A Comparative History: Russia, Germany, and the United States
Whites
There were four main leaders: General Yudenich, Denikin, Baron Wrangel, and Admiral Kolchak. Some of them wanted to put the Tsar back in power. Each one tried to make himself the ruler of Russia when the Tsar and his family had been executed.
Czech Legion
A group of 40,000 Austro-Hungarian prisoners of war that had formed an army to fight against the Central Powers.
Soviet Democracy
In the civil war, political parties were allowed to operate, at times their newspapers were banned and their leaders imprisoned. The SRs assassinated Bolshevik officials. Elections to soviets took place; during the civil war, the Bolshevik government often bypassed the soviets.
Gulags
Were forced labor camps, where workers who broke the labor code were sent. Most inmates were peasants and victims of Stalin’s purges. There were about 3 million prisoners.
Proportional Representation
Seats in the parliament are allocated according to the number of votes for each party across the country as a whole.
Spartacists
A Marxist group like the Bolsheviks in Russia, was led by Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg. They wanted Germany to have a government based on workers and soldiers’ councils or soviets.
Freikorps
There were groups of right-wing nationalist, antisocialist, and anticommunist soldiers. At the end of the war, they acted as armed vigilante squads against left-wingers. They hated the democracy of the Weimar Republic.
Hyperinflation
When prices rise very quickly that paper currency becomes worthless. German workers had to be paid daily and not weekly because prices were going up so quickly. Banknotes were so bad that they were also used to light fires.
Schutzstaffel
This protection squad was set up as part of the SA. Himmler became its leader and rapidly grew in size. The recruits for its security branch, to come mostly from the educated middle classes. After Hitler became chancellor, it was used to murder the SA leaders, and it became a separate organization. All police organizations were in Himmler’s control.
Goebbels
He joined the Nazi party and joined firstly with Strasser and other more militant members to oppose Hitler. He was persuaded to change sides. Hitler put him in charge of Nazi propaganda.
1932 Presidential Election
Goebbels made good use of the increase in Nazi funds for this election. Hitler was flown to meetings by plane as part of a “Hitler Over Germany” campaign.
Reichstag Fire
Van der Lubbe was eventually given a pardon by the West German government almost 50 years after the events. The fire, it looks to have started in several places at the same time. If Van der Lubbe was involved, it was acting by the instructions of the KPD.
Three Ks
The Nazis thought there was a natural division between the genders. Men were born to work, engage in politics, and fight in wars. Women were intended by nature to reproduce and be passive; if they worked outside the home, they had to do work related to their natural function. Germany had far fewer women working in war industries than the Allies.
Aryans
The Aryans were the North European races with blue eyes and blond hair that were superior to the dark hair and dark eyes Mediterranean races. Hitler wanted to create a pure Aryan race of Germans to dominate Europe and the world.
Hitler Youth
The leader of the HJ was made Youth Leader of the Reich, and rival youth organizations were shut down. The Youth law made the HJ officially as important as school and family. Then it started to be compulsory.
Laissez-Faire
It was an economic policy based on the belief that governments should not interfere in the economy but should leave businesses to make their own decisions. Republicans reduced taxes and removed all restrictions on companies and trusts.
Tariffs
These are charges placed by a government on goods coming into the country. The charges are intended to make goods more expensive; this helps to increase the sales of the cheaper home-produced goods and protect domestic industry.
Fordney-McCumber Act
American firms and farmers found it increasingly difficult to export their goods and even began to lay off workers. Unemployment began to increase, and there was an economic downturn.
Black Thursday
16 million shares were sold. Share prices fall. The banks have given big loans to speculators, to cover these loans the banks joined the rush to sell shares. Many banks folded.
Great Depression
The downward economic spiral which hit the USA after the Wall Street Crash. Depressions are situations in which there are many bankruptcies and unemployment. Millions of people are living in poverty.
Herbert Hoover
He was born in 1874 and started as a mining engineer and had become a multi-millionaire at the age of 40. He believed in rugged individualism and entered politics as a Republican. Then he won the presidential elections and became president.
Franklin Delano Roosevelt
:Was born in 1882.He became a Democratic senator for New York, it was paralysed by polio.He remained in politics having gained some idea of the problems facing the less fortunate.After winning the elections he promised the american people a New deal which seemed influenced by socialist ideas.He used the radio to deliver fireside chats to try to restore confidence in amereican banks and companies.He was better known as the champ.He won four presidential elections.Federal:American constitution is federal.There is a central federal goverment and a congress which deal with issues of concern to all of the 50 states wich make up the USA.Each one has its own local goverment with issues such as education and law order.