France and Britain didnt agree with USA, but didnt say anything during the war because they needed their support. Post the war, they managed to voice their differences. David Lloyd Georgeof Great Britainhad two views on how Germany should be treated.His public image was simple. He was a politician and politicians needed the support of the public to succeed in elections. If he had come across as beingsoft on Germany, he would have been speedily voted out of office. The British public was after revenge and Lloyd George's public image reflected this mood. "Hang the Kaiser" (popular newspapers slogan) and "Make Germany Pay" (something that Lloyd George publicly declared that he would do) were two very common calls in the era immediately after the end of the war and Lloyd George, looking for public support, echoed these views.However, in private Lloyd George was also very concerned with the rise of communism in Russiabecause he feared that it might spread to Western Europe. After the war had finished, Lloyd George believed that the spread of communism posed a far greater threat to the world than a defeated Germany. Privately, he felt that Germany should be treated in such a way that left her as a barrier to resist the expected spread of communism. He did not want the people of Germany to become so disillusioned with their government that they turned to communism. Lloyd George did not want Germany treated with lenience but he knew that Germany would be the only country in central Europe that could stop the spread of communism if it burst over the frontiers of Russia. Germany had to be punished but not to the extent that it left her destitute. He also believed that if Germany was too weak, this would give France too much power in Europe. As per their traditional enmity, he didnt want this to happen any more than he would have liked Germany to take control. However, it would have been political suicide to have gone public with these views.Another point of contention between USA and Britain was that Wilson wanted the colonies to be looked after by the League of Nations until they became independent as per his self-determination policy. Lloyd George wanted them divided up between the winning powers. He wanted to make sure that South Africa, Australia and New Zealand were rewarded with nearby German territories. Both Britain and France wanted a share of the former Turkish lands of the Middle East. It should also be noted that Lloyd George would have liked to regain supremacy of Britain in Europe by weakening the German navy. Georges Clemenceauof Francehad one very simple belief - Germany should be brought to its knees so that she could never start a war again. France and also Britain had built up huge debts-mostly owed to the USA- and needed to repay them. 25% of all French men (18-27 years old) had been killed during the war. France wanted revenge for the 1870-71 wars and annexation of Alsace Lorraine. Ideally, France wanted to break Germany into small, weak states. This reflected the views of the French public but it was also what Clemenceau himself believed in. He had seen the north-east corner of France destroyed and he determined that Germany should never be allowed to do this again."The Tiger" did not have to adapt his policies to suit the French public - the French leader and the French public both thought alike.He was pretty disappointed when the commission that that controlled the reparations only made Germany pay after 1921, because France had suffered damage that needed immediate action. Woodrow WilsonofAmericahad been genuinely stunned by the savagery of theGreat War. He could not understand how an advanced civilisation could have reduced itself so that it had created so much devastation. He believed that politics was either wrong or right and thought it was USAs job to stop the war. America is the hope of the world. InAmerica, there was a growing desire for the government to adopt a policy of isolation and leave Europe to its own devices. In failing health, Wilson wanted America to concentrate on itself and, despite developing the idea of aLeague of Nations, he wanted an American input into Europe to be kept to a minimum. He believed that Germany should be punished but in a way that would lead to European reconciliation as opposed to revenge.He had already written about what he believed the world should be like in his "Fourteen Points". The main points in this document were:1) no more secret treaties2) countries must seek to reduce their weapons and their armed forces3) national self-determination should allow people of the same nationality to govern themselves and one nationality should not have the power to govern another(Britain and France were very suspicious of this because they were imperialistic countries)4) all countries should belong to the League of Nations.On 28th June, the Treaty of Versailles was signed. The treaty can be divided into a number of sections; territorial, military, financial and general.TerritorialThe following land was taken away from Germany:Alsace-Lorraine (returned to France)Eupen, Moresnet and Malmedy (given to Belgium)Northern Schleswig (given to Denmark after plebiscite) Hultschin (given to Czechoslovakia)West Prussia, Posen and Upper Silesia (given to Poland)The Saarland- which had coal mines and was controlled by the French for 15 years-Danzig- which became a free city- and Memel were put under the control of the League of Nations and the people of these regions would be allowed to vote to stay in Germany or not in a future referendum.Rhineland would form a barrier between France and Germany, and so it was agreed that it would be demilitarised and occupied by allied troops for 15 years. German and Turkish colonies were divided up amongst the winning powers, but they agreed to look after these territories on behalf of the League of Nations. This agreement was in the mandates. TheLeague of Nationsalso took control of Germany's overseas colonies.Germany had to return toRussialand taken in theTreaty ofBrest-Litovsk. Some of this land was made into new states: Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia. An enlarged Poland also received some of this land.MilitaryGermanys army was reduced to 100,000 men; the army was not allowed tanks. Germany was not allowed an airforce. She was allowed only 6 battleships and no submarines.Rhineland was demilitarised, conscription was banned, and the navy was only allowed 15,000 men. FinancialThe loss of vital industrial territory would be a severe blow to any attempts by Germany to rebuild her economy. Coal from the Saar and Upper Silesia in particular was a vital economic loss. Combined with the financial penalties linked to reparations, it seemed clear to Germany that the Allies wanted nothing else but to bankrupt her.Germany was also forbidden to unite with Austria to form one superstate, in an attempt to keep her economic potential to a minimum (Anschluss was forbidden)GeneralThere are three vital clauses here:1. Germany had to admit full responsibility for starting the war. This was Clause 231- the infamous "War Guilt Clause".2. Germany, as she was responsible for starting the war as stated in clause 231, was responsible for all the war damage caused by the First World War. Therefore, she had to pay reparations,the bulk of which would go to France and Belgium to pay for the damage done to the infrastructure of both countries by the war. Payment could be in kind or cash. The figure was not set at Versailles - it was to be determined later. The Germans were told to write a blank cheque which the Allies would cash when it suited them. The figure was eventually put at 6,600 million - a huge sum of money well beyond Germanys ability to pay. 3. ALeague of Nationswas set up to keep world peace.Saint- Germain: Austria, 1919 Austria lost South Tyrol and Istria to Italy and huge areas of land to new states Czechoslovakia, Poland and Yugoslavia. The land given to Czechoslovakia included some of Austrias wealthiest territories and over 3 million German speakers were placed in the new state. Austria was reduced to a country of 6.5 million people, a third of which lived in Vienna. Austria was forbidden from ever seeking unification or Anschluss with Germany Army limited to 30,000 menTrianon: Hungary, 1920 Two thirds of Hungarian territory given to Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia and Romania Population was hence reduced to 7 million people from 18 million people. Army was limited to 35,000Neuilly: Bulgaria, 1919 Land given to Greece, Yugolavia and Romania Army restricted to 20,000 men Sevres: Turkey, 1920 Lost nearly all its land in Europe to Greece France took charge in Syria, Britain took control in Palestine, Jordan and Iraq Reparations to be paidLausanne: Turkey, 1923 Regained much of its land No reparations to be paid Impact of the treaties Germany 1919- Weimar Republic was set up and attacked from all sides. In 1919, communist Spartacists tried to stage a revolution in Berlin. In April, communists tried to seize power in Munich. Both these rebellions were smashed by groups of ex-servicemen known as the Freikorps. In 1920, a Freikorps force attempted to seize Berlin. The army sympathised with them and refused to fight them. This attempt at a right wing revolution was eventually stopped by a strike by left wing workers. The Ruhr Crisis on 1 January 1923 caused massive inflation. The French invaded the industrial area of Germany on the grounds that the Germans were not paying their taxes. Germans responded with strikes, but this merely damaged the German economy even further. With so much money in circulation, prices rocketed, but this money was worthless. HungaryHungarians were horrified by the terms of the Trianon treaty as it had lost about 2/3rds of its pre-war territory. After 1920, Hungarian foreign policy was dominated by a wish to get back the lost lands. As a result, Romania, Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia felt threatened. They formed an alliance in order to protect themselves from the threat of a Hungarian invasion. This became known as the Little Entente. Czechoslovakia There existed great tension between ethnic groups. The western Czechs were wealthier than the Slovaks of the east, and hence the Slovaks complained that they were treated as second class citizens. The Sudeten Germans also said that they were not treated fairly by the western Czechs. Poland Poland was immediately involved in a series of brief wars with most of its neighbours. In 1920, they defied the treaties and took control of the Lithuanian city of Vilna. They had fought against Germany, Czechoslovakia, Lithuania and USSR. It seemed impossible to form a stable government. In 1926, Marshal Pilsudski seized power and ended democracy in Poland. Was the Treaty fair?The Germans certainly didnt think so. They called the politicians who signed the armistice the November Criminals and talked about a stab in the back. Germany hadnt even been involved in the discussion for the TOV. -This lack of consultation angered Germans who called it a diktat: a dictated peace. -They thought it was wrong to put the sole blame for the war on Germany. Other countries had also shown aggression. -This treaty managed to punish the people of Germany instead of the rulers of Germany. Germany was tricked because they had been offered justice and fairness by Wilson when he talked about his 14 points. There was nothing about war guilt and reparations in the 14 points. -The treaty aimed to destroy the economy of Germany- something that would do no good to anyone. People throughout Europe would suffer because of this. On the flip side, -The settlement removed only limited areas of land from Germany, and in fact, took back land that had been unfairly taken in the first place (such as Alsace-Lorraine)-German statements about the 14 points were hypocritical. They made no remark when Wilson described them in 1918, but took it seriously only when they were looking for the best possible terms. -The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was a brutal peace treaty Germany imposed on the Russians. If that was fair, why wasnt the Treaty of Versailles fair?-The basic strength of the German economy was not destroyed. Germany soon recovered its position as the most successful economy in Europe. -The German army was reduced in size, but its leaders were not removed. The generals were ready and able to re-build German armed forces if needed. A Failure of ManagementThe failure of the Treaty of Versailles was a failure of management.The Treaty-makers compartmentalised the process of negotiation so there was one working group looking at the League of Nations, another at territorial adjustments, another at reparations etc. and there was insufficient communication between the different aspects.The problem was that each issue was settled quite reasonably in its own right.The damage to France was massive so wasnt itreasonablethat the invader should pay to put things right?After four years of invasion and slaughter, wasnt itreasonablefor France to want the border with Germany to be VERY, VERY secure?And if German militarism had ignited the war, wasnt itreasonableto reduce German armed forces?The problem is that 10 plus 10 plus 10 doesnt make 10.It makes 30.And it was the same with the Treaty of Versailles.Nobody was keeping track of the final total impact all these decisions would have on Germany.And when they put them all together into those 440 different articles, I think they all got a complete shock.Because, taken together, all those reasonable decisions (and remember that Lloyd George and Wilson had persuaded the French totone downtheir demands) taken together, the Treaty of Versailles simply wiped Germany out.By the time they had got a reasonable sum for reparations, it came to 6,600 million a third of what some people wanted, but still totally beyond any country of the time to pay (with the exception, perhaps, of the USA).By the time they had secured Frances eastern border, and created Poland etc., theyd taken a tenth of Germanys land, half its industry, and its best farmland.Everybody else in Europe had got self-determination but an eighth of the German population ended up under the rule of different countries, and the Germans in Germany were forbidden to unite with the Germans in Austria.And then the peacemakers reduced the German army until it was a tenth of the French army, and smaller than the Czechoslovakian army.Lloyd George summed it up:I am one of the four upon whom devolved the onerous task of drafting the treaties of 1919 . . .The conditions that were imposed upon Germany were ruthlessly applied to the limit of her endurance.She paid 2,000,000,000 in reparations. We experienced insuperable difficulties in paying 1,000,000,000 to America - and we are a much richer country than Germany.We stripped her of all her colonies.We deprived her of part of her home provinces.We took her great fleet away from her.We reduced her army of millions to 100,000 men.We deprived her of artillery, tanks, airplanes, and broke up all the machinery she possessed for re-equippingherself.David Lloyd GeorgePerhaps worst of all, Germany was excluded from the League of Nations.Despite the fact that Germany had expelled the Kaiser, and adopted a new western-style democracy, and agreed to the Treaty: despite everything, Germany was still treated like an international leper and although it had reduced its army to the point of impotence it was excluded from the new process of international justice and peace-keeping that was meant to replace the old ways of wars and treaties.Again, it was Lloyd George who hit the nail on the head:When communities are deprived of the protection of law by selfish and unscrupulous interests they generally find refuge in taking the law into their own hands.David Lloyd GeorgeIt wasnt just the Germans who were horrified by the Treaty Lloyd George, JM Keynes, most of the British public, the American Senate they were all astounded at how harsh it was.And if we and they can understand just how crazy and unfair it all was, how badly must theGermanshave felt?And of course we know how badly the Germans felt they felt 'Adolf Hitler' badly.(jhttp://www.johndclare.net/ToV5_Comment.htm)The Treaty was undeserved and unreasonable. Germany was forced to accept war guilt when other countries also played a part in the outbreak of war. Austria-Hungary had invaded Serbia first and Germany only became involved to support its ally, just like Russia became involved to support Serbia.

