East Meadow U.F.S.D.

Curriculum Area Project2011

Grades 11-12 – World at War

Supervisor: Timothy SteimerSchool: East Meadow High School Superintendent: Louis R. DeAngeloPrincipal: Richard HowardSubject: Social Studies

ABSTRACT

The purpose of "World at War" is for the opportunity to present the students how and why wars have occurred throughout history. The students will have the opportunity to learn how incidents, inventions, and policies have led to wars that have forever altered the way that we have lived.

The "World at War" is a half year Social Studies Elective that is open to students in grades 11-12. This course meets Social Studies Standards two through six.

RATIONALE

The “World at War” will focus on 20th century history, with the main focus of the class being World War I, World War II, and the Cold War. This course will allow us to get a more in depth analysis on the cause and effects of each of these events, as well as the time necessary to create projects and analyze media from both primary and secondary sources about these events. The goal of the class will be for us to comprehend and analyze the impacts of these events have impacted the US and the World through the 20th and into the 21st century, and analyze how these events impact world affairs today.

Table of Contents

Introduction to the World at War Timeline of Ethics in War Timeline of Medicine in War (PowerPoint Presentation Included) Timeline of Communication in War (PowerPoint Presentation Included)

World War One Overview Europe in the 19th Century (PowerPoint Presentation Included) Causes of WWI - MANIAC (PowerPoint Presentation Included)

1. Alliances of Europe 2. Timeline leading to WWI

The Assassination of Archduke Francis Ferdinand (PowerPoint Presentation Included)

1. Serbia Challenged The Excitement & Expectations of War

1. Nations at War Map - December 31, 1914 How did the fighting in WWI lead to a stalemate?

1. Schlieffen Plan Map2. Technology (PowerPoint Presentation Included)3. Uniforms (PowerPoint Presentation Included

Trench Warfare (PowerPoint Presentation Included)1. Art of Trench Warfare2. Christmas Truce3. Life in the Trenches4. Poems from the Trenches

Russia & WWI1. Russia during WWI (PowerPoint Presentation Included)2. Russian Revolution Key Players & Terms3. Russian Revolution Timeline4. Russian Revolution - "Ten Days that Shook the World"5. Russian Revolution - Vladimir Lenin6. Russian Revolution - Josef Stalin

The Entry of the United States1. WWI & US (1914-17)2. Sinking of the Lusitania3. Zimmerman Telegram4. Pros & Cons of US Entry5. US Entry6. Propaganda

How the War was Won1. Armistice

Who is to Blame?

1. Wilson's Fourteen Points2. Treaty of Versailles3. Was Germany Really to Blame for WWI?

Results of WWI1. A Turning Point2. Horrors of War3. A "War-less" world?

World War Two Overview The Rise of Japan

1. Militarism The Rise of Italy

1. Fascism The Rise of Nazi Germany

1. Failure of Weimar Republic2. Adolf Hitler3. Life in Nazi Germany

- Nuremberg Laws- Can Ordinary Germans Kill?- Nazi Economic Policy- 1936 Olympics

4. The Failure of the World to Intervene (Appeasement) - The Occupation of the Rhineland- Evian Conference- Munich Conference

5. Nazi-Soviet Nonaggression Pact6. Invasion/Occupation of Poland & Beginning of WWII

Early Battles of WWII1. Successes & Failures of Allies & Axis Powers

US & USSR Entry1. Nazi-Soviet Nonaggression Pact Broken2. Bombing of Pearl Harbor3. Turning Points of the European Campaign

Mistakes of the Nazis1. Significance of 1943

Allied Powers Win1. Key Battles2. The Decision to Drop the Atomic Bomb

Results of WWII1. Atrocities of the War2. Nuremberg Trials3. Japan 4. Yalta & Potsdam Conferences

Cold War

Overview "Iron Curtain" Speech

1. US Response - Private & Public2. Stalin's Response

The Atomic Age Germany - Hot Spot

1. Berlin Airlift Death of Stalin

1. Khrushchev Comes to Power2. Destalinization & Peaceful Coexistence

Cold War Battlegrounds1. Kitchen Debate2. China3. Korean War4. Space Race5. Vietnam6. The Olympics7. Cuban Missile Crisis8. The Berlin Wall

The USSR 1945-79 - Trouble in the USSR The USSR 1980-91 - The Inevitable Fall Results of the Cold War

Ethics of, Medicine in & Communications in War

Thesis: Many people have never understood why there have been certain rules participants in war adhere to as well as how war has promoted growth in the fields of the medicine and communication.

Objectives Students will be able to understand how and why the ethics of war has evolved

throughout history. Students will be able to describe why communication and medicine has become so

important during wartime.

Procedure Students will be asked if there any rules to a "fair fight". Students will be asked why are communication devices are so important in their lives? Students will be asked how has medicine progressed from the times of their ancestors to

now. Students will share their responses and views the timelines and slides that accompany the

lesson Students will be asked to answer the following questions:

1. Why is it important to have rules in war?2. What are the benefits of being able to communicate both verbally and nonverbally at all times?3. How has medicine allowed people to stay alive on and off of the battlefield?

Timeline of Ethics of War

700 BCE - Book of Deuteronomy sets out the first religious restrictions on the conduct of war

100 - The white flag is used for surrender in both Han China & the Roman Empire

632 - Abu Bakr becomes the first caliph of the Muslim world & instructs his army on conduct

1139 - Pope Innocent II bans the use of the crossbow against Christians

1207 - The Council of Toulouges proclaims the Truce of God by prohibiting violence initially on Sundays & holy days

1625 - Hugo Grotius publishes On the Law of War and Peace: Three Books

1856 - The Paris Declaration Respecting Maritime Law abolishes privateering

1863 - The International Red Cross is founded in Geneva

1864 - The First Geneva Convention governs the care of the wounded soldiers on the battlefield. The red cross becomes the symbol to identify people and equipment governed by the convention

1888 - The St. Petersburg Convention renounces the use of fragmentary, explosive or incendiary ammunition

1899 - The First Hague Convention agreed

1907 - The Second Hague Convention agreed

1925 - The Geneva Protocol to the Hague Convention bans all forms of chemical & biological warfare

1928 - The Kellogg-Briand Pact attempts to outlaw war

1945 - The United Nations is founded

1945-46 - The International Military Tribunal tries Nazi war criminals at Nuremberg

1947 - The UN agrees Nuremberg Principles defining war crimes

1948 - The UN Convention on the Prevention & Punishment of the crime of genocide

1972 - A Biological Weapons Convention agreed

1984 - The UN Convention Against Torture

1993 - The Chemical Weapons Convention

1997 - Ottawa Treaty bans the use of land mines

2000 - The UN General Assembly outlaws the use of child soldiers

2002 - The International Criminal Court is set up The Hague Netherlands, to try cases of genocide, war crimes & crimes against humanity

Timeline of Medicine in War

1100 – Blessed Gerard founds the Knights Hospitaller Order in Jerusalem

1487 – Large bedded wagons consisting of 40 horses, ambulancias, are used to carry wounded Spanish soldiers

1517 – German surgeon Hans von Gersdoff publishes Feldbuch der Wundarzney (Fieldbook of Surgery)

1536-37 – French surgeon Ambroise Pare treats wounds with turpentine ointment

1564 – Pare writes Treatise on Surgery, promoting the closing of arteries during operations

1585 – The Spanish army of Flanders sets up Europe’s first dedicated military hospital at Mechelen in Belgium

1800 – Dominique Jean Larrey adapts French “flying artillery” carriages as “flying ambulances” and mans them with trained drivers and crews

1847 – Russian surgeon Nikolay Ivanovich Pirogov tests ether as an anesthetic on himself and then uses it in field hosptials in the Caucasus

1853 – French surgeon Charles Gabriel Pravaz & Scottish physician Alexander Wood independently invent the hypodermic syringe, enabling morphine to be injected for pain relief

1862 – US Civil War, Jonathan Letterman uses triage in the forward first-aid stations

1863 – The Red Cross is founded, with the First Geneva Convention of 1864; helps limit the number of deaths in battle

1867 – English surgeon Joseph Lister pioneers the use of antiseptics in surgery, greatly reducing deaths from infection

1919 –The International Federation of Red Cross & Red Crescent Societies is founded

1944 – The antibiotic penicillin goes into mass production.

1945 – Helicopters “medevac” troops wounded fighting the Japanese

1991 – Gulf War Syndrome begins to affect combat veterans of the first Gulf War. A possible cause id the use of depleted uranium in anti-tank rounds. This would appear again for veterans of the 2nd Gulf War in 2003.

Timeline of Communications in War

405 BCE – Ancient Greeks use flashing shields to send messages in battle

100 CE – The Romans begin to use a semaphore along lines of watchtowers

1250 – The Mongols begin to send messages via horseback on a daily basis – 300 miles

1653 – British Royal Navy begins to use flag signals during battle

1795 – Britain begins to use a semaphore system to communicate messages from major ports to London

1837 – First electric telegraph is invented by Samuel Morse & Alfred Vail.

1847 – Morse code is used in telegraphs

1860 – The US Army Signal Corps is established

1867-68 – British Royal Navy begins to use naval communication via signal lamps

1876 – The telephone is invented

1898 – Field telephones are used by the US Army in the Spanish-American War

1905 – Japanese Naval Fleet uses radio tracking the Russian Navy in the Russo-Japanese War

1914-18 – WWI – Radio transmissions are used in the land and sea

1942 – WWII - The Walkie-Talkie is used

1964 – The US Navy uses the first satellite navigation system, TRANSIT

1969 – The US Defense Department develops the ARPA Net (Advanced Research Projects Agency Network). This the forerunner for the World Wide Web and Internet

1991 – The success of Operation Desert Storm demonstrates the effectiveness of JSTARS (Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System) an airborne and control system.

World War One

The causes of World War One can be traced back to the nineteenth century at Congress of Vienna after the French Revolution. During this time, Europe was held together by a fragile peace that would have its resolve tested numerous times by revolutions, diplomacy and war. However, by the beginning of the twentieth century, Europe was on the brink of a war that would have untold ramifications for many years to come.

The war would usher in a new age where countries who once led the world would now give way to a new world power, the United States. World War One would completely change the way wars would be fought in the twentieth and twenty first centuries as well as reveal to the world the true nature of war.

Europe in the 19th Century

Thesis: World War One was inevitable event that began in 1815 at the Congress of Vienna.

Objectives Students will be able to identify and describe the events of the 19th century that led to

WWI. Students will be able to understand why WWI was inevitable.

Procedure Activity - Notes & PowerPoint Slides Key Questions:

1. What would throw any balance of power off?2. How did France take advantage of Germany opting not to re-sign their peace agreement with Russia? What position would Germany be in during WWI?

Aim: How did the state of Europe in the 19th century lead to World War One?

French Revolution- Congress of Vienna - Meant to create a balance of power in Europe by ignoring the concept of nationalism. Germany and Italy are divided until separate movements in 1861 and 1871. - Nationalism is a very big theme of the 19th century as nationalist movements occur throughout Europe.- Concert of Europe - Original members: Russia, Austria, Germany & United Kingdom. Meant to preserve peace in Europe despite the numerous European revolutions in 1848 and battles that occurred afterwards. Existed until WWI.

German Unification- Otto von Bismarck - Unites the 39 independent states through blood and iron. Went to war with Austria, France .- Franco-Prussian War - Started because France objected to Prince Leopold of the House of Prussia getting the royal throne in Spain. - Bismarck would edit the telegram to raise the tensions between Germany & France. - France was defeated due to superior firepower & military strategy.- France was forced to surrender and pay 5 million francs to Germany for reparations and lost the Alsace-Lorraine.- France would be bitter over its loss and the fact that Germany was now a world power.

Crisis in the Balkans - Russia & the Ottoman Empire have been battling for over 200 years b/c the Russians want to have a presence to protect the Orthodox Christians from the Ottoman Sultan and other Middle Eastern powers. - Crimean War (1853-56) - Ottoman victory b/c of support from Great Britain & France. A poorly fought war on both sides. Russia is weakened in SE Europe & the Black Sea- Russo-Turkish War (1877) - Russians go back into the Ottoman Empire to defend their people from Ottoman rule. The Russians would fight their way into Constantinople where the Sultan sued for peace. - The Ottoman Empire would lose European territory which led to its consequential expulsion from Europe. However, the major European powers objected to this and divided up the lost territory to maintain balance (In actuality, Europe is afraid of Russia having more influence). Ottoman-Empire becomes the "sick man of Europe" and A-H manages to upset the Serbs b/c of their presence in Bosnia, Russia continues to aid Serbs at this time. - The division of the Ottoman Empire after this conflict leads to the assassination of the Archduke of A-H in 1914.

Emperor's League- An informal alliance between Austria-Hungary, Germany & Russia which would guarantee assistance against a fourth power (most likely France). Created by Bismarck- Despite this agreement all 3 countries had allegiances to other countries in times of conflict, the Emperor's League would suffer and eventually break apart.- The only thing that would exist after the collapse was an agreement btwn Germany & Russia to help each other. However, Germany would not resign the treaty after 1890 and it would lead to France & Russia becoming allies and the eventual creation of the Triple Entente.

Europe 1900-14

Thesis: The political, social and economic relations between Europe in the 19th & 20th centuries led to WWI.

Objectives Students will be able to identify and describe the multiple causes that led to WWI.

Procedure Activity - Notes & PowerPoint Slides Key Questions

1. Who was the stronger European nation, Germany or Britain? Why?2. Do you think that Europe was looking for a reason to go into a war?

Aim: What was Europe like before 1914? How did the relations between the European nations during the 18th & 19th centuries lead to WWI?

“Europe stumbled and staggered into war”- Lloyd George on WWI

Militarism- Glorifying the war and military- Nations measured their power by the strength of their military- Industrial revolution creates new technology for weapons – Created an arms race- Tensions high between Germany and Britain – “Who is the stronger nation?”- Increase in military spending per country until 1914

Percentage Increase in Military Spending 1890-1913 Size of Peacetime Army 1914

Britain 117 430,000France 92 970,000Russia 19 1,500,000Germany 158 760,000Austria Hungary 160 480,000

Alliances- Defense agreement amongst nations- Otto von Bismarck created the Three Emperor’s League in 1873 – Consisted of A-H, Russia & Germany. Meant to isolate France. Alliance falls apart due to tension between A-H & Russia- 1882 – Italy, Germany & A-H form the Triple Alliance – Italy drops out before the start of the war and is replaced by Ottoman Empire “Sick Man of Europe”- 1894 – France & Russia agree to a military alliance- 1904 – France & England agree to an entente (Cordial understanding)- 1907 – England, France & Russia form the Triple Entente

Nationalism- Pride in one’s country- German unification makes them a powerful European nation – Threatened balance of power in Europe- Franco-Prussian War – France lost land, money and pride to Germany. Wanted revenge- Pan Slavism – Slavic nationalism encouraged by Russia and discouraged by A-H. Discouraged by A-H because it would undermine the power of A-H. Encouraged by Russia because Russia protected Serbia.

Imperialism- Expanding the empire- European nations competing for land and resources

Assassination of Archduke Francis Ferdinand- “The spark”- Archduke of A-H killed by a Serbian nationalist group, the Black Hand

- A-H blamed Serbia and forces an ultimatum which Serbia refused. A-H declared war on Serbia. WWI begins

Europe Before 1914: The Main Powers

Triple EntenteName Head of State Allies DisputesBritain King George V (1901-

1936)Constitutional Monarchy

France, Russia Naval arms raceeconomic rivalry with Germany

France President Raymond PoincaireParliamentary Democracy

Britain, Russia Wanted the return of the provinces of Alsace and Lorraine from Germany

Russia Tsar Nicholas II (1894-1917)Monarchy

Britain, France Rivals with Austria for control of the BalkansStrained relations with Britain.

Triple AllianceGermany Kaiser William II (1888-

1918)Constitutional Monarchy

Italy, Austria- Hungary.

Rivals with France over Alsace, Britain over her navy.

Austria- Hungary

Kaiser Franz Joseph (1848-1916)Constitutional Monarchy

Italy, Germany Rivalry with Russia over the Balkans, Territorial disputes with her ally, Italy

Italy King Victor Emmanuel III (1900-1946)Constitutional Monarchy

Austria, Germany

Disputes with France in North Africa Large Italian communities lived in the Austrian Empire.

The Death of Archduke Francis Ferdinand

Thesis: The death of Archduke Francis Ferdinand was the inevitable event that led to World War One. However, war could've been avoided through diplomacy.

Objectives Students will be able to explain the circumstances that led to the death of the Archduke. Students will be able to identify and describe the reasons why diplomacy failed and war

would begin.

Students will be able to identify how terrorism can be traced to the early 20th century.

Procedure Activity - Notes & PowerPoint Slides Students will read the article "Serbia Challenged" and be asked why this article damaged

any chance for diplomacy to overcome the threat of war.

Aim: What led to the death of Archduke Francis Ferdinand? What was the response of both Austria-Hungary & Serbia?

Circumstances- Tensions were high between Serbia & A-H- Ferdinand was picked as the target on March 26, 1914 when it was discovered that he would be in Serbia for military maneuvers June 28, 1914. Ferdinand decided that he also wanted to tour the city.- The assassination was inspired by a failed attempt against a governor of Bosnia in 1910 who treated the Serbs poorly.

- Danilo Ilić was the mastermind behind the assassination. He brought in Gavrilo Princip (another member of the nationalist group The Black Hand) and others to carry out the assassination under assumed identities of three customs agents.- First attempt - Toss a bomb at the car Ferdinand was in. The bomb bounced off of the car and went under another car, wounding 20 people. The assassin would take a cyanide pill that did not kill him and was eventually captured.- Assassination - Ferdinand wanted to see the wounded victims in the hospital. The driver was not told of the change of plans and followed the original instructions. Princip would shoot Ferdinand in the jugular and his wife in the abdomen. He would be a short time later and stated that he did not want to kill his wife but the Governor.- Others involved in the shooting would be captured a short time later trying to escape. After the assassination, anti-Serbian rallies took place until order was established by the military.- A-H would issue an ultimatum that stressed cooperation with the Serbian government. Serbia refused to comply. - It was believed that the Serbian government knew of the assassination as early as May of 1914 and even established the Black Hand as a front to carry out the assassination.- Trial - Oct 12, Oct 23, 1914 - Charges against the accused ranged from conspiracy to commit high treason involving official circles in the Kingdom of Serbia. Conspiracy to commit high treason carried a maximum sentence of death which conspiracy to commit simple murder did not.- The trial lasted 11 days and the verdict was read on Oct 28, 1914. Princip would be sentenced to 20 years in prison because he was too young to receive the death sentence. Danilo Ilić would be executed in February 1915. Sentences for those involved ranged from serving time to execution. - By this time, World War One had begun.

Serbia ChallengedAustria-Hungary's response to the death of the Archduke Francis Ferdinand

A grave international crisis has been precipitated by the Austro-Hungarian ultimatum to Serbia. The Austro-Hungarian Note, is in substance a violent indictment of Serbia. The Note made the following principal demands:

(1) That the Serbian Government give a formal assurance that it condemns Serb propaganda against the Monarchy

(2) That a declaration expressing this condemnation be published on the front page of the Serbian Official Journal of Sunday next

(3) That the declaration shall also express regret that Serbian officers and officials participated in the anti-Austrian propaganda

(4) That the Serbian Government promises to proceed with the utmost rigor against all who may be guilty of such machinations

(5) That this declaration be simultaneously communicated by the King of Serbia to his Army as an order of the day, and be published in the Official Bulletin of the Army

(6) That Serbian publications which incite to hatred and contempt of Austria-Hungary be suppressed

(7) That a society styled the Narodna Obrana (National Union) be dissolved and its means of propaganda confiscated

(8) That teachers and methods of education in Serbia which tend to foment feeling against Austria, Hungary be eliminated

(9) That all officers and officials guilty of propaganda against Austria-Hungary be dismissed from the Service, the Austro-Hungarian Government reserving itself the right to communicate to Serbia the names and doings of such officers and officials

(10) That representatives of Austria-Hungary shall assist Serbia in suppressing in Serbia the movement directed against the territorial integrity of the Dual Monarchy and take part in the judicial proceedings on Serbian territory against persons accessory to the Sarajevo crime

(11) That Serbia furnish the Austro-Hungarian Government with explanations in regard to the utterances of high Serbian officials in Serbia end abroad who ventured to speak ill of the Austro-Hungarian Government after the Sarajevo crime

(12) That the execution utterances of the foregoing measures be notified immediately to the Austro-Hungarian Government

(13) That the Serbian reply to this Note be made by 6 o'clock on Saturday evening at latest.

The Expectations of World War One

Thesis: The expectations and opportunity to fight in the "Great War" blindsided what war really was about.

Objectives Students will be able to identify and describe the early beliefs of the war. Students will be able to understand why people from both sides wanted to fight in the

war.

Procedure Students will read the article "The Excitement of War" and answer the questions at the

end of the article. Students will share their answers Students will be asked to describe the pros and cons of fighting in a war.

The Excitement of War

The incredible outpouring of patriotic enthusiasm that greeted the declaration of war at the beginning of August 1914 demonstrated the power that nationalistic feeling had attained at the beginning of the twentieth century. This selection is taken from the autobiography of Stefan Zweig, an Austrian writer who captured well the celebration of war in Vienna in 1914.

“The next morning I was in Austria. In every station placards had been put up announcing general mobilization. The trains were filled with fresh recruits, banners were flying, music sounded, and in Vienna I found the entire city in a tumult....There were parades in the

street, flags, ribbons, and music burst forth everywhere, young recruits were marching triumphantly, their faces lighting up at the cheering….

As never before, thousands and hundreds of thousands felt what they should have felt in peace time, that they belonged together. A city of two million, a country of nearly 50 million, in that hour felt that they were participating in world history, in a moment which would never recur, and that each one was called upon to cast his small self into the glowing mass, there to be purified of all selfishness. All differences of class, rank, and language were flooded over at that moment by the rushing feeling of fraternity. Strangers spoke to one another in the streets, people who had avoided each other for years shook hands, and everywhere one saw excited faces. Each individual was part of the people, and his person, his hitherto unnoticed person, had been given meaning….

What did the great mass know of war in 1914, after nearly half a century of peace? They did not know war; they had hardly given it a thought. They still saw it in the perspective of their school readers and paintings of the museums; brilliant cavalry attacks in glittering uniforms, the fatal shot always straight through the heart, the entire campaign a resounding march of victory – “We’ll be home at Christmas,” the recruits shouted laughingly to their mothers in August of 1914….The young people were honestly afraid that they might miss this wonderful and exciting experience of their lives; that is why they hurried and thronged to the colors, and that it is why they shouted and sang in the trains that carried them to the slaughter.”

1- Why was war received with such enthusiasm in Europe in 1914?

2- Why were the people ignorant of what war was really about?

3- How do the feelings that people in our country today have about war compare to the feelings described in this feature?

Germany at the Outbreak of War

1- Who do you think is indicated at the circle of the picture?

Europe Before 1914: The Main Powers

Triple EntenteName Head of State Allies DisputesBritain King George V (1901-

1936)Constitutional Monarchy

France, Russia Naval arms raceeconomic rivalry with Germany

France President Raymond PoincaireParliamentary Democracy

Britain, Russia Wanted the return of the provinces of Alsace and Lorraine from Germany

Russia Tsar Nicholas II (1894-1917)Monarchy

Britain, France Rivals with Austria for control of the BalkansStrained relations with Britain.

Triple AllianceGermany Kaiser William II (1888-

1918)Constitutional Monarchy

Italy, Austria- Hungary.

Rivals with France over Alsace, Britain over her navy.

Austria- Hungary

Kaiser Franz Joseph (1848-1916)Constitutional Monarchy

Italy, Germany Rivalry with Russia over the Balkans, Territorial disputes with her ally, Italy

Italy King Victor Emmanuel III (1900-1946)Constitutional Monarchy

Austria, Germany

Disputes with France in North Africa Large Italian communities lived in the Austrian Empire.

Fighting the War

Thesis: Both sides believed that the war would be over within six months. However, the failure of Germany's Schlieffen Plan, created a stalemate and a new way of fighting the war.

Objectives Students will be able to identify and describe how wars were fought before 1914. Students will be able to explain why the Schlieffen Plan was a failure. Students will be able to describe the significance of the Battle of the Marne.

Procedure Activity - Notes & PowerPoint Slides of Uniforms & technology used before and during

WWI. Key Questions:

1. Why do you think technology and uniforms changed during WWI?2. What are the reasons why the Schlieffen Plan failed?3. How did the Battle of the Marne change the way that the war was fought?

Nations at War: December 31, 1914

Aim: How did the tactics of WWI lead to a stalemate?

Fighting the War- Old fighting tactics were still being used – Horses, bright colored uniforms and new technology (machine guns, submarines, airplanes, tanks, grenades, flame throwers, mustard gas, trench warfare) would create a new style of fighting- Stalemate – A stand still- Propaganda – Ways to gain attention, make the opponent worse than they are

What are some ways to win a war?- Produce more weapons, supplies, gaining support of the people

- Schlieffen Plan – Germany’s war plan- Meant to end the war in six weeks- Go after France first and then attack Russia (Thought that the Russians would not be ready after attacking France – Russia mobilized strictly to attack A-H and the Germans went after Russia)- Go through neutral Belgium (Allowed British entry into the war) to enter France

Plan failed because:1. Poor command – Original plan was altered numerous times(Von Moltke was in charge of the German Army at the time)2. Poor timing3. Did not expect resistance from French & British4. Russians were prepared earlier than expected

GERMANS WERE UNABLE TO ADVANCE!!!

