The document discusses Oscar González García's presentations on history, which are for educational purposes and without profit motive. He makes them freely available online for anyone who finds them useful. Due to space and time constraints, he does not typically cite written or audiovisual sources, nor does he require citation of the content he creates. However, if an author recognizes their text or images being used, they can contact him and he will include the necessary citation.

1. Oscar González García

2. Mis presentaciones tienen tan solo una finalidad didáctica y sin ánimo de lucro,
estando disponibles en Internet para todo aquel que las encuentre útiles. Salvo en
casos excepcionales, no cito las fuentes escritas ni audiovisuales que utilizo por
razones de economía de espacio y tiempo; de igual forma, no requiero que se cite
lo que yo elaboro.
Sin embargo, si algún autor reconoce sus textos o imágenes en mis trabajos y
considera que debe ser citado, no tiene más que ponerse en contacto conmigo e
incluiré su nombre donde sea necesario.
Gracias y disfruten de la Historia…
Prof. Oscar González García – IES Ornia (La Bañeza) 2017/2018

3. What are we going to study?
ORDEN EDU 362/2015 de 4 de mayo – currículo ESO CyL
CRITERIOS DE EVALUACIÓN
3. Conocer los principales
acontecimientos de la Gran
Guerra, sus interconexiones
con la Revolución Rusa y las
consecuencias de los Tratados
de Versalles.
4. Esquematizar el origen, el
desarrollo y las consecuencias
de la Revolución Rusa.
ESTÁNDARES DE APRENDIZAJE
EVALUABLES
4.1. Contrasta algunas interpretaciones
del alcance de la Revolución Rusa en su
época y en la actualidad.
Bloque 4. El Imperialismo del siglo XIX y la Primera Guerra Mundial

4. What are we going to study?
ORDEN EDU 362/2015 de 4 de mayo – currículo ESO CyL
CRITERIOS DE EVALUACIÓN
1. Conocer y comprender los
acontecimientos, hitos y
procesos más importantes del
Período de Entreguerras, o las
décadas 1919.1939,
especialmente en Europa.
2. Estudiar las cadenas causales
que explican la jerarquía causal
en las explicaciones históricas
sobre esta época, y su conexión
con el presente.
3. Analizar lo que condujo al auge
de los fascismos en Europa.
ESTÁNDARES DE APRENDIZAJE
EVALUABLES
1.1. Analiza interpretaciones diversas de
fuentes históricas e historiográficas de
distinta procedencia.
1.2. Relaciona algunas cuestiones
concretas del pasado con el presente y las
posibilidades del futuro, como el alcance
de las crisis financieras de 1929 y 2008.
1.3. Discute las causas de la lucha por el
sufragio de la mujer.
3.1. Explica diversos factores que hicieron
posible el auge del fascismo en Europa.
Bloque 5. La época de “Entreguerras” (1919-1945)

5. 1. THE RUSSIAN REVOLUTION
In 1917, the Russian Empire went through a revolutionary process which put an end
to the autocratic government of Tsar Nicholas II…
• The government was autocratic: the tsar had
unlimited power, civil rights were not recognised and
political parties were illegal and repressed.
• The economy was semi-feudal: a wealthy minority
owned the land that was worked by a peasant majority.
Industrialisation began around 1890, giving rise to the
formation of a small bourgeoisie and a proletariat.
• There was social unrest: three-quarters of the
population were peasants who lived in extreme
poverty and paid high taxes. Both the peasants and
factory workers suffered hard working conditions with
low wages and long working days.
1. 1. What was the situation in Russia?

6. Oxford Education Book
Despite being forbidden, some political parties were organized in Russia underground.

7. 1. 2. The causes of the revolution:
• The Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905): Russia and Japan fought for control of
Manchuria. The people were upset due to new taxes imposed in order to pay the
costs of the war, and cause of the soldiers recruitments. The continuous defeats
brought down the prestige of the tsar.
• The 1905 Revolution: in January 1905 the workers in St Petersburg moved
peacefully on the Winter Palace to ask the tsar for improvements in working
conditions and political reforms. They were brutally suppressed and the protest
is known as “Bloody Sunday”. The people, organised in Soviets, responded with
strikes and protests. The tsar agreed to make some political reforms and
authorised the formation of a Duma (Parliament), elected by all the classes and
with power to make new laws. In fact, soon after the Duma was dissolve and
autocracy was re-established.
• Russian participation in the IWW: in 1914 the Russian Empire joined the war
because of its alliances. The continuous defeats the army suffered under the
leadership of the tsar caused further discontent among the people.

8. CLICK HERE
AND WATCH
THE VIDEO

9. 1. 3. The 1917 revolutions
The February Revolution:
There was a successful revolution of
workers in Petrograd, supported by
soldiers and peasants. They
protested about the disasters of the
war and the shortage of food, and
demanded Russia´s withdrawal
from the war.
Nicholas II abdicated and a
provisional government was
formed, led by the socialist
Alexander Kerensky, who started
to make reforms but refused to
withdraw the war.
In fact, new soviets were formed in
the main cities and soon supported
the Bolsheviks, led by Lenin.

