Notes on History World Affairs Gce

Peace Treaties Peace Treaties Versailles sire punish Germany, pr heretoforet warfare and everyow self-determination Territorial Aim to wakefulen Germany by victorious away territories, to get compensation for cost of war by contacting trim back, and to everyow for self-determination -Germany helpless 13. 5% of land, 12. 5% of cosmos, 15% of farm mathematical product, 48% iron production and 16% scorch production Alsace-Lorraine France Eupen, Moresnet, Malmedy BelgiumNorth Schleswig Denmark (through plebiscite) self-determination West Prussia, Posen, speed Silesia Poland (make Poland inviolableer by having access to Baltic Sea increase occupation economical ingathering Danzig Free urban center down the stairs LoN Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania In count iodinnt commonwealths self-determination Memel Lithuania Saar Under LoN for 15yrs, then plebiscite France allowed drug abuse of coalmines Rhineland Demilitarised under allied control for 15 geezerhood Anschluss Forbi dden Colonies -Germany had to renounce all fulls to her colonies -became mandates under LoN supposedly administered by advanced nations who would help oneself them develop into modern states - residuumed up being utilize for Allies bear purposes equivalent to annexation German East Africa, instigates of Togoland, Cameroon Britain Togoland, Cameroon France German Southwest Africa South Africa -Germany in like manner had to give up backup concessions in China and Morocco -The Rhine, Elbe, Oder and f number Danube were placed under International Control answer Germans were up rear by the loss of land as it meant reduction in production of agriculture, iron and coal which would weaken Germany legionsAim To keep Germanys armed drags strength weak so that it could not scupper its neighbours a assume -army was limited to 100 000 volunteers enlisted for 12 years and on that point were to be no tanks, armoured cars, heavy artillery or military aircraft -navy was restricted to 6 battleships of limited tonnage, 6 cruisers, 12 destroyers, a handful of crusheder vessels and no submarines -left bank of the Rhine and 50km strip on the right bank were to be demilitarized as a further concession to France -Allied Army of Occupation was to be stationed on German side of Cologne, Coblenz and Trier to ensure the terms were kept, consisted mainly of cut serviceman, to be kept there for 15 years -to pr sluicet German belligerence and invasion of France Britain and US as well promised to help if attacked Economic Aim to seek compensation to victorious conditions for loss of lives and damage cod to war -Germany had to pay ? 6. 6b over 42 years, with ? 1b paid immediately -bulk of payment went to France Germany complained reparations were a burden -when Germany defaulted, France invaded Ruhr and seized ? 40m resulted in economic snap off -Allies snarl much than gradual scheme was needed Dawes and unfledged Plan -Dawes 2 year moratorium, US gave loan of 40m - Young cut reparations to ? b over 59 years, aborted due to Depression Political -war criminals to be tried Kaiser fled to Holland -LoN was set up to pre arrange world cessation St Germain Territorial Aim to weaken Austria by taking away territories, to get compensation for cost of war by gaining land, and to allow for self-determination Bohemia, Moravia(which were wealthy industrial provinces) Czechoslovakia Dalmatia, Bosnia, Herzegovina Yugoslavia Bukovina Romania Galicia Poland South Tyrol, Trentino, Istria, Trieste Italy Military Aim To keep Austrias military strength weak so that it could not threaten its neighbours again -army restricted to 30,000 - and 1 armament factory much of its navy went to Allies and it was now restricted to 4 patrol boats Outcome Austria would not be able to start another war and even had problems defending itself Economic/Reparations Aim To get reparations from Austria as compensation for Allied expenses in the war warfare Guilt Clause to justify -ha d to pay reparations only if could not pay in cash as rereality was too poor -suffered severe economic problems as much of its industry went to Czechoslovakia -Economic units were broken up in variant countries Outcome -loss of industrial and agricultural land was in commensurate to support urban world -lost role as centre of trade -appeal for union with Germany was rejected Political -Austria to become a member subject to good behaviour Trianon Territorial Slovakia, Ruthenia CzechoslovakiaCroatia, Slovenia Yugoslavia Transylvania, Banat of Temesvar Romania Military -army was restricted to 35000 and could only be employed for maintaining internal site and patrolling marges Economic -unspecified amount to be paid -unable to pay reparations as thrift was too weak -loss of creation and stark(a) materials caused its industry to suffer Political -Magyars believed Trianon to be unjust and demanded it to be revised -Hungary was hostile to countries who gained part of its land Sevr es Territorial Adrianople, Most of Thrace, Smyrna Greece Armenia Asia nonaged Rhodes, Dodecanese Italy Port of Cilicia France Constantinople, Straits area and adj. slands including Lemnos International Zone of Straits under LoN Kurdistan Self-governing Syria, Lebanon French Mandate Iraq, Palestine, Jordan British Mandate Arabia Became independent under a native dynasty Regained under Treaty of Lausanne 1. Adrianople 2. Eastern Thrace 3. Smyrna 4. Anatolia 5. Straits 6. Constantinople 7. Aegean Islands 8. Kurdistan 9. Armenia (Turks commanded to produce a safe national home) Neuilly Territorial Strumnitza Yugoslavia West Thrace, Aegean Islands Greece MilitaryEconomic/Reparations -Army limited to 20,000-90 one thousand thousand pounds to be paid over 38 years just now was quashd fusion of Nations unify of Nations Aim to prevent war/preserve peace and leaven world all-encompassing cooperation through collective security (=all members act unitedly to punish any aggressive natio n through diplomatic, economic and military sanctions) -to countenance disarmament and end secret diplomacy -to improve the quality of life of people around the world -to ensure economic and social justice fiction -met annually -contained represendatives of all the member states, each of which had one vote -function was to decide general policy decisions had to be unanimous -it was the debating chamber for the nations and indomitable on the entrance of untried members and also the Leagues budget Council a smaller body, which met more often, at least 3 condemnations a year -Contained 4 permanent members Britain, France, Italy, Japan -4 elected members chosen by Assembly for 3 years (increased to 9 by 1926) -function was to read with specific political disputes as they arose decisions had to be unanimous Secretariat -looked later(prenominal) on all the paperwork so that the decisions of the League could be carried out -provided statistical and in skeletal frameation service s and translation facilities -the first Secretary-General of the League, Sir Eric Drummond, had a by and large successful aim of building up a reliable body of civil servants who owed their main loyalty not nationally, but internationally Permanent court of justice of International Justice based at Hague in Holland consisted of 15 judge of different nationalities -dealt with legal disputes instead of political ones -covered all matters referred to it, especially those relating to the interpretation of international treaties and conventions -submission of disputes to the Court was voluntary Specialised Agencies International Labour Organisation -Objective to secure economic and social justice -aimed to fix maximum whole caboodle days and weeks, inspire appropriate wages for workers, lay down minimum entitlements for sickness, injury and old-age benefit and freedom for trade unions -all members of the League were members, and other willing