Battle of the Marne- Germany was unable to take over France- France resisted and pushed Germans back 50 miles from France- Battle signified that the war would be a long one and Germany gave up on the Schlieffen Plan- Trench Warfare would become the way to fight the war on the Western Front (Area between France & Germany)

Schlieffen Plan Map

Trench Warfare

Thesis: Trench Warfare would change the way that the war would be fought. Life in the trenches would take a physical and emotional toll on the soldiers during the war.

Objectives Students will be able to identify and describe the conditions that soldiers had to endure

while staying in the trenches. Students will be able to explain shell shock and its effects on the soldiers.

Procedure Activities - Notes, PowerPoint Slides, reading poems from soldiers describing the horrors

of war and life in the trenches, listening to the song "One" by Metallica & watching the film "All Quiet on the Western Front"

Students will analyze the impact that life in the trenches had on the soldiers. Students will discuss why the horrors of war could not be revealed to the public.

Life in the Trenches

Shell Shock

By 1914 British doctors working in military hospitals noticed patients suffering from "shell shock". Early symptoms included tiredness, irritability, giddiness, lack of concentration and headaches. Eventually the men suffered mental breakdowns making it impossible for them to remain in the front-line Some came to the conclusion that the soldiers condition was caused by the enemy's heavy artillery. These doctors argued that a bursting shell creates a vacuum, and when the air rushes into this vacuum it disturbs the cerebro-spinal fluid and this can upset the working of the brain.

Some doctors argued that the only cure for shell-shock was a complete rest away from the fighting. If you were an officer you were likely to be sent back home to recuperate. However, the army was less sympathetic to ordinary soldiers with shell-shock. Some senior officers took the view that these men were cowards who were trying to get out of fighting. As a result of shell shock, many officers committed suicide, disobeyed orders and deserted their posts.

Letter Writing

Soldiers were also encouraged to write letters to friends and family in Britain. Most men decided it would be better to conceal the horrors of the trench warfare. As a result of the Defense of the Realm Act that was passed in 1914, all letters that the men wrote should have been read and censored by junior officers. Some officers could not bring themselves to read their men's letters and they arrived in Britain unaltered.

Mustard Gas

Poisonous gases were known about for a long time before the First World War but military officers were reluctant to use them as they considered it to be an uncivilized weapon. The gas destroyed the respiratory organs of its victims and this led to a slow death by asphyxiation. The most lethal of all the poisonous chemicals used during the war, was mustard gas. It was almost odorless and took twelve hours to take effect. Yperite was so powerful that only small amounts had to be added to high explosive shells to be effective. Once in the soil, mustard gas remained active for several weeks. This was the earliest form of chemical warfare. However, after the war, it was banned from being used.

Poison Gas Deaths: 1914-1918Country Non-Fatal Deaths TotalBritish Empire 180,597 8,109 188,706France 182,000 8,000 190,000United States 71,345 1,462 72,807Italy 55,373 4,627 60,000Russia 419,340 56,000 475,340Germany 191,000 9,000 200,000Austria-Hungary 97,000 3,000 100,000Others 9,000 1,000 10.000Total 1,205,655 91,198 1,296,853

 British Gas Casualties: 1914-18 Deaths Non-FatalChlorine 1,976 164,457Mustard Gas 4,086 16,526

1- What were some of the horrors of life in the trenches?

2- Recall the “The Excitement of War”, do you think that soldiers knew what they were in for once the war began?

OneMetallica

I Can't Remember Anything Darkness

Can't Tell If this Is True or DreamDeep down Inside I Feel to Scream Imprisoning MeThis Terrible Silence Stops Me All That I SeeNow That the War Is Through with Me Absolute HorrorI'm Waking up I Can Not See I Cannot LiveThat There's Not Much Left of Me I Cannot DieNothing Is Real but Pain Now Trapped in Myself

Body My Holding CellHold My Breath as I Wish for DeathOh Please God, Wake Me Landmine

Back in the Womb it's Much Too Real Has Taken My SightIn Pumps Life That I must Feel Taken My SpeechBut Can't Look Forward to Reveal Taken My HearingLook to the Time When I'll Live Taken My ArmsFed Through the Tube That Sticks in Me Taken My LegsJust like a Wartime Novelty Taken My SoulTied to Machines That Make Me Be Left Me With A Life in HellCut this Life off from Me

Hold My Breath as I Wish for DeathOh Please God, wake Me

Now the World Is Gone I'm Just OneOh God, help Me Hold My Breath as I Wish for DeathOh Please God Help Me

The Christmas Truce

“We won’t fire if you won’t fire”.

“Time and again during the course of that day, the Eve of Christmas, there were wafted towards us from the trenches opposite the sounds of singing and merry-making, and occasionally the guttural tones of a German were to be heard shouting out lustily, ‘A happy Christmas to you, Englishmen!’ Only too glad to show that the sentiments were reciprocated, back would go the response from a thick-set Clydesider, ‘Same to you, Fritz, but dinna o’er eat yourself wi’ they sausages!’ They finished their carol and we thought that we ought to retaliate in some way, so we sang ‘The First Noël’, and when we finished that they all began clapping; and then they struck up another favorite of theirs, ‘O Tannenbaum’. And so it went on. First the Germans would sing one of their carols, and then we would sing one of ours, until when we started up ‘O Come All Ye Faithful’ and the Germans immediately joined in singing the same hymn to the Latin words ‘Adeste Fidéles’. And I thought, well, this was really a most extraordinary thing – two nations both singing the same carol in the middle of a war.”

“What a sight – little groups of Germans and British extending almost the length of our front! Out of the darkness, we could hear laughter and see lighted matches, a German lighting a Scotchman’s cigarette and vice versa, exchanging cigarettes and souvenirs. Where they couldn’t talk the language, they were making themselves understood by signs, and everyone seemed to be getting on nicely. Here we were laughing and chatting to men whom only a few hours before we were trying to kill!”

"It is thought possible that the enemy may be contemplating an attack during

Xmas or New Year. Special vigilance will be maintained

during these periods."

From General Headquarters at St. Omer - to all units 24 December, 1914.

Poems from the Trenches

Siegfried Loraine Sassoon CBE MC (8 September 1886 – 1 September 1967) was an English poet, author and soldier. Decorated for bravery on the Western Front, he became one of the leading poets of the First World War. His poetry both described the horrors of the trenches, and

satirized the patriotic pretensions of those who, in Sassoon's view, were responsible for a pointless war.

*CBE MC - Received the Order of the British Empire & Military Cross for acts of bravery during the war/

"Dreamers"Soldiers are citizens of death's grey land,

Drawing no dividend from time's to-morrows. In the great hour of destiny they stand,

Each with his feuds, and jealousies, and sorrows.

Soldiers are sworn to action; they must win Some flaming, fatal climax with their lives. Soldiers are dreamers; when the guns begin

They think of fire lit homes, clean beds, and wives.

I see them in foul dugouts, gnawed by rats, And in the ruined trenches, lashed with rain.

Dreaming of things they did with balls and bats, And mocked by hopeless longing to regain

Bank-holidays, and picture shows, and spats, And going to the office in the train.

"The Redeemer"Darkness: the rain sluiced down; the mire was deep;

It was past twelve on a mid-winter night,When peaceful folk in beds lay snug asleep;

There, with much work to do before the light,

We lugged our clay-sucked boots as best we mightAlong the trench; sometimes a bullet sang,

And droning shells burst with a hollow bang;We were soaked, chilled and wretched, every one;

Darkness; the distant wink of a huge gun.

I turned in the black ditch, loathing the storm;A rocket fizzed and burned with blanching flare,

And lit the face of what had been a formFloundering in mirk. He stood before me there;

I say that He was Christ; stiff in the glare,And leaning forward from His burdening task,

Both arms supporting it; His eyes on mineStared from the woeful head that seemed a mask

Of mortal pain in Hell’s unholy shine.

No thorny crown, only a woolen capHe wore—an English soldier, white and strong,

Who loved his time like any simple chap,Good days of work and sport and homely song;Now he has learned that nights are very long,And dawn a watching of the windowed sky.

But to the end, unjudging, he’ll endureHorror and pain, not uncontent to die

That Lancaster on Lune may stand secure.

He faced me, reeling in his weariness,Shouldering his load of planks, so hard to bear.I say that He was Christ, who wrought to blessAll groping things with freedom bright as air,

And with His mercy washed and made them fair.Then the flame sank, and all grew black as pitch,

While we began to struggle along the ditch;And someone flung his burden in the muck,

Mumbling: ‘O Christ Almighty, now I’m stuck!’

Wilfred Edward Salter Owen MC (18 March 1893 – 4 November 1918) was an English poet and soldier, one of the leading poets of the First World War. His shocking, realistic war poetry on the horrors of trenches and gas warfare was heavily influenced by his friend Siegfried Sassoon and stood in stark contrast to both the public perception of war at the time.

"Anthem for the Doomed Youth"

What passing-bells for these who die as cattle?Only the monstrous anger of the guns.Only the stuttering rifles' rapid rattle

Can patter out their hasty orisons.

No mockeries now for them; no prayers nor bells;Nor any voice of mourning save the choirs, –The shrill, demented6 choirs of wailing shells;And bugles calling for them from sad shires.

What candles may be held to speed them all?Not in the hands of boys but in their eyes

Shall shine the holy glimmers of goodbyes.The pallor of girls' brows shall be their pall;

Their flowers the tenderness of patient minds,And each slow dusk a drawing-down of blinds.

1- Anthem - An important religious song (often expressing joy); here, perhaps, a solemn song of celebration 2- Passing-bells - A bell tolled after someone's death to announce the death to the world 3- Patter out - Rapidly speak 4- Orisons - Prayers, here funeral prayers 5- Mockeries - Ceremonies which are insults. Here Owen seems to be suggesting that the Christian religion, with its loving God, can have nothing to do with the deaths of so many thousands of men 6- Demented - Raving mad 7- Bugles - A bugle is played at military funerals (sounding the last post) 8- Shires - English counties and countryside from which so many of the soldiers came 9- Candles - Church candles, or the candles lit in the room where a body lies in a coffin 10- Pallor - Paleness 11- Dusk has a symbolic significance 12- Drawing-down of blinds - Normally a preparation for night, but also, here, the tradition of drawing the blinds in a room where a dead person lies, as a sign to the world and as a mark of respect. The coming of night is like the drawing down of blinds.

The Art of Trench Warfare

French document describing German trench building techniques.

Diagram of a dug-out as being used by the Austrians in the photo above

1- What do these pictures describe? Do you think that this way of fighting allowed the war to be fought quicker or was it a long drawn out process?

Russia & WWI

Thesis: Due to alliance agreements, Russia would have to fight in WWI. However, Russia was not prepared to fight in this war due to lack of support at home and inability to keep up with the

times. The decision of Russia to join the war, would lead to the Tsarist rule and usher in a new government that would last for over seventy years.

Objectives Students will be able to identify the key players of the Russian Revolution. Students will be able to describe the problems that existed in Russia before WWI. Students will be able to explain how Tsarist rule in Russia would come to an end and

how Vladimir Lenin would come to power. Students will be able to explain why Russia had to drop out of WWI. Students will be able to identify and describe how Vladimir Lenin and Josef Stalin led

the Soviet Union.

Procedure Activities - Notes, PowerPoint Slides, Reading "Ten Days that Shook the World" Key Questions:

1. Why did Russia drop out of WWI?2. What problems existed in Russia during the early 20th century?3. How was Vladimir Lenin able to come into power?4. How did Russia shift from a predominantly agricultural nation to an industrial power?5. How did Josef Stalin rule the Soviet Union?

The Russian Revolution

Key Players- Tsar Nicholas II – Last Tsar of Russia

- Alexander Kerensky – Replaced Nicholas. Led Provisional Government- Vladimir Lenin – Brought communism to Russia. Died in 1924- Leon Trotsky – Worked closely with Lenin. Opposed to Stalin and his ideas, exiled from the Party in 1929. Killed in 1940 by an assassin hired by Stalin in Mexico.- Joseph Stalin – Succeeded Lenin after his death. Served as Secretary General of the Party for Lenin. Used various tactics to eliminate all rivals and ruled through fear.

Terms to Know- Bloody Sunday – Peaceful demonstration calling for reform. Turned violent after Tsar Nicholas feared an uprising. Many people were killed and faith in the Tsar was lost.- October Manifesto – Tsar announces reforms and new freedoms after Bloody Sunday.- Duma – Russian legislature created by the Tsar. Must approve all laws and dissolved after they criticized the Tsar. Would come back in a lesser role.- Provisional Government – Created after Nicholas abdicated the throne. Led by Alexander Kerensky and would only be in power for six months because of its decision to stay in an unwinnable war as well as the growing popularity of Vladimir Lenin.- Bolsheviks – Minority. Small party of revolutionaries using force to bring change.- Mensheviks – Majority. Believed that Russia should develop into an industrial state with a stable working class before a social revolution could occur.- Soviets – Council of workers and troops. Worked within the government.- “Peace, Land & Bread” – Lenin’s slogan to gain support for the revolution.- New Economic Policy – 1921. Lenin’s plan to nationalize industries. An economic disaster, with the exception of a few private businesses doing well.- Great Purge – Stalin accusing and punishing millions of people for crimes against the government. Many were exiled, imprisoned and murdered.- Russification – Glorify state through promoting Russian history, language and culture. Allowed Russians to control the USSR – Republics, government positions and secret police.- Command Economy – Government makes all economic decisions.- Five Year Plans – Attempt to industrialize and increase agriculture in the Soviet Union. Ignored consumer goods. The Soviet Union remained poor, shortages were created and mass produced goods of low quality. Led by Stalin.- Collectives – State owned farms operated by peasants as a group. Government created quotas for people to meet. People resisted and Stalin had them arrested, exiled or executed.

Timeline of the Russian Revolution

1905 January - Bloody Sunday - Tsarist troops open fire on a peaceful demonstration of workers in St Petersburg.

1905 October - General Strike sweeps Russia which ends when the Tsar promises a constitution.

1906 - The promised parliament, the Duma, is dissolved when it produces an anti government majority even though elected on a narrow franchise.

1911-1914 - A new wave of workers unrest ends with the outbreak of the First World War

1917 February - After several days of demonstrations in Petrograd (formally St Petersburg) the government orders troops to open fire. The next day these troops mutiny. The Tsar abdicates when he hears that Moscow too has joined the Revolution.

1917 July 3-4 - Trotsky arrested. Lenin goes into hiding. A new provisional government is set up with Kerensky at its head (8th).

1917 September - The Bolsheviks win control of the Petrograd Soviet.

1917 October - The Bolsheviks overthrow the Provisional government

1917 October 26-27 - Soviet proclamations on land and peace.

1917 October 30 - Kerensky repulsed outside Petrograd. Lived in exile until his death in 1970.

1917 November 2 - Bolsheviks gain Moscow

1917 November 8 - Vladimir Lenin was formally elected as the head of the new Soviet state

1917 November - Russian Civil War begins*

1918 March - The Bolsheviks accept the dictated peace of Brest-Litovsk from Germany.

1919 - White Armies attack the Bolsheviks from all directions but the Red Army is finally victorious and turn the tide of the Civil War.*

1922 December 29-30 - Russia formally declares itself the Soviet Union (USSR)

1924 January 24 - Lenin dies. A power struggle will begin between Trotsky, Stalin, Kamenev and Zinoviev. Stalin emerged victorious.

* During 1917-1921 Russia is engaged in a civil war between the Reds (Communists) and the Whites (Allied Forces, Russian Military Forces)

Ten Days that Shook the World

John Reed was an American journalist who helped found the American Communist Labor Party. Accused of treason, he fled the United States and went to Russia. In Ten Days that Shook the World, Reed left an eyewitness account of the Russian Revolution. He considered V.I. Lenin the great hero of the Bolshevik Revolution.

John Reed, Ten Days that Shook the World

It was just 8:40 when a thunderous wave of cheers announced the entrance of the presidium, with Lenin- great Lenin-among them. A short, stocky figure, with a big head set down in his shoulders, bald and bulging. Little eyes, a snobbish nose, wide, generous mouth, and heavy chin. Dressed in shabby clothes, his trousers much too long for him. Unimpressive, to be the idol of a mob, loved and revered as perhaps few leaders in history have been…

Now Lenin, gripping the edge of the reading stand, letting his winking eyes travel over the crowd as he stood there waiting, apparently oblivious to the long-rolling ovation, which lasted several minutes. When it finished, he said simply, “We shall now proceed to construct the Socialist order!” Again that overwhelming human roar.

“The first thing is the adoption of practical measures to realize peace….We shall offer peace to the peoples of all the warring countries upon the basis of the Soviet terms – no annexations, no indemnities, and the right of self-determination of peoples….This proposal of peace will meet with resistance on the part of the imperialists governments- we don’t fool ourselves on that score. But we hope that revolution will soon break out in all the warring countries; that is why we address ourselves especially to the workers of France, England and Germany….”

“The revolution of November 6th and 7th,” he ended, “has opened the era of the Social Revolution….The labor movement, in the name of peace and Socialism, shall win, and fulfill its destiny….”

There was something quiet and powerful in all this, which stirred the souls of men. It was understandable why people believed when Lenin spoke.

Aim: Who was Vladimir Lenin? How was he able to lead the Russian Revolution?

Read "Ten Days that Shook the World", handout timeline and Russian Revolution terms and its key players.

- Born Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov on April 22, 1870.- Lenin’s original conversion to Marxism stemmed from a profound sense of disappointment and disdain for Tsarist rule.- The death of Lenin's father (stroke) and the death of Lenin's brother for participating in an assassination attempt against the Tsar's life sparked his hatred for the Tsar and desire to study Marxism. His sister was exiled for her role in the assassination attempt.- "We will follow a different path" - A slogan that came from a famous painting by a Russian artist would represent the Marxist revolution but the image of Lenin and his mother over a slain brother. - Lenin was arrested and exiled numerous times by the Tsarist government for his political views.- Lenin gained more recognition and influence in and out of Russia for his Marxist views and even lived in Finland to ensure his safety. While living in Finland, Lenin was able to travel to other countries and spread the Marxist views.- WWI - Lenin saw his chance to head back to Russia and to begin the revolution. He would receive help from Swiss Communists to return to Russia by way of Germany to begin the revolution.- He would be met with opposition from Alexander Kerensky by being accused of being a German agent. Lenin would fail in his first attempt (July 1917) to bring down the Provisional Government and had to head back to Finland to avoid arrest.- Leon Trotsky would defend Lenin and criticize the Germans and deny any ties to the German government. - Lenin would return in October 1917 and remove the Provisional Government under the slogan "All Power to the Soviets!". - Lenin would proclaim "Peace, Land & Bread" and gain the necessary support to take over the Provisional Government.- Lenin's agenda once in power consisted of:

1. Socializing the health care system2. The emancipation of women3. Teaching illiterate people to read and write4. Remove Russia from WWI (#1 priority)

- Lenin also survived an assassination attempt on his life (he was shot in the shoulder and lungs) in January 1918. - It was believed that it had a long-term effect on his body over the last six years of his life.- Despite objections of a treaty, Lenin agreed to the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk on March 3, 1918- Lenin ordered a trial for the Tsar but due to the White Army making considerable progress towards the Tsar's location. The Tsar and his family were executed before a trial could take place.- Lenin also created the Secret Police at this time to instill fear in the people and obedience to Lenin.

- Through the civil war and various policies, Lenin spread the communist revolution to various parts of Eastern Europe that was met with both success and failure.- New Economic Policy - Proposed by Lenin that kept the Soviet economy from collapsing after years of civil war and failed policies. - Allowed some aspects of capitalism (keep excess to allow some profit can be made) in order to keep Soviet economy afloat but quotas had to be met for the government- Mainly an agricultural policy but the Soviet Union had to industrialize - Had some level of success but ended once Lenin had died. Would be replaced by Stalin's Five Year Plans- Lenin's Death - Never fully recovered from assassination attempt in 1918 and was plagued with insomnia, stress and suffered a few strokes.- Lenin had a speech that would condemn Stalin (feared the power he attained as Secretary General and had insulted Lenin's wife and children) and his future plans for the Party. Unfortunately, Lenin's letter would not be heard to the Party because of a stroke that he had that took him out of Soviet politics and he would die a short time later.- Lenin's death led to a power struggle between Stalin and Trotsky with Stalin ultimately winning

Joseph Stalin “Second Bolshevik Revolution”

Aim: How did Stalin enforce his rule over the Soviet Union?

Background- Born Josef Vissarionovich Djugaskvili May 17, 1872- Mother – Always able to get Stalin out of trouble w/ her “charm”. Rumored that Stalin’s

father on the birth certificate isn’t really the father- Grew up in a violent neighborhood and household – Abusive father- Left arm damaged after an accident with a carriage- Nicknames – “Soso” & “Koba” – Would use these names in poetry & letters to friends- Studied to be a priest – Marxism would keep him from finishing- Poet, writer, singer, and ladies man – 2 known illegitimate children - Began using the name “Stalin” in 1912 and adopted “Stalin” as his surname in 1917- Career criminal – Organized robberies, murders, beatings, protection rackets, and

kidnappings that caught the attention of Lenin (Though robberies were looked down upon) – Made money for the Party

- Imprisoned & exiled for crimes – Would escape prison and exile- Nicknamed “Doctor of Escapology” – Used disguises to avoid capture - Became suicidal after the death of his first wife – Ignored his son, Yakov, and focused on

the revolution to get over his wife.

Rise to Power- Met Lenin in 1905 – Despite his flaws in appearance, Stalin was awestruck by him- Gradually became part of Lenin’s inner circle - Met people who would help him gain influence and prestige at communist rallies. Most

of these people would be eliminated once he came into power – No longer served a purpose to him

- Almost expelled from the Party in 1907 for his role in a bank robbery (mastermind), but not by Lenin – Stalin claimed that the expulsion never happened, nor did he have a role in the bank robbery – Lenin never believed the expulsion or the bank robbery

- His ties to the Tsarist police allowed him to eliminate enemies as well as get information. However people within the Party were suspicious of him. Was able to recruit members of the Tsarist police

- Stalin & Trotsky never liked each other – Stalin believed that Trotsky was “Pretty but useless”

- Stalin’s role in the Party was Secretary General – Made him dangerous because he operated behind the scenes and had all of the information he needed on enemies and allies

- Lenin feared Stalin’s growing influence and wanted him out of the Party after an argument with Lenin’s wife

- Lenin’s stroke allowed Stalin to take advantage of the Secretary General position. Stalin removed his enemies and non-supporters

Totalitarian State- One party dictatorship

- Stalin had an authoritarian state (no opposition)- People forced to obey or else they would be eliminated

- Instill economic and political terror- Succeeded in industrialization of the USSR, eliminate all enemies of the state

- Made himself to be all knowing & create the state as a source of happiness- Russification- Glorify state through promoting history, language and culture. Allows

Russians to control USSR- Republics, gov’t positions & secret police

Five Year Plans- Economic goals to improve the Soviet Union- Create a mood of constant crisis (theory of communism)- Strong emphasis on all projects- Command Economy- Place all industrial and agricultural production under gov’t

control- Gov’t determines what & how much of something that people need- Agricultural- Collectivization- State owned farms operated by peasants as a group- Gov’t created quotas for people to meet- Eliminate private farms and place farmers together- Take away any chance of private

profit- Results- Resistance to collective farms, famine & class warfare- Kulaks- Successful

peasants who opposed collectivization- Stalin had them eliminated- Industry- Stalin wanted to create the USSR into an industrial powerhouse- Maximize production-

Heavy machines- Quadrupled production of heavy machines & doubled oil production- Labor force expanded & worked under tough conditions- Prevented police from moving, wages decreased- To prevent unrest, the gov’t used

propaganda stressing the need for sacrifice in order to strengthen the USSR

Purges- Stalin accusing millions of people for crimes against the gov’t- People were either exiled or executed- Stalin wanted complete control of the party- Stalin’s enemies were considered “enemies of the state”- Enemies consisted of army

officials, diplomats, union officials, party members, intellectuals & ordinary citizens- Show Trials- Courtroom settings where people were forced to admit that they were an

enemy of the state- Propaganda machine

Why Did Stalin Carry Out Such Policies?1. To ensure order & stability2. Eliminate the old and replace them with faithful followers to Stalin- Create the party

to his image3. Eliminate non-Russian elites- Wanted all Russian administration (Russification)4. Stalin’s psyche- Twisted, paranoid & insecure over his status

The Entry of the United States into WWI

Thesis: Since the beginning of the war, the United States was neutral. However, its actions before 1917 indicated that they wanted to get involved and all that the US needed was a reason.