The League of Nations Structure and Organisations Itsorganisationcomprised an assembly, which met once a year-this could be a weakness: what can be achieved out of annual meetings?; a council, which met more regularly to consider crises: decisions needed to be unanimous, making it difficult for the Council to take action if there was a disagreement amongst its members; a small secretariat to handle the paperwork; a conference of ambassadors that oversaw the way the peace treaties were put into effect; a Court of International Justice; and a number of committees such as the International Labour Organisation and the Health Organisation to carry out its humanitarian work. Its mainstrengthswas that it had set up by the Treaty of Versailles, which every nation had signed, and it had 58 nations as members by the 1930s. To enforce its will, it could offer arbitration through the Court of International Justice, or apply trade sanctions against countries that went to war. Its mainweaknesseswere the fact that it was set up by the Treaty of Versailles (which every nation hated); that its aims were too ambitious; that Germany, Russia and the USA were not members; that it had no army; that its organisation was cumbersome; and that decisions had to be unanimous. A lot of non-Europeans asked the league to oppose racial discrimination, but the league didnt agree, it thought that more civilised states should have to job of looking after the more uncivilised. It gathered reputation as a European club, wherein world public opinion wasnt considered, only Europe was. USA failed to join the league, as the public belief in USA at the time was to follow the policy of isolationism, which lead to a serious weakening in the authority of the league. Even USSR wasnt invited to join the league. All the founder members of the LON were either victorious or neutral in the world war. As a result, Germany, Austria and Hungary saw the League as a club for their enemies. The league really couldnt claim to be the voice of world opinion. The league was dominated by Britain and France. The French wanted to make the league into a military alliance, with strict obligations on members to support each other. This stemmed from the French obsession with the dangers of an attack on France by Germany. The British saw the League as a much looser, less formal organisation. The British resisted French demands for a stronger League They were finding it difficult to defend their own empire and had no wish to get involved in military conflicts elsewhere. Britain was suspicious of France as it thought that they wanted to use the LoN to gain power. France and Britain had different opinions on almost every topic to be discussed, and had the power to use the league for their benefit, without considering everyone else. Collective Security used 4 possible weapons: The pressure of world public opinionDemocracies didnt exist everywhere- how were people to say what they wanted?Undemocratic governments could ignore world public opinionNo evidence that ordinary people preferred peaceWorld public opinion differed in different states Use of trade sanctionsUSA was absent from the league. If members stopped trading with a country, USA could simply fill up that gap. Reducing the armaments of all countries to a minimum level very vague talk: no defined level of arms that a country could keepDisarmament commission had not way of checking that countries disarmed, or forcing countries to disarm The use of force The League had no army of its own. They assumed each member state would risk the money and lives of their own people in order to sort out a quarrel between two other countries The Geneva protocol: Everyone knew that the LoN was weak. France attempted to give it real military power. Her moves in the early 1920s were blocked by Britain. 1923, draft treaty of mutual assistance was discussed: Made the threat of force more real. Countries were only obliged to send troops to nearby conflicts. Thrown out by the British. 1924 Geneva Protocol was discussed: Set out clear rules for the peaceful arbitration of disputes. If these rules were not followed the LoN would use sanctions or force. The British leader Ramsay MacDonald originally supported this but he fell from power in 1924 and the new government rejected the protocol. Attempts to give military power to the league had failed.Humanitarian Work of the League The commissions and committees set up by the League did some great work. Refugees from conflicts were given vital help. A famous Norwegian explorer, Fridjof Nansen, worked for the League on the problems of prisoners of war stranded in Russia and helped half a million men return safely home. The International Labour Organisation (led by Albert Thomas) improved working conditions in many countries. The Health Organisation worked successfully to reduce the number of cases of leprosy. The Slavery Committee worked against slavery The mandate Committee worked to see that the mandates werent misused

