Earth Science- Chapter 4
Weathering- when rocks are broken down because of physical or chemical changes.
1. Physical weathering- what is physical weathering? The rock will be broken down into smaller pieces or a different shape but there will be no change in its chemical composition.
A few natural ways a rock can be broken down:
a. Frost action- water seeps into the rock thru the cracks, then the water freezes and expands in the cracks and it causes the crack to get larger and the rock expands to accommodate the larger water. When the weather warms up, the ice will melt. The water will evaporate, and the rock is left with large cracks. This cycle will happen over and over again and the cracks will grow larger and larger until the rock splits.
b. Plant roots- happens because of the roots of the plants. The roots reach into the soil and the roots expand as the plant gets bigger. If it finds its way into the cracks of a rock, as the roots expand, they’ll push the rock apart.
c. Animals- when the animals dig into the ground, they bring new rocks up to the surface and these rocks are now exposed to different factors that can cause them to weather.
d. Abrasion- when things knock into each other.
1. When a stream is flowing and with in it there are rocks and some rocks knock against others and knock into the water all. All the collision causes the rocks to break.
2. Wind blows little pieces of rock against exposed rock surfaces and there is a collision and eventually the rock will crack.
3. Moving ice scrapes against the rock, causing the rock to break.
4. Wave action- waves of the sea attack rocks on the shore and cause them to break down.
5. The force of gravity could cause breakage.
From all the weathering we see that some rocks are soft and some are hard- some break easier than others.
a. Quartz- is made of silica. It’s a hard rock that resists physical weathering.
b. Mica- soft rock that breaks easily.
2. Chemical weathering- changes the mineral composition of the rock and forms a completely new substance.
Deep in the crust of the earth there isn’t really and chemical weathering. When rock comes to the surface, it’s exposed to the hydrosphere and atmosphere and chemical weathering can occur.
2 things that speed up chemical weathering:
a. Rain
b. Heat
c. Acid- acid rain is regular rain that absorbed carbon dioxide and pollution Ex. Sulfur and nitrogen absorb organic acid making the rain acid rain. If this acid rain comes in contact with rock, the rock will decompose. Ex. If limestone is combined with acid, chemical weathering will occur.
Examples of chemical weathering:
a. Iron+ oxygen= iron oxide (rust)
b. Feldspar- when exposed to oxygen and water, chemical weathering will occur, and it’ll become clay.
c. Olivine-located deep in the ground. If exposed, it will become clay.
Soil-
What is soil made up of?
1. Weathered rocks
2. Micro-organisms
3. Organic remains
4. Bedrock
Different types of soils are effected by:
1. Climate- the type of climate is going to affect the soil because it’ll affect the amount of moisture in the soil, the amount of air in the soil, and the amount of organic matter in the soil.
2. What the rock is made up of and how much weathering the rocks went through- physical weathering is going to determine the size of the rock fragments. When some rocks undergo chemical weathering, they turn into clay. The amount of clay in the soil is going to be soft or hard depending on the rock pieces inside the soil. If there is a lot of organic matter in the soil, the organic matter is going to decompose. When organic matter decomposes, it produces organic acid. The more organic acid there is, the more chemical weathering there will be.
If there are a lot of animals in the area, the animals are going to bring rocks up to the surface. When rocks are exposed, more weathering can happen. A lot of animals= more organic matter (wastes).
Formation of soil- (Layers of soil are aka soil horizons)
1. Residual soil- soil that rests on top of its original bedrock. All residual soil is going to have 4 layers:
a. There’s bedrock.
b. Broken bedrock- formed from weathered bedrock.
c. Mineral enriched horizon- water with a lot of soil because the ground water hash infiltrated this layer and produced minerals.
d. Humus- dark, black soil, which is full of organic matter. The more organic matter there is, the more fertile the soil is going to be.
2. Transported soil- top layer of soil was brought to another location. This soil won’t have all the layers.
Transported soil moves through the process of erosion- transportation of sediments (rock fragments) from one location to another. There are many ways erosion can happen:
a. Erosion through gravity
b. Erosion by water
c. Wind erosion
Erosion-
1. Erosion through gravity- when gravity moves something from 1 area to another without the help of wind, rain or ice. When this happens, it’s called a mass movement/ mass wasting. The rocks are going to slide, flow or fall down.
It’s more probable that erosion by gravity is going to happen if:
a. There is water within the sediment.
b. There’s freezing and thawing within the rocks.
Examples of erosion by gravity:
a. Landslide
b. Fallen rocks
c. Slow creep
d. Slumping
2. Erosion by water- if there’s a moist place, erosion will probably be erosion by water. There’s a stream flowing and it carries rock sediment with the water. Depending on the size and density of the rock, we can determine what kind of erosion is going to take place:
a. Solution- very small rock particles are going to be carried along the river in solution. These rocks are so small that they can’t be filtered out of the water naturally.
b. Suspension- small particles that won’t settle on the river floor on their own. They are large enough to be filtered out of the water naturally.
c. Floatation- the lightest particles with the lowest density float along the surface of the river. Very often, these are composed of organic matter and they are very light.
d. Traction- heaviest and largest sediments are rolled along the river floor by traction.
Stream velocity- the speed of the stream. Different stream velocities will move along different sized sediments. In order for traction to occur, stream velocity has to be very high. By looking at the size of sediments in a stream, the velocity can be determined.
What effects velocity?
a. Gradient
b. Discharge- amount of water in the stream. The more water, the faster the velocity. The greater the velocity, the more erosion is going to happen. The speed of the stream is a balance between the pull of gravity and friction. The center of the stream has the least friction, so it moves the fastest. There is even friction between the stream and the air.
There are some rivers that have S shaped curves- the river meanders. When the river passes along the curve, it goes very quickly along the outside of the bend. As it passes along the outside of the S, there’s greater erosion. Because the water is going slowly on the inside of the s, there will be deposition.
3. Wind erosion- the wind picks up sediments of rocks and carries them from one place to another, for example clay, sand and silt. Erosion by wind happens in a place where the soil is loose and there are no plants holding the soil down.
4. Erosion by ice- ice transfers sediment from one area to another by glaciers. Glaciers are large blocks of slow moving ice. Glaciers form in a very cold area- the Arctic areas.
How do glaciers form? When the snow piles up faster then it melts, the bottom layer of snow forms into a block of ice.
When the glacier movers, it acts as an abrasion system, causing rocks that it passes along to break or get scratched. Sometimes, a glacier will smooth out the side of a mountain.
Different types of glaciers form different landscapes:
a. Continental glaciers- a glacier that covers a very large area. As it passes over the land, it’s going to deepen and widen valleys and it’s going to grind down any hills in the area. With it it takes along sediment.
b. Valley glacier- it scours rocks away in order to create a U shaped valley with the sides of the mountain almost vertical. Valley glaciers move very slowly. The ice in the center of the glacier moves the fastest.
Identifying agents of erosion- what agent of erosion caused this erosion to look this way?
1. A rough, angular rock- gravity.
2. Round, smooth rock- eroded by water.
3. Rounded and striated rock- eroded by glaciers.
4. Ventifacts (rock that’s angular with facets)- eroded by wind.
5. Talus- angular and rough- eroded by gravity.
Deposition- when sediments are deposited in an area. Aka sedimentation.
What effects deposition?
1. Particle size-
a. Larger particles are deposited first.
b. Small particles are deposited slower.
c. Tiny particles won’t settle unless the solution its in is saturated. Ex. The Persian Gulf has lots of salt. When the weather gets hot, the water evaporates and the Persian Gulf is as saturated with salt as it can be. If more water would evaporate, the water would be oversaturated with salt. The salt will begin to settle and it will crystallize. These salt crystals are called precipitates. The process of the salt crystallizing is called precipitation.
2. Particle shape- the more friction there is between the particle and water, the longer it will take to settle.
a. A flat, angular particle with an irregular shape will take a long time for deposition to occur.
b. A smooth, round rock will be dropped off quicker.
3. Density of the particle- if the size and the shape are the same, the denser particle will be deposited first.
4. Speed of the agents (things that cause deposition)- wind, ice, gravity… If any of the agents are moving quickly, deposition won’t be happening so much. As the agent slows down, deposition is going to increase. Ex. as a stream enters an ocean, it slows down, and deposition will occur.
Sorting of sediments- deposited according to size, shape and density. Sometimes, sediments aren’t deposited according to size, shape and density, for example if wind stops blowing, if it goes according to size, shape and density, it’s called sorting of sediments.
1. Horizontal sorting- near ocean shoreline. First large rocks are deposited, then medium rocks. As the agent of deposition slows down, the rocks will get smaller and smaller.
2. Vertical sorting- as the river slows down, deposition will increase. The smaller rocks will settle on top of the larger rocks.
3. Graded bedding- a few layers of sorting one on top of the other and every layer represents a different event. This usually happens in vertical sorting. Ex. There is a lake at the foot of a mountain. The mountain has a landslide, and all the rocks that tumble down sort on the bottom of the lake. This event happens year after year. Eventually, there will be many layers of sorting on top of each other.
Types of deposition-
1. Deposition by gravity- when it occurs, the sediments aren’t sorted. Rocks fall off a cliff and form one pile of angular, unsorted rocks.
2. Deposition by water- when you look at sediments inside a stream, you can see how fast the stream is going. When the stream is going slow, there will be lots of deposition. In a very slow part of a river, it may have to be dredged (cleaned) because there are so many rocks. As the river enters the ocean, it deposits the sediments in a delta shape.
3. Deposition by wind- sediments carried by the wind. These sediments are fine because the wind can carry heavy sediments. Sometimes, the wind blows the sediment into hills known as dunes. Sand is blown up on the windward side and deposited on the leeward side. This usually happens at the beach or in the desert.
Cross bedding- wind blows the sand into different layers that meet at different angles.
Most deposition in a desert doesn’t come from wind, but rather from flash floods- thunderstorms that occur suddenly and infrequently.
4. Deposition by glaciers- sediments can be deposited by moving ice or by the melted water, and a bunch of unsorted rocks will be left.
Erratic- deposition that occurs by ice. Large boulders are deposited above a stream valley. They are rounded and striated. That that they are high and striated is proof that this deposition occurred by glaciers and not by water.
5. Deposition by melt water- when a glacier melts, the sediments inside the glacier are released and deposited.
NY and the Ice Age- how was NY affected by erosion and deposition of glaciers?
1. When the ice formed- in the N Pole, a big block of ice began to flow to NY. Depending on how much snow gathered with this glacier, it could flow a few cm a day, or a few meters a day.
2. As the glacier flows along, it’s going to cause erosion:
a. Alpine/Valley glaciers- as they flow along, they create a U shaped valley. U shaped valleys in NY were formed by these glaciers.
b. Continental glaciers/ice sheets- also creates landscapes.
c. A glacier causes erosion by smoothing out the rocks- a glacial polish.
3. Deposition by glaciers- the Finger Lakes in NY were formed by deposition.
a. As a glacier moves, it deposits unsorted sediments (aka till).
b. As the ice moves along, it pushes soil and rock in front of it. Eventually, the glacier slides over the pile of soil and rock, creating a drumlin- tear shaped hill. The round part of the tear drop faces the direction that the glacier came from.
c. When the ice stops moving S, it leaves piles of unsorted sediments that are called moraines.
Proof that there are moraines:
1. Long Island is an island that has 2 long fingers poking out that were formed by moraines.
2. There’s a valley that stops the Finger Lakes from continuing onward. This valley was formed by a moraine.
4. Kettle/kettle lakes- when a glacier inside the ground melts, kettle lakes are formed. When the water evaporates, a dry depression known as a kettle is left.
Path of NY glacier- starts from the N pole and moves S. As it goes S, it begins melting. When it moves forward at the same rate that it melts, it’s standing still- at a dynamic equilibrium. When it’s melting quicker than it’s moving, it’s in essence retreating.
How are oceans and coasts affected by deposition and erosion?
1. Oceans- 71% of earth’s surfaces are covered by oceans. The deepest part of the ocean is one mile deeper than Mt. Everest.
A lot of sediments that are deposited on earth will eventually be brought to the ocean and be deposited there. Proof- most fossils are marine fossils.
It is very common for sediments to be deposited in the ocean through salt. A lot of different elements can be mixed into pure salt and brought into the ocean with salt. When there is too much salt in the ocean, it crystallizes on the ocean floor and will eventually turn into sedimentary rocks.
2. Coast- there are 2 ways for erosion and deposition to occur along the coast:
a. Long shore currents- currents that flow along near the shore and cause erosion along the shore.
b. Waves- flow of energy through water. As the waves get closer to the shoreline, they get narrow and tall. The surface water along the waves are moving in ellipses which get smaller and smaller as you get deeper into the ocean.
As a wave gets closer to the shore, there’s an increase in friction because more ocean water is touching the ocean floor. This friction slows down the waves. The other waves catch up and build on top of the original waves, making them taller. When the waves get too tall, they break and crash onto the shore. At this point, a lot of energy is released.
How does this energy effect erosion?
1. Because of the friction that the waves create within the sediment- the energy causes the molecules in the rock to rub against each other until there is so much friction and the rocks break.
2. The energy moves sand from one area of the shoreline to another in the zone of longshore transport. Within this zone, the sand is being moved back and forth.
3. Energy builds shoreline features:
a. Sand bars- ridges that are submerged and run parallel to the shore.
b. Sandspits- long ridges of sand that extend into the mouth of the bay.
c. Baymouth bars- sand bar that blocks the mouth of the bay.
d. Barrier islands- islands made of sand.
e. Wave-cut cliff- cliffs that face the sea along the shore.
f. Marine terrace- a wave-cut platform that is exposed above sea level.
g. Sea arch- an arch formed when two sea cave unite through erosion.
h. Sea stack- when a sea arch crumbles.
There are some people who decided that we must protect the shore because there is so much erosion going on and soon there’ll be no shore left. They built structures:
1. Breakwater- to stop the waves.
2. Seawall- to stop the waves.
3. Jetties- to hold the sand in place.
4. Groins- to hold the sand in place.
After these structures were put into place, the people began to notice that less erosion was happening at one area, but more erosion was happening at another area, so the people decided to leave nature alone.
Landscapes- general shape of the region of the land.
Landscapes are formed by:
1. Landforms- rocks that have the same age and composition.
a. Hills
b. Streams
c. Valleys
2. Topography- shape of the land.
3 major landscapes:
1. Mountains- has the greatest topographic relief (difference between elevations) of all landscapes. Mountains are made up of the greatest variety of rocks. Forces within the earth push up land to form mountains. Mountains have high gradient streams- steep streams. The steeper the river, the quicker the river. Because they go very fast, they cause a lot of erosion.
2. Plateau- the top of the plateau is generally flat. Sometimes plateaus will have rolling hills. Plateaus can have streams. If there are streams on the plateau, there will be a deep valley. A plateau is formed from layers of sedimentary rocks piled one on top of the other. A plateau has a smaller topographic relief than a mountain.
3. Plains- has no elevation above sea level. A plain has the smallest topographic relief. Plains are generally flat, but could have hills. Plains are made up of layers of sedimentary rocks.
Landscape region- a specific area that has a landscape. It can be general or more specific.
Things that affect landscape:
1. Climate- more rain or less rain is going to effect how the landscape looks.
a. Moist, humid climate-
1. Fertile soil
2. Full streams. There isn’t a lot of erosion though because the vegetation holds down the soil.
3. Hills have rounded slopes because of all the rainfall.
b. Arid, dry climate-
1. Thin soil
2. A lot of physical weathering especially in the winter when there is a lot of frost action.
3. Because there is so much physical weathering, the particles are angular and rough.
4. The soil has very big pores so the rain infiltrates quickly and deeply. Therefore, only certain desert plants can survive in this climate because there are very big breaks between rainfalls. When it does rain, there are flash floods. A lot of erosion occurs because there isn’t enough vegetation to hold the sand down.
5. Most streams are dry except when it rains.
3. Geological factors- types of rocks earth is made up of. Even in the same climate, different areas have different landscapes because they are made up of different rocks.
a. Durable rocks- rocks that are and hard. These rocks didn’t have so much physical weathering. If there are durable rocks in the area, mountains, plateaus and escarpments (cliffs) are formed.
b. Soft rocks- can be broken down easily. Streams can run through them and form valleys. They form low areas because the soft rock could be eroded very easily. Soft rocks form smooth hills.
c. Mixed- the landscape is going to have a stepped appearance.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Sunday, March 15, 2009
SS- 4th test
SS
Aim: Europe at war
In the 1930s, several nations began getting aggressive and they formed an alliance.
In 1938, Germany demanded the Sudetenland- part of Czechoslovakia. They wanted to add it to Germany because many Germans lived there. Czechoslovakia asked Britain and France for help. Britain and France requested that Hitler come to the table to discuss Germany’s demand of the Sudetenland.
They had the Munich Conference. The participants were:
1. Germany- Hitler
2. Italy- Mussolini
3. Britain- Chamberlain
4. France- Deladier
The result of the conference was that Germany can take the Sudetenland, but Hitler must stop right there. Hitler promised to abide by the Munich agreement. Why did they believe him? Britain and France were desperate to avoid war. Chamberlain told people, “ I give you peace in our time”. Only a few months later, this comment would be proven so untrue.
In March 1939, Germany seized the rest of Czechoslovakia. It became clear that Hitler couldn’t be trusted. Britain and France didn’t do anything- they were hoping to avoid war.
In the summer of 1939, the Nazi- Soviet Non Aggression Pact was proposed by Hitler to Stalin- they won’t fight if war breaks out. Stalin was in no shape to go to war in the near future. Hitler was hoping he could avoid 2 front war. .
On September 1, 1939, Germany invaded Poland. At dawn, the Germans began bombing Poland. The powerful German Luftwaffe (air force) bombed Polish cities for days; the buildings were reduced to rubble. Poland had no way to fight back. This kind of war is known as “ Blitz Kreig”- lightning war- war that is swift and brutal.
On September 3, 1939, Britain and France declare war on Germany because they know that they are next. Italy and Japan joined also, making this a 6-country war.
By the end of September, Poland surrendered to the Germans. Germany took over all the government buildings. Poland is now German territory, and the war against the Jews begins.
In September 1939, the German army is divided in 2:
1. Wehrmact- to take care of the government.
2. SS- to deal with the Jews.
In Germany, the Holocaust begins now. The Germans first spent weeks determining who was Jewish. They forced all the Jews to put on yellow stars. Many Polish gentiles helped find Jews.
Next came the establishment of ghettos in major cities such as:
1. Warsaw- had over a million Jews
2. Lodz
3. Krakow
They condensed all the Jews into small areas. The Germans gave the Jews 24-48 hours to get into the ghettos. The people were terrified. The Germans surrounded the ghettos with barbed wire. There were horrible conditions in the ghettos. Hitler was hoping all the people would die out, which many did. Throughout all this, there were still yeshivas and schools.
No one else in the world knew what was happening.
From October to March, Germany didn’t take one country in Europe. Many people began thinking this was a “phony war”.
In April 1940, the Germans took over:
1. Denmark
2. Norway
3. Netherlands
4. Luxemburg
5. Belgium- now that the Germans have Belgium, they can go into France.
Aim: WWII: Spring 1940- fall 1941
In every country when they tried to find Jews, the gentiles helped the Germans. In Denmark however, the king put on a yellow star as well and many of his people followed. The Danish Jews were sent to safety in Sweden.
Now, in May 1949, the Germans invaded France. They came through the N where the French had few troops because they were all at the other border. Germany invaded France with little resistance. The Germans gained more territory now then they gained in the whole WWI. The French and British troops realized that they couldn’t fight, so they ran away to protect themselves. They ran to Britain along with the French president, Charles de Gaulle, who became the president in exile.
By June of 1940, the people of Paris surrendered to Germany- it was very humiliating for France. The Germans set up Vichy government in France- Nazi government. The Vichy government began to single out Jews and made ghettos. Many Jews sent their children to churches and monasteries to save them, because at this time, the church was very strong.
Britain is next- stands alone. There was no one else left to help fight the Germans. In August 1940, Germany launched a blitz on Britain- bomb day and night. This attack was also known as Operation Sea Lion.
The British had a prime minister- Sir Winston Churchill. He was the right type of leader needed in a situation like this.
In Britain, all the children were sent to the safe countryside areas. This was a traumatizing experience for the children. Some parents sent their kids to Ireland because it wasn’t involved in the war.
The British were attacked for 3 months. Why didn’t they surrender?
1. Churchill- “Blood and toil, sweat and tears”- but we will survive. He told the people never to surrender and gave them morale.
2. RAF (Royal Air Force)- the British sent their own planes up in the sky to battle with the Germans.
3. Radar- at this time, radar was invented. It helped detect when planes were coming.
Aim: WWII: Fall 1940- winter 1942/43
In summer of 1940, Britain was bombed. The bombing lasted for 3 months. The British didn’t give up because of Churchill, the radar and the air force system. Hitler became impatient- he didn’t think it would take so long. Germany got help from Italy, and in fall of 1940, they began taking over territory in N Africa. The British and Germans fought in Egypt, a British mandate. The Germans wanted Egypt because it had the Suez Canal. Hitler sent Erwin Rommell, aka the desert fox, to Egypt, telling him to get Egypt and the land around it. The British and Egyptians fought the Italians and Germans in November of 1942 in the battle of El Alemein. The British and Egyptians won.
In 1942, Italy and Germany took over countries such as:
1. Romania
2. Bulgaria
3. Yugoslavia
4. Hungary
Eventually, together with Greece, these lands, along with Greece, will become part of the German empire.
In June of 1941, Hitler broke the Nazi- Soviet NAP and went into Russia. This was known as operation Barbarossa. Why did the Nazis want Russia?
1. It’s enormous
2. Resources-
a. Coal
b. Iron
3. Ukraine was the breadbasket of Russia- it had lots of grain.
Why did the Nazis specifically want to go into Russia in June? June has good weather. By the time winter arrives, the Nazis will be well entrenched in Moscow.
3 million German troops marched into the Ukraine. Stalin was in a state of shock. In the first few weeks, a couple million Russian soldiers were killed. The Germans were advancing quickly. The Russians decided to use their scorched earth policy. It slowed the Nazis, but didn’t stop their advancing.
By the fall of 1941, the Germans reached the cities of:
1. Moscow
2. Stalingrad
3. Leningrad
These 3 cities were crucial and if the Germans got these cities, they would own the whole Russian empire.
Just as the intense fighting broke out, the winter came. The Germans were not prepared and were freezing.
In Leningrad, the Germans surrounded the city so that no food could enter. Most people didn’t survive. In Moscow and Stalingrad, the Russians put up a big fight.
By winter of 1942, the Russians gained an advantage and began driving the Germans out. The Germans began marching back in defeat. In December of 1941, the US joined, adding pressure to the Germans.
Aim: The Holocaust
The Holocaust has numerous experiences:
1. The people who escaped and fought as partisans in the forest
2. The death camps
3. The people who disguised themselves and worked in gentile homes
4. The people sent into the forest and then shot into mass graves
The most popular Holocaust book is Anne Frank, but it is not a usual Holocaust experience.
The Holocaust began in 1935, with the Nuremberg laws and Hitler’s rise to power. Next came Kristellnacht- Hitler felt he could do what he wanted to the Jews and no one would stop him. Then came the Evian Conference and the invasion of Poland. After that came the yellow stars and the ghettos.
The 1st death camp was established in December of 1941- Chelmno. It was in Poland. It had small tools of killing. Hitler began with small steps- he deported a few people at a time. The people thought they were going to better air. 3 people escaped from Chelmno and everyone thought they were crazy.
In January of 1942, Hitler and the top Nazis got together and held the Wannsee conference. They said if Chelmno is such a success, let’s just kill all the Jews in the “Final Solution”. After this conference, death and concentration camps sprung up all over Poland. Many concentration camps had small death camps on the side.
Deportations- cattle car trains were loaded with people from the ghettos. At first, the people were happy to go, but then they realized they weren’t going anywhere good.
People were dehumanized in the concentration camps.
The Germans used systematic slaughter in the death camps. The Germans decepted people- they made the people think they were going to a regular train station, then they divided the men and woman and sent people to the right and left.
Aim: The Holocaust: 1943-1944
Einsatzgruppen- a group of SS men. When the Germans entered Russian territory, they commanded all the Jews to go into the forest. The Einsatzgruppen then shot all the people into mass graves. The SS men had to be replaced every few days because they couldn’t do such labor for so long.
The killing was a triangular system-
1. The Nazis killed
2. The collaborators helped find Jews, and turned them in
3. The free world was indifferent- thousands of people were being put in the crematorium daily, and what was the rest of the world doing about it? At first, the world didn’t know, but by 1943, the world knew, but they didn’t care. For example, in the US, there were Jews in the government, but they didn’t put pressure on the government to let the Jews come.
Aim: Victory in Europe/ Liberation in camps
1942-1943 was the turning point in the war- the Allies and the 40 other nations on their side begin to win and the Axis powers began to lose. Why?