states, like USA, could join Colonies and M andates fit out Covenant established the Mandate constitution for former Turkish and German colonies Allies saw themselves jump off by the 5th of Wilsons 14 points -resulted in a series of trusteeships whereby the territories were not annexed, but were held in trust by the victors under the supervision of LoN -each mandatory had to submit annually to the Commission an account of its stewardship -3 different types of mandates * Type A lands that appeared most ready for future independence, e. g. Iraq * Type B lands that were more backward, reckoned that 50 years would be needed before the mandate could be ended * Type C lands that were backward or isolated with no real prospect of independence Refugees Committee originally the High Commission of Refugees to deal with Russian and Armenian refugees displaced by the war -became the Nansen Office in 1930 under the direction of Fridtjof Nansen -solved the problems of thousands of POWs marooned in Russia at the end of the war half a mi llion were returned home -after 1933, help was given to thousands fleeing national socialist persecution in Germany disarmament Commission - do no progress in the near impossible task of persuading members states to reduce armaments, though they had all promised to do so when they agreed to the Covenant Work of the League in 1920s Aaland Islands (1920) Parties Involved Finland and Sweden details -Aaland Islanders destinyed to be part of Sweden because of their cultural ties Action interpreted by LoN -set up commission to inquire -recommend that Aaland remain part of Finland -proposed that Swedish culture be safeguarded Evaluation -successful as a supporting solution due to acceptance from both parties Vilna (1920-1923) Parties Involved Poland and Lithuania Details both countries claimed the town of Vilna, the capital of Lithuania which had a majority Polish population Action taken by LoN -negotiated an armistice but was broken by Polish Army which seized Vilna -commission was se t up to recommend new touch but was rejected - assemblage of Ambassadors stepped in and proposed that Vilna be given to Poland Evaluation -League played significant role, but was overshadowed by CoA, and its weakness when faced with Polish exaltation of Vilna by force had been obvious Upper Silesia (1921) Parties Involved Germany and Poland Details each claimed Upper Silesia Action taken by LoN -set up commission to investigate -plebiscite held majority wanted to return to Germany -LoN awarded most of the area to Germany, but left an important industrial district in Poland Evaluation -successful in upholding self-determination did not result in further dispute Corfu (1923) Parties Involved Albania, Greece and Italy Details -frontier mingled with Albania and Greece undecided by CA -Italian ambassador, General Tellini was dispatch in northern Greece -Mussolini displace an ultimatum to Greece demanding an apology, punishment of culprits and compensation of 50m lira -Greek rejectio n led to Italian bombardment and occupation of Corfu -Italy thus broke the League Covenant Action taken by LoN came up with a reasonable scheme Greeks were to place 50m lire in a Swiss bank pending an enquiry into the murders, and Greeks accepted -however, LoN was overruled by CoA Italians claimed that League had no right to consider the question at all, as it was the agents of the CoA that had been murdered -after Italy threatened to leave LoN, League Council passed the responsibility to CoA -plan was speedyly altered, and Greek money was transferred to Italy Evaluation -League had allowed the decision to be taken from its hands its plan was perverted by CoA, where Italian diverge was intemperate -Italian attack, contempt many individual condemnations, had not been officially branded as ill will -although war was averted, a Great Power had bullied a small nation -members of the League did not want to risk war however, Mussolini was shaken by the fierceness of the universal atta cks on his actions in the Assembly, and was less threatening Greek-Bulgarian Border Dispute (1925) Parties Involved Greece, Bulgaria Details -fighting in October 1925 between Bulgarians and Greeks on their border -Bulgaria appealed for help as it had been severely limited by Treaty of Neuilly it managed to take a some metres of Greek territory, musical composition the Greeks advanced over 5km on a wide front Action taken by LoN -Council was summoned to a special meeting in Paris sent neutral officers for negotiations -League threatened economic boycott O.K. up by a naval demonstration Greeks gave way Evaluation prevention of a Greek-Bulgarian war, which could gift spread, was a triumph for the League, which was firm and decisive during this crisis -however, it was famed that this was due to the states involved being minor origins, no Great Power was involved on either side, and the British and French authoritiess had been willing to back the Councils attitude Northern Chaco D ispute (1928-1936) Parties Involved Bolivia, Paraguay Details -Both Bolivia and Paraguay claimed northern Chaco, a enormous circle of territory, 400km across between them -minor skirmishes broke out frequently in 1928 and again in 1932 these turned into full-scale war Action taken by LoN -commission was sent to investigate produced blueprint for disentanglement and solution -Paraguay refused to accept, as they were triumphant at the time -imposed arms embargo on both countries, resulted in Paraguay withdrawing from LoN -war eventually petered out with both states exhausted signed a peace accordance based on Leagues plan Evaluation League could have taken action to impose peace on the countries had its members threatened to use force -situation was clouded by other parties, like other South American countries and US -dispute made many reflect how much more good LoN would be if US was a member Work of the League in the 1930s Manchuria (1931) Parties Involved Japan, China Details - Japan invaded Manchuria and China appealed to the League Action taken by LoN -commission under Lord Lytton concluded that both sides were at fault and Machuria should be governed by the League -Japan rejected this and withdrew from the League in knock against 1933 -economic and military sanctions were not applied as Britain and France were economically weak and did not want to risk war with Japan, which they were ill-equipped to win Evaluation Japan successfully defied the League whose prestige was damaged but not fatally -League was seen to be weak as it was unable to stick to its main ideals of collective security against aggressive powers such as Japan -well-being of various League members was seen to be more important than world peace Leticia (1932-1934) Parties Involved Peru, Colombia Details -Peruvian soldiers seized Leticia in 1932 -it was important to Colombia as it was her only direct outlet to the Amazon River -Colombia tried to retake Leticia but the Peruvians extended their invasion using aircraft -Colombia then appealed to the League Action taken by LoN -the League decided in favour of Colombia and persuaded the Peruvians to withdraw -Leticia was under the League for a year and in 1934, was peacefully returned to Colombia Evaluation although it was seen to be a success as collective security was enforced, the League was not truly tested as both countries were minor powers and could not hold their own against bigger members of the world order World Disarmament Conference (1932-1934) Parties Involved Member states of the League Details -was a grave disappointment -Germany asked for equality of disarmament with France, but France demanded it to be postponed for 8 years -Hitler used Frances attitude to withdraw Germany from the conference and later from the League in 1933 -In that year, France completed the building of the Maginot Line which fortified her eastern frontier showed