Hitler Germany test questions

1. Who founded the German Workers' Party?

a. Adolf Hitler
b. Gustav Stresemann
c. Anton Drexler
d. None of the above

2. What was the Reichstag?

a. German parliament
b. A Jewish shop
c. A famous concentration camp
d. Nazi Party headquarters

3. Why does fear of communism make Hitler's support grow?

a. People didn't like Marxism
b. People didn't believe communism would be effective.
c. Karl Marx ruined the German economy during WWI.
d. People were afraid that German will become bad like the USSR.

4. What was destroyed in the Night of the Long Knives?

a. Jewish shops and homes
b. The Reichstag
c. Sturmabteilung
d. Schutzstaffel

5. What does "antisocial" mean?

Someone who...

a. Doesn't like to talk and socialize
b. hates people AKA emo
c. is accused of committing adultery
d. is a criminal

6. [Bonus] Where did Mr. Librodo got his pocket picked?

a. Philippines
b. Spain
c. Poland
d. Thailand

Russian Propaganda Posters

Overthrowing a government isn’t all that hard, but keeping the new government running is the real challenge. To keep the new government running, the government needed the people on their side. Propaganda is the use of messages, pictures, or other media to change the people’s opinion about something. It is used to influence people to believe in something they didn’t, and there is usually one main and powerful message. To persuade people, facts are distorted, shown only the good sides, or they may be lies altogether. Propaganda during the time of the Russian Revolution mainly focuses on the teachings of Marx, the greatness of their leader, socialism, and communism. By looking at propaganda posters, we can see how basic psychology works on people and how the government tried to control people’s thoughts.

http://posters.nce.buttobi.net/big/0209.jpg

The translation of the poster is “The symbol of peace – the symbol of socialism.” In it, there is a picture of Lenin in the middle of a red flag. The poster uses yellow with rays to make Lenin seem like the sun or a god. The red flag symbolizes the Red Army. Under the flag is the Parliament building, and beside it is Spasskij, one of the Kremlin Towers. This tower used to be the resident of the Tsar before the Winter Palace. This poster clearly shows the red star on top of the tower put there by the Soviets to show their dominance. This poster is suggesting that with Lenin and the Soviet as the ruler, peace will be achieved like it never had during the Tsar’s rule. The text is saying that Lenin brought peace to the country, and socialism is the one way to peace. The poster is effective because it does not need a scholar to see that Lenin is depicted as a holy man and HE is the symbol of peace, along with socialism, all for the good of the state.

http://posters.nce.buttobi.net/big/0245a.jpg

The poster says “She was born in the hard year of 1918.” The she in this poster is assumed to be the army, since “army” in Russian is a feminine word. In the year 1918, the Russian Civil War started between the Reds and the Whites. This poster shows a woman in an army costume with red on both her and the background, indicating that she is from the Reds. The text indicates that the woman (army) was created due to the war, and created to stop the war. The main attraction for this poster should be the woman. In addition, the bright red will attract passersby to come look.

http://posters.nce.buttobi.net/big/0289.jpg

This poster says “We promised to the workers and peasants to do everything for peace - and we WILL do it.” It could mean that Lenin is going to do anything to win the war against the Whites. Standing in front, big and tall, is Lenin, holding the newspaper “Pravda.” Behind him is the Soviet symbol, which is golden, emphasizing importance. Though it does not say this, but it is obvious that it shows Lenin as the leader of the Soviet Union. Here, Lenin looks stern, steady, serious, and looks like the type of guy to solve the country’s problems. The theme of this poster is red, the color of the Red Army. Lenin holding Pravda guarantees that what he said will be the truth. Lenin’s prominence on the poster will be the thing that catches people’s eyes.

The posters I saw when I searched on the internet mostly had Lenin, Stalin, workers, and soldiers on them. They were mostly the Reds trying to take the people over to their side by showing victory of their soldiers, rights of workers, and righteousness of their leaders. It is obvious to me that during the totalitarian regime, lots of propaganda was used to brainwash people to help make the revolution successful. It is clear that the government’s propaganda was used to address almost anyone due to the message being quite clear. Even if people were illiterate, the pictures alone could obviously convey the message across.

Credits:

"Soviet Posters 1-6." Russian Posters, Cuban Posters, and other Posters. Propaganda Posters.. 20 Oct 2008 .

"Kremlin Towers." Wikipedia. 19 Oct 2008. Wikimedia Foundation. 20 Oct 2008 .

Kelly, Nigel, and Paul Shuter. As It Was Lived. 8th ed. Singapore: Pearson Education South East Asia, 2005

Babylon Dictionary

The Battle of Somme

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/de/Joseph_Joffre_Nw_joffre_02_nw.png

Joseph Joffre

http://www.nationalgalleries.org/media_collection/6/PG%201010.jpg

Douglas Haig

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The Battle of Somme

Did you know that during World War I, the Battle of Somme had 58,000 casualties on the first day, July 1, 1916? The BEF (British Expeditionary Force) lost a lot of their soldiers that day. In addition, it was the first battle that tanks were ever used.

In WWI, the French and British fought the Germans together. British generals decided they were going to attack the area around the Somme River in the summer. In February 1916, the German army started attacking the French at Verdun. BEF commander, Sir Douglas Haig, and the French General, Joseph Joffre, planned to attack at the Somme River to lure the Germans out of Verdun. Because the French had to defend Verdun, it was the British who mostly fought.*

The attack was preceded with an artillery bombardment that took a week long. It was for the ease of inexperienced volunteered soldiers so they could just walk to the Germans. The shells were supposed to destroy part of the German defense. They didn’t. The bombardment only prepared the Germans of the coming attack. On July 1, the soldiers walked over and got killed by prepared German machine guns. On September 15th, the tanks were used. Although only about half of them worked, they helped break through German lines. However, they were also proved unreliable because soldiers often outrun them.

Progress was slow. When the war ended on November 18th, 1916, the British-French attack gained a surprisingly few 5-6 miles despite the total casualties from all sides: over 1,000,000.*

I think making the soldiers walk towards the enemies is suicide. However, without this attack, the French would have broken at Verdun, causing the Germans to advance and win the World War. Though lots of British soldiers died, I think it was worth the sacrifice.

* = new paragraph. It won't show in this blog.

Sources:
"Lincolnshire Nostalgia." Louth Leader. 17 Sep 2008. Lincolnshire Newspaper. 16 Sep 2008 .

Duffy, Michael. "Battle of Somme 1916." First World War.com. First World War.com. 15 Sep 2008 .

Ramsdale, David. "THE BATTLE OF THE SOMME." Ramsdale Family Register. 14 Sep 2008 .

"Battle of Somme." World War One. 2008. HIstory Learning Site. 14 Sep 2008 .

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