Political Aspect: The Rise of Nazism

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Many parties appeared during time of crisis inside Germany, which affected mostly the political and economical aspects. After the First World War, Germany became a democracy. Parties as the Social Democrats and Liberal ones started flourishing. Lots of money was lost because of the war, so inflation was produced as a consequence of it. Over five million people were unemployed. Many people felt fear because they didn’t want to fall back into the poverty of the 19^th century.

The German National Socialist Party gained popularity and strength even though it was neither particularly nationalist nor socialist. This party followed the ideas of Nazism. Nazism was an ideology established by Adolf Hitler which varied from fascism because of the integration of biological racism and anti - Semitism; it followed the idea of being against communism and Jewish subversion. Nationalists parties and the Nationalist Socialist German Workers Party (NSDAP) blamed the democratic constitutions of the Treaty of Versailles as the “principal cause” of the chaos produced inside the country. But over this, they blamed the Jewish because their mentality believed that the German workers were being ruined by “Jewish Capital” and threatened by "Jewish Bolshevism" that wants to turned them into slaves.

In 1929, the "Great Economic Depression” happened because Wall Street stock market drop. This made Germany’s situation unstable and delicate. The European Country was in a completely chaos and didn’t see a way to go through and come out from the food riots and struggles in the street during nights. At this point, Hitler appeared with a new idea that would create a revolutionary feeling in German people, in order to have a solution for their despair. His proposal was Nazism, which promised to restore Germany's honor and glory for a Großdeutschland (Greater Germany), by pursuing the aim of getting back the "true" values and "true" traditions Germany used to have and by renewing the political order so then, “work and bread” are back. They showed these aims with aggressive propaganda and violence, that way, they created fear in Germans so they were, in a way, obligated to join the Nazis. The Nazi Party didn’t have a majority in the government; the most they got was 3% and never increased that number, but in the elections of 1932, they became the strongest party and Adolf Hitler was named Reich chancellor. Because of this, Nazism started gaining power, so their influence expanded in people, finishing in the dictatorship of Hitler and the Nazis Party.

The rise of Nazism led to the killing of millions of Jews and innocent people, this ideology is recognized as the protagonist of one of the greatest crime against humanity recorded in history.

Political Aspect: The League of Nations (failures)

 

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The League of Nations (LON) was an intergovernmental organization founded as a result of the Paris Peace Conference that ended World War I, and was the precursor to the United Nations (as it can be described in many web pages).

In the 1930’s, the Economic Crisis affected every single aspect of life during that period, that’s why, the League of Nations was able to recognize their failures which demonstrated their weakness. In the League’s Covenant is stated: "Any war or threat of war is a matter of concern to the whole League and the League shall take action that may safeguard peace." This means that any conflict between nations, which ended in war and therefore, the victory of one state over another, had to be seen as a failure from the League.

As a first problem, in 1919, the League of Nations had to face in north Italy the angered induced by the well known “Big Three”. Italian nationalists thought that at the Treaty of Versailles, some promises were broken. In the Treaty, the port of Fiume was given to Yugoslavia. An Italian nationalist called d’Annunzio governed this port for about 15 months. The Italian government couldn’t accept that the nationalist was apparently more popular than them, so they put explosives in the port of Fiume and forced him to give up. In this situation, the League didn’t play a big part and neither looked up for a specific solution, despite it just set up the specific task of keeping peace between nations.

The second problem the League had to face was at Teschen, a small town between Poland and Czechoslovakia. Teschen was important because it had valuable coalmines there, which were wanted by both the Poles and the Czechs. Both nations were recently created, soy they wanted to make their economies as strong as they could and with the acquisition of rich coalmines, they would be able to achieve their goal, having also good results and creating security in people with an “established” economy. In January 1919, the Polishes and Czechs troops fought against each other in the streets of Teschen, at this event, many innocent people died. So far, the League of Nations was called for help and decided that the majority of the town should go to Poland while Czechoslovakia should acquire one of Teschen’s suburbs. This suburb will have the most valuable coalmines, that is why the Poles refused to accept this type of solution. Even though no more violence happened, neither fights nor struggles, there was a continuous argue between both countries for the next twenty years.

