IB History HL Paper 2

• The First World War had devastating effects across regions of the globe. Europe was the epicenter of most of the conflicts so it would follow naturally that this continent suffered the most economically.
• The economic impact of the war on Europe was devastating. The war cost Britain alone more than £34 billion. All powers had financed the war by borrowing money. By 1918, the USA had lent $2,000 million to Britain and France.
• 1. boats had also sunk 40 per cent of British merchant shipping during the Battle of Jutland. Throughout the 1920s, Britain and France spent between one-third and one-half of their total public expenditure on debt charges and repayments.
• The physical effects of the war also had an impact on the economic situation of Europe. Wherever fighting had taken place, land and industry had been destroyed. France suffered particularly badly, with farm land (2 million hectares), factories and railway lines along the Western Front totally ruined.
• Belgium, Poland, Italy and Serbia were also badly affected. Roads and railway lines needed to be reconstructed, hospitals and houses had to be rebuilt and arable land made productive again by the removal of unexploded shells.
• The decline in productivity is also associated with a drastic decline in the labour force. Around nine million soldiers were killed, which was about 15% of all combatants. In addition, millions more were permanently disabled by the war. In France, 20% of those killed were between the ages of 20 and 40.
• In addition there was a high civilian death toll during the years of the war. Millions died from famine and disease at the end of the war and at least a further 20 million died worldwide in the Spanish flu epidemic in the winter of 1918–19. Consequently, there was a dramatic decline in manufacturing output.
• Combined with the loss of trade and foreign investments, it is clear that Europe faced an acute economic crisis in 1919. This situation was further exacerbated by the onset of inflation.
• John Maynard Keynes, an early 20th century British economist studied the inflation rates across Europe during this period. The defeated nations such as Germany were unable to secure loans in the aftermath of the war resulting in the need to print excessive bank notes which spiralled inflation.
• In countries such as Russia, Germany and Austria-Hungary the situation was so bad that the currencies of those countries were practically worthless. The currency value of Italy had also fallen dramatically. The falling value of these European currencies resulted in price escalation particularly in basic items which made the inflation worse.
• The economic situation facing Germany in the post war years was further compounded by 2 factors: A British blockade of German ports and The Treaty of Versailles.
• The British blockade had a devastating effect on Germany, causing desperate food shortages. The average daily calorie input for a civilian adult dropped from around 1,500 in 1915 to below 1,000 in the winter of 1916–17. Rationing therefore was introduced and this continued beyond the years of the war.
• The Treaty of Versailles amongst other things restricted trade, gave away prime industrial and farm lands belonging to Germany to other states and powers and landed Germany with a $6.6 billion debt in reparations.
• As a result Germany fared worse than her European neighbors in the years following the war. It is not surprising therefore that there was increased political instability as extreme political groups jostled each other in a bid to take power and restore a sense of economic stability.
• Africa's human and material contribution to the war effort was considerable. Sections of Africa were designated theaters of war and were fought with mainly African soldiers. France conscripted more than 170,000 African soldiers from her colonies to fight in France, the Balkans as well as Russia.
• African economies were structurally weak. Their economies like those in the Caribbean were largely dominated by foreign companies (company rule). This meant that profits gained from resources mined or cultivated in various African nations were largely exported back to the European nations from which the companies originated. Very little remained to assist in the development or growth of these economies.
• Investments in continental Africa were low and trade was minimal. For Britain and France this amounted to less than 3% of their total trade. The war disrupted African economies by cutting off investments in the colonies and interrupting shipping.
• African colonies were never developed to allow for self sufficiency. Hence the colonies relied on the mother countries to supply their every need.
• With shipping and trade with these colonies declining during the war, particularly as a result of the Battle of Jutland between Britain and Germany, shortages of goods resulted, accompanied by drastic price increases. This affected not only food supplies but also fuel. Prices in South Africa and Algeria actually doubled during this period..in Senegal they trebled and in Madagascar rose fivefold.
• As prices of goods and services escalated throughout the continent, wages correspondingly declined while taxes increased. Additionally during the war, livestock and crops were seized by white colonial army officers to supply armies and army families with provisions. This led to widespread famine across West and East African nations.
• Faced with acute shortages of food, widespread famine, declining populations, high taxation and wage declines, strikes erupted across several African nations. Increased calls for an end to colonial rule intensified as the economic times worsened.
• Arguably one of the most devastating effects of the Great War was the onset of a decade long economic downturn known as the Great Depression.
• World War 1 resulted in severe destruction to commercial lands and businesses which adversely affected production and trade.
• With major countries not having the capacity to sell or buy goods, US which was unscathed by war faced the dilemma of a glut on the market for her manufactured and farm products. A glut simply means an oversupply of goods which cannot be sold.
• To make matters worse the US considered herself at this time to be the financial saviour for many countries. Face with increased profits from wartime sales, the US embarked on a lending program to assist other countries out of their economic plight. However the US was lending faster than she was being repaid.
• All factors considered, a time bomb was slowly ticking that US remained unaware of until it was too late. In October 1929, rumors abound that the US economy was crashing….stockbrokers hurried to pull their stocks before they lost everything. This resulted in the collapse of the Wall Street stock market.
• Investors around the globe who had invested heavily soon found themselves bankrupt. Many lost their homes, cars and their life savings. Businesses collapsed, unemployment increased and poverty became more widespread in the 1930s.
• What was the primary conflict in the Spanish Civil War?


  War between left and right
• What are the short- and long-term causes of the Spanish Civil War?


  • Long-term causes include:
  • Economic plight of agricultural workers
  • Inefficiencies in agriculture
  • Land ownership disparities
  • Rioting and disorder in the countryside
  • Ideological divisions (socialism, anarchism, liberalism)
  • Political instability and repression
• What was a key factor in the discontent leading to the Spanish Civil War?


  The plight of agricultural workers
• Why was agriculture a significant source of employment in Spain?


  Spain was mainly an agricultural economy
• What were some fundamental problems in Spanish agriculture?


  It did not provide sufficient food and work was only seasonal
• What was the social condition of agricultural workers in Spain?


  Most lived in poverty and faced a vast gap between the rich and poor
• What were the latifundia in Spain?


  Huge estates owned by the 'Grandees'
• How did land ownership differ between the north and south of Spain?


  In the south, land was owned in large estates, while in the north, peasants owned small plots
• What role did the Civil Guard play in rural Spain?


  They were deployed to repress disorder and maintain the status quo
• When was the Civil Guard founded?


  1844
• What was the main purpose of the Civil Guard?


  To control the peasantry and stamp out anti-monarchist sentiment
• How did the Civil Guard's actions affect the peasantry?


  They were hated by the peasantry for their repressive actions
• What alternative did some peasants look to due to lack of church support?

  Groups such as the anarchists