CHAPTERS IN BRIEF Years of Crisis, 1919–1939 - Jones College ...

NameYears of Crisis continued© McDougal Littell Inc. All rights reserved.dictators. Only Czechoslovakia remained as ademocracy in eastern Europe.4Aggressors Invade NationsKEY IDEA As Germany, Italy, and Japan conqueredother countries, the rest of the world did nothing.In the 1930s, the major democracies—Britain,France, and the United States—still faced seriousproblems at home. Dictators in Germany and Italytook advantage of this and began moving to gainterritory. So, too, did Japan, now ruled by generals.These military leaders had taken power when theDepression struck. They planned to capture Chinaas a part of a Pacific empire.In 1931, the Japanese army captured Manchuria,a part of China. It was rich in coal and iron and as aresult provided valuable resources for the Japaneseeconomy. Other countries protested in the Leagueof Nations but did nothing else. Japan ignored theprotests and in 1933 pulled out of the League. Itstayed in Manchuria, though. Four years later,Japan invaded China. The strong Japanese armyswept Chinese fighters aside. It killed tens of thousandsof Chinese in the city of Nanjing. Chineseforces—both the Nationalists of the governmentand Communist rebels—continued to fight Japan.Italy’s Mussolini wanted an Italian empire inAfrica, and in 1935 he invaded Ethiopia. His troopswon easy victory. Haile Selassie, the emperor ofEthiopia, pleaded to the League of Nations forhelp. The League did nothing.Hitler made moves also. He broke the VersaillesTreaty by rebuilding Germany’s army. In 1936, hesent troops into an area of Germany that the treatyhad forbidden them to enter. France and Britainagain refused to stand up to Germany. This movewon Hitler more support in Germany. That year, hesigned an agreement with Mussolini and also withJapan. The three nations were called the AxisPowers.In 1936, Spain erupted in civil war as the armyrevolted against a leftist government. Hitler andMussolini sent aid to the army, which was backedby Spanish Fascists. The Soviet Union sent aid tothe government. In 1939, the army won andFrancisco Franco became Spain’s Fascist dictator.In March 1938, Hitler moved his troops intoAustria. He made it part of Germany, breaking theVersailles Treaty again. France and Britain oncemore did nothing. The next year, Hitler demandedthat Czechoslovakia give up part of its land toGermany. The country refused, but Britain andFrance agreed to allow Germany to take the land.Hitler promised to respect the new borders ofCzechoslovakia, but a few months later he took theentire country.In the summer of 1939, Hitler made a similardemand of Poland. That nation also refused to giveup land. Britain and France now said that theywould protect Poland. But Hitler guessed theywould not back this up. Meanwhile, he made anagreement with Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin inwhich the two countries promised never to attackeach other.ReviewClarifying1. What ideas of Einstein and Freud challenged oldways of thinking?2. How did technology change society after thewar?3. Comparing and Contrasting Compare theFrench approach to the Depression with theNew Deal.4. Analyzing Causes and Recognizing EffectsWhat European nations came to be ruled by dictators,and why?5. Following Chronological Order Describe thesequence of events in the 1930s that led to war.Years of Crisis 123