This section will also focus on Human Rights abuse, specifically extermination camps and genocide, the Holocaust and the ‘Final Solution’. Section 2 (World War II: Europe) describes the foreign policy of Nazism and how it lead to the outbreak of WWII. Finally, this section will show how Germany became a Fascist state, through its suppression of Jewish citizens and the persecution of its political opponents. The rise of Hitler and Nazism will be examined, as well as how the Great Depression and the failure of democracy in the Weimar Republic boosted Hitler’s popularity.
Section 1 (The rise of Nazi Germany) begins by looking at the aftermath of WW I, focusing on the signing of the Treaty of Versailles (1919) and the reparations and concessions made by Germany. All the great powers were involved as the conflict between the Axis and the Allies stretched across all five continents.
What made the war significant was the sheer scale of the conflict and the gross violation of Human Rights. World War II (1939 to 1945) was the most devastating war in history, accounting for between 50 million to 80 million deaths.