that France was rearming instead of disarming Evaluation Disarmament fa iled as the powers wanted security over equality of armaments -Britain and France were also militarily weak and were afraid of the USSR and Italy Abyssinia (1935) Parties Involved Italy, Abyssinia Details -Italy invaded Abyssinia Action taken by LoN -the League condemned Italy and introduced economic sanctions, but they were not applied to coal, steel and oil -the sanctions were half-hearted and were soon abandoned as they did not want to antagonize Mussolini to keep him from allying with Hitler Evaluation -was a complete sorrow of the League as they were seen to be weak since they backed down from aggressors -Mussolini was annoyed by the sanctions in any case and drew side by side(predicate) to Hitler -small states lost all faith in the LoN -Hitler was encouraged by incompetence of LoN to break ToV LoN was never taken seriously again after 1935 Mussolini Mussolini Fascism = a system of regime with centralised authority under a dictator -usually involves terror, censorship, patr iotism Rise of Mussolini Cumulative (Long term) Disappointment at ToV -Italy was originally a member of the Central Powers -Allies promised Italy Trentino, South Tyrol, Istria, Trieste, part of Dalmatia, Adalia, some Aegean islands and a protectorate over Albania -Italy given first 4, however, others were allocated to other states, mainly Yugoslavia, with Albania comely independent -led to Italians feeling cheated as they had fought during WWI and lost loaded to 700,000 men Fiume Incident whilst not promised Fiume, Italians had failed to capture it during WWI -dAnnunzio and his supporters seized Fiume and held it against the Yugoslavs for 15 months -PM Giovanni Giolitti decided that the Governments authority should be restored and sent the Army to re track down dAnnunzio and his supporters -angered the people as dAnnunzio was regarded a national hero Post-war Economic problems -effects of war on Italy were disastrous -Italy was heavily in debt as it had borrowed heavily from USA - cost of living increased by 5 times due to fall in value of the lira (5 lira to 1 USD in 1914 to 28 lira to 1 USD in 1921) -massive unemployment * Post-war cut backs * Returning servicemen Dissatisfaction at the parliamentary system -votes for all men and proportionate representation were introduced for 1919 elections -problems of proportional representation Large number of political points * 9 parties from across the political spectrum * No clean majority coalition authoritiess and 5 cabinets with shaky majorities * No undifferentiated policies * System seemed to prevent decisive government Contributory (Short term) Strikes of 1919-1920 -industrialisation of Italy led to development of a strong collectivist party and trade unions -organised a wave of strikes to disagree at Italys problems Popularity of Fascists -provided the illusion of strength when Italians were disillusioned with democracy -initially anti-monarchy, anti-church and anti-big-business -poor results in 1919 el ections led to changes -Pro-big-business Mussolini came out as the defender of private enterprise and party * light-emitting diode to monetary support from the big businesses * Formation of communist party in Jan 1921 led to more support -Supported the church * Made concillatory speech about Roman Catholic Church * Church saw Mussolini as a good anti-communist weapon -dropped republicanism (election of head of state) * King looked favourably upon Mussolini thereafter Ineffective Opposition to Fascists -anti-fascist groups failed to befriend -communists refused to cooperate with the socialists and vice versa both groups were also opposed to the nationalists -PM Giolitti wanted the support of the Fascists after the 1921 elections 1921 elections Fascists only won 35 seat versus 123 won by socialist -socialists refused to cooperate with nationalists -thus allow Fascists to get into power Critical (triggers) Attempted General Strike -socialists called for general strike in 1922 -Fas cists claimed that if the government was unable to control the strike, it would do so undermined authority of government -socialist strike ended by itself due to lack of support -Mussolini claimed credit and made it look as if fascists stopped it March on Rome -Fascists felt confident enough to stage March on Rome -about 50 000 black shirts converged on the capital while others in use(p) important towns in the North government wanted to resist, but were overruled by the King - snake pit created by governmental crisis, fascist threat and the Kings move created confusion Italians saw this as further evidence of the governments inability to rule Actions of the King -King Victor Emmanuel II refused to declare a state of emergency -he instead invited Mussolini to form a new government -Fascists benefitted from the fear and confusion fostered the myth that they had seized power in a heroic struggle, by grasping many key communication facilities -resulted in widespread overestimation of the fascists ability to seize power -Kings role was crucial as he had decided not to use the army to stop the blackshirts the march was a bluff but it succeeded * Feared for a long civil war if the Army failed to crush Fascists apace * Feared he would be forced to step down by nationalists * Generals led him to believe that government forces were not strong enough to put down the anarchy appraisal of the situation was not well-informed The Fascist State Political Accerbo Law (Nov 1923) -changed the rules of the general elections -party which got the most votes in the election would be given two-thirds of the seating area in parliament -Apr 1924 elections Fascists and supporters gained 404 seats as opposed to 107 seats for their opponents -destroyed democracy in ItalyUse of Violence and Intimidation -1923Fascist Blackshirts were legalized to become the National State freewill Militia (MSVN) -1924use of violence and intimidation to develop Italian government on fascist lines Only Fascist Party was allowed -Opponents of the regime were exiled or murdered -1927OVRA, secret police Mussolini used to hunt down political enemies, placed them in concentration camps on islands off Italian coast -however, when Mussolini felt more secure, the violence was reduce Matteoti Crisis -Mussolini was paralysed by indecision -lost support among fascists and there was widespread parliamentary boycott -eroded Mussolinis position in Jan 1925 Mussolini inform he was expect dictatorial powers -only his supporters in Parliament King presented no threat -signaled the demise of any pretense to democratic rule, ushering end of free speech, free press and adoption of opposition -fascist militia was mobilized political parties were closed down and outlawed, newspapers came under fascist control -desertion of fascists during Crisis led to Mussolini purging the fascist party, to wipe out any independence among them had to swear oaths of allegiance Constitutional Changes -1925Prime cu rate (Mussolini) was responsible only to the King and not to the parliament -1926PM could rule by decree which meant that new laws passed did not need to be discussed by Parliament -1926electorate reduced from 10 million to 3 million -all decisions taken by Fascist Grand Council which did as Mussolini told -Mussolini was Il Duce and now had dictatorial powers -Changes in local government * Elected town councils and mayors were abolished * Towns were run by officials appoint from Rome Economic Employment policies promoted cooperation between employers to end class warfare in a Corporate State -only fascist-controlled unions had the right to negotiate for workers and both unions and employers associations were organized into corporations and were expected to work together to gruntle disputes -strikes were banned -193422 separate corporations dealing with separate industries -Mussolini