German and Italian expansion (1933–1940)
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All Flashcards in Topic 3.2
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3.2.112 cards
Define fascism.
Mussolini's ideology: an extreme, nationalist dictatorship that glorifies the state, the leader and war, and crushes all opposition.
Define Nazism.
Hitler's German version of fascism, adding extreme racism (antisemitism) and the demand for racial 'living space' (Lebensraum).
What was the Treaty of Versailles (1919)?
The WWI peace treaty that punished Germany with land losses, a 100,000-man army limit, the 'war-guilt' clause and reparations. Germans saw it as a humiliation to overturn.
What is Lebensraum?
German for 'living space' — Hitler's aim of seizing land in eastern Europe and the USSR for German settlers and resources.
What is autarky, and why did the dictators want it?
Self-sufficiency in food and raw materials. Both regimes pursued it for a war economy, partly through conquest of resource-rich land.
What did 'mare nostrum' mean to Mussolini?
Latin for 'our sea' — his dream of dominating the Mediterranean as a revived Roman Empire.
When did Mussolini and Hitler take power?
Mussolini in Italy in 1922; Hitler became German Chancellor in 1933.
How did the Great Depression push Germany and Italy to expand?
It caused mass unemployment; rearmament and expansion revived industry, created jobs, pursued autarky and distracted people from hardship.
What was the invasion of Abyssinia (1935)?
Mussolini's conquest of Ethiopia — proving Italy a great power, gaining resources, distracting from the Depression, and exposing the League's weakness.
Compare the main aims of Germany and Italy.
Germany: overturn Versailles, unite German-speakers, win Lebensraum in the east. Italy: revive a Roman Empire and dominate the Mediterranean.
Name the two strands of cause behind German and Italian expansion.
Ideology (national greatness, Versailles, Lebensraum, a new Rome) and economics (the Depression, unemployment, autarky) — the I-E strands.
What does the command term 'evaluate' require?
A judgement: weigh the factors (here, ideology vs economics) and reach a supported conclusion — not just a list.
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What did the Treaty of Versailles (1919) restrict for Germany?
It disarmed Germany, limited its army and navy, demilitarized the Rhineland, and banned union with Austria.
What did Hitler do in 1933 regarding the League and Disarmament?
He withdrew Germany from the Disarmament Conference and the League of Nations, claiming others would not disarm to Germany's level.
What happened in 1935 with rearmament?
Hitler publicly announced an air force and conscription, openly breaking Versailles arms limits.
What was the Anglo-German Naval Agreement (1935)?
Britain agreed Germany could build a navy up to 35% of the Royal Navy's size, undermining Versailles bilaterally.
When and what was the remilitarization of the Rhineland?
March 1936 — German troops re-entered the demilitarized Rhineland, with orders to retreat if challenged. France did not act.
What were the Rome-Berlin Axis and Anti-Comintern Pact (1936)?
Germany aligned with Italy (Axis) and signed the Anti-Comintern Pact with Japan against the USSR, ending its diplomatic isolation.
What was the Anschluss and when did it happen?
March 1938 — the forced union of Germany and Austria, forbidden by Versailles. No power intervened.
What did the Munich Agreement (Sept 1938) decide?
Britain, France, Germany and Italy agreed to hand the Sudetenland to Germany without Czech consent — the climax of appeasement.
Define salami tactics.
Taking territory or rights one thin slice at a time so no single act provokes war.
Define appeasement.
The British and French policy of giving in to Hitler's demands to avoid another war.
Why did Hitler's steps generally succeed? (compare reasons)
Steps were small (salami tactics); demands looked partly fair (self-determination); the Allies were unready, depression-hit, and reluctant after WWI; some saw a strong Germany as a buffer against the USSR.
What is the step-by-step process of dismantling Versailles (1933–38)?
1933 leave Disarmament/League → 1935 rearmament + Naval Agreement → 1936 Rhineland + Axis → 1938 Anschluss → Sept 1938 Sudetenland via Munich.
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What were Mussolini's main foreign-policy aims?
Empire (especially in Africa), national prestige reviving "Roman" greatness, and mare nostrum — domination of the Mediterranean.
What does mare nostrum mean?
"Our sea" — Mussolini's goal of turning the Mediterranean into an Italian-dominated lake.
When did Italy invade and conquer Abyssinia?
Invaded October 1935; conquered by May 1936.
Why was the Abyssinian crisis so significant?
The League's weak sanctions failed to stop Italy, destroying the League's credibility and pushing Mussolini toward Nazi Germany.
Why did the League's sanctions on Italy fail?
They excluded oil and kept the Suez Canal open, so Italian troops and supplies still reached East Africa.
How did the Spanish Civil War affect Italy-Germany relations?
Italy (1936-39) backed Franco alongside Hitler's forces, deepening fascist co-operation and drawing the two dictators closer.