1. Because Russia begins to defeat the Axis powers.
2. The US joins the war on December 7, 1941. In the morning, the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor- the US navy was there. The Japanese kamikaze pilots rammed their planes into the ships, killing thousands of people. The US didn’t actually join until June of 1944, when the US invaded France. Why did it take so long for the US to join? They had to draft and put together an army- the US wasn’t equipped for war.
2000 US troops went to England. They planned a secret invasion of France to get the Germans out. On June 6 (aka D-Day), the US troops reached the beaches of Normandy, France. Britain, France and Canada also sent troops. The Germans didn’t have a large army, but they did have enough troops to fight back. Within a few weeks, the US troops reached Paris, and released France from its German occupation.
Next was Germany. The US was coming from the west, and at the same time, the Russians were advancing toward Germany from the east. The Russians passed through Poland and liberated the death camps. The US reached the concentration camps and liberated everyone. The Germans realized they were being closed in on, so they emptied all the camps on death marches. The liberation was bittersweet- the people were in such a state of shock and were so depleted.
In April 1945, Hitler killed himself. Mussolini was killed by some Italians who hated him.
The Battle of the Bulge was the last attempt of Germany to prevent the Allies from coming into their territory. It lasted for 10 days, and then the Allies marched into Berlin. This day, March 7, was know as VE-Day (victory in Europe).
Aim: VJ-Day/ Costs of the war
VJ-Day- there was no victory in Japan yet. The US was on their own in Japan because it was a personal war. As the US was starting to mobilize to go to France, they sent troops to the islands near Japan, using Australia as their base- their goal was to reach Japan (they went island hopping). Battles were held on these islands:
a. Battle of Olcinawa
b. Battle of Midway
c. Battle of Iwo Jima- was a difficult battle, but the US won.
By summer of 1945, the US troops were poised to go into Japan, which was very risky and difficult.
In July 1945, the atomic bomb was invented based on Einstein’s theory of relativity. Many scientists were involved in the making of the atomic bomb, but the main one was Robert Oppenheimer. The bomb was secretly being invented during WWII. The project was called “Manhattan project”. The bomb was tested in N. Mexico- saw it was destructive.
At this time, President Harry S. Truman had to decide what to do about Japan- soldiers or the atomic bomb? He really didn’t want to mix Japanese civilians into the war, but he was told he would lose a million men if he sent soldiers in to Japan, so he decided to use the bomb.
Japan was givin a warning but the emperor refused to surrender, so on August 6, 1945, the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima in the early morn. Anyone within a 4-mile radius saw a blinding white light. There was an enormous explosion- buildings crumbled, people who were hit by the bomb’s skin slipped off. In the first few seconds, 10s of 1000s of people died. The survivors lost their hair and got sick. The people gathered in schools and parks and drank contaminated water, causing them to die. The radiation was so harmful.
After the destruction, the emperor Hirohito was warned and said he still won’t surrender. On August 10, the US dropped another bomb on Nagasaki. Hirohito realized he had to surrender. VJ-Day is September 2.
The war lasted for 6 full years. 75 million people were killed worldwide.
Aim: Nuremberg trials
After the war, there was the Yalta Conference, held with the “big 3” in February 1945. The meeting was to discuss basics. The “big 3” were:
1. Russia- Stalin
2. Britain- Churchill
3. USA-Roosevelt
They decided here that they would try the Nazis for crimes during the Holocaust- charged for “crimes against humanity”.
The trials were held in November 1945 in Nuremberg. Many Nazis had run away from April to November. Some big Nazis were caught. In court, the Nazis said they weren’t guilty and that they were following orders. The judges said that that is not an excuse- individuals are responsible for their own actions. Many Nazis ended up getting hanged. Many Nazis ran to S. America where they were welcomed.
Simon Wiesenthal died a year ago- his goal was to hunt down Nazis. He founded the Simon Wiesenthal Center, which found about 11,000 Nazis.
Aim: End of Fascism/ Preventing totalitarism
When people saw what fascism did, it lost all popularity. It became seen as very dangerous. A lot of this had to do with the Allied occupation of Germany and Japan. It was decided at the Yalta Conference that the Allies would occupy these countries and change them so that future governments would be different that the governments of WWII.
The US occupied Japan and set up a democratic government with a constitution. The system of education was revised, telling people that war is bad and not glorious. Japan wasn’t allowed to build up an army- the US will defend them if they need it. Japan began to build themselves up economically, and by the 1980s, Japan was the richest country in Asia. Japan also lost all their colonies- went back to the original owners.
Russia, Britain, France and the US all wanted a big say in the occupation of Germany. It was decided at the Yalta Conference that these 4 countries would occupy Germany. The problem was that all the countries were democratic, aside from Russia, which was communist. Germany and its capital both had to be split in half.
Aim: The UN
How will another WW be prevented from happening? They need the US involved in the UN. The UN was supposed to be an enormous peace keeping organization.
Goals of the UN:
1. Prevent war- how? Using collective action to stop aggression. (political)
2. Fight hunger, disease, poverty, illiteracy (soci-economic)
3. Get people human rights (soci-economic)
The UN is located in Manhattan on 1st Street. About 200 nations belong to the UN. It has many large meeting rooms.
Branches of the UN:
1. General Assembly- the largest room in the UN is for the general assembly- everyone has a seat. The General Assembly is the largest section of the UN. Everyone can get together and vote.
2. Security Council- the Security Council is a smaller group of leaders who are above the rest and they have more of a say. US, France, Britain, China and Russia all have permanent seats in the Security Council. Sometimes, important decisions will only be offered to the Security Council.
3. Secretariat- president of the UN. He supervises and makes some decisions.
4. International Court of Justice- in case 2 nations can’t agree on something.
5. Trusteeship Council- helps nations get independence.
6. Economic and Social Council- established UNESCO (UN Education Scientific Cultural Organization)- helps disadvantaged people worldwide.
The UN started off as an organization to prevent war. That that the US joined gave them more strength.
Did the UN really help prevent war? In its early years it did, but in the past few decades, the UN was more effective on soci-economic issues. Private countries have stepped in to prevent wars.
The Declaration of Human Rights was added because it was right after WWII- nations should aspire to be like this.
Aim: The Cold War begins
As WWII ended, a new war emerged. This was a different form of war- it’s not actual fighting, just tremendous tension. This war occurred between 2 superpowers:
1. US
2. Russia
It began in the 1940s and ended in 1989. The last years of the war were the least stressful.
After WWII, the superpowers changed drastically- the new superpowers are:
1. US- was responsible for most of the fighting with Germany, didn’t fight on their soil and came out of WWII with the atomic bomb.
2. Russia- had the largest territory. The Soviet Union contains 14 countries aside from Russia.
As WWII ended, the SU got more territory- during WWII, Germany invaded the SU. The SU chased the Germans back to Germany, and as they were marching through the eastern European countries that Germany took over, the SU took them. The Russians should’ve liberated them. The Russians made these countries into communist countries, thereby establishing a buffer zone of satellite nations.
Once Stalin made this area into communist countries, he cut all communication with the West, because he thought all the western countries were contaminated. Churchill called this cutting of communication the “iron curtain”. Churchill gave the Iron Curtain Speech- we need to respond to Russia with toughness.
The US played a crucial role in doing anything possible to stop the spread of communism. In 1947, the Truman Doctrine was issued- Russia wanted Greece (who at this time was experiencing a civil war). Russia gave a small group of Greek communists aid, and the US gave the democrats aid. The Truman Doctrine said that the US would give Greece anything they need. It was very successful. The Truman Doctrine also helped Turkey. The Truman Doctrine was such a success, that the Marshall Plan followed it. The Marshall Plan said that every country could have help if they want to be democratic. The Marshall Plan pumped up our economy.
Aim: Cold War events of the 1940s
The Marshall Plan is an example of containment- the US wants to keep communism in Russia and its satellites, and not spread anymore.
Cold War events:
1. Berlin airlift- this was the 1st major challenge of the cold war. It occurred in 1948. Germany was divided between the US and SU. Berlin was in E Germany, which was SU territory, but it was also divided into W and E. There was a little spot of democracy in a sea of communism.
The people in E Germany realized that life in W Germany is better because after WWII, the Allies did their best to build up Germany so they were focusing on the economy and not on war. The people of W Germany were free and began to get successful. The Russians couldn’t care less about building up Germany- the Russians took gravel and other resources from the rubble in Germany and sent it to Moscow. There was also a strict communist government.
Pretty soon, people from the E began escaping to the W. They couldn’t take anything with them so as not to look suspicious. The Russians couldn’t take it that W Berlin was in their territory- people in E Berlin could clearly see how good life was in the W.
The Russian response was to build a blockade around W Berlin. This blockade meant that no one could go in or out of W Berlin. Soon, the people in W Berlin began to get hungry and it was dangerous for them. The US responded with the airlift- they dropped packages from the sky. The US dropped these packages for about a year, and then the Russians lifted the blockade.
2. Alliances form- 1949. The forming of alliances is a prelude to war. The US realized that with the tension mounting, it was possible that war could occur, and they needed to be prepared. NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) was formed- Canada, US and 9 W European nations. Russia formed their own alliance group in 1955- Warsaw Pact- USSR and its satellites.
3. Arms race- symbolized the start of the cold war. The US and the SU tried outdoing each other with weapons.
In 1945, the US had the atomic bomb. Russia was desperate and sent troops to the US to find out how the atomic bomb was made. Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, 2 Russian secular Jews, are accused of giving Russia information that helped them make the atomic bomb. They were killed by the electric chair. Such a harsh punishment was used because there was a “red scare”.
Churchill called this a “balance of terror”. The arms race was mutually assured destruction- built weapons that could destroy the whole world.
Aim: Cold War competition
1. Arms race- there was terror during the nuclear war. In 1970, arms limitation talks began. The toughest years of the cold war were the 50s-60s.
2. Space race- the Russians were the 1st to have a major triumph during the space race. In 1957, the Russians launched Sputnik- a rocked that could travel around the earth. The US began to concentrate in science- had to compete with Russia. In July 1967, Neil Armstrong (US) landed on the moon. He said, “ 1 small step for man, 1 giant leap for mankind”.
Which superpower will get more nations on their side- communist or non- communist? Don’t most nations know what they want to be? The African nations that were colonized during the age of imperialism are now getting their freedom, and they have to decide what kind of government they want.
Aim: China becomes Communist
After the war, in 1949, China became communist. China had been taken over by spheres of influence in the 1800s. This led to hatred of W governments. After the Manchu dynasty, a civil war developed, and Sun Yixuan took over. He was replaced by Jiang Jieshi vs. Mau Zedong. Mau Zedong got the support of the peasants. During WWII, there was a pause in the civil war because Japan attacked China and took over. After WWII, Japan lost the land and the civil war continued. Jiang Jieshi was a nationalist- he favored the rich. The peasants were upset that they weren’t remembered.
In 1949, the communists were victorious and the nationalists fled to Taiwan. The US announced that for them, “red China” isn’t an official country and doesn’t get a seat in the UN- this lasted until 1971. Taiwan got the seat.
Communism effected China culturally- Confucisim vs. communism. Confucisim valued family- ancestors were honored. Communism states that loyalty to the state surpasses one’s loyalty to his family.
Now, the Chinese people went through brainwashing:
1. Chinese people moved into cities- not in family houses anymore.
2. Mothers now began going to work- the children went to school and got brainwashed. Everyone had to work hard. Collectives were also set up.
Aim: China under Communism
In 1958, there was a great leap forward- Mau Zedong completely transformed China. China was influenced by Russia- Mau copied Stalin in his ideas, and that’s how he ran China.
Mau decided that China needs its own 5- year plan. It focused on agriculture- the great leap forward. As in Russia, farms were merged into collective farms- communes. Thousands of people had to give up their farms and share. Each commune had its own city, factory… They wanted to double their output. The factories were known as backyard industries.
What went wrong? The people had no incentive to work hard, there was bad weather and there was less food. This lead to famine. The great leap forward was a failure because Mau promised food that didn’t happen. Why? Because Mau used too many people for factories.
Mau suffered a loss of popularity. Mau began to worry that because he’s a failure, maybe he’ll lose his job. He felt threatened.
In 1966, Mau introduced the great proletarian culture revolution- solution so Mau could continue ruling China. He organized a revolution of workers to force people to like communism. It was to get rid of anti- communism. The goal was to rejuvenate China over Mau and communism.
How can Mau turn China over to reach his goal?
Aim: Mau Zedong and the Cultural Revolution
Mau formed an army called the red guards. He ordered schools to close and students had to be a part of the Cultural Revolution army. These soldiers were called red guards. They had to find the anti- communists.
They had a book called “The Little Red Book” about communism. The upper class was seen as suspicious and suspects. The biggest mistake was that educated Chinese no longer were in a position to continue.
Mau made the 1 child per family policy- control of government over family.
In the 1970s, Mau died and China changed.
Aim: Korean war- 1950- 1953
During WWII, Japan occupied Korea. After WWII, when Japan lost the war, they also lost Korea. The countries didn’t know what to do with Korea- the US wanted it to be non- communist and the SU wanted it to be communist. The UN offered a compromise: divide Korea. The N will be communist, headed by Sung, and the S will be non- communist and ruled by Rhee. Korea was divided at 38˚ latitude.
In 1950, the N Korean troops invaded S Korea. Their goal was to make the whole Korea communist. The N had a very strong army because they worked on building up their army. This was the 1st real test for the UN- there’s aggressive action. The UN organized an international army and sent to S Korea. They chased the N Koreans up to the border of China; up to the Yalu River. Over 50,00 US died. The Chinese troops helped the N Korean troops. There was a stalemate for several years.
The UN army was headed by General McArthur. McArthur said let’s get the whole China. Truman said no. McArthur went to Congress, thinking they would override Truman, and he was fired.
In 1953, both sides agreed to an armistice- Korea will be divided.
Aim: Russia after Stalin
Stalin died in 1954. In 1956, Khrushchev became the new leader. He was from a peasant family and made his way up. He was a tough person. His challenge was replacing Stalin- the people thought Stalin was everything. Khrushchev told the people that Stalin was bad. He began destalinization- he closed the prison camps.
In 1956 was the Hungarian revolution- Hungary, a soviet satellite, decided to break away from Russia. They established a new government, headed by Imne Nagy. The SU came a few weeks later and crushed the revolt. This showed that Khrushchev was also a tough leader.
In 1961, the SU (under Khrushchev) put up the Berlin wall to stop people from going from E Germany to W Germany. 1st it was made of barbed wire, then they put cinder block. The Berlin wall became a symbol of the Cold War because the Cold War was all about division.
In 1962 was the Cuban missile crisis. This showed that the Cold War was still a tense situation.
In 1964, Brezhnev took over. Khrushchev had resigned because the economy was bad and he had wasted all Russia’s money trying to make Siberia good for planting. Brezhnev was a hard line communist.
In 1968, Czechoslovakia revolted and Dubcek took over. This period in Czechoslovakian history is known as Prague Spring. Within a few weeks, Brezhnev sent half a million troops to Czechoslovakia.
Aim: Cuban missile crisis
This was the closest point the world ever got to WWIII. In 1959, Cuba became communist. The US got scared because Cuba is so close, and maybe other nations in Latin America will also become communist.
Communism was like a dream for the Cuban people. They were under the cruel and corrupt tyranny of Batista. Fidel Castro came along and promoted communism. There was a communist revolution in 1959. For the 1st few years, the people liked communism. It took them a long time to realize that communism wasn’t as good as they thought.
In 1961, the US invaded Cuba in the Bay of Pigs invasion, but it was unsuccessful.
In 1962 was the Cuban missile crisis- the SU liked Cuba because it was so close to their enemy, the US. The SU sent missile to Cuba, who pointed them at the US.
Aim: US backs anti- communism in Latin America
Kennedy (the president of the US at this time) told Khrushchev to take the missiles out of Cuba or they’ll fight. Russia listened to the US.
The US helped fight the communist groups of Chile, Guatemala and Nicaragua.
Aim: Suez Canal crisis
There was a tense political situation in the Middle East. The US wanted to be friends with the Middle East because the Middle East has oil. The Middle East has 2 sides:
1. Israel- US
2. Arab nations- SU
The UN’s first major vote was over the formation of Israel in 1948.
A few weeks later, Egypt declared war on Israel and Israel won, getting them some territory.
Israel was a democracy- it became a US ally. The US gave and still continues to give Israel millions of dollars. The Arab nations joined the SU. Egypt was anti-Israel and became an ally of the SU.
The US offered Egypt the Aswan High Dam if they joined the US. The leader of Egypt, Nasser, said he could get the money without the US. In 1956, he nationalized the Suez Canal. Nasser said Israel couldn’t use the canal.
Britain, France and Israel said they need to go to war with Egypt. Israel figured they’ll invade through the Sinai Desert and Britain and France would invade from the canal. The SU said that they would help Egypt. Britain and France asked the US to join them, and the US said they condemn the invasion and won’t help because they don’t want another world war. A cease-fire was arranged.
Now, war was on the brinkmanship.
In 1979, Egypt and Israel signed the Camp David agreement- made peace.
Aim: The Vietnam War
This was the longest running Cold War event- it lasted from the 50s- 70s.
In the late 1800s, France imperialized Vietnam. During WWII, Vietnam was owned by Japan. The Japanese were brutal to the Vietnamese. The Japanese lost WWII, and as a result, they also lost Vietnam. Vietnam went back to France.
In Vietnam, there were very strong feelings of nationalism. They also had a nationalistic, communist leader by the name of Ho Chi Minh. Minh wanted a strong, unified, communist country.
He began fighting the French. He fought many battles, one of which was the Battle of Dien Bien Phu. After this battle, the French decided that the fighting wasn’t worth their time and they gave Vietnam its independence.
In 1954, the SU and US had the Geneve Conference to decide what to do about Vietnam. They agreed to a divided Vietnam. The dividing line was at 17˚- very close to the equator. The area had a thick and jungle-like climate.
1. N Vietnam was communist and headed by Minh
2. S Vietnam was non-communist and led by Diem. The S had a corrupt government. In the 1950s, there was a demonstration in S Vietnam by Buddhist monks to show the world how bad the government was- they burnt themselves alive.
Minh knew that the new government was problematic, so in 1959, he decided to invade S Vietnam and make it communist.
The US got hysterical because they knew the S Vietnam government wasn’t strong enough to withstand the N Vietnam government. The US thought there would be a domino effect, and then many other Asian countries would become communist.
The US decided to send help to S Vietnam. At first they send assistance and money. In 1964, President Johnson sent troops. To get the US people riled up, Johnson told them that the Vietnamese sunk 2 US ships in the Gulf of Tonkin.
The US troops faced many difficulties in Vietnam:
1. The N Vietnamese booby-trapped S Vietnam.
2. Some S Vietnamese helped N Vietnam, so the US didn’t really know who was on which side.
3. The US weren’t used to the jungles and it was hard for them to get around.
After the people in the US saw what was happening, they told Johnson to bring the troops home. Johnson refused, making him very unpopular. Next, President Nixon took over, and in 1972, he brought the troops home.
After the US left Vietnam, the N was successful in getting the capitol of S Vietnam, and Vietnam became united under communism.
The Domino Theory didn’t play out- Laos and Cambodia became communist but the other Asian countries didn’t.
Aim: Decolonization
Post WWII, African and Asian colonies got their independence. Why now?
1. Nationalism was rising in the colonies.
2. European nations were weak from war.
3. US pressured nations to give their colonies independence.
India was colonized in the 16th century, well before the scramble for Africa in 1885.
India had many attempts at getting the foreign rule out:
1. Sepoy rebellion
2. INC headed by Mohandas Gandhi
In August 1947, India was givin independence and divided- ½ Muslim and ½ Hindu. Now, a refugee crisis emerged- about 10 million people found that they were living in the wrong country. They had to walk to the other side. 1/10 of these refugees died. During this time, Mohandas Gandhi was killed by a Hindu who blamed Gandhi for his problems.
Nehru became the prime minister of India. India had to set up a new government. They set up a democracy that wasn’t so democratic in the beginning. They got a new constitution, which:
1. Gave woman the right to vote.
2. Gave woman the right to own property.
3. Made discrimination against untouchables (harijans) illegal.
Aim: India post independence
Nehru’s challenges:
1. Fighting with Pakistan over the border area of Kashmir.
2. Establishing a stable government- for the 1st 20-30 years, the government was shaky. India was a democratic country that didn’t do democratic things. (Ex. voting booths)
3. Uniting the many diverse peoples of India- there are a lot of minority groups in India- it’s hard to unite them all as 1. There are over 1000 languages in India.
4. Establishing an economy- set up a mixed economy- some businesses are owned by the government and some businesses are owned by the people.
5. Trying to end discrimination- had to enforce equality for untouchables.
Nehru died in the 1960s and his daughter Indira Gandhi took over. She was elected because the people felt insured to have someone from Nehru’s family ruling.
Her main challenge was dealing with the diversity in India, especially the Sikhs. The Sikhs were nationalistic and wanted their own state- Punjab. There was an enormous Sikh demonstration in the golden temple in Amritsar in the 1980s- the Sikhs demanded their own state. Indira commanded her guards to fire into the crowd. Her own bodyguards were Sikhs and they killed her.
Indira’s son, Raju Gandhi was elected next. He had to deal with the Tamil people, who were separatists. They wanted their own country. (Eventually, they got a piece of Srilanka.) Gandhi used violence to crush the violent Tamil, so they killed him.
After the first several years, India got better.
Aim: Asian post independence case studies
The Philippines and Indonesia are both archipelagos- chains of islands.
1. Philippines- during the Spanish- American war in 1898, the Philippines became an American colony. In 1946, the Philippines got their independence. By doing this, the US was hoping to be an example for other countries.
The Philippines attempted a democracy, but the leaders were corrupt and there were many dissatisfied people. As a result, many different groups formed.
In 1965, Marcos launched a military coup and overthrew the government. He had realized that the government needed someone with more strength, so he became the dictator. The US gave Marcos a lot of help.
Marcos was constantly on the lookout for people who were against him. Under Marcos, people would disappear. The Philippines was under martial law- the country was run by the army. Marcos stole billions of dollars from the government.
Aquino wanted to take over the government. He was more of the democratic type. Marcos told Aquino to run away, or he’d disappear. Aquino ran to the US, but then decided to return. As soon as he stepped off the airplane, he was shop.
In 1986, the people pressured Marcos to hold elections. Carazan Aquino, Aquino’s widow, won the elections. Marcos said that he’s still ruling. A revolution broke out known as People’s Power Revolution. Marcos ran for his life- he went to Hawaii. In the airport, he was caught with 24 bags of diamonds and gold. The US sheltered Marcos. Aquino struggled. She was taken over by Ramus.
Now, the Philippines are closer to democracy.
2. Indonesia- it’s right near the Indian Ocean. They had a tsunami a few years ago.
It was formerly a Dutch colony, which was primarily Muslim. During WWII, the Japanese took over. After WWII, Indonesia declared its independence.
The biggest challenge was diversity- there were many diverse peoples.
President Sukarno was the first president. He was weak and didn’t last too long. Suharto took over and set up a democratic (supposedly) government. It was really a dictatorship and was against communism, killing communists with the help of the CIA. Indonesia had a rigid, not free government.
Challenges today:
a. Diversity- geographically
b. Terrorist groups
c. Tsunami
Aim: Decolonization- African case studies
During the late 1800s, almost the whole Africa was colonized- Scramble for Africa. Britain and France both got the lion’s share of Africa.
1. Britain- E Africa
2. France- W Africa
After WWII, the nations decided to break away because they figured their mother countries were probably tired from war and wouldn’t care about them enough to fight for them.
1. Ghana- was the first colony to win independence. Ghana was aka the Gold Coast colony. Ghana was owned by Britain before WWII. The Gold Coast colony was ruled by nationalistic leader Kwame Nkrumah, who was already starting to work for the independence of the Gold Coast colony.
In 1957, the Gold Coast was givin independence and Kwame Nkrumah became the leader and renamed it Ghana- an old African kingdom and a name of pride because Kwame Nkrumah wanted to restore African pride to Ghana. He wore typical African garb and changed his name from Joseph to Kwame Nkrumah.
Following independence was years of government instability.
2. Algeria- in N Africa. Algeria was owned by France. There was a strong connection between them- there were many intermarriages. Over a million French people settled in Algeria.
The people of Algeria wanted their independence and a nationalistic group was formed- NLF (National Liberal Front). They used guerilla warfare.
The French sent troops to Algeria. Why?
a. Many French lived in Algeria- maybe the Algerians will be mean to them.
b. There was oil in Algeria
In the 1950s, the French killed half a million Algerians. The French fought really long and hard and in 1962, they gave Algeria up.
3. Congo- located in the heart of Africa. The Congo was owned by Belgium.
The Belgians got many resources from the Congo. They thought that if they would give the Congo independence, they would still benefit from the resources.
In the 1960s, the Congo was givin its independence.
The first leader of the Congo was Lumumba. He had connections with the SU, which made the US feel threatened so when Mobutu Sese Soko tried to overthrow Lumumba, the US helped him.
