Chap 2 - Totalitarian Regimes

Question 1

Totalitarianism

Answer 1

• form of government where the state’s power is unlimited
• controls all aspects of public and private life largely using TERROR
• control extends to all political and economic matters + attitudes, morals and beliefs of the people –

==> main foundation is the achievement of an ideology

Question 2

Ideology

Answer 2

a set of beliefs/ principles, on which a political system, party or organization is based (very important to justify power/violence)

Question 3

Kulaks

Answer 3

rich peasants

Question 4

NEP (New Economic Policy)

Answer 4

Economic policy established by Stalin to erase all traces of capitalism through rapid industrialization and collectivization of agriculture

Question 5

What are common points shared by totalitarian regimes?

Answer 5

Violence, struggles, intimidations.

Question 6

What is a dictatorship?

Answer 6

A form of government where the ruler/group governs without the consent of the population.

Question 7

What does the phrase ‘One people, One Reich, One Fuehrer’ signify?

Answer 7

The merging of the leader, state, and population into one entity.

Question 8

When did the first totalitarian regimes emerge?

Answer 8

In the 1920s, with Italy under Mussolini in 1923.

Question 9

What is the ideology of Nazism focused on?

Answer 9

Purification of the ‘master-race’ based on Aryan supremacy.

Question 10

What does Marxism-Leninism propose as the final phase of history?

Answer 10

Communism.

Question 11

What was the role of Stalin in the context of ideology?

Answer 11

Protector of Marxism-Leninism, interpreting and implementing its principles.

Question 12

What was the purpose of indoctrination in totalitarian regimes?

Answer 12

To control society and create a ‘New Man’ aligned with party ideology.

Question 13

Fill in the blank: In Germany, the _______ laws allowed the government to forcibly sterilize certain individuals.

Answer 13

Eugenic

Question 14

What was the goal of the economic policy in Nazi Germany?

Answer 14

Autarky, or self-sufficiency.

Question 15

What was collectivization in the USSR?

Answer 15

The transition from individual farms to collective farms owned by the state.

Question 16

What does the term ‘Gleichschaltung’ refer to?

Answer 16

The synchronization of all institutions under Nazi control.

Question 17

What was the purpose of the Gestapo in Nazi Germany?

Answer 17

To act as the secret state police, enforcing loyalty to the regime.

Question 18

True or False: The NKVD in the USSR was responsible for the execution and deportation of suspected opponents.

Answer 18

True.

Question 19

What was the significance of the Kristallnacht?

Answer 19

It marked a decisive moment in the organized and nationwide persecution of Jews.

Question 20

What economic policy did Stalin implement to industrialize the USSR?

Answer 20

The Five Year Plan.

Question 21

What was the impact of the Holodomor in Ukraine?

Answer 21

A massive famine caused by collectivization policies, leading to millions of deaths.

Question 22

What were the Nuremberg laws in Germany?

Answer 22

Laws that restricted the rights of Jews and prohibited intermarriage with Aryans.

Question 23

Fill in the blank: The _______ was a series of political purges in the USSR during the late 1930s.

Answer 23

Great Purge

Question 24

What was the outcome of the Night of the Long Knives?

Answer 24

The elimination of SA leadership and consolidation of power for Hitler.

Question 25

What role did propaganda play in totalitarian regimes?

Answer 25

It was central to shaping public perception and enforcing ideology.

Question 26

What was the fate of political opponents in Nazi Germany?

Answer 26

Execution, concentration camps, and torture.

Question 27

What was the relationship between religion and the state in the USSR?

Answer 27

Religion was seen as opposition to communism, leading to persecution of religious institutions.

Question 28

What was the purpose of indoctrination programs for youth in totalitarian regimes?

Answer 28

To instill party ideology and create a militarized society.

Question 29

What was the primary form of resistance in the USSR during the 1930s?

Answer 29

Peasant resistance against collectivization ## Footnote Around 13,000 riots occurred, and approximately 1,000 communist officials were assassinated by peasants.

Question 30

What was the impact of Stakhanovism on worker protests in the USSR?

Answer 30

Workers engaged in protests by working without breaks, exemplified by the rebellion in Ivanovo in 1932 ## Footnote Stakhanovism aimed to increase productivity but also led to worker unrest.

Question 31

What methods did the Soviet government use to suppress resistance?

Answer 31

Famine enhancement, sending the Red Army, and killing/deporting/torturing people ## Footnote Resistance was particularly crushed among peasants, who were deemed less important than workers.

Question 32

How did resistance manifest in Germany during the totalitarian regime?

Answer 32

Forms of opposition were weak, including passive resistance and clandestine operations by socialists and communists ## Footnote The Red Orchestra was one such group, but it was small in scale.

Question 33

What role did priests and pastors play in resistance in Germany?

Answer 33

They embodied resistance but were often isolated or deported for their public sermons ## Footnote Their influence was limited by state repression.

Question 34

What was Germany's motivation for totalitarian expansion after the Versailles Treaty?

Answer 34

Revenge against the unfair treaty, to reclaim lost territories and establish the Thousand Year Reich ## Footnote Germans believed they had been betrayed by Jews and communists, leading to the 'stab in the back' myth.

Question 35

What significant actions did Hitler take to violate the Versailles Treaty?

Answer 35

Withdrew from the League of Nations, began rearmament, reoccupied the Rhineland, and created the Luftwaffe ## Footnote These actions escalated tensions leading up to WWII.

Question 36

What were the alliances formed by Germany in 1936?

Answer 36

Rome-Berlin Axis and Anti-Comintern Axis ## Footnote Japan joined the Anti-Comintern Axis in 1937.

Question 37

What was the Comintern's strategy after 1934 regarding alliances?

Answer 37

Allowed communist parties to ally with socialists to form the Popular Front ## Footnote This was a shift in tactics to combat democratic regimes.

Question 38

What was the outcome of the Spanish Civil War?

Answer 38

Republicans were defeated and nationalists under Gen Franco took control ## Footnote Franco led Spain until his death in 1975.

Question 39

What was the significance of the Munich Conference in 1938?

Answer 39

Allowed Hitler to annex the Sudetenland without resistance ## Footnote This event highlighted the weakness of democracies against totalitarian regimes.

Question 40

What actions did Germany take in March 1939?

Answer 40

Annexed the rest of Czechoslovakia ## Footnote This was part of a series of aggressive expansions leading to WWII.

Question 41

What was the Pact of Steel?

Answer 41

A pact reinforcing the alliance between Italy and Germany in May 1939 ## Footnote This solidified their military cooperation leading into WWII.

Question 42

What was the secret pact between Germany and the USSR in 1939?

Answer 42

A non-aggression treaty that included plans to invade and divide Poland ## Footnote This treaty was not intended to be honored by Germany.

Question 43

What common characteristics did German and Soviet regimes share?

Answer 43

Propaganda, cult of the leader, indoctrination, political police, violence, terror ## Footnote Despite their differences in ideology, both regimes employed similar methods of control.

Question 44

What were the ideological differences between Nazism and Communism?

Answer 44

Nazism focused on Lebensraum; Communism focused on internationalism ## Footnote These differing ambitions shaped their respective policies and actions.

Question 45

True or False: Western democracies effectively countered the rise of totalitarian regimes during the interwar period.

Answer 45

False ## Footnote Western democracies seemed powerless and did not know how to react to the growing threat of totalitarianism.