Collapse of international peace Flashcards
1
Q
Describe how Hitler carried out rearmament in Germany
A
- Initially, Hitler began rearmament in secret whilst making a great public display of his desire not to rearm Germany. Later, he told other countries that he was only rearming because they refused disarm themselves, so that his actions seemed justifiable and other countries weren’t alarmed.
- In March 1935, he reintroduced conscription into the army, which challenged the Treaty of Versailles even further.
- In June 1935, Britain signed a naval agreement with Hitler, allowing Germany to increase her navy to up to 35% of the size of the British navy.
2
Q
Describe the Saar plebiscite
A
- In 1935, the League organised a plebiscite where the people could vote on if they wanted to be ruled by Nazi Germany or if they wanted to stay being ruled by the LoN.
- The vote was an overwhelming success for Hitler as roughly 90% of people wanted to be ruled by Germany.
- Although it looked like the League was being firm and decisive with Hitler at first, the outcome only strengthened Hitler’s position as it highlighted his increasing popularity and authority.
- This was entirely within the terms of the Treaty.
3
Q
Describe Hitler’s remilitarisation of the Rhineland and the response of the League
A
- In March 1936, Hitler moved his forces into the Rhineland, clearly violating the Treaty of Versailles and the Locarno Pact.
- In the end, the League condemned Hitler’s actions but did not have the power to take it any further. It was also dealing with the Abyssinian crisis at the same time so was distracted.
- Even the French, the country most directly threatened by the move, were divided over what to do because an election was about to be held and no French leaders wanted to be responsible for plunging France into a war. In the end, France refused to act without British support.
4
Q
Why was remilitarising the Rhineland not risky?
A
- France had just signed a treaty with the USSR to protect each other against German attack so Hitler claimed he was under threat and so should be allowed to place his troops on his own frontier.
- Many British people were showing sympathy towards Germany at the time so he rightfully believed that she would not intervene.
5
Q
Why was remilitarising the Rhineland risky?
A
Hitler was taking a risk with France because the German army was much weaker than the French army and lacked essential equipment and air support.
6
Q
Describe the Spanish Civil War
A
- The civil war broke out in July 1936
- USSR supported the republican government and supported them (with pilots, aircrafts and weapons)
- Hitler and Mussolini supported the nationalists under general Franco and supplied them with pilots, aircrafts and thousands of troops.
- Britain and France refused to directly intervene, but France did send some weapons to the republicans.
- The rebels won in 1939, partly due to Hitler’s help, and Spain was ruled under a right-wing dictatorship for 36 years.
7
Q
What was the significance of the Spanish Civil War?
A
- Strengthened bonds between Mussolini and Hitler and gave combat experience to German and Italian forces.
- Britain’s non-intervention may have convinced Hitler that he could form an alliance with Britain or that Britain (and France) would at least stay neutral in a future war.
- So the civil war further encouraged Hitler in his main plan to reverse the Treaty of Versailles
8
Q
Describe militarism in Japan
A
- Japan was under the control of nationalist commanders who wanted to extend Japan’s empire across Asia so it could compete with other world powers, especially the USA.
- In 1937, Japan invaded China
9
Q
What was the Axis Alliance and why was it formed?
A
- Hitler and Mussolini saw that they had a lot in common with the military dictatorship in Japan
- In November 1936, Germany and Japan signed an Anti-Comintern Pact
- In November 1937, Italy also signed the pact
- This alliance was called the Axis Alliance
10
Q
What were Hitler’s motives for Anschluss?
A
- He felt that the two states belonged together as one German nation/ ‘greater Germany’
- Many people in Austria did actually want to reunite with Germany, especially since their country was so economically weak
- He wanted to add Austria’s soldiers, weapons and rich deposits of gold and iron to Germany’s increasingly strong army and industry
- He was violating another term of the ToV
11
Q
Describe how Hitler achieved Anschluss
A
- In March 1938, Hitler encouraged riots and demonstrations in Austria calling for a union with Germany.
- He pressured the Austrian chancellor Schuschnigg to agree to Anschluss
- Schuschnigg appealed, asking for some sort of support or to threat sanctions against Hitler.
- Britain and France did not provide this support, so he called a referendum.
- Hitler, afraid of losing, moved his troops to Austria to supposedly guarantee a trouble-free plebiscite.
- Under the close eye of the Nazis, 99.75 % of Austrians voted for Anschluss.
12
Q
What was the significance of Anschluss?
A
- It revealed the weakness of Britain and France as neither were willing to defend the Treaty and sanction Germany
- It showed the value of the new German understanding with Italy
- It exposed Czechoslovakia and made it even more vulnerable against attack
13
Q
What was appeasement?
A
Appeasement was the policy followed by the British and later by the French, of avoiding war with aggressive powers such as Japan, Italy and Germany, by giving way to their demands, provided they were not too unreasonable.
14
Q
What were the two distinct phases of appeasement?
A
- From the mid-1920’s to 1937, there was a vague feeling that war must be avoided at all cost, so Britain, and sometimes France, simply accepted the acts of aggression and breaches of the ToV (e.g. Manchuria and Abyssinia).
- From 1937 onwards, when Chamberlain became PM, Britain took more initiative in finding out what Hitler wanted and showing him that reasonable claims could be met by negotiation rather than by force,
15
Q
Why did Britain follow a policy of appeasement?
A
- It was thought essential to avoid a war, and there was a strongly pacifist public opinion in Britain.
- Many felt that Germany and Italy did have genuine grievances so the ToV shouldn’t be defended.
- As the League had proved ineffective, Chamberlain believed that the only way to settle disputes was by personal contact and negotiation between leaders. In this way, he could control and civilise Hitler.
- Economic cooperation between Britain and Germany would be beneficial for both countries.
- Britain was not strong enough to fight a war so wanted to avoid any military action that might lead to full-scale conflict. The longer appeasement lasted, the stronger Britain would become, and the more this would deter aggression, or so Chamberlain thought.