Sese Soko led the Congo for over 30 years. He was a military dictator, and the Congo didn’t do well under him.
After Sese Soko came a leader who was shot in the head.
The Congo is a terrible country to live in. People are constantly trying to leave.
4. Kenya- in E Africa. Kenya was owned by Britain. Many British people went to live in Kenya. It’s one of the most beautiful colonies to live in. Kenya has an easy climate.
When the British settled in Kenya, the people of Kenya resented them because the government allowed them to take large tracts of land.
The largest tribe in Kenya, the Kikuyu, was the most instrumental in fighting colonization. The head of the Kikuyu tribe was a nationalistic leader- Jomo Kenyatta. He organized a terrorist style war against the British. The Mau Mau were the guerilla fighters led by Kenyatta. Kenyatta was arrested by the British. The British killed many of the Kikuyu tribe.
Eventually, Kenya got its independence and Kenyatta became the dictator.
Kenya was a stable country until about 4 years ago, when fighting broke out among the tribes. Presently, there is lots of fighting going on in Kenya and it’s not a safe place to visit.
Aim: African case studies
Africa is a massive continent consisting of over 50 countries.
Pan Africanism- effort among African leaders to work together because they recognized that there were going to be so many differences and problems. The main goal was to help colonies get independence. It didn’t work that well, but it was better than nothing.
1. Tanzania= Tanganyika + Zanzibar- got independence from Germany when Germany lost WWII. It was taken over by Britain for a small amount of time. They received independence in 1960.
Tanzania tried socialism, but realized early on that it wasn’t working- food production went down. Because of this, they moved away from socialism and towards capitalism.
2. Nigeria- has the largest population in Africa. Its capital city is Lagos- one of the most populated cities.
Nigeria has many tribes:
a. Ibo- Christian
b. Yoruba- Christian. A large part of the Yoruba claim to be Bnei Yissoschor. In 1492, they went from Spain to Morocco, and then moved to Nigeria. Many assimilated.
c. Hausa- Fulani- Muslim
Nigeria got their independence from Britain in 1960. Britain gave them their independence easily. It was a peaceful transition.
Of all the countries in Africa, Nigeria has the most oil- should’ve become rich. Instead, after they gained independence, there was a civil war- the Ibo with help from the Yoruba (gave help because they were both Christian) against the Hausa.
The Ibo broke away and formed Biafra. It became a terrible country to live in. It went from one government to the next and after a few years, Biafra was lost to the Hausa and the Hausa became the strongest tribe.
Nigeria became a military dictatorship. The government took oil money for themselves. About 8-9 years ago, Nigeria began free elections. Now, Nigeria has a shaky democracy with free elections.
Cause and effect in African nations-
Typical challenge- tribal warfare (ex. Rwanda- Hutus vs. Tutsis- cut arms off)
African leaders became dictators
Have enemies- military coup
Democracy spreading (recently)- AU (African Union) to help spread democracy in Africa.
Aim: S Africa- apartheid struggle
S Africa got independence from Britain in 1910. By the early 1900s, the was a large white population in S Africa because for over hundreds of years, British were moving to S Africa because of its favorable climate and easy way of living. It was for this reason that the British felt comfortable giving S Africa its independence.
S Africa was a white controlled country. It was under a system of apartheid- segregation of blacks and whites. The whites had and easy life, while the blacks worked for the white population.
After WWII, many African colonies got their independence, and were controlled by blacks. In S Africa, the blacks never really got their independence and they felt very resentful. Nationalism among the blacks grew and the ANC (African National Congress) was formed, led by Nelson Mandela. Its goal was to get blacks to have a say in the government and end apartheid.
As a result, the white government became more rigid and made stricter laws to keep the blacks and whites separate:
1. Homelands Act- set aside various areas in S Africa where the blacks could live. The whites got the majority of the land and the good land. This caused lots of resentment.
2. Pass laws- if a black wanted to leave the homeland areas, he needed a pass.
In 1960, there was a huge demonstration known as the Sharpeville Massacre. Many blacks came with their families. The white police officers opened fire. Mandela was held responsible for the demonstration and was put in jail for about 20 years. While he was in prison, Mandela became a martyr.
In the 1980s, international pressure was put on S Africa to end apartheid. Bishop Desmund Tutu sent messages around the world telling countries to put pressure on the S African government:
1. Many nations boycotted the Olympics in the 1980s that were held in S Africa.
2. Many nations put economic sanctions on S Africa.
S Africa began to feel the pinch.
In 1994, President F.W. Deklerk ended apartheid. Blacks were givin the right to vote and Mandela was released from prison. Mandela was voted in as the next president.
S Africa underwent enormous transformation, and it wasn’t easy. The first few months after apartheid ended were very violent. The blacks took revenge on the whites.
Aim: Europe at war
In the 1930s, several nations began getting aggressive and they formed an alliance.
In 1938, Germany demanded the Sudetenland- part of Czechoslovakia. They wanted to add it to Germany because many Germans lived there. Czechoslovakia asked Britain and France for help. Britain and France requested that Hitler come to the table to discuss Germany’s demand of the Sudetenland.
They had the Munich Conference. The participants were:
1. Germany- Hitler
2. Italy- Mussolini
3. Britain- Chamberlain
4. France- Deladier
The result of the conference was that Germany can take the Sudetenland, but Hitler must stop right there. Hitler promised to abide by the Munich agreement. Why did they believe him? Britain and France were desperate to avoid war. Chamberlain told people, “ I give you peace in our time”. Only a few months later, this comment would be proven so untrue.
In March 1939, Germany seized the rest of Czechoslovakia. It became clear that Hitler couldn’t be trusted. Britain and France didn’t do anything- they were hoping to avoid war.
In the summer of 1939, the Nazi- Soviet Non Aggression Pact was proposed by Hitler to Stalin- they won’t fight if war breaks out. Stalin was in no shape to go to war in the near future. Hitler was hoping he could avoid 2 front war. .
On September 1, 1939, Germany invaded Poland. At dawn, the Germans began bombing Poland. The powerful German Luftwaffe (air force) bombed Polish cities for days; the buildings were reduced to rubble. Poland had no way to fight back. This kind of war is known as “ Blitz Kreig”- lightning war- war that is swift and brutal.
On September 3, 1939, Britain and France declare war on Germany because they know that they are next. Italy and Japan joined also, making this a 6-country war.
By the end of September, Poland surrendered to the Germans. Germany took over all the government buildings. Poland is now German territory, and the war against the Jews begins.
In September 1939, the German army is divided in 2:
1. Wehrmact- to take care of the government.
2. SS- to deal with the Jews.
In Germany, the Holocaust begins now. The Germans first spent weeks determining who was Jewish. They forced all the Jews to put on yellow stars. Many Polish gentiles helped find Jews.
Next came the establishment of ghettos in major cities such as:
1. Warsaw- had over a million Jews
2. Lodz
3. Krakow
They condensed all the Jews into small areas. The Germans gave the Jews 24-48 hours to get into the ghettos. The people were terrified. The Germans surrounded the ghettos with barbed wire. There were horrible conditions in the ghettos. Hitler was hoping all the people would die out, which many did. Throughout all this, there were still yeshivas and schools.
No one else in the world knew what was happening.
From October to March, Germany didn’t take one country in Europe. Many people began thinking this was a “phony war”.
In April 1940, the Germans took over:
1. Denmark
2. Norway
3. Netherlands
4. Luxemburg
5. Belgium- now that the Germans have Belgium, they can go into France.
Aim: WWII: Spring 1940- fall 1941
In every country when they tried to find Jews, the gentiles helped the Germans. In Denmark however, the king put on a yellow star as well and many of his people followed. The Danish Jews were sent to safety in Sweden.
Now, in May 1949, the Germans invaded France. They came through the N where the French had few troops because they were all at the other border. Germany invaded France with little resistance. The Germans gained more territory now then they gained in the whole WWI. The French and British troops realized that they couldn’t fight, so they ran away to protect themselves. They ran to Britain along with the French president, Charles de Gaulle, who became the president in exile.
By June of 1940, the people of Paris surrendered to Germany- it was very humiliating for France. The Germans set up Vichy government in France- Nazi government. The Vichy government began to single out Jews and made ghettos. Many Jews sent their children to churches and monasteries to save them, because at this time, the church was very strong.
Britain is next- stands alone. There was no one else left to help fight the Germans. In August 1940, Germany launched a blitz on Britain- bomb day and night. This attack was also known as Operation Sea Lion.
The British had a prime minister- Sir Winston Churchill. He was the right type of leader needed in a situation like this.
In Britain, all the children were sent to the safe countryside areas. This was a traumatizing experience for the children. Some parents sent their kids to Ireland because it wasn’t involved in the war.
The British were attacked for 3 months. Why didn’t they surrender?
1. Churchill- “Blood and toil, sweat and tears”- but we will survive. He told the people never to surrender and gave them morale.
2. RAF (Royal Air Force)- the British sent their own planes up in the sky to battle with the Germans.
3. Radar- at this time, radar was invented. It helped detect when planes were coming.
Aim: WWII: Fall 1940- winter 1942/43
In summer of 1940, Britain was bombed. The bombing lasted for 3 months. The British didn’t give up because of Churchill, the radar and the air force system. Hitler became impatient- he didn’t think it would take so long. Germany got help from Italy, and in fall of 1940, they began taking over territory in N Africa. The British and Germans fought in Egypt, a British mandate. The Germans wanted Egypt because it had the Suez Canal. Hitler sent Erwin Rommell, aka the desert fox, to Egypt, telling him to get Egypt and the land around it. The British and Egyptians fought the Italians and Germans in November of 1942 in the battle of El Alemein. The British and Egyptians won.
In 1942, Italy and Germany took over countries such as:
1. Romania
2. Bulgaria
3. Yugoslavia
4. Hungary
Eventually, together with Greece, these lands, along with Greece, will become part of the German empire.
In June of 1941, Hitler broke the Nazi- Soviet NAP and went into Russia. This was known as operation Barbarossa. Why did the Nazis want Russia?
1. It’s enormous
2. Resources-
a. Coal
b. Iron
3. Ukraine was the breadbasket of Russia- it had lots of grain.
Why did the Nazis specifically want to go into Russia in June? June has good weather. By the time winter arrives, the Nazis will be well entrenched in Moscow.
3 million German troops marched into the Ukraine. Stalin was in a state of shock. In the first few weeks, a couple million Russian soldiers were killed. The Germans were advancing quickly. The Russians decided to use their scorched earth policy. It slowed the Nazis, but didn’t stop their advancing.
By the fall of 1941, the Germans reached the cities of:
1. Moscow
2. Stalingrad
3. Leningrad
These 3 cities were crucial and if the Germans got these cities, they would own the whole Russian empire.
Just as the intense fighting broke out, the winter came. The Germans were not prepared and were freezing.
In Leningrad, the Germans surrounded the city so that no food could enter. Most people didn’t survive. In Moscow and Stalingrad, the Russians put up a big fight.
By winter of 1942, the Russians gained an advantage and began driving the Germans out. The Germans began marching back in defeat. In December of 1941, the US joined, adding pressure to the Germans.
Aim: The Holocaust
The Holocaust has numerous experiences:
1. The people who escaped and fought as partisans in the forest
2. The death camps
3. The people who disguised themselves and worked in gentile homes
4. The people sent into the forest and then shot into mass graves
The most popular Holocaust book is Anne Frank, but it is not a usual Holocaust experience.
The Holocaust began in 1935, with the Nuremberg laws and Hitler’s rise to power. Next came Kristellnacht- Hitler felt he could do what he wanted to the Jews and no one would stop him. Then came the Evian Conference and the invasion of Poland. After that came the yellow stars and the ghettos.
The 1st death camp was established in December of 1941- Chelmno. It was in Poland. It had small tools of killing. Hitler began with small steps- he deported a few people at a time. The people thought they were going to better air. 3 people escaped from Chelmno and everyone thought they were crazy.
In January of 1942, Hitler and the top Nazis got together and held the Wannsee conference. They said if Chelmno is such a success, let’s just kill all the Jews in the “Final Solution”. After this conference, death and concentration camps sprung up all over Poland. Many concentration camps had small death camps on the side.
Deportations- cattle car trains were loaded with people from the ghettos. At first, the people were happy to go, but then they realized they weren’t going anywhere good.
People were dehumanized in the concentration camps.
The Germans used systematic slaughter in the death camps. The Germans decepted people- they made the people think they were going to a regular train station, then they divided the men and woman and sent people to the right and left.
Aim: The Holocaust: 1943-1944
Einsatzgruppen- a group of SS men. When the Germans entered Russian territory, they commanded all the Jews to go into the forest. The Einsatzgruppen then shot all the people into mass graves. The SS men had to be replaced every few days because they couldn’t do such labor for so long.
The killing was a triangular system-
1. The Nazis killed
2. The collaborators helped find Jews, and turned them in
3. The free world was indifferent- thousands of people were being put in the crematorium daily, and what was the rest of the world doing about it? At first, the world didn’t know, but by 1943, the world knew, but they didn’t care. For example, in the US, there were Jews in the government, but they didn’t put pressure on the government to let the Jews come.
Aim: Victory in Europe/ Liberation in camps
1942-1943 was the turning point in the war- the Allies and the 40 other nations on their side begin to win and the Axis powers began to lose. Why?
1. Because Russia begins to defeat the Axis powers.
2. The US joins the war on December 7, 1941. In the morning, the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor- the US navy was there. The Japanese kamikaze pilots rammed their planes into the ships, killing thousands of people. The US didn’t actually join until June of 1944, when the US invaded France. Why did it take so long for the US to join? They had to draft and put together an army- the US wasn’t equipped for war.
2000 US troops went to England. They planned a secret invasion of France to get the Germans out. On June 6 (aka D-Day), the US troops reached the beaches of Normandy, France. Britain, France and Canada also sent troops. The Germans didn’t have a large army, but they did have enough troops to fight back. Within a few weeks, the US troops reached Paris, and released France from its German occupation.
Next was Germany. The US was coming from the west, and at the same time, the Russians were advancing toward Germany from the east. The Russians passed through Poland and liberated the death camps. The US reached the concentration camps and liberated everyone. The Germans realized they were being closed in on, so they emptied all the camps on death marches. The liberation was bittersweet- the people were in such a state of shock and were so depleted.
In April 1945, Hitler killed himself. Mussolini was killed by some Italians who hated him.
The Battle of the Bulge was the last attempt of Germany to prevent the Allies from coming into their territory. It lasted for 10 days, and then the Allies marched into Berlin. This day, March 7, was know as VE-Day (victory in Europe).
Aim: VJ-Day/ Costs of the war
VJ-Day- there was no victory in Japan yet. The US was on their own in Japan because it was a personal war. As the US was starting to mobilize to go to France, they sent troops to the islands near Japan, using Australia as their base- their goal was to reach Japan (they went island hopping). Battles were held on these islands:
a. Battle of Olcinawa
b. Battle of Midway
c. Battle of Iwo Jima- was a difficult battle, but the US won.
By summer of 1945, the US troops were poised to go into Japan, which was very risky and difficult.
In July 1945, the atomic bomb was invented based on Einstein’s theory of relativity. Many scientists were involved in the making of the atomic bomb, but the main one was Robert Oppenheimer. The bomb was secretly being invented during WWII. The project was called “Manhattan project”. The bomb was tested in N. Mexico- saw it was destructive.
At this time, President Harry S. Truman had to decide what to do about Japan- soldiers or the atomic bomb? He really didn’t want to mix Japanese civilians into the war, but he was told he would lose a million men if he sent soldiers in to Japan, so he decided to use the bomb.
Japan was givin a warning but the emperor refused to surrender, so on August 6, 1945, the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima in the early morn. Anyone within a 4-mile radius saw a blinding white light. There was an enormous explosion- buildings crumbled, people who were hit by the bomb’s skin slipped off. In the first few seconds, 10s of 1000s of people died. The survivors lost their hair and got sick. The people gathered in schools and parks and drank contaminated water, causing them to die. The radiation was so harmful.
After the destruction, the emperor Hirohito was warned and said he still won’t surrender. On August 10, the US dropped another bomb on Nagasaki. Hirohito realized he had to surrender. VJ-Day is September 2.
The war lasted for 6 full years. 75 million people were killed worldwide.
Aim: Nuremberg trials
After the war, there was the Yalta Conference, held with the “big 3” in February 1945. The meeting was to discuss basics. The “big 3” were:
1. Russia- Stalin
2. Britain- Churchill
3. USA-Roosevelt
They decided here that they would try the Nazis for crimes during the Holocaust- charged for “crimes against humanity”.
The trials were held in November 1945 in Nuremberg. Many Nazis had run away from April to November. Some big Nazis were caught. In court, the Nazis said they weren’t guilty and that they were following orders. The judges said that that is not an excuse- individuals are responsible for their own actions. Many Nazis ended up getting hanged. Many Nazis ran to S. America where they were welcomed.
Simon Wiesenthal died a year ago- his goal was to hunt down Nazis. He founded the Simon Wiesenthal Center, which found about 11,000 Nazis.
Aim: End of Fascism/ Preventing totalitarism
When people saw what fascism did, it lost all popularity. It became seen as very dangerous. A lot of this had to do with the Allied occupation of Germany and Japan. It was decided at the Yalta Conference that the Allies would occupy these countries and change them so that future governments would be different that the governments of WWII.
The US occupied Japan and set up a democratic government with a constitution. The system of education was revised, telling people that war is bad and not glorious. Japan wasn’t allowed to build up an army- the US will defend them if they need it. Japan began to build themselves up economically, and by the 1980s, Japan was the richest country in Asia. Japan also lost all their colonies- went back to the original owners.
Russia, Britain, France and the US all wanted a big say in the occupation of Germany. It was decided at the Yalta Conference that these 4 countries would occupy Germany. The problem was that all the countries were democratic, aside from Russia, which was communist. Germany and its capital both had to be split in half.
Aim: The UN
How will another WW be prevented from happening? They need the US involved in the UN. The UN was supposed to be an enormous peace keeping organization.
Goals of the UN:
1. Prevent war- how? Using collective action to stop aggression. (political)
2. Fight hunger, disease, poverty, illiteracy (soci-economic)
3. Get people human rights (soci-economic)
The UN is located in Manhattan on 1st Street. About 200 nations belong to the UN. It has many large meeting rooms.
Branches of the UN:
1. General Assembly- the largest room in the UN is for the general assembly- everyone has a seat. The General Assembly is the largest section of the UN. Everyone can get together and vote.
2. Security Council- the Security Council is a smaller group of leaders who are above the rest and they have more of a say. US, France, Britain, China and Russia all have permanent seats in the Security Council. Sometimes, important decisions will only be offered to the Security Council.
3. Secretariat- president of the UN. He supervises and makes some decisions.
4. International Court of Justice- in case 2 nations can’t agree on something.
5. Trusteeship Council- helps nations get independence.
6. Economic and Social Council- established UNESCO (UN Education Scientific Cultural Organization)- helps disadvantaged people worldwide.
The UN started off as an organization to prevent war. That that the US joined gave them more strength.
Did the UN really help prevent war? In its early years it did, but in the past few decades, the UN was more effective on soci-economic issues. Private countries have stepped in to prevent wars.
The Declaration of Human Rights was added because it was right after WWII- nations should aspire to be like this.
Aim: The Cold War begins
As WWII ended, a new war emerged. This was a different form of war- it’s not actual fighting, just tremendous tension. This war occurred between 2 superpowers:
1. US
2. Russia
It began in the 1940s and ended in 1989. The last years of the war were the least stressful.
After WWII, the superpowers changed drastically- the new superpowers are:
1. US- was responsible for most of the fighting with Germany, didn’t fight on their soil and came out of WWII with the atomic bomb.
2. Russia- had the largest territory. The Soviet Union contains 14 countries aside from Russia.
As WWII ended, the SU got more territory- during WWII, Germany invaded the SU. The SU chased the Germans back to Germany, and as they were marching through the eastern European countries that Germany took over, the SU took them. The Russians should’ve liberated them. The Russians made these countries into communist countries, thereby establishing a buffer zone of satellite nations.
Once Stalin made this area into communist countries, he cut all communication with the West, because he thought all the western countries were contaminated. Churchill called this cutting of communication the “iron curtain”. Churchill gave the Iron Curtain Speech- we need to respond to Russia with toughness.
The US played a crucial role in doing anything possible to stop the spread of communism. In 1947, the Truman Doctrine was issued- Russia wanted Greece (who at this time was experiencing a civil war). Russia gave a small group of Greek communists aid, and the US gave the democrats aid. The Truman Doctrine said that the US would give Greece anything they need. It was very successful. The Truman Doctrine also helped Turkey. The Truman Doctrine was such a success, that the Marshall Plan followed it. The Marshall Plan said that every country could have help if they want to be democratic. The Marshall Plan pumped up our economy.
Aim: Cold War events of the 1940s
The Marshall Plan is an example of containment- the US wants to keep communism in Russia and its satellites, and not spread anymore.
Cold War events:
1. Berlin airlift- this was the 1st major challenge of the cold war. It occurred in 1948. Germany was divided between the US and SU. Berlin was in E Germany, which was SU territory, but it was also divided into W and E. There was a little spot of democracy in a sea of communism.
The people in E Germany realized that life in W Germany is better because after WWII, the Allies did their best to build up Germany so they were focusing on the economy and not on war. The people of W Germany were free and began to get successful. The Russians couldn’t care less about building up Germany- the Russians took gravel and other resources from the rubble in Germany and sent it to Moscow. There was also a strict communist government.
Pretty soon, people from the E began escaping to the W. They couldn’t take anything with them so as not to look suspicious. The Russians couldn’t take it that W Berlin was in their territory- people in E Berlin could clearly see how good life was in the W.
The Russian response was to build a blockade around W Berlin. This blockade meant that no one could go in or out of W Berlin. Soon, the people in W Berlin began to get hungry and it was dangerous for them. The US responded with the airlift- they dropped packages from the sky. The US dropped these packages for about a year, and then the Russians lifted the blockade.
2. Alliances form- 1949. The forming of alliances is a prelude to war. The US realized that with the tension mounting, it was possible that war could occur, and they needed to be prepared. NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) was formed- Canada, US and 9 W European nations. Russia formed their own alliance group in 1955- Warsaw Pact- USSR and its satellites.
3. Arms race- symbolized the start of the cold war. The US and the SU tried outdoing each other with weapons.
In 1945, the US had the atomic bomb. Russia was desperate and sent troops to the US to find out how the atomic bomb was made. Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, 2 Russian secular Jews, are accused of giving Russia information that helped them make the atomic bomb. They were killed by the electric chair. Such a harsh punishment was used because there was a “red scare”.
Churchill called this a “balance of terror”. The arms race was mutually assured destruction- built weapons that could destroy the whole world.
Aim: Cold War competition
1. Arms race- there was terror during the nuclear war. In 1970, arms limitation talks began. The toughest years of the cold war were the 50s-60s.
2. Space race- the Russians were the 1st to have a major triumph during the space race. In 1957, the Russians launched Sputnik- a rocked that could travel around the earth. The US began to concentrate in science- had to compete with Russia. In July 1967, Neil Armstrong (US) landed on the moon. He said, “ 1 small step for man, 1 giant leap for mankind”.
Which superpower will get more nations on their side- communist or non- communist? Don’t most nations know what they want to be? The African nations that were colonized during the age of imperialism are now getting their freedom, and they have to decide what kind of government they want.
Aim: China becomes Communist
After the war, in 1949, China became communist. China had been taken over by spheres of influence in the 1800s. This led to hatred of W governments. After the Manchu dynasty, a civil war developed, and Sun Yixuan took over. He was replaced by Jiang Jieshi vs. Mau Zedong. Mau Zedong got the support of the peasants. During WWII, there was a pause in the civil war because Japan attacked China and took over. After WWII, Japan lost the land and the civil war continued. Jiang Jieshi was a nationalist- he favored the rich. The peasants were upset that they weren’t remembered.
In 1949, the communists were victorious and the nationalists fled to Taiwan. The US announced that for them, “red China” isn’t an official country and doesn’t get a seat in the UN- this lasted until 1971. Taiwan got the seat.
Communism effected China culturally- Confucisim vs. communism. Confucisim valued family- ancestors were honored. Communism states that loyalty to the state surpasses one’s loyalty to his family.
Now, the Chinese people went through brainwashing:
1. Chinese people moved into cities- not in family houses anymore.
2. Mothers now began going to work- the children went to school and got brainwashed. Everyone had to work hard. Collectives were also set up.
Aim: China under Communism
In 1958, there was a great leap forward- Mau Zedong completely transformed China. China was influenced by Russia- Mau copied Stalin in his ideas, and that’s how he ran China.
Mau decided that China needs its own 5- year plan. It focused on agriculture- the great leap forward. As in Russia, farms were merged into collective farms- communes. Thousands of people had to give up their farms and share. Each commune had its own city, factory… They wanted to double their output. The factories were known as backyard industries.
What went wrong? The people had no incentive to work hard, there was bad weather and there was less food. This lead to famine. The great leap forward was a failure because Mau promised food that didn’t happen. Why? Because Mau used too many people for factories.
