The Interwar Period and the Rise of Fascism
The Food Crisis (1917)
Political
The League (Catalan bourgeoisie, nationalist, conservative) is presented in the 1901 elections and wins in Barcelona.
Economic
Prices go up 70%, wages are kept, the war ends in 1918, industrial production is low, wages are low, and unemployment is asleep.
Military
- 1899: Reconstructing the lost empire in Africa (RIF)
- Alhacenas lands in Ireland, especially lost (thought there would be resistance) in 1921, will again try to lose (Annual Disaster) (Abd El-Krim’s army general otherwise) means: 10,000 dead, loose arms, especially seeks responsible: Picasso Report: blame: King, politicians, military officers.
Dictatorship of Miguel Primo de Rivera (1923-1930)
Fascist Dictatorship Measures: Suspends the constitution, dissolves congress and political parties, founds a party (Union Patriotica), pursues workers’ movements, maintains chiefs, and pursues anti-Catalan nationalists.
Economic Performance
Economic prosperity, public investment program, low unemployment due to work to improve roads and build reservoirs, but the state is indebted. Spain holds Morocco.
Opposition (illegal)
- Republican parties
- Workers’ parties
- Power parties
1930: Rivera MP resigns. 1931: Monarch wants to return to the constitutional monarchy, we pass the Dictablanda (General Berenguer). April 14, 1931: Municipal elections.
The Interwar Economy (1918-1939)
Consequences of World War I
- Global destruction of infrastructure
- 10 million deaths
- The United States and Japan increase production during the war to make border reconstruction.
Following the war, an economic depression caused the production floor to bid, leading to the stock market crisis of 1929. The United States speculates wrongly, realizing that the actions are not beneficial, while everyone wants to sell at a low price, producing the crash that passes the U.S. crisis to Europe, requesting that the money must be returned. Overproduction (job chain) leads to low prices. Speculation on stocks: they thought that their value would be raised, but it was not.
Interwar Period and the Rise of Fascism
Fascism (a fascist political ideology, anti-egalitarian, anti-communist) is characterized by:
- Racism (Blacks, Jews, women – “kitchen, church, house”)
- Living space: Land necessary to be self-sufficient
- Warlike ideology, independent irrational elements, anti-egalitarian, charismatic leader (Hitler, etc.)
- U.S. propaganda and education to control the population (Hitler Youth), manipulating history.
The Rise of Nazism in Germany
1918: Weimar Republic (1918-1929). Economic crisis (payments established by the Treaty of Versailles) exacerbates the crisis in 1929 because they had money back in the U.S. (general crisis). The Bolshevik Revolution is led by Rosa Luxemburg (Lenin’s supporter) because of the bourgeoisie and capitalism. The emergence of fascism blames the democratic system and Jews (Communists). In 1920, the Nationalist Workers’ Party, led by Adolf Hitler, emerges, advocating for the destruction of democracy, anti-violence, and the creation of an empire (Third Reich), uniting peoples of the Aryan race who speak German.
1933: The Nazi party wins elections, Hitler becomes Chancellor. Actions: Burns down the parliament and accuses the communists, outlaws opposition parties, sends opponents to concentration camps, persecutes Jews, Gypsies, homosexuals, and disabled people, controls the population through propaganda and demonstrations, and controls education (teacher purges, Hitler Youth).
Foreign Policy
- Rejection of the Treaty of Versailles
- Initiates an expansionist policy to create a European empire
- Conquers Austria (without fighting)
- Occupies the Sudetenland (where there were 3 million Germans)
The Cold War (1945-1991)
Winners of World War II meet in Yalta (USSR) to divide the world into areas of influence. NATO (Capitalist military organization led by the USA) and the Warsaw Pact (Communist military organization) emerge, engaging in an indirect war.