The League did tremendous work in getting refugees into camps and former prisoners of war back to their homelands. About 400,000 prisoners were returned to their homes.The League acted quickly to deal with cholera, smallpox and dysentery in Turkish refugee camps The ILO banned poisonous white lead from paint. The ILO reduced the hours of work for children and recommended a 48 hour week for adults. The Health Committee worked hard to defeat leprosy and reduce cases of malaria. The League dealt with shipping lanes and introduced an international highway code.The League blacklisted four large companies involved in the illegal drug trade. It freed 200,000 slaves in Sierra Leone and reduced the death rate on the Tanganyika railway. Successes and Failures- 1920 Successes: The Aaland Islands (1920): Both Sweden and Finland claimed control of these islands. The League decided that it should be given to Finland and this decision was accepted by Sweden. Upper Silesia (1921): TheTreaty of Versailleshad given the people of Upper Silesia the right to have a referendum on whether they wanted to be part of Germany or part of Poland. In this referendum, 700,000 voted for Germany and 500,000 for Poland. This close result resulted in rioting between those who expected Silesia to be made part of Germany and those who wanted to be part of Poland. The League was asked to settle this dispute. After a six-week inquiry, the League decided to split Upper Silesia between Germany and Poland. The Leagues decision was accepted y both countries and by the people in Upper Silesia.Greece and Bulgaria (1925): Both these nations have a common border. In 1925, sentries patrolling this border fired on one another and a Greek soldier was killed. The Greek army invaded Bulgaria as a result. The Bulgarians asked the League for help and the League ordered both armies to stop fighting and that the Greeks should pull out of Bulgaria. The League then sent experts to the area and decided that Greece was to blame and fined her 45,000. Both nations accepted the decision.Fair administration of the Saarland and Danzig throughout the 1920s 1922- Successfully organised a rescue plan for the Austrian economy 1926- Germany joined the League as part of the Locarno settlement 1934: USSR became a member of the League Failures:Vilna(1920): In 1920, the Poles seized Vilna. Lithuania asked for League help but the Poles could not be persuaded to leave the city. Vilna stayed in Polish hands until the outbreak of World War Two. The use of force by the Poles had won.Corfu (1923): In 1923, Italy invaded the Greek island of Corfu. The League didnt do anything because France didnt want to annoy the Italian government. The Dawes and the Young Plan Dawes Plane (1924): - Charles Dawes 2 year freeze on payment of reparations Level of German payments scaled down USA offered huge loans to Germany ($2 billion) French agreed to get their forces out of Ruhr Young Plan (1929): - Owen Young Payments reduced further Germany had to pay a third of the sum required each year as part of a mandatory agreement about $157 million. However, the other two-thirds only had to be paid if Germany could afford to do so in a manner that would not harm her economic development.

1922: Germany and USSR sign a secret document called the treaty of Rapallo, where they agree to establish friendly relations and agree to cooperate on military planning. This enabled Germany to get most of the weapons that had been banned by the TOV. The Treaty was a complete blow to the authority of the League. Locarno (1925): Germany, France and Belgium agreed to accept their existing borders with each other as set up by the TOV Britain and Italy guaranteed the agreement The main agreement and the guarantee did not apply to the eastern borders of Germany as laid down by the TOV Germany agreed to join the LON France promised to defend Belgium, Poland and Czechoslovakia if any of these countries was attacked by Germany Spirit of Locarno: the hope of future peaceForeign ministers of Britain; Austen Chamberlain, France; Aristide Briand; and Germany; Gustav Stresemann were important players in the pact. Kellogg-Brian Pact (1928):Government leaders of 15 powerful countries signed, stating that each participating country would not use warfare to get what it wanted. This pact was completely worthless. The Great Depression 24 October, 1929 was the day of the Wall Street Crash. After the WSC, the US government became even more isolationist. Politicians were more interested in rebuilding the US economy. Lacking support from USA, the leaders of France and Britain were encouraged to be cautious towards the dictators. This encouraged Hitler to think that Germany could be aggressive without much risk of war with USA. Moreover, the depression ensured that German people would be more likely to side with Hitler since democracy wasnt working. They turned to the right wing parties. This gave Hitler support, and a path to bring greatness to Germany again. From its beginning in 1920, the League had no authority to raise an army or to enforce economic sanctions. Individual member nations were under no obligation to provide either and since even the strongest member nations (France and England), were in a financially weakened state after WW1, they were more inclined to act in their own self-interest rather than the common good of the League.For example, after the Depression, British leaders became very worried about the British Empire. They were not convinced that Britain was rich enough to defend it. They knew they could not afford to fight two wars at the same time- one against Japan to defend the Empire, and one in Europe against Germany. Since the Empire was the first priority, the financial crisis encouraged the British government to take a very cautious approach to Germany. Another issue was the fact that Britain and France both cut down on spending on defence, leaving them vulnerable to attack and hence unlikely to be aggressive toward Germany. The Great Depression not only created conditions which made possible the rise of the Axis Powers (Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, Imperial Japan), but it simultaneously left the League too weak to counter Axis aggression. The impotence of the League of Nations in the face of such aggression led to WW2. Therefore I suppose you could say that the effect of the Great Depression on the League of Nations was war.Manchuria: 1931IN WW1, Japan joined forces with Britain and France and declared war on Germany. Japanese forces occupied all the German territories in the Pacific. They were disappointed by the 1919 peace settlement as they expected more rewards than they got because they expected to be treated as an equal by other powerful states. This led to a great sense of resentment towards Britain, France and USA. After the Wall Street Crash the USgovernmentintroduced tariffs to protect her industry from Japanese competition. The tariffs had a huge impact of Japanese industry and led to high unemployment. As the economic situation got worse army leaders voiced their opinion that the only way in which Japan could solve its economic problems and show that it was still a strong nation was through expansion. The Japanese already had a colony on the Asian mainland and were highly influential in several areas, particularly a Chinese province called Manchuria.Manchuria was the source of much of Japans imported raw materialssuch ascoal and iron ore. In September 1931 the Japanese owned railroad from Manchuria to the coast was vandalised at Mukden.In September 1931, the army organised an armed clash with Chinese forces in Manchuria. War followed. Japan won, and set up a puppet regime. Both China and Japan were members of the LON. The League did virtually nothing. The Lytonn Committee was sent to Manchuria to find out what was happening. It took months to carry out its investigation, by which time Japan was firmly in control. Eventually, it criticised both Japan and the government of China. The LON criticised Japan, too. Japan disliked this, and walked out of the League in 1933. Response: USSR thought that the move in Manchuria was seen as a challenge to Soviet power in East Asia, however it was too busy dealing with chaos at home and had no allies who might join forces against Japan. They did nothing. USA was appalled by Japanese aggression, but they followed the policy of isolationism and didnt want to get involved in the conflict. As a result, they refused to support the idea of economic sanctions against Japan. This weakened the ability of the LON to threaten trade sanctions. Italy and Germany both wanted to see if the Japanese would get away with the use of force. France just didnt care. They disapproved of Japanese actions but had no desire to get involved. The use of French forces there would weaken defences in Europe. In public, they condemned Japanese actions, in private, messages were sent to let them know that France sympathised with the difficulties faced by Japan in China. Britain believed that war in Japan would be disastrous because vital parts of the British Empire could be lost if fighting broke out between Britain and Japan. British businesses also did considerable trade with Japan and they were unwilling to lose this trade. It was worried, but not prepared to take action.Abyssinia 1935-6: In the late 19th century, Italy tried to conquer Abyssinia, but failed. Italians wanted revenge after the Abyssinians destroyed an Italian army at Adowa. By the 1930s, Italy was suffering from depression. Mussolini wanted a successful war to strengthen his position at home. He was also disturbed by the rise of Hitler. Mussolini decided to look south and make Italy a great Mediterranean power. Britain and France were keen to stop Italy joining forces with Germany. In return, they seemed ready to give Italy a free hand in Africa. People began to talk about the Stresa Front: an anti-German grouping of Italy, France and Britain. The declaration talked about the need to keep the peace in Europe- which Mussolini thought meant that in return for supporting Britain and France in Europe, hed be allowed to attack Abyssinia without interference. The British government greatly weakened the Stresa Front in June 1935. They signed a treaty with Germany that fixed the size of the German navy at 35% of the British navy. The agreement allowed Germany to have submarines. The French and Italians were annoyed as this was a breach of the TOV and they had not been consulted. Italy invaded Abyssinia on 3rd October, 1935. Britain and France didnt want to annoy Mussolini but they also wanted to support the League. The League finally condemned Italian action and imposed a trade ban, but this ban didnt include oil and petrol. As long as the Italians had petrol, they could continue the war. This didnt work. In December 1935, the British Foreign Secretary, Samuel Hoare had secret talks with Pierre Laval, the Prime Minister of France. They designed a compromise known as the Hoare-Laval Pact, wherein Abyssinia would be divided in two, with Italy given the richer part. However, the details of the Pact were leaked to the press. The people saw it as surrender to Italian aggression. The Pact was scrapped and Hoare forced to resign. After the failure of the Hoare-Laval Pact, Britain and France finally (March 1936) decided to ban the sale of oil and petrol to Italy, but it was too late. The League had failed. The Abyssinian emperor made a passionate speech to the League Assembly highlighting its failure, after which the League was completely discredited. Impact on Hitler: He understood that the League was unlikely to stop German aggression any more than it had stopped Mussolini The anti-German Stresa front fell apart, as Mussolini was annoyed by the French and British double dealing. He turned to Hitler. The linking of Germany and Italy in the Rome-Berlin Axis Germany, Italy and Japan signed the Anti-Comintern Pact- an agreement to work together against the spread of communism, and a step towards the alliance of the countries that wanted to take land from their neighbours. The League did manage to get the USSR to become a part of it in 1934Leagues Failures 1930s 1) Manchuria, 1931; Japan left League 2) Hitler left the League, 19333) Abyssinia, 1935 4) Spanish Civil War, 1936: War broke out in Spain, Germany and Italy sent forces to the anti-government side, LON looked on and did nothing after repeated pleas of help from Spain.5) Second World War, 1939 The Road to WW2 Rearming 1931- Hitler started secretly rearming Germany 1935- there was a massive military rally 1935- Naval agreement with Britian that allowed Germany to have 2/3rd of Britains navy 1936- conscription reintroduced 1932-1939- 100,000 men to 950,000 men in the army. Hitlers excuse for reintroducing conscription in Germany was that Britain had just announced air force increases and France had extended conscription from12 to 18 months. Frances justification was that Germany was rearming. Worries about increased numbers of weapons and troops increased tension and made each country more likely to expand its own armed forces in response. This made war more likely.The Saar The Treaty of Versailles had put the Saar under the control of the League of Nations for 15 years.In 1935, as preparations began to hold the plebiscite (vote) the inhabitants would decide whether they returned to Germany, or retained their separate identity.On 13 January 1935, theplebiscite was held, overseen by two judges from Italy and Holland, and a US History Professor,Sarah Wambaugh they declared that the election had been fair, and that the result was genuine. The result was overwhelming: 90.3% of the voters voted to return to Germany.

