Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany as Totalitarian Atates
A totalitarian state refers to a country in which the central
government exercises total control over all aspects of people's life.
Main features include an infallible leader, one-party rule, strict
party discipline, elitism, planned economy, an official doctrine,
absolute obedience of individuals to the State, nationalism and
usually an expansionist foreign policy. Up to these criteria, both
Fascist Italy (1922-43) and Nazi Germany (1933-45) could be deemed
totalitarian states to a large extent.
Chaotic situation, irrationality and national humiliation often lead
to totalitarianism. Both the Fascist and Nazi regimes owed their rise
to the people's disillusionment with the Paris Peace Settlement and
postwar difficulties. Though being a victorious power in World War
One, Italy could not get all she wanted on the Paris Peace Conference.
Especially Fiume was given to Yugoslavia, Italy's rival in Adriatic.
As the major defeated power, Germany was punished heavily by the
Treaty of Versailles. She was to pay a huge indemnity, cede
traditional territories, lose all overseas possessions, accept almost
total disarmament and the "war-guilt" clause, etc. Both Italy and
Germany had unsuccessful democratic experiment. The coalition party
governments in both countries had been incompetent in restoring
national pride and getting rid of massive unemployment and
hyper-inflation. Thus, a strong leader and efficient one-party rule
were accepted in both Italy and Germany. However, Hitler came to power
constitutionally while Mussolini staged a coup d'etat, i.e...
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...ifist and
anti-Nazi. Seeing the fragility of the Stresa Front, Mussolini joined
Hitler subsequently in territorial expansion. There saw Italian
invasion of Abyssinia and Albania. Mussolini's foreign policy was
inconsistent and opportunistic. Hitler never hid his territorial
ambitions. He aimed at complete reversal of the Treaty of Versailles,
seeking "living space" for Germany and satisfying the popular
nostalgic hankering of the return of German greatness. Hitler carried
out conscription and full-scale rearmament, annexed Austria,
Czechoslovakia and invaded Poland. They even formed the Axis and
withdrew from the League of Nations. Both were accountable for the
outbreak of World War Two.
In a nutshell, we may say that both Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany
were totalitarian states though there were some differences.
There were a few reasons that these concessions were offered by European countries: none of the countries wanted another World War, the devastating effects that the Great Depression had on each country, and the European governmental chaos and political turmoil was widespread. A famous quote by FDR at his First Inaugural Address was, “Only Thing We Have to Fear Is Fear Itself” came to mind when thinking of most European democracies position’s when it came to the military aggression by Italy and Germany. However, it is easy to understand why they would make concessions, albeit short-lived, rather than run the risk of another World War and all of the noxious energy that comes with it. On the other hand, trusting the “devilish nature” of both Hitler and Mussolini would turn out to be costly moves that were fortunately corrected by the strength of the United States and its Allies in time. This was definitely a tough predicament for Europe to be in.
Fascism is one of the great political ideology in the 20th century. It is a kind of authoritarian government that, according to Wikipedia, “considers the individual subordinate to the interests of the state, party or society as a whole.” Two of the most successful and to be in the vanguard of fascism government is Italian fascism – led by Benito Mussolini, and Nazi Germany – led by Adolf Hitler. Fascism in Italy and Germany, though in many regards very similar - have the same political ideologies, still have many aspects to them that make them different from each other. Before analysing the similarities and differences between the fascism that emerged in Italy and Germany since the very first of 20th century, it is better to discover - what is fascism.
Following the beginning of the Second World War, Adolf Hitler’s Nazi Germany and Joseph Stalin’s Soviet Union would start what would become two of the worst genocides in world history. These totalitarian governments would “welcome” people all across Europe into a new domain. A domain in which they would learn, in the utmost tragic manner, the astonishing capabilities that mankind possesses. Nazis and Soviets gradually acquired the ability to wipe millions of people from the face of the Earth. Throughout the war they would continue to kill millions of people, from both their home country and Europe. This was an effort to rid the Earth of people seen as unfit to live in their ideal society. These atrocities often went unacknowledged and forgotten by the rest of the world, leaving little hope for those who suffered. Yet optimism was not completely dead in the hearts of the few and the strong. Reading Man is Wolf to Man: Surviving the Gulag by Janusz Bardach and Survival in Auschwitz by Primo Levi help one capture this vivid sense of resistance toward the brutality of the German concentration and Soviet work camps. Both Bardach and Levi provide a commendable account of their long nightmarish experience including the impact it had on their lives and the lives of others. The willingness to survive was what drove these two men to achieve their goals and prevent their oppressors from achieving theirs. Even after surviving the camps, their mission continued on in hopes of spreading their story and preventing any future occurrence of such tragic events. “To have endurance to survive what left millions dead and millions more shattered in spirit is heroic enough. To gather the strength from that experience for a life devoted to caring for oth...