Objectives Students will be able to identify the stance the US took when WWI broke out. Students will be able to describe how the US favored the Allies during the war. Students will be able to explain how President Woodrow Wilson prepared for war while

staying neutral. Students will be able to identify and describe why the US entered the war. Students will be able to explain the role propaganda played in the war. Students will be able to describe how the war was fought on the homefront.

Procedure Activities - Notes, PowerPoint Slides, Handouts "WWI & the US 1914-17", "Zimmerman

Telegram", "Sinking of the Lusitania", "Pros & Cons of US Entry" Activity - Create own propaganda poster Key Questions:

1. Should all countries who participated in the war be considered "belligerent"?2. What was the stance of the US when war broke out?3. What was the purpose of the Zimmerman Telegram?4. What was the US afraid of leaking to the public about the sinking of the Lusitania?5. How did Wilson prepare for war from 1914-17?6. How did the entry of the US help the Allies?7. How did propaganda play a role in the war?8. How was the war fought at home?

Sinking of the Lusitania

1- What incident was this referring to?

2- What does the picture indicate will happen in the future?

The Zimmerman Telegram

1- What do you think the purpose of this picture is?

WWI & the United States 1914-19171914 - Wilson's view of the War - "Strictly a European crisis"

US Policy on Loans to the Belligerents (1914)

"Morgan Company of New York have asked whether there would be any objection to their making a loan to the French Government and also the Rothschilds -- I suppose that is intended for the French Government."

—Secretary of State Bryan to President Wilson, August 10, 1914

"There is no reason why loans should not be made to the governments of neutral nations, but in the judgment of this Government, loans by American bankers to any foreign nation which is at war are inconsistent with the true spirit of neutrality."

—Secretary of State Bryan to J. P. Morgan and Company, August 15, 1914

1- Under the "true spirit of neutrality", should have the all countries who were involved in the war be considered "belligerent"?

US Policy on Loans to the Belligerents (1915)

"Can we afford to let a declaration as to our conception of "the true spirit of neutrality" made in the first days of the war stand in the way of our national interests which seem to be seriously threatened?"

—Secretary of State Lansing to President Wilson, September 6, 1915

2- What event occurred that started to change how the US viewed "the true spirit of neutrality"? Why would it change the definition?

January 2, 1916 Preparedness MovementWilson launches nationwide whistle-stop campaign to generate support for Preparedness with three speeches in New York. Wilson called for the creation of "the greatest navy in the world" but also urged widespread military training for civilians, lest someday the nation be faced with "putting raw levies of inexperienced men onto the modern field of battle."

June 3, 1916 The National Defense Act authorizes five-year expansion of U.S. Army, but at the same time drastically limits size and authority of U.S. War Department General Staff. The National Defense Act of 1916 authorized an increase in the peacetime strength of the Regular Army over a period of five years to 175,000 men and a wartime strength of close to 300,000.

November 9, 1916 Woodrow Wilson wins reelection under the slogan "He kept us out of war."

3- What do you think is Wilson's objective?

January 31, 1917Germany officially breaks her promise and announces resumption of unrestricted U-boat warfare.

February 3, 1917U.S. severs relations with Germany.

February 24, 1917Great Britain releases Zimmermann Note to U.S.

March 29, 1917Wilson publicly calls for a national army to be “raised and maintained exclusively by selective draft.”

April 6, 1917U.S. declares war on Germany

"American participation in the war against Germany would constitute the most tremendous and profitable coup in the history of American finance. The war created 21,000 new American millionaires and during the war period, 69,000 men made more than three billion dollars over and above their normal income."

—John Kenneth Turner, Shall It Be Again? 1922

Arguments Supporting & Opposing the United States Entry into World War One

Woodrow Wilson's War Message April 2, 1917"…I am not now thinking of the loss of property involved, immense and serious as that is, but only of the wanton and wholesale destruction of the lives of noncombatants, men, women, and children, engaged in pursuits which have always, even in the darkest periods of modern history, been deemed innocent and legitimate. Property can be paid for; the lives of peaceful and innocent people cannot be. The present German submarine warfare against commerce is a warfare against mankind.

It is a war against all nations. American ships have been sunk, American lives taken, in ways which it has stirred us very deeply to learn of, but the ships and people of other neutral and friendly nations have been sunk and overwhelmed in the waters in the same way. There has been no discrimination. The challenge is to all mankind. Each nation must decide for itself how it will meet it. The choice we make for ourselves must be made with a moderation of counsel and a temperateness of judgment befitting our character and our motives as a nation. We must put excited feeling away. Our motive will not be revenge or the victorious assertion of the physical might of the nation, but only the vindication of right, of human right, of which we are only a single champion."

Senator George W. Norris Opposition to Wilson's War Message, April 4, 1917

"…We have loaned many hundreds of millions of dollars to the Allies in this controversy. While such action was legal and countenanced by international law, there is no doubt in my mind but the enormous amount of money loaned to the Allies in this country has been instrumental in bringing about a public sentiment in favor of our country taking a course that would make every bond worth a hundred cents on the dollar and making the payment of every debt certain and sure. Through this instrumentality and also through the instrumentality of others who have not only made millions out of the war in the manufacture of munitions, etc., and who would expect to make millions more if our country can be drawn into the catastrophe, a large number of the great newspapers and news agencies of the country have been controlled and enlisted in the greatest propaganda that the world has ever known to manufacture sentiment in favor of war."

1- What was Wilson's reason for entering the war?

2- How did Wilson describe why the war must be fought?

3- What reasons did Norris give for the US to enter the war?

4- According to Norris, who would benefit if the United States entered the war?

PROPAGANDA

Propaganda – The spreading of ideas to promote a cause or to damage an opposing cause. Governments use the press to spread propaganda and build enthusiasm for the war effort.

The PressNewspapers were expected to print what the government wanted the reader to read. They printed headlines designed to stir up emotions regardless of whether they were accurate or not. The most infamous headlines included:

“Belgium Child’s Arm Cut Off by Germans”“Germans Crucify Canadian officer”

These headlines were designed and develop and strengthen hatred for the enemy. The same thing was done in Germany – untrue headlines were tolerated and encouraged by German authorities. Some headlines were:

“French Doctors Infect German Wells and Plague Germs”“German Prisoners Blinded by Allied Captors”

British newspapers published inaccurate causality figures according to what the government wanted people to believe. British success in battles was emphasized as opposed to the small gains actually made.

Some Common Iconography in POSTERS The brave soldier successfully defending his country Many posters show wounded soldiers. The bond between soldiers is emphasized,

encouraging the viewer to join the military The roaring lion was used to symbolize Britain and the British Empire. Of course, anti-

British propaganda showed the lion as weak and cowardly, running away from German mice.

“The German ogre” was an image of the Germans as monsters intent on destruction Images of children were used for emotional impact. Parents were encouraged to fear for

their children’s safety in case of an invasion. As the war continued, attitudes towards and the treatment of women had to change, as

many were recruited for factories, and posters played a big part in this. Another popular image of women in propaganda posters showed them as frail and

beautiful – vulnerable to the enemy The depiction of a devastated village was popular. It was used to “tell” people about

German atrocities (“this is what the Germans have done in France”) and as a threat (“they’ll do the same to your country if you don’t fight”)

Idealized landscapes give the message: “To keep life peaceful, defend your country.” The hand grasping at the world was intended to stir up fears of German ambitions for

imperialism and military domination The Iron Cross, a prestigious German military medal, symbolized Germany. Sometimes

it was dripping with blood to equate Germany with violence and horror.

Pictures of ships were popular. For example, Allied ships might be shown sailing off to war, sailing from the colonies and the USA to supply Europe with food, or to depict enemy ships attacking Allied forces.

Name

WWI Propaganda Posters

1- Which side created this poster? Triple Alliance or Triple Entente?

2- What features on the poster confirms your answer?

3- What are the objectives of this poster?

4- Did this poster accomplish its goals? Why or why not?

5- Would this convince you to fight for your country?

WWI Coming to an End

Thesis: The war had taken its toll on both sides and finding a way to end the war needed to be found. The armistice would end the war but it would come at a price.

Objectives Students will be able to identify and describe the ways the Allies were able to win the

war. Students will be able to describe what an armistice is. Students will be able to explain how the armistice was signed and its results.

Procedure Activities – Notes, Armistice reading “Armistice - The End of World War I, 1918”, and

documentary “The Last Day of WWI: 11th Month, 11th Day, 11th Hour” Students will answer the questions from the reading. Students will write their analysis of the documentary with their focus being on the

complex agreement of the armistice.

Armistice - The End of World War I, 1918The final Allied push towards the German border began on October 17, 1918. As the British, French and American armies advanced, the alliance between the Central Powers began to collapse. Turkey signed an armistice at the end of October, Austria-Hungary followed on November 3.

Germany began to crumble from within. Faced with the prospect of returning to sea, the sailors of the High Seas Fleet stationed at Kiel mutinied on October 29. Within a few days, the entire city was in their control and the revolution spread throughout the country. On November 9 the Kaiser abdicated; slipping across the border into the Netherlands and exile. A German Republic was declared and peace feelers extended to the Allies. At 5 AM on the morning of November 11 an armistice was signed in a railroad car parked in a French forest near the front lines.

The terms of the agreement called for the cessation of fighting along the entire Western Front to begin at precisely 11 AM that morning. After over four years of bloody conflict, the Great War was at an end.

"...at the front there was no celebration."

Colonel Thomas Gowenlock served as an intelligence officer in the American 1st Division. He was on the front line that November morning and wrote of his experience a few years later:

"On the morning of November 11, I sat in my dugout in Le Gros Faux, which was again our division headquarters, talking to our Chief of Staff, Colonel John Greely, and Lieutenant Colonel Paul Peabody, our G-1. A signal corps officer entered and handed us the following message:

Official Radio from Paris - 6:01 A.M., Nov. 11, 1918. Marshal Foch to the Commander-in-Chief.

1. Hostilities will be stopped on the entire front beginning at 11 o'clock, November 11th (French hour).2. The Allied troops will not go beyond the line reached at that hour on that date until further orders.[signed]           MARSHAL FOCH5:45 A.M.

'Well - fini la guerre!' said Colonel Greely.

'It sure looks like it,' I agreed.

'Do you know what I want to do now?' he said. 'I'd like to get on one of those little horse-drawn canal boats in southern France and lie in the sun the rest of my life.'

My watch said nine o'clock. With only two hours to go, I drove over to the bank of the Meuse River to see the finish. The shelling was heavy and, as I walked down the road, it grew steadily worse. It seemed to me that every battery in the world was trying to burn up its guns. At last eleven o'clock came - but the firing continued. The men on both sides had decided to give each other all they had-their farewell to arms. It was a very natural impulse after their years of war, but unfortunately many fell after eleven o'clock that day.

All over the world on November 11, 1918, people were celebrating, dancing in the streets, drinking champagne, hailing the armistice that meant the end of the war. But at the front there was no celebration. Many soldiers believed the Armistice only a temporary measure and that the war would soon go on. As night came, the quietness, unearthly in its penetration, began to eat into their souls. The men sat around log fires, the first they had ever had at the front. They were trying to reassure themselves that there were no enemy batteries spying on them from the next hill and no German bombing planes approaching to blast them out of existence. They talked in low tones. They were nervous.

After the long months of intense strain, of keying themselves up to the daily mortal danger, of thinking always in terms of war and the enemy, the abrupt release from it all was physical and psychological agony. Some suffered a total nervous collapse. Some, of a steadier temperament, began to hope they would someday return to home and the embrace of loved ones. Some could think only of the crude little crosses that marked the graves of their comrades. Some fell into an exhausted sleep. All were bewildered by the sudden meaninglessness of their existence as soldiers - and through their teeming memories paraded that swiftly moving cavalcade of Cantigny, Soissons, St. Mihiel, the Meuse-Argonne and Sedan.

What was to come next? They did not know - and hardly cared. Their minds were numbed by the shock of peace. The past consumed their whole consciousness. The present did not exist-and the future was inconceivable."

1- What did many soldiers believe about the armistice when it was first signed?

2- How would the soldiers act after the armistice was signed?

Writing Assignment:“The Last Day of WWI: 11th Month, 11th Day, 11th Hour”

After watching the documentary, explain why the armistice agreement was so complex. Consider how the Allies were adamant about certain concessions being made in order to agree to the armistice.Be sure to include what both sides thought about the war in 1918 as well as the order about ending the fighting on November 11, 1919.

Assignment must be one page typed and double spaced. 12 size and either Times New Roman or Cambria is accepted.

Who is to Blame for WWI?

Theme: World War One had taken an emotional, physical, social and economic toll on all of Europe. Both France and Great Britain felt that Germany was to blame for the devastation that rocked Europe. However, all European participants could share the blame in the war.

Objectives Students will be able to identify and describe the roles the European participants played

before the start of the war. Students will be able to describe the ideas France, Great Britain and the US had for

Germany after WWI. Students will be able to identify the Wilson’s 14 Points and Treaty of Versailles.

Procedure Activity – Notes, Read and Complete War Blame Chart, Comparing and Contrasting

Wilson’s 14 Points and Treaty of Versailles Key Questions:

1. How did the actions of the European participants before the war eventually lead to war?2. How are the Treaty of Versailles and Wilson’s 14 Points similar and different?3. Did the Treaty of Versailles solve anything?4. How did the Treaty of Versailles set the stage for Europe in the 1920’s & 30’s?

Was Germany Really to Blame for World War One?

France

Number of soldiers: 1.25 millionNumber of battleships: 28Money spent on arms in 1913-14: £37 million

Reasons for wanting to ‘pick a fight’ with another country

France had lost a war against Germany in 1871. France was angry about this and wanted revenge. France also wanted to get back the land it had lost to Germany (Alsace-Lorraine). France was scared that Germany could beat them in another war if France did not have strong friends to help. France was determined to keep her large empire, e.g. lands in Africa and Asia

Great Britain

Number of soldiers: 711,000Number of battleships: 64Money spent on arms in 1913-14: £50 million

Reasons for wanting to ‘pick a fight’ with another country

Britain had been the first nation to have an industrial revolution. This had made Great Britain very rich. Great Britain also had a massive empire, spread across the world in places such as India, Africa, Australia and Canada. Great Britain needed to be sure that its powerful navy could control all sea routes, especially in the English Channel. Great Britain hoped that the other nations in Europe would keep each other quiet so that none of them could grow powerful enough to challenge Great Britain. Great Britain entered the war after Germany had entered neutral Belgium and declared war on France and Russia on August 3, 1914.

Germany

Number of soldiers: 2.2 millionNumber of battleships: 40Money spent on arms in 1913-14: £60 million

Reasons for wanting to ‘pick a fight’ with another country

Germany had only existed as a nation since 1871. In that year, Germany proved that it had the strongest army in Europe when it beat France in a war and took rich areas of land from France. Germany was determined to catch up with Britain’s wealth and power, so Germany built many factories. From 1900 Germany also built many battleships to rival Britain's world renowned navy. Kaiser Wilhelm, the emperor of Germany from 1888, wanted to have a world-wide empire. He also feared that Germany was being encircled by an enemy alliance since he did not continue

the alliance Germany had with Russia before the war. Therefore Russia, France & Great Britain formed the Triple Entente. Germany declared war on Russia and France on August 1, 1914.

Russia

Number of soldiers: 1.2 millionNumber of battleships: 16Money spent on arms in 1913-14: £67 million

Reasons for wanting to ‘pick a fight’ with another country

Russia had a large empire in Asia, but wanted to have more influence over Southeast Europe. This would give Russia access to essential supplies via the Mediterranean Sea. Austria-Hungary was a great force in Southeast Europe and so was Germany. Russia had been going through hard times since 1900 and the Tsar had become unpopular through war and policies. The Russian people had much in common with the Serbs and the Tsar believed that his country would like him more if he supported the Serbs against Austria-Hungary. Russia mobilized their troops on July 30, 1914 to protect Serbia from Austria-Hungary.

Austria-Hungary

Number of soldiers: 810,000Number of battleships: 16Money spent on arms in 1913-14: £22 million

Reasons for wanting to ‘pick a fight’ with another country

Austria-Hungary ruled over many different races, such as Serbs, who wanted their own independent nations. The Austrians wanted to stop nationalism breaking their large empire in Central Europe. They were also scared that Russia might gain great influence in Southeast Europe. Austria-Hungary invaded Serbia after Serbia refused the ultimatum set by Austria-Hungary after the assassination of Archduke Francis Ferdinand. The invasion of Serbia took place on July 28, 1914.

After reading the reasons and filling out the chart, who do you think was to blame for the war? Why?

Who's to Blame?

Country Army Navy Pre-WWI defense budget

Reasons for ‘picking a fight’

France

Russia

GreatBritain

Germany

Austria- Hungary

Major Provisions of the 14 Points and Treaty of Versailles14 Points

1. Open treaties openly arrived through international diplomacy2. Freedom of the seas3. Free international trade4. Reduction of national armaments5. Impartial adjustment of colonial claims6. Evacuation of Russian territory7. Evacuation of Belgium8. Return of the Alsace-Lorraine to France9. Readjustment of Italian frontiers10. Autonomy for Austria-Hungary11. Evacuation of Romania, Serbia and Montenegro and security for the Balkans12. Self-determination for the people of the Turkish Empire13. Independence for Poland14. Formation of a “general association of nations” – League of Nations

Treaty of Versailles 1. League of Nations formed2. War Guilt Clause – Germans accept sole responsibility for the war3. German Territorial Loses – 6 million inhabitants, all Pacific islands and spheres of

influence in Asia and Africa4. Military Loses – Rhineland, sections of Germany are mandated, Army reduced to

100,000, Navy was restricted, Air Force was dissolved.5. Germany had to pay huge reparations to the Allies for damages done to countries, ships,

railroads, machinery, etc.6. Germany had to repeal the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk and Bucharest7. All major German rivers become international waterways8. German cities divided up amongst small European countries9. The Saar Basin was placed under the watch of the League of Nations for 15 years.

France received all of its coal.10. International Labor Organization is formed

Questions (Answer on the back of the ditto or in your notes)1. How are the Treaty of Versailles and Wilson’s 14 Points both similar and different?2. What is self-determination?3. Is this proposal designed to solve any problems that led to WWI?

What were the Results of WWI?

Thesis: WWI would mark the end of the Golden Age that had once existed in Europe. Europe could never go back to “how it was” before the war and now Europe would enter a time of uncertainty.

Objectives Students will be able to identify and describe the reasons the Golden Age ended in

Europe. Students will be able to understand the results of the war.

Procedure Activities – Notes, Answer questions from the handout “World War One: A Turning

Point” Students will discuss their answers as a class. Key Questions:

1. Why did the threat of communism exist in Europe after the war?2. Why would Great Britain lose its position in world politics?3. What other problems would hang over the world after the war?

World War One: A Turning Point

To the postwar generation, the generation that saw the victory of communism in Russia, the domestic confusion of the early twenties and then the great Depression and international disorder of the thirties, all of which ended in war in 1939, World War One was the great catastrophe of their lives. Those who remembered the world before WWI looked back on those days as a “Golden Age”; those who were not alive before 1914 would never know how sweet life could be.

Many scholars have come to view World War One as decisive in modern history. It took a second world war to give meaning to the first. It was the first war that fundamentally changed not only the character of European society, but Europe’s relation to the rest of the world. It was World War One that made rebuilding Europe impossible and a return to its old position in world affairs.

So in what sense then can the war be considered a “turning point?” Somewhere, and probably, before 1914, Europe changed from its 19th century course. World War One, the Russian Revolution, the Great Depression, the dictatorships of the 1930s, and World War Two may all have a kind of common beginning. Nevertheless, World War One possibly played a unique role in the changes that were taking place. There had never been such a war before it. Never had a war used up so many of the resources of the warring nations and left them so exhausted; never had the slaughter of such great numbers of men been so senseless, in the Battle of Verdun 750,000 men had been killed or wounded; at Somme, it was over 1,200,000. One out of every two French men between the ages 22-32 in 1914 was killed during the war.

If the people of Europe could accept these types of casualties, they could accept almost anything in the way of slaughter. The greatest tragedy of our time, its monstrous violence began in the trenches of World War One. Verdun and Somme opened the way to the Nazi concentration camps and the bombing of Hiroshima. So World War One, in any case, because of its level if destruction and length, served to “select out” to “favor” certain changes which had been growing before the war, and helped them to continue in the post-WWI era, with a new energy.

Questions to Answer

1. How does the author describe the world prior to WWI?

2. Why is WWI seen as a turning point in world history? Provide 3 examples

3. Do you think that the author is justified in stating that the atrocities of WWI set the stage for the “Nazi concentration camps and the bombing of Hiroshima?” Explain your answer

Aim: What were the results of WWI? In what way was it a turning point in European history?

Causalities- More than 8.5 million people killed- Over 17 million wounded- Famine and disease became widespread throughout Europe- Britain : 750,000 soldiers killed; 1,500,000 wounded

France : 1,400,000 soldiers killed; 2,500,000 woundedBelgium : 50,000 soldiers killedItaly : 600,000 soldiers killedRussia : 1,700,000 soldiers killedAmerica : 116,000 soldiers killed

Economic- Factories, farms, and homes destroyed- Nations created huge war debts - Reparations – Payments for damages during the war (Germany)

Countries- Allies agree to separate treaties with Austria & Hungary (Empire separated as a result of the war)- Ottoman Empire – Reduced to Turkey – Empire is divided amongst Britain & France – Allows both countries to strengthen their empires- Arabs do not receive the independence that they were promised for their participation in war- New nations emerged – Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Poland, Czechoslovakia & Yugoslavia

Germany- See Treaty of Versailles

The Hope of Peace- Wilson’s 14 Points & Treaty of Versailles - Big Three - David Lloyd George of Britain, Clemenceau of France and Woodrow Wilson of America.- The League of Nations – A group of 40 nations that hoped to settle their differences through diplomacy and would take cooperative military and economic nation against any aggressive nation. - The US refuses to join because Americans were afraid that the US would be the world police.- US refused to join and the LON becomes ineffective

The Fallout- Germany is forced to sign the Treaty of Versailles - Left weak & humiliated- Italy is not satisfied, felt cheated by the Allies - Japan was angry b/c the Allies did not recognize its claims in China and navy can only be the 3rd largest in the world – Behind US &GB

- China was angry b/c Japan received German territories in China- Russia was angry b/c Poland was granted its independence and the creation of independent states that were once part of the Russia Empire- Europe’s aristocratic order was shattered and increased social and political instability

The Changing of Society after WWI

Aim: How did the changes of postwar society help and hurt the world? How did the changes of the world serve as building blocks to a future war?

Life After WWI- The role of women continue to expand after WWI- Women working in the factories helped the economy, built their confidence and made them feel equal to men- Women will be allowed to vote throughout the world- 19th Amendment of the US Constitution- Woodrow Wilson

Britain- WWI will cost Great Britain its political and economic positions in the world- Why?- Great Britain became a debtor nation- They had to take loans from the United States in order to keep up- Japan and the United States will steal their markets- Why?- High unemployment

France- Land was destroyed because of the war- ½ of the men between 18-32 were killed during the war- What is this going to do to France?- Nearly bankrupt and had high war debts- Difficult to rebuild- Why?- High unemployment, inflation increased

United States- Became a world leaders in politics and economy- Woodrow Wilson wanted the US to play a bigger role in world politics- However, most Americans did not want to be bothered with the world’s problem- they develop a policy of isolation- The Treaty of Versailles does not get ratified by Congress and cannot join the League of Nations- Economy begins to take off because people will buy on credit - What problems will that cause? - New consumer goods will come out, more jobs are created because of the success of the war- However, farmers suffered, the wages of the workers did not increase- Eventually people will have to hold back from buying, overproduction of goods, investors are having a hard time paying back loans, problems with paying on credit- The market crashed- Business and banks fail, ¼ of the workforce is unemployed- Economy goes into a depression

- Depression occurred because there was no gov’t regulation (laissez-faire) over the economy, the government decided that the depression will ride itself out and there was no need to provide assistance- People will begin to hate the government- The depression hurts the world market – How was this a building block to WWII?

Strides to Peace- 1922- US held an international conference on disarmament- The conference is meant to reduce the threat of war and to find peaceful solutions to problems - 1928- Kellog-Briand Pact- Signed by the world that denounced war- Ineffective because it could not be enforced by a weak of League of Nations - How is this a building block to war?

The lack of stability in Europe and United States in the late 1920’s will lead to people embracing new political ideas such as communism and fascism.

World War Two

Twenty years after the defeat of Germany in World War One, Germany would once again rise to power and threaten the world. Under Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party, Germany would take advantage of a weakened Europe and come to power. Germany did this by abusing the premise of diplomacy by breaking the Treaty of Versailles as well as numerous agreements made with Europe during the 1930's. Its allies, Italy and Japan, would create their own paths of destruction.

During World War Two, Adolf Hitler led a campaign against the Jews that resulted in six million deaths and a near elimination of the Jewish race. Hitler was able to do this by creating strict laws in Germany against the Jews as well as taking advantage of the minimal support that the world could offer the Jews at this time.

World War Two would see the rise of the two super powers that would later alter the rest of the twentieth century; the United States and Soviet Union. The US and USSR would put aside their own differences and lead the Allies to victory in World War Two but shortly after, the world would be forced into a time where the threat nuclear destruction had become a way of life.

