Lecture 19 - First World War

Terms

Somme - one of the major offenses undertaken by the Allies against the Germans
Tannenberg - great battle won by Germany on the Eastern front, helped bring down Russian regime
Vladimir Lenin - leader of the Communist Russian revolution
Peter the Great - 18th century czar who sought to modernize Russia
Soviets - "committee" who rule much of Russia during the beginning of the revolution
League of Nations - suggested and created by President Woodrow Wilson to help resolve world conflicts, U.S. didn't join. World Health Organization also created
Fascists - group who believed in strong state control to restore order to society and the economy
Meiji - name taken by Japanese emporer in 1867/68 began creation of a modern industrialized Japan
Sunrise Industries - industries which will grow and create jobs in the future
Joseph Stalin - successor to Lenin in 20s/30s who transformed Soviet state at considerable expense
Zaibatsu - group of large Japanese firms, the managers who ran them, and the values that they shared
Adolph Hitler - leader of Nazi Germany in the 1930s & 40s
All Quiet on the Western Front - Novel by Erich Maria Remarque about the horrors of World War I

Artillery killed more soldiers than machine guns
Italy joined allies in 1915
Hemingway wrote A Farewell to Arms based on his experiences
600,000 French and British killed
400-500,000 Germans killed
2,000,000 Russian deaths

Canned food
Tank 1916
Airships
Airplanes
Poison gas
U-boot

U.S. brought into war 1917 - bankers had loaned millions to France and Britain, created boom economy in U.S., launched aircraft industry

Czar Nicholas II
Peter the Great 1689-1725 introduced Western technology
1861 - serfs liberated in Russia by Czar Alexander II
1866 - centralized bank created in Russia
1890s - expanded railways
French were active lenders to the Russians, concluded in defensive alliance
Coal mines, iron, oil - Russian industrial growth matched growth of other nations including the U.S.
1914 - Russia had passed through the first phase of industrialization
1917 - strikes and riots were frequent due to stress on food system
Lenin called for confiscation of all land by the peasants, called for withdrawal from war
1917 - Red Guard stormed the Czars palace
followed by civil war and great famine 1921-22

Germans pushed allies to withing 30 miles of Paris
German navy mutinied in 1918, Armistice followed
German economy devastated
New currency was issued 1 mark : 1 trillion old marks

Rockefeller - organized oil industry

U.S. immigration 1870-1900 population almost doubled
1920 - 2nd industrial revolution (automobiles on a mass scale)
Late 1920s - profits went to only about 5% of population
Farmers experienced depressed prices
1929 - stock market crash - global collapse
1933 - 1/3 American workers jobless, 6 million Germans out of work

Stalin d. 1953, replaced Lenin 1927 - launched collective of agriculture, began purging resistance, including those in his own party, killed more people than the Germans did

Benito Mussolini - fascists, used bullying tactics, fear of Communism
Adolf Hitler - appointed chancellor in 1933, removed all opposition, then purged his own party, restored economy, rearmed country, began expansion of Germany

Japanese industrialization - Takagawa was a feudal state (1600), centralized, dominated by powerful Shogun. Produced 250 years of peace and stability. Numerous trading towns and cities, internal commerce, cash crops, undermining traditional feudal structure. Created degree of disaffection in warrior class.

Admiral Perry - arrived in Japan in 1853, initial reaction was hostile
Japanese learned a lesson from the Chinese (overrun by the West)
1867 - Overthrow of Takagawa, restoration of emperor (Meiji restoration)
Many of the Meiji supporters were young (30) samurai and made clandestine trips to the west beforehand
Meiji were rational shoppers, taking what they thought were the best from each place they visited (U.S. education, British postal system)
Capital came from heavy taxes on peasants, this was a key to success
Zaibatsu - built roads, ships, banking, insurance, mining operations (reflected and extended traditional samurai values, sense of loyalty, patriotism) Mitsubishi was one.
Working conditions were harsh, similar to other industrialized countries

Emperor Meiji 1867-1912
Shintoism emphasized the unique nature of the Japanese people, fueled growing imperialism