Years before 1920, the capital city from Lithuania had been taken over by the big Russia. Because of this, the 30% of the population was from Poland and the 2% were Lithuanians. So in 1920, Poland took Vilna. At this point, Lithuania asked the League for help but it was impossible to persuade the Poles to leave. Vilna stayed in Poland until the outbreak of World War Two, when the Poles forced them to leave.

In the same year, Poland invaded land held by the Russians, attacking the army. So then, by 1921, the Russians had the only choice of signing the Treaty of Riga, on which they gave Poland nearly 80,000 square kilometers, so they doubled their size.

These are some of the reasons why it is thought that the League of Nations failed so many times, on which it is able to recognize many others such as:

1.    Italy left the League in 1937 and with them, few other countries left the League too.

2.    In 1938, Britain and France tried to establish a new policy 'appeasement' which was basically on negotiating directly with Hitler; in the next year, this policy failed when Hitler invaded Czechoslovakia.

3.    In 1939, when World War II broke out, the League When war broke out in 1939, the League disappeared and its seat inside Geneva remained empty and desolated throughout the war.

4.    In 1943, at a Conference in Tehran, America, Britain and Russia agreed with setting up of a new international organization, known as the United Nations, when war ended.

5.    On 12 April 1946, the League went to Geneva and abolished itself in a formal way. This was the turning point on which it was widely recognized the United Nations as the new “League of Nations”.

Political Aspect: The Anti-Comintern Pact

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The Anti-Comintern Pact was a treaty signed on November 25, 1936 by Nazi Germany and Japan on which they declared the opposition of both countries to communism and the Communist International (Comintern). A year later, on November 6, 1937, Mussolini’s Italy joined the pact and in 1939, Spain did too.

In October 1935, the idea, which many German Officials had for wanting to balance the various demands upon the Reich’s foreign policy, was debated that these types of alliances, an anti-Communist once, might be able to join the Kuomintang regime, Japan and Germany.

In order to avoid damaging relations with the Soviet Union, the Anti - Comintern Pact was only against the Comintern, but in fact, it also contained a secret idea behind the agreement, which established that in the case of either signatory power becoming involved in a war with the Soviet Union, the other signatory power would maintain benevolent neutrality.

If the Soviet Unit attacks Germany or Japan, the two countries agreed to consult each other on which measures should be taken "to safeguard their common interests". They also agreed that neither of them is allowed to make political treaties with the Soviet Union.

When Italy joined the pact in 1937, the group known as the Axis Powers was beginning to form.

In June 1935, the Anglo-German Naval Agreement was signed by the United Kingdom and Nazi Germany. This was the point which marked the beginning of a series of attempts by Adolf Hitler (principal character of Nazism) to improve relations between the two countries. Hitler also wanted to influence Poland and made an effort to make the Poles join the Anti-Comintern Pact, for this, he tried to convince them by presenting his idea of settling territorial disputes between Germany and Poland. However, Poland refused to Germany's terms, because they feared that an alliance with Hitler (“murderer”) would make from Poland a “German puppet state”.

Hitler also wanted to develop relations with Britain, but as with Poland, he failed. In August 1939, Germany broke the terms of the Anti-Comintern Pact because of the signing of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact. And finally, by 1940, Adolf Hitler started planning for an invasion of the Soviet Union.

Economical Aspect: The New Deal

When the Great Depression started, the U. S. economy broke down rapidly. Although the president Herbert Hoover was an optimist, the majority of people blamed him for this disaster.

After a couple of years in crisis, presidential elections came up in 1932. Obviously Hoover didn’t have a chance for a reelection, so Franklin Delano Roosevelt won.