Mau suffered a loss of popularity. Mau began to worry that because he’s a failure, maybe he’ll lose his job. He felt threatened.
In 1966, Mau introduced the great proletarian culture revolution- solution so Mau could continue ruling China. He organized a revolution of workers to force people to like communism. It was to get rid of anti- communism. The goal was to rejuvenate China over Mau and communism.
How can Mau turn China over to reach his goal?
Aim: Mau Zedong and the Cultural Revolution
Mau formed an army called the red guards. He ordered schools to close and students had to be a part of the Cultural Revolution army. These soldiers were called red guards. They had to find the anti- communists.
They had a book called “The Little Red Book” about communism. The upper class was seen as suspicious and suspects. The biggest mistake was that educated Chinese no longer were in a position to continue.
Mau made the 1 child per family policy- control of government over family.
In the 1970s, Mau died and China changed.
Aim: Korean war- 1950- 1953
During WWII, Japan occupied Korea. After WWII, when Japan lost the war, they also lost Korea. The countries didn’t know what to do with Korea- the US wanted it to be non- communist and the SU wanted it to be communist. The UN offered a compromise: divide Korea. The N will be communist, headed by Sung, and the S will be non- communist and ruled by Rhee. Korea was divided at 38˚ latitude.
In 1950, the N Korean troops invaded S Korea. Their goal was to make the whole Korea communist. The N had a very strong army because they worked on building up their army. This was the 1st real test for the UN- there’s aggressive action. The UN organized an international army and sent to S Korea. They chased the N Koreans up to the border of China; up to the Yalu River. Over 50,00 US died. The Chinese troops helped the N Korean troops. There was a stalemate for several years.
The UN army was headed by General McArthur. McArthur said let’s get the whole China. Truman said no. McArthur went to Congress, thinking they would override Truman, and he was fired.
In 1953, both sides agreed to an armistice- Korea will be divided.
Aim: Russia after Stalin
Stalin died in 1954. In 1956, Khrushchev became the new leader. He was from a peasant family and made his way up. He was a tough person. His challenge was replacing Stalin- the people thought Stalin was everything. Khrushchev told the people that Stalin was bad. He began destalinization- he closed the prison camps.
In 1956 was the Hungarian revolution- Hungary, a soviet satellite, decided to break away from Russia. They established a new government, headed by Imne Nagy. The SU came a few weeks later and crushed the revolt. This showed that Khrushchev was also a tough leader.
In 1961, the SU (under Khrushchev) put up the Berlin wall to stop people from going from E Germany to W Germany. 1st it was made of barbed wire, then they put cinder block. The Berlin wall became a symbol of the Cold War because the Cold War was all about division.
In 1962 was the Cuban missile crisis. This showed that the Cold War was still a tense situation.
In 1964, Brezhnev took over. Khrushchev had resigned because the economy was bad and he had wasted all Russia’s money trying to make Siberia good for planting. Brezhnev was a hard line communist.
In 1968, Czechoslovakia revolted and Dubcek took over. This period in Czechoslovakian history is known as Prague Spring. Within a few weeks, Brezhnev sent half a million troops to Czechoslovakia.
Aim: Cuban missile crisis
This was the closest point the world ever got to WWIII. In 1959, Cuba became communist. The US got scared because Cuba is so close, and maybe other nations in Latin America will also become communist.
Communism was like a dream for the Cuban people. They were under the cruel and corrupt tyranny of Batista. Fidel Castro came along and promoted communism. There was a communist revolution in 1959. For the 1st few years, the people liked communism. It took them a long time to realize that communism wasn’t as good as they thought.
In 1961, the US invaded Cuba in the Bay of Pigs invasion, but it was unsuccessful.
In 1962 was the Cuban missile crisis- the SU liked Cuba because it was so close to their enemy, the US. The SU sent missile to Cuba, who pointed them at the US.
Aim: US backs anti- communism in Latin America
Kennedy (the president of the US at this time) told Khrushchev to take the missiles out of Cuba or they’ll fight. Russia listened to the US.
The US helped fight the communist groups of Chile, Guatemala and Nicaragua.
Aim: Suez Canal crisis
There was a tense political situation in the Middle East. The US wanted to be friends with the Middle East because the Middle East has oil. The Middle East has 2 sides:
1. Israel- US
2. Arab nations- SU
The UN’s first major vote was over the formation of Israel in 1948.
A few weeks later, Egypt declared war on Israel and Israel won, getting them some territory.
Israel was a democracy- it became a US ally. The US gave and still continues to give Israel millions of dollars. The Arab nations joined the SU. Egypt was anti-Israel and became an ally of the SU.
The US offered Egypt the Aswan High Dam if they joined the US. The leader of Egypt, Nasser, said he could get the money without the US. In 1956, he nationalized the Suez Canal. Nasser said Israel couldn’t use the canal.
Britain, France and Israel said they need to go to war with Egypt. Israel figured they’ll invade through the Sinai Desert and Britain and France would invade from the canal. The SU said that they would help Egypt. Britain and France asked the US to join them, and the US said they condemn the invasion and won’t help because they don’t want another world war. A cease-fire was arranged.
Now, war was on the brinkmanship.
In 1979, Egypt and Israel signed the Camp David agreement- made peace.
Aim: The Vietnam War
This was the longest running Cold War event- it lasted from the 50s- 70s.
In the late 1800s, France imperialized Vietnam. During WWII, Vietnam was owned by Japan. The Japanese were brutal to the Vietnamese. The Japanese lost WWII, and as a result, they also lost Vietnam. Vietnam went back to France.
In Vietnam, there were very strong feelings of nationalism. They also had a nationalistic, communist leader by the name of Ho Chi Minh. Minh wanted a strong, unified, communist country.
He began fighting the French. He fought many battles, one of which was the Battle of Dien Bien Phu. After this battle, the French decided that the fighting wasn’t worth their time and they gave Vietnam its independence.
In 1954, the SU and US had the Geneve Conference to decide what to do about Vietnam. They agreed to a divided Vietnam. The dividing line was at 17˚- very close to the equator. The area had a thick and jungle-like climate.
1. N Vietnam was communist and headed by Minh
2. S Vietnam was non-communist and led by Diem. The S had a corrupt government. In the 1950s, there was a demonstration in S Vietnam by Buddhist monks to show the world how bad the government was- they burnt themselves alive.
Minh knew that the new government was problematic, so in 1959, he decided to invade S Vietnam and make it communist.
The US got hysterical because they knew the S Vietnam government wasn’t strong enough to withstand the N Vietnam government. The US thought there would be a domino effect, and then many other Asian countries would become communist.
The US decided to send help to S Vietnam. At first they send assistance and money. In 1964, President Johnson sent troops. To get the US people riled up, Johnson told them that the Vietnamese sunk 2 US ships in the Gulf of Tonkin.
The US troops faced many difficulties in Vietnam:
1. The N Vietnamese booby-trapped S Vietnam.
2. Some S Vietnamese helped N Vietnam, so the US didn’t really know who was on which side.
3. The US weren’t used to the jungles and it was hard for them to get around.
After the people in the US saw what was happening, they told Johnson to bring the troops home. Johnson refused, making him very unpopular. Next, President Nixon took over, and in 1972, he brought the troops home.
After the US left Vietnam, the N was successful in getting the capitol of S Vietnam, and Vietnam became united under communism.
The Domino Theory didn’t play out- Laos and Cambodia became communist but the other Asian countries didn’t.
Aim: Decolonization
Post WWII, African and Asian colonies got their independence. Why now?
1. Nationalism was rising in the colonies.
2. European nations were weak from war.
3. US pressured nations to give their colonies independence.
India was colonized in the 16th century, well before the scramble for Africa in 1885.
India had many attempts at getting the foreign rule out:
1. Sepoy rebellion
2. INC headed by Mohandas Gandhi
In August 1947, India was givin independence and divided- ½ Muslim and ½ Hindu. Now, a refugee crisis emerged- about 10 million people found that they were living in the wrong country. They had to walk to the other side. 1/10 of these refugees died. During this time, Mohandas Gandhi was killed by a Hindu who blamed Gandhi for his problems.
Nehru became the prime minister of India. India had to set up a new government. They set up a democracy that wasn’t so democratic in the beginning. They got a new constitution, which:
1. Gave woman the right to vote.
2. Gave woman the right to own property.
3. Made discrimination against untouchables (harijans) illegal.
Aim: India post independence
Nehru’s challenges:
1. Fighting with Pakistan over the border area of Kashmir.
2. Establishing a stable government- for the 1st 20-30 years, the government was shaky. India was a democratic country that didn’t do democratic things. (Ex. voting booths)
3. Uniting the many diverse peoples of India- there are a lot of minority groups in India- it’s hard to unite them all as 1. There are over 1000 languages in India.
4. Establishing an economy- set up a mixed economy- some businesses are owned by the government and some businesses are owned by the people.
5. Trying to end discrimination- had to enforce equality for untouchables.
Nehru died in the 1960s and his daughter Indira Gandhi took over. She was elected because the people felt insured to have someone from Nehru’s family ruling.
Her main challenge was dealing with the diversity in India, especially the Sikhs. The Sikhs were nationalistic and wanted their own state- Punjab. There was an enormous Sikh demonstration in the golden temple in Amritsar in the 1980s- the Sikhs demanded their own state. Indira commanded her guards to fire into the crowd. Her own bodyguards were Sikhs and they killed her.
Indira’s son, Raju Gandhi was elected next. He had to deal with the Tamil people, who were separatists. They wanted their own country. (Eventually, they got a piece of Srilanka.) Gandhi used violence to crush the violent Tamil, so they killed him.
After the first several years, India got better.
Aim: Asian post independence case studies
The Philippines and Indonesia are both archipelagos- chains of islands.
1. Philippines- during the Spanish- American war in 1898, the Philippines became an American colony. In 1946, the Philippines got their independence. By doing this, the US was hoping to be an example for other countries.
The Philippines attempted a democracy, but the leaders were corrupt and there were many dissatisfied people. As a result, many different groups formed.
In 1965, Marcos launched a military coup and overthrew the government. He had realized that the government needed someone with more strength, so he became the dictator. The US gave Marcos a lot of help.
Marcos was constantly on the lookout for people who were against him. Under Marcos, people would disappear. The Philippines was under martial law- the country was run by the army. Marcos stole billions of dollars from the government.
Aquino wanted to take over the government. He was more of the democratic type. Marcos told Aquino to run away, or he’d disappear. Aquino ran to the US, but then decided to return. As soon as he stepped off the airplane, he was shop.
In 1986, the people pressured Marcos to hold elections. Carazan Aquino, Aquino’s widow, won the elections. Marcos said that he’s still ruling. A revolution broke out known as People’s Power Revolution. Marcos ran for his life- he went to Hawaii. In the airport, he was caught with 24 bags of diamonds and gold. The US sheltered Marcos. Aquino struggled. She was taken over by Ramus.
Now, the Philippines are closer to democracy.
2. Indonesia- it’s right near the Indian Ocean. They had a tsunami a few years ago.
It was formerly a Dutch colony, which was primarily Muslim. During WWII, the Japanese took over. After WWII, Indonesia declared its independence.
The biggest challenge was diversity- there were many diverse peoples.
President Sukarno was the first president. He was weak and didn’t last too long. Suharto took over and set up a democratic (supposedly) government. It was really a dictatorship and was against communism, killing communists with the help of the CIA. Indonesia had a rigid, not free government.
Challenges today:
a. Diversity- geographically
b. Terrorist groups
c. Tsunami
Aim: Decolonization- African case studies
During the late 1800s, almost the whole Africa was colonized- Scramble for Africa. Britain and France both got the lion’s share of Africa.
1. Britain- E Africa
2. France- W Africa
After WWII, the nations decided to break away because they figured their mother countries were probably tired from war and wouldn’t care about them enough to fight for them.
1. Ghana- was the first colony to win independence. Ghana was aka the Gold Coast colony. Ghana was owned by Britain before WWII. The Gold Coast colony was ruled by nationalistic leader Kwame Nkrumah, who was already starting to work for the independence of the Gold Coast colony.
In 1957, the Gold Coast was givin independence and Kwame Nkrumah became the leader and renamed it Ghana- an old African kingdom and a name of pride because Kwame Nkrumah wanted to restore African pride to Ghana. He wore typical African garb and changed his name from Joseph to Kwame Nkrumah.
Following independence was years of government instability.
2. Algeria- in N Africa. Algeria was owned by France. There was a strong connection between them- there were many intermarriages. Over a million French people settled in Algeria.
The people of Algeria wanted their independence and a nationalistic group was formed- NLF (National Liberal Front). They used guerilla warfare.
The French sent troops to Algeria. Why?
a. Many French lived in Algeria- maybe the Algerians will be mean to them.
b. There was oil in Algeria
In the 1950s, the French killed half a million Algerians. The French fought really long and hard and in 1962, they gave Algeria up.
3. Congo- located in the heart of Africa. The Congo was owned by Belgium.
The Belgians got many resources from the Congo. They thought that if they would give the Congo independence, they would still benefit from the resources.
In the 1960s, the Congo was givin its independence.
The first leader of the Congo was Lumumba. He had connections with the SU, which made the US feel threatened so when Mobutu Sese Soko tried to overthrow Lumumba, the US helped him.
Sese Soko led the Congo for over 30 years. He was a military dictator, and the Congo didn’t do well under him.
After Sese Soko came a leader who was shot in the head.
The Congo is a terrible country to live in. People are constantly trying to leave.
4. Kenya- in E Africa. Kenya was owned by Britain. Many British people went to live in Kenya. It’s one of the most beautiful colonies to live in. Kenya has an easy climate.
When the British settled in Kenya, the people of Kenya resented them because the government allowed them to take large tracts of land.
The largest tribe in Kenya, the Kikuyu, was the most instrumental in fighting colonization. The head of the Kikuyu tribe was a nationalistic leader- Jomo Kenyatta. He organized a terrorist style war against the British. The Mau Mau were the guerilla fighters led by Kenyatta. Kenyatta was arrested by the British. The British killed many of the Kikuyu tribe.
Eventually, Kenya got its independence and Kenyatta became the dictator.
Kenya was a stable country until about 4 years ago, when fighting broke out among the tribes. Presently, there is lots of fighting going on in Kenya and it’s not a safe place to visit.
Aim: African case studies
Africa is a massive continent consisting of over 50 countries.
Pan Africanism- effort among African leaders to work together because they recognized that there were going to be so many differences and problems. The main goal was to help colonies get independence. It didn’t work that well, but it was better than nothing.
1. Tanzania= Tanganyika + Zanzibar- got independence from Germany when Germany lost WWII. It was taken over by Britain for a small amount of time. They received independence in 1960.
Tanzania tried socialism, but realized early on that it wasn’t working- food production went down. Because of this, they moved away from socialism and towards capitalism.
2. Nigeria- has the largest population in Africa. Its capital city is Lagos- one of the most populated cities.
Nigeria has many tribes:
a. Ibo- Christian
b. Yoruba- Christian. A large part of the Yoruba claim to be Bnei Yissoschor. In 1492, they went from Spain to Morocco, and then moved to Nigeria. Many assimilated.
c. Hausa- Fulani- Muslim
Nigeria got their independence from Britain in 1960. Britain gave them their independence easily. It was a peaceful transition.
Of all the countries in Africa, Nigeria has the most oil- should’ve become rich. Instead, after they gained independence, there was a civil war- the Ibo with help from the Yoruba (gave help because they were both Christian) against the Hausa.
The Ibo broke away and formed Biafra. It became a terrible country to live in. It went from one government to the next and after a few years, Biafra was lost to the Hausa and the Hausa became the strongest tribe.
Nigeria became a military dictatorship. The government took oil money for themselves. About 8-9 years ago, Nigeria began free elections. Now, Nigeria has a shaky democracy with free elections.
Cause and effect in African nations-
Typical challenge- tribal warfare (ex. Rwanda- Hutus vs. Tutsis- cut arms off)
African leaders became dictators
Have enemies- military coup
Democracy spreading (recently)- AU (African Union) to help spread democracy in Africa.
Aim: S Africa- apartheid struggle
S Africa got independence from Britain in 1910. By the early 1900s, the was a large white population in S Africa because for over hundreds of years, British were moving to S Africa because of its favorable climate and easy way of living. It was for this reason that the British felt comfortable giving S Africa its independence.
S Africa was a white controlled country. It was under a system of apartheid- segregation of blacks and whites. The whites had and easy life, while the blacks worked for the white population.
After WWII, many African colonies got their independence, and were controlled by blacks. In S Africa, the blacks never really got their independence and they felt very resentful. Nationalism among the blacks grew and the ANC (African National Congress) was formed, led by Nelson Mandela. Its goal was to get blacks to have a say in the government and end apartheid.
As a result, the white government became more rigid and made stricter laws to keep the blacks and whites separate:
1. Homelands Act- set aside various areas in S Africa where the blacks could live. The whites got the majority of the land and the good land. This caused lots of resentment.
2. Pass laws- if a black wanted to leave the homeland areas, he needed a pass.
In 1960, there was a huge demonstration known as the Sharpeville Massacre. Many blacks came with their families. The white police officers opened fire. Mandela was held responsible for the demonstration and was put in jail for about 20 years. While he was in prison, Mandela became a martyr.
In the 1980s, international pressure was put on S Africa to end apartheid. Bishop Desmund Tutu sent messages around the world telling countries to put pressure on the S African government:
1. Many nations boycotted the Olympics in the 1980s that were held in S Africa.
2. Many nations put economic sanctions on S Africa.
S Africa began to feel the pinch.
In 1994, President F.W. Deklerk ended apartheid. Blacks were givin the right to vote and Mandela was released from prison. Mandela was voted in as the next president.
S Africa underwent enormous transformation, and it wasn’t easy. The first few months after apartheid ended were very violent. The blacks took revenge on the whites.
SS- 3rd test
Aim: Post WWI nationalistic movements
Both the cause and effect of WWI was nationalism.
Not all colonies struggled for independence now, but many will form nationalistic movements. Why? The Europeans indirectly caused colonies to struggle for independence. How? During WWI, people from the colonies came to Europe to fight for their mother countries. While in Europe, they absorbed European ideas such as independence and freedom.
Areas of nationalistic movements:
1. Middle East
a. Turkey
b. Iran (Persia)
c. Lebanon
d. Syria
e. Zionist- Palestine
2. Africa
a. Egypt
b. South Africa
c. Kenya
d. Nigeria
e. And others
3. Asia
a. India
b. China
Turkey- used to be part of the Ottoman Empire. Now, all that remains of the Ottoman Empire is Turkey.
At this time, Greece was trying to take over Turkey because they knew Turkey was weak. Turkey was being ruled at this time by a sultan. The Greeks gained strength in Turkey and it looked like they were going to take over, but Mustafa Kemal, a Turkish general, fought them. He won, and now that he had so much power, he overthrew the sultan and became leader of Turkey.
Mustafa Kemal wanted to modernize Turkey into a westernized, secular nation- he became interested in Japan because they started out in the same situation as Turkey. The first thing he did was get a last name because it’s more western- he became Mustafa Kemal Ataturk.
Ataturk’s reforms:
1. Built roads and RR.
2. Factories- paid people from the west countries to teach people how to make factories.
3. Day of rest- Sunday.
4. Secular calendar is used.
5. Religious schools were closed, and secular schools were opened.
6. Woman shouldn’t wear their veils in public.
7. Woman got the right to vote.
8. Monogamy- only 1 wife per man.
9. Turkish alphabet was changed.
Ataturk faced a lot of opposition because people felt he was taking away their religious practices and they wanted an Islamic government. He managed to lead Turkey for a number of years. Turkey became a modern, secular country.
Aim: Nationalism in Iran (Persia)
Iran had their independence in jeopardy- over the generations, Britain and Russia had established spheres of influence in Iran. Iran was being ruled by a weak Shah who was unable to keep the foreign nations out of Iran. Iran was a very backwards country- rode camels, had no plumbing… A powerful leader in the army, Reza Kahn:
1. Overthrew the Shah
2. Rid Iran of foreign domination.
Reza Kahn became the new Shah. He modernized Iran:
1. RR and roads
2. Factories
3. Woman are asked not to wear their veils
4. Public schools with secular education
5. Woman got rights
6. Skyscrapers
Today, Iran is less modern than it was in the 1930s.
In the 1920-30s, the Shah faced religious opposition- the people felt they want a religious way of life and a religious government.
Aim: Arab nationalism grows
In the 1920s, oil was discovered in the Middle East. As nations began to industrialize further, they came to the realization that oil is the best fuel; it surpasses steam power. Fuel was now being used for cars, and during WWI was used for planes and tanks.
Arab countries felt that if they are so vital for their oil, they should get their independence. Since WWI, the Arab countries belonged to the Ottoman Empire and after WWI, they were taken as mandates by:
1. Britain- Palestine and Iraq
2. France- Syria and Lebanon
Pan Arabism- the unity among the Arab peoples- all the Arab mandates want independence. In the 1920s, Egypt does get their independence because of the Suez Canal.
Aim: Palestine- troubled mandate
Palestine was the most troubled mandate. Why? Because 2 groups of people, the Arabs and the Jews, both want control over it. There was a growing population of Zionists in Palestine who wanted it under their control, and there were also many Arabs in Palestine who wanted it under their control.
In 1917, the British issued the Balfour Declaration- the British will help the Zionists get Palestine as a homeland. This was a ray of hope for the Jews.
From 1919 to 1939, thousands of Jews immigrated to Palestine (mostly Zionists). They set kibbutzim- raised chickens, planted… With in a couple of years, barren land was now giving forth produce. The Jewish population now boomed from 50,000 to half a million people.
At first the Arabs were happy- there was a lot of money coming into the country, but after a while the Arabs began to get nervous that there were too many Jews.
By the late 1920s, there were destructive events such as the Chevron Yeshiva Massacre.
The British were supposed to be policing in Palestine, but they weren’t so the Jews set up their own army- Haganah. The British set that it’s illegal to belong to the Haganah.
By 1939, the British were so frustrated with the tension between the Jews and the Arabs, and they feared there would be a civil war. They past a law in 1939- White Paper- only 75,000 Jews are allowed to enter Palestine. After this, the Arabs will get control of Palestine. This was bad timing because of WWII- many more Jews could’ve been saved. This law became known as the Black Paper.
Aim: Nationalism in India
In 1919, the British didn’t want to give the Indians self-government, so they had a demonstration in Amritsar. The British weren’t happy, and an officer told the soldiers to gun down the crowd. This massacre, known as the Amritsar Massacre, was a peaceful demonstration that turned into a horrific bloodbath. This was a turning point for the Indians; now they want total independence from the British.
Mohandas (Mahatma) Gandhi was a nationalistic leader and he led the Indian people to independence. Gandhi was a bright child, and was educated in Britain. He attended law school in England and afterwards was a lawyer in South Africa. In South Africa he saw the system of apartheid- blacks were kept away from the whites. The whites felt they were so superior to the blacks that they needed to be totally separate. Gandhi developed a sense of anti- discrimination and developed a policy of non-violence (aka passive resistance or civil disobedience) while in South Africa. The purpose of the policy of non-violence was to gain the sympathy of the world.
In about 1914, Gandhi returned to India and became the leader of the INC- Indian National Congress- nationalistic movement, which wanted independence from Britain. When Gandhi became ruler, he instituted his non-violence policy. Gandhi used passive resistance:
1. Told the Indian people to boycott British cotton cloth. People started making their own cloth with the spinning wheel.
2. Salt March- there was a British law, which stated that the Indians had to buy their salt from the British. Gandhi felt this was unfair because India is a peninsula- had tons of salt washed upon its shores. Gandhi marched with 78 other men and they collected salt- shows civil disobedience. 1000s of Indians joined the march. They marched 240 miles- it took 6 weeks. When they got there, Gandhi went into the water and began to pick up salt. As soon as he broke the law, Gandhi was arrested. This event made the British look bad and the Indians look good in the eyes of the rest of the world.
As it became clear that the Indians would gain their independence, the tension grew between the Hindus and Muslims. Gandhi was a Hindu, and the Muslims didn’t want the Hindus to rule. When Gandhi took over, the Muslims appointed Mohammed Ali Jinne as leader of the Muslim League (like the INC). The British realized that if they left India, there would be a civil war.
Aim: Nationalism in China
For 1000s of years, China was ruled by dynasties. The last dynasty, the Manchu dynasty, didn’t want change. At this time, China was divided into spheres of influence.
As a result of the Manchu dynasty’s refusal for change, Sun Yixuan overthrew the Manchu dynasty. He had an agenda- 3 Principles of the People:
1. Nationalism
2. Democracy
3. Livelihood
As leader of China, Sun Yixuan didn’t do much because he had lots of opposition. Sun Yixuan’s group was called the Nationalist party (aka Kuomintang Party), and because of the many opposing parties, he was unable to concentrate on getting things done. After a couple of years, he stepped down without having achieved his goal.