Outcomes:1.The result validated the Nazi regime. The result was, says one historian, 'the greatest triumph of the Nazis in a free election'. It demonstrated that Germans were NOT just being browbeaten into supporting the terror by Nazi Brownshirts Germans who lived outside Germany had shown the world that they hated the Treaty of Versailles and loved Germany more than they feared Hitler's regime. It made it very hard for Hitlers opponents to argue that the German people were not wholly behind him.2.The result gave a massive boost to Hitler's prestige, and was in the future to provide him with the moral authority to advance his demands for unity with Austrian and the Sudeten Germans. The Saar plebiscite confirmed Hitlers expansionist agenda for the rest of the 1930s, and made it very difficult for democratic regimes to oppose his claims to Austria and the Sudentenland.3.Events had also, as early as 1935, showed the League was scared to confront violence (Nazi Saarlanders had threatened to resort to violence: didnt happen, though). And even more importantly, appeasers such as Daladier and Chamberlain failed to notice that the Nazis had immediately backed down when Eden (Brit who said that if the Nazis were threatening violence he would send in British soldiers) had threatened to send soldiers.

Rhineland The mineral resources of the Rhine Province, coupled with its favourable situation and the facilities of transit afforded by its great waterway, made it the most important manufacturing district in Germany. It was considered the "richest jewel in the crown of Prussia". It had an abundance of coal, iron ore, zinc, lead, lignite, copper, manganese, vitriol, lime, gypsum, volcanic stones (used for millstones) and slates.Hitler's decision to remilitarize the Rhineland was brilliant for four reasons. First, Hitler was able to predict that no nation would try to stop him from remilitarizing the Rhineland. Second, by remilitarizing the Rhineland, Hitler gained a better military position both offensively and defensively against France. Third, Hitler also increased the support of the German people for the government and for himself. Finally, Hitler was able to safeguard his control over the natural resources in the Rhineland, where a large majority of Germany's coal supply was located. Without that supply, Germany would likely have fallen right back into the Depression, taking away its main advantage over all other major powers. 1936- Hitler took considerable risks and moved into the Rhineland. There was a chance that France would send troops to resist the German forces and this would mean war, something that the German army was not prepared for. German generals were unhappy at Hitlers plan and suggested waiting. Hitler refused. The first troops into the Rhineland were ordered to retreat if they met with French resistance. Instead of giving way, Hitler tried to show the world that his actions in the Rhineland were completely reasonable. The ambassadors of Britain, Italy and France were told that Hitler had important places for long term peace in Europe. He proposed a 25 year agreement between Germany, France and Belgium and promised not to attack his western neighbours. He also suggested there be a demilitarised zone on either side of the French-German borders. He talked about Germany returning to the League of Nations. These werent serious proposals, but they made Hitler seem reasonable. He tried to prove that the Rhineland wasnt worth fighting for, and suggested that he was actually trying to build a new, peaceful Europe. Hitler also managed to convince everyone that since the Franco-Soviet pact was being signed, he felt threatened and wanted to be able to defend Germany/Reactions In the end, the French decided to protest, but not to fight. They had internal political conflict at the moment, and did not want to get involved. Many British people actually approved of what Hitler had done; they thought that the German army had a right to be in German territory. Germany was only going into their own backyard. They sympathised and took no action. Hitler had been planning to wait until 1937, when the German army would have been stronger due to rearmament, but he recognised that the Abyssinian crisis provided an unusual opportunity. Britain, France and the LON were overwhelmed by the crisis in Abyssinia and they were reluctant to get involved in any more conflicts. Hitler now concluded that France would not do anything to stop Hitler anywhere else if it was unable to stop Germany from rearming a zone that was supposed to be demilitarised for Frances own protection.Spanish Civil War -1936 On the outbreak of theSpanish Civil Warthe leaders of the military uprising immediately asked theGermangovernment for help.Hitler justified his decision to say yes by arguing that he was attempting to save Europe from "communist barbarism". Another reason was that it broughtGermanycloser toItaly, a country that was also supporting the military uprising inSpain. Hitler also knew that a Nationalist victory would give him an important ally in his struggle withBritainandFrance. He was especially interested in obtaining iron, copper, mercury and pyrites from Spain for his armaments industry. Another factor in Hitler's decision was that providing military aid to theNationalist Armywould give him the opportunity to test out his commanders, weapons and tactics. (Guernica suffered the most)Hitler sent transport planes so that Franco could move his tropps and equipment from Morocco to Spain. At the end of 1936m Hitler set up the Condor Legion, which was to assist Franco in Spain., It consisted of personnel and equipment from the army air force and the navy. This Legion was constantly getting Franco out of trouble. He tried out carpet bombing in Guernica and blitzkrieg tactics on Bilbao. He also sent a considerable maount of food, fuel and weapons. Anti-comintern pact 1937 Italy had also fought against the communists in Spain, and so Italy Japan and Germany signed the anti-comintern pact in 1937, that aimed to limit commumist influence around the world. Anschluss- 1938: Austrias soldiers, weapons and its rich deposits of gold, iron ore and salt would be added to Germanys increasingly strong army and industry.Local Nazis in Austria were making life difficult for the government of Chancellor Kurt Schuschnigg. In January, 1938, it was discovered that there was a plot by Austrian Nazis to create chaos in Austria by killing the German ambassador. Austrian Nazis hoped that in the turmoil, the German government would take over. Hitler wanted this, because then his troops could invade Austria with reason. Hitler met Schuschnigg in Feb 1938 for crisis talks. Hitler demanded that Nazis be allowed to join the Austrian government and be given control of law and order. When Schuschnigg got back to Austria, he decided to announce a plebiscite in Austria to decide whether the people wanted their country to remain independent. He placed that minimum age of voting at 24 so that younger Nazis would not be able to vote. Hitlers troops marched into Austria on 11th January. Under the watchful eyes of the Nazis, about 99% of all votes were in favour of unification. Sudetenland- 1938 Sudeten Germans were a large minority in Czechoslovakia. Local Nazi leader Konrad Henlein claimed (with support of Hitler) that the Sudeten Germans were not treated fairly. He took part in negotiations with the Czech government, but these got nowhere. Hitler told him to keep making demands that the Czechoslovak government couldnt possible accept. He hoped to create a crisis over Czechoslovakia. France had signed the Locarno Pact which made it clear that if Germany attack Czechoslovaki, France would have to send help. The new Prime Minister, Daladier, however, wasnt fond of this idea. Hitler was sure neither Britain nor France would attack. He also had support from Mussolini. He was very keen on smashing the Czechs. The British and French governments reacted by putting pressure on the Czechoslovaks to make concessions. Britain sent Lord Runciman to try to work out a settlement between the two sides. He recommended that the Sudetenland be separated from Czechoslovakia; he was biased towards the Sudeten Germans. Hitler was ready to go to war, but his generals thought that France and Britain would reiterate. In early September, Henlein ordered local Nazis to attack Czech and Jewish targets. Negotiations, therefore, broke off. Much publicity was given to his stories of the mistreatment of Sudeten Germans. Chamberlain + Hitlers meetings: 15 Sept: (Berchtesgaden.)Without consulting Czechoslovakia, he promises to give Hitler all the areas where more than 50 per cent of the population is German, in return for the promise that Hitler wouldnt use force. Then he persuades France to agree. Benes was unhappy, but decided to cooperate. 22 Sept: Chamberlain goes to Bad Godesberg to tell Hitler about the decision, but Hitler now demands ALL the Sudetenland. Chamberlain refuses; it looks like war. Chamberlain calls the crisis 'a quarrel in a faraway country, between people of whom we know nothing'. Hitler said that the German take over should be immediate, there should be votes on additional areas in Czechoslovakia and Hungary and Poland had claims on other parts of Czechoslovakia. 30 September 1938: At the Munich conference, France and Britain agree to give Hitler the Sudetenland. Chamberlain waves 'a piece of paper' with Hitler's statement that he does not want to go to war. German troops march into the Sudetenland, and are welcomed as heroes. Hitler says that after Czechoslovakia, there would be no more attacks on the rest of Europe. Appeasement : was it justified?Chamberlain was horrified with the idea of another war. He believed in the importance of peace. in war there are no winners but all are losers. He was an honest man and believed that others were also honest. He didnt realise that Hitler, was in fact, lyingThe British Empire mattered very much to Britain. The most powerful voices in the Empire were those of the self-governing countries, known as dominions: Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa etc. They were great supporters of appeasement and made it very clear that they would not back Britain if it came to war over Czechoslovakia. It was clear to Chamberlain that an aggressive policy towards Germany would split the British Empire. Also, much of the British Empire was in Asia where Britain faced another threat in the form of Japan. The generals didnt believe Britain was strong enough to fight both countries at the same time, and hence the military leaders also supported appeasement. USA was still following its isolationism policy and would offer no support to Britain. It didnt spend much on defence, and was therefore described as a sleeping giant. The American forces were in no position to fight. They had inefficient weapons and a smaller army. Roosevelt also realised that Americas werent interested in what happened in Europe. They had been devastated by the WSC and wanted to rebuild their own economy first. A Neutrality Act was made permanent in 1937. We seek to isolate ourselves from war-Roosevelt. USSR had a very large army, but it was communist and Britain didnt trust them. Stalins purges increased the distrust and weakened the armys fighting capacity. Chamberlain knew that without support war was risky. In WW1, Britain had allies, but there were only able to defeat Germany when USSR entered the picture. If it came to war, nobody knew who would win. Appeasement was also a means of giving Britain time to rearm itself, so if necessary it could resist using force. It gave Britain time to rearm. A rearmament plan began in 1936, but wasnt completed up until 1940.Nazi-Soviet Pact Why did Anglo-Soviet Talks Fail? [SCAB]Suspiciona. Chamberlain did not trust Stalin, who was a Communist and a dictator. In particular, he would not ever have allowed Russia to control Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.b. The Russians thought Britain wanted to trick them into war against Germany.c. Poland did not trust that the Russians (who wanted to send troops into Poland), once in, would ever leave.Choicea. Britain could not send troops to fight in Poland, so if Stalin supported Britain, he would end up fighting a war in Poland on Britains behalf.On the other hand, Hitler was promising him peace, half of Poland and a 'sphere of influence' over eastern Europe. AppeasementAfter Munich, Stalin was convinced that Britain would break its promise to Poland.He was convinced that Britain would leave Russia fighting Hitler alone.Britain delayeda. At first, Lord Halifax refused Stalins offer of a meetingb. When the British sent an official, he could not make any decisions.Stalin got fed up with British delay.In August 1939, Hitler sent Ribbentrop, a senior Nazi, to Russia. He offered a Nazi-Soviet alliance Russia and Germany would not go to war, but would divide Poland between them. Germany would allow Russia to annex Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland.Stalin knew Hitler was lying, but he did not trust the British either the Munich Agreement had convinced him that Britain and France would never dare to go to war with Hitler.Stalin had two choices: if he made an alliance with Britain, he would end up fighting a war with Hitler over Poland. if he made an alliance with Germany, he would get half of Poland, and time to prepare for the coming war with Germany.He chose the latter. On 23 August 1939, he signed the Pact with HitlerWhy did the Nazi-Soviet Pact Happen? [THUG]Time to prepare for warStalin said: We got peace for our country for 18 months, which let us make military preparations.Hope to gainStalin was sure that Russia could only gain from a long war in which Britain, France and Germany exhausted themselves.Unhappy with BritainStalin was insulted by Britains slowness to negotiate, and did not trust Britain. When the Anglo-Soviet alliance failed [SCAB], he turned to Germany.GermanyHitler wanted the alliance because only Russia could keep Britains promise to defend Poland. He believed that, if he got a promise of peace with Russia, Britain would be forced to back down over Poland and Danzig.

