Transcript The Rise Of Fascism

The Rise Of Fascism
Benito Mussolini
Adolph Hitler
Targeting the Jews
The Rise Of Fascism in Italy
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Fascism is a political
belief that places the
success of a nation over
its population
A country’s central
government is supreme
and power resides in the
hands of one individual
(dictator)
Business and wealthy
elites are valued in this
system for their
economic worth to the
state
The Rise Of Fascism in Italy
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Italy believed it was
shortchanged under
the Treaty of Versailles
Italy (& the rest of
Europe) suffered from
an economic
depression in the
1920’s –30’s
This created a desire
for a return to
greatness, power and
prestige
Benito Mussolini
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A troubled, disenchanted
young man who avoided
military service twice
1909 - began writing for a
socialist newspaper
1921 elected to Parliament
Supported by wealthy
businessmen and large land
owners because he “made
the trains come on time”
The Black Shirts (many were
war vets) served as a
paramilitary force for
Mussolini
Benito Mussolini
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October 1922 – King Victor
Emmanuel III appointed him
Prime Minster because the
fascist party was growing in
influence
Established dictatorship
through control of the press,
a partnership with the rich
and promising a return to
Rome’s greatness
Had teachers swear an oath
of loyalty to the fascist
party; maintained order
through intimidation
The Roman Question
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To appease the Catholic Church, Mussolini
acknowledged its independent sovereignty and
recognized the Vatican City
Roman Catholicism would be the Italian religion
and Italy would make financial payments to the
Church for their silence
Territorial Expansion
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Set up a puppet regime in
Albania, colonized Libya,
and invaded Ethiopia in
1936
In Ethiopia, Italian troops
committed numerous
atrocities
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Threw guerilla fighters
from flying planes
Impaled and beheaded
resistance fighters
Used gas on civilians
Used concentration camps
for civilians
Territorial Expansion
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Ethiopian Emperor
Haile Selassie asked
the League of Nations
for help
Britain and France
didn’t want to get
involved, Ethiopia
conquered in 1936
They were trying to
prevent an Italian
alliance with Germany
In 1939 Italy signs the
Pact of Steel with
Germany
Adolph Hitler
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Art school reject who
fought in WWI
Unemployed after the war,
he blamed the Treaty of
Versailles and Jews for
Germany’s fate
Speaking for the German
Worker’s Party, he
realized he had a gift as a
charismatic speaker
Adolph Hitler
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November 1923 - Hitler
and the Nazi party
attempted to overthrow
the German government
in the Beer Hall Putsch
Hitler imprisoned, wrote
Mein Kampf, which
explains his hatred for
the Jews and USSR
After released, Hitler
seized control of the
National Socialist [Nazi]
Party, the largest political
party in Germany
Adolph Hitler
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1933 – President
Hindenburg appointed him
chancellor because of the
Nazi party’s dominance
As leader of the Nazi party,
Hitler eliminated his
opponents during the “Night
of the Long Knives”, 1934
Over 1,000 loyalists killed;
Hitler’s power was now
without question
Targeting the Communists
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1933 - the Reichstag,
Germany’s parliament
building, burned down.
Nazis blamed
communists, who they
claimed were organizing
an overthrow of the gov’t
Hitler plays on the
people’s fear of disorder
and passes the “Decree for
the Protection of the German
People”
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Censors press, prevents
public meetings etc =
prevents campaigning
Hitler as Chancellor
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As chancellor Hitler
consolidated his power by
ending political parties and
unions, censoring the press,
and abolishing parliament
Used the SA (Sturmabteilung
or Brownshirts) and the SS
(Shutzstaffel) to maintain
control over critics – military
police and spies
On the death of President
Hindenburg, Hitler takes the
title of “fuehrer” or absolute
ruler/dictator of Germany
Hitler as Chancellor
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Introduced the Four Year
Plan – expansion of
German military & heavy
industry
Its economy saw complete
employment as it produced
war materials and its army
& economy grew
Great inequalities between
classes remained
Hermann Goering
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WWI veteran and man of
connections
Oversaw the Four Year Plan
and acted as intermediary
between business and Nazi
leadership
Responsible for rebuilding the
Lufftwaffe and the secret
police (Gestapo)
Shortsighted - lacked
understanding of air
superiority in modern warfare
Heinrich Himmler
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Commander of the SS
and Gestapo
The Gestapo’s main
purpose was to silence
opposition to Hitler in
the early 1930’s
Gestapo best known for
its brutal interrogation
methods and use of
informants to gather
intelligence
Heinrich Himmler
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During WWII main purpose
was to eliminate undesirables
in countries conquered by
Germany
Officer in charge of the
concentration camp system;
responsible for 12 million
deaths
Author of the Final Solution –
“This page of glory in our
history has never been
written and will never be
written….We had the moral
right, we were obligated to
our people to kill this people
which wanted to kill us.”
Joseph Goebbels
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Head of the Ministry of
Propaganda
Produced massive
displays of organized
rallies to instill loyalty
Pushed the “doctrine of
Aryan purity” and
identified homosexuals,
Jews, immigrants and the
mentally ill as threats to
racial purity
Targeting the Jews
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May 10, 1933, “Burning
of The Books”, German
college students burned
books considered “unGerman”
Most works targeted
were by Jewish authors
Occured on college
campuses throughout
Germany
Targeting the Jews
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The Nuremberg Laws, 1935
denied Jews the right to
German citizenship, the
right to marry non-Jews and
the right to work in certain
occupations
Jews were also prohibited
from teaching or attending
schools
Nazi propaganda services
issued ID charts that helped
Germans distinguish Jews
and other undesirables
Targeting the Jews
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Kristallnacht, “Night of
the Broken Glass” Nov.
9, 1938 was a planned
assault on Jewish
peoples in Germany
Synagogues,
businesses, cemeteries
and homes were looted
and vandalized
Dozens of Jews were
killed and 30,000 men
were sent to
concentration camps