Age of Total War
Fall 2003
The General World Situation
The Depression exacerbated the
tensions in Europe and Asia.
Britain was contending not only
with the Depression.
But also the India issue.
The dictatorship of Primo de
Rivera came to an end.
Japan found the Kwantung Army
was out of control.
While Herbert Hoover decided to
suspend debt repayment.
Situation in 1931
Austria began in a very
unfavorable situation.
Most profitable portions of the
state were taken from her.
Leaving only a rump after 1919.
Austria was only kept afloat by
foreign loans throughout the 1920s.
The situation became worse when
the World Court denied the plan for union with Germany.
The Political Situation
Austria was divided between
Social Democrats.
Whose strength was in Vienna.
And Christian Socialists
more
conservative.
Strength was in the rural
regions.
Ignatius Seipel, a Catholic
Priest, was Chancellor from 1922-24 and 1926-29.
The Government of Austria
The Seipel government was
authoritarian.
Was more so under Seipels
disciple, Engelbert Dollfuss.
Better known as Millimetternich
because of his height.
Dollfuss took over when the
Depression was destroying the last vestiges of old Austria.
Pitting the parties against each
other.
Political Problems in Austria
The Communists were gaining
control over the leftwing of the Social Democrats.
The Nationalists were falling
under the sway of the National Socialists.
The National Socialists (NSDAP)
took orders from Berlin
who advocated union with the Reich.
Who supported Dollfuss?
Dollfuss Found Support From the Heimwehr
Dollfuss could turn to Prince
Starhemberg
from an old Austrian family.
He created the Heimwehr.
Which was the Home Guard.
Who received arms from Italy,
via Mussolini.
Who did not want Austria merged
with Germany.
But the greater danger came from
the extreme left.
The Heimwehr
Throughout 1933 the Heimwehr
grew.
Had enough arms to filed an army
of 500,000 men.
With tanks and howitzers to
sustain combat for a considerable time.
Dollfuss then decided to
dissolve the Parliament.
But that was enough for Dollfuss.
Moving Against the Left
Starting in 1934 Dollfuss moved
against the left.
Rounding up leftist leaders.
Occupying union halls.
Fighting started in rural towns.
Then soon spread to the working
class districts of Vienna.
Fighting started on Feb. 12,
1934, at the Karl Marx Hof.
After Crushing the Socialists
Parliament met once more.
Dollfuss and his Vice
Chancellor, Maj. Emil Fey, then ruled as dictators.
Dollfuss established a
cooperative constitution.
The NSDAP was plotting too.
And in July 25, 1934, the Nazis
tried a putsch.
And Dollfuss was killed and so
was Frey.
Mussolini Moves
Mussolini moved four divisions
to the Brenner Pass.
The Duce declares that he would
support the independence of Austria.
Hitler claimed that he was not
involve.
Disavowed any responsibility.
The new chancellor, Kurt von
Schuschnigg took over and continued Dollfusss policies.
But Hitler still plotted.
General Trends
The trend was toward
dictatorship in the region.
Democracy never took root even
after the collapse of Bela Kun in Hungary.
When the Communists were
suppressed, Admiral Horthy, the liberator of Budapest, became Regent.
Waiting for the return of the
Habsburg.
The reactionaries ruled from
1921-31 under Count Bethlen.
The Depression and Hungary
Count Bethlen supported the
Magyar nobility restore their feudal rights.
Restricting the suffrage.
Opposing agrarian reform.
Finally the Depression brought
him down.
To be replaced by Julius Gombos,
who tightened the authoritarian regime further.
And turned Hungary into a client
of Hitler and the Nazis.
The Situation in Yugoslavia
In Yugoslavia the situation was
exasperated between Croats and Serbs.
Catholic and Orthodox.
In 1929, King Alexander
established a dictatorship.
And remained linked to France,
until he was assassinated in 1934.
His successor, Peter II flirted
with both Mussolini and Hitler until 1941.
The Situation in Rumania
Rumania gave the appearance of
having a parliamentary government.
Which worked under the Peasant
Party and Liberals.
In 1930, King Carol had to
renounce the throne because of his liaison with a reputation.
Anti-Semitism grew.
So did the Iron Guard.
By 1938, a royal dictatorship
was in place.
Bulgaria and King Boris III
Political assassinations limited
democratic development.
The Communist Party was very
active and bombed the Cathedral in Sofia in 1925.
But contributed to the rise of
Bulgarian fascist fighting groups.
Rightists attempted to take
control in 1934 and 1935.
Forcing Boris III to establish a
dictatorship in 1936.
The New Chancellor
Hitler had to be careful.
Since Hindenburg did not trust
him.