World War II (1939-1945)
Causes
- German territorial expansion
- Japanese imperialism in the Pacific
Scenarios
- Europe and North Africa (France, Great Britain, USSR vs. Germany)
- Pacific (Japan vs. USA)
Status
- Blitzkrieg (1939-1941): September 1939, Germany attacks France (surrounded by the Maginot Line), takes Belgium, Holland, and Luxembourg, and arrives in Paris. The English and French armies are defeated and flee to the UK. Hitler wants to launch an invasion of Great Britain and bombards the coast and important cities beforehand. In the aerial battle, Great Britain controls the skies day and night.
- 1941-1945: With Great Britain resisting alone in the West, Hitler breaks the pact and begins the invasion of the Soviet Union (Siege of Leningrad, Battle of Stalingrad, Battle of Moscow). Russia resists and pushes Germany back. In 1944, the Normandy landings create a new front in Europe.
- Pacific Theater: Japan vs. USA. Japan’s policy aims to create an empire in China and Southeast Asia. The U.S. Pacific Fleet is attacked by surprise at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. Japan occupies the Pacific until 1942. In 1942, Japan loses the Battle of Midway. Japan withdraws. In 1943, Japan resists in the Guadalcanal Campaign. Japan refuses to surrender and uses kamikaze attacks. In 1945, the atomic bombs are dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Consequences
- 50 million deaths
- Division of the world into capitalist (USA, Western Europe, India, half of Berlin, Federal Republic of Germany) and communist (Soviet Union, Eastern Europe, Korea, China, half of Berlin, German Democratic Republic) blocs.
The Vietnam War (1959-1975)
Before World War II, France had colonies in Indochina (Cochinchina, Cambodia, Annam, Laos, Tonkin). In 1941, Japan invades, and the war of independence begins. In 1945, France tries to regain its colonies. The 1954 Geneva Conference leads to an agreement: France withdraws from Vietnam, the country is divided into communist North and capitalist South (17th parallel), and a general amnesty is declared. The expansion of communism leads the U.S. to intervene and help South Vietnam. In 1964, bombing campaigns begin.
Implications
- Paris Peace Accords (1973): Ceasefire, withdrawal of U.S. troops, reunification of the country
- 1.6 million dead
- Soldiers returning to the U.S. experience the Vietnam Syndrome
- U.S. loses credibility
- Social revolution in the USA
The Cuban Revolution
Cuba becomes a republic with a constitution in 1898. U.S. firms control the Cuban economy and trade. Farming estates are owned by foreigners. In 1933, the U.S. military occupation of Cuba is recognized. In 1950, Fulgencio Batista becomes dictator with U.S. support. In 1953, Fidel Castro calls for a revolution, appealing to workers, peasants, teachers, and the commercial bourgeoisie. He travels to Mexico to prepare for a return to Cuba and establishes a base in the Sierra Maestra (leaders: Che Guevara, Camilo Cienfuegos), with the support of the population. In 1959, Batista flees.
Actions
- Agrarian reform: Estates are expropriated
- Literacy campaign
- Healthcare reform
- Lowering of rent prices (50%) and provision of credits to buy houses
- Food rationing
- Boycott of U.S. energy
In 1960, the U.S. embargo begins, and the U.S. attempts to invade the island. Cuba installs nuclear missiles and asks the USSR for help. The Soviet leader agrees to remove the missiles if the U.S. promises not to invade Cuba. Cuba is isolated from international organizations until the 1980s.
Fascist Italy (1920s)
Italy achieves no colonies in Africa. Benito Mussolini founds the Fascist Party in 1919 (Fasci di Combattimento, National Fascist Party). Followers: Blackshirts (violent, controlled the streets, enjoyed impunity). Mussolini announces the “March on Rome” in 1922. Half a million people participate. The king dismisses the president, and Mussolini becomes Prime Minister.
Actions
- Bans other political parties and unions
- Restricts citizens’ freedoms
- Establishes a dictatorship
Support
- King
- Army
- Church
- Wealthy classes
- Religious classes
Foreign Policy
- Expansionist colonial policy
- Aims to create an empire in Southern Europe
- Invades Albania, Libya, and Abyssinia
Economic Policy
- End of capitalism (state intervention)
- Initiates a public works plan that eliminates unemployment
- Subsidizes agricultural prices (cheap raw materials, the state pays)