Module 8: World War I and the Interwar Period

As nationalism increased among the European powers during the Age of Imperialism, the rush to establish empires inevitably brought these powers into conflict as they competed with one another for global supremacy. The result was World War I, the largest and deadliest conflict that Europe had ever seen. As the war waged in Europe, Russia was undergoing a revolution. After the Communists took control of the government in 1917, Russia exited the war altogether, just as the United States was entering it.

The victorious powers, France, the United States, Italy, and Great Britain, would not let the Germans, who lost, take part in the peace process at the end of the war. Each of the victors had their own agenda for the peace talks. The resulting Treaty of Versailles placed significant blame on Germany, made them pay money to the victors, set up the mandate system, and established the League of Nations. Unfortunately, the heavy war reparations placed on Germany contributed to the worldwide depression which resulted in charismatic dictators rising to power in Germany, Italy, and the Soviet Union.

Pre-Assessment

Key Vocabulary

To view the definitions for these key vocabulary terms, visit the course glossary.

Adolf Hitler	Fourteen Points	Nazi Party
alliance	Great Purge	neutrality
Allied powers	Hideki Tojo	New Economic Policy
anti-Semitism	Hirohito	Nicholas II
Archduke Ferdinand	imperialism	reparations
Benito Mussolini	inflation	self-determination
Bolshevik Revolution	Joseph Stalin	Stock Market Crash of 1929
Central powers	Kaiser Wilhelm II	tariff
collectivization	League of Nations	Treaty of Versailles
communism	mandate system	trench warfare
depression	militarism	Tsar
fascism	National Socialism (Nazism)	Vladimir Lenin
Five Year Plan	nationalism	Woodrow Wilson