chapter 8- the interwar period
8A- THE RUSSIAN REVOLUTION
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Tsarist Russia
Until 1917, Russia was ruled by a Tsar. Nicholas II had become Tsar in 1894. He was a ruler who has absolute control over the country - an autocrat. People who spoke out against the government were sent to prison. Rioters were attacked by the Cossacks (Russian soldiers).
In 1905 there had been a revolution against the rule of the Tsar. In order to keep his position, Nicholas had been forced to accept a Duma (parliament) but nothing really changed, Nicholas kept power and if members of the Duma disagreed with him they were sent away. In 1914 Germany declared war on Russia and in 1915, Nicholas took control of the army. The Russians faced a series of defeats and Nicholas was blamed.
While Nicholas was at the front fighting the war, his wife Alexandra was left in charge of the country. She was very influenced by the holy man Rasputin. People resented the influence of Rasputin and he was murdered. The Romanovs were very unpopular. By 1917 there were food and fuel shortages. High unemployment meant that huge numbers of people were living in poverty. People were dying.
Until 1917, Russia was ruled by a Tsar. Nicholas II had become Tsar in 1894. He was a ruler who has absolute control over the country - an autocrat. People who spoke out against the government were sent to prison. Rioters were attacked by the Cossacks (Russian soldiers).
In 1905 there had been a revolution against the rule of the Tsar. In order to keep his position, Nicholas had been forced to accept a Duma (parliament) but nothing really changed, Nicholas kept power and if members of the Duma disagreed with him they were sent away. In 1914 Germany declared war on Russia and in 1915, Nicholas took control of the army. The Russians faced a series of defeats and Nicholas was blamed.
While Nicholas was at the front fighting the war, his wife Alexandra was left in charge of the country. She was very influenced by the holy man Rasputin. People resented the influence of Rasputin and he was murdered. The Romanovs were very unpopular. By 1917 there were food and fuel shortages. High unemployment meant that huge numbers of people were living in poverty. People were dying.
Socialism
Karl Marx (1818-1883) had said that industrialization had made the middle classes rich and powerful but had made the workers slaves. He said that the workers should rebel and take power away from the rich. He believed that nothing should be privately owned and that everything should be commonly owned. This theory is called communism. A group of people called the Bolsheviks believed that the royal family should be overthrown, and communism introduced.
The leader of the Bolsheviks was Vladimir Lenin, but he had been forced to leave Russia to avoid being imprisoned. Lenin continued to be leader of the Bolsheviks while in exile – publishing communist leaflets and raising money for their cause. He also spoke against the war.
Karl Marx (1818-1883) had said that industrialization had made the middle classes rich and powerful but had made the workers slaves. He said that the workers should rebel and take power away from the rich. He believed that nothing should be privately owned and that everything should be commonly owned. This theory is called communism. A group of people called the Bolsheviks believed that the royal family should be overthrown, and communism introduced.
The leader of the Bolsheviks was Vladimir Lenin, but he had been forced to leave Russia to avoid being imprisoned. Lenin continued to be leader of the Bolsheviks while in exile – publishing communist leaflets and raising money for their cause. He also spoke against the war.
The February Revolution
In February 1917, people rioted on the streets in Russia. They were joined by soldiers and members of the Duma. Nicholas II was forced to abdicate, and a new provisional government took over. Many Bolsheviks, including Joseph Stalin believed that the Russian people would not accept a Socialist government and supported the provisional government led by Alexander Kerensky, who was named President of Russia. The workers, soldiers and peasants elected their own councils called Soviets. The Soviets were as powerful as the government.
In February 1917, people rioted on the streets in Russia. They were joined by soldiers and members of the Duma. Nicholas II was forced to abdicate, and a new provisional government took over. Many Bolsheviks, including Joseph Stalin believed that the Russian people would not accept a Socialist government and supported the provisional government led by Alexander Kerensky, who was named President of Russia. The workers, soldiers and peasants elected their own councils called Soviets. The Soviets were as powerful as the government.
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The October Revolution
Kerensky had not ended the war as the people had hoped but had planned a new offensive against the Germans. Soldiers began deserting and returning to their homes. Many of them used their weapons to take land from the rich.