The Rise of Japan

Thesis: The results of WWI led Japan to develop an anti-West sentiment throughout the 1920’s & 30’s

Objectives Students will be able to identify and describe the reasons why Japan developed anti-West

feelings after WWI. Students will be able to describe how Japan became a dominant force in Asia. Students will be able to understand why Japan became a threat to the world.

Procedure Activity – Notes Key Questions:

1. Why do you think the US & GB would limit Japan’s navy?2. How would Japan develop anti-Western feelings?3. How did the League of Nations ineffective in trying to stop Japan?

Aim: How did militarism shape Japan during the period after WWI? What reasons would Japan have for being angry towards the West?

Japan during WWI- Took advantage of the war to expand their political and economic influence throughout Asia- Was in control of Korea and Taiwan and wanted to expand its role in China- Why would the Japanese want to expand its influence into China? China had a good location and natural resources. What was the situation in China like? China was in a state of turmoil- 1915- Japan makes China sign the Twenty One Demands- The demands makes China a Japanese protectorate

Japan after WWI

- After WWI, Japan receives Germany’s Pacific Islands north of the equator from the League of Nations- Signed military and commercial agreements with the West- 1922- Disarmament conference allowed Japan to become the 3rd largest naval power- Bitter feelings towards the West:

- Was not accepted as an equal by the West- Denied racial acceptance by the LON- 1924- The US banned Japanese immigration- To protest US decision- Japan boycotted all US goods- The LON would not support Japanese policy in China- The West still wanted an open door policy in China and Japan wanted China to itself- Japan was forced by the west to abandon the Twenty-One DemandsWhy was this a building block for war? Japan developed an anti-west attitude

- Japan goes through a population explosion- Will create social and eco problems in Japan- Japan needs to find ways to curb this- How?

- New markets for trade could encourage new settlements- Economy in the hands of few private businesses- Zaibatsu

- Promotes heavy industry- Expand industries important to national defense- Industry would grow quickly- Floods market- Growth of cities, labor unions, abandoned farms- Influenced by western life- Music, dance, sports, better standards of living, voting- Politics

- Despite gains, democracy was limited- Pol power was in the hands of the nobles and industrial owners- Emperor was in a limited role- Carried influence and backed by militarists who disliked the idea of democracy- Great Depression causes people to look to militarists for support- Militarists begin to influence all ways of life

- Sept 1931- Japanese army attacks Manchuria (China) w/o approval from the government- Invasion indicates that the Japanese military was powerful than their own government and was looking to expand its own influence- Government and military begin fighting amongst themselves- 1937- Government and military finally become one- Japan begins its conquest of Asia despite criticism from the LON

The Rise of Italy

Thesis: The rise of Italy came from the fallout of the Treaty of Versailles conference as well as the instability that had plagued Italy after the war.

Objectives Students will be able to identify and describe the reasons why Italy struggled after WWI. Students will be able to explain how Benito Mussolini came to power. Students will be able to describe how Italy became a threat to the world.

Procedure Activity – Notes Key Questions:

1. What is fascism?2. What role did the Catholic Church play in Mussolini’s rise to power?3. How did the ineffectiveness of the League of Nations help Italy become a world threat?

Aim: How did Mussolini come to power? What did he do to enforce it?

Fascism – Political philosophy that advocates the glorification of the state through a single party system with a strong ruler and an aggressive form of nationalism – USE OF WAR

Italy After WWI- Poverty, debt, unemployment, depression- Disappointed in the government- No pride- Nationwide strike

Mussolini- Promised unity – Restore Italian pride - Maintain wealth/property – Landowners- Jobs for the workers- Fascism is different than communism because fascism protects private property and class structure- Similar because the state has complete control- Enforced the law by using the Black Shirts (secret police) to instill fear and eliminate opposition- Gains the support of the Catholic Church in his quest for power – More people will listen to the Church than the government- Goes to the king and demands that he be named Prime Minister - Restores honor to Italy by invading Somalia (previous invasion failed in 1890’s)- LON condemns Mussolini for invasion – LON does not allow certain materials to be sent to Italy but Italy works around it - LON’s decision indirectly creates jobs for Italians to manufacture needed products- Italy left the LON- Italy & Germany become allies

Fascism

Fascism – A political movement that promotes an extreme form of nationalism and militarism. It denies individual rights and promotes a one party rule.

Characteristics of a Fascist State

Cultural

-Censorship

-Indoctrination

-Secret Police

Social

-Supported by the middle class, business owners & military

Economic

-All economic functions are controlled by state corporations

Political

-Nationalist

-Racist

-One Party Rule

-Supreme leader

Basic Principles

-Authoritarianism

-State more important than the individual

-Charismatic leader

-Action oriented

Rise of Nazi Germany

Thesis: Adolf Hitler was able to come to power through legal means by taking advantage of the turmoil that Germany was in during the 1920's & 30's. Once Hitler attained power, he began a quest to make Germany a world power through breaking treaties and eliminating anyone who did not fit his idea of a perfect German world.

Objectives Students will be able to understand how Adolf Hitler came to power. Students will be able to identify and describe the methods Hitler used to rebuild Germany

into a worldwide threat. Students will be able to explain how Hitler's actions led to World War Two. Students will be able to identify the ways Hitler eliminated those who did not fit into his

plans.

Procedure Activities - Notes, PowerPoint Slides, diplomatic conversations about Nazi Germany,

Analyzing Nazi various policies during the 1930's. Key Questions:

1. What did Hitler's trial indicate about the Weimar Republic?2. How was Hitler able to come to power?3. What were the themes of Mein Kampf?4. What was the purpose of appeasement? How did this hurt Great Britain?5. How did the Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact help Nazi Germany?6. What did the lackluster effort at the Evian Conference about helping the Jews indicate to Hitler?7. What was the significance of the invasion of Poland?8. How was Hitler able to get support for his policies?9. What was the significance of the Anschluss?10. What was the Nazi Economic Policy?

Aim: How did Adolf Hitler come to power in Germany? How did he promote Nazism? How did he make Germany a threat to the world?

Weimar Republic- Weak institution- Consisted of inexperienced politicians & lacked political unity- “Stabbed in the Back Theory” – WR betrayed Germany with the Treaty of Versailles- Hitler would refer to them as “November Criminals”

Adolf Hitler- Born in Austria on April 20, 1888- Rumored to be ¼ Jewish (Possibly Grandfather – Hitler’s Father was an illegitimate child)- Hitler also felt that he had a Jewish appearance – Portly, short, did not like his nose- Hitler grew up in an abusive household under his father but was extremely close to his mother- His father would die in 1903 and his mother would die in 1907 from cancer. It is believed that the doctor who diagnosed his mother was Jewish and could not save her- Hitler went to Vienna to become an artist, something he always desired to be, but struggled because he failed his art exams and could not draw anything more than landscapes- Blamed the Jews for failures in his life – Art school, the doctor who couldn’t save his mother, the fact that he was possibly ¼ Jewish- WWI – Could not fight for Austria because he was deemed unfit. Fought for the German army where he won 2 Iron Crosses for valor on the battlefield

Beliefs of the Nazis- Wanted to remove Germany of the “alien forces” – Jews, Communists, etc.- Against capitalism and communism- The only way that Germany could be great again would be through their nationalistic beliefs

Hitler & the Nazi Party- Hitler joined the Nazi Party after WWI and was given the responsibility of recruitment and propaganda- Reorganized party along military lines and appealed to people through rallies and newsletters- Recruited men with military backgrounds – Would be loyal to Hitler- Hitler’s speeches

- Blamed the Jews, pacifists, and liberals for German problems- Do not depend on other nations- Appealed to the wealthy and military officials

- The Nazis were not “tainted” by outsiders- Made himself out to be a crusader for the national movement

- Promoted militarism

Hitler’s Mistake- Beer Haul Putsch – Hitler’s belief that the Nazis could come to power through a coup d’état- Unsuccessful because:- Poor coordination, Hitler betrayed those who had helped him, key gov't officials escaped- Hitler escaped and hid at a friend’s house - Hitler considered suicide

- Hitler would be arrested and tried for treason

Hitler’s Trial- Claimed that the Putsch was not a criminal act but instead an act against the November Criminals (Those who signed the armistice and led the Weimar Republic)- Those who testified against him were as guilty as he was and he was able to make them take responsibility for their actions- Claimed that he was a man of destiny and wanted to bring Germany back to its greatness- Received a sentence of 5 years and was out of prison in 8 months- Significance of the trial:- Hitler was seen as a man of destiny- Weimar Republic was weak- If Hitler were to come to power, it had to be done through legal means- Nazis lost nationwide support – Membership decreased, party falls apart- While in prison, Hitler wrote Mein Kampf (My Struggle)

The Rise of the Nazis- Hitler was released from prison within 8 months and assumed total control of the Nazis- Realized he had to come to power through democratic means – Voted to the top of the German government- Reorganized the party through:- Loyalty Oaths - Propaganda- Partnership with Joseph Goebbels – Made Hitler’s speeches and propaganda more effective- Use of the SS – Schutzstaffel – Elite police force & racially pure- Eliminated all liabilities - Appeal to the masses – Make people realize that the Nazis were the party to be- Needed to gain the support of the Reichstag (legislature) – Communists are their biggest opponent- Started a fire at the Reichstag and used propaganda to effectively blame the Communists and gain the control that he needed- Used fear and propaganda to gain support for the Nazis - Eliminates all civil liberties and attacks the Jews in legal ways (Enabling Acts)- Paul von Hindenburg dies and he assumes total control in August 1933

Hitler in Control - Ignores the provisions of the Treaty of Versailles – Rebuilds military and takes over territories- Glorifies the state – More important than the individual- Intellectual talent fled country – Einstein, Freud- Flooded country with propaganda praising the Nazis- Socially, politically, economically isolates the Jews from German society (Nuremberg Laws) & slowly begins the Holocaust- Created youth groups that preached total devotion to the Nazis and Hitler- Annexed Austria to Germany (Anschluss) – Allowed him to claim German heritage- Formed alliances with Italy & Japan

Reichstag Election Results in Germany 1924-1933

REICHSTAG ELECTIONDECEMBER 1924

Party Vote %

Social Democratic 7,881,000 26.0

Nationalist 6,205,800 20.5

Center 4,118,900 13.6

People's 3,049,100 10.1

Communist 2,709,100 9.0

Democratic (State) 1,919,800 6.3

Bavarian People's 1,134,000 3.7

Economic 1,005,400 3.3

National Socialist 907,300 3.0

Other parties 1,359,700 4.4

REICHSTAG ELECTION

REICHSTAG ELECTIONMAY 1924

Party Vote %

Social Democratic 6,008,900 20.5

Nationalist 5,696,500 19.5

Center 3,914,400 13.4

Communist 3,693,300 12.6

People's 2,694,400 9.2

National Socialist 1,918,300 6.5

Democratic (State) 1,655,100 5.7

Bavarian People's 946,700 3.2

Economic 693,600 2.4

Other parties 2,060,600 6.9 REICHSTAG ELECTIONMAY 1928

Party Vote %

Social Democratic 9,153,000 29.8

Nationalist 4,381,600 14.2

Center 3,712,200 12.1

Communist 3,264,800 10.6

People's 2,679,700 8.7

Democratic (State) 1,505,700 4.9

Economic 1,397,100 4.5

Bavarian People's 945,600 3.0

National Socialist 810,100 2.6

Landvolk 581,800 1.8

Other parties 2,321,700 7.5

REICHSTAG ELECTIONSEPTEMBER 1930

Party vote %

Social Democratic 8,577,700 24.5

National Socialist 6,409,600 18.3

Communist 4,592,100 13.1

Center 4,127,900 11.8

People's 1,578,200 4.5

Nationalist 2,458,300 7.0

Economic 1,362,400 3.9

Democratic (State) 1,322,400 3.8

Landvolk 1,108,700 3.0

Bavarian People's 1,059,100 3.0

Other parties 2,619,600 7.5

JULY 31 1932

Party vote %

National Socialist 13,745,800 37.4

Social Democratic 7,959,700 21.6

Communist 5,282,600 14.6

Center 4,589,300 12.5

Nationalist 2,177,400 5.9

Bavarian People's 1,192,700 3.2

Other parties 2,074,000 5.4

Nuremberg Laws On Reich Citizenship, September 15, 1935The Reichstag has unanimously enacted the following law, which is promulgated herewith:

§ 11) A subject of the State is a person who enjoys the protection of the German Reich and who in consequence has specific obligations towards it.2) The status of subject of the State is acquired in accordance with the provisions of the Reich and State Citizenship Law.

§ 21) A Reich citizen is a subject of the State who is of German or related blood, who proves by his conduct that he is willing and fit faithfully to serve the German people and Reich.2) Reich citizenship is acquired through the granting of a Reich Citizenship Certificate. 3) The Reich citizen is the sole bearer of full political rights in accordance with the Law

§ 3The Reich Minister of the Interior, in coordination with the Deputy of the Fuehrer, will issue the Legal and Administrative orders required to implement and complete this Law.

The following was amended into the Nuremberg Law on November 14, 1935

§ 4

REICHSTAG ELECTIONNOVEMBER 6 1932

Party vote %

National Socialist 11,737,000 33.1

Social Democratic 7,248,000 20.4

Communist 5,980,000 16.9

Center 4,231,000 11.9

Nationalist 2,959,000 8.8

Bavarian People's 1,095,000 3.1

Other parties 2,635,000 7.6

REICHSTAG ELECTIONMARCH 1933

Party vote %

National Socialist 17,277,000 43.9

Social Democratic 7,182,000 18.3

Communist 4,848,000 12.3

Center 4,425,000 11.7

Nationalist 3,137,000 8.0

Bavarian People's 1,074,000 2.7

Other parties 1,533,000 3.8

1) A Jew cannot be a Reich citizen. He has no voting rights in political matters; he cannot occupy a public office.2) Jewish officials will retire as of December 31, 1935...

§ 51) A Jew is a person descended from at least three grandparents who are full Jews by race....2) A Mischling who is a subject of the state is also considered a Jew if he is descended from two full Jewish grandparents

a) who was a member of the Jewish Religious Community at the time of the promulgation of this Law, or was admitted to it subsequently;b) who was married to a Jew at the time of the promulgation of this Law, or subsequently married to a Jew;c) who was born from a marriage with a Jew in accordance with paragraph 1, contracted subsequently to the promulgation of the law for the Protection of German Blood and German Honor of September 15, 1935 (Reichsgesetzblatt, I, p. 1146);d) who was born as the result of extramarital intercourse with a Jew in accordance with Paragraph 1, and was born illegitimately after July 31, 1936....

How Could Ordinary Germans Kill?

Five Standard Explanations:

1) The perpetrators (killers) were coerced (forced).- They were left, by the threat of punishment, with no choice but to follow orders

(‘Just following orders’)- They could not say ‘no’

2) The perpetrators were brainwashed.- The killers became blind followers of orders- The Germans were caught in Hitler’s ‘spell.’- The German people have a propensity for following orders- The Germans were conditioned to accept all tasks as necessary- They were psychologically incapable of saying ‘no’

3) The perpetrators were under incredible pressure to conform.- the killers could not resist the tremendous social and psychological pressure to

resist- These pressures lead individuals to participate in acts which they would not

perform on their own- They were socially unable to say ‘no’

4) The Cold Cult of Professionalism (self-interest)- True Nazi virtue was to perform one’s duties with skill and efficiency- ‘Devotion to Duty’ became Nazi morality- The killers pursued their own self-interest with callous disregard of their victims- They had personal incentives not to want to say ‘no.’

5) The perpetrators were ‘cogs in a machine.’- The killers could not comprehend that their small assignment was part of a global

extermination process- It never occurred to the killers that they were engaged in an activity that might

make them responsible for saying ‘no’

Nazi Economic Policy - "Guns Not Butter"   1. Employment

- In June 1933, the Nazis passed a Law to Reduce Unemployment. - The RAD (National Labor Service) sent men on public works; e.g. the autobahns. - Government spending rose, 1932–38 from about 5 billion to 30 billion marks. - Unemployment fell from nearly 6 million to virtually nothing. - Hitler built up the armed forces (e.g. conscription took 1 million unemployed). - The soldiers needed equipment, so this set steel mills, coal mines and factories back into production. The Luftwaffe gave jobs to fitters, engineers and designers. - The Nazi state machinery needed thousands of clerks, prison guards etc.

   2. Farming

- By the 1933 Farm Law, farmers were assured of sales and given subsidies. - The government kept food prices at the 1928 level. - BUT farmers were organized into the Reich Food Estate and strictly controlled (e.g., one rule stated that hens must lay 65 eggs a year).

    3. Industry

-The New Plan of 1934 stopped imports, and subsidized industry. "Autarky"- Production rose, especially of oil, steel, coal and explosives.

- In 1936, Goering was put in charge. His Four Year Plan proposed to get the army and industry ready for war in four years. - Employers were happy when workers were well disciplined. - BUT businesses were strictly controlled; they could be told to make something different/ were not allowed to raise wages/ workers could be sent to other factories. - Goering said: ‘Iron makes an empire strong; butter only makes people fat’. - Economists know now that these policies cause massive economic problems.

    4.  Conditions

- The Nazis tried to make people proud (e.g. the film The Beauty of Work in 1934).   - BUT trade unions were banned and all workers had to join the German Labor Front. They lost their right to strike for better pay and conditions. - Wages actually fell. - People who refused to work were imprisoned. - Wages and conditions on the RAD schemes were very poor.

    5. Strength through Joy (KdF) Movement

- Workers were offered cut-price holidays, theatre trips and concerts. In Berlin,1933-38, the KdF sponsored 134,000 events for 32 million people - The KdF designed the Volkswagen (or ‘People’s Car’) ‘Beetle’, which it was planned to be able to buy for 5 marks a week. - The government made sure that everybody could get a cheap radio.

Nazi Economic PolicyEconomic Issues Facing Nazi Germany- Paying reparations for WWI- Unemployment- Inflation- Recession- Money was virtually useless in the 1920's

Hitler's Aims for Economy- Get Germany out of the recession- Solve unemployment- Autarky - Self-sufficient economy- Eliminate Jews from business world and give their businesses to Aryans- Create a wartime economy- "Guns Not Butter"

Dr. Hjalmar Schacht - Served as President of the Reichsbank and Minister of Economics until his removal in 1936.- Helped implement redevelopment, reindustrialization, and rearmament for Nazi Germany.- Believed in steady growth and a stable economy

- Promoted free trade agreements with other nations (South America & Southern Europe).- Created the New Plan in 1934 - Similar to the New Deal and encouraged "autarky" (self-sufficiency). Autarky was meant to lower imports and strengthen the economy- Had a falling out with Hitler and Goering due to speaking out against Nazis altering his economic policies and unlawful attacks against the Jews. Replaced by Goering.

Hitler & Goering's Economic Views- Economy can be converted into a war machine- Rearm quickly and conquer countries and their economies (Exploitations)

Goering's Four Year Plan (1936)- Make Germany ready for war - Spent 32.3 million marks by 1939- Self-sufficient (autarky) with raw materials by developing home grown substitutes- Industrial targets must be met

Was it a Success?- Unemployment dropped - Jews and other opponents of the state were not factored into the unemployment rate - Wages dropped- No trade union rights - "Strength Through Joy"

The German Occupation of the Rhineland

On March 7, 1936 German troops marched into the Rhineland. This action was directly against the Treaty of Versailles which had laid out the terms which the defeated Germany had accepted. It was Hitler's first illegal act in foreign relations since coming to power in 1933 and it threw the European allies, especially France and Britain, into confusion.

These documents reveal the motives and attitudes of the British government as they discuss their options. They are all extracts from the minutes of the Cabinet meeting on March 11, 1936.

The Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs was Anthony Eden, the Prime Minister was Stanley Baldwin.

Notes from the Meeting - Source #1

"The Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs gave the Cabinet an account of the conversations he and the Lord Privy Seal had held with representatives of the French, Belgian and Italian Governments in Paris on the previous day.  Both Ministers were impressed by the complexity and gravity of the situation which confronted Europe, and more especially our own country as one of the guarantors of Locarno.  On the outcome of the present situation depended the course

of events in Europe over the next ten years, and it had to be remembered that our influence was greater than that of any other nation.

The Ministers had soon discovered that our policy of condemning the German action and then developing a constructive policy to re-establish the European situation had no chance of acceptance.

He thought it inevitable that the French and Belgians would both announce their intention - if Germany could not be persuaded to evacuate the demilitarized zone - to ask the Council of the League of make a pronouncement.  Then if Germany was still obdurate (stubborn), they would proceed to military measures and ask us to do the same.  In that case we should have to decide whether we intend to fulfill our Treaty obligation - and we should be in an impossible position if we refused."

Questions1- What clues are there that the British Cabinet thought the situation was serious?

2- What was British policy for dealing with the crisis?

3- What did Anthony Eden expect the Allies to do next?

4- Why would this put Britain 'in an impossible position'?

Source #2

"The Prime Minister thought at some stage it would be necessary to point out to the French that the action they proposed would not result only in letting loose another great war in Europe.  They might succeed in crushing Germany with the aid of Russia, but it would probably only result in Germany going Bolshevik"

Question1- What does this tell us about Baldwin's attitude towards war and communism?

Source #3

"In this connection it was suggested that a stage would very soon be reached in the forthcoming conversations when it might be necessary to tell the French our position as to the possibility of fulfilling our obligations under the Locarno Treaty.  That subject, it was admitted, might be fraught.

From information given by the Service Ministers it transpired that our position at home and in home waters was a disadvantageous one, whether from the point of view of the Navy, Army or

Air Force, or anti-aircraft defense.  In addition, public opinion was strongly opposed to any military action against the Germans in the demilitarized zone.  In particular, the ex-Service men were very anti-French.  Moreover, many people, perhaps most people were saying openly that they did not see why the Germans should not re-occupy the Rhineland.  In these circumstances, it was generally accepted that it was worth taking almost any risk in order to escape from that situation."

Questions 1- Why was Britain unready to go to war with Germany over the Rhineland?

2- How would this affect Britain's readiness to go along with what France wanted?

Source #4

"One suggestion was that we should adopt the proposal of the French and Belgian Governments to begin with financial and economic sanctions.  In support of this it was pointed out that it was known from various sources that Dr. Schacht* had opposed the re-occupation of the Rhineland owing to his apprehensions of economic and financial sanctions, more especially the resulting inability of Germany to secure foreign exchange.  That was bound before long to bring about a financial crash and this would force Germany to decide either to come to terms or to fight.  In the latter event, particularly if they attacked France or Belgium, public opinion both in this country and in the world as a whole would rapidly change.  The objection to this course was that the United States of America and perhaps other nations, might refuse co-operation, and economic pressure could not then be supported without blockade which would be very difficult."  

* Dr. Schacht was a leading Nazi and the President of the Reichsbank, the central bank of Germany at this time

Question1- What arguments are made about economic sanctions against Germany?

Source #5

"To send for the German Ambassador that very evening To tell him of the acute consciousness of His Majesty's Government of the very grave situation created by the German action, and to speak quite plainly as to the feelings of His Majesty's Government and of the House of Commons on the subject.  He would point out the difficulties into which the Germans had plunged His Majesty's Government and would remind him of our own guarantee under the Treaty of Locarno and of what our obligations are, as well as of our reputation for fulfilling our obligations.  To emphasize how inexcusable the German action was vis-a-vis (face to face) Belgium who had no part in the Franco-Soviet Alliance.  He would emphasize that despite all this we were anxious to obtain a peaceful settlement; that we were not asking for anything

impossible; but that we wanted some contribution from Germany to give our efforts some prospect of success in the difficult circumstances. 

What he would ask Hitler to say would be that, having stated that he wanted to negotiate a series of new pacts as a basis for peace in Europe, he would, as proof of his intentions, withdraw all his forces from the Rhineland over and above the troops necessary for a symbolic occupation.  In addition that, pending the conclusion of the new pacts, for the regularization of the situation, he should not reinforce the "symbolic" troops, nor build fortifications in the demilitarized zone.  He proposed to fortify this request by reminding the German Ambassador that in his first communication he had stated that the number of troops would be small and limited to a symbolic occupation."

Questions1- What deal does Anthony Eden want to offer Germany?

2- What do you think were Eden's motives in making this offer to Germany?

3- Did this deal abide by the terms of the Treaties of Versailles and Locarno?

4- Why do you think he didn't consult the League of Nations?

The Nazi Justification of Re-Occupying the Rhineland

"Men of the German Reichstag! France has replied to the repeated friendly offers and peaceful assurances made by Germany by infringing the Reich pact though a military alliance with the Soviet Union exclusive directed against Germany. In this manner, however, the Locarno Rhine Pact has lost its inner meaning and ceased I practice to exist. Consequently, Germany regards herself, for her part, as no, longer bound by this dissolved treaty. The German government is now constrained to face the new situation created by this alliance, a situation which is rendered more acute by the fact that the Franco-Soviet treaty has been supplemented by a Treaty of Alliance between Czechoslovakia and the Soviet Union exactly parallel in form. In accordance with the fundamental right of a nation to secure its frontiers and ensure its possibilities of defense, the German government has today restored the full and unrestricted sovereignty of Germany in the demilitarized zone of the Rhineland."