10. 1. 3. The 1917 revolutions
The October Revolution:
The Bolsheviks attacked the Winter Palace in Petrograd and established a new
government. Lenin became Russia´s leader until his dead in 1924; he implemented
several measures in 1918:
• He singed the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk with Germany, which allowed Russia to
withdraw the war in exchange of territories.
• The expropriation of land and redistribution among the peasants; workers
committees would control the industries.
• The Communist Party was founded and declared the only legal political party
• The foundation of the Third International (Komintern) to coordinate all the
communists parties around the world.
In January 1918, a civil war broke out in Russia (1918-19121) between counter-
revolutionaries that formed the White Army, helped by the Allied powers of France,
Great Britain, The United States and Japan, and the Bolshevik forces of the Red Army,
led by Trotsky.
After the war, in 1922, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) was created.

12. Answer the questions:
• Describe the political, social and economic
situation in Russia under the tsarist regime.
• What was “Bloody Sunday”?
• What were the differences between the February
Revolution of 1917 and the October one?
• Look for information about what happened to
the tsar and his family after his abdication.

13. 2. THE ECONOMY IN THE INTER-WAR YEARS
Between 1918 and 1923 Europe
experience a significant economic crisis
characterised by:
• High levels of debt: the Allies had
received loans from the USA to face the
costs of war and they had to be repaid.
• Shortage of products: as a result of the
destruction of lands and factories. This
implied an increase in prices.
Germany was severely affected because of
the war reparations it had to pay to the
Allies. In 1923, France decided to occupy
the richest and most industrialised area of
Germany, the Ruhr. The economic crisis in
Germany worsened.
2. 1. The Post-war crisis
Do you know
what
hyperinflation is?

14. Industries in the USA were not affected by
war, which enabled the country to help
Europe come out of the economic crisis…
In 1924, they applied the Dawes Plan in
Germany: a series of measures which
involved loans and American investment
in German industry. The Plan also revised
the war reparations payments, and France
agreed to abandon the Ruhr.
When Germany´s economy began to
recover, it was possible to repay
reparations to the Allies, which in turn,
were able to pay back their loans to the
USA.
A new period of prosperity was coming,
and it was know as the “roaring
twenties”.
2. 2. Recovery in the 1920s

15. • Industrial and agricultural overproduction: during the IWW, American
industries increased production in order to supply Europe. When European
industries started to recover, it was less necessary to buy things from USA, but
Americans did not reduce levels of production. Supply became greater than demand
and the prices fell down. Companies lost money, unemployment rose and
consumptions decreased even further.
• Speculation on the stock market and excessive bank credit: people and
companies obtained loans from the banks in order to buy shares in companies
when they offered guaranteed profits.
2. 3. The Wall Street Crash of 1929
In 1929, the Wall Street stock market in New York collapsed. This was the beginning
of a major economic crisis, leading to the Great Depression of the 1930s. Its causes
were the following:
The increasing demand of shares made the prices rise and people bought them to
speculate, but the share value did not reflect the real value of the companies…
When companies began to have problems, shareholders tried to shell their shares.
On 24 October 1929, thirteen million shares went up for sale, which caused the
prices to fall. The banks collapsed and millions of citizens were ruined.

16. 2. 4. The Great Depression of the 1930s and the New Deal
The crisis that began in 1929 continued for a decade and put an end to the prosperity
of the roaring twenties; it spread to Europe cause of its dependence from USA´s
economy.
The New Deal:
This was a series of economic and social measures adopted by the government of
President Franklin Roosevelt (USA) in order to try to stimulate demand:
• To give subsidies to agricultural producers who now could pay off their loans.
• To carry out public works to create employment.
• To limit production.
• To establish government control of the stock market and of the banks to safeguard
citizens´ savings.
• To establish a minimum wage and provide unemployment compensation, disability
insurance and old-age and widow´s benefits to help alleviate the misery of the
working class.
After 1938, the United States economy began to recover; some European countries
started to imitate Roosevelt´s measures.

17. Answer the questions:
• Explain the characteristics of the post-was
economy.
• How did the United States help Europe?
• Identify the causes of the economic crisis. Why
did the crisis spread to Europe?
• Which of the measures of the New Deal do you
think was most effective? Explain your answer.

18. 3. THE POLITICAL SITUATION IN EUROPE
Although democracy continued to be the most common form of government in the
western world after the IWW, soon after totalitarian regimens came to power in some
countries that shared some characteristics:
• Politics: the government was an authoritarian dictatorship. There was a charismatic
leader who possessed absolute political power and a single political party which
supported him. Citizens´ rights were limited.
• Foreign policy: these regimes pursued an expansionist foreign policy to gain new
territories and new markets and raw materials.
• Economy: the state intervened in and controlled the economy.
• Society: almost all the classes of society supported the regime because they were
controlled and informed by the state and they believed that this system provided a
solution to their problems.
• All of those regimes safeguard their power through the use of propaganda, control of
culture and education, a policy of repression and the use of violence.
3. 1. Democracy VS totalitarianism