hoped to control workers to direct production and the economy -compensation and benefits free Sund ays, annual holidays with pay, social security, sports and theatre facilities and cheap tours and holidays industrial and Agricultural Policies -drive for autarky (self-sufficiency) industry was encouraged with government subsidies led to doubling of steel production by 1930(was still low compared to other countries), 1937 production of hydro-electric power doubled -Battle for Wheat (1925) Get more farmers to grow wheat so that Italy would not have to spend money importing it increased wheat production led to wheat import reduced by 75% extra land used led to output of other crops going down -Battle for primer (1926) Removal of wasteland, included draining marshes and swamps, ploughing bare hillsides, clearing woodlands and improving irrigation to increase agricultural production groovyest effort put into draining the Pontine Marshes, a huge mosquito-infested swamp near Rome -Public Works Programme To reduce unemployment through building of motorways, bridges, blocks of flats, ra ilway stations etc. Battle for Lira (1926) Mussolini revalued the lira far too high, at 90 to the sterling pound instead of 150 in an examine to show Italy had a strong silver, led to reduced orders as Italian exports were more expensive on the world market workers suffered wage reductions Social Censorship -strict press censorship was enforced -anti-fascist newspapers and magazines were banned -editors were replaced by fascist supporters -radio, films and theatre controlled the same way fosterage supervised -all education was closely supervised -teachers had to wear uniforms and new text passwords were written to glorify the fascist system -children and teenagers forced to join government youth organisations -indoctrination to ensue Il Duce and war was glorified -Total obedience to authority Believe, obey, fight Understanding with the Pope -papacy had been hostile to the Italian state -initially sympathetic to Mussolini in 1922 Pope Pius XI growingly disapproved of totalitaria nism of the Fascists -Mussolini played on fear of fabianism by Vatican and signed the Lateran Treaty of 1929 which recognized the Vatican City as a sovereign state and paid the Pope a large sum of money as compensation for all his losses -payment in the form of state bonds Church had vested economic have-to doe with in the regime needed to ensure stability and support -Treaty also recognized Catholicism as the official state religion and made religious instruction compulsory in all schools -Vatican recognized the kingdom of Italy Hitler Hitler Weimar majority rule/Rise of Hitler Constitution of Weimar Republic 4 August 1919 The constitution established * A federal government of upper and lower houses * A German republic under a chairwoman * The principle that political power derives from the people The President * Was directly elected by the people for a seven-year term * Had the power to appoint/dismiss the prime minister and ministers * Was commander-in-chief of the armed forc es * Was given emergency powers under article 48 of the constitution to suspend parliament and rule by decree The Parliament consisted of two houses * Reichsrat Upper House which had 66 seats representing the states in the German federation * Reichstag Lower House the chancellor formed the government in the Reichstag, with 421 deputies, each party was allocated seats in the Reichstag according to their proportion of the total vote -weakness of proportional representation -no one party gained an absolute majority -allowed splinter parties, some with extremist policies to gain at least some seats -led to mental unsoundness in the parliament for a coalition made up of a number of parties was necessary to form a government Events of Weimar Republic Treaty of Versailles (1919)Aim to signify surrender of Germany and acceptance of war guilt * was humiliating and unpopular, and led Germans to see the Weimar government as working with the enemy * arms limitations, reparations and war guilt clause in ToV being accept by the Weimar government led to it being associated with defeat and dishonor Outcome Weimar started on a weak footing, with little respect for politicians, as Germany was rooted in militaristic tradition with strong leaders like Bismarck Spartacist wage hike (1919) Aim to take over the government inspired by communist revolution in Russia * was a sign of weakness of the Weimar government as it had to depend on private forces, in this case the Freikorps, which it did not itself control to defeat the communists Kapp Putsch (1920) * Right-wing groups tried to seize power * Revealed the chaotic situation * Rebels were also not punished duly * Revealed weakness of Weimar and led to disillusionment with democracy Ruhr Invasion (1923) * Due to German inability to pay reparations Paralysis of Ruhr industry and governments determination to maintain strike pay and other benefits in retaliation to the French led to hyper ostentatiousness * Suffering by the people, poor economic care and inability to deter the French led them to think that Weimar was weak * Public opinion swung in favour of right wing extremists like the national socialists Munich Putsch (1923) Aim to overthrow the government and seize power Outcome Evidence of groups wanting to overthrow government showed lack of support from people and even authorities (e. g. judges during Hitlers trial) as they had little faith in democracy Golden Years (1924-1929) * Relatively stable catamenia led by Gustav Streseman who * Introduced new currency (retenmark) and called off strikes in Ruhr, as he perspective it had caused a severe strain on German economy and led to great political instability * Signed Dawes and Young Plan Locarno Treaties and Kellogg Briand Pact (worlds major nations renounced war as an instrument of national policy) * Restored diplomatic status of Germany by signing supra pacts as they gained the goodwill of Western Powers allowed Germany to be admitted into LoN with a permanent seat in the Council Outcome Relatively stable period due to good leadership, financial help from the US and reparations being decreased, however, Germanys prosperity was reliant on US loans to sustain itself Great Depression * World economic crisis due to skirt Street Crash * US seized all the loans and called in short term loans * Plunged German economy into recession again * Unemployment hit 6million Outcome Government came under great criticism for lack of decisive action Working class sour about unemployment and cutting back of benefits Government on verge of collapse as people gravitated to alternative political groups Nazi Party 1914-1918 WWIHitler was a corporal, war developed political ideas later popularized by Nazis e. g. iktat/ repudiate ToV/ stab in the back theory 1919 Hitler joined German Workers Party in Munich where he was employed by the army to turn soldiers against pacifist democratic ideas initially small and ineffective, later merged with another an d renamed Nazi Party 1920 Under Hitlers leadership, party became more effective-oratory skills-charisma-fund-raising ability-Rohm instructed to reorganize SA by 1923, had an organized, private armyWithout Hitler, the Nazis would have been one of dozens of small, disintegrating political parties 1923 Munich Putsch lessons learned-seize power legally in future-Hitler now a figure of national renown, Nazi ideas publicized 1924-1929 With economic stability under Stresemanm Nazis growth was stunted 1930 Reichstag elections, Chancellor Bruning headed unstable coalition-invited Hitler to join declined as uninterested in sharing power Mar 1932 -elections for President Hitler stood as candidate huge national exposure and publicity for Nazi ideas polled credibly Jul 1932 Chancellor von Papen replaced Bruning in May, but coalition became change magnitudely