President Franklin Delano Roosevelt

U. S. citizens had high expectations on President Roosevelt; they had hopes that he could solve all their difficulties. They deeply believed that he cared for the common best and he would end the depression.

As soon as Roosevelt took control he established several programs that became known as the New Deal. This New Deal programs were commonly called by their initials. For example AAA, Agricultural Adjustment Administration; CCC, Civilian Conservation Corps; WPA, Works Progress Administration and many others. These  project main objective was t reduce unemployment in the country.  

WPA, Works Progress Administration

Another measure Roosevelt took was to close all banks until they were stabilized enough to open. He introduced major changes in U. S. economy, using increased government regulations and massive public projects.  

For many, Roosevelt was a real hero, because his “New Deal” gave the government power and helped ease the Great Depression.

Looking at the big picture, it’s really uncertain to know how much Roosevelt plan helped to end the big economic crisis.  It is true that the “New Deal” relieve the lack of money of the crisis, however the economy in the U. S. by the end of the 1930s still extremely bad.

The major turn for the U.S. economy occurred after the bombing of Pearl Harbor and the entrance into World War II. Once the U.S. was involved in the war, both people and industry became essential to the war effort. Weapons, artillery, ships, and airplanes were needed quickly.

Men were trained to become soldiers and the women keep the factories going. Food was needed to grow for both, home front and overseas in war.

Despite this active intervention, mass unemployment and economic crisis continue. In 1939 at the World War II outbreak it started reducing in some way.

The Great Depression ended as nations increased their production of war materials at the start of World War II. This increased production provided jobs and put large amounts of money back into circulation.

 That is the reason why unemployment dropped rapidly as factories were busy with orders from overseas for armaments and munitions, needed for war.

The Great Depression officially ended completely in 1941.

Economical Aspect: The Dawes Plan

                                                                                           Charles G. Dawes

After the Great War, Germany had real difficulties paying the reparations agreed in the Treaty of Versailles; such the debt was set at almost 20 billion marks.

As it was expected the German government failed keeping up with the payments in 1923. The result of this made French and Belgian troops occupied the Ruhr. This was followed by massive inflation and the growth of unemployment in Germany.

Charles G. Dawes, an American banker, was asked by the Allied Reparations Committee to investigate this problem. His report was published in April, 1924. He proposed a plan for organization annual payments of reparations on a fixed scale. He intended to find a solution for the collection of the German reparations debt.

The Dawes Plan was the result of negotiations between Germany and the United States government and it was accepted by Germany and the Allies in 1924, therefore it prevent an international crisis.

He also recommended the reorganization of the German State Bank and the increase of foreign loans. So this large reduction in reparations payments was accompanied by a loan of $200 million from the US government which would allow for heavy investment in the German infrastructure.

On the other hand, some German politicians like Adolf Hitler and Alfred Hugenberg attacked the Dawes Plan because it did not reduce the reparations total payment. They also disliked the idea that foreigners would have control over Germany’s economy.

The plan involved paying reduced payments until 1929, when the situation would be re evaluate. The reparation payment should begin at 1 billion marks for the first year and should rise over a period of four years to 2.5 billion marks per year.

Associated to this agreement, there was the introduction of the new Reichsbank and the replacement of the old German Mark with the Rentenmark. The Dawes plan also provided for the slow but sure removal of French and Belgian troops. And that the German Reichsbank be reorganized under Allied supervision, and that the sources for the reparation money should include transportation, excise, and custom taxes.

Initially, the Dawes Plan was a great success. The money was stabilizing and inflation was under control. The large loans of U. S. and this investment resulted in reduce of unemployment. Germany was able to achieve their obligations under the Treaty of Versailles for the next five years.

Although German business picked up and reparations payments were made on time, it became obvious that Germany could not continue those huge annual payments any longer.

The Wall Street Crash created problems for the German economy. The reason why a new commission was created and another banker took control, Owen Young. The Young Plan was the replacement in 1929.