After he stepped down, there was chaos in China. There was no:
1. Stability
2. Law
3. Order
In the 1920s, Chiang Kai Shek (aka Jiang Jieshi) took over China. He became leader of the Nationalist party. He led China for a couple of years. Chiang Kai Shek was stronger than Sun Yixuan- he was a general in the army. He hoped to unite all the groups in China. Chiang Kai Shek wanted to create a republic.
He was greatly challenged by the Chinese Communist party. At this time, Communism had spread from Russia to China. Many Chinese felt that Communism would be great. Chiang Kai Shek began killing as many Communists as he could. At this time, the Nationalist party was still stronger than the Communist party. The Communist party was growing. Chiang Kai Shek couldn’t stabilize China because he was busy dealing with the Communist party. The leader of the Communist party was Mao Zedong. Mao Zedong ran away and built up a following of peasants supporters. The peasant’s strength lied in number and not physical strength. He went on the Long March. “In a very short time several hundred million peasants will rise like a mighty storm”- Mao Zedong. Mao Zedong told his fellow marchers not to steal from the peasants and talk to them with respect to gain their support. The peasants became interested in Mao Zedong because he promised them land.
In the beginning of the war, the Nationalist party was stronger but as the war progressed, the Communists started emerging as the stronger power:
1. Got the support of the peasant.
2. Was a good leader.
1n 1939, everything stopped because of WWII- the civil war paused. During WWII, Japan was brutal to the Chinese; they killed many of them.
After WWII, the civil war continued and the Communists ended up winning resulting in Mao Zedong as ruler of China.
Aim: Russia under Stalin
Stalin took over Russia after Lenin. He ruled for over 20 years. Stalin set the tone of Communism for Russia.
When he took over Russia, he adopted the name Stalin- man of steel.
Russia became a totalitarian state- the state has total control. Really, Russia was supposed to have war Communism, but the people soon realized they were not going to get any control because Stalin had tools of control:
1. Secret police- KGB
2. Censorship- no one can own anything such as a book that speaks against Stalin.
3. Used terror
a. People would disappear, never to return again.
b. People were sent to the Siberian Gulags.
4. The government focused on propaganda- brainwashed the Russians starting from when they were little children that Stalin is so great.
5. War on religion- said religion is archaic and should be thrown out. Stalin claimed he was an atheist, but really he was an anti- Semite. Many Jews felt safer under Stalin than under the czars, but they gave up their spirituality. Now assimilation began.
Aim: Russia under Stalin
Stalin used every form of control possible to have total control over the people such as putting recording devices in the walls etc. This made the people terrified.
The type of economy that was introduced by Stalin was command economy- the government makes all the decisions.
Stalin put the five year plans into effect-
1. The first five years of leadership would be in modernizing industry-
a. Stalin focused on production of heavy industry-
1. Rail roads
2. Cars
3. Buses
4. Mines
5. Power stations
6. Ammunition
The focus was on heavy industry and not on light industry because Stalin
wanted Russia to look powerful.
b. There were problems with the factories-
1. No incentives so people didn’t work as hard as they could. Production slowed down, and as a result, there were enormous shortages.
2. Poor quality of goods- as a result the black market evolved- people illegally brought in and sold goods from other countries.
c. The health care was not good.
2. The next five years would focus on agriculture. Stalin got rid of the NEP because he wanted the government to have control over everything. Private farms were merged into collectives (kolkhoz). The purpose of this was to grow more. There was no incentive, so people didn’t want to join the collectives. Many people, mainly rich landowners (kulaks), gave up their lives instead of merging into collectives. The result of this was famine because of the lack of motivation- people were lazy on the collectives and many kulaks were dead.
Aim: Russia under Stalin
As the years of Stalin progressed, he became weird, paranoid and a maniac. In the 1930s, he felt he had to kill all of his enemies. He began by killing several million people with power because he felt they were a threat to his ruler ship. This was known as the Great Purge.
Now WWII broke out and Stalin didn’t have any generals for his army because he killed all of them.
In the 1950s, Stalin turned his wrath on the Jews. He killed every Jewish doctor in the Doctor’s Plot.
Stalin died in the 1950s, and people didn’t know how they could manage without him.
Advantages and disadvantages under Communism in Russia-
Advantages Disadvantages
Education Now, everyone could get an education- not just the elite. The Russians brainwashed everyone.
Healthcare Everyone got healthcare. Healthcare was inferior.
Jobs Everyone got a job. Woman worked full time.
Heavy industry Russia became the leading producer of heavy industry goods. Shortage of goods.
Housing for all No homeless people. Low quality housing.
By the time Stalin died, Russia had become a world power, but there was a price to pay- the people lived in a terrifying situation.
Aim: Pre WWII Era
Most countries (especially in Europe) after WWI spent the 1920s and 30s recovering and rebuilding.
In 1928, over 60 nations signed the Kellogg Briand pact- “we renounce was as an instrument of national policy”. Among the nations that signed were Germany, Japan, Russia etc. Germany and Japan signed so as not to look bad.
In 1931, Japan became the first nation since WWI to take serious aggressive action; they took Manchuria, which was Chinese territory.
The League of Nations was supposed to stop Japan but they just condemned Japan. The world now got the message that they won’t be fought against by the League of Nations if they do something wrong.
In 1929, the Great Depression broke out and the US stopped lending money to other countries. Democracies were hit hardest- 1/3 people had no job. People began going to soup kitchens and there was inflation (especially in Germany). There was lots of disillusionment with democracies because they believed in Laissez Faire, and clung to their policy even when the people were in the midst of a depression.
Aim: Rise of fascism (totalitarian)
People were willing to give up all their freedoms in exchange for a controlling government because they were in desperate need of change.
Fascism-
1. Individuals exist to serve the state- the government is everything and the people only exist to serve the government.
2. Extremely nationalistic government- think they’re the best.
3. Anti democratic- no freedoms. A very oppressive government.
4. Felt war is glorious- need to build an army and empire.
5. Unquestioning obedience- everyone listens without a word.
Italy became a fascist state. Why? Because of Mussolini’s promises to solve the problems in Italy:
1. Italian people are full of resentment and anger because they switched sides during the war and didn’t get anything for it.
2. Weak and corrupt government- the government is chaotic and many people don’t have jobs.
Mussolini’s promises:
1. End chaos
2. Stability
3. Mare nostrum- take over the Mediterranean area- build an empire.
Mussolini got many followers aka the Black Shirts. At this time, there was a king in Italy, King Emanuel II, so it was pretty risky to form an army. In 1922, Mussolini and his army marched to Rome to petition to the king that Mussolini get a position in the government. The king invited Mussolini to be prime minister. By 1925, Mussolini became a dictator- Il Duche, and the king stepped down.
Mussolini’s actions-
1. “He made the trains run on time”- brought order and stability.
2. No freedoms
3. Censorship
4. Terror
5. Prison
6. Secret police
7. Executions
8. Army is built up- every male 8-83 had to sign up for army training.
There was extreme order in Italy, but also extreme terror.
The major difference between fascism and communism was in the economy. In a fascist country:
1. You could have private property.
2. Factories are told what to make, but make their own money.
Now, the communist and democratic countries join together to fight against a common enemy.
Aim: Germany: From liberal democracy to Fascist dictatorship
In the 1920s, Germany had a democratic government- the Weimar Republic, which was forced on Germany by the Treaty of Versailles.
The Weimar Republic was replaced by a brutal, fascist dictatorship. How did this happen? Hitler’s rise to power. How and why? People let him take over and institute a fascist dictatorship. Why did they let this- didn’t they have a good government?
1. The Weimar Republic was no good- the government was weak and also hated because they signed the Treaty of Versailles. The Weimar Republic faced a lot of opposition from the Communists and Conservatives. The Germans didn’t want a democracy, but rather a strong government, which would have power. Many of the important politicians in the Weimar Republic were Jews, which led to anti-Semitism- blamed the Jews for the Republic’s problems.
2. Economic Depression- the situation in Germany was desperate. The economy was bad since WWI + the Great Depression in the US. There was terrible inflation now in Germany.
Hitler was able to rise to power now because Germany was so desperate.
Hitler was born in Austria. He tried to get into art school, but was turned down. He tried to get into the army, but landed up with the lowest position. During WWI, Hitler developed a raved anti- Semitic feeling.
In 1919, he organized a revolutionary group to overthrow the Weimar Republic called the Nazi party. His followers were known as:
1. Brown shirts
2. Storm Troopers
Hitler chose the swastika as his symbol. The swastika is an Indian symbol because Hitler felt he was from a mix of Indian and German blood- Aryan.
The Nazis hated everyone:
1. Democrats
2. Communists
3. Capitalists
In 1923, Hitler and the Brown shirts made an attempt to overthrow the government, but they failed. Hitler ended up in jail. While being imprisoned, Hitler wrote Mein Kampf. The main theme of this book was:
1. Lebensraum- living space= empire. The Germans deserve more space to live because they are superior.
2. Anti- Semitism- Aryans are the “master race”. Hitler was obsessed with race and didn’t care about religion. He believed that there were many races in the world and the Aryans are on the top, while the Jews are on the bottom. (Hitler said the Jews are insects, not humans.) For many German Jews, this was surprising because they were so nationalistic. Germany does have a long tradition of anti- Semitism:
a. Marin Luther
b. Otto Von Bismarck
c. Richard Wagner
At this time, France was the most anti-Semitic country. Hitler in Mein Kampf used the Jews as a scapegoat- he said Germany lost WWI because of the Jews.
When Hitler got out of jail, he printed his book and because of it he gained lots of support and popularity.
Hitler began to make rallies stating that Germany should:
1. Stop paying reparations
2. Build up an army
3. Create jobs
Hitler was able to brainwash many people and his power began to grow. By 1933, Hitler became chancellor of Germany and within a couple of months he declared himself dictator and the Weimar Republic toppled. Hitler killed the Nazis he didn’t trust and the Communists. Hitler said people are created to benefit the state. He took away people’s rights.
Hitler’s first anti-Semitic action was in 1935- the Nuremburg laws- discriminated Jews, mostly shutting them out of professions.
Both the cause and effect of WWI was nationalism.
Not all colonies struggled for independence now, but many will form nationalistic movements. Why? The Europeans indirectly caused colonies to struggle for independence. How? During WWI, people from the colonies came to Europe to fight for their mother countries. While in Europe, they absorbed European ideas such as independence and freedom.
Areas of nationalistic movements:
1. Middle East
a. Turkey
b. Iran (Persia)
c. Lebanon
d. Syria
e. Zionist- Palestine
2. Africa
a. Egypt
b. South Africa
c. Kenya
d. Nigeria
e. And others
3. Asia
a. India
b. China
Turkey- used to be part of the Ottoman Empire. Now, all that remains of the Ottoman Empire is Turkey.
At this time, Greece was trying to take over Turkey because they knew Turkey was weak. Turkey was being ruled at this time by a sultan. The Greeks gained strength in Turkey and it looked like they were going to take over, but Mustafa Kemal, a Turkish general, fought them. He won, and now that he had so much power, he overthrew the sultan and became leader of Turkey.
Mustafa Kemal wanted to modernize Turkey into a westernized, secular nation- he became interested in Japan because they started out in the same situation as Turkey. The first thing he did was get a last name because it’s more western- he became Mustafa Kemal Ataturk.
Ataturk’s reforms:
1. Built roads and RR.
2. Factories- paid people from the west countries to teach people how to make factories.
3. Day of rest- Sunday.
4. Secular calendar is used.
5. Religious schools were closed, and secular schools were opened.
6. Woman shouldn’t wear their veils in public.
7. Woman got the right to vote.
8. Monogamy- only 1 wife per man.
9. Turkish alphabet was changed.
Ataturk faced a lot of opposition because people felt he was taking away their religious practices and they wanted an Islamic government. He managed to lead Turkey for a number of years. Turkey became a modern, secular country.
Aim: Nationalism in Iran (Persia)
Iran had their independence in jeopardy- over the generations, Britain and Russia had established spheres of influence in Iran. Iran was being ruled by a weak Shah who was unable to keep the foreign nations out of Iran. Iran was a very backwards country- rode camels, had no plumbing… A powerful leader in the army, Reza Kahn:
1. Overthrew the Shah
2. Rid Iran of foreign domination.
Reza Kahn became the new Shah. He modernized Iran:
1. RR and roads
2. Factories
3. Woman are asked not to wear their veils
4. Public schools with secular education
5. Woman got rights
6. Skyscrapers
Today, Iran is less modern than it was in the 1930s.
In the 1920-30s, the Shah faced religious opposition- the people felt they want a religious way of life and a religious government.
Aim: Arab nationalism grows
In the 1920s, oil was discovered in the Middle East. As nations began to industrialize further, they came to the realization that oil is the best fuel; it surpasses steam power. Fuel was now being used for cars, and during WWI was used for planes and tanks.
Arab countries felt that if they are so vital for their oil, they should get their independence. Since WWI, the Arab countries belonged to the Ottoman Empire and after WWI, they were taken as mandates by:
1. Britain- Palestine and Iraq
2. France- Syria and Lebanon
Pan Arabism- the unity among the Arab peoples- all the Arab mandates want independence. In the 1920s, Egypt does get their independence because of the Suez Canal.
Aim: Palestine- troubled mandate
Palestine was the most troubled mandate. Why? Because 2 groups of people, the Arabs and the Jews, both want control over it. There was a growing population of Zionists in Palestine who wanted it under their control, and there were also many Arabs in Palestine who wanted it under their control.
In 1917, the British issued the Balfour Declaration- the British will help the Zionists get Palestine as a homeland. This was a ray of hope for the Jews.
From 1919 to 1939, thousands of Jews immigrated to Palestine (mostly Zionists). They set kibbutzim- raised chickens, planted… With in a couple of years, barren land was now giving forth produce. The Jewish population now boomed from 50,000 to half a million people.
At first the Arabs were happy- there was a lot of money coming into the country, but after a while the Arabs began to get nervous that there were too many Jews.
By the late 1920s, there were destructive events such as the Chevron Yeshiva Massacre.
The British were supposed to be policing in Palestine, but they weren’t so the Jews set up their own army- Haganah. The British set that it’s illegal to belong to the Haganah.
By 1939, the British were so frustrated with the tension between the Jews and the Arabs, and they feared there would be a civil war. They past a law in 1939- White Paper- only 75,000 Jews are allowed to enter Palestine. After this, the Arabs will get control of Palestine. This was bad timing because of WWII- many more Jews could’ve been saved. This law became known as the Black Paper.
Aim: Nationalism in India
In 1919, the British didn’t want to give the Indians self-government, so they had a demonstration in Amritsar. The British weren’t happy, and an officer told the soldiers to gun down the crowd. This massacre, known as the Amritsar Massacre, was a peaceful demonstration that turned into a horrific bloodbath. This was a turning point for the Indians; now they want total independence from the British.
Mohandas (Mahatma) Gandhi was a nationalistic leader and he led the Indian people to independence. Gandhi was a bright child, and was educated in Britain. He attended law school in England and afterwards was a lawyer in South Africa. In South Africa he saw the system of apartheid- blacks were kept away from the whites. The whites felt they were so superior to the blacks that they needed to be totally separate. Gandhi developed a sense of anti- discrimination and developed a policy of non-violence (aka passive resistance or civil disobedience) while in South Africa. The purpose of the policy of non-violence was to gain the sympathy of the world.
In about 1914, Gandhi returned to India and became the leader of the INC- Indian National Congress- nationalistic movement, which wanted independence from Britain. When Gandhi became ruler, he instituted his non-violence policy. Gandhi used passive resistance:
1. Told the Indian people to boycott British cotton cloth. People started making their own cloth with the spinning wheel.
2. Salt March- there was a British law, which stated that the Indians had to buy their salt from the British. Gandhi felt this was unfair because India is a peninsula- had tons of salt washed upon its shores. Gandhi marched with 78 other men and they collected salt- shows civil disobedience. 1000s of Indians joined the march. They marched 240 miles- it took 6 weeks. When they got there, Gandhi went into the water and began to pick up salt. As soon as he broke the law, Gandhi was arrested. This event made the British look bad and the Indians look good in the eyes of the rest of the world.
As it became clear that the Indians would gain their independence, the tension grew between the Hindus and Muslims. Gandhi was a Hindu, and the Muslims didn’t want the Hindus to rule. When Gandhi took over, the Muslims appointed Mohammed Ali Jinne as leader of the Muslim League (like the INC). The British realized that if they left India, there would be a civil war.
Aim: Nationalism in China
For 1000s of years, China was ruled by dynasties. The last dynasty, the Manchu dynasty, didn’t want change. At this time, China was divided into spheres of influence.
As a result of the Manchu dynasty’s refusal for change, Sun Yixuan overthrew the Manchu dynasty. He had an agenda- 3 Principles of the People:
1. Nationalism
2. Democracy
3. Livelihood
As leader of China, Sun Yixuan didn’t do much because he had lots of opposition. Sun Yixuan’s group was called the Nationalist party (aka Kuomintang Party), and because of the many opposing parties, he was unable to concentrate on getting things done. After a couple of years, he stepped down without having achieved his goal.
After he stepped down, there was chaos in China. There was no:
1. Stability
2. Law
3. Order
In the 1920s, Chiang Kai Shek (aka Jiang Jieshi) took over China. He became leader of the Nationalist party. He led China for a couple of years. Chiang Kai Shek was stronger than Sun Yixuan- he was a general in the army. He hoped to unite all the groups in China. Chiang Kai Shek wanted to create a republic.
He was greatly challenged by the Chinese Communist party. At this time, Communism had spread from Russia to China. Many Chinese felt that Communism would be great. Chiang Kai Shek began killing as many Communists as he could. At this time, the Nationalist party was still stronger than the Communist party. The Communist party was growing. Chiang Kai Shek couldn’t stabilize China because he was busy dealing with the Communist party. The leader of the Communist party was Mao Zedong. Mao Zedong ran away and built up a following of peasants supporters. The peasant’s strength lied in number and not physical strength. He went on the Long March. “In a very short time several hundred million peasants will rise like a mighty storm”- Mao Zedong. Mao Zedong told his fellow marchers not to steal from the peasants and talk to them with respect to gain their support. The peasants became interested in Mao Zedong because he promised them land.
In the beginning of the war, the Nationalist party was stronger but as the war progressed, the Communists started emerging as the stronger power:
1. Got the support of the peasant.
2. Was a good leader.
1n 1939, everything stopped because of WWII- the civil war paused. During WWII, Japan was brutal to the Chinese; they killed many of them.
After WWII, the civil war continued and the Communists ended up winning resulting in Mao Zedong as ruler of China.
Aim: Russia under Stalin
Stalin took over Russia after Lenin. He ruled for over 20 years. Stalin set the tone of Communism for Russia.
When he took over Russia, he adopted the name Stalin- man of steel.
Russia became a totalitarian state- the state has total control. Really, Russia was supposed to have war Communism, but the people soon realized they were not going to get any control because Stalin had tools of control:
1. Secret police- KGB
2. Censorship- no one can own anything such as a book that speaks against Stalin.
3. Used terror
a. People would disappear, never to return again.
b. People were sent to the Siberian Gulags.
4. The government focused on propaganda- brainwashed the Russians starting from when they were little children that Stalin is so great.
5. War on religion- said religion is archaic and should be thrown out. Stalin claimed he was an atheist, but really he was an anti- Semite. Many Jews felt safer under Stalin than under the czars, but they gave up their spirituality. Now assimilation began.
Aim: Russia under Stalin
Stalin used every form of control possible to have total control over the people such as putting recording devices in the walls etc. This made the people terrified.
The type of economy that was introduced by Stalin was command economy- the government makes all the decisions.
Stalin put the five year plans into effect-
1. The first five years of leadership would be in modernizing industry-
a. Stalin focused on production of heavy industry-
1. Rail roads
2. Cars
3. Buses
4. Mines
5. Power stations
6. Ammunition
The focus was on heavy industry and not on light industry because Stalin
wanted Russia to look powerful.
b. There were problems with the factories-
1. No incentives so people didn’t work as hard as they could. Production slowed down, and as a result, there were enormous shortages.
2. Poor quality of goods- as a result the black market evolved- people illegally brought in and sold goods from other countries.
c. The health care was not good.
2. The next five years would focus on agriculture. Stalin got rid of the NEP because he wanted the government to have control over everything. Private farms were merged into collectives (kolkhoz). The purpose of this was to grow more. There was no incentive, so people didn’t want to join the collectives. Many people, mainly rich landowners (kulaks), gave up their lives instead of merging into collectives. The result of this was famine because of the lack of motivation- people were lazy on the collectives and many kulaks were dead.
Aim: Russia under Stalin
As the years of Stalin progressed, he became weird, paranoid and a maniac. In the 1930s, he felt he had to kill all of his enemies. He began by killing several million people with power because he felt they were a threat to his ruler ship. This was known as the Great Purge.
Now WWII broke out and Stalin didn’t have any generals for his army because he killed all of them.
In the 1950s, Stalin turned his wrath on the Jews. He killed every Jewish doctor in the Doctor’s Plot.
Stalin died in the 1950s, and people didn’t know how they could manage without him.
Advantages and disadvantages under Communism in Russia-
Advantages Disadvantages
Education Now, everyone could get an education- not just the elite. The Russians brainwashed everyone.
Healthcare Everyone got healthcare. Healthcare was inferior.
Jobs Everyone got a job. Woman worked full time.
Heavy industry Russia became the leading producer of heavy industry goods. Shortage of goods.
Housing for all No homeless people. Low quality housing.
By the time Stalin died, Russia had become a world power, but there was a price to pay- the people lived in a terrifying situation.
Aim: Pre WWII Era
Most countries (especially in Europe) after WWI spent the 1920s and 30s recovering and rebuilding.
In 1928, over 60 nations signed the Kellogg Briand pact- “we renounce was as an instrument of national policy”. Among the nations that signed were Germany, Japan, Russia etc. Germany and Japan signed so as not to look bad.
In 1931, Japan became the first nation since WWI to take serious aggressive action; they took Manchuria, which was Chinese territory.
The League of Nations was supposed to stop Japan but they just condemned Japan. The world now got the message that they won’t be fought against by the League of Nations if they do something wrong.
In 1929, the Great Depression broke out and the US stopped lending money to other countries. Democracies were hit hardest- 1/3 people had no job. People began going to soup kitchens and there was inflation (especially in Germany). There was lots of disillusionment with democracies because they believed in Laissez Faire, and clung to their policy even when the people were in the midst of a depression.
Aim: Rise of fascism (totalitarian)
People were willing to give up all their freedoms in exchange for a controlling government because they were in desperate need of change.
Fascism-
1. Individuals exist to serve the state- the government is everything and the people only exist to serve the government.
2. Extremely nationalistic government- think they’re the best.
3. Anti democratic- no freedoms. A very oppressive government.
4. Felt war is glorious- need to build an army and empire.
5. Unquestioning obedience- everyone listens without a word.
Italy became a fascist state. Why? Because of Mussolini’s promises to solve the problems in Italy:
1. Italian people are full of resentment and anger because they switched sides during the war and didn’t get anything for it.
2. Weak and corrupt government- the government is chaotic and many people don’t have jobs.
Mussolini’s promises:
1. End chaos
2. Stability
3. Mare nostrum- take over the Mediterranean area- build an empire.
Mussolini got many followers aka the Black Shirts. At this time, there was a king in Italy, King Emanuel II, so it was pretty risky to form an army. In 1922, Mussolini and his army marched to Rome to petition to the king that Mussolini get a position in the government. The king invited Mussolini to be prime minister. By 1925, Mussolini became a dictator- Il Duche, and the king stepped down.
Mussolini’s actions-
1. “He made the trains run on time”- brought order and stability.
2. No freedoms
3. Censorship
4. Terror
5. Prison
6. Secret police
7. Executions
8. Army is built up- every male 8-83 had to sign up for army training.
There was extreme order in Italy, but also extreme terror.
The major difference between fascism and communism was in the economy. In a fascist country:
1. You could have private property.
2. Factories are told what to make, but make their own money.
Now, the communist and democratic countries join together to fight against a common enemy.
Aim: Germany: From liberal democracy to Fascist dictatorship
In the 1920s, Germany had a democratic government- the Weimar Republic, which was forced on Germany by the Treaty of Versailles.
The Weimar Republic was replaced by a brutal, fascist dictatorship. How did this happen? Hitler’s rise to power. How and why? People let him take over and institute a fascist dictatorship. Why did they let this- didn’t they have a good government?
1. The Weimar Republic was no good- the government was weak and also hated because they signed the Treaty of Versailles. The Weimar Republic faced a lot of opposition from the Communists and Conservatives. The Germans didn’t want a democracy, but rather a strong government, which would have power. Many of the important politicians in the Weimar Republic were Jews, which led to anti-Semitism- blamed the Jews for the Republic’s problems.
2. Economic Depression- the situation in Germany was desperate. The economy was bad since WWI + the Great Depression in the US. There was terrible inflation now in Germany.
Hitler was able to rise to power now because Germany was so desperate.
Hitler was born in Austria. He tried to get into art school, but was turned down. He tried to get into the army, but landed up with the lowest position. During WWI, Hitler developed a raved anti- Semitic feeling.