Totalitarianism in Pre-War Europe Totalitarianism refers to a system of government and parliamentary ideology that was in many of the countries of Europe between the years 1918-1939. This period saw many ideologies being developed and put into practice, and many even blame the rise of totalitarian states and aggressive, autocratic leaders for the Second World War. Totalitarianism is often associated with regimes in which there is one leader and party unquestionably in power with no significant rivals. In a totalitarian state, the ideology of the party is often firmly indoctrinated.
Nazism possess the core features of totalitarianism, however has a few differences which distinguishes it. Totalitarianism, by the Friedrich-Brzezinski definition, is when the government establishes complete control over all aspects of the state,maintaining the complete control of laws and over what people can say, think and do. Nazi Germany satisfies most of this criteria, as they had a one party system without political opposition. Moreover, they had a single unchallenged leader, in Hitler, to whom the entire nation conformed to. Furthermore, the party had nearly complete control over the country, controlling what people thought through propaganda and censorship, as well as what people could do through fear and terror. However, there are
Fascism is defined as, “an authoritarian and nationalistic right-wing system of government and social organization.” Peter Hyland reports that throughout the 1920s and the 1930s, an economic depression was growing and becoming widespread throughout the world. People were losing faith in their democracies and in capitalism. Leaders who gained power supported powerful militarism, nationalism, and initiated the return of an authoritarian rule. J.R. Oppenheimer says that the rise of fascism and totalitarianism in Europe and Russia instigated a “critical step on the path to war.” In 1922, Benito Mussolini held leadership in Italy, promising a proficient and militaristic nationalistic state. During his control as prime minister, he gained a large group of followers, banned the disparagement of government, and used extreme violence against his enemies within the parliament.
The Extent to Which Germany was Transformed into a Totalitarian State Between 1933-1945 World War one had a massive effect on Germany. The monarch collapsed, which led to the establishment of a democratic system which also collapsed and the polycratic government of the Nazi party who Changed the effects of the treaty of Versailles, and the course of history sending it deep into another World War. This essay will talk about, Hitler's polycratic and totalitarian leadership as the Fuhrer, and his powerful control over a nation. The definition of 'Totalitarian' will often contain the following characteristics. - The state is led by a dominating and often ruthless individual presiding over a single political party or group, with no opposition groups allowed.
In 19th century Italian states united to make Italy while the Germanic states united and made Germany. For Italy there were three people who had a major role in unifying Italy. They were Mazzini, Garibaldi and Cavour. For Germany it was more like one person who united the German states to make Germany and that was Bismarck. On the other hand there was a strong Austrian empire that would not tolerate any nationalist feelings to rise anywhere in Europe.
Because of this, they are often seen as the beginning cause to WWII, which isn't necessarily true. Italy alone didn't do anything bad enough to start a war, but when you put Italy's, Germany's and Japan's actions together then you get the reasons for WWII. Italy being a Fascist country wasn't a problem, until he started killing his oppositions and taking land by force that wasn't his. Had the League of Nations worked properly, then Mussolini would probably have been stopped after the Corfu incident, but as it stood he was given what he wanted and allowed to think that using force was acceptable. Most of the incidents that occurred in Europe in the 1920s and 30s could have been solved if someone had done something different or if something else
Benito Mussolini wanted to try and delay a major war in Europe until at least 1942, but Germany invaded Poland in 1939. This means declarations of war by France and the UK and the start of WWII. Mussolini created the Fascist Party in Italy in 1919. He eventually made himself dictator after World War
World War II, which only lasted about five years, changed the course of history forever, and affected millions of lives. Among the major nations that were involved in the war, Benito Mussolini and his Italian army sought to settle their differences with many nations. Benito’s fascist views, his idea of a nation built by one race, and his relationship with Adolf Hitler ultimately led to his involvement in the war. His responsibility, in essence, was to ally himself with the superpowers of the world, and lead his people into a war that they could not fight.