- Adolf Hitler

1- How did Hitler justify no longer honoring the Locarno Treaty and re-occupying the Rhineland?

The British & French Reaction to the Re-Occupation of the Rhineland

France:

The French Foreign Minister, M. Flandin, spoke publically to announce the French response:

". . what had been violated was a treaty into which Germany had freely entered. It was a violation of a territorial character, a violation following upon repeated assurances by the German Chancellor [Hitler] that he would respect the Locarno Treaty and the demilitarized zone on condition that the other parties did the same. It was a violation committed in the very middle of negotiations . . ."

"..If such violations were tolerated by members of the League as a whole, and in particular by the Locarno Powers, there was no basis for the establishment of international order, and no chance for the organization of peace through a system of collective security under the Covenant (of the League of Nations)."

1- How did Flandin describe Hitler's actions?

2- Why does Flandin believe that peace could be difficult to achieve?

Britain:

"...the feeling in the House [of Commons] is terribly pro-German, which means afraid ofwar."

H. Nicholson, British MP.

"...no more than the Germans walking into their own backyard." Lord Lothian

1- What do these two quotes indicate about the re-occupation of the Rhineland?

Policy Memorandum issued by Anthony Eden, British Foreign Secretary March 8th, 1936.

"We must discourage any military action by France against Germany. A possible course which might have its advocates would be for the Locarno signatories to call upon Germany to evacuate the Rhineland. It is difficult now to suppose that Herr Hitler could agree to such a demand, and

it certainly should not be made unless the Powers, who made it, were prepared to enforce it by military action. Fortunately, M. Flandin [French Foreign Minister] has said that France will not act alone but will take the matter to the Council [of the League of Nations]. This he must be encouraged to do. But we must beware lest the French public, if further irritated or frightened, get restless at such a slow and indecisive action and demand retaliatory action of a military character such, for instance, as the reoccupation of the Saar [German territory ceded to France by the Treaty of Versailles and returned to Germany in 1935]. Such a development must be avoided if possible.

While we obviously cannot object to the Council adopting . . . a 'finding' that Germany has violated the demilitarized zone provisions, this ought to be on the distinct understanding that it is not to be followed by a French attack on Germany and a request for our armed assistance under that article. . . .

We might agree to [M. Flandin's suggestion of a formal condemnation by the Council of Germany's action], but we ought to resist [measures that could include economic and financial boycott] . . . The essential thing will be to induce or cajole France to accept [negotiations with Germany]. The trouble is that we are in a bad position to browbeat her into what we think reasonableness, because, if she wishes to do so, she can always hold us to our Locarno obligations and call upon us to join with her in turning the German forces out of the Rhineland. The strength of our position lies in the fact that France is not in the mood for a military adventure of this sort. . ."

1- What does Eden suggest that France do in regards to the re-occupation of the Rhineland? What are some of his reasons for his suggestions?

Aim: What was the significance of the Evian Conference?

Evian Conference “The Green Light for Genocide”- July 6-15, 1938 - The persecution and emigration of the Jews forced FDR to take action- FDR calls for a conference to take place in Evian, France after Switzerland declined to host the conference- 32 countries participated in the conference- Problem with the conference was there was no government representative from the United States.- The US representative would be industrialist Myron Taylor. He was Roosevelt’s personal envoy. Taylor would persuade Spain not join WWII on the side of the axis (Spain remained neutral), and had close ties with Vatican.- The countries at the conference condemned the policies that the Nazis had in place for the Jews- Roosevelt told the countries that they were not being forced to change their immigration quotas but asked to make reforms to their immigration quotas.

- Many countries, including the US & Britain, would use the Great Depression as an excuse not to let the Jews into their countries. While the US would pledge to allot numbers for the Jews, it was never done.- Some countries would pledge to allow Jews into their countries but the amount of visas pledged never came through.- At the conference, the Intergovernmental Committee on Refugees (ICR) was established- The ICR, though good natured, never got off of the ground due to funding and authority to make a real difference.- The results from the conference signified that the world did not care about the Jews and validated Hitler’s actions towards the Jews

1- How does the cartoonist depict the results of the Evian Conference?

2- Do you think that the cartoonist supports the outcome of the Evian Conference? Give evidence.

Aim: How did the Munich Conference and Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact set the stage for World War II?

Munich Conference (September 29, 1938)

Churchill and Hitler met in Hitler’s home to try and defuse the situation that Hitler had created

Hitler threatened to invade Czechoslovakia unless Britain supported Germany's plans to take over the Sudetenland.

Hitler knew that France and Great Britain would not go to war but at the same time, knew that the Soviet Union would not align with France and Great Britain due to ideological differences.

Mussolini recommends a four power conference – Italy, Germany, France & Great Britain

France & Great Britain agreed that Germany could have the Sudetenland. In return, Hitler promised not to make any further territorial demands in Europe.

The Munich Agreement was popular with most people in Britain because it appeared to have prevented a war with Germany. Great Britain refused to go to war over the Sudetenland.

Appeasement – Avoid war by giving into demands “Peace in our time” – Neville Chamberlain declared when he returned to Great Britain Winston Churchill criticized the agreement and believed that the government "sustained a

total and unmitigated defeat," and that "a disaster of the first magnitude has befallen Great Britain and France."

Churchill’s response to the agreement with Germany:

“….they should know that we have sustained a defeat without a war, the consequences of which will travel far with us along our road; they should know that we have passed an awful milestone in our history, when the whole equilibrium of Europe has been deranged, and that the terrible words have for the time being been pronounced against the Western democracies.”

In March 1939, Hitler invades Czechoslovakia. The appeasement policy had been broken and Hitler was not a man of his word.

Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact

Nazi-Soviet Relations Stalin – Europe was a “poker game” with 3 players - Adolf Hitler, Neville Chamberlain,

& Joseph Stalin The poker game consisted of backdoor deals and secret meetings in which each hoped to

persuade the other to destroy the two and leave the third to take the winnings Stalin believed that the West and Germany were equally dangerous. He kept Hitler at

arm’s length as long as the democracies appeased Hitler

Went dealing with Hitler, Stalin had to appease him with an anti-Semitic stance - “Purge the German Jews”, “Clean out the synagogues” & making it a criminal offense to be Jewish despite Jews being in Stalin’s inner circle

Stalin and Hitler were both anti-Semitic but Stalin’s was due to Russian mannerism while Hitler was a biological racist

The Meeting (August 23, 1939) Meeting was conducted by Hitler and Stalin’s foreign ministers – Ribbentrop & Molotov Hitler’s response to the upcoming meeting “I have the whole world in my pocket” Ribbentrop stated “Germany demands nothing from Russia, only peace & trade” Eastern Europe was divided into 2 secret spheres of influence & Poland was equally

divided The game of nerves had begun To Stalin, the meeting was necessary because he had to buy time & prepare for war

because he knew Germany would try and take over Poland if Great Britain and France could be kept in check

Why did they sign the pact? Both men were ruthless who knew that war was inevitable. Saw their countries as losers of WWI because of the drastic changes that Germany & the USSR underwent and felt that it was them versus the world.

Neville Chamberlain on AppeasementBritain and France pursued a policy of appeasement in the hope that Hitler would not drag Europe into another world war. Appeasement expressed the widespread British desire to heal the wounds of World War I and to correct what many British officials regarded as the injustices of the Versailles Treaty. Some officials regarded a powerful Germany as a bulwark against the Soviet Union.

On September 27, 1938, when negotiations between Hitler and Chamberlain were strained, the British Prime Minister addressed the British people. Excerpts of this speech and another before the House of Commons are included here.

* * * * *

First of all I must say something to those who have written to my wife or myself in these last weeks to tell us of their gratitude for my efforts and to assure us of their prayers for my success. Most of these letters have come from women -- mothers or sisters of our own countrymen. But there are countless others besides -- from France, from Belgium, from Italy, even from Germany, and it has been heartbreaking to read of the growing anxiety they reveal and their intense relief when they thought, too soon, that the danger of war was past.

If I felt my responsibility heavy before, to read such letters has made it seem almost overwhelming. How horrible, fantastic, incredible it is that we should be digging trenches and trying on gas masks here because of a quarrel in a far-away country between people of whom we know nothing. It seems still more impossible that a quarrel which has already been settled in principle should be the subject of war.

I can well understand the reasons why the Czech Government have felt unable to accept the terms which have been put before them in the German memorandum. Yet I believe after my talks with Herr Hitler that, if only time were allowed, it ought to be possible for the arrangements for transferring the territory that the Czech Government has agreed to give to Germany to be settled by agreement under conditions which would assure fair treatment to the population concerned. . . .

However much we may sympathize with a small nation confronted by a big and powerful neighbor, we cannot in all circumstances undertake to involve the whole British Empire in war simply on her account. If we have to fight it must be on larger issues than that. I am myself a man of peace to the depths of my soul. Armed conflict between nations is a nightmare to me; but if I were convinced that any nation had made up its mind to dominate the world by fear of its force, I should feel that it must be resisted. Under such a domination life for people who believe in liberty would not be worth living; but war is a fearful thing, and we must be very clear, before we embark upon it, that it is really the great issues that are at stake, and that the call to risk everything in their defense, when all the consequences are weighed, is irresistible.

For the present I ask you to await as calmly as you can the events of the next few days. As long as war has not begun, there is always hope that it may be prevented, and you know that I am going to work for peace to the last moment. Good night. . . .

Since I first went to Berchtesgaden more than 20,0000 letters and telegrams have come to No. 10, Downing Street. Of course, I have been able to look at a tiny fraction of them, but I have seen enough to know that the people who wrote did not feel that they had such a cause for which to fight, if they were asked to go to war in order that the Sudeten Germans might not join the Reich. That is how they are feeling. That is my answer to those who say that we should have told Germany weeks ago that, if her army crossed the border of Czechoslovakia, we should be at war with her. We had no treaty obligations and no legal obligations to Czechoslovakia and if we had said that, we feel that we should have received no support from the people of this country. . . .

When we were convinced, as we became convinced, that nothing any longer would keep the Sudetenland within the Czechoslovakian State, we urged the Czech Government as strongly as we could to agree to the cession of territory, and to agree promptly. The Czech Government, through the wisdom and courage of President Benes, accepted the advice of the French Government and ourselves. It was a hard decision for anyone who loved his country to take, but to accuse us of having by that advice betrayed the Czechoslovakian State is simply preposterous. What we did was to save her from annihilation and give her a chance of new life as a new State, which involves the loss of territory and fortifications, but may perhaps enable her to enjoy in the future and develop a national existence under a neutrality and security comparable to that which we see in Switzerland to-day. Therefore, I think the Government deserve the approval of this House for their conduct of affairs in this recent crisis which has saved Czechoslovakia from destruction and Europe from Armageddon.

Does the experience of the Great War and the years that followed it give us reasonable hope that, if some new war started, that would end war any more than the last one did?

One good thing, at any rate, has come out of this emergency through which we have passed. It has thrown a vivid light upon our preparations for defense, on their strength and on their weakness. I should not think we were doing our duty if we had not already ordered that a prompt and thorough inquiry should be made to cover the whole of our preparations, military and civil, in order to see, in the light of what has happened during these hectic days, what further steps may be necessary to make good our deficiencies in the shortest possible time.

1- Who does Chamberlain indicate helped him seek a peaceful resolution with Hitler?

2- Why does Chamberlain not want to fight? What does he hope will happen for Czechoslovakia? Using only what you learned in this class, would you support or oppose Chamberlain’s justification for appeasement?

Winston Churchill’s Quotes in Response to the Munich Agreement (October 1, 1938)

“….the Government had "sustained a total and unmitigated defeat, and that a disaster of the first magnitude has befallen Great Britain and France."

“….they should know that we have sustained a defeat without a war, the consequences of which will travel far with us along our road; they should know that we have passed an awful milestone in our history, when the whole equilibrium of Europe has been deranged, and that the terrible words have for the time being been pronounced against the Western democracies.”

“….And do not suppose that this is the end. This is only the beginning of the reckoning. This is only the first sip, the first foretaste of a bitter cup which will be proffered to us year by year unless by a supreme recovery of moral health and martial vigor, we arise again and take our stand for freedom as in the olden time.”

1- Why do you think that Churchill stated that a defeat was sustained without a war?

2- What does Churchill recommend be done to stop the Nazi aggression?

Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact

The Government of the German Reich and The Government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics

Desirous of strengthening the cause of peace between Germany and the U.S.S.R., and proceeding from the fundamental provisions of the Neutrality Agreement concluded in April, 1926 between Germany and the U.S.S.R., have reached the following Agreement:

Article I. Both High Contracting Parties obligate themselves to desist from any act of violence, any aggressive action, and any attack on each other, either individually or jointly with other Powers.

Article II.Should one of the High Contracting Parties become the object of belligerent action by a third Power, the other High Contracting Party shall in no manner lend its support to this third Power.

Article III.The Governments of the two High Contracting Parties shall in the future maintain continual contact with one another for the purpose of consultation in order to exchange information on problems affecting their common interests.

Article IV. Should disputes or conflicts arise between the High Contracting Parties shall participate in any grouping of Powers whatsoever that is directly or indirectly aimed at the other party.

Article V.Should disputes or conflicts arise between the High Contracting Parties over problems of one kind or another, both parties shall settle these disputes or conflicts exclusively through friendly exchange of opinion or, if necessary, through the establishment of arbitration commissions.

Article VI.The present Treaty is concluded for a period of ten years, with the proviso that, in so far as one of the High Contracting Parties does not advance it one year prior to the expiration of this period, the validity of this Treaty shall automatically be extended for another five years.

Article VII. The present treaty shall be ratified within the shortest possible time. The ratifications shall be exchanged in Berlin. The Agreement shall enter into force as soon as it is signed.

[The next section was not published at the time the above was announced.]

Secret Additional Protocol.Article I.

In the event of a territorial and political rearrangement in the areas belonging to the Baltic States (Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania), the northern boundary of Lithuania shall represent the boundary of the spheres of influence of Germany and U.S.S.R. In this connection the interest of Lithuania in the Vilna area is recognized by each party.

Article II.In the event of a territorial and political rearrangement of the areas belonging to the Polish state, the spheres of influence of Germany and the U.S.S.R. shall be bounded approximately by the line of the rivers Narev, Vistula and San.

The question of whether the interests of both parties make desirable the maintenance of an independent Polish States and how such a state should be bounded can only be definitely determined in the course of further political developments.

In any event both Governments will resolve this question by means of a friendly agreement.

Article III.With regard to Southeastern Europe attention is called by the Soviet side to its interest in Bessarabia. The German side declares its complete political disinteredness in these areas.

Article IV.This protocol shall be treated by both parties as strictly secret.

Moscow, August 23, 1939.

For the Government of the German Reich v. Ribbentrop

Plenipotentiary of the Government of the U.S.S.R. V. Molotov

The Invasion of Poland/Beginning of World War Two

Thesis: Adolf Hitler's expansion throughout Europe without opposition would allow Nazi Germany to become a threat to the world. However, the invasion of Poland would finally awaken the world and begin World War Two.

Objectives Students will be able to identify and describe the significance of the Gleiwitz Incident. Students will be able to explain why the world finally decided to act against Hitler for

invading Hitler. Students will be able to understand the plans Hitler had for Poland during WWII.

Procedure Activty - Notes Key Questions:

1. Why did Hitler and Stalin split up Poland?2. What was the Gleiwitz Incident?3. What is blitzkrieg?4. What plans did Hitler have for Poland?

Aim: What was the significance of the occupation of Poland? What plans did Hitler have for Poland?

- During the 1930’s Hitler was making demands about Poland – Withdrawing from treaties, even diplomatic back deals were falling apart- Germany invaded Poland on September 1, 1939 under the guise of a Nazi staged plan “Gleiwitz incident” - A provocation staged by the Gestapo claiming that Polish troops had allegedly committed "provocations" along the German-Polish border including house torching, which were all staged by the Germans.- The Nazi-Soviet Pact was signed the week before – Sets up Nazi invasion- German forces were numerically and technologically superior to the Polish armed forces.- The Nazis used the tactic blitzkrieg “lightning warfare” to make the Polish attack quick and efficient- The Poles believed that the invasion was intended from the beginning as a war of extermination – The Nazis saw Poland as part of his plan of lebensraum (living space) - Nazis were determinate to transform Poland into a huge reserve of slave labor ready to be used by the German war industry. - The Soviets advance their troops shortly after the invasion – They only did this to protect their interests- With the invasion of Poland, the Nazis have access to exterminate 3 million Jews.

In order to reach this goal, the Nazis adopted a policy immediately:- To exterminate the Polish elite (professors, lawyers, scientists, etc) - To exterminate any potential opponent. - To close all places of education (school, college, universities) excepting professional schools. - To forbid any cultural or political activities under death sentence. - To create an exclusively German Zone by confiscating all private property and or simply killing the original Polish population.

WWII - The Beginning

Aim: Who were the Axis Powers? Who were the Allied Powers? How was Hitler able to take over most of Europe?

The Cast- Axis Powers- Germany, Italy & Japan- Allied Powers- England, France, (USSR, USA & China)- All join Allies after 1940

What Gets it All Started - Hitler invades Poland- Sept 1, 1939- Germany invaded Poland on September 1, 1939 under the guise of a Nazi staged plan “Gleiwitz incident” - A provocation staged by the Gestapo claiming that Polish troops had allegedly committed "provocations" along the German-Polish border including house torching, which were all staged by the Germans.- Hitler misjudged what the West would do with his invasion of Poland- Sept 3, 1939- England & France declare war on Germany- Hitler destroys Poland with the use of blitzkrieg- lightning warfare- Blitzkrieg- German war strategy that took the enemy by surprise- Blitzkrieg was successful because it worked with speed and efficiency- Poland defeated within weeks- GB & France couldn’t move quick enough to help Poland- Nazis were determined to transform Poland into a huge reserve of slave labor ready to be used by the German war industry. Obtain 3 million Jews in the process.

Soviet Resistance- USSR- Moves soldiers quick enough to occupy their half of the nation - Stalin forces Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia to come under the Soviet protection- Finland resists Stalin until he forces them to surrender- Soviet’s new territory makes city of Leningrad less prone to attack

Hitler looks to the West- Winter 1939-40- Quiet on the western front- Germans referred to this as sitzkrieg- Sit down war- Allies thought it was a “phony war”- April 1940- Hitler took over Norway, Denmark, the Netherlands and Belgium- Hitler’s successful invasion allow the navy to gain access to the sea and Atlantic Ocean (Unlike WWI)- Hitler’s invasion called for the resignation of Neville Chamberlain as PM and Winston Churchill would become the new PM- May 1940 – Hitler invades France and conquers it within 6 weeks. GB is left alone to fight Nazi Germany. Charles de Gaulle escapes France and sets up Vichy Gov’t.

The Early Battles of WWII

Thesis: The early battles of WWII would show off Nazi superiority on the battlefield. However, in each of these battles, Hitler would make tactical mistakes that would allow Allies the opportunity to fight back against the Nazis and ultimately defeat them.

Objectives Students will be able to identify and describe how the Nazis fought during early battles of

the war. Students will be to identify and describe the mistakes the Nazis made during the early

battles of the war and how it would affect them throughout the war.

Procedure Activity - Packet - "Early Mistakes of the War" Key Questions:

1. What were some of the mistakes Hitler made during the war?2. How would these mistakes ultimately lead to the demise of the Nazis?3. What is blitzkrieg?

Early Battles of WWII

The Battle of Poland (1939)After negotiating with the West and Soviet Union, Hitler believed that it was time to

make his move on Poland. Hitler staged a conflict between the Germans and Polish, therefore, giving the invasion some legitimacy. On September 1, 1939, Hitler ordered for the invasion of Poland. There were mixed results to this invasion. One, Hitler stunned Europe with the speed and efficiency of the German attack on Poland. He used the war tactic blitzkrieg, “lightning warfare”, which instantly broke through the Polish troops and defense. However, Hitler would make the first of his many mistakes during the war. Hitler had misjudged what the West would do about his invasion of Poland. Hitler believed that the West would not act if Hitler broke his pledge not to take over anymore territories. Playing to his infamous paranoia, Stalin had ordered his troops to cover his half of Poland (as per agreement of the Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact) and also took over areas surrounding the Soviet Union to make an invasion of Leningrad unlikely. On September 3, 1939, Great Britain and France had declared war on Germany. World War Two had officially begun. Unfortunately, Great Britain and France could not reach Poland in time and Poland had no choice but to surrender by the end of September 1939. On September 28, 1939, Poland was divided between the Soviet Union and Germany.

The Fall of France (1940)After the invasion of Poland and misjudging that the West would not fight back. Hitler

believed that he could control the situation. After a winter of waiting, known as sitzkrieg, “phony war”, Hitler invaded Denmark and Norway on April 9, 1940. Hitler again found success with the use of blitzkrieg. The successful attack gave Hitler great position to invade France. After an unexpected attack through Luxembourg and the Ardennes Forest, France was too weak to fight back and therefore on June 22, 1940, France was forced to sign an armistice with Germany. However, not all of France was under Nazi control. General Charles de Gaulle managed to create the Vichy government within France and help the Allies fight the Axis Powers.

Dunkirk (1940)As France was slowly being taken over, the Nazis had immobilized the French and

pushed the British troops to retreat within Belgium. Unfortunately, the Belgian army could not hold out long enough against the Nazis and now the Nazis had the British troops trapped. The only mean for escape was Dunkirk. As luck would have it, Hitler declined to finish off the British troops right then and there. Hitler would pay dearly for this mistake, 200,000 Allied troops would manage to escape Dunkirk because of the largest civilian rescue known to man. Anyone who could travel on water participated in this daring rescue despite being under heavy attack. This last ditch rescue effort would come back to haunt Hitler because he refused to finish off the Allies once and for all. Had he defeated the Allies in Dunkirk, Hitler would have crippled the future and nucleus of Britain. This evacuation awoken a sleeping giant within Britain and Prime Minister Winston Churchill declared that “wars are not won by evacuations.” The time for war was now.

The Battle of Britain (1940)Nationalism within Britain was very strong as Winston Churchill had rallied support

amongst his countrymen. Hitler, hoping for peace with Britain, was wrong and saw no choice but to attack Britain. Unfortunately, Churchill was forced to face the Nazis alone. Hitler realized that he could defeat Britain in two ways. The first being that he had to claim aerial supremacy over the English Channel and second, he would have to destroy British airfields and industries. Despite Britain air force being outnumbered by the Nazis 2:1, the British had the psychological and technological advantages. The British were not going to allow themselves to lose on their homeland and also, they had better radars to pick up Nazi warplanes and a sound strategy.

With Operation Sea-Lion underway, Hitler believed that unleashing a fierce attack on London for fifty-seven nights (Sept 7 – Nov 3) in a row would break the spirit of the British. Despite the losses of life and destruction on London, the British would not surrender. Hitler would break away from his strategy of destroying the airfields and planes and focused on evacuating major cities and bombing only at night. The Royal Air Force began to defeat the Nazis in the air by intercepting their transmissions for attacks. Shortly after, the Nazis realized that they would not successfully invade Britain because they lost so many planes and soldiers on foreign soil and the attack was becoming too expensive. Shortly after the British victory, Churchill stated “never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few.” He was referring to the heroic efforts of the Royal Air Force. The failed invasion of Great Britain also led the Nazis to invade the Soviet Union, therefore breaking the Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact. Hitler’s decisions to invade Great Britain and the Soviet Union would create the two front war that Hitler wanted to avoid.

Early Battles of WWII Battle Mistake(s) How did the Allies take advantage

of the mistake(s)?

Invasion of Poland (1939)

Misjudged Western reaction to the invasion

Great Britain and France declared war on September 3, 1939

Fall of France (1940)

Hitler could not get all of France under Nazi control

Vichy government was created to help fight the Nazis

Dunkirk (1940)

Refused to finish off a broken British armyAllowed the British troops to escape through civilian assistance

Inspires GB to fight back against the Nazis“Wars are not won by evacuations”

Battle of Britain (1940)

Broke away from destroying airfields & planesFocused on attacking evacuating cities & bombed at nightAttack became too expensiveLoss of planes & soldiersHad to invade USSR & break the Nazi-Soviet Pact earlier than anticipated

Used psychological & technological advantages to defeat the NazisWould force the Nazis into a two front war

Early Battles of WWII Battle Mistake(s) How did the Allies take advantage

of the mistake(s)?

Invasion of Poland (1939)

Fall of France (1940)

Dunkirk (1940)

Battle of Britain (1940)

BlitzkriegMetallica

Let us have peace, lets us have lifeLet us escape the cruel nightLet us have time, let the sun shine, Let us beware the deadly sign

The day is coming, Armageddon’s nearInferno's coming, can we survive the blitzkriegThe blitzkrieg, the blitzkrieg.

Save us from fate, save us from hateSave ourselves before it's too lateCome to our need, hear our plea.Save ourselves before the earth bleeds.

The day is dawning, the time is nearAliens calling, can we survive the blitzkrieg

The Entry of the Soviet Union & United States

Thesis: The Nazis failure at the Battle of Britain and the surprise attack at Pearl Harbor by Japan allowed the Soviet Union & United States to fight in WWII. These attacks by the Nazis and Japanese would ultimately lead to the Allies victory in 1945.

