1. The Interwar Period

2. Turkey
Ottoman Empire broke up following the end of World War I, giving up much of its original territory
Allies had plans to distribute land to Greece and other nations, although Turkey fought these plans
Kemal Mustafa was a World War I hero who led the Turks against the Allied plans
On October 1923, the Turks defeated Greece and announced the establishment of an independent Turkey
Kemal Mustafa changed his name to Kemal Ataturk, meaning “father of the Turks” and worked to develop a secular (non-religious) government

3. Armenian Genocide
Ottoman Turks alienated the Allies with the oppressive policies towards minorities, especially Armenians
In 1915, Ottoman Empire accused Armenians of supporting the Allies and used the allegations to kill and exile all Armenians
Within 7 months, 600,000 Armenians were killed; 500,000 were deported
Of those deported, 400,000 died marching through the deserts and swamps of Syria
Genocide  deliberate murder of a particular racial, political, or cultural group
Later became known as ethnic cleansing

5. Persia/Iran
Growing foreign influence lead to a Iranian nationalist movement following World War I
In 1921, Reza Khan led the overthrow of the previous shah (like a king)
In 1925, Khan became the new shah, becoming known as Reza Shah Pavlavi
He introduced a series of reforms into Persia to modernize the military, government, and economic system
Ten years later, Persia became Iran

6. French Mandates
In 1916, Husayn ibn Ali led Arab nationalists against Ottoman control to help weaken its power
Under the League of Nations, French gained control of Lebanon and Syria through the Mandate system
Under French control, public utilities and communications improve, education expanded, and Beirut (capital of Lebanon) became a center of trade
However, agricultural production declined as the Middle East felt the effects of the worldwide depression

7. British Mandates
Britain gained control of Palestine and Iraq under the Mandate System
Palestine became divided due to Zionism, a desire for a Jewish homeland, which began in the late 19th century
In 1921, Transjordan was cut out of Palestine, which was supported by 1917 Balfour Declaration
Balfour Declaration – British pledged support for a Jewish homeland in the Middle East
The Kingdom of Iraq under British Administration was created following the 1920 Iraqi Revolt against the proposed British Mandate
Became an independent nation in 1932

8. Saudi Arabia
Arabs, although united by a similar language and heritage, were not a unified nation
Ibn Saud was a reform leader that unified Arabs in the northern part of the Arabian Peninsula
He later helped to establish the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 1932
Discovery of oil soon made the new nation incredibly wealthy

9. Africa
During World War I, almost the entire continent of Africa is under European control
Only Liberia and Ethiopia are independent
With the education gained from missionaries and the knowledge gained during the war, most African regions began to protest against colonial rule
Pan-African Congress began to meet in 1919 to discuss issues affecting all Africans

10. Egypt Arabs in northern Africa wanted independence from Great Britain
Protestors who demanded independence were often arrested and killed
In February, 1922 Great Britain proclaimed Egypt as an independent nation
However, as Egypt was new to independence, the newly formed government quickly lost control

11. Kenya Main issue for independence concerned the redistribution of land
Kikuyu, a protest group, became intent on blocking further land confiscation
Jomo Kenyatta argued that British rule was destroying the traditional culture of the peoples of Africa

12. Nigeria and Libya
Influenced by the ideas of Americans W.E.B. Du Bois and Marcus Garvey
Du Bois encouraged the awareness of cultural heritage and Garvey stressed the importance of Pan-Africanism (unity of all Africans)
Nigeria  king of Lagos and educated Africans wanted a democratic government
Libya  Omar Mukhtar used Guerilla forces to wage war against the Italians
Nnamdi Azikiwe, of Nigeria, urged non-violence for independence

13. Mohandas Gandhi was active in the Indian National Congress and the movement towards independence before WWI
Became known as Mahatma, or “Great Soul”
Gandhi left South Africa in 1914 and returned to India
Used civil disobedience  refusal to obey laws considered to be unjust
Amritsar Massacre  group of 1,000 Indians gathered together to protest British rule on April 13, 1919; British army opened fire, killing 400 and injuring 1,100
1935  Government of India Act allowed for more Indians in government
In 1930, Gandhi organized his followers to march from Ahmedabad to Dandi in protest of British monopoly on salt production
Indian independence movement split between Gandhi’s traditionalists and Jawaharlal Nehru’s modernists
Gandhi assassinated by a Hindu nationalist
India