In 1919, he organized a revolutionary group to overthrow the Weimar Republic called the Nazi party. His followers were known as:
1. Brown shirts
2. Storm Troopers
Hitler chose the swastika as his symbol. The swastika is an Indian symbol because Hitler felt he was from a mix of Indian and German blood- Aryan.
The Nazis hated everyone:
1. Democrats
2. Communists
3. Capitalists
In 1923, Hitler and the Brown shirts made an attempt to overthrow the government, but they failed. Hitler ended up in jail. While being imprisoned, Hitler wrote Mein Kampf. The main theme of this book was:
1. Lebensraum- living space= empire. The Germans deserve more space to live because they are superior.
2. Anti- Semitism- Aryans are the “master race”. Hitler was obsessed with race and didn’t care about religion. He believed that there were many races in the world and the Aryans are on the top, while the Jews are on the bottom. (Hitler said the Jews are insects, not humans.) For many German Jews, this was surprising because they were so nationalistic. Germany does have a long tradition of anti- Semitism:
a. Marin Luther
b. Otto Von Bismarck
c. Richard Wagner
At this time, France was the most anti-Semitic country. Hitler in Mein Kampf used the Jews as a scapegoat- he said Germany lost WWI because of the Jews.
When Hitler got out of jail, he printed his book and because of it he gained lots of support and popularity.
Hitler began to make rallies stating that Germany should:
1. Stop paying reparations
2. Build up an army
3. Create jobs
Hitler was able to brainwash many people and his power began to grow. By 1933, Hitler became chancellor of Germany and within a couple of months he declared himself dictator and the Weimar Republic toppled. Hitler killed the Nazis he didn’t trust and the Communists. Hitler said people are created to benefit the state. He took away people’s rights.
Hitler’s first anti-Semitic action was in 1935- the Nuremburg laws- discriminated Jews, mostly shutting them out of professions.
SS- 2nd test
SS
Aim: The Industrial Revolution
Instead of making things by hand, things were made by machine. Industrial means the making of goods. It was an economic and social change. The Industrial Revolution began in Europe in the late 18th century.
What led to the Industrial Revolution?
1. Agrarian Revolution- in farming.
2. Population Explosion- more children were being born and surviving birth.
3. Energy Revolution- Different types of energy can make machines run.
Aim: Factors leading to the Industrial Revolution
1. Agrarian Revolution- was advances in agriculture- new farming techniques were discovered.
a. Dutch- dykes- a wall that kept water from overflowing the land. Now more
land was available for farming
b. Improved fertilizers- to improve soil so it can produce more food.
c. Charles Townshend- planting turnips/ crop rotation- not planting the same
produce in the same fields year after year.
d. Tull- seed drill- a device that deposits seeds evenly. Leads to more food.
Enclosure movement- happened in Britain. Wealthy landowners bought more land- now they can plant more crops. The farmers who sold their land had nothing to do. This led to the opening of factories because there was available labor.
2. Population Explosion- more nutrition became available especially in England where the Agrarian Revolution began. The population in England doubled. Now people were living longer. There were advances in medicine. When woman gave birth, their babies or themselves no longer died. There was also an increase in hygiene. They learnt about germs and keeping things sterilized. Disease also became less widespread.
3. Energy Revolution- new ways to power machines were invented. Up until now horsepower was used. In the 1700s, it was discovered that heating up water could move heavy metal- steam power. This lead to the invention of trains and boats, which could stay on path. With trains and boats, goods could now be transported.
The combination of these 3 things all together led to the Industrial Revolution. “Necessity is the mother of invention”.
Aim: 1. Why does the Industrial Revolution begin in England?
2. Early inventions
3. Impact of the inventions
1. The industrial revolution begins in England because:
a. England has an island location. This advantageous because England wasn’t involved in Europe’s battles and they were able to focus on industrialization.
b. Had resources- coal and iron. These resources are needed for industrialization.
c. Has fast flowing rivers with powerful currents- good for waterpower, which made machines run.
d. Had many workers because of the Enclosure Movement and because of the Population Explosion.
e. Capital- large amounts of money were available for investment by many rich English. These investors became entrepreneurs.
f. England had the ideal government for a nation about to embark on industrialization. The government was stable and helpful. English believed in laissez faire- business is business and government is government, and the two shall never intertwine.
2. The early inventions were mainly in transportation and textiles. Originally fabric was made in cottage industries- peasants would make fabric in their cottages. When there was a Population Explosion, more textiles were needed and the cottage industries couldn’t keep up.
a. Flying shuttle- wove thread. One man in one day could now make what a town of people made in 3 weeks.
b. Spinning Jenny- spun thread.
c. Cotton gin- separated seeds from cotton fluff. Now there’s more cotton available.
3. The impact of the inventions was that the factory system emerged. Factories were
needed for machines. Urbanization occurred- people moved from rural areas to be
closer to factories in cities.
Aim: The impact of the Industrial Revolution on the working and middle classes
1. Middle class- the middle class were the managers or owners of factories of mines or inventors. This put them above the lower class. Some entrepreneurs made it to the upper class. The middle class enjoyed the quality of life. The men worked, and the women called upon each other, and spent lots of time on their wardrobe because they had nothing else to do.
2. Working class- had to work in:
a. Factory-
1. Had long hours with low wages.
2. Child labor.
3. Lived in tenement buildings- bad apartment housing.
4. No safety devices- many got injured on the job.
Many skilled people now found that they were being replaced by machine, and they had to now work in factories. Labor unions were formed, but didn’t have any impact.
b. Mines- to get resources
1. People did animal labor- dragged resources through tunnels.
2. People became hunchbacks, and their lungs were destroyed.
Sadler Committee- sent by British government to investigate the working
conditions, and to interview factory workers and mine workers.
Aim: Supporters and Opponents of Laissez Faire
“Every man as long as he does not violate the laws… is left free to pursue his own interests… in business”. - Adam Smith from his book Wealth of Nations. Smith said that government shouldn’t make rules so that people can make money.
As people saw problems in working masses, they asked if they should have Laissez Faire.
Many people believed in social Darwinism- in our society there are those who are meant to be rich and they are the fittest, and that there are those who are going to be poor and there’s nothing to be done about it.
2 people spoke out about Laissez Faire:
1. Bentham- society is supposed to benefit the majority.
2. Mill- the government must protect workers and workers must have the right to vote.
Aim: Socialism- a rising movement in the 19th century
Capitalism vs. Socialism
1. Capitalism- economic system. Purpose of capitalism is opportunity.
a. Goes hand in hand with Laissez Faire
b. Strong focus on profit earning
c. Private Enterprise- people can have their own businesses
d. Lead to abuse of workers
e. There was now a huge gap between the rich and poor. The wealthy could make lots of money and the poor couldn’t get ahead.
Some people felt capitalism should be demolished, and some didn’t.
2. Socialism- brought about by the negatives of capitalism. Socialism responded to the horrors of the early years of the Industrial Revolution. Socialism is about sharing the wealth- the workers or government should own the means of production. The only case of successful socialism is Kibbutzim. Socialism is really impractical because someone needs to be in control.
Early socialists were known as Utopian Socialists. They felt they could establish a perfect society.
a. Robert Owen- set up a little community in Scotland where
1. People worked 8 hours a day in safe conditions.
2. Had paid vacations.
3. School for kids.
4. Healthcare center
The community went bankrupt and people said that this is proof that socialism doesn’t work.
Aim: Marxism/ Communism
Some people said to keep capitalism and work with it, while other people said to get rid of it and introduce socialism.
Karl Marx came up with the ultimate form of socialism- scientific socialism. He called it Scientific Socialism because it was very well researched. He wrote his ideas in books:
1. Communist Manifesto (wrote with Fredrick Engels)- was a small pamphlet of their ideas.
2. Das Kapital- wrote his ideas in great detail.
Marx was Jewish. He came from great rabbinical lineage, but his father was an atheist.
Marx’s Ideas:
1. All of history is influenced by economics- history is interpreted through economics. Marx only focused on economic issues. This led to problems because not every war and idea occurs because of economics.
2. Class struggle- there are 2 groups of people- have and have-nots. Struggle is between capitalists (factory owners) and proletariats (working class). He said we see that the capitalists are taking advantage of the proletariats. Really there was some cooperation between the capitalists and proletariats- together they produced things.
3. Communism is inevitable- workers will unite, revolt, overthrow the capitalistic system and introduce communism. “Workers of the world unite… rise up and throw off your chains” – Marx. Marx ignored nationalism- workers would rather live in poverty then join together with workers from other countries.
4. Dictatorship of the proletariat- the state will wither away- there’ll be a classless society. The reality is the government never gave up control; it became stricter to keep power.
Russia was agrarian- these ideas were for an industrial country. Russia was the first country to have communism and the communist revolution started there.
Aim: Reforms made in response to the Industrial Revolution
Why did communism not start in Britain? Because reforms were made in response to the Industrial Revolution.
Reforms under capitalist system in Britain:
1. Child labor- had the Sadler Committee investigate the labor in factories. In 1833, the factory act was passed- it said children under 9 can’t work and older children should have limited hours.
2. Increased representation in government- more people are going to be represented in the British government. The Reform Bill of 1832 eliminated rotten boroughs, which meant people in cities got more representation than those people in rotten boroughs.
3. Increased suffrage- in 1885 workers got the right to vote. In 1918 woman got the right to vote.
4. Workers rights- workers earned rights through protest. In 1825, labor unions became legal. In 1847, the Ten Hours Act was passed- no man or woman can work longer than 10 hours. The Employer Liability Act said the employer is responsible for people hurt on the job.
5. Education- before the late 1800s, education was only able to select people. In 1870, public school was open for everyone grades K-8, where they focused on the 3 “r”s. This was good, because now the population won’t have to do menial labor. There was an unequal education between girls and boys.
6. Urban improvement- cities used to be crowded, ugly, and full of crime. Serious efforts were put into the improvement of the cities such as parks, paved streets, lights, police and fire departments and safer buildings.
The result of all the reforms was an increased quality of life.
Aim: Global impact of the Industrial Revolution
1. Migrations- people moved from one country to another because as jobs filled in one country, people would move to countries to start industrializing. The US was a major refugee country because it had freedom, no frequent revolutions and no persecution (for Jews.)
2. Nations communicate and trade- interacting in ways not previously possible. Before people couldn’t travel far to sell their goods, but now they can.
3. Nations without resources could:
a. Buy resources to industrialize.
b. Take over colonies- imperialism.
Aim: Motivation for new Imperialism
Imperialism is one nation controlling another nation, resulting in the relationship of a mother country (imperial power) and her colonies.
Old Imperialism was when Britain, Spain, France and Russia took over colonies in the Americas in the 1500s- early 1800s. New Imperialism took place in the 19th century in Africa and Asia by European nations.
Motivations-
1. Economic (to become rich)-
a. Resources-
1. Iron
2. Coal
3. Rubber
4. Tin
5. Copper
6. Metals
7. Petroleum- oil
b. Mercantilism- used colonies as markets to make money. European countries made few goods when they started out. As the demand got greater, they began to produce a lot of supplies. As the objects became part of everyday life, the demand was not as great. The European nations looked at the colonies as a great to sell their extra goods.
2. Political- prestige and power come from owning an empire. The more colonies a country owned, the more important it was. It also meant that wherever you were you were near home- you always had a place to restock ships.
3. Humanitarian/ religion- believed in civilize and Christianize. At that time, people didn’t value other cultures, and the Europeans thought they were doing the Africans and Asians a favor by teaching them to be civil. They:
a. Introduced hospitals.
b. Introduced better medical care.
c. Ended harmful practices such as foot binding.
The humanitarian acts were good, though the religion part wasn’t.
4. Racial/ Social Darwinism- The Europeans came to African and Asian countries and saw savage people. They felt they were more fit to live and have the right to take over. This theory goes hand in hand with racism. Kipling, a believer in Social Darwinism who lived at this time, wrote a poem The White Man’s Burden. It said in it “Take up the white man’s burden, send forth the best ye breed. Go bind your sons to exile- to serve your captives need… your new- caught sullen peoples- half devil and half child”.
How are the European nations going to get the colonies?
1. The European nations have guns and well-equipped armies and navies. “Whatever happens we have got the Maxim gun- and they have not.”
2. The European nations have an organized government and are industrialized. The tribes couldn’t unite amongst themselves and the Europeans were organized.
3. The European nations had the telegraph. They could communicate and ask for more troops and get them immediately.
4. The European nations had steam ships, which helped them travel to Africa and Asia.
Forms of control-
1. Colony- the total control of one nation over another with the imperial power making all the decisions.
2. Sphere of influence- economic control- mercantilism. Not as powerful as political control.
Aim: European nations colonize Africa-
For 100s of years, Africa was known as the “Dark Continent” by the European nations because the Europeans weren’t really comfortable with most of the areas in Africa besides for Carthage and the tip of Africa. Cartographers drew a blank map full of animals and black people hanging from mango trees because the interior of Africa was unknown. For this reason, Europeans were scared to take over.
In the late 1800s, the Europeans sent people to explore Africa and send back information to the government about the interior of Africa. One of the explorers was a man named Dr. Livingstone, who was sent by the Britain government. Livingstone was a young doctor who left to Africa with his family. He helped the Africans with his medicines and spread Christianity. Livingstone sent back information to the British government. He was the first white man to set his eyes on Victoria Falls, the tallest waterfall, which he named after Queen Victoria. Livingstone disappeared for a while and the government figured he was dead. An American reporter by the name of Henry Stanly went to Africa to search for Livingstone. When he found him, he said, “ Dr. Livingstone I presume”. Livingstone became family with the blacks. He taught them language, religion and culture. When Livingstone died, the Africans sent his body back to Britain.
As Britain began taking over territories, so did the French, Portuguese, Italians and Germans. In 1875, the land all belonged to the Africans, but by 1885, almost all of Africa was in European hands. This period of time is known as the “Scramble for Africa”. In 1885, all the European nations that owned land in Africa met in Berlin for the Berlin Conference, where they drew lines to define boundaries in Africa. Not one black was there.
Cecil Rhodes was a British man who believed in taking over lots of territory. He said, “From Cape to Cairo”.
Did any Africans resist? Some did, but mostly their fights weren’t successful.
1. Ethiopia kept their independence. At this time, Ethiopia was very strong. Ethiopia’s king, Menelick, realized he needed guns to fight the Europeans. He sold ivory for guns.
2. Liberia kept their independence. Liberia was the place of the slave trade, so it was already controlled by whites, and was left alone.
3. The Zulu were tall Africans with grey- black skin. They fought against the Europeans and were unsuccessful, but they put up a good fight- they ran towards the guns.
There was competition and war over who gets what territory, for example the Boer wars. The Dutch and the British fought the Boer wars over South Africa. South Africa was considered a hot spot because it has a good climate and has diamond mines.
The Congo region was ruled by Belgium. The king of Belgium, King Leopold, told the Belgians to work on making Belgium rich.
Aim: Effects of European rule on Africa
The Europeans left major effects on the Africans. All the Africans underwent major changes in a negative way. Now, if you travel to Africa, you’ll see remnants of a society once run by Europeans. You’ll see old railroad lines, hospitals and churches. You will also hear European languages spoken.
How did European rule affect Africa?
1. Boundaries were disregarded- now new boundaries were made.
2. Changes in agriculture- the Africans used to plant together (yams, okras) and divide all the food fairly among everyone. Now, the Europeans forced the Africans to grow cash crops such as coffee, cotton and peanuts. This led to a decrease in the Africans’ nutrition.
3. Africans were taxed- they got paid to work, then they were taxed.
4. Exploited resources- the Europeans took the resources out of the ground and exported them.
5. Transportation and communication- the Europeans put in railroads so they could send resources to Europe and telegraphs so they could communicate with the people back home and more effectively control the Africans.
6. The Europeans didn’t follow the Africans’ laws- this shows disrespect for the culture you’re in
7. Education- the Europeans set up schools. This was good because now the Africans got an education, but it was bad because the Europeans brainwashed the Africans, and those Africans who were smart became the Europeans’ pets. They sent them to Europe to be educated so they could eventually help the Europeans rule. This was also bad because it led to family instability and jealousy.
8. Hospitals and medicine- this led to a decrease in infant mortality and increase in life expectancy. This population explosion was bad because it led to shortages of food.
Aim: The British colonize India
India was a very valuable colony because it had spices, teas and other valuable resources.
Since the 1700s, the British East India Company controlled India. The British East India Company set up trading posts in India, and then began to take control of India bit by bit. The British enjoyed mercantilism- they sent Indian cotton, tea and sugar to Britain. The British East India Company was doing such a good job in India, that the British didn’t need to come control themselves.
Some effects of company rule on India:
1. Railroads- to send goods.
2. Telegraph- communication.
3. Schools- taught that the Indian religion and culture is no good. The British replaced the Indian way of writing, Sanskrit, with English. This was not good because unlike the Africans, the Indians already had an established culture and religion.
In general, the Indian people were treated as inferior. The British moved to India because it was an easy life- they had many servants for very cheap. The British were treated like royalty (even the children), while the Indians were treated like children.
4. The Britains worked to some barbaric Indian practices
a. Sati- widow(s) would jump into the flames of her deceased husband’s burning body at his funeral. Why was this done? Because widows were considered contaminated, and they felt it would be better to be dead.
b. Caste system/untouchable discrimination- the lowest class of the Caste system was known as the untouchables. They were considered contaminated and did lowly work. The British helped to end this.
c. Female infanticide- the Indians would kill baby girls because when they married, they would move away, and not stay and help support like the boys. The British also helped to end this practice.
The British felt the Indians should be thanking them for all the positive they did. Many Indians however didn’t appreciate the British. Indian resentment of the British grew until in 1857, they finally rebelled. What caused this rebellion?
1. Indians were resentful of the British.
2. The straw that broke the camel’s back- rumor had it that the bullets were greased. When the soldiers of the British East India Company (some British, but mostly Indians- Sepoys) would bite open the packages, they would get some of the grease in their mouths. Some of the soldiers were Hindus and some Muslims. The Hindus don’t eat beef and the Muslims don’t eat pork. They were scared that the grease was animal fat; maybe coming from the animal they won’t eat.
The Sepoy Rebellion/Mutiny resulted in the deaths of many British until they were able to get reinforcements who put down the rebellion.
This rebellion led to uneasy feelings. The British now realized how the Indians felt about them.
The British back in Britain felt that the British East India Company couldn’t control India any longer, and they came and took over. Now India was an official colony of Britain. India was considered the jewel in the crown of the British Empire.
Aim: China under foreign dynasty
The Chinese are an ethnocentric people. The Chinese felt that foreigners were barbarians, and that no one could compare with their:
1. Porcelain
2. Language
3. Dress
4. Furniture
Why did the Chinese feel like this? Because they were isolated- China was surrounded by mountains and dessert.
The Chinese had a pretty advanced culture- that was discovered by Marco Polo.
China believed they didn’t need everything from foreign countries. The Chinese didn’t get any goods from Europe. The Europeans traded with the Chinese for tea, silk, porcelain- who valuable goods. The Chinese opened up one port for trade, where the Chinese gave the Europeans goods for money- not goods. The Europeans were upset because this was trade deficit- when nations buy more then they sell. The Chinese had trade surplus- sell more then they buy.
The Europeans wanted to find a way to trade with the Chinese with more port- they wanted to take over. The Europeans wanted to find something the Chinese needed. In the 1800s, the British sold opium, a drug derived from poppies, to the Chinese. The Chinese became addicted and wanted tons of opium. The Chinese needed so much opium, they actually began paying the British with silver. By the late 1830s, the Chinese realized:
1. They were wasting money.
2. Opium is dangerous for the people.
3. The Chinese suffered the effects of addiction.
In 1839, the Chinese demanded the British to stop sending opium to China. The British saw this as the opportunity they were waiting for to fight with the Chinese. They sent $2 million worth of opium to the Chinese, who exploded the ship.
The British started the Opium war. This war was the Chinese junks versus the British warships. The British easily defeated the Chinese. Now, the British controlled China. The Treaty of Nanjing was signed:
1. The Chinese had to pay for the war.
2. The Chinese had to give Hong Kong to Britain- didn’t get it back until 1998.
3. The Chinese had to open more ports for trade.
4. The British get extraterritoriality- the British don’t follow the Chinese law, only their own. The British set up courts in China to protect themselves.
Aim: Chinese struggle against foreign control
Effects of the Treaty of Nanjing on the Chinese:
1. Humiliation- the Chinese thought they were superior. They were living in an illusion land of strength. Now they lost the war and had to suffer from the treaty.
2. Had no control over trade.
3. Sphere of influence- once Britain won, other countries such as Germany, France, Russia and Japan came to get parts of China. Sphere of influence= economic control + extraterritoriality.
4. Missionaries came to China- they spread Christianity. This was embarrassing because the Chinese had their own religion.
At this time, the Manchu (Quing) dynasty was ruling in China. They were the people who introduced the ponytails. The Manchu dynasty was a weak and corrupt dynasty. There was also overpopulation and floods. This is a bad combination because this led to food shortages. The people were frustrated and resentful.
About 30 million peasants rebelled in the Taiping Rebellion. This was probably the biggest peasant rebellion ever. They said they felt the government should give them food and land. The Manchu alone couldn’t put the rebellion down, so they got help from the Europeans. Why did the Europeans help? Because they liked the Manchu dynasty because it was weak- like a puppet.
As a result of the rebellion, China was weak. Japan came and fought with them in the Sino- Japanese war. The Japanese wanted land, and ended up getting the island of Taiwan.
The people blamed the Manchu dynasty for all of their problems because of the Manchu’s refusal to modernize. Why did the Manchu’s refuse to modernize? Because Ci Xi, the empress, was traditional. She was so against reform, she put her nephew, the king, in jail when he started introducing reforms.
A group of people decided to rebel in the Boxer Rebellion. The Chinese worked out until they thought they were so strong that the foreigner’s bullets would bounce off of them. The Europeans won in 5 days.
The Chinese were getting desperate. Then, in 1908, Ci Xi died and the Chinese got new hope. The people wanted a new government. Sun Yixuan wanted to form a new government. He had a plan of how to take over China and how to get out the foreigners, making him very popular.
China: 1330s- 1900
In the early 1900s, girls could go to school.
The Chinese realized there was a need for radical change. They felt they had to rid themselves of the Manchu Dynasty, which proved itself as no good.
Many reform groups were formed in China. One of them was headed by Sun Yixuan. He had a clear idea of what type of government China should have. He called his itinerary “3 Principles of the People”. The 3 principles were:
1. Nationalism- foreigners need to be kicked out of China.
2. Democracy- a representative government. This is a huge change because China was ruled by dynasties for 1000s of years. This was the key part of his government.
3. Livelihood- economic security. Sun Yixuan told the people that they’d get land. They would get economic security by becoming part of the global market.
Ci Xi died in the early 1900s. Many people wanted to overthrow the rest of the dynasty. When it came to picking a new ruler of China, Sin Yixuan was chosen and he became the president. Now China is a republic.
Sun Yixuan had many enemies. Some people were in favor of socialism, some of communism, and some of a balance of powers.
For the next 40 years, China suffered from many revolutions of people fighting with each other, until China landed up with Communism.
Aim: Meiji Restoration- Japan modernizes
Japan escaped the fate of being colonized because it had the foresight to modernize. What took place that helped Japan make reforms?
From the 1600s- mid 1800s, Japan was under a feudal system.
1. Shogun- military leader.
2. Daimyo- landowners.
3. Samurai- soldiers.
4. Peasants
Japan had an emperor, but he was powerless.
The shogun decided that Japan would adopt the policy of isolationism- no one may move out and no one may move in. The only contact with the rest of the world was Japan’s port city of Nagasaki, and only the Dutch could come trade here. This was frustrating for the rest of the world because Japan had good resources.
In 1839, Japan got a warning that their independence may be threatened- Opium war.
In 1853, the US sent Mathew Perry to Japan with a fleet of ships. Perry demanded that the Japanese:
1. Open more ports so the US could trade with them.
2. Use Japan as a place to refuel their ships.
When the Japanese saw the fleet of ships, they were intimidated and said they’d open ports for trade. In the Treaty of Kannagaua, the Japanese were forced to open 2 ports. After the treaty, other European nations followed, and gained trade with Japan.
A group of Japanese officials realized that they needed change so as not to be devoured like China. The shogun was blamed for this incident, even though it really wasn’t his fault (the Japanese only had spears and Samurai swords), and the emperor was bought back to power in order to fill his place. The emperor was only 15 at the time, and was used as a puppet.
This era was known as the Meiji (ruler) Restoration- the emperor was brought back to modernize and industrialize Japan. The Meiji Restoration was the most serious turning point in all of Japanese history. The motto of the Meiji Restoration was “rich country, strong military”- industrialized country with a powerful army.
Japan sent diplomats to Europe and the US to learn how to industrialize.
Some of the changes made in Japan were:
1. Political-
a. Went from feudal system to emperor and legislature (diet). Had a government similar to the Germans.
b. Some men had the right to vote.