Objectives Students will be able to identify the reasons the Nazis invaded the Soviet Union. Students will be able to explain why the United States entered WWII. Students will be able to describe the response of the of the Soviet Union after the

invasion. Students will be able to identify the key battles and tactics that led to the defeat of the

Nazis & Japanese.

Procedure Activity - Notes, Primary Source Analysis - Nazi-Soviet correspondence, Nazi

perspective of the Battle at Stalingrad, Use of the films "Enemy at the Gates" & "Windtalkers"

Key Questions:1. How did Stalin react to the invasion of the Soviet Union?2. How were the Nazis defeated in the Soviet Union?3. Why did Japan attack Pearl Harbor?4. What was the response of the US after the attack?5. What was the Atlantic Charter?6. Why was the Navajo language important to the Allies victory?7. What was island hopping?8. What was the significance of the Battle of Stalingrad?

The US & USSR Enter the War

Aim: How did the US stay out of WWII and still support England? Why did the US & USSR get involved in WWII? What were some key turning points of the war?

The Double Cross- Hitler’s failure in Britain led him to look towards the USSR- December 29, 1940 – Hitler signs the order for Operation Barbarossa to take place on June 22, 1941- Stalin knew that if Hitler would invade the USSR, the USSR wouldn’t be ready until 1943- Stalin tried using diplomacy to force Hitler to hold off on the invasion- June 22, 1941 – 4:17AM – Germany begins their invasion on the USSR- Stalin was in denial and shock that the USSR was invaded. He believed that Hitler did not

order the invasion but it was ordered by high ranking Nazi officers - Stalin’s ego had shattered and believed that it was the end of the USSR - Stalin shut himself down only to pull himself together and figure out a way to win – It left

the question “Did he suffer a nervous breakdown or was it a performance?” - The Nazi attack led Stalin to call for the scorched-earth policy- Soviets burning their own land in response to German advancement- November 1941- Hitler controls 40% of the Soviet population and is 600 miles to the outskirts of Moscow- December 2, 1941- Nazis come within sight of the city’s center, the closest they will ever get to Moscow- Soviets begin a counterattack and forcing a German retreat

The US Before 1941- 1937- The Neutrality Acts - Prohibits arms shipments, loans and credit to belligerent nations- 1940- FDR convinces Congress to allow American aid to countries fighting Germany- The US becomes afraid of their growing expansion- Cash and Carry Policy - England trades cash with the US in exchange for supplies- Lend-lease - Authorized FDR to lend war equipment to any country who is a threat to Nazi expansion- Atlantic Charter - FDR and Churchill agree to uphold freedom of trade, the right for people to choose their gov’t and called for the “final destruction of Nazi tyranny”- During the war, Japan begins to take advantage of weaker Asian nations because of France being eliminated from the war- The US adopts the same policy to Japan as they did Germany- Japan, Italy and Germany officially align in Sept 1940- Tripartite Pact- Japan and US try to negotiate peace but failed b/c Japan believed that the US stood in the way of Japanese expansion- Peace could not be attained- December 7, 1941- “A date which will live in infamy”- Japan attacks Pearl Harbor- US naval base in Hawaii- The attack left the US navy crippled and the call for war- The US lost 19 ships, destroyed 188 airplanes, wounds over 1100 and kills 2400- Dec 8, 1941- The US declares war on Japan- Dec 11, 1941- Germany and Italy declare war on the US

- Despite mistrust btwn the west and USSR, they form an alliance to defeat the Axis Powers

By looking at this picture (please note the date of the picture), what were the feelings of the American public at the time?

Turning Points of WWII - European & Pacific Campaign

The Axis in Control-1939-42- Axis Powers were dominating- Suffering defeats on land & sea- Japan- Controlled Pacific Ocean- Allowed Japan to invade Allied territories- Germany- Controlled most of Europe, USSR & Africa

The Tides Turn- Battle of the Atlantic- England figures out how to protect supplies and fight U-Boats- Gains control of the Atlantic Ocean and begins an air and sea assault on GermanyAssault destroys towns, factories and the will of the Germans- How did the assault of Germany differ from the assault on England?- Stalingrad- Germans attack on Aug 22, 1942- A successful attack could shatter the will of the Soviets- Had to be protected at all costsSoviets launch a successful counterattack on the Nazis- Cut off supply lines and the Nazis couldn’t fight the cold at the same time- Again, Hitler refuses to retreat until Feb 1943- Despite being a major turning point in the war- Over 1,000,000 people die due to starvation, cold and disease - El Alamein- Battle in North Africa- Germans led by Erwin Rommel “Desert Fox”- Led Nazis to victories throughout N. Africa- Allies manage to stop the Nazis by gaining the support of the French gov’t (Vichy) through the diplomacy of General Dwight D. Eisenhower- Rommel goes to Berlin to tell Hitler that victory over the Allies is impossible and is replaced- By May 1943, the Allies have control over North Africa- Invasion of Italy- July 1943, Allies decide that the best way to invade Italy was through Sicily (Southern Italy)- This would secure communication in the Mediterranean and increase pressure in Italy- Eisenhower led a sea and air assault into Italy that led to Mussolini’s downfall- July 25, 1943- King Victor Emanuel III has Mussolini fired as PM and arrested- Fascist Party is dissolved and surrenders to the Allies- The surrender throws Germany off guard but manages to keep control of Northern Italy- Hitler arranges for Mussolini to be rescued and restored into power Northern Italy- Italy is now separated- North (Axis) v. South (Allies)- Civil war will break loose throughout Italy as well- June 1944- Allies finally gain control of Rome (Northern Italy) and delivers a crippling defeat to the Nazis

The Nazi Defeat- Churchill and FDR told Stalin of their plan to open a second front- Eisenhower organized an attack consisting of 176,000 troops, 600 warships and 10,000 aircrafts in England for the invasion of France- Operation Overlord- June 6, 1944- D-Day- Allies attack the coast of France at Normandy- At the battle, there was heavy German resistance and mass confusion- General George Patton- Led attack in Northern France - French resistance fighters rose against the Nazis - Under heavy pressure from the eastern and western front, the Nazis retreated

- August 25, 1944- Allied troops led by Free French forces entered Paris- Before D-Day, the Soviets advanced towards Germany from the east and managed to push the Nazis out of Soviet territory- Hitler still believed that a surprise offensive could reverse the Allied advance- Hitler would create a bulge in the Allied line of troops leading to the Battle of Bulge- This would be the last German offensive- Germany at this time is virtually destroyed USSR tears through Berlin, Germany- Soviets begin a revenge policy on the Germans- May 7, 1945- The Germans unconditionally surrendered V-E Day (Victory in Europe)- By this time, Hitler had killed himself in a bunker in Berlin

The War in the Pacific- At first, the Japanese were welcomed as heroes- Wore out their welcome by killing innocent civilians and taking propertyThe Battle of Midway (1942)- Fought near the Central Pacific island of Midway, is considered the decisive battle of the war in the Pacific. - Before this battle the Japanese were on the offensive, capturing territory throughout Asia and the Pacific. - By their attack, the Japanese had planned to capture Midway to use as an advance base, as well as to entrap and destroy the U.S. Pacific Fleet. - Because of communication intelligence successes, the U.S. Pacific Fleet surprised the Japanese forces, sinking the four Japanese carriers- Communication was successful because the US Marines enlisted Navajo Indians to develop a military code that the Japanese could not break- After Midway, the Americans and their Allies took the offensive in the Pacific- This ended Japanese naval superiority- Island-hopping- The U. S. military strategy during World War II in the Pacific in order to reach within striking distance of Japan- Idea of MacArthur - General Douglas MacArthur attacked the Japanese by land and Admiral Chester W. Nimitz by sea- As the US were coming to Japan- Japanese soldiers were encouraged to volunteer for kamikaze missions- Despite US success, Japan was not ready to surrender

A GERMAN SOLDIER ON THE BATTLE OF STALINGRAD

The Russian victory at Stalingrad was a major turning point in World War Two. These words came from the diary of a German soldier who fought and died in the Battle of Stalingrad.

“Today after we had a bath, the company commander told us that if our future operations are as successful, we’ll soon reach Volga, take Stalingrad and then the war will inevitably soon be over. Perhaps we’ll be home by Christmas.”

July 29 – The company commander says the Russian troops are completely broken, and cannot hold out any longer. To reach Volga and take Stalingrad is not so difficult for us. The Fuhrer knows Victory is not far away…

August 10 – The Fuhrer’s orders were read out to us. He expects victory out of us. We are all convinced that they can’t stop us…

September 4 – We are being sent northward along the front towards Stalingrad. We marched all night and by dawn had reached Voroponovo Station. We can already see the smoking town. It’s a happy thought that the end of the war is getting nearer.

September 8 – Two days of non-stop fighting. The Russians are defending themselves with insane stubbornness. Our regiment has lost so many men.

September 16 – Our battalion, plus tanks, is attacking the grain shortage elevator, from which smoke is pouring – the grain in it is burning. The Russians seems to have set light to it themselves. Barbarism. The battalion is suffering heavy loses…

October 10 – The Russians are so close to us that our planes cannot bomb them. We are planning for a decisive attack. The Fuhrer is has ordered that Stalingrad is to be taken as rapidly as possible.

October 22 – Our regiment has failed to break into the factory. We have lost many men; every time you have to jump over bodies.

November 10 – A letter from Elsa today. Everyone expects us home for Christmas. In Germany, everyone believes that we already hold Stalingrad. How wrong they are. If they could only see what Stalingrad has done to so many…

November 21 – The Russians have gone over to the offensive along the whole front. Fierce fighting is going on. So, there it is – the Volga. The victory and soon home to our families! We shall obviously be seeing them next in the other world.

November 28 – We are encircled. It was announced this morning that the Fuhrer has said: “The army can trust me to do everything necessary to ensure supplies and rapidly break the encirclement.”

December 3 – We are on hunger rations and waiting for the rescue that the Fuhrer had promised…

December 26 – The horses have already been eaten. I would eat a cat; they say its meat is so tasty. The soldiers look like corpses or lunatics. They can no longer take cover from the Russian shells; they haven’t the strength to walk, run away and hide. A curse on this war!

1- What was the importance of the Nazis occupying Stalingrad?2- How accurate was the information received by the German soldiers prior to the attack? 3- Do you think that the soldiers still trusted Hitler when they knew that they would be defeated? Why or why not?

Mistakes of the Nazis

Thesis: The mistakes that the Nazis made during the war on and off of the battlefield, would ultimately lead to their defeat.

Objectives Students will be able to understand the significance of 1943. Students will be able to identify and describe the mistakes the Nazis made on and off of

the battlefield. Students will be able to identify the various Nazi plots to kill Adolf Hitler.

Procedure Activity - Handout "1943: The Beginning of the End" & Notes - Mistakes made by the

Nazis during WWII. Key Questions:

1. What were some of the mistakes the Nazis made in 1943?2. How would these mistakes affect the Nazis until the end of the war?3. Why would the early battles of the war come back to haunt the Nazis?

The Mistakes of Nazi Germany during WWII

Germany did not fight a total war – Did not use its resources efficiently – Slave labor wasn’t used to its fullest, women did not work in the factories

Hitler micromanaged the war – Altered military strategies, constant changes to weapons designs (slowed down production), focused on inconsequential details of the war

1941 - Hitler named himself the commander of the German Army. Focused too much on the Eastern Front and not enough on other roles.

Hitler did a General’s job by himself and dismissed any General who disagreed with him. German development and production of supplies were hampered by the political rivalries

and organizational chaos of Hitler's regime. German production of weapons were completed too late, and often ineffective Focused on producing the most advanced weapons and not providing the troops with an

efficient amount of supplies Fall of France – No follow up strategy because they did not know the fall of France

would be so quick. They were delayed and lost momentum Failing with the British

1. Dunkirk – Letting the British troops escape2. Changed the objective of defeating the outnumbered air force to bombing

civilians and civilian targets. Believed that the bombing would break the British not bring them together.

Hitler’s Russian Strategy:1. Delayed invasion of Moscow – Went after other territories in the summer instead

of Moscow2. Hitler wanted to use “maximum cruelty” towards the Russians once the Nazis

arrived. Couldn’t change the minds of the Russians about Stalin if he used this policy. Indirectly inspired Russians to fight back.

3. Refused to retreat from the Soviet Union despite the heavy losses Holocaust

1. Focused too much on eliminating the Jews 2. Jews could have been used as soldiers, and laborers. Anti-Semitism drove away

great thinkers and potential soldiers Refused to believe that they were outmatched in the field of espionage and would not

readjust their plans.

1943: The Beginning of the End

By Hitler, Hitler had become discouraged and relied heavily on drugs. Hitler had also begun to live a sheltered life. His health was rapidly deteriorating and at the same time, the people of Nazi Germany still had faith in the Fuhrer. The faith that the people had was solely based on the Nazi propaganda machine. The Germans were also beginning to deal with the United States and Soviet Union, who had immense resources and plenty of reasons to fight the Nazis. The Germans also miscalculated how long the war would be and did not plan ahead. As a result of their miscalculation, the Nazis had to depend upon the youth of Germany. The idea of depending on children to win the war for Germany had created tension within the inner circle of the Nazi regime. Plots against Hitler’s life from within his inner circle were created.

Germany began to lose its control over the Atlantic Ocean by an effective Allied sea, land, and air assault. Germany was being bombed on a regular basis was no longer capable of launching a counterattack. The Allies had the superior technology and were discovering German submarines quicker. Nazi Germany was technologically and scientifically behind, as well as in the intelligence field. Hitler had not even bothered to conduct any research. By this time, many of the Jewish scientists who could have helped Hitler had fled Germany and were working for the Allies.

To compensate for the lack of resources, Hitler conducted experiments that could not in any foreseeable way work. The Allies began to conduct long-range plans as well as technological plans that would defeat Germany by 1945. While Germany did not believe that such planning was necessary because their victory was to be quick and decisive.

The Allies used their advantage of radar technology to tie into an effective ground attack. The Nazis were too arrogant to believe that they were outmatched in the field of espionage and refused to believe that their codes could be broken. The Americans took advantage of making atomic weapons while the Russians built more and better quality tanks. The fall of the Third Reich was only a short time away.

Japan Defeated

Thesis: The Allies willingness to adapt to the atmospheres that they were fighting in as well as the decision to drop two atomic bombs on Hiroshima & Nagasaki helped lead to the United States defeating Japan.

Objectives Students will be able to understand why the United States dropped the atomic bomb on

Japan

Procedure Activities - Notes, Articles - "The Men Who Dropped the Bombs" & "Crossing a Moral

Threshold" Key Questions:

1. Why did the United States drop the atomic bombs on Japan?2. What is V-J Day?3. According to the Kennedy article, what was the significance of the use of the atomic bomb?

Victory Over Japan- By 1945, Japan was on the verge of defeat but still refused to surrender

- Because of Japan’s refusal to surrender, Truman had to drop two atomic bombs in Hiroshima and Nagasaki - Truman’s justified the use of the atomic bombs by stating the war with Japan would end quicker and he prevented further loses of Allied troops- Truman also was unsure if Stalin would really send his troops to Japan and to demonstrate the military strength of the US- Aug 6, 1945- Americans drop atomic bomb on Hiroshima- Levels most of the city, still Japan does not surrender- Aug 9, 1945- Americans drop another bomb on Nagasaki- Aug 14, 1945- Japan finally surrenders- Sept 2, 1945- Allies declare V-J Day- Japan signs official surrender

The Decision to Drop the Bomb on Japan

"I had then set up a committee of top men and had asked them to study with great care the implications the new weapons might have for us. It was their recommendation that the bomb be used against the enemy as soon as it could be done. They recommended further that it should be used without specific warning I had realized, of course, that an atomic bomb explosion would inflict damage and casualties beyond imagination. On the other hand, the scientific advisors of the committee reported that no technical demonstration they might propose, such as over a deserted island, would be likely to bring the war to an end. It had to be used against an enemy target.

The final decision of where and when to use the atomic bomb was up to me. Let there be no mistake about it. I regarded the bomb as a military weapon and never doubted it should be used."

President Harry S. Truman

Why did President Truman feel that the atomic bomb had to be used against enemy targets?

"The face of war is the face of death; death is an inevitable part of every order that a wartime leader gives. The decision to use the atomic bomb was a decision that brought death to over a hundred thousand Japanese.

"But this deliberate, premeditated destruction was our least abhorrent alternative. The destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki put an end to the Japanese war. It stopped the fire raids, and the strangling blockade; it ended the ghastly specter of a clash of great land armies. In this last great action of the Second World War we were given final proof that war is death."

Secretary of War Henry Stimson

Why did Stimson think the use of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki was a terrible thing to do but better than any alternative?

"How can a human being with any claim to a sense of moral responsibility deliberately let loose an instrument of destruction which can at one stroke annihilate an appalling segment of

mankind? This is not war: this is not even murder; this is pure nihilism. This is a crime against God and humanity which strikes at the very basis of moral existence. What meaning is there in any international law, in any rule of human conduct, in any concept of right and wrong, if the very foundations of morality are to be overthrown as the use of this instrument of total destruction threatens to do?"

Nippon Times (Tokyo), August 10, 1945

What does the author mean by saying that dropping a nuclear bomb "strikes at the very basis of moral existence?"

"The view where a moment before all had been so bright and sunny was now dark and hazy, what had happened? All over the right side of my body I was bleeding. My private nurse set about examining my wounds without speaking a word. No one spoke why was everyone so quiet? The heat finally became too intense to endure Those who could fled; those who could not perished

Hiroshima was no longer a city but a burned-over prairie. To the east and to the west everything was flattened. The distant mountains seemed nearer than I could ever remember How small Hiroshima was with its houses gone."

- Michihiko Hachiya, Hiroshima Diary: The Journal of a Japanese Physician August 6 September 30, 1945

What observations did the doctor make about the effects of the bombing on his city?

Results of WWII

Thesis: The results of WWI extended on and off of the battlefield. What occurred during the war let the world see that the war affected everyone.

Objectives Students will be able to identify and describe the results of the war. Students will be able to identify and describe the atrocities that occurred during the war.

Procedures Activities – Notes, Primary Source Analysis of descriptions of atrocities, Packet –

Atrocities of war Key Questions:

1. Which two nations became world superpowers?2. How did the results of the war lead to the Cold War?3. What is genocide?4. How did some of the atrocities occur?5. What was the significance of the Nuremberg Trials?

Effects of WWII- The seeds of the Cold War had been planted- The world had been divided between Democracy and Communism- US and USSR emerged as superpowers- Over 75 million people died during WWII- Nuremberg Trials- Nazis are brought to trial for their crimes committed during the war- Trials were also held in Italy and Japan- Trials demonstrated leaders could be held accountable for the war- Europe is left in ruins- Economy, land and governments - Human atrocities committed during WWII:

HolocaustRape of Nanking (1937)Bataan Death March- Japanese soldiers forced American troops and Filipino POW’s marched up the Peninsula- Were beaten, stabbed and shot Poland- Soviet troops subjected thousands of Poles to imprisonment, torture and execution

- The creation of the United Nations- Established to discuss world problems and develop peaceful solutions- UN has two main bodies:

- General Assembly- Representatives from all nations, each nations had one vote- Security Council- 15 member nations- 5 are permanent- China, US, GB, France and USSR

- Books and movies came out discussing the horrors of WWII as well as examined the nature of totalitarianism as well as the human capacity for evil- Animal Farm, Lord of the Flies, 1984

8 Stages of Genocide

Genocide – The systematic and planned extermination of an entire national, racial, political, or ethnic group.

1 - Classification – All cultures have to distinguish people into “us and them” by ethnicity, race, religion or nationality: German and Jew, Hutu & Tutsi. Bipolar societies that lack mixed categories are most likely to have genocide.

2 - Symbolization – We give names or other symbols to the classifications. We name people "Jews" or "Gypsies", or distinguish them by colors or dress; and apply them to members of groups. Classification and symbolization are universally human and do not necessarily result in genocide unless they lead to the next stage, dehumanization. When combined with hatred, symbols may be forced upon unwilling members of pariah groups: the yellow star for Jews under Nazi rule, the blue scarf for people from the Eastern Zone in Khmer Rouge Cambodia.

3 - Dehumanization – One group denies the humanity of the other group. Members of it are equated with animals, vermin, insects or diseases. Dehumanization overcomes the normal human revulsion against murder.

4 - Organization – Genocide is always organized, usually by the state, though sometimes informally or by terrorist groups. Special army units or militias are often trained and armed. Plans are made for genocidal killings.

5 - Polarization – Extremists drive the groups apart. Hate groups broadcast polarizing propaganda. Laws may forbid intermarriage or social interaction. Extremist terrorism targets moderates, intimidating and silencing the center.

6 - Preparation – Victims are identified and separated out because of their ethnic or religious identity. Death lists are drawn up. Members of victim groups are forced to wear identifying symbols. They are often segregated into ghettoes, forced into concentration camps, or confined to a famine-struck region and starved.

7 - Extermination – Extermination begins, and quickly becomes the mass killing legally called "genocide." It is "extermination" to the killers because they do not believe their victims to be fully human. When it is sponsored by the state, the armed forces often work with militias to do the killing. Sometimes the genocide results in revenge killings by groups against each other, creating the downward whirlpool-like cycle of bilateral genocide.

8 - Denial – Denial is the eighth stage that always follows genocide. It is among the surest indicators of further genocidal massacres. The perpetrators of genocide dig up the mass graves, burn the bodies, try to cover up the evidence and intimidate the witnesses. They deny that they committed any crimes, and often blame what happened on the victims. They block investigations of the crimes, and continue to govern until driven from power by force, when they flee into exile. There they remain with impunity, like Pol Pot or Idi Amin, unless they are captured and a tribunal is established to try them.

Atrocities of War

Disaster in Poland

As Nazi strength grew, Hitler saw the chance to act on his ideas about German superiority and the concept of the "Master Race". Nazi officers Heinrich Himmler and Adolf Eichmann created a series of work camps that would systematically eliminate those who did not fit the "Master Race" throughout German occupied Europe. Jews, Slavs, gypsies, communists, intellectuals, and the physically and mentally handicapped would occupy these camps and be eliminated through hard labor or gassed with Zyklon B. The Nazis would hide bury the bodies in mass graves and even burn them in crematoriums. Adolf Hitler and the Nazis would be responsible for the deaths of over twelve million people with the "Final Solution."

"It is mid-day when a long line of women, children and old men enter the yard. The senior official in charge climbs on a bench to tell the group that they are about to take a shower and a hot cup of coffee. All of the prisoners are to head inside and undress.

The doors to the bath house are opened where the prisoners are surrounded by towels, bars of soap and soothing music. Time has passed since they entered the shower and the first group of people to enter the "showers" do not come out. Other prisoners begin to suspect that something is wrong. However, SS officers (Hitler's police force who ran the camps) begin to force people inside the "showers". As the doors to the "showers" and within a short time, the guards can hear pounding on the shower doors.

Within a few moments, there is no more pounding on the shower doors. The guards opened the doors and see the bodies are piled upon each other. There was no shower, instead, the shower head was a valve for Zyklon B gas to quickly kill those who did not fit in the Fuhrer's plan. As the bodies lied there, their hair would be cut and the gold from their teeth would be extracted to create supplies for the war before they were to be processed to the crematorium."

Disaster in China

Japanese aggression against China shocked the Allied nations. Particularly shocking were the brutal events that surrounded the Japanese takeover of the Chinese city of Nanking. Despite heavy fighting, the Chinese were forced to leave the city in December of 1937. Upon entering the city, the Japanese killed over 40,000 citizens and abused 40,000 more. These acts of brutality has been referred to the "Rape of Nanking".

"We cannot allow ourselves to forget the atrocities committed in Nanking in 1937 and 1938. Japan's behavior as an imperial power from 1933-45 may be well documented, but the heinous events in Nanking are a little more than a footnote to the Western World. Thousands of women, both old and young, were raped by Japanese soldiers. Many cases of abnormal and sadistic behavior in connection with these rapes were reported. Often, women were killed after the act and their bodies were mutilated." For six weeks, from mid-December 1937 to late January 1938, the rapes continued. The murder of Chinese males were conducted under the apparent sanction of Japan's high command. Hundreds of thousands of civilians and disarmed ex-soldiers were arrayed in formation, their hands bound behind their backs, and marched outside the city wall. There, they were beheaded or burned alive, bayoneted, rake with machine gun fire, or doused with gasoline and burned."

Disaster in the Philippines

Although the American army fought the Japanese hard for control of the Philippine Islands, they were forced to retreat from the main island, Manila, to a small peninsula called Bataan. For three months they resisted the Japanese, but were forced to surrender. The Japanese would force the American POWs to walk hundreds of miles to a distant prison camp. When the prisoners became too weak and dehydrated to walk any further, the Japanese shot them or stabbed them with bayonets. 10,000 soldiers died of this forced march, later known as the Bataan Death March.

"As months passed and the need for protein grew, I decided to trap and kill one of the dogs coming through camp. I ate the meat and made boots from the skin of the dog to protect from freezing and infection. He would repeat this a few more times and this may have saved from beriberi (a disease caused by a lack of protein).