14. French Indochina
Lenin spread the words of Karl Marx throughout Asia using the Communist International, Comintern
In French Indochina (modern day Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos), Communist parties worked with the Nationalist parties to get rid of European rule
Ho Chi Minh organized the Vietnamese Communists in the 1920s

15. China
Sun Yatsen led a revolt which overthrew the Qing dynasty in 1911 and established a republic in 1912
Created the Kuomintang party and based his rule on nationalism, democracy, industrial socialism, and land reform
May Fourth Movement  protest in 1919 against unequal treatment in the Treaty of Versailles (China declared war on Germany in 1917)
Chinese Communist Party forms in 1921 with growing sense of nationalism causing Sun Yatsen to go to the Soviet Union for help (training and money)
Jiang Jieshi (Chiang Kai-Shek) took over control of the Kuomintang in the 1920s, continued to fight against warlords and eventually turned against the Communists
Started the Chinese Civil War
Mao Zedong, leader of the Communist Party, tried to rebuild following attack from Kuomintang, leading his followers to escape in 1934 (The Long March)
Only 8,000 of the original members of the Communist Party survived

16. United States
United States becomes the world’s leading economic power in the 1920s
Farms and factories supplied most of the world due to the destruction of World War I
New products (cars, radios, washing machines, etc.) made life easier
Buying on margin and credit led to the inflation of stock prices by almost 400%
On October 29, 1929, the American stock market crashed leading to the Great Depression
Eventually 25% of all Americans were out of work and most banks were failing and going bankrupt
United States had to stop loans to Germany, which had enabled reparations  lead to a worldwide depression

17. The Rise of Dictators

18. Soviet Union
Immediately following the revolution, Lenin ended Russian involvement in World War I and sent Leon Trotsky to negotiate peace with the Central Powers
Russia was left with an essentially powerless army so Trotsky had to accept a harsh agreement – The Brest-Litovsk Treaty – which stripped Russia of large parts of its empire
In 1921, Lenin introduced the New Economic Policy (NEP) which permitted some capitalist activity, including that peasants could sell food for a profit
The NEP tried to encourage badly needed food production
A revived market and a good harvest helped to end a recent famine and put agricultural production at 75% of the prewar level
In 1922, Lenin and the communists officially created a new state known as the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics – USSR – or “the Soviet Union”

19. Soviet Union
Lenin died in 1924, creating a power struggle amongst seven members of the Politburo
Leon Trotsky wanted to end the NEP, start industrialization of the Soviet Union, and spread communism to the rest of the world
Other members wanted to focus on building a socialist state in the Soviet Union and continue with the NEP, believing rapid industrialization would hurt the standard of living for peasants
The other powerful member of the communist party vying for control was Joseph (Josef) Stalin
In 1924, Trotsky was the Commissar of War and Stalin was the Party General Secretary
Party General Secretary appointed regional, district, city, and town party officials meaning many people owed Stalin for their positions – he used this to gain complete control
In 1929, Stalin removed the Bolsheviks from the revolutionary era from the Politburo and established a dictatorship
Trotsky was pushed out of the party and eventually ended up murdered in Mexico in 1940 – most likely on Stalin’s orders

20. Soviet Union
Stalin ended the NEP in 1928 and established the first of his Five Year Plans
These were used to set economic goals to transform the Soviet Union into a powerful, industrialized nation in a short period of time
The First Five Year Plan emphasized production of military equipment and capital goods, quadrupling production of heavy machinery and doubling oil production
Little thought was given to the expanded labor force created in the cities leading to millions of workers and their families living in horrible conditions and their wages decreased by 43%
Rapid collectivization of agriculture began along with the rapid industrialization
Collectivization is a system in which private farms were eliminated and the government owned all of the land with peasants working it
By 1934, 10 million peasant household had been collectivized, those many resisted by hoarding crops and killing livestock
In response, Stalin cut off agricultural supplies to Ukraine, resulting in the deaths of 5-7 million people