In April 1917, Vladimir Lenin returned from exile. He was angry that Russia was still fighting in the war and that many Bolsheviks supported the provisional government. Joseph Stalin had to decide whether to oppose Lenin or whether to abandon his support for the provisional government
He chose to support Lenin and on 24th October the Bolsheviks seized the Winter Palace, the headquarters of the provisional government. In December 1917 Lenin signed the treaty of Brest-Litovsk which took Russia out of the war. In 1918, the Russian royal family were murdered by the Bolsheviks.
Kerensky had not ended the war as the people had hoped but had planned a new offensive against the Germans. Soldiers began deserting and returning to their homes. Many of them used their weapons to take land from the rich.
In April 1917, Vladimir Lenin returned from exile. He was angry that Russia was still fighting in the war and that many Bolsheviks supported the provisional government. Joseph Stalin had to decide whether to oppose Lenin or whether to abandon his support for the provisional government
He chose to support Lenin and on 24th October the Bolsheviks seized the Winter Palace, the headquarters of the provisional government. In December 1917 Lenin signed the treaty of Brest-Litovsk which took Russia out of the war. In 1918, the Russian royal family were murdered by the Bolsheviks.
Civil War
Many Russians did not support the Bolshevik government and tried to oppose the Bolsheviks. The Bolsheviks were known as “Reds” while those that opposed them were the “Whites”. There was civil war between the reds and whites. Armies from Britain, France and America supported the whites but the Bolsheviks were more powerful and by 1922 the Bolsheviks were in charge of the country that would be renamed the Soviet Union.
Many Russians did not support the Bolshevik government and tried to oppose the Bolsheviks. The Bolsheviks were known as “Reds” while those that opposed them were the “Whites”. There was civil war between the reds and whites. Armies from Britain, France and America supported the whites but the Bolsheviks were more powerful and by 1922 the Bolsheviks were in charge of the country that would be renamed the Soviet Union.
8B- Mohandas Gandhi Leads India’s Independence Movement
Until World War I, most Indians had little interest in nationalism. The situation changed as over a million Indians enlisted in the British army. In return for their service, the British government promised reforms that would eventually lead to self-government.
In 1918, Indian troops returned home from the war and expected Britain to fulfill its promise. Instead, they were once again treated as second-class citizens. Radical nationalists carried out acts of violence to show their hatred of British rule. To curb dissent, the British passed the Rowlatt Acts. These laws allowed the government to jail protesters without trial for as long as two years. To Western-educated Indians, denial of a trial by jury violated their individual rights. To protest the Rowlatt Acts, around 10,000 Hindus and Muslims flocked to Amritsar, a major city in the Punjab, in the spring of 1919. They intended to pray and to listen to political speeches.
In 1918, Indian troops returned home from the war and expected Britain to fulfill its promise. Instead, they were once again treated as second-class citizens. Radical nationalists carried out acts of violence to show their hatred of British rule. To curb dissent, the British passed the Rowlatt Acts. These laws allowed the government to jail protesters without trial for as long as two years. To Western-educated Indians, denial of a trial by jury violated their individual rights. To protest the Rowlatt Acts, around 10,000 Hindus and Muslims flocked to Amritsar, a major city in the Punjab, in the spring of 1919. They intended to pray and to listen to political speeches.
The demonstration, especially the alliance of Hindus and Muslims, alarmed the British. The British commander at Amritsar ordered his troops to fire on the crowd without warning. Unable to escape from the enclosed courtyard, nearly 400 Indians died and about 1,200 were wounded.
The massacre at Amritsar set the stage for Mohandas Gandhi to emerge as the leader of the independence movement. Gandhi’s strategy for battling injustice evolved from his deeply religious approach to political activity. His teachings blended ideas from all the major world religions. Gandhi attracted millions of followers. Soon they began calling him the Mahatma, meaning “great soul.”.
Gandhi urged the Indian National Congress to follow a policy of noncooperation with the British government. In 1920, the Congress Party endorsed civil disobedience, the deliberate and public refusal to obey an unjust law, and non-violence as the means to achieve independence. Gandhi then launched his campaign of civil disobedience to weaken the British government’s authority and economic power over India.
The massacre at Amritsar set the stage for Mohandas Gandhi to emerge as the leader of the independence movement. Gandhi’s strategy for battling injustice evolved from his deeply religious approach to political activity. His teachings blended ideas from all the major world religions. Gandhi attracted millions of followers. Soon they began calling him the Mahatma, meaning “great soul.”.