I wasn't the only one who ate the dog. Many of the men did. We cleaned the villages out of their dogs. The men set snares and set them out of the windows, then yanked and dragged the poor animals into the barracks. Once inside, they would beat them to death, whether it be cats, rats or even earthworms. The carcasses were hung just like in a butcher shop. This would keep them from starving to death.

One reason why so many men were saved from starvation was because they learned that the Japanese had soy beans, which they used for cattle food. An American doctor went to the Japanese and explained to them about the terrible dysentery, beriberi and malnutrition that the POWs were suffering. When the Japanese asked what they needed, the doctor replied "protein, meat, fish, milk, cheese". Then he said, "you have a lot of soybeans, haven't you?" The commander said, "you eat soybeans?" "yes" replied the doctor, "we prefer meat but we will eat soybeans."

So the Americans ate soybeans which were baked, boiled, fried, crushed and also made into bean curd. It got to the point where the prisoners would count the number of beans in each bowl of soup. If one man got five and another got six, all hell would break out."

Disaster in Stalingrad

The titanic struggle at Stalingrad between Germany and the Soviet Union ended with 350,000 German soldiers surrendering. Although some prisoners were kept in Stalingrad to aid in the rebuilding effort, most were marched further east toward POW camps. For these Germans, there would be no return. The Soviets swore revenge, placing the Germans in camps with little if any food. The harsh Russian winter and even harsher treatment by the Soviets forced many prisoners to fight for even a mouthful of food. Only 6,000 German soldiers would return from the Soviet POW camps.

"Other prisoners, more intent on survival, took matters into their own hands; especially in camps where military self discipline had broken down. Many camp doctors began to find corpses with the arms and legs removed. Later, human heads were found with the brains scooped out. Cannibalism had begun.

In one barrack, two German brothers had sworn to protect each other from cannibals in case claimed one of them. When one brother collapsed from hunger, the other brother straddled the dying man's cots and tried to fight off the cannibals that had crept around the bed. During the long cold night, he stood guard while the cannibals urged him to get down and let them take care of the corpse.

Finally, after 16 hours of no sleep, food or water, he weakened. As the cannibals pushed him to the floor and set about the body, the surviving brother howled hysterically, slowly turning to a high-pitched scream. The experience had driven him insane.

Prisoners who had refused to eat human flesh had to use other tricks to survive. German prisoners would search the latrine ditches for undigested corn, which they washed and ate. Setting up an assembly line of strainers, they strained the feces and trapped so much grain that they could sell it to other prisoners."

Disaster in Japan

To avoid the horrible loses predicted if the United States invaded Japan, the Americans tried to persuade the Japanese to surrender. When Japan refused, the Americans dropped two atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. In Hiroshima, five miles of the city was leveled and 80,000 people were killed instantly. Later, another bomb was dropped on the city of Nagasaki, and within a few days, Japan formally surrendered.

"Then, suddenly the floor fell down with a big sound. A massive cloud of dust rose up. I got frozen at that point and felt the bomb explode right in front of me. But no explosion took place. I felt beyond all doubt that the bomb was a blind shell and I crept out slowly. I found the floor fell down by the blast.

My friend shouted "your right eyes is hurt!!!". I touched my right eye only to feel blood clot on my palm. But I didn't feel any pain at all. The blast shattered the window panes to smithereens and scattering pieces must have penetrated my eyelid. Flowing blood got into my eye and I lost my eyesight. I leaned against the shoulder of my friend to hurry to the infantry room of the office in staggering. Surprisingly, two to three hundred of wounded people were already in the room. Almost all of them had suffered a burn, which I later learned that they had died from. I was still lucky in misfortune because I was not directly exposed to the flash. All of the injuries were on my face. Any attempts to stop bleeding failed and the blood that was on my clothes had given an impression that I was more injured than I really was. I would only receive four stitches and be temporarily blinded.

It was said that there was no other way to ease the burn victims only to apply white ointment. I was then put on a wooden board and laid down on the floor of the building that was slanted by the blast wind. On my chest was a paper tag on which my name, birthplace, age and blood type were written. Around me many burn victims groaned of pain as their skin was decaying and releasing an intolerable odor.

NUREMBERG TRIAL VERDICTS

Doenitz, Karl – (IQ 138) German admiral who would eventually command entire navy. Chosen by Hitler to succeed him as Fuhrer. Negotiated surrender following Hitler's suicide. Served 10-year-sentence. Died in 1981.

Frank, Hans – (IQ 130) Governor-general of Nazi-occupied Poland, called the "Jew butcher of Cracow." Hanged in Nuremberg on Oct. 16, 1946.

Frick, Wilhelm – (IQ 124) Minister of the Interior. Hanged in Nuremberg Oct. 16, 1946.

Fritzsche, Hans – (IQ 130) Head of the Radio Division, one of twelve departments in Goebbels’s Propaganda Ministry. Acquitted by the IMT but convicted by a German court in 1950. Died in 1953.

Funk, Walther – (IQ 124) Minister of Economics. Funk was sentenced to life imprisonment by the IMT. He was released in 1957 because of poor health. Died in 1959.

Goering, Hermann – (IQ 138) Reichsmarshall and Luftwaffe (Air Force) Chief; President of Reichstag; Director of "Four Year Plan". Goering committed suicide on the day before his scheduled hanging by taking a cyanide pill that was smuggled into his cell.

Hess, Rudolf – (IQ 120) Deputy to the Fuhrer and Nazi Party Leader. Hess was sentenced to life in prison. He remained--lost in his own mental fog-- in Spandau prison (for many years as its only prisoner) until he committed suicide in 1987 at age 93.

Jodl, Alfred – (IQ 127) Chief of Operations for the German High Command. Jodl was hanged in Nuremberg on Oct. 16, 1946.

Kaltenbrunner, Ernst – (IQ 113) Chief of RSHA (an organization which includes offices of the Gestapo, the SD, and the Criminal Police) and Chief of Security Police. Hanged on Oct. 16, 1946 in Nuremberg.

Keitel, Wilhelm – (IQ 129) Chief of Staff of the German High Command. Hanged Oct. 16, 1946.

Neurath, Konstantin von – (IQ 125) Minister of Foreign Affairs (until 1938), then Reich Protector for Bohemia and Moravia. Neurath was sentenced to fifteen years in prison. He was released because of poor health in 1954, and died two years later.

Papen, Franz von – (IQ 134) Reich Chancellor prior to Hitler, Vice Chancellor under Hitler, Ambassador to Turkey. Acquitted.

Raeder, Erich – (IQ 134) Commander in Chief of the German Navy. Raeder was sentenced to life in prison. He served nine years before his release in 1955. He died in 1960 at age 84.

Ribbentrop, Joachim von – (IQ 129) Foreign Minister. Hanged on October 16, 1946.

Rosenberg, Alfred – (IQ 127) Chief Nazi Philosopher and Reichminister for the Eastern Occupied Territories. Hanged on October 16, 1946.

Sauckel, Fritz – (IQ 118) Chief of Slave Labor Recruitment. Hanged on October 16, 1946.

Schacht, Hjalmar – (IQ 143) Reichsbank President and Minister of Economics before the War. Found not guilty by the IMT. Schacht was later convicted by a German court and sentenced to eight years. He was freed in 1950. He died in 1970 at age 93.

Schirach, Baldur von – (IQ 130) Hitler Youth Leader. Sentenced to 20 years in prison by the IMT. He was released from Spandau Prison in 1966. He died in 1974 at age 67.

Seyss-Inquart, Arthur – (IQ 141) Austrian Chancellor, then Reich Commissioner for the Netherlands. Hanged on October 16, 1946.

Speer, Albert – (IQ 128) Reichminister of Armaments and Munitions. Served his 20-year sentence. He wrote two books about his life. He died in 1981 at age 76.

Streicher, Julius – (IQ 106) Anti-Semitic Editor of Der Sturmer. Hanged on October 16, 1946.

Verdicts of the Nazi Doctors during the Holocaust

KARL BRANDT - Guilty of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and membership in an organization declared criminal. Death by hanging.

SIEGFRIED HANDLOSER - Guilty of war crimes and crimes against humanity. Sentenced in life in prison. Reduced to twenty years in prison.

OSKAR SCHROEDER - Guilty of war crimes and crimes against humanity. Sentenced to life in prison. Reduced to fifteen years in prison

KARL GENZKEN - Guilty of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and membership in an organization declared criminal. Sentenced to life in prison. Reduced to twenty years in prison.

KARL GEBHARDT- Guilty of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and membership in an organization declared criminal. Death by hanging.

RUDOLF BRANDT - Guilty of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and membership in an organization declared criminal. Death by hanging.

JOACHIM MRUGOWSKY- Guilty of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and membership in an organization declared criminal. Death by hanging.

HELMUT POPPENDICK - Guilty of membership in an organization declared criminal. Sentenced to ten years in prison. Reduced to time served.

WOLFRAM SIEVERS, Guilty of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and membership in an organization declared criminal. Death by hanging. GERHARD ROSE - Guilty of war crimes and crimes against humanity. Sentenced to life in prison. Reduced to fifteen years in prison.

VIKTOR BRACK - Guilty of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and membership in an organization declared criminal to death by hanging. Reduced to ten years.

HERMANN BECKER-FREYSENG - Guilty of war crimes and crimes against humanity. Sentenced to twenty years in prison. Reduced to ten years in prison.

WALDEMAR HOVEN - Guilty of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and membership in an organization declared criminal. Death by hanging.

WILHELM BEIGLBOECK - Guilty of war crimes and crimes against humanity. Sentenced to fifteen years in prison. Reduced to ten years in prison.

HERTA OBERHEUSER - Guilty of war crimes and crimes against humanity. Sentenced to twenty years in prison. Reduced to ten years in prison.

FRITZ FISCHER - Guilty of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and membership in an organization declared criminal. Sentenced to life in prison. Reduced to fifteen years in prison.

Defendants who were Acquitted during the Holocaust

Kurt Blome - Deputy of the Reich Health Leader and Plenipotentiary for Cancer Research in the Reich Research Council.  Adolf Pokorny - Specialist in Skin and Venereal Diseases

Hans Wolfgang Robmerg - Doctor on the Staff of the Department for Aviation Medicine at the German Experimental Institute for Aviation. Paul Rostock - Chief Surgeon of the Surgical Clinic in Berlin as well as Chief of the Office for Medical Science and Research under Karl Brandt. Siegfried Ruff - Director of the Department for Aviation Medicine at the German Experimental Institute for Aviation.

Konrad Schaefer - Doctor on the Staff of the Institute for Aviation Medicine in Berlin.

Georg August Weltz - Lieutenant Colonel of Medical Service of the Air Force and Chief of the Institute for Aviation Medicine in Munich.

Yalta and Potsdam- Yalta Conference- Feb 1945- FDR, Churchill and Stalin meet at Yalta, in the Soviet Union to discuss the fate of the postwar world- Allied leaders decide that France and China should be added as permanent members of the newly formed United Nations- Germany will be divided, as well as Berlin, into four zones that would be occupied by the US, USSR, France and Great Britain- FDR and Churchill make an agreement with Stalin that he would hold free elections in Soviet-occupied areas in E. Europe in exchange Stalin would be given East Poland- Stalin also promised support in Japan in exchange for islands in the northern Pacific Ocean - Potsdam Conference- Aug 1945- Truman, Churchill (who is replaced halfway through the conference by Attlee) and Stalin meet to discuss the fate of Germany and the unconditional surrender of Japan- This conference will create tension over the fate of Europe and the alliance between the West and Soviet Union

An anecdote from Stalin on the Yalta Conference after the war:

“Churchill, Roosevelt, and Stalin went hunting.” Stalin said. “They finally killed their bear. Churchill said, “I’ll take the bearskin. Let Roosevelt and Stalin divide the meat.’ Roosevelt said, “No, I’ll take the skin. Let Churchill and Stalin divide the meat.” Stalin remained silent so Churchill and Roosevelt asked him: “Mister Stalin, what do you say?” Stalin simply replied, “The bear belongs to me - after all, I killed it.’”1- Who do you think the bear is?

2- What does the bearskin represent?

3- Why did Stalin think that he should have the entire bear for himself?

The Cold War

Shortly after World War Two, the world would find itself in another war. However, this would be a war of ideologies between Democracy and Communism. During the war, the United States and Soviet Union would put aside their differences for each other to defeat the Nazis only because it benefitted both nations to do so.

The Cold War would thrust the world into a time of uncertainty under the threat of nuclear destruction. Though there would be armed conflicts and policies affecting each other during the Cold War, the world never saw the United States and Soviet Union directly fight each other. Their conflicts would take place in different venues over a span forty years. Finally in 1991, the Soviet Union would collapse due to its inability to keep up with the United States and instability that had existed within the Soviet Union.

The Iron Curtain Speech

Thesis: The “Sinews of Peace”, better known as the Iron Curtain Speech, delivered by Winston Churchill would set the tone for the second half of the twentieth century. The world would enter a time where global destruction was the theme.

Objectives Students will be able to identify and describe the significance of Churchill’s speech. Students will be able to explain how the US & USSR interpreted Churchill’s speech.

Procedure Activity – Notes, Handout – Excerpts “Sinews of Speech”, Handouts – Stalin’s

interpretations of the speech Key Questions:

1. Why would Churchill be able to give this speech if he was not a Head of State?2. How did the US feel about Churchill’s speech both privately and publicly?3. How would Stalin interpret the speech?4. How did Churchill promote both war and peace in his speech?

Excerpts from the Winston Churchill “Iron Curtain” Speech

Sinews of Peace (Original title of speech) – March 5, 1946

“The outlook is also anxious in the Far East and especially in Manchuria. The agreement which was made at Yalta, to which I was a party, was extremely favorable to Soviet Russia, but it was made at a time when no one could say that the German war might not extend all through the summer and autumn of 1945 and when the Japanese war was expected by the best judges to last for a further eighteen months from the end of the German war.”

“It would nevertheless be wrong and imprudent to entrust the secret knowledge or experience of the atomic bomb, which the United States, Great Britain, and Canada now share, to the world organization, while it is still in its infancy.”

“From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic, an iron curtain has descended across the Continent. Behind that line lie all the capitals of the ancient states of Central and Eastern Europe.”

“From what I have seen of our Russian friends and Allies during the war, I am convinced that there is nothing they admire so much as strength, and there is nothing for which they have less respect than for weakness, especially military weakness.”

“What is needed is a settlement, and the longer this is delayed, the more difficult it will be and the greater our dangers will become.”

“For that reason the old doctrine of a balance of power is unsound. We cannot afford, if we can help it, to work on narrow margins, offering temptations to a trial of strength.”

“Last time I saw it all coming and cried aloud to my own fellow-countrymen and to the world, but no one paid any attention. Up till the year 1933 or even 1935, Germany might have been saved from the awful fate which has overtaken her and we might all have been spared the miseries Hitler let loose upon mankind. There never was a war in all history easier to prevent by timely action than the one which has just desolated such great areas of the globe. It could have been prevented in my belief without the firing of a single shot, and Germany might be powerful, prosperous and honored to-day; but no one would listen and one by one we were all sucked into the awful whirlpool. We surely must not let that happen again.”

Questions

1- According to Churchill, why was the agreement made at Yalta favorable towards Stalin?2- What do you think the term “Iron Curtain” means?3- Based on the quotes from the speech, do you think that Churchill was promoting a war or

promoting a peaceful solution? Explain your answer.4- What do you think the response was from the American public after this speech was

given?

Stalin’s response to the Iron Curtain Speech – March 14, 1946

... In substance, Mr. Churchill now stands in the position of a firebrand of war. And Mr. Churchill is not alone here. He has friends not only in England but also in the United States of America.

In this respect, one is reminded remarkably of Hitler and his friends. Hitler began to set war loose by announcing his racial theory, declaring that only people speaking the German language represent a fully valuable nation. Mr. Churchill begins to set war loose, also by a racial theory, maintaining that only nations speaking the English language are fully valuable nations, called upon to decide the destinies of the entire world.

The German racial theory brought Hitler and his friends to the conclusion that the Germans, as the only fully valuable nation, must rule over other nations. The English racial theory brings Mr. Churchill and his friends to the conclusion that nations speaking the English language, being the only fully valuable nations, should rule over the remaining nations of the world....

As a result of the German invasion, the Soviet Union has irrevocably lost in battles with the Germans, and also during the German occupation and through the expulsion of Soviet citizens to German slave labor camps, about 7,000,000 people. In other words, the Soviet Union has lost in men several times more than Britain and the United States together.

It may be that some quarters are trying to push into oblivion these sacrifices of the Soviet people which insured the liberation of Europe from the Hitlerite yoke.

But the Soviet Union cannot forget them. One can ask therefore, what can be surprising in the fact that the Soviet Union, in a desire to ensure its security for the future, tries to achieve that these countries should have governments whose relations to the Soviet Union are loyal? How can one, without having lost one's reason, qualify these peaceful aspirations of the Soviet Union as "expansionist tendencies" of our Government?. . .

Mr. Churchill wanders around the truth when he speaks of the growth of the influence of the Communist parties in Eastern Europe.... The growth of the influence of communism cannot be considered accidental. It is a normal function. The influence of the Communists grew because during the hard years of the mastery of fascism in Europe, Communists slowed themselves to be reliable, daring and self-sacrificing fighters against fascist regimes for the liberty of peoples.

Mr. Churchill sometimes recalls in his speeches the common people from small houses, patting them on the shoulder in a lordly manner and pretending to be their friend. But these people are not so simpleminded as it might appear at first sight. Common people, too, have their opinions and their own politics. And they know how to stand up for themselves.

It is they, millions of these common people, who voted Mr. Churchill and his party out in England, giving their votes to the Labor party. It is they, millions of these common people, who

isolated reactionaries in Europe, collaborators with fascism, and gave preference to Left Democratic Parties.

1- Who does Stalin compare Churchill to? How did he do this?

2- How did Stalin view the growth of the Communist states in Eastern Europe?

Stalin Used Churchill Speech to Tighten 'Iron Curtain'By Vladislov Zubok

Winston Churchill's "Iron Curtain" speech was never published by the Soviet press -- only in May 1998 did it appear in Russian in a historical archival journal. Stalin himself informed his people about it in Pravda. He compared Churchill to Hitler and described him as "a warmonger" who aimed at "Anglo-Saxon ... racial" world domination. At the same time, he claimed that the Soviet Union, despite recent war losses, was capable of waging and winning another war.

Stalin's harsh reaction was calculated, not emotional. After the fall of 1945, the Soviet dictator had begun preparations for a possible confrontation with the West. In addition to atomic and other military projects, he launched a campaign to disabuse his lieutenants of any "illusions" about the West's -- and Churchill's --good will. The "Iron Curtain" speech gave him a pretext for mobilizing the Soviet people against their former allies.

It was not an easy task. Many Soviets, exhausted and hungry, opted for postwar cooperation with the West -- not for a closed empire from Berlin to Vladivostok. And many could not care less about a mythical "war threat" from the West. On the contrary, most Soviets remembered the U.S. Lend-Lease program, including U.S. canned food sent to their nation during the war, and hoped this assistance might continue. It was even rumored among peasants that Western powers might"force" Stalin to disband the hated collective farms.

Intelligentsia, scientists and professionals expected an end to the self-isolation of the U.S.S.R. from the outside world. And millions of World War II veterans who had marched through the towns and villages of Europe could never figure out why on Earth wealthier Westerners might choose to go to war against the poor Soviet Union.

The more clever and perceptive among the Soviet public immediately realized that Stalin's anti-Churchill jeremiad was yet another sign that he had returned to his old ways and there would be no silver lining in their lives. Most surprising, the same sentiment even was felt by the military elite.

Some marshals and generals, conquerors of Berlin, Budapest, Vienna and Prague, returned to the Soviet Union -- some as freshly nominated communist "candidates" to the Supreme Soviet "parliament" -- only to be appalled by the misery in their motherland. Those military professionals, who dreaded a combination of U.S. atomic power and British air bases around the Soviet Union, took Stalin's response to Churchill as provocative bravado.

In March 1946, Stalin for the first time purged his top brass, among them the conqueror of Berlin, Marshal Georgi Zhukov. But even then some military leaders did not remain silent, at least privately. In December 1946, Stalin's military counterintelligence overheard a talk between two Soviet generals who blamed Stalin for the absence of Western assistance and feared that his confrontation with the West would result in war -- and Soviet defeat.

It took many more months for Stalin to convince his people of the perceived danger from the West and to build a real "Iron Curtain" around his empire.

1- How was Stalin's reaction to the Iron Curtain speech calculated?

2- According to the article, what did the people of the Soviet Union want from the West? How could a Westerner view this approach?

3- What indicated that Stalin returned to his "old ways"?

The Atomic Age

Thesis: During the Cold War, the world would be under the threat of nuclear destruction. The Soviet Union would become the world's second "atomic nation" in 1949 even though the United States did not share of any of its nuclear research with the Soviet Union.

Objectives Students will be able to understand the term "atomic nation" Students will be able to identify and describe how the United States and Soviet Union

became atomic nations. Students will be able to explain the threat of atomic weapons during the Cold War.

Procedure Activity - Notes, Discussion of nuclear armament Key Questions:

1. How did the Soviet Union attain nuclear weapons?2. Why was it so important for the Soviet Union to have nuclear weapons?3. How did the atomic age shape the Cold War?

Aim: How did the Soviet Union become an atomic nation? What was the response of the US?

The Soviet Atomic Bomb- The Soviet effort was led by Igor Kurchatov at a secret site known as Arzamas-16. - Early efforts were greatly aided by spies inside the Manhattan Project, most notably by Klaus Fuchs. - The Soviets began construction of a near copy of the Fat Man bomb, using the detailed design descriptions provided by Fuchs. - This replica, named Joe-1 by the West, was detonated at the Semipalatinsk Test Site in Kazakhstan on August 29, 1949. Its estimated yield was about 22 kilotons.- Confirmation of the atomic bomb would be picked up by the US a few weeks later. The news reached Truman slowly.- The USSR would not test another atomic weapon for two years.- After the Soviet atomic bomb success, the idea of building a hydrogen bomb became a reality- J. Robert Oppenheimer, opposed its creation due to its potential of destruction. Would later be accused of being a communist and have his reputation damaged. In 1963, his reputation would be restored.- The Soviet Union would spend a great deal of time and money building atomic weapons to keep pace with the United States. The arms race had begun.- In response to the Soviet Union becoming an atomic nation, Great Britain would become one as well in 1952 with the support of the United States.- The arms race would have its starts and stops throughout the Cold War but the threat of war was always very real.

Cold War Battlegrounds

Thesis: During the Cold War, there were many events that pitted democracy versus communism.

Objectives Students will be able to identify and describe the events of the Cold War. Students will be able to explain why events of the Cold War would benefit both the US

& USSR.

Procedure Activity - Cold War Battlegrounds Packet and answer questions Key Questions:

1. Why was the Kitchen Debate significant?2. How did Khrushchev's visit to the US help and hurt the US?3. What was the significance of Vietnam and the Cuban Missile Crisis?4. How do songs play a role in American history?

Cold War Battlegrounds

BERLIN AIRLIFTBy 1948, there was a sharp difference between East Germany (controlled by Soviets) and

West Germany (supported by Western Democracies). West Germany and West Berlin had a better quality of life (free speech, elections, stronger economy) whereas East Germany /Berlin had a poor quality of life (Soviets “punished” their section, stripped it of all wealth & freedoms). Stalin then had an idea- if he could force West Berlin to become Communist, then he could control the REST of Germany. He attempted to accomplish this goal by disrupting all communication and trade between West Berlin and the rest of the free world. He disallowed any land and railroad entrances into the city. He figured that he could starve West Berlin under his control. The western powers had to react. At enormous cost, they organized an airlift to keep up the flow of supplies. Daily, planes flew over East Germany to drop off food, medicine, water and other supplies. This airlift lasted a year before Stalin “gave up” and re-opened the avenues and rails into Berlin.

CHINAThe contempt that the Chinese people had for Chiang Kai-shek (Jiang Jieshi) was cast

aside during WWII as the common enemy was the Japanese. However, after the war, that contempt had come back as the Nationalist government had become corrupt and ineffective. Led by Mao Zedong, a Communist and long time adversary of Chiang Kai-shek, challenged Chiang and the Nationalists. Chiang, supported by the US, and Mao, supported by the USSR, and their followers would fight throughout China between 1945-49. However, the Nationalists would lose its control over China due to corruption of the military and losing the support of the peasants in favor of Mao. To avoid capture and possible punishment from Mao, Chiang and the other nationalists would flee mainland China and head to Taiwan. In October 1949, Mao and the Communists would have control over mainland China. Mao and Stalin would later sign the “Treaty of Friendship” pledging support to each other.

KOREAAfter WWII, Korea had become a divided nation. The Soviet Union controlled the

Northern half of Korea, while the US controlled the Southern half. After the American troops went home, the Soviets created a North Korean army equipped with Soviet weapons and ideology. In 1950, the North Koreans attempted to take over South Korea to create a communist Korea. US President Harry Truman was determined to CONTAIN communism and sent American troops to stop the North Korean aggression. For three years, heavy fighting would ensue throughout Korea only to end after an armistice was signed between the two nations. Tensions still run high between the North Korea and South Korea close to 60 years later.