21. Soviet Union
Stalin strengthened his control over the party and those who resisted were sent to forced labor camps in Siberia – Gulags
Stalin purged the communist party of Old Bolsheviks, many of whom were condemned to death
The Great Purge was when Stalin expelled and killed army officers, diplomats, union officials, intellectuals, and other dissidents
Stalin solidified his totalitarian regime with the Great Purge, leaving few people in power that would oppose him

22. Italy
Benito Mussolini created Fascism in 1922 when established a dictatorship in Italy
Fascism is a militant political movement, socialist and conservative in nature, that emphasized loyalty to the state and obedience to the leader
Weak political leadership in the past, high unemployment rates, a depressed economy, communist fears, and disappointment with the Treaty of Versailles helped the Fascist Party gain power in Italy
Mussolini used force to establish a dictatorship, ending freedom of the press, encouraging economic growth by ending labor conflicts and disbanding labor unions

23. Italy
Mussolini killed his political opponents and abolished opposition parties, believing that too many political parties would destroy any type of unity in the state
Instead, Mussolini supported a single party with a strong leader (surprise, surprise… he meant himself!)
By seeking military conquests, Mussolini looked to regain the old glory of ancient Rome
The March on Rome coup d’ État: Mussolini and the PNF paramilitary Blackshirts, October 1922

24. The Italian Empire (1939)

25. Germany The Nazis started off as a small right-wing political group
They believed that Germany had to overturn the Treaty of Versailles due to its unfair treatment of the nation
Eventually, they were renamed as the National Socialist German Worker’s Party (Nazi)
Adolf Hitler emerged as the leader of the Nazi Party when he wrote Mein Kampf (My Struggle) in 1923 while in jail
Became the blueprint for the Nazi Party Platform

26. Quotes from Mein Kampf
“The personification of the devil as the symbol of all evil assumes the living shape of the Jew.”
“The [Nazi party] should not become a constable of public opinion, but must dominate it. It must not become a servant of the masses, but their master!”
“Those who want to live, let them fight, and those who do not want to fight in this world of eternal struggle do not deserve to live.”
“Germany will either be a world power or will not be at all.”
“Blood mixture and the result drop in the racial level is the sole cause of the dying out of old cultures; for men do not perish as a result of lost wars, but by the loss of that force of resistance which is continued only in pure blood. All who are not of good race in this world are chaff.”

27. Germany
The Nazi Party appealed to the people of Germany because it promised to restore law and order, improve the economy, lower unemployment, reopen the war materials factories, and break the terms of the Treaty of Versailles
The pro-capitalist philosophy of the Nazi Party appealed to businessmen who feared a communist revolution
They also blamed Germany’s defeat in World War I and subsequent problems on “traitors,” namely communists and Jews
The Nazi Party promoted German nationalism using Hitler’s theory of the “master race”
The Aryan race was considered superior to all others and Hitler advocated German expansion using nearby “living space” in Eastern Europe
Hitler continued to use racist philosophy to justify many of the actions of the Nazi Party
Hitler also purged Germany of many of its former cultural values, including religion

28. Japan
Even though Japan became more democratic in the 1920s, the parliamentary system had many weaknesses including strict limits on the powers of the prime minister and the cabinet and civilian leaders had little control over the armed forces
Military leaders only had to report to the emperor
When the Great Depression struck in 1929, the Japanese blamed the government and militarists tried to restore traditional control of the government to the military
Militarists made the emperor a figurehead, or a symbol of state power but the militarists, who were extreme nationalists had the real power

29. Japan
The Militarists wanted to solve the country’s economic problems through foreign expansion and planned a Pacific empire that included conquering China
This new empire would be able to supply Japan with raw materials, markets for goods, and room for the growing population
The main leader of the militarists was General Hideki Tojo who successfully lead Japanese troops into Manchuria, a region of China
The League of Nations protested against Japanese occupation of Manchuria, but Japan simply withdrew from the League in 1933
Eventually, other areas of China began to fall to Japanese control and by the eve of WWII, Japan controlled large regions of the nation