Elections were scheduled for
March 1933.
The new minister of interior for
Prussia, Goering, used the police, augmented by the SA/SS to disrupt Nazi
opponents.
Few dared to make speeches
opposed to the Nazis.
Those that did, did so at there
own peril.
When Terror Was Not Enough
Intimidation was not enough.
Something else was needed to
frighten the Parties to give Hitler additional powers.
Something he could pin on the
Bolsheviks.
The result was the Reichstag
Fire of February 27, 1933.
The Nazis blamed Marinus van der
Lubbe.
But in 1942, Goering boasted
that he did it.
Hindenburg Gives Hitler Additional Powers
Presidential Decree for the
protection of the people and the state.
Signed by Hindenburg on Feb. 28,
1933.
Suspended civil and individual
rights.
Communists, Socialists, and
other enemies were arrested.
Even despite those measures, 56%
of the electorate still opposed Hitler and the NSDAP.
Destroying the Opposition
Using the decree of Feb. 28th.
Hitler had all opponents
arrested.
Political parties were busted.
On March 23, the Reichstag
passed the Enabling Act.
Or the Law for Relieving the
Distress of the People and the Reich.
Only the Socialists voted
against it
the Center supported it.
It passed 441 to 84.
In Full Control
The first result was
Gleichschaltung or Coordination.
First step was the abolition of
all the German states.
All sovereign power was given to
the Reich government.
All political parties were
outlawed except for the NSDAP on July 14, 1933.
Trade unions were dissolved and
place under the Reichs Labor Front under Robert Ley.
Under the Law for the
Restoration of the Professional Civil Service Non-Aryans were driven from the
civil service.
Hitler reached a Concordat with
the Vatican and at the same time broke it.
Pope Pius XI responded by the
encyclical Burning Sorrow.
Protestants and Newspapers also
fell under control too.
The Subordination of the Army and Party
Hindenburg was dying and Hitler
sought the support of the Generals.
What cold either side give each
other?
What did each side want?
The army want the power of the
SA broken.
Rohm saw the SA as a way to
replace the Army.
Discussions took place on the
The Night of the Long Knives
On June 21, 1934, Hindenburg was
in declining health.
Bloomberg told Hitler that if he
could not control the SA, than the Army would.
Himmler and Heydrich then spread
rumors that the SA was planning violence.
Secretly the Army provided
support for the SS to destroy the SA.
This happened on the night of
June 30, 1934.
The Victims
Kurt von Schleicher and his
wife.
Gustav von Kahr.
Ernst Rohm and most of his
associates.
But still this was not enough.
The old guard in the Army had to
be silenced too.
Destroying the Independence of the Army
After the destruction of the SA
the Army now swore loyalty to Hitlers persons.
The German generals were
suffering delusions if they thought they could control Hitler.
After 1936, the officer corps
was too infiltrated by Nazi influences.
Then in 1938, Hitler weakened
the Army further b the scandals of Gen. Von Fritsch and Von Bloomberg.
It Rains In Spain Rarely on the Plain
There were serious problems in Spain.
Dating back to the Spanish defeat in the war with the USA.
During World War I, Spain was neutral.
But there were internal forces weakening Spain.
There were internal governmental issues that divided the nation.
Then their were colonial problems with the Riff.
Disaster with the Riff
The Riff crisis weakened the
publics faith in the monarchy.
King Alfonso XIII was involved in
the planning of the Battle of Anual in 1921.
The battle itself contributed to
the deaths of 10,000 Spaniards.
If that was bad enough.
Another 15,000 were taken
prisoner.
To save the regime, Alfonso came
up with a plot.
To have Capt. Gen. Don Miguel
Primo de Rivera to take over the government.
Taking Over for Alfonso
Primo de Rivera took over in
Sept. 1923.
His new regime was very similar
to the what Mussolini did.
Both Alfonso and de Rivera
developed cordial relations with Mussolini.
Oppositional parties were
banned.
Universities and newspapers were
tightly controlled.
Trying to Make the State Effective
Showed a new vigor to make the
state functional.
Modernized the transportation
net.
Working with the French, the
Riff War was settled in 1926.
But there were obvious problems.
Primo de Rivera never appealed
to the young or the intelligentsia.
Traditional conservatives of the
fascist bent shied away from Primo de Rivera.
Even the Army had its doubts
about de Rivera.
The Depression
Primo de Rivera resigned in Jan.
1930.
The following year, Alfonso XIII
went into exile.
On April 13, 1931, the Republic
was proclaimed.
The new Constitution of Dec.
1931 declared that Spain was a Workers Republic.