It allowed Hitler to invade Poland without having to worry about fighting Russia as well. It also ended any hopes the Western Allies had of using Russia against Germany. Hitler became so over-confident as a result of this pact that he did not believe the Allies would honor their promise to protect Poland from Germany, hence leading to WW2 W06 MS: Why was the Nazi-Soviet Pact important? (7m) Hitler knew that he could now invade Poland without having to worry about what action the USSR would take. The USSR realised that when Germany gained Poland they were going to get their share without having to fight. The pact left Britain and France alone to fight against Germany. What surprised Hitler was the fact that they signed a formal alliance to protect Polands independence. The pact was the single most important short-term cause of war because Hitler ignored the warnings and invaded Poland. Stalin still believed that the USSR would fight against Germany. The Pact gave him time to build up his military strength. It helped Hitler with his aims. He could regain land lost at Versailles and begin to acquire Lebensraum. Etc etc Also, Italy and Japan were annoyed with the news of the pact and refused to help Germany. The Outbreak of War: Chamberlain after this I cannot trust the Nazi leaders again after Hitler invaded the rest of Czechoslovakia and on 31st March Britain said that they would side by Poland if needed. 1st September 1939- Hitler invaded Poland (he said that Danzig needed to be returned to Germany) , and two days later, Britain and France declared war. The Outcomes of the Peace treaties Destruction of the Treaty of Versailles provided Hitler with a foreign policy agenda.He played on the peoples nationalistic feelings to achieve supremacy.

To remove the Treaty of Versailles Anschluss with Austria Reversal of the Treaty of Versailles by retrieving lost land, e.g. to regain the Saar and re-militarise the Rhineland To destroy the USSR and those who believed in communism Building up the German armed forces To establish a large empire in Eastern Europe where pure Aryan Germans would live To unite all German speaking people: Creation of a Greater Germany by uniting all German speaking people in one home land To expand in the east and take over Poland and the west of the USSR (lebensraum)

