1. America and the World Chapter 13 Section 1

2. Italy One of Europe’s first major dictatorships arose in Italy. – Benito Mussolini returned from WWI convinced that Italy needed a strong leader.

3. Italy In 1919 Mussolini founded Italy’s Fascist Party. – Fascism was a kind of aggressive nationalism. – Fascists believed that the nation was more important than the individual. – Fascists believed that a nation became great by expanding its territory and building its military.

4. Since many in Europe were afraid of Communists, Mussolini used this fear to his advantage. – He portrayed Fascists as a fortress against communists.

5. Italy Mussolini pledged to return Italy to the glories of the Roman Empire. – Backed by the Fascist militia, known as the Blackshirts, Mussolini threatened to march on Rome in 1922, claiming he was coming to defend Italy against a communist revolution.

6. Italy Once Mussolini was in office, he worked quickly to destroy democracy and set up a dictatorship. – Mussolini took on the title of IlDuce “The Leader”

7. Russia After the Russian Revolution began in 1917, the Bolshevik Party, led by Vladimir Lenin, established Communist governments throughout the Russian empire. – In 1922, they renamed these territories the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR).

8. Russia After Lenin died in 1924, a power struggle in Russia began – By 1926, Joseph Stalin had become the new Soviet dictator. Was born with the name Dzuhgashvili…but changed it to the Russian for Steel (Stal)

9. Russia Stalin began a massive effort to industrialize his country. – Tolerating no opposition, the effort brought about the deaths of 8-10 million peasants who resisted the Communist policies.

10. Germany Adolf Hitler was a fervent anticommunist and an admirer of Mussolini. – Hitler had fought for Germany in WWI. The Versailles Treaty left him and many other Germans with a smoldering hatred for the Allies and for the German government that had accepted the peace terms.

11. Germany The political and economic chaos in postwar Germany led to the rise of new political parties. – One of these parties was the National Socialist German Workers Party or the Nazi Party.

12. Germany The Nazis did not represent the working class, as its name suggested, but was nationalistic and anticommunist. – Hitler was one of the party’s first recruits.

13. Germany In November 1923, the Nazis tried to seize power by marching on city hall in Munich, Germany. – Hitler intended to seize power locally and then march on Berlin. BUT, his plan fell through and he was arrested.

14. Germany While in prison, Hitler wrote his autobiography, titled “Mein Kampf” (My Struggle)

15. “Mein Kampf” In his book, Hitler… – 1. Called for the unification of all Germans – 2. Said that blonde-haired, blue-eyed Germans belonged to a master race. – 3. Said that Germany needed more space and needed to expand into Russia and Poland – 4. Said that the Slavic people in Eastern Europe belonged to an inferior race

16. “Mein Kampf” Hitler’s racism was strongest toward the Jews. – He believed the Jews were the cause of many of the world’s problems and especially for Germany’s defeat in WWI.

17. Hitler’s Germany After getting out of prison, Hitler changed his tactics – He focused on getting Nazis into the German government.

18. Hitler’s Germany Some in Germany thought that if Hitler was allowed to take power, he would be controllable. – So, after being elected, Hitler called for new elections.

19. Hitler’s Germany Hitler… – 1. Called for police to crack down on the Socialist and Communist Parties. His storm troopers intimidated voters. – 2. In 1934 became president, which gave him control over the army. He gave him self the name of “Fuhrer” or leader and began to rebuild the army, which was a violation of the Treaty of Versailles.

20. Japan Japan had also been suffering with an economic depression. – Japanese military leaders and the civilians who supported them argued that the only way for Japan to get needed resources was to seize territory.

21. Japan They targeted the resource-rich province of Manchuria in northern China as the prefect place to conquer. – A group of Japanese officers decided to act without the government’s permission.

22. Japan In Sept. 1931, the Japanese army invaded Manchuria. When the Japanese prime minister began negotiations to end the war with Manchuria, officers assassinated him. – From that point on, the military was effectively in control.

23. American Neutrality The rise of dictatorships and militarism in after WWI discouraged many Americans because it felt like the sacrifices they made in WWI were pointless. – So, once again, Americans began to support an idea of isolationism.

24. American Neutrality Worried that the growing Germany and Italian aggression might lead to war, Congress signed the Neutrality Act of 1935. – It made it illegal for Americans to sell arms (weapons) to any country at war.

25. American Neutrality Later, in 1936, Hitler and Mussolini signed an agreement pledging to cooperate on several international issues. – Mussolini called this new relationship the Rome- Berlin Axis.

26. American Neutrality The following month, Japan aligned itself with Germany and Italy when it signed the Anti-Comintern Pact. – This pact required the countries to exchange information about communist groups.

27. American Neutrality Together Germany, Italy, and Japan became known as the Axis Powers, although they did not formally become allies until 1940.