Gandhi urged the Indian National Congress to follow a policy of noncooperation with the British government. In 1920, the Congress Party endorsed civil disobedience, the deliberate and public refusal to obey an unjust law, and non-violence as the means to achieve independence. Gandhi then launched his campaign of civil disobedience to weaken the British government’s authority and economic power over India.
Gandhi called on Indians to refuse to buy British goods, attend government schools, pay British taxes, or vote in elections. Gandhi staged a successful boycott of British cloth, a source of wealth for the British. He urged all Indians to weave their own cloth. Gandhi himself devoted two hours each day to spinning his own yarn on a simple handwheel. Because of the boycott, the sale of British cloth in India dropped sharply. Civil disobedience took an economic toll on the British. They struggled to keep trains running, factories operating, and overcrowded jails from bursting. Throughout 1920, the British arrested thousands of Indians who had participated in strikes and demonstrations.
In 1930, Gandhi organized a demonstration to defy the hated Salt Acts. According to these British laws, Indians could buy salt from no other source but the government. They also had to pay sales tax on salt. To show their opposition, Gandhi and his followers walked about 240 miles to the seacoast. There they began to make their own salt by collecting seawater and letting it evaporate.
This peaceful protest was called the Salt March. Some demonstrators planned a march to a site where the British government processed salt to shut this saltworks down. Police officers attacked the demonstrators with clubs. Still the people continued to march peacefully, refusing to defend themselves against their attackers. Newspapers across the globe carried the story, which won worldwide support for Gandhi’s independence movement. Gandhi and his followers gradually reaped the rewards of their civil disobedience campaigns and gained greater political power for the Indian people. In 1935, the British Parliament passed the Government of India Act. It provided local self-government and limited democratic elections, but not total independence.
In 1930, Gandhi organized a demonstration to defy the hated Salt Acts. According to these British laws, Indians could buy salt from no other source but the government. They also had to pay sales tax on salt. To show their opposition, Gandhi and his followers walked about 240 miles to the seacoast. There they began to make their own salt by collecting seawater and letting it evaporate.
This peaceful protest was called the Salt March. Some demonstrators planned a march to a site where the British government processed salt to shut this saltworks down. Police officers attacked the demonstrators with clubs. Still the people continued to march peacefully, refusing to defend themselves against their attackers. Newspapers across the globe carried the story, which won worldwide support for Gandhi’s independence movement. Gandhi and his followers gradually reaped the rewards of their civil disobedience campaigns and gained greater political power for the Indian people. In 1935, the British Parliament passed the Government of India Act. It provided local self-government and limited democratic elections, but not total independence.
8C- ATATURK AND NATIONALISM IN TURKEY
The breakup of the Ottoman Empire and growing Western political and economic interest in Southwest Asia spurred the rise of nationalism in this region. Just as the people of India fought to have their own nation after World War I, the people of Southwest Asia also launched independence movements to rid themselves of imperial rulers.
At the end of World War, I, the Ottoman Empire was forced to give up all its territories except Turkey. Turkish lands included the old Turkish home-land of Anatolia and a small strip of land around Istanbul. In 1919, Greek soldiers invaded Turkey and threatened to conquer it.
The Turkish sultan was powerless to stop the Greeks. However, in 1922, a brilliant commander, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, successfully led Turkish nationalists in fighting back the Greeks and their British backers. After winning a peace, the nationalists overthrew the last Ottoman sultan. In 1923, Atatürk became the president of the new Republic of Turkey, the first republic in Southwest Asia. To achieve his goal of transforming Turkey into a modern nation, he ushered in these sweeping reforms.
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As president of Turkey, Atatürk campaigned vigorously to mold the new republic into a modern nation. His models were the United States and other European countries.
Atatürk believed that even the clothing of the Turks should be changed to reflect a civilized, international dress. To reach this goal, Kemal set rules for clothing. He required government workers to wear Western-style business suits and banned the fez, a brimless red felt hat that was part of traditional Turkish clothing.
Atatürk died in 1938. From his leadership, Turkey gained a new sense of its national identity. His influence was so strong that the Turkish Parliament granted him the surname Atatürk in 1934, which means “father of the Turks.”
Atatürk believed that even the clothing of the Turks should be changed to reflect a civilized, international dress. To reach this goal, Kemal set rules for clothing. He required government workers to wear Western-style business suits and banned the fez, a brimless red felt hat that was part of traditional Turkish clothing.