http://i-study.co/IGCSE%20History/unit3.htmlThe Cold WarThe Yalta Conference- February 1945 Britain (Churchill), USA (Roosevelt) and USSR (Stalin) met at Yalta to discuss the shape of the post- war world, specifically Poland. They disagreed on how Poland should be governed. Stalin agreed to enter the war against Japan once Germany had surrendered in return for control over island territories north of Japan They agreed that Germany and even Berlin would be divided into 4 zones: British, USA, French and USSR. They agreed to find and punish war criminals responsible for the genocide in Germany They all agreed to join the United Nations Organisation and agreed to veto power of the security council.They agreed that Eastern Europe should be seen as a Soviet sphere of influence because the USSR had suffered terribly in the war and wanted to prevent this from happening again.They agreed that as countries were liberated from occupation by the German army, they would be allowed to hold free elections to choose the government they wanted. Prisoners of war from Soviet territory who joined the German army would be sent back to the USSR. Polandwas the main debating point. Stalin explained that throughout history Poland had either attacked Russia or had been used as a corridor through which other hostile countries invaded her. Only a strong, pro-Communist government in Poland would be able to guarantee the security of the Soviet Union. Stalin wanted the border of Poland to move westwards into German territory so that the USSR border could move westward into Poland. With Soviet troops in most of Eastern Europe, Stalin was in a strong negotiating position. Roosevelt and Churchill tried hard to restrict post-war influence in this area but the only concession they could obtain was a promise that the Lublin government would be expanded to include some of the London Poles and free elections would be held in Poland and other Eastern European countries. (The Declaration on Liberated Europe stating that each liberated country would be given an emergency government with representatives from any important non-fascist groups and that free elections would be held as soon as possible to set up a democratic government.)USSR in turn agreed not to interfere in Greece where the British were attempting to prevent the Communists from taking over. IssuesStalin and Roosevelt had completely different ideas about what democracy and free elections were. Stalin thought these ideas were communist ones; wherein the communist party represented the people without opposition. Yalta raised false expectations as people thought that Stalin would now allow western-style governments to be set up in East Europe.The Agreement tried to compromise on Poland when compromise wasnt possible. Either Poland was democratic or it was friendly towards USSR. Stalin knew that he could only make sure that Poland was friendly by completely destroying free speech.The Warsaw UprisingThe London Poles (anti-communist) decided that their only chance of frustrating Stalin was to seize control of part of Poland before the Red Army did. In August 1944, they attacked the German forces occupying Warsaw, The Soviet army was nearby but did nothing to help the Poles as Stalin didnt want them to defeat the Germans; he wanted the Lublin Poles to take over after the war. The Rising was ruthlessly smashed and nearly 300,000 Poles killed. The Germans sent the surviving people of Warsaw to concentration camps and when the Red Army finally took over the city, it was completely deserted. Britain and France were appalled. Potsdam Conference USA (Harry Truman), Britain (Clement Attlee) and USSR (Stalin) met at Potsdam in July-August, 1945. Truman announced that he had the atomic bomb and therefore felt more powerful. The US government thought it might take 20 years for USSR to develop such a bomb. He believed that the bomb put USA in a superior position. German reparations were agreed; each country took reparations from its own area of occupation. The details of the German-Polish borders on the rivers Oder and Neisse were finally agreed.It was agreed that the Nazi Party should be stamped out of all sectors of Germany USSR wanted to play a part in the running of the Ruhr- USA rejected this idea USSR wanted to share in the occupation of Japan- USA rejected this USA and Britain asked for a greater say in what went on in Eastern Europe- Stalin rejected thisThe Iron Curtain Churchill, 1946, an iron curtain has descended across the continentThe Communist Parties, which were very small in all of these Eastern states, are seeking everywhere to obtain totalitarian controlUSSR gaining control of Eastern Europe by 1948- please read page 324 in GCSE textbook (These notes do not contain Berlin Airlift and NATO, or Soviet responses to this. Use your textbook.)ContainmentThe Korean War (1950-53)The Japanese controlled Korea, but after ww2, it was split up at the 38th parallel. Kim Il Sungs communist government took over in the north, and Syngman Rhees unpopular corrupt government took over in the south. North Korean troops invaded the South in a bid to reunite Korea by force. Truman ordered American troops led by General McArthurt to support South Korea. He also got UN forces involved (USSR was boycotting the UN and couldnt veto)North Korea invaded, US forces pushed back. US forces crossed the 38th parallel. Communist China was feeling threatened at this point, and attacked American troops. MacArthur planned a further push towards the Chinese border, but he split his forces up and China had no trouble resisting. Once again, they were at the 38th parallel. China then crossed over into the South. MacArthur was now sacked because he wanted to invade North Korea again but Truman was considering making peace. Peace talks began in 1951. Eisenhower catalysed an agreement to stop fighting in 1953. Cuban Missile Crisis 1962Describe relations between Cuba and USA from 1959-61 (5 m) It was tense as the USA had supported Batista, but he had been overthrown by Castro who they feared would be Communist. The USA continued to support exiled Cubans.The USA refused to buy Cuban sugar from July 1960 and in Oct 1960 ended all trade with Cuba. (Castro had managed to nationalist sugar industry in 1959 whereas, before it used to be in relation to the USA.)Castro had also taken over all American owned agricultural businesses in Cuba, and had distributed American owned land to peasants in Cuba. He had also received aid of $100 million from Khrushchev. In Jan.1961, the USA broke off diplomatic relations as it was unable to tolerate Soviet influence so close. The USA was unwilling to get directly involved even though they were concerned as Castro took over US owned companies and land.Kennedy supported exiles who tried to overthrow Castro in the Bay of Pigs incident. Kennedy was humiliated. Kennedy feared other countries becoming Communist.April 1961- Bay of Pigs invasion About 1300 Cuban exiles land in the Bay of Pigs hoping to get support from the locals and overthrow Castro. They were actually supported by the USA CIA. The invasion was a complete failure. The locals did not actually support the exiles at all, and Castros military stuck by him and wasnt as terrible as the CIA thought. The exiles were outnumbered by 20,000 Cuban troops and they were either killed or captured. This in fact, made Castro EVEN MORE popular. Although the USA denied any direct involvement, everyone knew that the CIA had helped the exiles, and this made Castro turn to USSR for help and support. This made Khrushchev think that Kennedy was an idiot. In the end, Cuba drew closer to USSR. Also, the defeat just made Kenned look bad and uninformed. It also made him look like he couldnt control what happened in his own backyard. In 1962, USSR built nuclear missiles and placed them in Cuba. U2 spy planes confirmed the existence of such missiles on the island, and to remove the threat of a nuclear war, Kennedy imposed a blockade on Cuba. This included a quarantine, which meant that no ship carrying military equipment to Cuba would have to turn back. 20th October- Kennedy places blockade on Cuba 22nd October- Kennedy publicly asks Khrushchev to remove missiles from Cuba. Although Khrushchevs reply to Kennedys appeal was in the negative, 26th October- Kennedy receives a letter from Khrushchev stating that USSR will remove the missiles if USA promises not to invade Cuba and to remove the blockade 27th October- Kennedy receives another letter from Khrushchev stating that USSR also required USAs missiles on Turkey to be removed. Kennedy decided to ignore the second letter, but he responded positively to the first. Later on the 27th October, John F. Kennedys borther Robert Kennedy made an offer to the Russians saying there could be no official deal, but if the Cuban missiles were removed, the missiles in Turkey would also be removed. Khrushchev agreed. A permanent hotline was set up between the Kremlin and the White House. http://www.slideshare.net/JoanieYeung/4-nuclear-race-and-cuba-33367799The Vietnam WarVietnam used to be a French colony, but after ww2, the French decided to pull out. Communists took control in North Vietnam (led by Ho Chi Minh), and South Vietnam was ruled by anti-communist Ngo Dinh Diem. (This government was unpopular, favoured the Christians and angered the Buddhist majority because they unfairly prosecuted them. A group of South Vietnamese generals took over the government after this, in 1963.) There were supposed to be country wide elections to choose which government would rule all of Vietnam, but the south refused to participate. North invaded the South. Southern communists who had fled to North Vietnam returned to fight. These forces were called Vietcong. USA believed in the domio theory- if one state becomes communist, the rest wi,ll follow. They used this as a justification of their involvement in foreight states. In 1961, Kennedy started sending American soldiers to Vietnam as combat advisors. He hoped that they would be able to defeat the communist rebels. Gulf of Tonkin- 1964 American destroyer near the coast of North Vietnam was attacked by North Vietnamese ships. No serious damage was done, but President Johnson ordered bombing of Northern naval bases to retaliate. Congress passed a resolution giving the President power to take all necessary steps, including the use of armed force in order to defend South Vietnam. (Gulf of Tonkin resolution) After this, involvement stepped up. Vietcong- Farmers by day, guerrilla forces by night. Very patient people, played a very important role. If Ho Chi Minh trail was destroyed someplace, then theyd repair it, and the war would continue. The USA grossly underestimated these fellows. The Vietcong had built an extensive underground system where they hid and could supply resources from. They had the advantage that this was their terrain and they knew it well, they had the support of the normal Vietnamese people, and were easily absorbed back into normal Vietnamese villages. Their bases were well hidden underground (and were very difficult to destroy) and the HO Chi Minh trail helped in getting resources to and from places. American strategies would have worked ina straightforward battle, but the Vieetcong relied on guerrilla tactics and sudden ambushes. The Americans tried to use massive airpower to try and bomb supply lines, and chemical defoliants (they used Agent Orange- which killed all vegetation, and made enemies in the forest easier to see, and Napalm, which sticks to skin and causes severe burns). (It was a very forest-y place)IN 1965, the USA started Operation Rolling Thunder, where they continuously bombed anything they could see. It lasted three years (it was planned to last for 8 weeks). USA wanted to end the war by using search and destroy tactics, but soldiers were losing hope.(The Ho Chi Minh trail was a connection between North Vietnam and South Vietnm, and was a major supply route)The Tet Offensive, 1968 North Vietnam launched a massive attack at the time of a religious festival- Tet. They struck right in the middle of the Souther capital- Saigon, and attacked the American embassy. They were hoping that it would spark a revolution in the south. This didnt happen, the Americans fought back and won back the towns. Though USA had militarily won the battle, the US public realised that their government had lied to them. The TV showed that the US as NOT close to victory. Many American politicians and people became disillusioned with the war and the anti-war movement grew in strength. (Hey, hey LBJ, how many kids did you kill today- popular chant in the USA) Johnson bowed out and did not seek re-election. He called for peace talks, but they got nowhere. Richard Nixon was elected next. Nixon tried to leave Vietnam without abandoning South Vietnam. He told North Vietnam that he would do a massive attack if they didnt withdraw at the same time as US troops. The North Vietnamese called his bluff. Nixon tried to persuade USSR and China to use their influence in return for help in other areas. They didnt, because they didnt get anything in return immediately. Vietnamisation. South Vietnamese forces were just not strong enough to defend the communists and General Thieu had little support amongst the common man. TO compensate, USA stepped up the bombing of the supply lines of the Viet Cong. This had the effect of spreading the conflict into Laos and Cambodia. My Lai Massacre- 1968 300+ civilians were intentionally massacred by the US troops. This story only came out in 1969, and horrified all Americans. Opposition to the war increased tenfold. By 1968, the war was costin 30,000 million $ per YEAR. 1973- a cease fire was agreed on, and the US troops started leaving. 1975- the communists captured Saigon. The war was over. http://www.slideshare.net/JoanieYeung/vietnam-war-33749845A new policy of dtente (to establish peaceful relations and coexist with the communists) was started by Nixon and his advisor Henry Kissinger. USSRs control over Eastern EuropeHungary (1956)Causes: Hungarians hated the restrictions imposed upon them by Rakosi and then Gero. They were bitter about losing their freedom of speech. They resented the secret police and the thousands of Soviet troops in their country. Some areas of Hungary had Russian street signs, Russian schools and shops. Worst of all, Hungarians had to pay for Soviet forces to be in Hungary. There was an uprising because Soviet forces moved into Budapest in large numbers after the reforms were announced by Imre Nagy. This provoked freedom fighters to fight the Soviet forces. W13 qp 11 Hungarian people hated communism Rakosi was a tyrant and used everything he could do to make sure he stayed in power. Freedom of speech was limited and those who spoke out against the government would almost certainly be arrested by the secret police. There were also USSR military troops present in the country. Unfortunately, it was the Hungarians that had to pay to keep them there. The Hungarians were poor, yet were forced to export much of the food and industry the produced to the Soviet Union. They were unable to develop their own economy. Hungary was convinced the UN and USA would help them. AS de-Stalinisation spread through Hungary, discontent levels started rising. In response, Rakosi wanted to arrest 400 of the ringleaders, but Khrushchev didnt support this. Instead, due to the popular discontent, Moscow ordered Rakosi to retire for health reasons, and appointed Erno Gero instead. He too, was replaced, when a student led demonstration pulled down a statue of Stalin. Imre Nagy, was then appointed as the PM of Hungary, on the 24th of October. In the coming weeks, Nagy introduced democracy to Hungary, and allowed freedom of speech and freedom of religion (which was symbolised by a Church leader that was let out of prison Laszlo Rajk). Nagy also announced that Hungary was going to leave the Warsaw pact, severing its links to the USSR, and also would be a neutral party in the cold war. Leaving the Warsaw pact was a step too far. Khrushchev was simply not okay with this as it meant losing part of its valuable buffer zone against capitalism. In response, 200,000 soldiers and 2,500 tanks were sent into Budapest. There were two weeks of street fighting, but USSR prevailed. Imre Nagy was hanged in Moscow. A new Hungarian communist leader was appointed- Janos Kadar. He severely punished all supporters of the Rising, unless they had fled across the Hungarian border. The west remained uninvolved through all of this. USA was CONTAINING, not roiling back communism. They were unwilling to risk war. Britian and France were too busy dealing with the Suez crisis, and the UN couldnt do much because USSR could just veto everything. Hungary retained its membership in the Warsaw pact, but the west became even more determined to contain communism. The iron curtain was secure. Czechoslovakia (1968)Czechoslovakian people were becoming increasingly unhappy with communist rule. They did not like the distrust between neighbours brought about by the actions of the secret police. There were not enough homes. The economy was doing badly. By 1967, the people were restless. IN January of 1968, the then ruler of Czechoslovakia, Navotny, appealed to the USSR to help stop the voices of opposition. His appeal was ignored and he was forced to resign. He was replaced by Alexander Dubcek. Dubcek was a communist, but he was also a reformist. He believed that communism didnt have to be restrictive. He put forward plan of action- socialism with a human face. He Reduced censorship Increased freedom of speech Eased actions of secret policeWhile doing so, he stressed the Czechoslovakia had no plan to pull out of the Warsaw Pact or Comecon, to appease Brezhnev.During the first few months of his rule, known as the Prague Spring, intellectuals began to take advantage of the changes and voiced their dissent with the communists. They took part in live television and video debates in which they grilled the leaders about how they ran the country. Dubcek began to consider allowing a rival political party; The Social Democratic Party. Dubcek also met with Tito, who had left the Warsaw Pact, and was establishing friendly relations with the Romanian leader, who also resented control from Moscow. Hard line communist leaders in other parts of Eastern Europe were concerned that their people may start demanding the same things that Dubcek was giving Czechoslovakia. Moscow had to intervene. They met Dubcek and requested that he slow down his reforms. When it was clear that this changed nothing, Soviet forces joined with Polish and East German troops to train, RIGHT ON THE CZECH BORDER. This was clearly a threat. They even considered imposing economic sanctions, but didnt because they were afraid that if they went too far, the Czechs would seek assistance from the west. IN a conference in July, Eastern European leaders met to discuss their issues. Dubcek agreed not to allow the Social Democratic party, but insisted on keeping his other reforms. Despite the apparent easing of tension after this meeting, the Soviet troops invaded Czechoslovakia on the 20th of August. The Czechoslovak government decided not to resist the invading army. Non-violent protests were conducted. Dubcek was arrested and removed from office. A pro-Soviet leader called Husak took his place. In 1970, a Soviet-Czechoslovak treaty was signed, wherein the Czechoslovaks were forced to thank the Soviets for their invasion. The events in Czechoslovakia led to the establishment of the Brezhnev Doctrine, wherein Soviet leaders stated the iron curtain countries would not be allowed to abandon communism, and were consequently ruled as one party states, as members of the Warsaw Pact. Similarity b/w Hungarian Uprising (1956) and Czechoslovakian Uprising (1968) Shared the same causes; the people were hostile to Russian control, their oppression because of the governments, and the poverty they lived in because of poor economic conditions. Change started when Russia refused to support the old regime. The old leaders were replaced with new ones Both countries experienced short periods where their new governments introduced reforms, such as freedom of speech. Russia invaded, overthrew the government and replaced the rulers with hard line communists The west did nothing Differences Process of change in Hungary began with riots, in Czechoslovakia it was much more peaceful Czechoslovakias new government was much more planned than Hungary. Dubceks government had a proper action plan, where they DEFINED socialism with a human face Nagy announced he would leave the Warsaw Pact, Dubcek stressed that he would not The Catholic Church was closely linked in the Hungarian revolution, but didnt play a role at all in Czechoslovakia. Hungarians got 5 days of freedom, Czechoslovakians enjoyed 4 months of it. Hungary fought USSR actively, and suffered the loss of many human lives, but Czechoslovakia held on passive resistance and not a lot of people died. Nagy was executed, Dubcek was arrested and removed from power. http://www.mrallsophistory.com/podcasts/hungaryczech.mp3(No Berlin wall here, please use your textbook and GCSE textbook) SolidarityHow significant was Solidarity?