2. Military-
a. Was modernized with western style weapons such as guns.
b. All men are required to serve in the army- it quadrupled in size.
3. Economic-
a. Banks
b. Railroads
c. Telegraphs
d. Factories
e. Mines
f. Cities.
By 1890, Japan looked just as industrialized as everyone else.
Aim: Imperialism in South East Asia
South East Asia was the Spice Islands, where during the Age of Exploration the Europeans came desperately for spices. The main goal of getting these nations was for resources such as:
1. Rubber
2. Copper
3. Metals
4. Tin
5. Lumber
South East Asia was also good planting territory.
The Europeans took over in a sneaky way: they began by trading, and then little by little took over land.
Many European nations colonized Asia. The countries that got the most land were:
1. Dutch/ Netherlands- took over the Dutch East Indies. They took over Indonesia, an archipelago of about 3000 islands.
2. Britain- took over:
a. Burma- now known as Myanmar.
b. Singapore
c. Malaysia
3. France- took over Indo- China, which consisted of:
a. Laos
b. Cambodia
c. Vietnam
4. US- took over:
a. Philippines
b. Hawaii- for pineapples
c. Guam
Thailand aka Siam remained independent. How did they stay independent? The king of Thailand, King Mongkut, told the Europeans he would give them the trading rights they wanted as long as they didn’t take over. Then, Mongkut began to industrialize like Japan by importing professionals to Thailand to help. Though there were culture clashes, the Thai ended up with an industrialized army, and they broke away from the Europeans.
As WWI drew closer, the countries realized they could situate naval bases in the territories they owned.
In the 1950s, most of these countries gained their independence.
Aim: Imperialism in Canada, Australia and New Zealand
Canada, Australia and New Zealand are different then the territories we discussed previously because they got their independence a lot faster.
1. Canada- was taken over by France in the 1700s, then Britain came and took some land. Canada was divided:
a. Upper part- Ontario- British
b. Lower part Quebec- France
By 1900, Canada was independent because the reason for taking over territory is social Darwinism, but there were so many French living in Canada, it wasn’t necessary.
2. Australia- was discovered by Captain Cook, a British sea captain. Australia was down under and hard to find.
The native Australians were called Aboriginals. They had dark skin, dark eyes and were short.
The British realized they needed to settle the land, but Australia was an 8-month journey from Britain, so no one wanted to go. The British ended up sending their convicts to Australia.
Australia is mostly desert- outback. People only lived on 10% of the country.
In the mid 1800s, gold was discovered in Australia- motivation for people to go.
3. New Zealand- was discovered by Captain Cook.
New Zealand is the closest country to Antarctica.
New Zealand is the only place where kiwis are grown.
New Zealand was settled by many British. The original people in New Zealand are called Mauri- had body paints, wore clothes made from animals.
Aim: Imperialism: Motivation- canal building
Canal building is a main reason why nations imperialized.
1. Suez Canal- in order for people to get from Europe to India, they had to go all the way around Africa. France asked Egypt if they could join together and build a canal through Egypt. The Egyptians agreed, and the French sent over professional engineers to build the canal.
The Suez Canal connected the Mediterranean and Red Seas. This caused a revolution in world travel because it shortened travel and trade time. This canal was built with manual labor.
The Egyptians couldn’t pay for their part of the canal, so the British bought it off them. The building of this canal showed how weak the Ottoman Empire was, that someone could build a canal in their territory without asking them permission first. Britain decided that if the Ottoman Empire is weak, they could take over Egypt. They took Egypt as a protectorate. Egypt didn’t get their independence until the 1920s and didn’t get the canal back until the 1950s.
2. Panama Canal- A MAN A PLAN A CANAL, PANAMA. The Panama Canal was built in the early 1900s. President Roosevelt wanted a canal in Central America- Panama. He helped Panama revolt from Columbia, and then took the canal as a thank you gift. 6,000 people died while building this canal. The Panama Canal connects the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.
There are only 2 canals that cut through continents- the Panama and Suez canals.
Aim: Causes of war
The Congress of Vienna kept war away for 100 years. Why do we have war now with more nations than ever before? Nations are more connected because of imperialism.
Causes of war:
1. Imperialistic competition-
a. France and Germany almost went to war over Morocco.
b. Germany threatened lots nations such as Britain. There was lots of competition from Germany because now they’re united and built up.
2. Economic competition- up until the 1900s, Britain had the strongest economy, but now:
a. Germany rose economically.
b. Russia also rose economically, and they had so many resources no one could beat them.
3. Military competition- every nation began to build up an army and navy because as each nation built up, every other nation reacted by improving their armies and navies. The competition was between Britain and Germany, but now Germany was improving.
4. Glorification of war- people forgot what war is really about- they thought it was exciting. Really, war was brutal.
5. Nationalism- is about strength and power but can also be aggressive because everyone wants the biggest empire.
a. The Germans wanted to show off in WWI everything they built up.
b. After the Franco-Prussian war, France lost Alsace- Lorain, and they want it back.
c. Russia had Pan-Slavism- unification of the Slavic people. This was a problem because all the Slavic people were in different territories. The Ottomans were losing Slavic territory to the Russians. The Ottomans were afraid of the Athenians (were Christians) because they were connected with the Russians, and killed all million of them out.
6. Alliances- when countries buddy up with each other. There were 2 alliances:
a. The Triple Alliance- Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy and the Ottomans (at the end).
b. The Triple Entente- France, Britain and Russia.
Aim: Outbreak of WWI
In 1914, Europe was a tense region. There was a lot of competition, nationalism and the warped idea that war is fun.
The Balkan region had a lot of tension. The Balkan region of Bosnia was under Austrian- Hungary rule. The Bosnians were a Slavic people, and felt they should’ve been under Russian or neighboring Serbian rule.
On June 28, 1914, the archduke of Austria- Hungary, Francis Ferdinand and his wife Sophie visited Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia. There was a small terrorist group of Bosnians and Serbians called the Black Hand, who plotted to kill the archduke and his wife. While they were riding in an open limo through the streets of Sarajevo, Gavrilo Princip shot the archduke and his wife. This was known as “the shot heard around the world”. The Balkan powder keg now exploded and caused a war.
Germany told Austria- Hungary not to let the Bosnians get away with this, and that they would help in war. Austria- Hungary declared war on Serbia with Germany at their side. Italy also joined them and they became known as the Central Powers. France, Britain and Britain all joined Serbia and formed the Allies.
All the countries had to mobilize their armies for war by making drafts, uniforms… Germany was the first country to mobilize. They marched through Belgium and came to the countrysides of France- Somme and Verdun. France was already prepared and the British joined them. For the next 4 years, these nations fought at these places, and there was a stalemate.
Aim: Fighting fronts of WWI
The Western Front, by the France and German border had many battles there for 4 years. Millions of people died. The French and German fought with trench war fare- they dug pits about 8 feet high, and that’s where the soldiers stayed. When someone would scream “over the top”, both sides would come out of their trenches, and fight in the middle.
In the Battle of Somme, 60,000 people died.
New weapons-
1. Submarines- sunk Luistania.
2. Rifles
3. Poison gas
4. Planes
Never before had so many people died in war, but with new weapons, killing so many people was now possible.
How was this a world war?
1. The US joined in 1917.
2. Colonies joined the war.
Aim: WWI- turning point for the Allies
The turning points were:
1. In 1917, the US joined the war. Why?
a. The Lusitania was torpedoed- it was a British passenger ship with American passengers.
b. Zimmerman telegram- Germany sent Mexico a telegram telling them to attack the US. The US intercepted it immediately, and Woodrow Wilson said, “Need to make the world safe for democracy”.
c. The British issued the Balfour Declaration- they’ll support the setting up of a Jewish homeland in Palestine.
The US got ready to send help to Europe. The US mobilized, and in 1918, 2 million troops- dough boys- were sent to Europe. The US gave the whole army more strength.
2. In 1917, Russia dropped out of the war- the same time the US joined, Russia dropped out because they had just overthrown the czar of Russia. Germany was excited about this because now they can direct all their troops to the Western front. The Russians gave the Germans some territory- they signed the Brest Litovsk treaty.
On November 11, 1918, the Germans signed an armistice- they surrendered.
Aim: The Treaty of Versailles
27 nations came to participate in the writing of the treaty. The British, French and US got the biggest say in the treaty. Their representatives were:
1. Britain- Lloyd George- wanted revenge on Germany.
2. France- Clemenceau- wanted revenge on Germany. He said, “we want to squeeze Germany until the pip squeak.”
3. Woodrow Wilson- said not to focus on revenge, but rather on preventing another war. Why was he the clearest in the mind?
a. The US came at the end of the war- they hadn’t been fighting for so long.
b. The fighting wasn’t on their territory.
Wilson made a list of 14 points he wanted incorporated into the treaty:
a. Freedom of the seas- no country can submarine another country’s ships.
b. All people should have self determination- all nations should be independent. This wasn’t actually done.
c. No secret treaties- such as the Brest Litovsk treaty. No secret agreements.
d. A League of Nations- a club of nations joined together to prevent future wars. It was like a large alliance system.
Points in the Treaty of Versailles-
1. A League of Nations was made.
2. Germany lost Alsace- Lorain to France.
3. Poland became a country again.
4. Germany lost territory overseas.
5. The League of Nations takes German colonies as mandates- a temporary colony. The countries that won the war took mandates and ruled them until they got their independence.
6. Reduced army.
7. Germany had to pay for the war.
The map after the war was very different from the map before the war:
1. Russia and Germany had to give up land to Poland.
2. Alsace- Lorain went back to France.
3. Yugoslavia was created.
4. Palestine becomes a British mandate.
Now, everyone had to sign the treaty. Germany was very upset. Wilson didn’t want territory, but because of the US system of checks and balances, he had to ask the Senate before signing. They didn’t let him. Many historians believe that had the US signed the treaty, there would have been no WWII.
Aim: The Russian Revolution
Causes of the downfall of the Romonov czars:
1. In 1905, the Russo-Japanese war was fought. The Japanese won, and the czar became very unpopular.
2. Bloody Sunday
3. Duma- the czar set up a representative government to show the people that he acknowledged them, but it wasn’t really representative.
4. Many land-less peasants- serfs were freed about 30 years before, and now they had no land, money or source of income.
5. Russia started industrializing- conditions were horrific.
6. Russia got involved in WWI in 1914- they were so ill prepared, they sent soldiers to the battlefront with no ammunition. 2 million soldiers died in the 1st few months.
7. Rasputin- he was a monk who basically ran the czar’s court. How did he get so much power? Czar Nicholai had a hemophiliac (because of intermarriages) son named Alexus. Rasputin was able to stop the bleeding, therefore he got the power. A group of men decided to kill him by:
a. Poisoning him- he lived.
b. Shot him- he survived.
c. Shot him again- he still survived
d. Tied him up and dumped him in the river- he finally drowned.
8. Enormous food shortages- this was the last straw.
In March of 1917, woman marched through Russia asking the czar for bread. The czar told his soldiers to kill them, but the soldiers refused. This shows that the czar was losing power. In March of 1917, the czar abdicated, hoping he could at least survive.
A group of government officials set up a provisional court. At this time, Russia was still in middle of fighting WWI, but no one wanted it. About 100 revolution groups wanted to take over the Russian government. The strongest group was the Bolsheviks, led by Lenin. Lenin had revolutionary blood in him and had a hatred for czars (his brother had tried to kill the czar). When Lenin grew up, he became a Marxist- Communist. Lenin got sent to Siberia, and when he returned was exiled to Switzerland. He kept in touch with Russian people so he would know when his moment come to come back to Russia and take over. When Lenin heard about the czar’s abdication, with the help of Germany, he returned to Russia. He had 1000s of supporters. He said, “to make an omelet, we need to break eggs, to make a revolution we need to break heads”. Lenin promised the Russian people “peace, land and bread”:
1. Peace- get out of WWI- he signed the Brest Latovsk treaty, and Russia got out of the war.
2. Land- He took land from the rich and gave it to the poor.
3. Bread- efforts to end food shortages were made and workers were givin control over the factories and mines. Factories began to fall apart and Lenin realized he needed to take more strength. The government began to the control of the economy- war communism- took control of the factories and mines by telling them exactly what to do. The idea was that after the war, they’d go back to regular communism.
At this time, Russia erupted in a civil war- Bolsheviks vs. everyone else (czar supporters, rich, people who want democracy, socialists). It was known as the war between red (communists) and whites.
Aim: Russia under Lenin
When the Bolsheviks took over, the result was a civil war. Many Russians had begun to get discontented by Lenin. In order not to loose power, during the civil war, Lenin:
1. Issued red terror- terrorized people into following him. Innocent people were killed in the streets for being an enemy of Lenin.
2. Cheka- secret police, which spied on people.
3. Executed the czar and his family to show the whites that the czar isn’t coming back.
In 1921, the reds won primarily because they were all unified, while the whites were many groups of people who all hated each other.
Now, Lenin concentrated on ruling Russia. He realized they needed to do some economic reform. The goal was dictatorship of the proletariat- economy in which the proletariats rule. Lenin realized that the people were not yet ready for this and he temporarily introduced the capitalist system. New Economic Policy- people are allowed to open up their own businesses- “we must go one step forward, one step backward to get two steps forward”.
In 1924, Lenin died and didn’t leave clear instructions about who should take over. The choice was between:
1. Joseph Stalin
2. Leon Trotsky- was a Jew.
Trotsky was more popular and higher in the communist party, but Stalin had better connections and eventually took over. The first thing Stalin did when he took over was get rid of capitalism.
Aim: The Industrial Revolution
Instead of making things by hand, things were made by machine. Industrial means the making of goods. It was an economic and social change. The Industrial Revolution began in Europe in the late 18th century.
What led to the Industrial Revolution?
1. Agrarian Revolution- in farming.
2. Population Explosion- more children were being born and surviving birth.
3. Energy Revolution- Different types of energy can make machines run.
Aim: Factors leading to the Industrial Revolution
1. Agrarian Revolution- was advances in agriculture- new farming techniques were discovered.
a. Dutch- dykes- a wall that kept water from overflowing the land. Now more
land was available for farming
b. Improved fertilizers- to improve soil so it can produce more food.
c. Charles Townshend- planting turnips/ crop rotation- not planting the same
produce in the same fields year after year.
d. Tull- seed drill- a device that deposits seeds evenly. Leads to more food.
Enclosure movement- happened in Britain. Wealthy landowners bought more land- now they can plant more crops. The farmers who sold their land had nothing to do. This led to the opening of factories because there was available labor.
2. Population Explosion- more nutrition became available especially in England where the Agrarian Revolution began. The population in England doubled. Now people were living longer. There were advances in medicine. When woman gave birth, their babies or themselves no longer died. There was also an increase in hygiene. They learnt about germs and keeping things sterilized. Disease also became less widespread.
3. Energy Revolution- new ways to power machines were invented. Up until now horsepower was used. In the 1700s, it was discovered that heating up water could move heavy metal- steam power. This lead to the invention of trains and boats, which could stay on path. With trains and boats, goods could now be transported.
The combination of these 3 things all together led to the Industrial Revolution. “Necessity is the mother of invention”.
Aim: 1. Why does the Industrial Revolution begin in England?
2. Early inventions
3. Impact of the inventions
1. The industrial revolution begins in England because:
a. England has an island location. This advantageous because England wasn’t involved in Europe’s battles and they were able to focus on industrialization.
b. Had resources- coal and iron. These resources are needed for industrialization.
c. Has fast flowing rivers with powerful currents- good for waterpower, which made machines run.
d. Had many workers because of the Enclosure Movement and because of the Population Explosion.
e. Capital- large amounts of money were available for investment by many rich English. These investors became entrepreneurs.
f. England had the ideal government for a nation about to embark on industrialization. The government was stable and helpful. English believed in laissez faire- business is business and government is government, and the two shall never intertwine.
2. The early inventions were mainly in transportation and textiles. Originally fabric was made in cottage industries- peasants would make fabric in their cottages. When there was a Population Explosion, more textiles were needed and the cottage industries couldn’t keep up.
a. Flying shuttle- wove thread. One man in one day could now make what a town of people made in 3 weeks.
b. Spinning Jenny- spun thread.
c. Cotton gin- separated seeds from cotton fluff. Now there’s more cotton available.
3. The impact of the inventions was that the factory system emerged. Factories were
needed for machines. Urbanization occurred- people moved from rural areas to be
closer to factories in cities.
Aim: The impact of the Industrial Revolution on the working and middle classes
1. Middle class- the middle class were the managers or owners of factories of mines or inventors. This put them above the lower class. Some entrepreneurs made it to the upper class. The middle class enjoyed the quality of life. The men worked, and the women called upon each other, and spent lots of time on their wardrobe because they had nothing else to do.
2. Working class- had to work in:
a. Factory-
1. Had long hours with low wages.
2. Child labor.
3. Lived in tenement buildings- bad apartment housing.
4. No safety devices- many got injured on the job.
Many skilled people now found that they were being replaced by machine, and they had to now work in factories. Labor unions were formed, but didn’t have any impact.
b. Mines- to get resources
1. People did animal labor- dragged resources through tunnels.
2. People became hunchbacks, and their lungs were destroyed.
Sadler Committee- sent by British government to investigate the working
conditions, and to interview factory workers and mine workers.
Aim: Supporters and Opponents of Laissez Faire
“Every man as long as he does not violate the laws… is left free to pursue his own interests… in business”. - Adam Smith from his book Wealth of Nations. Smith said that government shouldn’t make rules so that people can make money.
As people saw problems in working masses, they asked if they should have Laissez Faire.
Many people believed in social Darwinism- in our society there are those who are meant to be rich and they are the fittest, and that there are those who are going to be poor and there’s nothing to be done about it.
2 people spoke out about Laissez Faire:
1. Bentham- society is supposed to benefit the majority.
2. Mill- the government must protect workers and workers must have the right to vote.
Aim: Socialism- a rising movement in the 19th century
Capitalism vs. Socialism
1. Capitalism- economic system. Purpose of capitalism is opportunity.
a. Goes hand in hand with Laissez Faire
b. Strong focus on profit earning
c. Private Enterprise- people can have their own businesses
d. Lead to abuse of workers
e. There was now a huge gap between the rich and poor. The wealthy could make lots of money and the poor couldn’t get ahead.
Some people felt capitalism should be demolished, and some didn’t.
2. Socialism- brought about by the negatives of capitalism. Socialism responded to the horrors of the early years of the Industrial Revolution. Socialism is about sharing the wealth- the workers or government should own the means of production. The only case of successful socialism is Kibbutzim. Socialism is really impractical because someone needs to be in control.
Early socialists were known as Utopian Socialists. They felt they could establish a perfect society.
a. Robert Owen- set up a little community in Scotland where
1. People worked 8 hours a day in safe conditions.
2. Had paid vacations.
3. School for kids.
4. Healthcare center
The community went bankrupt and people said that this is proof that socialism doesn’t work.
Aim: Marxism/ Communism
Some people said to keep capitalism and work with it, while other people said to get rid of it and introduce socialism.
Karl Marx came up with the ultimate form of socialism- scientific socialism. He called it Scientific Socialism because it was very well researched. He wrote his ideas in books:
1. Communist Manifesto (wrote with Fredrick Engels)- was a small pamphlet of their ideas.
2. Das Kapital- wrote his ideas in great detail.
Marx was Jewish. He came from great rabbinical lineage, but his father was an atheist.
Marx’s Ideas:
1. All of history is influenced by economics- history is interpreted through economics. Marx only focused on economic issues. This led to problems because not every war and idea occurs because of economics.
2. Class struggle- there are 2 groups of people- have and have-nots. Struggle is between capitalists (factory owners) and proletariats (working class). He said we see that the capitalists are taking advantage of the proletariats. Really there was some cooperation between the capitalists and proletariats- together they produced things.
3. Communism is inevitable- workers will unite, revolt, overthrow the capitalistic system and introduce communism. “Workers of the world unite… rise up and throw off your chains” – Marx. Marx ignored nationalism- workers would rather live in poverty then join together with workers from other countries.
4. Dictatorship of the proletariat- the state will wither away- there’ll be a classless society. The reality is the government never gave up control; it became stricter to keep power.
Russia was agrarian- these ideas were for an industrial country. Russia was the first country to have communism and the communist revolution started there.
Aim: Reforms made in response to the Industrial Revolution
Why did communism not start in Britain? Because reforms were made in response to the Industrial Revolution.
Reforms under capitalist system in Britain:
1. Child labor- had the Sadler Committee investigate the labor in factories. In 1833, the factory act was passed- it said children under 9 can’t work and older children should have limited hours.
2. Increased representation in government- more people are going to be represented in the British government. The Reform Bill of 1832 eliminated rotten boroughs, which meant people in cities got more representation than those people in rotten boroughs.
3. Increased suffrage- in 1885 workers got the right to vote. In 1918 woman got the right to vote.
4. Workers rights- workers earned rights through protest. In 1825, labor unions became legal. In 1847, the Ten Hours Act was passed- no man or woman can work longer than 10 hours. The Employer Liability Act said the employer is responsible for people hurt on the job.
5. Education- before the late 1800s, education was only able to select people. In 1870, public school was open for everyone grades K-8, where they focused on the 3 “r”s. This was good, because now the population won’t have to do menial labor. There was an unequal education between girls and boys.
6. Urban improvement- cities used to be crowded, ugly, and full of crime. Serious efforts were put into the improvement of the cities such as parks, paved streets, lights, police and fire departments and safer buildings.
The result of all the reforms was an increased quality of life.
Aim: Global impact of the Industrial Revolution
1. Migrations- people moved from one country to another because as jobs filled in one country, people would move to countries to start industrializing. The US was a major refugee country because it had freedom, no frequent revolutions and no persecution (for Jews.)
2. Nations communicate and trade- interacting in ways not previously possible. Before people couldn’t travel far to sell their goods, but now they can.
3. Nations without resources could:
a. Buy resources to industrialize.
b. Take over colonies- imperialism.
Aim: Motivation for new Imperialism
Imperialism is one nation controlling another nation, resulting in the relationship of a mother country (imperial power) and her colonies.
Old Imperialism was when Britain, Spain, France and Russia took over colonies in the Americas in the 1500s- early 1800s. New Imperialism took place in the 19th century in Africa and Asia by European nations.
Motivations-
1. Economic (to become rich)-
a. Resources-
1. Iron
2. Coal
3. Rubber
4. Tin
5. Copper
6. Metals
7. Petroleum- oil
b. Mercantilism- used colonies as markets to make money. European countries made few goods when they started out. As the demand got greater, they began to produce a lot of supplies. As the objects became part of everyday life, the demand was not as great. The European nations looked at the colonies as a great to sell their extra goods.
2. Political- prestige and power come from owning an empire. The more colonies a country owned, the more important it was. It also meant that wherever you were you were near home- you always had a place to restock ships.
3. Humanitarian/ religion- believed in civilize and Christianize. At that time, people didn’t value other cultures, and the Europeans thought they were doing the Africans and Asians a favor by teaching them to be civil. They:
a. Introduced hospitals.
b. Introduced better medical care.
c. Ended harmful practices such as foot binding.
The humanitarian acts were good, though the religion part wasn’t.
4. Racial/ Social Darwinism- The Europeans came to African and Asian countries and saw savage people. They felt they were more fit to live and have the right to take over. This theory goes hand in hand with racism. Kipling, a believer in Social Darwinism who lived at this time, wrote a poem The White Man’s Burden. It said in it “Take up the white man’s burden, send forth the best ye breed. Go bind your sons to exile- to serve your captives need… your new- caught sullen peoples- half devil and half child”.
How are the European nations going to get the colonies?
1. The European nations have guns and well-equipped armies and navies. “Whatever happens we have got the Maxim gun- and they have not.”
2. The European nations have an organized government and are industrialized. The tribes couldn’t unite amongst themselves and the Europeans were organized.
3. The European nations had the telegraph. They could communicate and ask for more troops and get them immediately.
4. The European nations had steam ships, which helped them travel to Africa and Asia.
Forms of control-
1. Colony- the total control of one nation over another with the imperial power making all the decisions.
2. Sphere of influence- economic control- mercantilism. Not as powerful as political control.
Aim: European nations colonize Africa-
For 100s of years, Africa was known as the “Dark Continent” by the European nations because the Europeans weren’t really comfortable with most of the areas in Africa besides for Carthage and the tip of Africa. Cartographers drew a blank map full of animals and black people hanging from mango trees because the interior of Africa was unknown. For this reason, Europeans were scared to take over.
In the late 1800s, the Europeans sent people to explore Africa and send back information to the government about the interior of Africa. One of the explorers was a man named Dr. Livingstone, who was sent by the Britain government. Livingstone was a young doctor who left to Africa with his family. He helped the Africans with his medicines and spread Christianity. Livingstone sent back information to the British government. He was the first white man to set his eyes on Victoria Falls, the tallest waterfall, which he named after Queen Victoria. Livingstone disappeared for a while and the government figured he was dead. An American reporter by the name of Henry Stanly went to Africa to search for Livingstone. When he found him, he said, “ Dr. Livingstone I presume”. Livingstone became family with the blacks. He taught them language, religion and culture. When Livingstone died, the Africans sent his body back to Britain.