Atatürk died in 1938. From his leadership, Turkey gained a new sense of its national identity. His influence was so strong that the Turkish Parliament granted him the surname Atatürk in 1934, which means “father of the Turks.”
8D- A CIVIL WAR IN CHINA
In 1921, a group met in Shanghai to organize the Chinese Communist Party. Mao Zedong, an assistant librarian at Beijing University, was among its founders. Later he would become China’s greatest revolutionary leader.
Mao Zedong had already begun to develop his own brand of communism. Lenin had based his Marxist revolution on his organization in Russia’s cities. Mao envisioned a different setting. He believed he could bring revolution to a rural country where the peasants could be the true revolutionaries
Mao Zedong had already begun to develop his own brand of communism. Lenin had based his Marxist revolution on his organization in Russia’s cities. Mao envisioned a different setting. He believed he could bring revolution to a rural country where the peasants could be the true revolutionaries
After Sun Yat-sen died in 1925, Chiang Kai-shek headed the Kuomintang. He was the son of a middle-class merchant and most of his followers were bankers and businesspeople. Like Chiang, they feared the Communists’ goal of creating a socialist economy modeled after the Soviet Union’s. Chiang had promised democracy and political rights to all Chinese. Yet his government became steadily less democratic and more corrupt.
Most peasants believed that Chiang was doing little to improve their lives. As a result, many peasants threw their support to the Chinese Communist Party. To enlist the support of the peasants, Mao divided land that the Communists won among the local farmers.
Most peasants believed that Chiang was doing little to improve their lives. As a result, many peasants threw their support to the Chinese Communist Party. To enlist the support of the peasants, Mao divided land that the Communists won among the local farmers.
By 1930, Nationalists and Communists in China were fighting a bloody civil war. Mao and other Communist leaders established themselves in the hills of south-central China. Mao referred to this tactic of taking his revolution to the countryside as “swimming in the peasant sea.” He recruited the peasants to join his Red Army. He then trained them in guerrilla warfare. Nationalists attacked the Communists repeatedly but failed to drive them out.
In 1933, Chiang Kai-shek gathered an army of at least 700,000 men and surrounded the Communists’ mountain stronghold. Outnumbered, the Communist Party leaders realized that they faced defeat. In a daring move, 100,000 Communist forces fled.
In 1933, Chiang Kai-shek gathered an army of at least 700,000 men and surrounded the Communists’ mountain stronghold. Outnumbered, the Communist Party leaders realized that they faced defeat. In a daring move, 100,000 Communist forces fled.
They began a hazardous, 6,000-mile-long journey called the Long March. Between 1934 and 1935, the Communists kept only a step ahead of Jiang’s forces. Thousands died from hunger, cold, exposure, and battle wounds.
Finally, after a little more than a year, Mao and the seven or eight thousand Communist survivors settled in caves in northwestern China. There they gained new followers. Meanwhile, as civil war between Nationalists and Communists raged, Japan invaded China.
In 1931, as Chinese fought Chinese, the Japanese watched the power struggles with rising interest. Japanese forces took advantage of China’s weakening situation. They invaded Manchuria, an industrialized province in the northeast part of China.
Finally, after a little more than a year, Mao and the seven or eight thousand Communist survivors settled in caves in northwestern China. There they gained new followers. Meanwhile, as civil war between Nationalists and Communists raged, Japan invaded China.
In 1931, as Chinese fought Chinese, the Japanese watched the power struggles with rising interest. Japanese forces took advantage of China’s weakening situation. They invaded Manchuria, an industrialized province in the northeast part of China.
In 1937, the Japanese launched an all-out invasion of China. Massive bombings of villages and cities killed thousands of Chinese. The destruction of farms caused many more to die of starvation. By 1938, Japan held control of a large part of China.
The Japanese threat forced an uneasy truce between Chiang’s and Mao’s forces. The civil war gradually ground to a halt as Nationalists and Communists temporarily united to fight the Japanese. The National Assembly further agreed to promote changes outlined in Sun Yat-sen’s “Three Principles of the People”—nationalism, democracy, and people’s livelihood.
The Japanese threat forced an uneasy truce between Chiang’s and Mao’s forces. The civil war gradually ground to a halt as Nationalists and Communists temporarily united to fight the Japanese. The National Assembly further agreed to promote changes outlined in Sun Yat-sen’s “Three Principles of the People”—nationalism, democracy, and people’s livelihood.