What is this subject about?
The twentieth century was a time of dictators. From Mussolini and his Fascist Party in Italy, to Stalin in Communist Russia and of course, Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party in Germany. These strongmen wrenched control of their respective countries, shaped them in their image and dragged them to a future of war, chaos and terror in an insatiable quest for power.
But what makes these dictators dictators? And what characteristics do they share so that we can spot potential dictators in our world today?
In this unit, you will use the thinking skills of a historian to examine some of the twentieth century’s most notorious dictators. We’ll discover the methods they used to gain popular support, the actions they took to hold onto their newly gained power, and find out how they were ultimately brought down.
