Look at the multiple choice questions and answers and try to figure out what words and ideas are repeated over and over again.
Make an inference: what do you need to remember about World War II for the multiple choice section of the regents exam? Use your inferences to create flashcards for the following key ideas and concepts. Write these ideas/concepts/questions on one side of the card and write information or answers on the other side of the card.
Flashcards:
· Rise of Fascism
· Appeasement
· Causes of World War II
· Effects of World War II
· The Holocaust
· Why did Hitler’s invasion of Russia (Soviet Union) fail?
The Rise of Fascism
Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, and Communist Russia were similar in that each
(1) protected individual rights
(2) elected their leaders through popular vote
(3) supported market-based economies
(4) established totalitarian governments
Which ideology best completes this graphic organizer?
(1) socialism
(2) democracy
(3) capitalism
(4) fascism
“. . conception of the State, of its essence, its functions, and its aims. For Fascism the State is absolute, individuals and groups relative. Individuals and groups are admissable in so far as they come within the State. Instead of directing the game and guiding the material and moral progress of the community, the liberal
State restricts its activities to recording results. The Fascist State is wide awake and has a will of its own. For this reason it can be described as ‘ethical’. . . .”
— Benito Mussolini, Fascism: Doctrine and Institutions, Howard Fertig, 1932
Which statement expresses the main idea of the passage?
(1) The people have a right to overthrow ineffective governments.
(2) The state is more important than the individuals within it.
(3) The state gets its authority from the power of individuals.
(4) The establishment of an empire will cause division and chaos.
What was one similarity between France during the 1790s and Germany during the 1920s?
(1) Severe inflation contributed to the rise of radical political groups.
(2) Scientific developments improved the standard of living.
(3) Widespread intolerance of the Huguenots led to human rights abuses.
(4) Military successes eliminated tensions with neighboring countries
• The Nazi Party controls Germany.
• Khmer Rouge rules in Cambodia.
• The Sandinistas control Nicaragua.
Which statement describes a similarity in these situations?
(1) Civil liberties were promoted.
(2) Voting rights were extended to women.
(3) Leaders won the support of all groups.
(4) One group seized power and limited opposition.
The 1930s depression in Germany contributed to the rise of the Nazi Party because
(1) economic hardships increased instability
(1) five-year plans of the communists failed
(3) the Reichstag nationalized private property
(4) the Weimar Republic imposed totalitarianism
Which leader is most closely associated with the rise of fascism in Italy prior to World War II?
(1) Ho Chi Minh
(2) Winston Churchill
(3) Mao Zedong
(4) Benito Mussolini
What was one reason that totalitarian dictatorships gained power in Europe between World War I and World War II?
(1) Trade was banned between western and eastern Europe.
(2) Governments failed to meet the needs of the people.
(3) Monarchies were reinstated in many nations.
35 One similarity between Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini is that both
(1) led fascist states
(2) supported communism
(3) rejected militarism
(4) remained in power after World War II
One way in which the Hitler Youth of Germany and the Red Guard of China are similar is that both organizations
(1) required unquestioning loyalty to the leader
(2) helped increase religious tolerance
(3) hindered imperialistic goals
(4) led pro-democracy movements
Based on the information in this chart, which situation gave rise to Nazi power in Germany?
(1) global prosperity and trade
(2) success of the Weimar Republic
(3) political and economic instability
(4) expansion of Germany’s colonial empire
In Europe during the 1920s and 1930s, severe inflation, high unemployment, and fear of communism all contributed to the
(1) overthrow of monarchies in Italy and Germany
(2) rise of Fascist governments in Italy, Germany, and Spain
(3) formation of the Common Market in Italy and Spain
(4) growth of democratic institutions
Which situation is an example of totalitarianism in Germany in the 1930s?