Economical Aspect: Great Depression

                                                        Black Tuesday, Stock Market Crash

The Great Depression, an immense tragedy that placed millions of Americans and people all over the world out of work, was the beginning of government involvement in the economy and in society.

After nearly a decade of optimism and prosperity, the United States was thrown into despair on October 29, 1929. The day the stock market crashed and the official beginning of the Great Depression. Thousands of investors lost large sums of money and many lost everything.

Masses of people tried to sell their stock, but no one was buying. The stock market, which had appeared to be the surest way to become rich, quickly became the path to bankruptcy.

The Wall Street crash was just the beginning. The following period was the longest and worst period of high unemployment and low business activity in modern times. Many people came to depend on the government or charity to provide them with food.

Since many banks had also invested large portions of their clients' savings in the stock market, these banks were forced to close. Seeing banks close caused panic across the country. Afraid they would lose their own savings, people rushed to banks that were still open to remove their money. This massive removal of cash caused more banks to close.

Businesses and industry were also affected. Having lost much of their own capital in either the market crash or the bank closures, many businesses started cutting back their workers' hours or salary. But some businesses couldn't stay open even with these cuts and soon closed their doors, leaving all their workers unemployed.

The Depression became a worldwide business crash on the 1930's that affected almost all nations.

These nations wanted to protect their domestic production by imposing tax, and raising existing ones. The effect of these restrictive measures was to greatly reduce the volume of international trade. Some nations changed their leader and their type of government.

The failure of so many banks, combined with a general and nationwide loss of confidence in the economy, led to reduced the levels of spending and demand and consequently of production.

United States had emerged from the war as the major creditor and financier of postwar. Countries whose economies had been weakened by the war itself, the case of Germany and other defeated nations, they needed the U. S. to pay war reparations. So once the American economy slumped and the American investment credits to Europe ended; prosperity collapse there as well.

In Germany, poor economic conditions led to the rise to power of the dictator Adolf Hitler. The Japanese invaded China, developing industries and mines in Manchuria. Japan stated this economic growth would relieve the depression. This militarism in Germany and Japan eventually led to World War II.

In the United States, President Herbert Hoover was detained when the Great Depression began. The economy continued to drop almost every month. And in 1932, Franklin D. Roosevelt was elected President.

Some people say that the Great Depression was caused by primary the imbalances in the U.S. economy, which was hidden by the boom psychology and euphoria of the 1920s.

                                              The Great Depression - History Channel

                                          The Great Depression of 1929  - Documentary

Social Aspect: Nuremberg Race Laws

At the annual party held in Nuremberg in 1935, the Nazis announced new laws which established many of the racial theories present in Nazi ideology. The laws excluded German Jews from citizenship giving them the status of "subjects" in Hitler's Reich and prohibited them from marrying, having sexual relations with persons of "German or related blood" or employing them as household help.

Massed crowds at the Nazi party rally in Nuremberg. Nuremberg, Germany, 1935.

The first two laws composing the Nuremberg Race Laws were: "The Law for the Protection of German Blood and German Honor" which referred to the Jewish marriage and "The Reich Citizenship Law" which made the Jews subjects.

These laws were soon followed by "The Law for the Protection of the Genetic Health of the German People," which required all persons wanting to marry to submit to a medical examination, after which a "Certificate of Fitness to Marry" would be issued if they were found to be free of disease. The certificate was required in order to get a marriage license.

The Nuremberg Laws did not define a "Jew" as someone with particular religious beliefs. These laws had the unexpected result of causing confusion and intense debate over who was a "full Jew." The Nazis then issued instructional charts to help distinguish Jews from Mischlinge (Germans of mixed race) and Aryans (person with blond hair and blue eyes of Germanic heritage). The Nazis defined a "full Jew" as a person with three Jewish grandparents, despite of whether the individual identified himself or herself as a Jew or belonged to the Jewish religious community. Those with less than three were designated as Mischlinge.

