Matthew's posterous

Capitalism, Communism & the Domino Theory

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Capitalism- A political system where everybody owns a bit of the state and has the right to keep the money they earn as long as they pay tax. (USA)
Communism - A political system where the state owns everything and sees the individual rights of people as less inportant. (USSR)
 

Each of the systems has different political ideologies ( ideas on how a country should be run )

Cold War

  • The Cold War was a war between the USA and USSR, despite the fact that in involved no warring as such.
  • Many believe that the events responsibe for the Cold War were those at the end of WW2.
  • The difference between a Cold and Hot war was that a Hot war involved fighting, whereas a Cold war didn't.
  • The difference in political ideology was one other reason that led to the Cold War. 

The Domino Theory

The domino theory, used to show the effects of the Vietnam War (see image), explains how if one county falls to communism then, in time,  so will the others that surround it.

The image shows how the Vietcong are attempting to make all the countries communism, by laying them down, that surround Vietnam, whilst an American soldier is attempting to keep them Capitalist, by keeping the upright.

The cartoonist is obviously bias, due them representing the spread of Communism with dominoes, having Communism as laying down and Capitalism as standing up. Therefore, saying that Communism should be the norm.

 The Domino Theory was brought into the public sphere by President Dwight D. Eisenhower during a press conference in 1954:

"Finally, you have the broader considerations of what might follow what you would call the 'falling domino' principle. You have a row of dominoes set up, you knock over the first one, and what will happen to the last one is the certainty that it will go over very quickly. So you could have the beginning of a disintegration that would have the most profound influences." 

Links For Further Reading

    • ( A map to show the alliances during the Cold War )

    Matthew Jones

    Chamberlain and WW2- Essay

    Neville Chamberlain has been accused of being directly responsible for the Second World War. Would you agree that he is guilty of this?

     Plan- lack of enforcement shown towards Hitler, Appeasement weak, Allowed Hitler to invade without opposition, Broke Treaty Of Versailles agreement that Germany shouldn't be able to expand, Didnt act responsivly enough when Hitler invaded Czechkoslovakia.

    In many ways I would agree that Neville Chamberlain is directly responsible for the Second World War, but at the same time i wouldn't, due to other contributing factors. My reasons for this are as followed.
        First of all, Chamberlain failed to enforce the terms that were put on Germany in the making of the Treaty Of Versailles. He allowed Hitler to expand Germany's military forces ready for invasions, without opposing him, with the backing of the League Of Nations, to prevent the outbreak of another world war. The consequences of this were Hitler being able to invade Czechkoslovakia and break the agreement of appeasement, showing Chamberlain to be weak and responsible for allowing Hitler to imorally invade countries which weren't his.
    However, as the revisionist historian ASP Taylor stated in the 1950's, it was, most probaly, the only thing Neville Chamberlain could have done, as, no doubt, he would have suspected that there would be another War, and so needed to pro-long it to be able to re-arm Britain's military forces so that they could combat the threat of the German world domination. Moreover, Chamberlain had no previous experience of running a country that was recovering from a world war, aswell as preparing for another. Therefore, the decision he made was on behalf of the people of Britain, for their best interests, as many would still be suffering from the aftermath of World War 1.
          Second of all,  Chamberlain, along with the Prime Minister of France, made an agreement with Poland to say that if Hitler decided to invade their country they would declare war on Germany and serve Hitler an ultimatum, to try and persuade him to change his plans. It was the lack of responsive action, from Chamberlain, along with the French Prime Minister of course, that caused WW2 to begin as if they had done something to stop Hitler previously from his plans of the German domination of Europe, there would probably have been no need for war. It was his lack of responsibility and decision making skills that caused the war to begin, as if they ( France and Chamberlain) hadn't made an agreement with Poland to help them, then Hitler may have stopped doing what he was doing, despite suspicions. The trust between countries was another factor that would pin the blame on Chamberlain, as he and the Prime Minister of France made a threat of declaring war on Germany when thet hadn't sat down and discussed whether or not they had the strength or men to take on Hitler's army. Chamberlain most likely felt guilty for not acting to stop Hitler sooner and so, to save him from going down in history as weak and forgetable leader, he decided to try and make amens for his earlier mistakes, even though he was elected out of office soon after the war began.
    Although, despite his lack of responsive action and consideration, Neville Chamberlain was, in a way, trying to right his wrongs and attempt to stop Hiter before he did anymore damage.
        Finally, Chamberlain was directly responsible due to him having doubted the agreement of the Nazi-Soviet pact, him believing that Stalin, a communist, would never make a deal with Hitler, a facist, when in fact he did, all because of the delay of British invlovement, when Stalin was making his decision.It was this delay that caused the Stalin to force himself to save Russia and agree to Hitlers proposition, to gain some eastern provinces, and to help him invade Poland. This chain of events, all down to Chamberlain, caused WW2 to begin, due to after them, Hitler and Stalin, invading Poland, Britain had to interviene when it could have prevented and maybe got Stalin and Russia on its side to stop Hitler once and for all. It was Chamberlain's fault as he was leader of Britain.
     On the other hand, it could be said that the blame was not on Chamberlain as France did not attempt to stop Stalin agreeing with Hitler all together. Plus, Neville Chamberlain had every reason to believe that a communist and facist would never agree, due to them being on totally opposite sides of the political compass. It had never been known that a right and left wing politition could agree with one another as they wanted different things.