(1) frequent meetings of the German Reichstag
(2) decline of the German economy
(3) strict government control of the press
(4) negotiation of a nonaggression pact with the Soviet Union
Appeasement
One reason that Britain and France agreed to appease Hitler at the Munich Conference was to
(1) prevent the start of another world war
(2) stop the Nazis from invading the Soviet Union
(3) obey an order from the League of Nations
(4) obtain advanced German military weapons in exchange
The policy of appeasement helped cause World War II because this policy
(1) reduced the armaments of major European powers
(2) gave too much power to the United Nations
(3) increased sea trade between England and the United States
(4) allowed the aggressive actions of Germany to go unchecked
When some European leaders agreed to Hitler’s demands concerning Czechoslovakia in 1938, they were supporting a policy of
(1) détente
(2) balance of power
(3) collective security
(4) appeasement
Before September 1939, the European response to Hitler’s actions included
(1) following a policy of appeasement
(2) blockading the coast of Germany
(3) forcing Germany to sign the Versailles Treaty
(4) creating alliances under the United Nations Charter
Base your answer to question 36 on the passage below and on your knowledge of social studies.
“It took the Big Four just five hours and twenty- five minutes here in Munich today to dispel the clouds of war and come to an agreement over the partition of Czechoslovakia. There is to be no European war, after all. There is to be peace, and the price of that peace is, roughly, the ceding by Czechoslovakia of the Sudeten territory to Herr Hitler’s Germany. The German Führer gets what he wanted, only he has to wait a little longer for it. Not much longer though — only ten days. . . .”
Source: William Shirer, recording of CBS radio report from Prague, September 29, 1938
The policy that France, Britain, and Italy chose to follow at this meeting is known as
(1) appeasement
(2) self-determination
(3) liberation
(4) pacification
The term appeasement is best defined as
(1) an attempt to avoid conflict by meeting the demands of an aggressor
(2) a period of peace and prosperity, resulting in cultural achievement
(3) a declaration of war between two or more nations
(4) an agreement removing economic barriers between nations
Causes of World War II
The Japanese invasion of Manchuria in 1931 and Hitler’s rebuilding of the German military in 1935 demonstrate the
(1) success of defensive alliances
(2) fear of communist expansion
(3) support for the Treaty of Versailles
(4) failure of the League of Nations
The Japanese, the Germans, and the Italians pursued a policy of expansionism before World War II to gain
(1) natural resources
(2) warm-water ports
(3) manufacturing plants
(4) freedom of the seas
Which event is most closely associated with the start of World War II in Europe?
(1) invasion of Poland by Nazi forces
(2) signing of the Munich Agreement
(3) building of the Berlin Wall
(4) assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand
•Japan resigns from the League of Nations, 1933
• Rome-Berlin-Tokyo Axis formed, 1936
• Japan invades China, 1937
• United States places embargo on scrap iron, steel, and oil exports to Japan, 1941
Which event occurred immediately after this series of developments?
(1) Manchuria became a Japanese protectorate.
(2) Pearl Harbor was attacked.
(3) The Japanese fleet was destroyed.
(4) The atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima
Between the late 1800s and the end of World War II, Japan implemented a policy of imperialism mainly because Japan
(1) admired the economic power of China
(2) lacked coal, iron, and other important resources
(3) wanted to unify the governments of East Asia
(4) feared the expansion of Nazi Germany in the Pacific
The main reason Japan invaded Southeast Asia during World War II was to
(1) recruit more men for its army
(2) acquire supplies of oil and rubber
(3) satisfy the Japanese people’s need for spices
(4) prevent the United States from entering the war
Japan’s invasion of China in 1937 and Germany’s attack on Poland in 1939 led directly to
(1) the beginning of World War II in Asia and Europe
(2) a meeting at Yalta between the United States and the Soviet Union
(3) a conference at Munich for European leaders
(4) the withdrawal of Britain and France from European affairs
One reason the Japanese followed a policy of expansionism before World War II was to gain
(1) warm-water ports
(2) control of Tibet
(3) additional natural resources
(4) control of the Suez Canal
Japan’s invasion of Manchuria, Italy’s attack on Ethiopia, and Germany’s blitzkrieg in Poland are examples of
(1) military aggression
(2) appeasement
(3) containment
(4) the domino theory
One reason for the outbreak of World War II was the
(1) ineffectiveness of the League of Nations
(2) growing tension between the United States and the Soviet Union
(3) conflict between the Hapsburg and the Romanov families
(4) refusal of the German government to sign the Treaty of Versailles
The main idea of this 1941 cartoon is that Japan, Italy, and Germany
(1) had formed an alliance for peace
(2) were determined to defeat communism
(3) had supported a peaceful international solution
(4) were committed to aggression
Effects of World War II
Which important principle was established as a result of the Nuremberg trials?