In Poland, people were unhappy with living standards, wages and industry. They were also outraged at how they lived in poverty, but government officials lived luxurious lives. People were also unhappy with the lack of political influence that they had. Official trade unions were ineffective, but in 1980, a new trade union was set up: Solidarity.In August 1980, workers at the Gdansk shipyard, led byLech Walesaput forward 21 demands for more rights to the government, including free trade unions and the right to strike and the lowering of food prices. They also started the trade union Solidarity.The government agreed to the demands. This was because: Many important industries such as shipbuilding were involved in Solidarity. Lech Waslesa was careful in his negotiations with the government, to avoid provoking any disputes. The union was extremely popular, almost 50% of workers were members, and 95% of Poles said they trusted Solidarity. Solidarity had the support of the Catholic Church. Almost all Poles were religious, and although the government were anti-Catholic, they dared not confront the Catholic Church. The government were playing for time and hoped that Solidarity would break up. Lech Walesa and Solidarity were very popular in the West, and this could be a problem for the government.In September 1980, Solidaritys membership had grown to 3.5 million. By October it was 7 million and by January 1981 the membership reached its peak at 9.4 million; more than a third of all Polish workers. Solidarity had become an immensely popular and powerful organisation.

It must be remembered here, that solidarity did not INTEND TO OVERTHROW THE GOVERNMENT, JUST MAKE SOME REFORMS. Jaruzelski tried to negotiate with solidarity, but the talks were not successful. In December 1981, the government clamped down on Solidarity because: There were increasing signs that Solidarity was working as a political party, which could challenge the Communist party. Otherwise, the USSR would send in troops, like in Hungary, which Jaruzelski didnt want. In Poland, income had fallen 13%, industrial production by 11% and foreign trade by 20%. There were also unemployment and food shortages.

In December 1981, he declared a state of martial law in Poland. The army had emergency powers, and the leaders of Solidarity and thousands of its supporters were arrested and held without trials. Solidarity was declared illegal. Meetings and demonstrations were forbidden. In 1982, they tried to replace Solidarity with new communist unions. The movement didnt actively resist this. They knew that if they did, USSR troops would forcefully shut Solidarity down. Instead, the movement survived underground. Solidarity members still continued to resist the communist regime, along with the western powers, and plotted minor acts of rebellion such as operating an illegal radio station where they complained about their government with the west. They also used the radio to protest the jailing of Walesa and demanding his release from prison. In November 1982, Walesa was released from prison. This showed that Ordinary people were FED UP by the communist regime They were only suppressed because of the threat of Soviet troops. If these troops didnt invade, the government would be unable to resist a takeover. In 1988, food prices had inflated by 30%, and there were strikes again. This time, the government decided to negotiate. Lech Walesa managed to get Solidarity legalised and manage the promise of free elections. Without help from Moscow, the communists couldnt do anything. The elections were organised so that 65% of the seats in the Parliament were reserved for communists. Nevertheless, the elections were a disaster for the communists. Solidarity had won 99% of the seasts in the senate, and Lech Walesa became the Polish leader.Gorbachev (became leader in 1985) and his policiesIt was becoming increasingly difficult for USSR to get money to fund the troops that kept East Europe under control. Gorbachev hence said he couldnt afford the troops anymore, and urged Eastern European countries leaders to reform. He introduced the policy of perestroika- which means restructuring. He allowed free market economy He cut military spending to increase investment in health and housing sectors Glasnost- openness Stopped using propaganda to influence the people and cover up the countries problems Allowed free speech He also built better relations with the USA to achieve security for the USSR (and not continue the arms race) and said that USSR was no longer competing with USA. The cracks in Soviet control of east Europe first began to show in Hungary. In early 1989, Hungary started to remove the barbed wire that acted as a fence between Hungary and non-communist Austria. East Germans started going to Hungary on holiday, and used this opportunity as a chance to work their way through Austria into West Germany. The East German leader (Erich Honecker) was forced to ask Hungary to close its borders due to the large number of people that fled the country. Hungary refused. In November, thousands of East Germans marched along the Berlin wall because they had heard that the border would be opened. Honecker, ordered his troops to shoot the civilians, but they refused, and instead, opened up the wall. Poland became non-communist first, followed by Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Bulgaria and Romania. IN 1991, USSR itself disintegrated when a bunch of old hard-line communists tried to seize power. After this failed, Gorbachev realised that trying to save the USSR was pointless, and announced its end on 25th December, 1991. The Soviet economy was slowly becoming stagnant, whilst military spending went through the roof. Reagan's Strategic Defense Initiative was seen as a threat to be countered, and the Soviets threw more money at the military - the US was spending 15-18% of its Gross Domestic Product (how much the country earns) at the military, the Soviets were spending up to 35% - they were bankrupting themselves.