unstable so elections were called Nazis were single largest party but Hitler refused invitation to join coalition government Nov 1932 196 seats showed decreasing Nazi popularity as depression eased coalition government became increasingly unworkable so Hindenburg appointed Schleicher as Chancellor in December unable to get Reichstag to work with him so Hitler was appointed as Chancellor due to political intrigue by mainly Papen and Schleicher Nazi beliefs Hitler knew that the Germans were looking for someone to blame for their troubles so he gave them plenty of enemies * For example, the stab in the back theory claimed that the German army had never been defeated but had been let down by Jews and communists at home those who signed the truce were the November Criminals * However, this was untrue as it was General Ludendorff who had told the civilians that they must sign a peace treaty as the army could no longer defend Germany * Hitler also blamed ToV for most of Germanys troubles * He claimed it was an unfair dictated peace which had taken much land from Germany * Hitlers promise to ignore the Versailles settlement if he came to power impressed young officers and iron and steel manufacturers, who had much to gain from a rearmed Germany * Demand for Anschluss was supported by many Germans * Denuciated democracy as weak and ineffective pleased many as well * His promise of a few socialist measures gained him many working-class votes * Most importantly, he offered Germans a simple solution everything would be all right if the Jews were deprived of all money and power, or the communists crushed, or the November criminals hanged, or that Germany just had to break ToV to become great again Rapid Growth of Nazis * From 1920-1923, the Nazi party saw rapid growth The party adopted its distinctive characteristics like the emblem and salute, and had a newspaper where Hitler denounced the ToV * Htler also organized the SA to protect the Nazi meetings and disrupt the meetings of other parties Munich Putsch * The French occupation of Ruhr allowed the Nazis to gain new and increased strength by denouncing th e ToV * On 8 November 1923, after only 4 years in politics, Hitler attempted a revolution, inspired by the fascists March on Rome the year before * However, Hitler had not made sure of the active support of the army, and he had forgotten that he was unknown outside of Bavaria, whereas Mussolini had been a national figure * Hitler was arrested and his party banned * However, many government officials had been in sympathy with him *His exploits at the trials received much publicity, dower him to become well-known outside Germany * He was sentenced the 5 years in prison and allowed parole * During this time, he laid down Nazi ideas in the book Mein Kampf * He also decided that the Nazis needed to gain power through legal means Golden Years under Streseman * Gustav Streseman intended to make Germany great again through peaceful means * Through the Dawes plan, and issuing of a new currency, Germany enjoyed a period of prosperity * The number of Nazis in the Reichstag dropped from 32 in May 1924 to 14 in December 1924 * Despite poor election results, the Nazi Party showed a sturdy growth during these years * Party membership increased from 27000 to 178000 It also began to have financial support from wealthy industrialists who saw that Nazis were anti-socialist and anti-communist * Hitler also strengthened his control of the party by forming his own bodyguard, the SS Great Depression, Nazi mass support * Weimar government failed to solve any grave economic problems of the day mass unemployment, inflation and industrial slump * Faced with economic hardship, Germans lost any faith they had in the democratic government * Middle class and working class were the most discontented as they had been ruined by 2 economic collapses within 6 years * Turned to 2 extreme parties for remedies, Nazis and communists * July 1932 Nazis won 230 seats, becoming largest party in Reichstag Hitler becomes Chancellor November 1932 Nazi votes dip, while Communist votes rise alarms influ ential businessmen and landlords ultraconservative Nationalists decided that their cause could be served by supporting Hitler * von Paper made a bargain with Hitler, where Hitler would be chancellor and von Papen be made vice-chancellor Hindenburg agreed as despite his contempt for Hitler, the Nazis seemed to be the only well-supported right-wing party which could protect Germany from communism Reasons for Nazi Success 1. privation of democratic tradition Weimar Republic was not trusted or respected by the people 2. Weimar failed in both domestic and foreign affairs a. ToV b. failure of Streseman to remove burden of reparations c. failure to recover lost territories d. little political stability due to coups from extreme right and left e. constitution encouraged brass of too many political parties which led to weak and unstable government 3. Onset of GD led to unemployment as workers turned to communists, landowners, industrialists, middle class and conservative right-wing politi cians turned to support Nazis 4.Hitler was an able leader, who convinced Germans he was a man of action and ideals Nazi programme promised everything to everybody 5. Like the Italian government, the German government lacked confidence to rule the country in times of crisis Consolidation of Hitlers dictatorship Reichstag Fire -on 27 February 1933, the Reichstag building was burned down and the communists were falsely criminate of using the fire as a signal for communist insurrection -under the guise of defending the country from a communist revolution, Hitler asked for emergency powers -suspended civil liberties Hitler used this to arrest 5000 communists -Hitler banned communist and socialist newspapers and made use of radio stations to broadcast Nazi propaganda Enabling Act despite Nazi influence on the votes, they did not fare well in the elections and only barely obtained a majority with the aid of the Nationalists -Hitler wanted to transfer all legislative power of the Reichstag to himself, but any change in constitution required a two-thirds majority in the Reichstag -Hitler arrested or excluded 81 communist deputies, and bribed the nationalists and centrists -thus, the Nazis outvoted the social democrats by 444 to 94 which gave Hitler unlimited power -Hitler could draft and pass any laws without the Reichstag -the German constitution was destroyed Elimination of Internal Rivals (Night of the Long Knives) -dealt with political rivals in the party -Ernst Rohm differed from Hitler on 3 important issues 1. Rohm thought that the SA helped bring the Nazis to power, so Hitler should reward them with government jobs. 2. Rohm wanted the SA and army to be merged 3.Rohm was interested in the socialist boldness of the partys programme and wanted Hitler to confiscate the property of wealthy people in Germany -Rohm commanded 2m SA troopers, and thus constituted a great threat to Hitlers political position -On June 30 1934, many SA leaders as well as other political o pponents were killed such as Strasser and Scleicher -Hitler achieve party solidarity Hitler becoming President -Hindenburg died in Aug 1934 -Hitler announced that he would combine in himself the offices of President and Chancellor -Thus, his personal dictatorship was now complete and the Third Reich was officially announced Nazi Germany Political Policies Social Policies Economic Policies Banned all political parties * Created a police state prevented any opposition to the regime by send political opponents to concentration camps * Trade unions were abolished, as they were a likely fountain of resistance, replaced by the German Labour Front employees were also forbidden to strike * Education system was closely controlled so that children could be indoctrinated with Nazi ideals textbooks were rewritten to