Many Germans who had not practiced the religion of Judaism for years found themselves caught in a big problem. Even people with Jewish grandparents who had converted to Christianity were considered as Jews.

For a brief period after Nuremberg, in the weeks before and during the 1936 Olympic Games held in Berlin, the Nazi regime decided to moderate its anti-Jewish attacks and even removed some of the signs saying "Jews Unwelcome" from public places. Hitler did not want other countries criticizing his government and maybe having to transfer the Games to another country. Such a change in the host country would have been an disappointment to German prestige.

After the Olympic Games, in which German Jewish athletes were not aloud to participate, the Nazis started again with the persecution of German Jews. In 1937 and 1938, the government caused the impoverishment of Jews by requiring them to register their property and then by "Aryanizing" Jewish businesses. This meant that Jewish workers and managers were discharged, and the ownership of most Jewish businesses was taken over by non-Jewish Germans who bought them at very low prices fixed by the Nazis. Jewish doctors were not allowed to treat non-Jews, and Jewish lawyers were not prohibited to practice law.

Like everyone in Germany, Jews were required to carry identity cards, but the government added special identifying marks to theirs: a big red "J" stamped on them and new middle names for all those Jews who did not have "Jewish" first names that were easy to recognize, giving mostly for example "Israel" for males and "Sara" for females. These cards allowed the police to identify Jews easily.

After the Nuremberg Laws of 1935, a dozen supplemental Nazi decrees were issued that finally prohibited the Jews completely, depriving them of their rights as human beings.

The white figures represent Aryans; the black figures represent Jews; and the shaded figures represent Mischlinge.

Social Aspect: Twenty-First Amendment--Repeal of Eighteenth Amendment

The Twenty-first Amendment to the United States Constitution, ratified on December 5, 1933; was an important alteration in the constitution which repealed the Eighteenth Amendment, that had ordered nationwide Prohibition. Prohibition in the United States was a period of time between 1920 to 1933 in which the sale, manufacture, and transportation of alcohol was illegal. Here we can see the exact text of the 21rst Amendment as written in the Constitution:

 Amendment XXI

SECTION 1. The eighteenth article of amendment to the

Constitution of the United States is hereby repealed.

SECTION 2. The transportation or importation into any

State, Territory, or possession of the United States for delivery

or use therein of intoxicating liquors, in violation of the laws

thereof, is hereby prohibited.

SECTION 3. This article shall be inoperative unless it shall

have been ratified as an amendment to the Constitution by conventions in the several States, as provided in the Constitution,

within seven years from the date of the submission hereof to

the States by the Congress

The Eighteenth Amendment in 1919 was the result that showed the triumph of a movement known as the temperance movement. This was a social movement that urged to reduce the use of alcoholic beverages. Its members were businessmen, church groups, feminists, and social and political reformers who believed in a dry society and that began to demand a permanent national solution to the problem of alcohol consumption.

Nevertheless, the Eighteenth Amendment soon proved to be highly unpopular. Crime rates greatly increased under Prohibition as gangsters made millions of dollars on illegal alcohol sales, and corruption was abundant among law enforcement agencies. When the people that supported the Eighteenth Amendment decided to introduce it, they thought that the effects of alcohol would be recognized in order to decrease the drinking rates among the country, but were very wrong.

Edward Schoeneck, who played an important role
in the amendment's ratification.

As more and more Americans opposed the Eighteenth Amendment, a movement for repeal grew. However, repeal was complicated. Although the US Constitution provides two methods for ratifying constitutional amendments, only one method had been used until then; and it was for vote of the state legislatures by at least three-fourths of the states. However, at the time they knew that the state legislators of many states were in debt to or fearful of the temperance lobby, or even maybe supported them. For this reason, they chose the other ratification method established by Article V, which was by state conventions; after the Congress formally proposed the repeal of Prohibition on February 20th, passed by a two-thirds majority in both houses of Congress and then sent to the states in1933.