SPACE RACEIn 1957, the Soviet Union shocked the world by launching the world’s first satellite,

Sputnik, into space. Hysteria and panic over Sputnik and space exploration were high throughout the United States. In 1961, the Soviet Union would continue to flaunt its space program with Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin becoming the first human to go into outer space and orbit the Earth. Though the Americans would quickly follow suit, they needed something to establish a superior space program. US President John F. Kennedy would announce that America would “place a man on the Moon and return him safely home.” In July 1969, the US would put three

men on the Moon. After the Moon landing, other competitions would follow, with the Soviets building a space station in 1971 and the Americans completing a reusable shuttle in 1981.

KHRUSHCHEV & NIXONIn the late 1950’s, the Cold War was beginning to thaw between the United States and

Soviet Union as the leaders of both visits exchanged visits. Despite the desire to reduce tensions by both sides, the Soviet Union adopted a policy called “peaceful coexistence”. The Soviets would compete with the West but avoid war at all costs.

July 24 1959, Vice President Richard Nixon went on a tour of the Soviet Union where he visited an exhibition of American products with Khrushchev. The two leaders would get into a heated debate on democracy and communism. The argument took place in a model kitchen and has been remembered as the “Kitchen Debate”. The event would be televised in its entirety on the three major American networks the next night while the Soviets would broadcast the event with Nixon’s remarks partially translated and at a late hour on July 27.

In September 1959, Soviet Nikita Khrushchev (Stalin’s replacement) visited America to meet with President Dwight D. Eisenhower. However, despite being impressed with an American farm in the state of Iowa, Khrushchev was insulted when he was refused a visit to Disneyland in Anaheim, California. While the official reason for Khrushchev’s refusal was that it was a security risk, some believe that Walt Disney did not want to be seen as a communist supporter in the eyes of the American public.

After Khrushchev’s visit to the United States, a four power summit was planned to take place in Paris, France. However, a high altitude American U-2 spy plane was shot down over the Soviet Union. At first, the US would deny the mission and purpose of the spy plane but would later recant its story once evidence would prove otherwise. The Paris summit would be cancelled and marked a deterioration in the relations between the two superpowers.

CUBAFor years, the United States had supported the Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista even

though he was very unpopular. In 1959, a revolution against Batista began, led by a young communist named Fidel Castro. Castro and his communist followers, including Che Guevara, expelled Batista and established a totalitarian government with a communist economy.

As Cuba began to receive aid from the Soviet Union, President John F. Kennedy became increasingly alarmed. After the failed attempt to overthrow Fidel Castro at the Bay of Pigs, tensions between Cuba and the United States were high. In 1962, American spy planes took pictures of nuclear missile launch pads being built in Cuba for Russian missiles, which could easily hit any major American city. Enraged, Kennedy sent the American navy to create a blockade around Cuba and prevent any Soviet ship from entering Cuba. The world held their breath as a thirteen day standoff between Kennedy and Khrushchev ensued. As the threat of nuclear war became more real, Khrushchev would order his ships back to the Soviet Union. The Cuban Missile Crisis was over. Khrushchev would resign as Soviet premier in 1964 and Kennedy would be assassinated in 1963.

VIETNAM

1954, Vietnam was temporarily divided into a northern half, ruled by communist leader Ho Chi Minh, and the southern half which was run as a democracy. Large numbers of American forces were eventually sent to Vietnam to prevent Ho Chi Minh from uniting Vietnam under northern rule. However, the American forces were not able to defeat the communist forces in Vietnam despite better training and support of the United States in Vietnam declining at home. In 1973, President Richard Nixon ordered a cease-fire and began to pull American forces out of Vietnam. In 1975, the North Vietnamese captured the capital and reuniting Vietnam, thus making it communist.

CZECHOSLOVAKIAAfter WWII had ended, a war torn Czechoslovakia had fallen under Soviet control. In

1968, Alexander Dubcek decided to break away from Soviet rule and reform Czechoslovakia to be more like the United States. Throughout April and May 1968, Dubcek changed many laws to allow freedom of speech and religion, as well as implementing capitalism by allowing small businesses to operate. Jazz music began to be heard in clubs and dance halls only to have the Soviet Red Army remove Dubcek from power and end the reforms he had instituted. The “Prague Spring” was a small strike against the mighty force of the Soviet Union.

THE OLYMPICSSince the Soviet and American armies never met on the battlefield, sports arenas became

a source for Cold War conflict. In the 1972 Olympics, the Soviet Men’s Basketball Team defeated the US for the gold medal in a controversial finish. In 1980, the Americans would return the favor and defeat the heavily favored Soviets for the gold medal in Hockey. All sporting events that took place between these two nations during the Olympics would serve as patriotic competitions.

AFGHANISTANAfter WWII, Afghanistan attempted to govern its own affairs without taking sides during

the Cold War. Since Afghanistan shared a border with the Soviet Union, it was difficult to ignore the growing Soviet influence. As tension between the Soviets and Muslims for control over Afghanistan increased, the Soviet Union would invade Afghanistan in 1979. The United States would offer its services to the Mujahideen (Anti-Soviet rebels) by way of weapons and training. The Mujahideen, which included a young Osama bin Laden, would stop the Red Army advance and would force them to leave in 1989 after world opinion of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan would sour and the Soviet Union could no longer afford to fight.

Cold War Battlegrounds

Event Year(s) Summary Winner

Berlin Airlift 1948

- Berlin divided into 4 zones of occ. btwn US, USSR, GB & France- Stalin sealed off all entries into Berlin- Allies airlifted supplies to people of Berlin for over a year- Stalin gave up and opened the entries back into Berlin

Democracy

China

Korea

Space Race

Khrushchev

Cuba

Vietnam

Czechoslovakia

The Olympics

Afghanistan

Cold War Battlegrounds Event Year(s) Summary Winner

Berlin Airlift 1948

- Berlin divided into 4 zones of occ. btwn US, USSR, GB & France- Stalin sealed off all entries into Berlin- Allies airlifted supplies to people of Berlin for over a year- Stalin gave up and opened the entries back into Berlin

Democracy

China 1945-1949

- People upset with Chiang Kai-shek- Mao – Led communists & had support of the peasants- Chiang v. Mao – Fought throughout China- Chiang lost b/c of the widespread corruption of his government, no support of the people, & military weaknesses- Chiang escaped Mao and fled to Taiwan- Mao & Stalin signed “Treaty of Friendship”

Communists

Korea 1950-1953

- Korea divided btwn US/USSR- NK (communists) tried to take over SK- Truman tried to CONTAIN communism- 3 years of fighting led to an armistice- Korea is still divided today

Tie

Space Race 1957-1981

- USSR launched Sputnik & put first man in orbit & space- US matched man in space & orbit- US put 3 men on the moon- USSR built a space station- US built a reusable shuttle

Tie

Khrushchev 1959

- Peaceful Coexistence- Kitchen Debate with VP Nixon- Khrushchev visits US- Impressed with an Iowa farm and denied entry into Disneyland- U2 Spy Plane shot down over USSR, US deny knowledge of it & then had to admit it- Paris Summit cancelled – Tensions high

Tie

Cuba

1959-1962

- Fidel Castro overthrew Batista- Castro/USSR become allies- Failed invasion at Bay of Pigs by US to overthrow Castro- Cuban Missile Crisis – US keeps nuclear weapons out of Cuba- Cuba is still a communist nation today

Communists

Vietnam 1954-1975

- Ho Chi Minh led Communist revolution in Vietnam- US couldn’t stop North Vietnamese despite better training & public support for war in US decreased- Nixon pulls troops out of Vietnam- North Vietnam unites country under communism

Communists

Czechoslovakia 1968

- Alexander Dubcek decided to break away from Soviet rule- Reformed Czech by introducing jazz music, freedom of speech and capitalists for small businesses- Red Army removed Dubcek and restored order in Czech

Communists

The Olympics 1972-1980’s

- Became a source of conflict in lieu of war- Defeated each other in various sports for Gold medals and bragging rights

Tie

Afghanistan1979-1989

- Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan- US trained the Mujahideen to defeat the Soviet Union- US trained Osama bin Laden- USSR forced to leave Afghanistan due to world opinion & being unable to afford to stay and fight

Democracy

Kitchen Debate - Khrushchev v. Nixon July 24, 1959

Nixon: I want to show you this kitchen. It is like those of our houses in California. [Nixon points to dishwasher.]

Khrushchev: We have such things.

Nixon: This is our newest model. This is the kind which is built in thousands of units for direct installations in the houses. In America, we like to make life easier for women...

Khrushchev: Your capitalistic attitude toward women does not occur under Communism.

Nixon: I think that this attitude towards women is universal. What we want to do, is make life more easy for our housewives.....

Nixon: This house can be bought for $14,000, and most American [veterans from World War II] can buy a home in the bracket of $10,000 to $15,000. Let me give you an example that you can appreciate. Our steel workers as you know, are now on strike. But any steel worker could buy this house. They earn $3 an hour. This house costs about $100 a month to buy on a contract running 25 to 30 years.

Khrushchev: We have steel workers and peasants who can afford to spend $14,000 for a house. Your American houses are built to last only 20 years so builders could sell new houses at the end. We build firmly. We build for our children and grandchildren.

Nixon: American houses last for more than 20 years, but, even so, after twenty years, many Americans want a new house or a new kitchen. Their kitchen is obsolete by that time....The American system is designed to take advantage of new inventions and new techniques.

Khrushchev: This theory does not hold water. Some things never get out of date houses, for instance, and furniture, furnishings perhaps but not houses. I have read much about America and American houses, and I do not think that this is exhibit and what you say is strictly accurate.

Nixon: Well, um...

Khrushchev: I hope I have not insulted you.

Nixon: I have been insulted by experts. Everything we say [on the other hand] is in good humor. Always speak frankly.

Khrushchev: The Americans have created their own image of the Soviet man. But he is not as you think. You think the Russian people will be dumbfounded to see these things, but the fact is that newly built Russian houses have all this equipment right now.

Nixon: Yes, but...

Khrushchev: In Russia, all you have to do to get a house is to be born in the Soviet Union. You are entitled to housing...In America, if you don’t have a dollar you have a right to choose between sleeping in a house or on the pavement. Yet you say we are the slave to Communism.

Nixon: I appreciate that you are very articulate and energetic...

Khrushchev: Energetic is not the same thing as wise.

Nixon: If you were in the Senate, we would call you a filibusterer! You [Khrushchev interrupts] do all the talking and don’t let anyone else talk. This exhibit was not designed to astound but to interest. Diversity, the right to choose, the fact that we have 1,000 builders building 1,000 different houses is the most important thing. We don’t have one decision made at the top by one government official. This is the difference.

Khrushchev: On politics, we will never agree with you. For instance, Mikoyan likes very peppery soup. I do not. But this does not mean that we do not get along.

Nixon: You can learn from us, and we can learn from you. There must be a free exchange. Let the people choose the kind of house, the kind of soup, the kind of ideas that they want.

[Translation lost as both men enter the television recording studio.]

Khrushchev: [In jest] You look very angry, as if you want to fight me. Are you still angry?

Nixon: [in jest] That’s right!

Khrushchev: ....and Nixon was once a lawyer? Now he’s nervous.

Nixon: Oh yes, [Nixon chuckling] he still is [a lawyer].

Other Russian speaker: Tell us, please, what are your general impressions of the exhibit?

Khrushchev: It’s clear to me that the construction workers didn’t manage to finish their work and the exhibit still is not put in order...This is what America is capable of, and how long has she existed? 300 years? 150 years of independence and this is her level. We haven’t quite reached 42 years, and in another 7 years, we’ll be at the level of America, and after that we’ll go farther. As we pass you by, we’ll wave "hi" to you, and then if you want, we’ll stop and say, "please come along behind us." ...If you want to live under capitalism, go ahead, that’s your question, an internal matter, it doesn’t concern us. We can feel sorry for you, but really, you wouldn’t understand. We've already seen how you understand things.

Other U.S speaker: Mr. Vice President, from what you have seen of our exhibition, how do you think it’s going to impress the people of the Soviet Union?

Nixon: It’s a very effective exhibit, and it’s one that will cause a great deal of interest. I might say that this morning I, very early in the morning, went down to visit a market, where the farmers from various outskirts of the city bring in their items to sell. I can only say that there was a great deal of interest among these people, who were workers and farmers, etc... I would imagine that the exhibition from that standpoint would, therefore, be a considerable success. As far as Mr. Khrushchev's comments just now, they are in the tradition we learned to expect from him of speaking extemporaneously and frankly whenever he has an opportunity. I can only say that if this competition which you have described so effectively, in which you plan to outstrip us, particularly in the production of consumer goods...If this competition is to do the best for both of our peoples and for people everywhere, there must be a free exchange of ideas. There are some instances where you may be ahead of us--for example in the development of the thrust of your rockets for the investigation of outer space. There may be some instances, for example, color television, where we're ahead of you. But in order for both of us benefit...

Khrushchev: [interrupting] No, in rockets we've passed you by, and in the technology...

Nixon: [continuing to talk] You see, you never concede anything.

Khrushchev: We always knew that Americans were smart people. Stupid people could not have risen to the economic level that they've reached. But as you know, "we don’t beat flies with our nostrils!" In 42 years we’ve made progress.

Nixon: You must not be afraid of ideas.

Khrushchev: We’re saying it is you who must not be afraid of ideas. We’re not afraid of anything....

Nixon: Well, then, let's have more exchange of them. We all agree on that, right?

Khrushchev: Good. [Khrushchev turns to translator and asks:] Now, what did I agree on?

Nixon: [interrupts] Now, let’s go look at our pictures.

Khrushchev: Yes, I agree. But first I want to clarify what I'm agreeing on. Don’t I have that right? I know that I’m dealing with a very good lawyer. Therefore, I want to be unwavering in my miner's girth, so our miners will say, "He's ours and he doesn't give in!"

Nixon: No question about that.

Khrushchev: You're a lawyer of Capitalism; I'm a lawyer for Communism. Let’s kiss.

Nixon: All that I can say, from the way you talk and the way you dominate the conversation, you would have made a good lawyer yourself. What I mean is this: Here you can see the type of tape which will transmit this very conversation immediately, and this indicates the possibilities of increasing communication. And this increase in communication, will teach us some things, and you some things, too. Because, after all, you don’t know everything.

Khrushchev: If I don’t know everything, then you know absolutely nothing about Communism, except for fear! But now the dispute will be on an unequal basis. The apparatus is yours, and you speak English, while I speak Russian. Your words are taped and will be shown and heard. What I say to you about science won't be translated, and so your people won't hear it. These aren't equal conditions.

Nixon: There isn't a day that goes by in the United States when we can't read everything that you say in the Soviet Union...And, I can assure you, never make a statement here that you don’t think we read in the United States.

Khrushchev: If that’s the way it is, I’m holding you to it. Give me your word...I want you, the Vice President, to give me your word that my speech will also be taped in English. Will it be?

Nixon: Certainly it will be. And by the same token, everything that I say will be recorded and translated and will be carried all over the Soviet Union. That’s a fair bargain.

[Both men shake hands and walk off stage, still talking.]

The Soviet Union 1945-79: The Beginning of the End

Thesis: From 1945-79, the Soviet Union went through many changes mostly in part because they had to keep up with the United States. The changes that occurred in the Soviet Union would weaken them to the point where their fall would be inevitable.

Objectives Students will be able to identify and describe key terms and events that led to the fall of

the Soviet Union. Students will be able to explain how diplomatic steps taken by the USSR and US to

prevent its inevitable fall.

Procedures Activity - Packet " THE COLD WAR: THE UNITED STATES AND SOVIET UNION

PART I- 1945-1979" Key Questions:

1. What was NATO? What was the Warsaw Pact?2. What was Destalinization?3. What led to the fall of Khrushchev? 4. What was the Brezhnev Doctrine?5. What was the purpose of the SALT Treaty?

THE COLD WAR: THE UNITED STATES AND SOVIET UNION PART I- 1945-1979

From 1945 until the 1970’s, the Cold War took its toll on both the United States and Soviet Union. During those times, the Soviet Union would undergo drastic changes within its own government as well as the United States. The nature of the competition between the United States and Soviet Union would change as each country would embrace a new leader.

NATO- North Atlantic Treaty Organization- Created by Democratic nations in North America and Western Europe. Pledged support to each other if any member is attacked.

Warsaw Pact- Created in response to NATO- Created by the USSR and Eastern European nations. Pledged military alliances in the event of attacks as well.

THE SOVIET UNION FROM 1945 - 1950’s

In 1949, the Soviet Union obtains information on creating the atomic bomb, making them equal to the United States and officially beginning the arms race. Throughout the 1950’s, the Soviet Union would build up its nuclear arsenal and by the late 1950’s the USSR successfully tested ICBM’s (Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles). ICBM’s were aimed at the US. The United States would also create ICBM’s and have them aimed at the Soviet Union as well.

In 1953 Joseph Stalin dies. Since Stalin did not select a successor, the USSR was run as a collective leadership by top Soviet officials until 1955. In 1955, Nikita Khrushchev would emerge as leader and bring reform to the Soviet Union. At a secret meeting, Khrushchev criticized Stalin’s policies and reversed most of them. The policy, known as Destalinization, was meant to give citizens more freedoms and a better life (Wages, opportunities). Destalinization would last from 1955-64. Khrushchev also brought change to its relationship with the West by adopting peaceful coexistence, which called for competing with the West but avoiding war at all costs.

THE FALL OF KHRUSHCHEV

In 1962 the Cuban Missile Crisis demonstrated that changes needed to be made within the Soviet Union and between the United States in order to prevent a nuclear war. As a result of the Cuban Missile Crisis, Khrushchev lost face within USSR and both the United States and Soviet Union made some agreements. The agreements made were the creation of a hotline (the red phone on the president’s desk) between the White house and Kremlin, JFK pledged not to invade Cuba and the ban of nuclear testing in the atmosphere.

In 1964, Khrushchev would be removed as leader and replaced by a collective leadership led by Aleksei Kosygin and Leonid Brezhnev, who would lead the Soviet Union until his death in 1982. Reasons for Khrushchev’s removal from power were the result of the Cuban Missile Crisis, the relationship with China soured because of differences in ideologies between China and Soviet Union. Khrushchev’s new economic policies failed, his heavy spending on the military, industry and technology led to little room on improvement for anything. The final straw came when Khrushchev was faced with a grain shortage and the Soviets had to buy from and the West.

BREZHNEV IN POWER

Reversed Destalinization Brezhnev Doctrine - The Soviet Union has the right to intervene in communist states to

counter any opposition that threatened communism or the unity of the USSR Failed at rebuilding USSR - Heavy spending on industry, military and technology led to

western support once again The Soviet society is shot by the 1970’s - Technologically behind the US in some ways,

people are upset with the government and the economy is in ruins

NIXON VERSUS THE SOVIET UNION…AGAIN

Richard Nixon, who was no stranger to communism, met with Brezhnev in 1972. Instead of arguing in a model kitchen, Nixon and Brezhnev negotiated a policy that brought some peace between the US and USSR. The two adopted a policy known as détente (reduce tensions) as well as make an agreement on nuclear weapons. The SALT (Strategic Arms Limitation Agreement) treaty would limit the number of nuclear warheads and missiles that each country could maintain. Détente would last for seven years until the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979. The SALT Treaty would not end the arms race; it would only slow it down.

Name The Cold War 1945-79

Answer the follow questions in complete sentences.

1- In what year did the Soviet Union create their first atomic weapon? What was so significant about this event?

2- Identify: Destalinization, ICBM, Peaceful Coexistence, Détente, Brezhnev Doctrine, SALT Treaty

3- What were some agreements between the US and USSR as a result of the Cuban Missile Crisis?

4- What factors led to Khrushchev’s removal from power?

The Soviet Union 1980-1991: The Inevitable Fall

Thesis: The fall of the Soviet Union was inevitable due to its geography, ethnic tensions and inability to keep up with the United States.

Objectives Students will be able to identify and describe what led to the fall of the Soviet Union

from 1979-91. Students will be able to understand why the fall of the Soviet Union was inevitable.

Procedure Activity - Packet & Questions "THE COLD WAR: THE COLLAPSE OF THE SOVIET

UNION PART II 1980-1991" Key Questions:

1. What was glasnost and perestroika?2. How did geography play a role in the fall of the Soviet Union?3. What impact did the Cold War have on the United States?

THE COLD WAR: THE COLLAPSE OF THE SOVIET UNIONPART II 1980-1991

MIKHAIL GORBACHEV

In the mid-1980’s, Mikhail Gorbachev came into power of the Soviet Union. Gorbachev was a reform-minded leader who wanted to transform the inefficient, state-run economy into a more liberal state. Gorbachev would implement two new policies (Glasnost and perestroika) to the USSR. Glasnost, meaning “openness”, allowed for freedom of expression and eased harsh measures against critics of the Soviet system. Gorbachev wanted to rebuild the economy by encouraging limited economic moves; this would be known as perestroika. Through these two policies, Gorbachev would begin to dismantle the national bureaucracy.

Gorbachev’s foreign policy was one that shocked the Western World. Gorbachev would meet with Ronald Reagan to negotiate new arms-reduction treaties. He would also withdraw missiles from Eastern European nations and the troops from Afghanistan. Gorbachev also did not enforce the Brezhnev Policy and even encouraged Eastern European Communist nations to bring reforms, which would inspire the end of communism and the beginning of democracy. His ideas for reform would start a domino effect in Eastern Europe that brought both good and bad for years to come.

THE BEGINNING OF THE END The Rise of Solidarity - Poland - Picked up momentum because Pope John Paul II was from

Poland and he was an anti-Communist. People of Poland wanted better lives and went on strikes in order to get them, the strikes were led by Lech Walesa, who would win the Nobel Peace Prize in 1983 and become Poland’s first democratically elected president. Despite the growing threats from the Soviet backed Polish government, Solidarity prevailed.

1989: THE YEAR OF MIRACLES

In the 1980‘s, Eastern Europe could be best described by its high inflation and unemployment rates as well as reduced production in food, labor and trade. These unfavorable economic conditions led to people to rally against communism as people were forced to pay high prices for low quality goods. The dislike for communism in Eastern Europe would reach its boiling point in 1989.

January 1989 - Gorbachev cutbacks 500,000 troops in the Soviet Army- These troops were positioned throughout Eastern Europe to keep order in its satellite states

March 1989 - Gorbachev pledges not to interfere with democratic reforms in Hungary - In

the months to follow communism would fall in East Germany, Czechoslovakia, Poland, Romania and Bulgaria, Gorbachev does not intervene

November 9, 1989 - The Berlin Wall opens, uniting East and West Germany- The wall would come down in the days to follow

December 1989 - The president of Romania is violently overthrown - The dictator and his wife were tried and executed

TROUBLE IN THE USSR

Gorbachev is facing opposition from political rivals, as well as the burden of nationalist and ethnic unrest. Non-Russian republics began to dislike the dominance of the Russians over their affairs. In the republics outside of Russia (the largest of the Soviet states), people demanded self-rule and secession. The first step would be taken in 1990 as Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia became the first republics to declare their independence from the Soviet Union.

In August 1991, the hatred of Gorbachev reached its climax. Hard-liners within the military and secret police staged a coup to remove Gorbachev from power and restore the Soviet Union to the old days. During that coup, Boris Yeltsin would lead a heroic resistance against the Soviet army and eventually, others would soon follow. The coup of August 1991 meant that Gorbachev was seen as incapable of solving the problems of the Soviet Union and Boris Yeltsin had became the real leader of the Soviet Union. Shortly after, the party would be dissolved and all traces (pictures and statues) of the Communist Party were destroyed. On December 25, 1991, the Cold War officially ended and the road to rebuilding the world had begun.

HOW THE US BEAT THE SOVIETS IN THE 80’S

In 1980, Ronald Reagan, a former movie star was elected president. While in office, he referred to the Soviet Union as the “Evil Empire”. To defeat this evil empire, Reagan would do anything necessary. Reagan was able to defeat the Soviets in three ways.

1- Wage an economic war that would decrease Soviet access to high technology and diminish their resources. 2- Increase American defense expenditures and force the Soviets to devote more of their dwindling assets to defense. “Peace through Strength”3- Reduce Soviet influence throughout the world.

THE EFFECTS OF WINNING THE COLD WAR ON THE US

Reagan cut spending on social programs and lowered taxes to stimulate economic growth Inflation slowed and the economy improved Increased spending on the military Increased the budget deficit The US has now become a borrowing nation instead of a lending nation The US debt expands The United States becomes the sole superpower of the world

Name The End of the Cold War 1980-91

Answer the following questions in complete sentences.

1- Define: Glasnost, Perestroika

2- What role did glasnost and perestroika play in the collapse of the Soviet Union?

3- Why was the West shocked about Gorbachev’s foreign policy? Provide four reasons.

4- Why was the Rise of Solidarity successful in Poland?

5- How did geography (ethnicities, locations) play a role in the collapse of the Soviet Union?

6- How was Ronald Reagan able to defeat the Soviet Union? What were the effects on the US? Do you agree with how the US beat the Soviet Union? Explain your answer.

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