Legislative power was placed in
the hands of a single legislative chamber known as the Cortes.
The Spanish Republic
The ministry was responsible to
the Cortes.
The newly elected President was
Alcala Zamora.
The Prime Minster was Manuel
Azana.
The new government went after
the old order.
In order to destroy them.
At a terrible price.
Targets of the New State
The Church.
The Plutocracy.
The Army.
The Jesuit order was expelled.
Church schools were closed.
State schools were introduced.
Large estates were confiscated.
RR and Bank of Spain was
nationalized.
Social Security and the
eight-hour day was introduced.
The officer corps was cut in
half.
Impact on Remaking Spain
Peasant rioting.
Military plots.
Anarchist outrages.
Monarchist agitation.
Separatist movements.
Labor strikes.
The birth of the Falange.
And a revolt in Asturias.
Formation of the Popular Front
In the elections of 1933, the
Left suffered a setback.
At the start of 1936, moderate
Republicans joined with Socialists, Communists, Anarcho-Syndicalists to form a
Popular Front government.
Like in France.
Azana continued the leftward
push.
The Right claimed that the
Government was a tool of Moscow.
The Falange Conducts Terrorism
Soon the Falange conducted as
series of terrorist acts.
Which quickly led to reprisals.
A Republican Guards officer was
assassinated on July 12, 1936.
Followed by the murder of Primo
de Riveras finance minister, Calvo Sotelo.
The Start of the Revolt
On July 18, 1936, Gen. Francisco
Franco flew from the Canary Islands to Spanish Morocco.
This was the start of the
revolt.
Ten days later, July 28, 1936,
the first troops from Morocco arrived in the mainland.
The Civil War was on.
Hitlers Historical Objectives
From his early days he was a
Pan-German.
Attacked the Versailles
Settlement.
Argued for a restoration of
Germanys 1914 frontiers.
As well as expanded eastward in
the search of living space.
A 20th Century
version of Drang Nach Osten.
Main Mission for Hitler in 1933
Gleichschaltung within Germany
and the Party.
Rebuilding the military.
Preparing Germany for an
ambitious foreign policy.
Hitlers Initial Acts
Withdrew from the Geneva
Disarmament talks.
Left the League.
All in 1933.
Hitler wanted to test the
worlds reaction.
Hitler claimed that equality was
not enough.
Hitler declared that he would be
willing to establish bilateral agreements with other states.
Why Bilateral Agreements?
Easy to break.
First agreement was with Poland
in January 1934.
This reduced the threat to
Germanys eastern frontier, allowing Hitler security.
While he prepared to attack
later.
The Austrian Debacle
The Austrian Nazi Coup of July
1934 worried Europe.
Especially with the murder of
Dollfuss.
The Germans were deeply
involved.
This allowed Jean Louis Barthou,
the French Foreign Minister, to travel throughout Europe.
Where he championed the Barthou
Plan.
The Barthou Plan
He offered a plan for regional
collective security.
Including Italy, Russia, and the
Eastern European states.
In many ways it was an Eastern
Locarno.
These would be linked by a
series of mutual defense treaties.
With an effort for the Soviets
to play a role.
This was a threat to Hitlers
ambitions.
Why Did It Fail?
Friction between the Czechs and
Poles.
The Poles would not work with
the Russians.
The British who did not want to
get involved in Eastern Europe.
Then the assassination of the
King Alexander of Yugoslavia and Barthou in Marsailles in October 1934.
After Barthous death, the
collective security plans collapsed.
Hitlers Next Moves
On March 8, 1935, Hitler
announced that Germany had an air force.
Then on March 15, Hitler
declared that Germany would no longer adhere to the limitations of 100,000 men.
The new Wehrmacht would increase
to 500,000 men.
Hitler guessed that his actions
would confuse his foreign enemies.
He was right.
The Creation of the Stresa Front
The British, French, and
Italians met in Stresa.
To discuss the German problem.
But what killed it was Britains
deal with Hitler.
The British agreed to the
Anglo-German Agreement.
Where the British agreed to a
German navy 35% the size of the Royal Navy.
The Anglo-German Naval Agreement
gave legitimacy to Hitlers declarations.
Internal Political Problems, 1923-31
Premier Takahashi resigned in
1922 as a consequence of the Washington Naval Conf.
The new Premier was Adm. Kato
Tomosaburo.
He was a naval officer.
Who agreed to withdraw Japanese
troops from Siberia.
Also reduce Japanese troop
strength in China.
And cut Japanese military
expenditures.
Dying in Office
Adm. Kato Tomosaburo died in
office in 1923.
He was followed by Admiral
Yamamoto Gombei, who had the unfortunate fate of serving as PM during the Tokyo
Earthquake.