support Nazi opinions * Was supplemented by youth organisations which aimed to destroy traditional bonds such as loyalty to the family and obey the Fuhrer instead * Dr Joseph Goebb els controlled the media ensured that opinions fit the Nazi system and thus moulded public opinion and ensured mass support * Wanted to bring the Catholic and Protestant churches under Nazi control * signed concordat with Pope in which Church recognized the regime and renounced all activity aside from purely religious acts in Germany, while Hitler guaranteed the Church of its historic rights, but the promise was soon broken the Catholics offered serious resistance to Nazi persecution from 1937 * Protestant churches were united under a Reich church which preached Nazi ideals Protestants which did not follow the new eachings were sent to concentration camps * Nazis encouraged racially pure couples to have more children as lineage rate was declining, gained support of mothers who felt that they were contributing those considered undesirable were discouraged from having children, and some were forcibly sterilized, marriages between Aryans and Jews were also banned Aims 1) To reduce une mployment 2) Build Germanys weapons industry 3) Achieve economic self-sufficiencyEmployment-public works programmes-larger bureaucracy-purge of Jews and anti-Nazis -rearmament Industrial/Economic production-German army was expanded conscription introduced gave profitable deals to businessmen, who in turn supported Nazis Autarky-encouraged farmers to increase agricultural yields-telling industrialists what to produce depending on needs However, despite numbers showing that unemployment had been solved, these figures hid certain facts women and Jews were ousted out of jobs to create vacancies and they were not counted as unemployedrearmament was also again ToV 1930 Road to War Road to WarGreat Depression continues (1929-approximately mid 1930s)War self-assertive Foreign Policy Rise of Militarism Rise of extremist parties and regimes London Naval Conference reduction in naval build-up (role of League) 1931 Mukden Incident, Invasion of Manchuria * Japan had vested economic interest in Manchuria stationed the Kwantung army in Manchuria to protect its assets gained by wars with China * However, its control of Manchuria was threatened when Chiang Kai-shek took over and set up the National Government * They were worried that the Manchurian warlord, Zhang Zuolin would gang up with Chiang to oppose their domination of Manchuria * Mukden Incident assassinated Zhang by dynamiting his train * Showed increasing Japanse militarism and weakening Japanese democracy * Strengthened Chinese nationalism as Zhang Xueling wanted vengeance * Great Depression prompted them to take more serious action foreign conquest would guarantee more trade, more raw materials and more jobs start in Manchuria, since Kwantung Army was in place * 18 September 1931 Kwantung Army occupied town of Shenyang, claiming that Chinese soldiers had tried to blow up the South Manchurian railway * Despite protests by LoN, Japanese soldiers went on to occupy the rest of Manchuria 1932 Manchukuo established * Japan declared Manchuria independent and put emperor butterfly Puyi on the throne, but he was a figurehead, and the real rulers were officers of the Kwantung Army * Lytton report condemned Japanese invasion and suggested possibility of separate state in Manchuria World Disarmament Conference 933 Japan leave League * League voted on Lytton report Japanese delegation left the Assembly and later leaves League * League was seen to be powerless when faced with opposition of a great power * Nothing could be done to prevent Japans withdrawal or to force the Japanese to accept the Report * Japan had set an example which Hitler and Mussolini were to follow Hitler becomes Chancellor * Hitlers foreign policy was aggressive * Preached German world domination, overthrowing of ToV and check living space which ultimately involved the use of force and war Germany leaves League and WDC * Hitler openly rejected disarmament clause * No longer bound by LoN and was free to pursue rearmament * Incre ase possibility of Germany and Japan using force as a foreign policy tool * Countries also started rearming rise chances of war 1934 Poland and Germany sign non-aggression pact * Settled previous disputes over Danzig and territorial boundaries, and was seen by Britain and France as Hitlers first step to building diplomatic dealings * Hitlers bluff worked Britain and France got a false sense of security and pursued appeasement policy * Polish neutrality was also assured if Germany annexed Austria and Czechoslovakia Geneva Conference collapses Attempted Anschluss * ToV forbade Austrias union with Germany * In 1934, Austrian Nazis assassinated the Chancellor and asked for German help * The new chancellor appealed to Mussolini, who did not want a strong Austria-Germany on his frontier * Italian military personnel were rushed to Brenner Pass and Hitler called of his plans * Peace was maintained only by threat of force and Mussolinis dislike of Hitler * Hitlers aggressive foreign pol icy was revealed * Revealed need to work with Italy 1935 Saar plebiscite voted to return to Germany * Rich in coalfields and other industries helped German rearmament * Boosted Hitlers confidence in xpanding the Third Reich announced conscription and rearmament German rearmament Hitler announces conscription * Was not seen as an aggressive move but rather an economic policy to rebuild Germanys shattered economy * 1st successful breach of ToV * Vital step towards preparation for war and world domination Stresa Front * Joint effort by Britain, France and Italy to resist attempt to revise ToV and issued strong protests at Hitlers actions to breach ToV * Fact that these powers came together showed that the League was ineffective * Did not last due to Anglo-German naval agreement showing British condoning German rearmament and Italian aggression through Abyssinia invasion Anglo-German Naval Agreement * Made sure that Germany did not become stronger than Britain * Ensure a strong Ger many to keep communism at bay Hitler was firmly anti-communist * Treaty was a breach of ToV showed hollowness of the Front * Diplomatic triumph for Hitler as Britain recognized German right to rearm Italian invasion of Abyssinia * Showed weakness of LoN no longer an effective peacekeeping organization * Stresa Front was weakened as Italy drew closer to Germany * Hitler was more confident of using force to achieve his foreign policy aims as Britain and France could be seen to be unwilling to resist aggression 1936 Hitler reoccupies the Rhineland * Hitler took a run a risk as German forces were outnumbered by better-armed French troops * Successful reoccupation and remilitarization due to lack of British and French action the region was described as only his own backyard and neither country were prepared for war * Britain and France were occupied with Abyssinia * Hitlers confidence to use force was boosted Spanish civilized War begins * important practice for troops and air crew e. g.German Luftwaffe air raids in Madrid and Guernica * Britain was horrified with the destructive power of the air force and was determined not to put in as Spain was remote * Due to appeasement policy, Hitler was convinced that Britain and France would not act against aggression * Strengthened German-Italian alliance, fostered closer ties Rome-Berlin Axis * Formalized political and military relations form Abyssinia invasion which had German support and Spanish civil war Anti-Comintern Pact * United front to stand up against and destroy communism between Italy, Germany and Japan * Closer relations between aggressive nations who were no longer in LoN * Led to growing confidence 1937 Second Sino-Japanese War begins * Beginning of Japanese expansion into Asia through aggression * War in China * Will later expand to SEA * Purely instigated by Japanese military in China and was condemned by democratic government * Showed that military held the most power * LoN failure to act gave Ja pan the impression that US would also do nought however, trade embargo was impose Italy joins Anti-Comintern Pact 938 Anschluss * Seyss-Inquart led an Austrian Nazi attempt to seize power, which was prevented by Chancellor Schuschnigg * Hitler threatened war unless Schuschnigg was made Minister of the Interior * Plebiscite was proposed to see if Austrians wanted Anschluss * Fearing negative results, Hitler rushed troops to the border, threatening an invasion and forcing Schuschnigg to resign, resulting in Seyss-Inquart becoming Chancellor * Hitler was invited to occupy Austria and ward off communist threat, and Austria became a province of Germany on 14 March * While a plebiscite showed that 99% of Austrians favoured the union, the remaining opposition was crushed * Hitlers act of expansion/aggression went unchecked * Appeasement policy by Britain and France increased the likelihood of further aggression Czechoslovakia Munich Conference and Czechoslovakian Crisis * Another case w here expansionism was achieved without bloodshed * Czechoslovakia lost 70% of her heavy industry and all her military fortifications * Provided Germany with mineral deposits and heavy industry boosted rearmament efforts * Hitler would be emboldened to retrieve all lost territory under ToV and even take on more land as part of his scheme to achieve world domination 1939 Memel reclaimed by Germany * Hitler was determined to restore all lost territory under ToV Germany makes demands on Poland Britain and France guarantee Polands safety Italy invades Albania * Revealed Italys ambition for empire and power * Increasingly felt like he paled in comparison to Hitler * Thus, he was pressured to keep up later declared war on Britain and France in 1940s to gain spoils of war Pact of stigma * Formalized military cooperation and alliance * Pledged to assist each other if one became involved in a military conflict * Mussolinis close alignment is reflective of his esire not to lose out in te rritorial gains * An attest to Hitlers plans to invade Europe * Doom for Italy that could not match Germanys military might as Hitler could not keep his end of bargain (to wait 3 years as Italy prepared for war) Nazi-Soviet Pact * Germany would not have to fight on 2 fronts as in WWI * Germany would conquer all of Western Europe and then strike Eastern Europe when lest expected * Bought time for USSR to build up its military * Without this pact, Germany would not have invaded Poland * Allowed Britain and France to see that Hitler was a trickster Poland invaded beginning of war in Europe I. The Russian variations Fall of the monarchy & the provisionary government The Russian Revolutions Fall of the monarchy & the provisional government February 1917 Revolution i. Causes of the Revolution Numerous defeats in World War I and crucial losses in important battles * Caused troops & police to mutiny left no one to defend the autocracy * War revealed the incompetent & corrupt organisati on and the shortage of equipment * czar had also appointed himself Supreme Commander of the Russian Army, but made tactical blunders and, on the whole, was unable to inspire the troops * Army morale dwindled due to consecutive defeats in important areas * People could now blame the Tsar for Russias decline * Thus, the Tsars incompetent leadership of the war resulted in numerous defeats, loss of lands, and a horrendous death toll, leading the army to rise up against the government to overthrow it to end the war * Famine and meagreness due to the state of the Russian economy, which had been ravaged by war * Wages could not keep up with the rise in prices of food due to inflation and the depreciation of the Russian rouble * Caused many people queuing for food to be turned away, creating dissatisfaction among the Russians, especially among the peasants * Tsar proved to be hopelessly inadequate at dealing with the economic problems the war created, and the suffering of the people event ually caused them to rise up against him in a bid for a better life * brusk governance and repressive, autocratic rule Tsars failure to keep promises such as land reforms * Duma kept changing Russia had 4 Dumas between 1905 to 1917 alone, which resulted in the situation whereby new-and-improved policies were unable to be implemented * All these hence led to greater hostility against the Tsar * Workers & soldiers later set up the Petrograd Soviet, a council of workers & soldiers taking control of the city * Tsar was eventually persuaded and forced to abdicate by his generals * Fall of autocratic government ii. Outcome of the February Revolution * A provisional government was set up by the Duma, headed by Prince Lvov as Prime Minister * Petrograd Soviet & the workers councils rivaled the provisional governments right to rule and insisted on its franchise to run the government II. October 1917 Revolution iii. Problems & Failures of the Provisional Government (PG) * Continuation of W WI Kerenskys June offensive was a disastrous failure * Lost the support of the Russian people, who thought the war was draining precious resources * Caused the collapse of army morale & discipline * Hundreds of thousands of troops deserted the army and abandoned the front lines * Dual power existed as the PG was challenged by the power held by the Petrograd Soviets, who tried to rule the city and commanded all the soldiers, deviation the PG without any military backup * The Petrograd Soviet was more popular amongst the people, and later the even the Army lent its support to them * PG also depended on the Petrograd Soviet for its legitimacy * Hence, when the Petrograd Soviet lucid all soldiers to obey only the Soviet, it meant that in the last resort, the PG could not rely on the support of the Army * PG delayed elections promised earlier, leading to loss of support * PG had assumed power, but had not been officially elected by the people of Russia * Claimed it would hold elections after the war as the troops would have returned and then be eligible to vote after fighting * However people did not elieve in it and felt that it was too long a duration to wait before the war ended as no one knew when the war would end * Promise of elections were hence not carried out, adding to unpopularity * Since they had not been voted in, the PG also had no legal power to give land away or start land reforms for the benefit of the peasants, who had earlier demanded land and sought the approval of the PG to provide land reforms * This thus angered the peasants, who began to seize land another incident which highlighted the fact that the PG had no control of the people * Allowed rednesss to use peasant discontent to win support * Return of Lenin * Lenin returned to Russia from exile in Switzerland with German aid * April Theses urged that the Bolsheviks should cease to support the PG, that all power should be taken by the Soviets, and that Russia should withdraw from the war * Promise of Peace, Bread & Land gave hope t and appealed to the masses against the increasing economic chaos * Posed a new challenge to the provisional government * July Days Massive demonstrations of workers, soldiers & sailors, to demand for the PG to give up their power to the Soviet * PG brought in troops to restore order later condemned the Bolsheviks for trying to stage an uprising * Also made false claims that Lenin was a German spy * Led to a rapid decline in support for the Bolsheviks, eventually causing Lenin and other important leaders to flee for their safety into Finland * After this incident, Lenin decided it was too early to revolt as the Bolsheviks had to gain more support from the people and realize his mistakes * Better and