What was the Rome-Berlin Axis and when?
The October 1936 alignment of Italy and Germany, named after a Mussolini speech.
When did Italy annex Albania?
April 1939, extending Italian influence into the Balkans.
What was the Pact of Steel and when was it signed?
A binding military alliance between Italy and Germany, signed May 1939.
When and why did Italy enter the Second World War?
June 1940, only once France was collapsing — Mussolini wanted to share the spoils of a war he thought was nearly won.
Order Mussolini's expansion (the 'A SAP' hook).
Abyssinia (1935) → Spain (1936-39) → Albania (1939) → Pact of Steel (1939), then entry into WWII (1940).
Long-term vs short-term causes of Italy's alignment with Germany?
Long-term: fascist ideology, Mussolini's empire ambitions. Short-term: estrangement from Britain/France over Abyssinia sanctions, co-operation in Spain.
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What did Hitler do in March 1939 that ended appeasement?
He occupied the rest of Czechoslovakia (including Prague), breaking the Munich Agreement and proving his promises could not be trusted.
Define the Munich Agreement (Sept 1938).
A deal letting Germany annex the Sudetenland in return for Hitler's promise of no further territorial demands.
What were Danzig and the Polish Corridor?
Danzig was a German port under League control; the Corridor was Polish land separating Germany from East Prussia. Hitler demanded both from Poland.
What was the British/French guarantee to Poland (March 1939)?
A pledge to defend Poland's independence, signalling that an attack on Poland would mean war and marking the end of appeasement.
What was the Pact of Steel (May 1939)?
A full military alliance between Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy committing them to mutual support in war.
What was the Nazi-Soviet (Molotov-Ribbentrop) Pact, signed 23 Aug 1939?
A non-aggression pact between Germany and the USSR whose secret protocol divided Poland and eastern Europe between them.
Why was the Nazi-Soviet Pact so significant for the outbreak of war?
It removed the threat of a two-front war, so Germany could invade Poland safely, and it secretly doomed Poland to partition.
What happened on 1 September 1939?
Germany invaded Poland, directly triggering the move to war.
What happened on 3 September 1939?
Britain and France declared war on Germany after it refused to withdraw from Poland.
Long-term vs short-term causes of war in 1939?
Long-term: Versailles grievances, Lebensraum, a weak League. Short-term: seizure of Czechoslovakia, the Nazi-Soviet Pact, and the invasion of Poland.
Memory hook for the 1939 sequence (C-G-P).
Czechoslovakia seized, Guarantee to Poland given, Pact (Nazi-Soviet) signed — then Poland invaded.
Why did the Nazi-Soviet Pact shock observers?
Nazis and Communists were ideological enemies; the pact was a cynical, temporary deal that let Hitler attack Poland first before turning on the USSR in 1941.
3.2.512 cards
Define collective security.
The idea that peace is kept by all League members acting together against any aggressor, using moral pressure, sanctions, or force as a last resort.
Define appeasement.
Making concessions to an aggressive power to satisfy its grievances and avoid war; the British policy toward Hitler in the 1930s.
What was the Manchurian Crisis (1931–33) and why did it matter?
Japan seized Manchuria; the League condemned it but took no real action, exposing collective security as toothless.
What was the Abyssinian Crisis (1935–36)?
Mussolini's Italy invaded Abyssinia; the League's weak sanctions (no oil, Suez open) marked the death blow to collective security.
What was the Hoare-Laval Pact (1935)?
A secret British-French plan to give Mussolini most of Abyssinia; when leaked it destroyed the League's credibility.
What was the Munich Agreement (1938)?
Britain, France, Germany and Italy agreed to give Germany the Sudetenland; the high point of appeasement.
What ended appeasement and when?
Hitler's occupation of the rest of Czechoslovakia (Prague, March 1939) broke the Munich promise; Britain then guaranteed Poland.
List the motives for appeasement (SAME GIVE).
Slaughter of WWI remembered, Armed forces unready, Money short, Empire overstretched, German grievances seen as fair, Ideological fear of USSR, Voters wanted peace, Earn time to rearm.
Why was the Suez Canal left open during the Abyssinian Crisis?
Britain feared closing it would push Italy toward Hitler; this national-interest choice shows why collective security failed.
What is the historiographical debate over appeasement?
Was it a realistic policy that bought time to rearm given weakness, or a cowardly blunder that rewarded aggression and emboldened Hitler?
Compare collective security and appeasement.
Collective security = all states confront an aggressor together (failed over Abyssinia). Appeasement = negotiate concessions directly (peaked at Munich).
What was the Polish Guarantee (1939)?
A British-French promise to defend Poland, marking the shift from appeasement to deterrence; war followed Germany's invasion in September 1939.
Topic 3.2 study notes
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