Conspiracy Theories
The fires of the Earthquake were
believed to be started by Korean nationalists.
In alliance with Japanese
Communists.
Who were determined to set up a
revolutionary government.
Japanese police rounded up
communists, anarchists, and other radicals.
Then there was an attempt on
life of the Crown Prince.
Military Expenditures in the Mid-1920s
There was a need to cut
government expenditures.
This was made possible by
modernization of the fighting services.
The army was cut by four
divisions.
Improved training programs.
And increased indoctrination
within Japanese schools.
The Situation by 1927
In 1927, Tanaka, the head of the
Seiyukai (one of Japans political parties).
Which meant the Constitutional
Governments Friends Association.
He supported a hard line toward
China.
He tried to support the banks.
As well as the
Zaibatsu.
Tried to care for the needy.
As well as crushing the Left.
Dealing With the Depression
The Keneikai (Constitutional
Association) took over in 1929.
The Premier, Hamaguchi tried to
get Japan out of the Depression by a policy of retrenchment.
On Nov. 14, 1930, he was shot by
a young fanatic.
His colleague, Minseito took
over and tried to get Japan out of the Depression.
Japanese Foreign Policy in the 1920s
The Japanese signed the Treaty
of Peking in 1925 with the Soviet Union.
Normalizing relations between
the two powers.
Exchanged of diplomats, Soviets
recognized the Treaty of Portsmouth.
Japanese could fish in Siberian
territorial waters.
Japan agreed to withdraw from
Northern Sakhalin.
But there was always serious
mistrust beneath the surface.
Both the Soviet Union and Japan
had plans for Manchuria.
The Situation in Manchuria
Premier Tanaka talked of
Positive Foreign Policy in Asia.
What he meant was China and
Manchuria.
Tanakas bellicose tone sparked
anti-Japanese riots in China.
Young officers in the Kwantung
Army took matters into their own hands and assassinated their client Chang
Tso-lin in 1928.
Japan and China
Japan wanted a peaceful and
anti-Bolshevik.
But a united China under Chiang
threatened Japans interest.
Premier Tanaka attempted to halt
Chiangs march to Peking.
But something happened.
Chang Tso-lin was assassinated
in 1928.
But now the Japanese Army became
a law onto itself.
And was out of control.
The Depression on Japan
The world-wide Depression came
to Japan in 1927.
One bank failure led to an
avalanche of a similar failures.
Soon small business went under.
The Zaibatsu took over more
concerns.
The collapse was increased with
the collapse of the American silk market in 1930.
Then a short rice crop in
northern Japan caused near starvation.
Hamaguchis remedy as
retrenchment he called rationalization.
His goal was to reduce imports,
boost domestic consumption, and increased exports.
He took Japan off the Gold
Standard.
Impact of the Depression on Japan
Welfare of the State took
precedent over the individual.
Industrial potential should be
coordinated with military growth.
The economic crisis raised the
level of reaction and ultra-nationalism.
Ultra-nationalism took on the
form of State Shinto.
Which was now anti-west,
anti-liberal, anti everything.
The Army and Navy
The ultranationalists saw the
army as their champion.
The ranks were peasants, the
junior officers were the middle class.
Company commanders understood
the pain.
How bad was it?
Fathers sold their daughters
into brothels.
The Army reflected the emotions
of the countryside.
The Junior Officer Corps
Well-educated.
They saw themselves as the
destiny of Japan.
Their answer for Japans
problems was totalitarianism and strength.
Not party politics.
The use of indoctrination was a
tool that helped them.
They saw what bourgeois
liberalism had caused.
To them
it had to be removed.
Where did their Strength Came from?
Strength came from Kitas
Outline for the Reconstruction of Japan.
The were also influenced by the
London Naval Agreement in 1930.
In September 1930, high ranking
officers created the Sakurakai or The Cherry Society.
Which was dedicated to the
nations esprit de corps.
The Cherry Society
The Cherry Blossom was their
symbol.
Their code duty to the state.
Death is light as a feather,
but duty is weightier than a mountain.
Keep officers joined.
The organization took off
following the assassination of Hamaguchi.
They despised liberalism and
democracy.
Their answer a military
dictatorship
The Plots of the Cherry Society
Planned a coup.
Including riots and bombing of
party headquarters
If necessary assassinations
All came to naught.
The Showdown with China
The situation in China helped
the Anti-democratic forces in Japan.
China was vulnerable.
Young officers of the Kwantung
Army took matters into their hands.
On the night of September 18-19,
1931, a section of the RR outside of Mukden.
The Japanese occupied Manchuria.
China was next.