Nazism and the Rise of Hitler

• The Central Powers were, Germany, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire (Turkey), Bulgaria
• The Treaty of Versailles was signed on June 28th 1919 by Germany and the allies.
• The Allied Powers were the United States, Britain, France, Italy, and Russia
• The First World War was fought between the Allies and the Central Powers.
• The US entered the First World War in 1917
• Germany and the Central Powers were defeated in November 1918
• Deputies were elected to the German Parliament (Reichstag) based on UAF
• The peace treaty at Versailles was a harsh and humiliating one for Germany
• The Treaty of Versailles imposed heavy reparations payments on Germany
• Germany lost its overseas colonies, one tenth of it population, 13% of its territories, 75% of its iron and 25% of its coal in France, Poland, Denmark and Lithuania
• The Allied demilitarised Germany to weaken its powers
• Germany was forced to pay compensation amounting to 6 billion
• Many Germans held the Weimar Republic responsible for the defeat in First World War
• Weimar republic had no control over foreign policy as they were not allowed to have an army or navy
• Inflation caused by printing money led to hyperinflation which made people lose faith in currency
• The birth of the Weimar republic coincided with the revolutionary uprising of the Spartacist League (like Bolshevik)
• The political atmosphere in Berlin was changed with the demand for soviet style governance
• The Spartacist League founded the Communist Party of Germany
• In 1923 Germany refused to pay war compensation
• Germany printed paper money recklessly, causing hyper-inflation
• With too much printed currency the German mark fell, and prices of goods soared
• During the hyper-inflation, America intervened and bailed Germany out of the crisis by Dawes plan, which reworked the terms of the reparations to ease the financial burden of Germany
• The Enabling Act of March-3-1933 gave Hitler the power to rule by decree and gave him the power to dismiss the Reichstag
• The Fire Decree of February-28-1933 was a law that gave the government the power to arrest and imprison anyone who spoke out against the government
• Chancellorship is always 4 years
• Hitler assumed Chancellorship in January-30-1933
• Germany attacked Poland in 1939
• 'National Socialist German Workers Party' - Nazi Party
• Tripartite Pact in 1940, was signed by Germany, Japan and Italy
• Soviet Red Army defeated Hitler in a humiliating way in 1945