World War II Leaders

Hitler: Early Life

• Born in Austria• High School Drop Out• Failed Artist• Fought in WWI• Was frustrated over the Treaty of Versailles

and joined the German Worker’s Party (eventually the Nazis)

• Tried to coup against Bavarian Government and was thrown in jail where he wrote Mein Kamf (My Struggle)

Rise to Power

• Gained respect after prison and quickly rose through the Nazi Party ranks

• Was announced Chancellor by the German President

• When the president dies the following year, Hitler combined both posts and became the “uncontested leader” Der Fuhrer

Beliefs• Nazi ideology: Anti-Communism, Anti Jews• Police state: No-criticism, Great purge, executed

millions• End the existence of political parties, labor

unions, and free press.• Racism

– Belief in the superiority of the White, Germanic, Aryan or Nordic races.

– "Racial Hygiene“- Euthanasia to other races• Nationalism/ Strong militarism• Social Darwinism• Defense of Blood and Soil (represented by the

red and black colors in the Nazi flag)

Goals

• Aryan State-blonde hair and blue eyed race

• Return of German Speaking Lands - “Lebensraum”– Sudetenland - (now part of Czech

Republic) – Munich Conference - Great Britain &

France give to Hitler in return for peace– Hitler then invades the rest of

Czechoslovakia

Stalin

• Stalin's parents were peasants• His father was as a cobbler. • Smallpox (which left scarring marks on his face)• Carriage accident that caused his left arm to be

permanently shortened and stiffened. • Was a good student, but was eventually expelled• Was exposed to Marxism early• Following several conflicts with authorities, he was exiled

to Siberia, but later escaped• Became a member of the Bolshevik Party and was

nominated for the party's highest governing body, the Central Committee.

Rise to Power

• Stalin's chief role during most of the revolution was propagandist and supporter of Vladimir Lenin, the leader of the SU.

• It was mainly because of Lenin's favor that Stalin gained additional power in the Communist Party.

• Stalin was granted the position that would vault him to the position of leader of the Soviet Union: he was made general secretary of the Central Committee of the CPSU.

• After Lenin’s death Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union (Superior Ruler)

Ideologies

• Name meant “Man of Steel”

• Focused on creating a model Communist State in the Soviet Union—Trampled Rights of his people

• 5 Year Plans

• Collectivism in Farming and Push for Industrial growth

• Police State/Totalitarian State

Stalin’s Goals

• Stalin’s main goal is to catch the SU up with the western world.

• Obtaining full control. • Methods included killing any

enemies, including his own people.

Tojo: Early Life

• His father Alessandro Mussolini was a blacksmith and a socialist. His mother Rosa Mussolini was a devoutly Catholic schoolteacher

Tojo: Rise to Power

• Strong military leader

• Led infantry in the Sino-Japanese War

• Popular war hero

• Appointed Prime Minister after Konoe was forced to resign

Ideologies

• Military Leadership• Tojo was known to be the “son of

Satan”, would fight to the death

Tojo: Goals

• Take over the Pacific and South East Asia

• Land wanted: Manchuria, South East Asia, Vietnam

• Control of Natural Resources• Directly responsible for the attack on

Pearl Harbor after refusing to leave China

Mussolini and Italy• Benito Mussolini – Italian Fascist

Dictator

• Il Duce- The Chief

• Feared the spread of Communism

Mussolini: Ideologies

• Nationalism

• Imperialism

• Corporatism

• Political alliance with businesses

Ideology

• “The Fascist accepts and loves life; he rejects and despises suicide as cowardly. Life as he understands it means duty, elevation, conquest; life must be lofty and full, it must be lived for oneself but above all for others, both near bye and far off, present and future.”

The Blackshirts

Italian group that went around beating folks up in the streets.

A big part of Fascism was being a tough guy and pushing people around.