The World in Prosperity and Depression

1. The World in Prosperity and Depression World War II and the Cold War

2. The Europe in 1919 was very different than before WWI. • The German, Russian, Austro-Hungarian, and Ottoman Empires no longer existed. • Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Yugoslavia, and the Baltic States were born. • Russia was in the midst of a civil war. Introduction

4. People is Central Europe suffered from famine because of wartime blockades of food. • Returning soldiers faced unemployment. • A major flu epidemic in 1919 killed as many people as the war. Reconstruction and Prosperity

5. Farms, cities, and railroad lines had been torn up in the fighting. • Germans had to make huge reparations payments for the war to France and Britain, slowing Germany’s economic recovery. • Germany printed extra money to pay the debt, leading to high inflation. • Workers were known to collect their wages in suitcases and spend them immediately. Reconstruction and Prosperity

6. The US emerged from the war as the world’s economic super power. • Britain and France were in debt to the US for the purchase of US war goods. • America faced a slight recession after the war, but American consumers began buying mass-produced American goods. Reconstruction and Prosperity

7. One of the most important factors promoting prosperity was the invention of the automobile. • Cars first came into widespread use in the US and Europe after the war. • When Ford produced its 10 millionth Model T in 1924, nine out of every 10 cars in the entire world were Fords. Reconstruction and Prosperity

9. Consumers also benefitted from new electric devices such as the vacuum cleaner, refrigerator, and toaster. • They also went to the movies and listened to the radio for the first time. • American prosperity spread to Europe, Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Reconstruction and Prosperity

11. The 1920s also saw the expression of new values, mainly because women had worked in the place of men during the war. • Women now had the right to vote in the US, Great Britain, and other countries. • More women pursued a higher education. Reconstruction and Prosperity

13. Fragile new democracies also emerged in the 1920s like the Weimar Republic in Germany. • Socialists parties came to power in several countries for the very first time. Reconstruction and Prosperity

14. Why do you think the US was the major economic power after World War I? Notebook Assignment