The final is coming! The final is coming!! Stockmyer may have changed the essay questions from when I took the class, but these were the two possibilities we had:
1. Government throughout the Course–nobles, strong kings, revolutions, moving toward democracy in England, etc.
2. Religion throughout the Course–Catholicism, Lutheranism, Calvinism, where religion makes a differences–Darwin, Communism, etc.
Double-check with your classmates, though, to be on the safe side. You will also have the usual: Map (from the beginning to the end of the course), Chronological Order (Old Words, too), etc. Plus the New Material!! Start studying immediately!! And know all of the old words–the final is comprehensive, after all.
And you have to have watched the German World War II submarine movie, Das Boot, before you take the final exam.
It's time to go around the world pre-World War II.
The British Commonwealth is the name used for countries that used to be colonies of England but are now independent. They include Australia and New Zealand. The British Empire consists of India now. India hoped to be let loose at the end of World War I (a lot of Indians fought in World War I). Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948) was a lawyer in India (Mahatma is a nickname given to him that means "Great Soul"). He used peaceful protest (the first sit-ins). Boycott British merchandise, but remain peaceful and the English won't kill you (usually). Gandhi is thrown in jail, he stops eating. The English know that if he dies there will be hell to pay in India. Gandhi says that peaceful protest is the 1st thing to try–it allows the government a chance to change. Then if necessary, resort to violence. Gandhi had previously lived and worked for change in South Africa. Gandhi continually works for peace and fasts and leads protest until his death in 1948. India is granted independence from England in 1947. India (mostly Hindu) and Pakistan (mostly Muslim) form separate states. Gandhi is assassinated in 1948 by a Hindu fanatic. Jawaharlal Nehru (1889-1964) becomes the independent India's first prime minister (1947-1964). This is touted as the largest democracy in the world, but it isn't terribly democratic, because they keep electing Nehru's offspring. Two years after Nehru suffers a stroke and dies, his daughter, Indira Gandhi (1917-1984), becomes prime minister (1966-1977 and 1980-1984). Indira Gandhi is assassinated by a Sikh extremist. Indira Gandhi is Nehru's daughter–she married a man named Feroze Gandhi (no relation to Mahatma Gandhi). One of her sons, Rajiv Gandhi (1944-1991) becomes prime minister (1984-1989). Rajiv Gandhi is assassinated in 1991.
The I.R.A. (Irish Republican Army) wanted Ireland to become independent. The I.R.A. are illegal revolutionaries. They beat up the Irish police until there is no law and order at all. They used to do things like throw bombs, boycott the police so there was no police force, etc. England sent English veterans from World War I over to Ireland to be police. This just increases tension. These policemen were called "Black and Tans" cuz they wore the black hats of the English police and tan army uniforms. The I.R.A. and the Black and Tans mostly just took turns killing each other. In 1922, Ireland becomes independent except for the 6 northern counties (thus it is called Northern Ireland–these consist of 6 of the 9 Ulster counties, so it is often called Ulster as well). These northern countries have a large population of non-Catholics and don't want to be mixed in with the Catholic majority of the rest of Ireland. These people, called Scotch-Irish, are also mostly of English and Scottish ancestry. The southern Irish counties are known as the Irish Free State (1922-1937), Eire (1937-1949), and the Republic of Ireland (1949-present). The I.R.A. is not satisfied with this partition of Ireland into two separate states (with Northern Ireland as part of Great Britain), so fighting still breaks out. The I.R.A. wants all of Ireland to be united. In World War II, Ireland was supposedly neutral. Actually, Ireland was pro-Nazi cuz they thought that anyone was better than the English.
Turkey was on the wrong side of World War I. They hated the Russians, so they were on the German-Austrian side. They lost some territory cause they lost the war. The winners got Palestine. The Arabs and Jews wanted separate states. Some Jews want their ancestral homeland back. The Arabs have been living there for centuries, though. This gets put on the back burner, because of European issues.
In Spain, there was a bad news king. The king was thrown out. Spain is a sad, nothing country at this point. There was a series of kings. Right wing dictators and left wing republicans took turns taking over control of the government. When the Republic was in, it would confiscate the monastery lands, so the Pope always backed the dictators (who didn't do that, of course). The Pope backed Francisco Franco (1892-1975). Franco started a Civil War in Spain backed by Hitler and Mussolini cuz it gave them a neat place to practice their new weaponry. This war lasts from 1936 to 1939. The Spanish were given a lot of weapons to try out during this war to see what worked and what didn't. During the Spanish Civil War, Franco bombs a Republican city. This is the first time a city is bombed on purpose. For Whom the Bell Tolls is a Hemingway novel written about the Spanish Civil War. Franco is the dictator of Spain from 1939 to 1975. Juan Carlos I became king upon Franco's death in 1975.
There are essentially two types of government at this time in history: one-man rule (Russia, Italy, Germany, Spain, etc.) and democracy (U.S., England, France, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Holland, Switzerland, Czechoslovakia, etc.). The great tragedies of the 20th Century are the dictators during this time period: Stalin, Mussolini, Hitler, and Franco.
In 1935, Mussolini wanted military fame so he attacked Ethiopia. Mussolini fought them cuz they wouldn't fight back. The League of Nations protested, but so what? The League of Nations is not strong, so it is unable to keep the peace. Mussolini gets to keep Ethiopia.
Russia left World War I early which made the Westerners mad. They were Communists which made the Westerners really nervous. No one speaks to Russia for a while, but as Hitler gets stronger, everyone wants Russia as an ally. Everyone asks the Russians to stay neutral. Stalin hates everyone–Hitler, England, France, etc. Stalin agrees to be neutral, but he wants a buffer zone–Poland, Finland, etc.–from the rest of Europe. Stalin wants to keep everyone out of Russia. The problem is that once Stalin gets into Poland and Finland, how do they get him back out? Stalin essentially starts trying to get back what Russia lost at the end of World War I. Germany says to stay neutral and the Germans won't do anything to stop Russia when Russia moves into old Russian lands. Stalin makes this deal with Germany.
In 1936, Hitler decides he wants his own army on his own territory. So, he does it (in direct violation of the Versailles Treaty). England and France let it go. In 1936, Hitler moved troops across the Rhine river. Nobody did anything. Hitler threatens Austria. Austria votes to make Hitler head of Austria. The Czechs were in trouble. Western Czechoslovakia is in between Germany and Austria. There are lots of Germans in this portion of Czechoslovakia. Hitler says that the Czech government is persecuting the Germans in Western Czechoslovakia, so he takes over Western Czechoslovakia. No one does anything. Neville Chamberlain (1869-1940) was the prime minister of England from 1937 to 1940. Chamberlain flies into Germany to talk to Hitler. Hitler says that he just wants to get all Germans together. Chamberlain says ok, but don't go any farther. Chamberlain declares it "peace with honor." Chamberlain gets neither, but he doesn't know it at the time. Chamberlain becomes known as the great appeaser. If Hitler would have stopped there, he would've been ok.
Stalin wanted to put troops in Poland and Finland for a buffer zone for the Soviet Union, but the West didn't want him to do that. So he made a treaty with Hitler. No one knows that Russians are neutral. Germany struck Poland. The West (England and France, essentially) warned Hitler to stay out of Poland. In September 1939, World War II was officially on. The Soviet Union attacked Finland and Eastern Poland.