The Congress proposed the Twenty-first Amendment on February 20, 1933 and it was adopted on December 5, 1933. To this date, it is the only amendment to have been ratified by state ratifying conventions, specially selected for the purpose and it is also the only amendment that was passed for the specific purpose of repealing an amendment to the Constitution.

In addition, along with the 18th Amendment, the 21st Amendment greatly changed the way the United States manufactured and sold alcohol. Alcohol consumption would now always be regulated state by state. It allows for a check and balance system to legally and wisely distribute alcohol.

Social Aspect: March on Rome

The March on Rome was a very important event in the 20^th century, and its objective was to establish Benito Mussolini and the Fascist Party he led as the most important political party in Italy. The march, which took place from October 22 to October 29, 1922, marked the beginning of the fascist rule and meant the end of the previous parliamentary regimes of socialists and liberals.

Social discontent, aggravated by the middle-class fear of a socialist revolution and by disappointment over Italy’s deficient and weak profits from the peace settlement after World War I, were some of the factors that created a great atmosphere for Mussolini’s fascist establishment and rise to power.  

On October 24^th, 1922 the fascist party leaders planned an insurrection consisting of a March on Rome by the “Blackshirts”, who were the fascist armed troops, and the capture of strategic cities in Italy. Mussolini let the organization of the March on his subordinates, mainly the other fascist party leaders such as General Emilio De Bono, Italo Balbo, Michele Bianchi and Cesare Maria de Vecchi.

In November 1921, the fascist parties of Italy joined forces to create the Fascist Party, making it an official political party. In an October 1922 party conference, Mussolini said:

"Either the government will be given to us or we shall seize it by marching on Rome."

 Emilio De Bono, Benito Mussolini, Italo Balbo and Cesare Maria De Vecchi.

Mussolini made up a plan on how to do this. First, the fascists would be gathered in Rome from all over Italy. Next, all the important public buildings would be taken over including those outside of Rome in the important cities in the north. Then, Mussolini himself would demand the surrender of the government and the take over of a new Fascist government. Finally, armed fascists would be near Rome. If the government didn’t accept these demands, they would march into Rome and take over by the use of force.

The plan was great but naive. The military in Rome were by far more in number than the fascists who were poorly armed. They were not prepared to seize the power; many of the fascists had only brought tools with them from farms and were wrong dressed for what the occasion demanded. When executed, the march itself was composed of fewer than 30,000 men.

However, Mussolini was sure of one thing. He believed that the Italian government lead by the Prime Minister Luigi Facta and the king, Victor Emmanuel, did not want any type of conflict especially as Italy had suffered so much in World War One. Mussolini got wrong his believe about Facta, as he wanted to make a firm stand against Mussolini. But Mussolini was correct in what refers to the king. Victor Emmanuel was convinced that any conflict would lead to a civil war and he would not let that happen. In addition, he also knew that his cousin, the Duke of Aosta, was a Fascist supporter. He was fearful that his cousin would replace him if he stood up to Mussolini and failed.

To meet the bands of fascist troops now gathering outside Rome, Luigi Facta, who had already renounced but continued to hold power, ordered his troops to siege Rome. However, King Victor Emmanuel III refused to sign the military order, which meant that the army, which had may stopped Mussolini was not called on to fight the fascists.

Mussolini, who was now in a confident position of control, demanded nothing less than the control of the government and on October 29^th, the king himself asked him to form a cabinet. Traveling from Milan by train, Mussolini arrived to Rome on October 30^th, before the actual entrance of the fascist forces. As Prime Minister, he organized a triumphant parade for his followers to show the fascist party’s support for his rule, this was the March on Rome.

However, the March on Rome was not the conquest of power as Mussolini and his followers later called, but instead it was a transfer of power that was only possible by the surrender of public authorities caused by fascist intimidation. 

Fascists travelling towards Rome.