Exploring the Similarities and Differences Between the Foreign Policies of Mussolini and Hitler Similarities - Both foreign policies geared to achieving great power status o Hitler: lebensraum, wanted to have living space for the expansion of the German race and control over other groups o Mussolini: wanted control over Mara nostrum, Abyssinia, …an empire - fascist states o had anti communist feelings; o both signed anti comintern pact 1937 against USSR o Spanish civil war against communism helping Franco secure power o Signed pact of steel in may 1939, a full military alliance - unhappy with status quo, wanted international prestige o national grievances on Versailles, people wanted to change Versailles o Hitler, product of WW1 who was angry at Versailles and wanted to see Germany achieve great power status o Mussolini; felt that Italy had been treated unfairly at Versailles and also waned to change the status quo o Because of this both built up armies, navies and air forces.. Italian air force to block out the sun + German luftwaffe… - both Hitler and Mussolini, used diplomacy and force as well as aggression to get what they wanted o Mussolini over Greece where it undermined the LofN, used force to take Abyssinia 1935 o Hitler used the threat of force to take Austria and diplomacy as well as force to take Czech and Saarland in 193… - by 1939 both had a common enemy; Britain and France - both were aggressive nationalists and glorified warw - both wanted empires; abysinnia and lebenstraum to distract from problems at home.. Differences - Hitler was more clear in his aims and ideals whereas Mussolini was more vague and opportunistic o Although Hitler did take advantage of opportunities such as Abyssinia crises to remilitarise Rhineland he was more structured in his aims for Lebensraum, unification of all Germans, building up the army and recovering lost territories § Illustrated by Hitler’s success after success ; Rhineland in 36,
MODERN HISTORY – RESEARCH ESSAY “To what extent was Nazi Germany a Totalitarian state in the period from 1934 to 1939?” The extent to which Nazi Germany was a totalitarian state can be classed as a substantial amount. With Hitler as Fuhrer and his ministers in control of most aspects of German social, political, legal, economical, and cultural life during the years 1934 to 1939, they mastered complete control and dictation upon Germany. In modern history, there have been some governments, which have successfully, and others unsuccessfully carried out a totalitarian state. A totalitarian state is one in which a single ideology is existent and addresses all aspects of life and outlines means to attain the final goal, government is run by a single mass party through which the people are mobilized to muster energy and support.
The allied powers promised Italy land in exchange for joining them against the central powers during WWI. But, Italy was mostly ignored during the Treaty of Versailles and received very little land. This can be seen as one of the reasons Mussolini aligned with the Axis powers in WWII. He knew that the allies did not treated Italy fairly so he went against them in the next war. He also began invading countries in Africa such as Ethiopia so that Italy could establish itself as the rightful leading power of the Mediterranean. While the invasion of other countries may seem bad, Mussolini did it to increase the power of his own country. He fought for Italy first, proving himself a true nationalist. Another example of this can be found when Hitler came to power and it became apparent to Mussolini that Austria was threatened. He wanted Italy to have influence in Austria, so he threatened to go to war with Germany in the event of an invasion of
Mussolini came into power in 1922 and sought to make Fascism the only party in Italy, because he believed it was superior to all other parties. Both Mussolini and Hitler wanted to create a better economy for their countries, and had big plans to change the way their countries viewed things. Mussolini abolished democracy, and would not listen and shunned any ideas or citizens who opposed his political views. Although the men were quite similar in the ways they set goals for their countries, Hitler was extreme in his plans for future Germany. According to the lecture, Hitler’s plans were to make it known the Germans were the superior race, Jews and Gypsies were subhuman, Hitler promised to take back the land taken from the after the war, and Lebensraum. Both men had their countries became a part of the Axis powers, and along with Japan became Fascist nations. Mussolini’s rise to power came through his influence on the fascists people. According to the lecture it was fascists that marched to Rome in October 1922, and the people demanded that the king put Mussolini in charge of the government. It was through fear that Mussolini gained his power. Hitler on the other hand was