    Links for Further Reading:
      Appeasement

     


    Matthew Jones

    Nazi-Soviet Pact - Essay

     Some have said that the Nazi-Soviet Pact was the single most important reason for the start of the Second World War. Would you agree with this judgement? Explain your answer.
    Plan
    • Agree- Hitler gained more power by combining forces with Stalin, It forced Britain to serve Hitler Ultimatum, France and Britain had to protect Poland like they agreed.
    • Disagree- The weakening of the League Of Nations allowed Hitler to break the terms of the Treaty of Versailles, lack of appeasement in the first place, no country trusted one another, Hitler would probably have caused a war no matter how he went about expanding ( gaining Lebenstraum (living space ) for his people)

    The reasons that this was the single most important reason for the start of the Second World War was that it gave Hitler great security. He suddenly did not have to worry about the eastern front, about another power attacking him. The agreement allowed him to be able to weild more power in that he had the backing of the Russian army when deciding to invade Poland, which led to the Second World War.
        Moreover, when Britain showed no signs of attempting to prevent Stalin from agreeing with Hitler's terms, Stalin was forced, on behalf of his people, and personal greed, to join with Hitler, help him carve up Poland and, in reward, recieve more land in the east that Hitler didnt want. The invasion of Poland, due to the Nazi-Soviet pact being made, was what caused World War 2 to begin as Britain and France had sworn to help Poland when Hitler did invade. It was the decision of the pact forcing Britain into a war they didnt want to fight, eventually causing them to serve Hitler with and ultimatum as one last attempt to get the two countries to change their minds, that did lead to another World War.
        However, this could be argued against as at the time no countries trusted one another, and so eventually there would have been some sort of betrayal or disloyalty that would have caused a war anyway, despite whatever Hitler did. And for Hitler it gave him the opportunity to be drawn into a war with Russia anyway, in Poland. The agreement could have been a way of him trying to get to know the man and his country, who he was going to take over eventually anyway, due to the  Nazi ideology of the 'Third Reich'.
        Another reason that the pact can be identified as the main cause of WW2, is due to it allowing Hitler to become too much of a threat to Europe, in that when he joined forces with Stalin of Russia he gained an ally who had an army strong enough to make the dream of German domination reality. It was the fear of  Stalin having agreed with Hitler that caused Britain and France to intervine and threaten Hitler with war if he invaded Poland, which of course they knew he would, as he had the backing of the Red Army. The intervention of Britain and France, due to the reason of the pact creating a far worst enemy, was what led to the outbreak of the Second world war.
        Although, despite these reasons, it could be said that there were other factors that contributed to the war starting, as it was initially the appeasement shown toward Hitler that allowed him to break the terms of restriction put on Germany as a result of the Treaty Of Versailles and start aquiring Lebenstraum (living-space) for his people, by invading other countries that he had no right to have. The reasons for Hitler breaking the treaty can be, more-or-less, blamed on the collapse of the League of Nations, whose job it was to sort out international disputes. If they had learned to trust each other and not make secret agreements, then the countries of Europe may have had a chance of opposing Hitler and preventing Germany from becoming powerful again.

    Links for further reading:
        Nazi-Soviet Pact


    Matthew Jones

    Hitler's Rise to Power

     How did Hitler come to Power?