more careful planning for the next attempt at Revolution was also required as Lenin now also realized that the PG was well aware of their rising power and would take efforts to bring it down and deter its attempts at Revolution * Prince Lvov, head of the Provisional Government at that time, finally resigned and was replaced by Kerensky over his failure to deal with the instability * Kornilov Affair Severely embarrassed the PG as it showed that they did not have control over their own soldiers * Kornilov, Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Army, had originally viewed the Bolsheviks as traitors and had decided to move against the Soviets , but his soldiers mutinied * Army discipline was on the verge of collapse, public opinion swung against the war and in favour of the Bolsheviks, who was the only party to talk openly about making a separate peace * Kerensky had initially ordered Kornilovs arrest, but his army refused to cooperate, and Kerensky had to rely on the Petrograd Soviet for help against the uprising * PG was therefore seen as weak * By this time the Bolsheviks were seen favourably and were garnering increasing support iv.In October Trotsky and the rest of the Bolshevik Red Guard launched a silent, bloodless attac k against the PG in the middle of the night, seizing key power blocs and resulting in the birth of the first Communist Government * This attack was planned by Trotsky himself, highlighting his true brilliance as the plan was a success War Communism I. Popularity i. In a nutshell, war communism was a military success, but an economic failure ii. It was simply harsh economic measures and labour control to serve war needs iii. Nationalization of the segments & industries of the economy that effectively controlled & supported the others, such as oil, railroads, banking & steel the Commanding Heights iv. Rationing of basic goods & services v.However, the Bolshevik government eventually resorted to coercion when exhortation & persuasion failed II. Aims vi. To prevent the total collapse of the economy vii. Mobilize resources to defend communism from its enemies during the Civil War, eventually channeling sufficient resources for a Bolshevik victory over the Whites viii. Strict labour cont rol ix. Putting the Marxist ideal of a collectivised economy into practice III. culture x. Grain requisitioning * Peasants were forced to give up their excess grain so that the workers in the factories & soldiers at the warfront could be fed Peasants vehemently objected to this * Uncooperative peasants were thus nip and killed A few peasants even destroyed their crops and harvest rather than have them seized, as many felt that it was unfair to them * As a result, a few peasants planted fewer crops the following season so that they would have less crops in excess * Significance was that food production decreased, causing the bulk of the population to be affected by starvation, and this remained a problem throughout the Civil War xi. Land Nationalisation * 1917 Decree * Broke up larger estates * Land, together with the tools & livestock, were to be distributed to the peasants * 1918 Decree * Declared that the land, originally taken away from the kulaks, now officially belonged to th e state * Peasants had the right to cultivate it * The next step the Bolsheviks took was to collectivize the land, but this failed in the end IV. Industry xii. Commanding Heights nationalized Met with great resistance, causing supporters to revolt * Jun 1918 all large-scale industry was nationalized without compensation * End 1918 all enterprises employing more than 10 workers were nationalized * Local soviets later extended this to all enterprises in their area V. Labour/ Workers xiii. Rationing * Those not producing their own food were allotted rations according to their avail * Workers & soldiers got the most, since they contributed the most to the Russian society * Professionals got significantly lesser rations than the workers * Class enemies got nothing Incurred the wrath of many people, as many found it discriminating & unfair * Workers were made to work in return for their ration cards no work, no rations * Strikes were made illegal, hence people could only suffer in silen ce and could not complain * Eventually, people bartered their possessions in the black market in a desperate bid to gain more food and essentials xiv. Labour Conscription (1920) * galore(postnominal) workers had fled/ returned to the countryside to look for food after being convinced that the city had nothing more to provide for them * Hence, the Bolsheviks needed to bring them back to work in the factories, since a lack of manpower meant a sharp decline in production, and this in turn entailed a turbulent period for the state * Thus, they resorted to conscription * All unions were state-controlled Ensured no strikes took place, since strikes meant production also stalled * Membership was compulsory as Russia needed to increase production * Workers had to volunteer an extra day of unpaid work for the pastime of building Socialism xv. Wage incentives * Payments would gradually increase for every year that person worked VI. Trade xvi. No private trade was allowed * Black market thri ved during the Civil War xvii. Bolsheviks made a rather beneficial move by abolishing the monetary system as they had known that during the war their currency would depreciate because of the suspicion VII. Failures of Collectivization xviii.Widespread resistance to collective & soviet farms * Significant as 80% of the population was still living in the countryside, generating more than 50% of the national income * apology thus served as a admonition to the government that if they did not do anything to improve the situation soon, the Russian economy would almost certainly collapse * Peasants, seeing no point in working hard to produce food which was taken away from them without compensation, simply produced enough for their own needs xix. Depopulation of cities/ Food shortages * Workers were leaving in droves to the countryside to look for food and other prospects * Industry came to a standstill * Some attempted to buy and/or beg for food, but most failed to even make ends meet * Thus in Aug 1920, Moscow lost ? f its population, while Petrograd nearly 2/3 in the same period * Those who stayed in the cities had little, if any, food to survive on * As a result, in 1921 7 million in the cities starved to death * Significance Bolsheviks lost their main source of supporters the workers xx. Workers Strike * In January 1921 the already-meager bread rations to large population centres were once again cut by 1/3 * The workers of 64 large factories in Petrograd could last the suffering no longer, and went on strike * Demanded larger food rations * Wanted the restoration of the Workers Council & trade unions as their representatives * Soon became disillusioned with the Bolsheviks, and many thought the trade unions would be able to do a better job in looking after them xxi. Peasant Uprisings Russia was hit by plenty of natural disasters during the period of Civil War, such as droughts, dust, locusts, destroying much of the peasants crops and their main source of foo d * With the introduction of war communism, this took away everything from them, even grain seed * Culminated in large-scale peasant uprisings from 1920-1921 * E. g. In Feb 1921 there were 118 major peasant uprisings in various parts of the country xxii. Sailors Mutiny * Sailors at the Kronstadt naval base near Petrograd mutinied * Demanded an end to the Communist Party dictatorship * Wanted freedom of speech & fresh elections Suppressed only through prompt action by Trotsky, who sent troops across the ice on the frozen sea * They had been significant Bolshevik supporters, rooting for them from the very beginning * Thus their rebellion was a serious warning to the government * As a