1929: breadline: 1933: master race: 1939: total war (D)

Episode number 3 of Series “People’s century: 1900-1999”.
This tape contains episodes eight to ten of the ‘People’s century 1900-1999’ series. “1929: breadline”; the material prosperity of the 1920s comes to a grinding halt with the stock market crash of 1929. The aftershocks are felt worldwide, with countries relying on trade with America suffering most. With poverty came disillusionment, impatience with governments who were willing to let the Depression run its course and a shift to political ideals that were opposed to capitalism. In America, Roosevelt “saves” his people by instituting a scheme of public works - it took a war to involve masses of people in the workforce again. Narrated by Sean Barrett. “1933: master race”; the Nazis march into power in 1933 with a victory to the National Socialist Party. Racial purity becomes the objective to pursue at all costs as Jews, gypsies, homosexuals, black people and the handicapped are considered a threat to the master race and to be persecuted and eradicated. When Hitler invades Poland in 1938 in a bid for expansion, war breaks out. Narrated by Veronika Hyks. “1939: total war”; the nature of war is changing as civilians become a pawn in a bloody affair, under threat of attacks from the sky and on the ground. China suffers greatly at the hands of the Japanese, while in Leningrad, Russians suffer a similar fate at the hands of the Germans. Millions of lives are lost to starvation and bombing. Narrated by Veronika Hyks.