20. After Lenin´s death in 1924, Joseph Stalin succeeded
him. His government had the following
characteristics:
• Stalin held all political power: he took control of
the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU),
the only legal political party, and became head of
the government.
3. 2. The USSR: Stalinism:
He also approved the Constitution of 1936 which
granted citizens´ rights such as universal suffrage.
He reinforced his power through propaganda and
repression; in the 1930s, he carried out various
purges among those who were suspects of
conspire against his regime. A lot of them were
sent to gulags or executed.
He also tried to spread communism through the
Komintern, coordinating communists parties in
Europe.
Stalin as USSR leader

21. • Economy: it was planned and controlled by the state; means of production became
state property. Stalin introduced a series of five-year plans which aimed to achieve
the rapid industrialisation of the USSR throughout:
 Collectivisation of land: workers were forced to work in state lands in
exchange of a wage or part of the harvest. The government use the crops for
export in order to gain capital to invest in industry. That produces shortages of
food.
 Nationalisation of existing industries and its conversion into heavy industries,
such as iron and steel, and the production of capital goods, such as machinery
and weaponry. There was a lack of consumer goods that families needed.
 Construction of hydraulic works to increase the production of electricity
needed to supply industry.
From 1928 to 1941 Stalin converted the Soviet Union into the second industrial
power in the world.
• Social measures: the government tried to guarantee healthcare, education and
housing for all citizens.

22. After the IWW Italy was terribly affected by
the economic crisis, which provoked social
unrest and disorder.
In 1919, Benito Mussolini created the Fasci
combat groups or Blackshirts, a
paramilitary group with ultranationalist
ideology who opposed the socialists parties
and helped business owners to maintain
order in the streets.
In 1921 they became the National Fascist
Party that, on year later, took the power
with the support of the Italian king, Victor
Emmanuel III, who maintained his position
as head of state.
Mussolini, Il Duce, transformed a
democratic state into a dictatorship
imposing the following measures:
3. 3. Italian Fascism:

23. • Politics: Mussolini transferred
all power to himself in 1926; he
also establish the Fascist Party
as the only legal one and
persecuted who opposed his
regime. The Italian expansion
into Abyssinia and Ethiopia
begun.
• Economy: the government
intervention was established
and the autarky set up. Mines
and arms industries were
nationalised and large scale
public works projects were
begun.
• Social policies: fascism
removed workers´ rights and
started the indoctrination of the
population through the
education system and
propaganda.

24. After the fall of the Second Reich, a
constitutional democracy was established in
Germany, called the Weimar Republic. However,
the new regime could not face the post war
crisis.
The triumph of totalitarianism in Germany can
be explained by the humiliating conditions
imposed to the country by the Treaty of
Versailles and the economic crisis…
In 1921, Adolf Hitler founded the National
Socialist German Workers´ Party, commonly
known as the Nazi Party. They copied the
methods of Italian fascists and also use a
paramilitary force, the SA, to attack the
opposition.
After winning the elections in 1933, Hitler was
named Chancellor and established a
dictatorship.
3. 4. Nazi Germany:

25. Nazism adopted the following measures:
• In 1934 Hitler established the Third Reich, the Nazi Party became the only legal
political party and anyone who opposed it was persecuted.
• Hitler also began an expansionist policy to recover German territories lost in the
IWW.
• There was a great economic development and unemployment decrease due to a
programme of public works and the development of the arms industry.
• A racist policy was established: based on the Hitler´s idea of the superiority of the
German Aryan race respect of other races. During the 1930s specially Jews were
persecuted by the regime.

26. Answer the questions:
• Why did totalitarian regimes want to control
propaganda and culture?
• Write definitions of Stalinism, Fascism and
Nazism?
• Could you explain why Mussolini and Hitler were
supported by such a lot of people?

27. 4. THE SUFFRAGIST MOVEMENT
At the end of the war, women, who had shown that they were capable of doing the
same jobs as men, did not accept the re-establishment of their traditional social role.
In response, the suffragist movement (groups of women who demanded the right to
vote: suffrage) that had started in New York and Great Britain in the second half of the
19th century, continued to protest against the inequality between men and women.
The main aim of the Suffragists was to be allowed to vote. They achieved this after the
post-war period in some countries, including:
• Russia, Great Britain, Poland, the
Netherlands and Austria in 1918.
• Germany and Belgium in 1919.
• Czechoslovakia and the USA in
1920.
• Spain in 1933.
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THE STORY OF NANCY
ASTOR AND EMILY
DAVISON

28. Glossary
Soviet: assembly of representatives of the workers, soldiers and peasants created to
make decisions and take control of the revolution during the Russian revolutionary
processes.
Dawes Plan: a series of measures which involved loans and American investment in
German industry. The Plan also revised the war reparations payments, and France
agreed to abandon the Ruhr.
Roaring twenties: it is a period of time, between 1920 and 1929, in which the
economic prosperity was usual in the United States of America.
Totalitarianism: form of government in which the leader´s control over government
and society was absolute, making opposition practically impossible.
Five-year plan: economic project that established objectives to be fulfilled over a five-
year period; it implied the disappearance of the economic freedom of capitalism.
Autarky: country with a self-sufficient and independent economy.