(1) Defeated nations have no rights in international courts of law.
(2) Individuals can be held accountable for “crimes against humanity.”
(3) Soldiers must follow the orders of their superiors.
(4) Aggressor nations must pay war reparations for damages caused during wars.
A major result of the Nuremberg trials after World War II was that
(1) Germany was divided into four zones of occupation
(2) the United Nations was formed to prevent future acts of genocide
(3) the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was established to stop the spread of communism
(4) Nazi political and military leaders were held accountable for their actions
The Nuremberg Trials are considered an important event in the 20th century because they
(1) brought an end to genocide
(2) condemned the use of nuclear weapons
(3) ruled on provisions for the postwar occupation of Germany
(4) established principles of responsibility for human rights violations
“. . . Seventy thousand people were killed instantly, and many more would die — 60,000 by November and another 70,000 by 1950. Most of them would be victims of a new method of killing — radiation. . . .”
Ronald Takai
The situation described in this passage was the direct result of which World War II event?
(1) blitz of London
(2) attack on Pearl Harbor
(3) D-Day invasion of Normandy
(4) bombing of Hiroshima
“.. have the message of Hiroshima and Nagasaki fade completely from our minds, and we cannot allow our vision or ideals to fade, either. For if we do, we have but one course left for us. And that flash of light will not only rob us of our vision, but it will rob us of our lives, our progeny [descendants], and our very existence.”
— Tadatoshi Akiba, Mayor of Hiroshima
With which issue is Mayor Akiba most concerned?
(1) depletion of the ozone layer
(2) treatment of infectious diseases
(3) nuclear proliferation
(4) international terrorism
. . . “You should take steps now to cease military resistance. Otherwise, we shall resolutely employ this bomb and all our other superior weapons to promptly and forcefully end the war.” . . .
This paragraph from a 1945 Allied leaflet warned the
(1) Czechs of a German invasion
(2) Americans in Hawaii of a Japanese attack
(3) Koreans of a Russian invasion
(4) Japanese civilians of a United States attack
During World War II, the Allied invasion of France on D-Day (June 6, 1944) was significant because it
(1) demonstrated the power of the atomic bomb
(2) resulted in a successful German revolt against Hitler and the Nazi Party
(3) led to the immediate surrender of German and Italian forces
(4) forced Germans to fight a two-front war
After World War II, the Soviet Union maintained control of many Eastern European nations mainly because these nations were
(1) a source of new technology and skilled labor
(2) near warm-water ports on the Mediterranean Sea
(3) extensions of communist power
(4) members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
The Holocaust
Base your answer to question 29 on the passage below and on your knowledge of social studies.
. . . In his classic defense of freedom of speech in, On Liberty, John Stuart Mill wrote that if a view is not “fully, frequently, and fearlessly discussed,” it will become “a dead dogma, not a living truth.” The existence of the Holocaust should remain a living truth, and those who are skeptical about the enormity of the Nazi atrocities should be confronted with the evidence for it. . . .
— Peter Singer (adapted)
Which statement is consistent with the author’s point concerning the Holocaust?
(1) The evils of the past are best ignored and forgotten.
(2) Frequent and full discussion of the historical evidence of certain events is desirable.
(3) All eras of history include individuals that reject existing values.
(4) Every generation must apologize for the failures of earlier generations.
Which action illustrates the concept of genocide?
(1) the British negotiating peace with Adolf Hitler during the 1938 Munich Conference
(2) Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin signing a nonaggression pact in 1939
(3) the Nazi armies eliminating the Jews and other groups as part of Adolf Hitler’s Final Solution
(4) German generals plotting against Adolf Hitler
Why did Hitler’s invasion of Russia (Soviet Union) fail?