To counter this stagnation Gorbachev introduced the policies of Glasnost' and Perestroika (Openness and Re-Structuring) hoping that people would be open about how to rebuild the communist system, and make it work better. All it did was allowed people to openly criticise the system - soon they were calling for it to be replaced.

Communism was also simply not delivering the promised "workers paradise", wages were stagnant, housing shoddy cars a rarity, and, from the 170s they could see the differences between their lifestyle and the West on TV - especially when the (uncensored) Olympics were on.

Soviet Youth were growing tired of being told that they couldn't see certain films, couldn't listen to Western Music, or listen to Western Radio stations, even wearing jeans were frowned on. Glasnost' allowed them to speak out against the regime - and enabled them to listen to the music they wanted.

In the Republics, people were tired of being told what to do by Russians, they wanted to govern themselves, or, at least, have more autonomy within the Soviet framework - but the centre would not budge. Because of Glasnost' they could criticise and soon they began to organise. Eventually the people in the Baltic Republics started protesting - demanding independence, and soon, with the collapse of the union, they got it.

The even that pushed the Soviet Union into the history books was the failed coup of August 1991, when communist hard-liners tried to remove Gorbachev from office, and put in place a more Stalinist system - within two months of this coup the Soviet Union was no more.The GulfWhy was Saddam Hussein able to come to power in Iraq?Saddam Hussein became President of Iraq in 1979. When he was 20 years old, Hussein joined the Baath party (1957), whose aim was to unite all Arab states in the Middle East. This is called Arab Nationalism, and to a certain extent, it drove Saddams actions. In 1959, when Saddam failed to assassinate a previous president who opposed Arab Nationalism, Saddam was one of the leading figures in a bloodless yet successful coup in 1968. This coup led to Ahmad Hasan al-Bakr becoming president. Saddam was his vice president. Saddam combined various policies together to secure his position. His ruthless handling of opponents and regime of terror and repression ran alongside his social and economic policies that gained him support. Saddam couldnt have implemented any of his policies as vice president without establishing a strong base of power. He did this by ensuring that all the powerful positions in the government and military were given to his friends and family from his hometown in the area of Tikrit. To keep the army on his side, Saddam provided them with a large defence budget that enabled them to buy and develop modern weapons, including chemical weapons. To ensure that the population didnt oppose the ruling party, various parts of Iraqi society was brought under the governments control, and membership of important clubs and institutions was only allowed if you were a member of the party. Even universities and colleges required membership of the Baath party by its applicantsSaddam also oversaw the nationalisation (or government takeover) of Iraqs oil industry in 1972, which made the economy dramatically successful. In 1973, Iraq joined with other Middle Eastern countries in an international organisation that coordinates petroleum policy. OPEC agreed to reduce production, and in some cases, stop exporting oil to western countries. They did this as punishment for supporting Israel in the Yom Kippur war. The subsequent shortage of oil increased a price of a barrel to 400% of what it used to be. As a result, Iraqs income rocketed. A lot of the money coming into Iraqs economy was used by Saddam to invest in projects that improved the lives of ordinary Iraqis such as schools, hospitals and transport facilities. The road, water and power supplies increased due to the notable increase in the budget, but the most notable improvement was in the education and healthcare sectors. The government established free, universal education. Hundreds and thousands of Iraqis were now educated to an unprecedented level in the years that followed the establishment of the National Campaign for the Eradication of Illiteracy. Huge investment in healthcare also meant that Iraq had the best healthcare systems in the entire Middle East region, for which Saddam was presented with an award by UNESCO. Iraq was modernising at a rapid pace, and by the end of the 1970s, the number of rural peasants had decreased significantly, as people moved to the modern cities. These policies of Saddam had managed to ensure that he was insanely popular amongst the local people. It also meant that he had backing by the businessmen in the industries that he had invested copious amounts of money in. Saddam played a huge role in creating a state security apparatus that kept a very close watch on Iraqi citizens. The Peoples Army was responsible for internal security, although it was actually the Paramilitary Wing of the Baath Party. Consequently, the party was able to ensure that other elements of the Iraqi military were not able to oppose the government. Anyone who disagreed with the party was arrested by the secret police, known as the Department of General Intelligence (Mukhabarat). They frequently used torture, rape and assassination to control enemies of the state. Saddams control over who was appointed into the security services also meant that the recruits were supporters of Saddam at an INDIVIDUAL level. This meant that when the President resigned in 1979, the only feasible replacement they considered was Hussein. Nature of Saddam Husseins RuleSaddam used three main factors to his advantage (even when he was vice president) His influence in the Baath party His social policies that got the public to support him His ruthless response to opposition When he was president, his response to opposition became even more ruthless. He also acted quickly to ensure that he wouldnt face opposition from inside the Baath party itself. In just a week after becoming President, Saddam ordered a meeting of the Baath party members, wherein he declared that he had found 68 traitors within the party. These members were removed, tried for treason and executed. By the start of August 1979, hundreds more had been killed. From the very moment he became President, Saddam ensured that anyone who was a threat to him was removed. For ordinary citizens, though, Saddam provided a comfortable life. He continued to invest money into infrastructure. Health and education were still high on the spending budget- university education became free. Across the country, improvements to electricity and water supplies along with an improved road network scored him the support of the locals. (In the 1995 elections, the official results showed that Saddam received over 99% of the votes)His popularity was helped by propaganda. When Egypt signed the Camp-David accords with Israel, Saddam used the so called betrayal of the Arab world to his advantage. Iraqi media portrayed him as the saviour of pan-Arabism while his cult personality was reinforced by the erection of statues all over the country. He encouraged people to refer to him by his first name, which also led to him looking like some sort of father figure to his people, rather than a vicious dictator. His life story was regularly featured in newspapers and magazines, and an autobiographical film The Long Days was produced by the Iraqi Ministry of Information. Evening television news would begin with a Saddam song. Saddam used to visit ordinary Iraqi homes and villages in disguise to see what people thought of him. His hosts would pretend not to recognise him, and expressed delight when the President finally revealed his true identity. In order to appear to attend as many functions and official engagements as possible, Saddam resorted to the practice of using doubles or lookalikes- these men were given months of training during which they studied videos of Saddams public appearance. Censorship was rampant. Although the period of his rule appeared prosperous, violence and fear were central to Saddams rule. From the outside, Saddams policies regarding freedom of religion were the hallmark of a developed country, however, his violent repression of Shiite Muslims and Kurds proved that this was just an illusion. Shiite Muslims were the majority in Iraq, but Hussein himself was a Sunni Muslim and hence saw the Shiites as a threat. He ensured that his government had a Sunni majority, and deported anyone that he couldnt trust. 200,000 Shiites were consequently sent to Iran in 1980-81 alone. Many others were tortured, monitored and arrested if the internal security thought they were a threat to Saddams rule. Civilians were roped to the front of tanks to act as human shields while women and children were shot on site.Saddam was also determined to construct a new waterway in the south-east region of Iraq, where the Marsh Arabs resided. This group was one whose culture stretched back centuries. Some of the Marsh Arabs moved voluntarily, but others were the victims of chemical weapons attacks and others still starved to death once their food source had been destroyed. The Kurd minority in Northern Iraq suffered even more. Where the Shiites were a threat to Saddams rule because he thought they might want to get MORE involved in the Iraqi government and society, the threat from the Kurds was that they wanted to separate from Iraq and set up their own nation called Kurdistan. Saddam was determined to extend his rule ALL OVER Iraq, and this directly influenced the Kurds who had previously been left with a certain amount of freedom from the Iraqi government that allowed them to rule themselves to a certain extent. Starting even in his vice-Presidency, Saddam launched a series of attacks against the Kurds that exiled or killed their leading figures. Saddams hatred of the Kurds reached a boiling point when they sided with Iran in the Iraq-Iran war. As part of the conflict, Saddam ordered the bombing of the Kurdish town of Halabja in 1988. The attack included the use of chemical weapons such as mustard gas and cyanide. 5000 Kurds died and 10,000 were seriously injured. This attack was masterminded by Saddams cousin, nicknamed Chemical Ali. Apart from chemical attacks, he bulldozed entire villages and conducted vicious m