     
    Hiler got five years inprisonment despite the fact that the prison was very confortable.
    He was let out after spending less than a year there.
    The time spent in the prison allowed him to write a book about his ideas.

      This meant that he would have to get Nazis into the goverment, through election, and try and take contro that way. He did this as it was legal and democratic.
    In July 1932 the Nazi's voting count was high, but in Novermber 1932 it dropped significantly. This meant that they were in power for a short time due to their policies, but failed to stay in power due to them not being kept.
    He thought that Hitler and the Nazis were going to be controlled by other politicians, as they were using his popularity to their advantage. However, eventually his popularity paid off as Hindenberg asked him to be chancellor.
    The Reichstag was the German Parlimentary building. It was set on fire to make people vote for Hitler as he blamed the communists, who were feared by most Germans.

      He benefitted by the voting poll increasing to a point where Hitler was beginning to create a Nazi dictatorship.

     

    Why did people support Hitler?

     
    He promised them what they wanted and needed
    He blamed all Germany's problems on them and so united all Germans, as they saw him to be correct and as a great leader.
    He offered farmers higer prices for their produce, combating the depression by making up their losses. For the unemplyed,  he created mor jobs to do with Germany's infrastructure, and for the Middle Classes, he restored all their profits, in terms of business, along with all their savings, eliminating the threat of communism.

     

    Nazi Beliefs

     
    The Treaty had been the cause of Germany's problems, and so Hitler wanted to destroyed it and stop the suffering of his people.
    Hitler believed that Germans with blonde hair and blue eyes were the superior race.
    Also, he wanted to get rid of the Jewish race and people who were different/ that didnt fit into his plan for a third reich.
    He wanted to give his people 'Living Space' by providing them with more than just the basics, in terms of jobs, benefits, and communal services.

     

    How and why was Hitler able to come to Power?

     

    Hitler came to power legally. He used democracy. By using propaganda to get people to vote for him he was eventually elected. By promising them what they wanted he recieved more votes. This was easy done due to the Wall Street Crash of 1929 that caused Germany's Great Depression. All in all, he promised to be a good leader and care for his people always. Moreover, it helped that his popularity was high.

     

    Link to Work: http://www.schoolhistory.co.uk/lessons/riseofhitler/conclusions.htm

     

    Links for futher reading:

    http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/GERhitler.htm

    http://www.johndclare.net/Weimar7.htm

     


    Matthew Jones

    Rise of Hitler and the British policy of Appeasement that led to the Second World War


    Neville Chamberlain

    http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/PRchamberlain.htm

    ( a brief history of his life and political career- gives the publics' opinion of him at the time leading up to WW2 )

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/chamberlain_arthur_neville.shtml

    ( a more detailed history of his life and work )

    Appeasement

    http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/2WWappeasement.htm

    ( the British Appeasment policy put forward by Chamberlain)

    http://german-history.suite101.com/article.cfm/appeasement_and_adolf_hitler_in_1938

    ( The reasons behind the German appeasement and why it was done)

    Munich Agreement

    http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/397522/Munich-agreement

    ( encyclopedia explanation of the Munich Agreement )

    http://www.wwnorton.com/college/history/ralph/workbook/ralprs36.htm

    ( the speech given by Neville Chamberlain at the Munich Agreement conference, in its defence: 'Peace in our time' )

    http://web.jjay.cuny.edu/~jobrien/reference/ob66.html

    ( a brekdown of the Munich Agreement- what it was about, who it included )

    Rise of Hitler

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwtwo/hitler_01.shtml

    ( how Hilter became "Hitler"- his rise to power)

    http://www.historyplace.com/worldwar2/riseofhitler/index.html

    ( chronological history of Hitler's life )

    http://www.schoolhistory.co.uk/lessons/riseofhitler/index.htm

    ( a profile of Hitler )

    Causes Of WW2

    http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/causes_of_WW2.htm

    ( a specified list of the main causes of WW2 )

    http://www.rpfuller.com/gcse/history/6.html

    ( brief bullet points on Hitler and his involvement in WW2 )

    http://holgatehistory.wetpaint.com/page/Appeasement%2F+Road+to+WW2?t=anon

    ( a list of useful websites + Link to PODCASTS )

    ( a cartoon representing Hitler's rise to power )

    LINK TO OCR TEXTBOOK

    http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=rpY562-RAzIC&pg=PA82&dq=ocr+why+had+international+peace+collapse+by+1939

     

     

     


    Matthew Jones