As Britain began taking over territories, so did the French, Portuguese, Italians and Germans. In 1875, the land all belonged to the Africans, but by 1885, almost all of Africa was in European hands. This period of time is known as the “Scramble for Africa”. In 1885, all the European nations that owned land in Africa met in Berlin for the Berlin Conference, where they drew lines to define boundaries in Africa. Not one black was there.
Cecil Rhodes was a British man who believed in taking over lots of territory. He said, “From Cape to Cairo”.
Did any Africans resist? Some did, but mostly their fights weren’t successful.
1. Ethiopia kept their independence. At this time, Ethiopia was very strong. Ethiopia’s king, Menelick, realized he needed guns to fight the Europeans. He sold ivory for guns.
2. Liberia kept their independence. Liberia was the place of the slave trade, so it was already controlled by whites, and was left alone.
3. The Zulu were tall Africans with grey- black skin. They fought against the Europeans and were unsuccessful, but they put up a good fight- they ran towards the guns.
There was competition and war over who gets what territory, for example the Boer wars. The Dutch and the British fought the Boer wars over South Africa. South Africa was considered a hot spot because it has a good climate and has diamond mines.
The Congo region was ruled by Belgium. The king of Belgium, King Leopold, told the Belgians to work on making Belgium rich.
Aim: Effects of European rule on Africa
The Europeans left major effects on the Africans. All the Africans underwent major changes in a negative way. Now, if you travel to Africa, you’ll see remnants of a society once run by Europeans. You’ll see old railroad lines, hospitals and churches. You will also hear European languages spoken.
How did European rule affect Africa?
1. Boundaries were disregarded- now new boundaries were made.
2. Changes in agriculture- the Africans used to plant together (yams, okras) and divide all the food fairly among everyone. Now, the Europeans forced the Africans to grow cash crops such as coffee, cotton and peanuts. This led to a decrease in the Africans’ nutrition.
3. Africans were taxed- they got paid to work, then they were taxed.
4. Exploited resources- the Europeans took the resources out of the ground and exported them.
5. Transportation and communication- the Europeans put in railroads so they could send resources to Europe and telegraphs so they could communicate with the people back home and more effectively control the Africans.
6. The Europeans didn’t follow the Africans’ laws- this shows disrespect for the culture you’re in
7. Education- the Europeans set up schools. This was good because now the Africans got an education, but it was bad because the Europeans brainwashed the Africans, and those Africans who were smart became the Europeans’ pets. They sent them to Europe to be educated so they could eventually help the Europeans rule. This was also bad because it led to family instability and jealousy.
8. Hospitals and medicine- this led to a decrease in infant mortality and increase in life expectancy. This population explosion was bad because it led to shortages of food.
Aim: The British colonize India
India was a very valuable colony because it had spices, teas and other valuable resources.
Since the 1700s, the British East India Company controlled India. The British East India Company set up trading posts in India, and then began to take control of India bit by bit. The British enjoyed mercantilism- they sent Indian cotton, tea and sugar to Britain. The British East India Company was doing such a good job in India, that the British didn’t need to come control themselves.
Some effects of company rule on India:
1. Railroads- to send goods.
2. Telegraph- communication.
3. Schools- taught that the Indian religion and culture is no good. The British replaced the Indian way of writing, Sanskrit, with English. This was not good because unlike the Africans, the Indians already had an established culture and religion.
In general, the Indian people were treated as inferior. The British moved to India because it was an easy life- they had many servants for very cheap. The British were treated like royalty (even the children), while the Indians were treated like children.
4. The Britains worked to some barbaric Indian practices
a. Sati- widow(s) would jump into the flames of her deceased husband’s burning body at his funeral. Why was this done? Because widows were considered contaminated, and they felt it would be better to be dead.
b. Caste system/untouchable discrimination- the lowest class of the Caste system was known as the untouchables. They were considered contaminated and did lowly work. The British helped to end this.
c. Female infanticide- the Indians would kill baby girls because when they married, they would move away, and not stay and help support like the boys. The British also helped to end this practice.
The British felt the Indians should be thanking them for all the positive they did. Many Indians however didn’t appreciate the British. Indian resentment of the British grew until in 1857, they finally rebelled. What caused this rebellion?
1. Indians were resentful of the British.
2. The straw that broke the camel’s back- rumor had it that the bullets were greased. When the soldiers of the British East India Company (some British, but mostly Indians- Sepoys) would bite open the packages, they would get some of the grease in their mouths. Some of the soldiers were Hindus and some Muslims. The Hindus don’t eat beef and the Muslims don’t eat pork. They were scared that the grease was animal fat; maybe coming from the animal they won’t eat.
The Sepoy Rebellion/Mutiny resulted in the deaths of many British until they were able to get reinforcements who put down the rebellion.
This rebellion led to uneasy feelings. The British now realized how the Indians felt about them.
The British back in Britain felt that the British East India Company couldn’t control India any longer, and they came and took over. Now India was an official colony of Britain. India was considered the jewel in the crown of the British Empire.
Aim: China under foreign dynasty
The Chinese are an ethnocentric people. The Chinese felt that foreigners were barbarians, and that no one could compare with their:
1. Porcelain
2. Language
3. Dress
4. Furniture
Why did the Chinese feel like this? Because they were isolated- China was surrounded by mountains and dessert.
The Chinese had a pretty advanced culture- that was discovered by Marco Polo.
China believed they didn’t need everything from foreign countries. The Chinese didn’t get any goods from Europe. The Europeans traded with the Chinese for tea, silk, porcelain- who valuable goods. The Chinese opened up one port for trade, where the Chinese gave the Europeans goods for money- not goods. The Europeans were upset because this was trade deficit- when nations buy more then they sell. The Chinese had trade surplus- sell more then they buy.
The Europeans wanted to find a way to trade with the Chinese with more port- they wanted to take over. The Europeans wanted to find something the Chinese needed. In the 1800s, the British sold opium, a drug derived from poppies, to the Chinese. The Chinese became addicted and wanted tons of opium. The Chinese needed so much opium, they actually began paying the British with silver. By the late 1830s, the Chinese realized:
1. They were wasting money.
2. Opium is dangerous for the people.
3. The Chinese suffered the effects of addiction.
In 1839, the Chinese demanded the British to stop sending opium to China. The British saw this as the opportunity they were waiting for to fight with the Chinese. They sent $2 million worth of opium to the Chinese, who exploded the ship.
The British started the Opium war. This war was the Chinese junks versus the British warships. The British easily defeated the Chinese. Now, the British controlled China. The Treaty of Nanjing was signed:
1. The Chinese had to pay for the war.
2. The Chinese had to give Hong Kong to Britain- didn’t get it back until 1998.
3. The Chinese had to open more ports for trade.
4. The British get extraterritoriality- the British don’t follow the Chinese law, only their own. The British set up courts in China to protect themselves.
Aim: Chinese struggle against foreign control
Effects of the Treaty of Nanjing on the Chinese:
1. Humiliation- the Chinese thought they were superior. They were living in an illusion land of strength. Now they lost the war and had to suffer from the treaty.
2. Had no control over trade.
3. Sphere of influence- once Britain won, other countries such as Germany, France, Russia and Japan came to get parts of China. Sphere of influence= economic control + extraterritoriality.
4. Missionaries came to China- they spread Christianity. This was embarrassing because the Chinese had their own religion.
At this time, the Manchu (Quing) dynasty was ruling in China. They were the people who introduced the ponytails. The Manchu dynasty was a weak and corrupt dynasty. There was also overpopulation and floods. This is a bad combination because this led to food shortages. The people were frustrated and resentful.
About 30 million peasants rebelled in the Taiping Rebellion. This was probably the biggest peasant rebellion ever. They said they felt the government should give them food and land. The Manchu alone couldn’t put the rebellion down, so they got help from the Europeans. Why did the Europeans help? Because they liked the Manchu dynasty because it was weak- like a puppet.
As a result of the rebellion, China was weak. Japan came and fought with them in the Sino- Japanese war. The Japanese wanted land, and ended up getting the island of Taiwan.
The people blamed the Manchu dynasty for all of their problems because of the Manchu’s refusal to modernize. Why did the Manchu’s refuse to modernize? Because Ci Xi, the empress, was traditional. She was so against reform, she put her nephew, the king, in jail when he started introducing reforms.
A group of people decided to rebel in the Boxer Rebellion. The Chinese worked out until they thought they were so strong that the foreigner’s bullets would bounce off of them. The Europeans won in 5 days.
The Chinese were getting desperate. Then, in 1908, Ci Xi died and the Chinese got new hope. The people wanted a new government. Sun Yixuan wanted to form a new government. He had a plan of how to take over China and how to get out the foreigners, making him very popular.
China: 1330s- 1900
In the early 1900s, girls could go to school.
The Chinese realized there was a need for radical change. They felt they had to rid themselves of the Manchu Dynasty, which proved itself as no good.
Many reform groups were formed in China. One of them was headed by Sun Yixuan. He had a clear idea of what type of government China should have. He called his itinerary “3 Principles of the People”. The 3 principles were:
1. Nationalism- foreigners need to be kicked out of China.
2. Democracy- a representative government. This is a huge change because China was ruled by dynasties for 1000s of years. This was the key part of his government.
3. Livelihood- economic security. Sun Yixuan told the people that they’d get land. They would get economic security by becoming part of the global market.
Ci Xi died in the early 1900s. Many people wanted to overthrow the rest of the dynasty. When it came to picking a new ruler of China, Sin Yixuan was chosen and he became the president. Now China is a republic.
Sun Yixuan had many enemies. Some people were in favor of socialism, some of communism, and some of a balance of powers.
For the next 40 years, China suffered from many revolutions of people fighting with each other, until China landed up with Communism.
Aim: Meiji Restoration- Japan modernizes
Japan escaped the fate of being colonized because it had the foresight to modernize. What took place that helped Japan make reforms?
From the 1600s- mid 1800s, Japan was under a feudal system.
1. Shogun- military leader.
2. Daimyo- landowners.
3. Samurai- soldiers.
4. Peasants
Japan had an emperor, but he was powerless.
The shogun decided that Japan would adopt the policy of isolationism- no one may move out and no one may move in. The only contact with the rest of the world was Japan’s port city of Nagasaki, and only the Dutch could come trade here. This was frustrating for the rest of the world because Japan had good resources.
In 1839, Japan got a warning that their independence may be threatened- Opium war.
In 1853, the US sent Mathew Perry to Japan with a fleet of ships. Perry demanded that the Japanese:
1. Open more ports so the US could trade with them.
2. Use Japan as a place to refuel their ships.
When the Japanese saw the fleet of ships, they were intimidated and said they’d open ports for trade. In the Treaty of Kannagaua, the Japanese were forced to open 2 ports. After the treaty, other European nations followed, and gained trade with Japan.
A group of Japanese officials realized that they needed change so as not to be devoured like China. The shogun was blamed for this incident, even though it really wasn’t his fault (the Japanese only had spears and Samurai swords), and the emperor was bought back to power in order to fill his place. The emperor was only 15 at the time, and was used as a puppet.
This era was known as the Meiji (ruler) Restoration- the emperor was brought back to modernize and industrialize Japan. The Meiji Restoration was the most serious turning point in all of Japanese history. The motto of the Meiji Restoration was “rich country, strong military”- industrialized country with a powerful army.
Japan sent diplomats to Europe and the US to learn how to industrialize.
Some of the changes made in Japan were:
1. Political-
a. Went from feudal system to emperor and legislature (diet). Had a government similar to the Germans.
b. Some men had the right to vote.
2. Military-
a. Was modernized with western style weapons such as guns.
b. All men are required to serve in the army- it quadrupled in size.
3. Economic-
a. Banks
b. Railroads
c. Telegraphs
d. Factories
e. Mines
f. Cities.
By 1890, Japan looked just as industrialized as everyone else.
Aim: Imperialism in South East Asia
South East Asia was the Spice Islands, where during the Age of Exploration the Europeans came desperately for spices. The main goal of getting these nations was for resources such as:
1. Rubber
2. Copper
3. Metals
4. Tin
5. Lumber
South East Asia was also good planting territory.
The Europeans took over in a sneaky way: they began by trading, and then little by little took over land.
Many European nations colonized Asia. The countries that got the most land were:
1. Dutch/ Netherlands- took over the Dutch East Indies. They took over Indonesia, an archipelago of about 3000 islands.
2. Britain- took over:
a. Burma- now known as Myanmar.
b. Singapore
c. Malaysia
3. France- took over Indo- China, which consisted of:
a. Laos
b. Cambodia
c. Vietnam
4. US- took over:
a. Philippines
b. Hawaii- for pineapples
c. Guam
Thailand aka Siam remained independent. How did they stay independent? The king of Thailand, King Mongkut, told the Europeans he would give them the trading rights they wanted as long as they didn’t take over. Then, Mongkut began to industrialize like Japan by importing professionals to Thailand to help. Though there were culture clashes, the Thai ended up with an industrialized army, and they broke away from the Europeans.
As WWI drew closer, the countries realized they could situate naval bases in the territories they owned.
In the 1950s, most of these countries gained their independence.
Aim: Imperialism in Canada, Australia and New Zealand
Canada, Australia and New Zealand are different then the territories we discussed previously because they got their independence a lot faster.
1. Canada- was taken over by France in the 1700s, then Britain came and took some land. Canada was divided:
a. Upper part- Ontario- British
b. Lower part Quebec- France
By 1900, Canada was independent because the reason for taking over territory is social Darwinism, but there were so many French living in Canada, it wasn’t necessary.
2. Australia- was discovered by Captain Cook, a British sea captain. Australia was down under and hard to find.
The native Australians were called Aboriginals. They had dark skin, dark eyes and were short.
The British realized they needed to settle the land, but Australia was an 8-month journey from Britain, so no one wanted to go. The British ended up sending their convicts to Australia.
Australia is mostly desert- outback. People only lived on 10% of the country.
In the mid 1800s, gold was discovered in Australia- motivation for people to go.
3. New Zealand- was discovered by Captain Cook.
New Zealand is the closest country to Antarctica.
New Zealand is the only place where kiwis are grown.
New Zealand was settled by many British. The original people in New Zealand are called Mauri- had body paints, wore clothes made from animals.
Aim: Imperialism: Motivation- canal building
Canal building is a main reason why nations imperialized.
1. Suez Canal- in order for people to get from Europe to India, they had to go all the way around Africa. France asked Egypt if they could join together and build a canal through Egypt. The Egyptians agreed, and the French sent over professional engineers to build the canal.
The Suez Canal connected the Mediterranean and Red Seas. This caused a revolution in world travel because it shortened travel and trade time. This canal was built with manual labor.
The Egyptians couldn’t pay for their part of the canal, so the British bought it off them. The building of this canal showed how weak the Ottoman Empire was, that someone could build a canal in their territory without asking them permission first. Britain decided that if the Ottoman Empire is weak, they could take over Egypt. They took Egypt as a protectorate. Egypt didn’t get their independence until the 1920s and didn’t get the canal back until the 1950s.
2. Panama Canal- A MAN A PLAN A CANAL, PANAMA. The Panama Canal was built in the early 1900s. President Roosevelt wanted a canal in Central America- Panama. He helped Panama revolt from Columbia, and then took the canal as a thank you gift. 6,000 people died while building this canal. The Panama Canal connects the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.
There are only 2 canals that cut through continents- the Panama and Suez canals.
Aim: Causes of war
The Congress of Vienna kept war away for 100 years. Why do we have war now with more nations than ever before? Nations are more connected because of imperialism.
Causes of war:
1. Imperialistic competition-
a. France and Germany almost went to war over Morocco.
b. Germany threatened lots nations such as Britain. There was lots of competition from Germany because now they’re united and built up.
2. Economic competition- up until the 1900s, Britain had the strongest economy, but now:
a. Germany rose economically.
b. Russia also rose economically, and they had so many resources no one could beat them.
3. Military competition- every nation began to build up an army and navy because as each nation built up, every other nation reacted by improving their armies and navies. The competition was between Britain and Germany, but now Germany was improving.
4. Glorification of war- people forgot what war is really about- they thought it was exciting. Really, war was brutal.
5. Nationalism- is about strength and power but can also be aggressive because everyone wants the biggest empire.
a. The Germans wanted to show off in WWI everything they built up.
b. After the Franco-Prussian war, France lost Alsace- Lorain, and they want it back.
c. Russia had Pan-Slavism- unification of the Slavic people. This was a problem because all the Slavic people were in different territories. The Ottomans were losing Slavic territory to the Russians. The Ottomans were afraid of the Athenians (were Christians) because they were connected with the Russians, and killed all million of them out.
6. Alliances- when countries buddy up with each other. There were 2 alliances:
a. The Triple Alliance- Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy and the Ottomans (at the end).
b. The Triple Entente- France, Britain and Russia.
Aim: Outbreak of WWI
In 1914, Europe was a tense region. There was a lot of competition, nationalism and the warped idea that war is fun.
The Balkan region had a lot of tension. The Balkan region of Bosnia was under Austrian- Hungary rule. The Bosnians were a Slavic people, and felt they should’ve been under Russian or neighboring Serbian rule.
On June 28, 1914, the archduke of Austria- Hungary, Francis Ferdinand and his wife Sophie visited Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia. There was a small terrorist group of Bosnians and Serbians called the Black Hand, who plotted to kill the archduke and his wife. While they were riding in an open limo through the streets of Sarajevo, Gavrilo Princip shot the archduke and his wife. This was known as “the shot heard around the world”. The Balkan powder keg now exploded and caused a war.
Germany told Austria- Hungary not to let the Bosnians get away with this, and that they would help in war. Austria- Hungary declared war on Serbia with Germany at their side. Italy also joined them and they became known as the Central Powers. France, Britain and Britain all joined Serbia and formed the Allies.
All the countries had to mobilize their armies for war by making drafts, uniforms… Germany was the first country to mobilize. They marched through Belgium and came to the countrysides of France- Somme and Verdun. France was already prepared and the British joined them. For the next 4 years, these nations fought at these places, and there was a stalemate.
Aim: Fighting fronts of WWI
The Western Front, by the France and German border had many battles there for 4 years. Millions of people died. The French and German fought with trench war fare- they dug pits about 8 feet high, and that’s where the soldiers stayed. When someone would scream “over the top”, both sides would come out of their trenches, and fight in the middle.
In the Battle of Somme, 60,000 people died.
New weapons-
1. Submarines- sunk Luistania.
2. Rifles
3. Poison gas
4. Planes
Never before had so many people died in war, but with new weapons, killing so many people was now possible.
How was this a world war?
1. The US joined in 1917.
2. Colonies joined the war.
Aim: WWI- turning point for the Allies
The turning points were:
1. In 1917, the US joined the war. Why?
a. The Lusitania was torpedoed- it was a British passenger ship with American passengers.
b. Zimmerman telegram- Germany sent Mexico a telegram telling them to attack the US. The US intercepted it immediately, and Woodrow Wilson said, “Need to make the world safe for democracy”.
c. The British issued the Balfour Declaration- they’ll support the setting up of a Jewish homeland in Palestine.
The US got ready to send help to Europe. The US mobilized, and in 1918, 2 million troops- dough boys- were sent to Europe. The US gave the whole army more strength.
2. In 1917, Russia dropped out of the war- the same time the US joined, Russia dropped out because they had just overthrown the czar of Russia. Germany was excited about this because now they can direct all their troops to the Western front. The Russians gave the Germans some territory- they signed the Brest Litovsk treaty.
On November 11, 1918, the Germans signed an armistice- they surrendered.
Aim: The Treaty of Versailles
27 nations came to participate in the writing of the treaty. The British, French and US got the biggest say in the treaty. Their representatives were:
1. Britain- Lloyd George- wanted revenge on Germany.
2. France- Clemenceau- wanted revenge on Germany. He said, “we want to squeeze Germany until the pip squeak.”
3. Woodrow Wilson- said not to focus on revenge, but rather on preventing another war. Why was he the clearest in the mind?
a. The US came at the end of the war- they hadn’t been fighting for so long.
b. The fighting wasn’t on their territory.
Wilson made a list of 14 points he wanted incorporated into the treaty:
a. Freedom of the seas- no country can submarine another country’s ships.
b. All people should have self determination- all nations should be independent. This wasn’t actually done.
c. No secret treaties- such as the Brest Litovsk treaty. No secret agreements.
d. A League of Nations- a club of nations joined together to prevent future wars. It was like a large alliance system.
Points in the Treaty of Versailles-
1. A League of Nations was made.
2. Germany lost Alsace- Lorain to France.
3. Poland became a country again.
4. Germany lost territory overseas.
5. The League of Nations takes German colonies as mandates- a temporary colony. The countries that won the war took mandates and ruled them until they got their independence.
6. Reduced army.
7. Germany had to pay for the war.
The map after the war was very different from the map before the war:
1. Russia and Germany had to give up land to Poland.
2. Alsace- Lorain went back to France.
3. Yugoslavia was created.
4. Palestine becomes a British mandate.
Now, everyone had to sign the treaty. Germany was very upset. Wilson didn’t want territory, but because of the US system of checks and balances, he had to ask the Senate before signing. They didn’t let him. Many historians believe that had the US signed the treaty, there would have been no WWII.
Aim: The Russian Revolution
Causes of the downfall of the Romonov czars:
1. In 1905, the Russo-Japanese war was fought. The Japanese won, and the czar became very unpopular.
2. Bloody Sunday
3. Duma- the czar set up a representative government to show the people that he acknowledged them, but it wasn’t really representative.
4. Many land-less peasants- serfs were freed about 30 years before, and now they had no land, money or source of income.
5. Russia started industrializing- conditions were horrific.
6. Russia got involved in WWI in 1914- they were so ill prepared, they sent soldiers to the battlefront with no ammunition. 2 million soldiers died in the 1st few months.
7. Rasputin- he was a monk who basically ran the czar’s court. How did he get so much power? Czar Nicholai had a hemophiliac (because of intermarriages) son named Alexus. Rasputin was able to stop the bleeding, therefore he got the power. A group of men decided to kill him by:
a. Poisoning him- he lived.
b. Shot him- he survived.
c. Shot him again- he still survived
d. Tied him up and dumped him in the river- he finally drowned.
8. Enormous food shortages- this was the last straw.
In March of 1917, woman marched through Russia asking the czar for bread. The czar told his soldiers to kill them, but the soldiers refused. This shows that the czar was losing power. In March of 1917, the czar abdicated, hoping he could at least survive.
A group of government officials set up a provisional court. At this time, Russia was still in middle of fighting WWI, but no one wanted it. About 100 revolution groups wanted to take over the Russian government. The strongest group was the Bolsheviks, led by Lenin. Lenin had revolutionary blood in him and had a hatred for czars (his brother had tried to kill the czar). When Lenin grew up, he became a Marxist- Communist. Lenin got sent to Siberia, and when he returned was exiled to Switzerland. He kept in touch with Russian people so he would know when his moment come to come back to Russia and take over. When Lenin heard about the czar’s abdication, with the help of Germany, he returned to Russia. He had 1000s of supporters. He said, “to make an omelet, we need to break eggs, to make a revolution we need to break heads”. Lenin promised the Russian people “peace, land and bread”:
1. Peace- get out of WWI- he signed the Brest Latovsk treaty, and Russia got out of the war.
2. Land- He took land from the rich and gave it to the poor.
3. Bread- efforts to end food shortages were made and workers were givin control over the factories and mines. Factories began to fall apart and Lenin realized he needed to take more strength. The government began to the control of the economy- war communism- took control of the factories and mines by telling them exactly what to do. The idea was that after the war, they’d go back to regular communism.
At this time, Russia erupted in a civil war- Bolsheviks vs. everyone else (czar supporters, rich, people who want democracy, socialists). It was known as the war between red (communists) and whites.
Aim: Russia under Lenin
When the Bolsheviks took over, the result was a civil war. Many Russians had begun to get discontented by Lenin. In order not to loose power, during the civil war, Lenin:
1. Issued red terror- terrorized people into following him. Innocent people were killed in the streets for being an enemy of Lenin.
2. Cheka- secret police, which spied on people.
3. Executed the czar and his family to show the whites that the czar isn’t coming back.
In 1921, the reds won primarily because they were all unified, while the whites were many groups of people who all hated each other.
Now, Lenin concentrated on ruling Russia. He realized they needed to do some economic reform. The goal was dictatorship of the proletariat- economy in which the proletariats rule. Lenin realized that the people were not yet ready for this and he temporarily introduced the capitalist system. New Economic Policy- people are allowed to open up their own businesses- “we must go one step forward, one step backward to get two steps forward”.
In 1924, Lenin died and didn’t leave clear instructions about who should take over. The choice was between:
1. Joseph Stalin
2. Leon Trotsky- was a Jew.
Trotsky was more popular and higher in the communist party, but Stalin had better connections and eventually took over. The first thing Stalin did when he took over was get rid of capitalism.
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