MR SPENCE HISTORY
How far was Hitler’s Foreign Policy to Blame for the Outbreak of War in Europe in 1939?
Key ideas to be covered
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What were Hitler's foreign policy aims?
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Was the policy of appeasement justified?
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How important was the Nazi–Soviet Pact?
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Why did Britain and France declare war on Germany in September 1939?
One of the most common questions you will be asked is whether it was Hitler's militarism which led to the Second World War. This is an odd question. Although Britain and France adopted the incorrect approach to counter Hitler's aggression, this did not cause the war. The liberal democracies' appeasement instead raises the question of when would have been the opportune time to confront Hitler. Despite the asinine question put forward by IGCSE, you will need to know in detail why Hitler's beliefs made war probable. We will begin by investigating why he objected to the Treaty of Versailles and the early manifestation of this distaste in the Saar, Rhineland and through rearmament. We will also begin to examine the darker aspects of his ideology, the pursuit of lebensraum (living space) at the expense of those he deemed racially inferior.
In the past, classes were taught about why the Spanish Civil War was fought, but this is not actually in the syllabus. The very basic causes are:
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1. Weak Democracy. Monarch had been deposed in 1921 and had been unstable since.
2. Little industrialisation, poor wages, uneven land ownership, inefficient agriculture. Spanish backwardness resulted in large numbers of left-wing parties. Yet outside the major cities Spain remained a conservative and Catholic society.
3. In 1936, the Popular Front achieves a narrow victory. Very diverse groups difficult to keep together. Political reform is, therefore slow, and there is political violence against the church.
4. They also wish to reduce the size of the army. Franco decides the country is about to fall into anarchy and leads his Moroccan army in a coup.
If you would like to know more detailed reasons you can take a look at the first document below on the causes of the Spanish Civil War.
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This week you are going to teach yourselves why the Spanish Civil War began and the intervention of the foreign powers. You are going to work as a group and produce a PowerPoint for the class notes. You will need to make it good enough to present to the rest of the class. The best presentation will win a prize.
1. Who comprised the various sides and what were the varying beliefs within the two sides. One person to do the Republicans and the other the Nationalists.
2. Reasons for Italian support, what they provided and evaluation of the benefits for Italy (2).
3. Reasons for German support, what they provided and evaluation of the benefits for Germany (2).
4. Reasons for Soviet support, what they provided and evaluation of the benefits for the USSR.
5. Who did France favour, why did they not intervene and analysis of the success and impacts of their non-intervention policy.
6. Who did Britain favour, why did they not intervene and analysis of the success and impacts of their non-intervention policy.
7. What role did the USA play in the crisis?
8. Use Mr Spence's notes to fill out the info for all countries.
9. In charge of formatting and proofreading the English.
You should use P.H. Bell's Origins of the Second World War in Europe as your sole source and consult pages 244-252.
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Spanish Civil War
The policy of Appeasement dominated the British approach towards Hitler's Germany from 1933 and 1938. The policy involved Britain making concessions to Germany in the hope that it could prevent a wider war. Even if the British rationale was understandable, no credible historian would now argue that they took the correct approach. However, the IGCSE still requires an analysis of how justifiable the policy was. We will build towards answering this question by examining the two events most associated with Appeasement. The Spanish Civil War and the remilitarisation of the Rhineland show elements of the policy, but it was most explicitly demonstrated in the Anschluss with Austria in March 1938 and then the Sudeten Crisis of September and October of that year. To undertake the research to complete the shared document, you can use your notes and the resources below. Everyone should take one resource. Make sure you are editing as you go so information is not repeated.
Causes,Practices and Effects of Wars pp.123-124
Causes and Effects of 20th Century Wars pp.155-157
IGCSE History - Walsh p.60
20th Century History for Cambridge IGCSE p.56
Understanding the Modern World - p.276
GCSE Modern World - p.273
https://internationalgcsehistory.wordpress.com/2014/12/13/appeasement/
https://www.johndclare.net/RoadtoWWII4.htm
https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/guides/ztydcwx/revision/1
Z Notes p.67
Origins of the Second World War Reconsidered - Chapter 7
Appeasement: Chamberlain, Churchill and the Road to War. - Entire Book
British Appeasement of Germany
French Appeasement of Germany
Appeasement
On 23 August 1939, the Nazi-Soviet Pact was signed in Moscow by the two nations' respective foreign ministers' Joachim von Ribbentrop and Vyacheslav Molotov. Later that night Stalin offered lavish hospitality to the German delegation. Publically the two nations agreed not to attack the other for ten years nor to assist any third party at war with the other. There was a secret protocol which saw the USSR given the Baltic states, Western Poland, Bessarabia and Bukovia. The accommodation between these seeming ideological rivals caused surprise throughout the world. Japan could not believe their ally's rapprochement with a foremost enemy. Military planners in London and Paris were in shock as the likelihood of war increased, and a British naval blockade was rendered meaningless. You will need to understand why the agreement came about and made a European war almost inevitable. Also, you will need to understand why when the resultant invasion of Poland occurred, Britain and France now went to war.
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