Interwar Period: Crisis, Totalitarianism, and Cultural Shifts (1919-1939)
1. A World in Crisis (1919-1939)
The interwar period witnessed significant events. In the USSR, Stalin consolidated power, establishing a totalitarian communist regime. The League of Nations was created in 1919 to regulate international relations and maintain peace. The economic crisis of 1929 severely impacted numerous economies. Dictatorships and totalitarian regimes emerged. A crisis of values and conscience pervaded the era.
2. Soviet Totalitarianism: Stalinism
Following Lenin’s death in 1924, Stalin and Trotsky competed for power. Trotsky advocated for permanent world revolution, while Stalin promoted revolution within the USSR. Ultimately, Stalin succeeded Lenin as leader of the Soviet Union.
2.1. Political Developments
In the late 1920s, the Russian Revolution entered its second phase: Stalinism. Stalin established a totalitarian government supported by the Communist Party. A system of police and concentration camps in Siberia was implemented.
2.2. Economy
Stalin imposed a planned economy managed by the central planning agency, Gosplan. Five-year plans centralized economic activity and were characterized by collectivization of agriculture, targeting the kulaks (landowning peasants) through land expropriations. Planned industrialization transformed the Soviet Union into a major industrial power.
2.3. Society
The population grew significantly, and the social structure changed. The number of peasants decreased, while the number of industrial workers increased. A new social category, the intelligentsia, emerged.
3. Peace-building (1919-1929)
3.1. Democracies
After World War I, nations recovered unevenly. Germany, under the Weimar Republic, faced economic hardship due to war reparations and hyperinflation. Between 1925 and 1929, some economic recovery occurred. France and the UK experienced a crisis with rising unemployment. The British Empire transitioned into the Commonwealth of independent nations. By the late 1920s, these nations began to recover. The USA, benefiting from its wartime victory, emerged as a leading world power.
3.2. The League of Nations
The League of Nations aimed to ensure peace and order in international relations. However, it was dominated by France and the UK, which held veto power to protect their national interests. Despite its limitations, the League contributed to maintaining international peace and collective security. It facilitated the Treaty of Locarno (1925), improving relations between Western European nations. The Kellogg-Briand Pact (1928) renounced war as a political instrument. Germany joined the League in 1926, and the USSR in 1934.
4. The Crisis of the 1930s
After recovering from the postwar crisis, the European economy plunged into a new crisis in 1929.
4.1. Causes of the Crisis
- The rise of consumerism and credit purchases in the USA led to a lack of liquidity.
- Overproduction resulted in more goods than the market could handle.
- Low agricultural product prices further strained the economy.
- Speculative investments in the stock market inflated share values.
4.2. The Stock Market Crash in New York
Overpriced stocks led to the massive sell-off on Wall Street in October 1929. Thirteen million shares were sold in one day, causing a collapse in value. Millions lost their fortunes and savings.
4.3. The Great Depression
The crash’s impact spread to the London Stock Exchange and other markets in Europe and Japan, with severe consequences. US protectionism negatively impacted trade relations. American investors withdrew capital from Europe, exacerbating the crisis. Investments ceased, businesses closed, and banks went bankrupt. Unemployment soared, and demand plummeted, leading to an unprecedented economic depression.
4.4. Fighting Depression: The New Deal
The USA, severely hit by the crisis, had 13 million unemployed in 1933. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt introduced the New Deal, an economic and social program to combat the crisis. Key measures included supporting farmers through compensation for reduced crops, unemployment benefits, increased wages, reduced working hours, government support for banks, and job creation through public works projects. While Roosevelt’s policies helped the US economy recover partially, unemployment persisted.
5. Totalitarian Regimes (1920s-1930s)
Totalitarian regimes replaced democracies in several countries.
5.1. Causes
The rise of totalitarian regimes can be attributed to the post-war recovery struggles, fears of a worker’s revolution, and the economic crisis of 1929.
5.2. Fascist Totalitarianism
Fascist movements gained support across social classes. They established centralized, totalitarian states opposed to liberal democracy, socialism, communism, and labor movements. They employed terror tactics, paramilitary forces, and propaganda to manipulate the masses.
Methods of Operation
- Cult of the leader (Duce in Italy, Führer in Germany)
- Social hierarchy based on occupation
- Exaltation of militarism and youth indoctrination
- Revanchism and territorial expansion through war
- Ultranationalism and racism
5.3. Italian Fascism
In 1922, Mussolini established a totalitarian fascist regime in Italy. He held absolute power, the Fascist Party replaced parliament, and an ultranationalist ideology fueled aggressive foreign policy. The economy was autarkic (self-sufficient) and interventionist, and corporatism was promoted.
5.4. Nazi Totalitarianism
In 1933, Hitler’s National Socialist (Nazi) Party, with its anti-capitalist, anti-Marxist, anti-democratic, and ultranationalist ideology, won the elections and established a dictatorship, replacing the Weimar Republic with the Third Reich. Pangermanism, advocating for the unification of all German peoples, fueled the regime.
Hitler’s totalitarian regime suppressed opposition through the Gestapo and SA. It pursued territorial expansion, leading to conflicts with neighboring countries. The autarkic economy focused on public works projects, eliminating unemployment. A natalist policy aimed to increase the population for military purposes. By 1938, Germany had emerged from the economic crisis but was heading towards war.
6. Culture and the Arts
6.1. Science and Thought
Philosophical Thought
- Existentialism (Heidegger and Sartre) explored the meaninglessness of life.
- Vitalism (Nietzsche) emphasized the concept of the superman.
Scientific Advancements
- Physics: Einstein’s theory of relativity and atomic energy.
- Electronics: Development of new appliances.
- Biology and Medicine: Advances in hormone studies.
6.2. Mass Culture
The development of mass media, particularly radio, significantly influenced society and became a tool of power. The women’s suffrage movement achieved voting rights in the United Kingdom in 1917.
6.3. Art
Architecture
Functionalism emerged, using concrete and iron for skyscrapers with simple geometric shapes and minimal decoration. Le Corbusier revolutionized urban planning. The Bauhaus school (Gropius and Mies van der Rohe) focused on building design. Frank Lloyd Wright integrated architecture into the landscape.
Sculpture
Abstraction simplified forms and used new materials like iron and glass. Constantin Brancusi and Henry Moore were prominent figures.
Painting
- Expressionism: Otto Dix depicted the harsh realities of society.
- Dadaism: Marcel Duchamp and Man Ray used ready-mades to shock and provoke.
- Surrealism: Dalí and Joan Miró explored dreams and the subconscious.
- Abstract Art: Kandinsky abandoned figurative elements, focusing on color as a means of expression.