315" width="420" media type="custom" key="15419530"
 * **Depression:** A period of low economic activity and rising unemployment. This period began after the crash of the economy in Europe in 1924.
 * **Collective Bargaining:** The rights of workers to be able to negotiate with employers over wages and hour, this program was called the New __Deal__ in France and allowed a 40-hour workweek and minimum wage, etc.
 * **Deficit Spending:** Having to go into debt, this happened when the government financed a lot of different projects so that they could prosper.
 * **Totalitarian State:** Government that aims to control the political, economic, social, intellectual, and cultural lives of its citizens. This type of policy started in Russia during the 20's.
 * **Fascism:** A political philosophy that glorifies the state above the individual by emphasizing the need for a strong central government led by a dictatorial ruler.
 * **New Economic Policy:** A modified version of the old capitalist system where peasants were allowed to sell their products openly unlike the war communism.
 * **Collectivization:** A system in which private farms were eliminated, and instead, the government owned all of the land while the peasants worked it.
 * **Purges:** Removals of the Old Bolsheviks, who had been involved in the early days of the movement, led by Joseph Stalin who put most of these type of people to death.
 * **Reichstag:** The German parliament containing 800,000 member and was the largest Reichstag ever. Hitler created this after he was released from prison.
 * **Concentration Camps:** Large prison camps that were set up for people who opposed the new regime, including trade unions and all other political parties other than the Nazi's.
 * 1) **Joseph Stalin:** Russian dictator who seized control of Russia after Lenin died. He is responsible for the deaths of as many as 25 million people.
 * 2) **Adolf Hitler:** Leader of the Nazi party in Germany. He was sent to jail in 1923 and while he was there he wrote a book named Mein Kampf, or My Struggle. That book was the base of all of his anti-semetic ideas.
 * 3) **Benito Mussolini:** In the early 1920's, this man created the first European fascist movement in Italy. In a fascist state, people are controlled by the government, and any opposition is suppressed.
 * 4) **Franklin Delano Roosevelt:** President of the United States of America during the Great Depression and also during World War II. He also introduced the New Deal.
 * 5) **Heinrich Himmler:** Vice President to Hitler's Nazi Germany who ran the SS, which are basically Hitler's bodyguards. Later the SS became to control not only the secret police forces but the regular police forces as well.
 * The Great Depression: This link has all you need to know about The Great Depression. It has info on the timeline of events and some of the people that were involved and much more.
 * Nazi Germany This website has tons of information on Nazi Germany. It even has videos and biographies on many people that were involved.
 * Joseph Stalin Here is some great information on the Life of Joseph Stalin. It shows facts from when he ruled Russia way back when.
 * Benito Mussolini This is a great website on the Life of Benito Mussolini. It has info from his childhood and when he was the ruler of fascist Italy.
 * Adolf Hitler This link is a great way to find out more about Adolf Hitler. It has all you need to know about where he was born, what his beliefs were, and what he did as the Chancellor of Germany.