Note:
- I made my notes based on the theme (eg civil rights) instead of doing it by years
(eg 1917-1933)
- I didn’t make notes for theme 4 (quality of life) because I didn’t think I would
actually answer it in the exam and that I would just choose the other question lol
(u can revise ¾ breadth studies if u are willing to take a gamble)
- I didn’t make notes for reagan, I just collected a load of statistics (bc u don’t
really need to write notes bc u are only using statistics in the exam)
THEME 1 (changing presidency)
1917-1933
- Harding 1921-23
- Coolidge 1923-29
- Hoover 1929-33
- Harding owned newspapers
- Coolidge soon left law for politics
- Hoover graduated from Stanford and made a $4 million fortune in the mining industry:
best example of rugged individualism
- favoured laissez-faire ideas of minimal federal government intervention
- Hoover became an international hero for his work aiding civilian victims of war and
Wilson put him in charge of food administration in 1917
- Harding served on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee from 1919, criticising the
League of Nations
- Coolidge hit headlines in 1910 when he was Massachusetts Governor for having a
tough stance over a Boston police strike - appealed to Americans suffering from post-
war economic problems
- by 1917, 27 states had banned alcohol and Temperance was one of the most
important issues in US politics - ppl argued that it led to urban crime, Communism,
poor work performance and poverty to name a few
- in 1919, the 18th Amendment made it illegal
,- brewing companies such as Pabst had been set up by Germans and so ppl said it was
patriotic to avoid beer
- food staple such as grain should not be wasted during wartime
- Roosevelt ended it in 1933
- WW1 prompted the first Red Scare
- Americans scared of Communism as it goes against US capitalistic values
- 1919: 3600 strikes, 1/5 of American workers participated - blamed on Communism
- race riots blamed on Communists: 1919 Red Summer
- Palmer Raids: 1919-1920
- anarchist bomb destroyed part of Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer's house and
spread anarchist leaflets across Washington streets
- during the Palmer Raids, around 6000 supposed aliens were arrested in 36 cities, but
Secretary of Labor concluded that only 556 deserved deportation - only a minority of
this 556 were Communists
- Americans paid no federal taxes prior to the war and rarely saw any government
employees
- the war brought an unprecedented rise in federal intervention and contributed to the
want for a 'return to normalcy'
- Sedition Act 1918 gave govt extra power to silence opponents of war
- 5 million men were drafted in 1917
- flu pandemic straight after the war which killed 600k
- Harding won mostly because he promised a return to an earlier period
- Harding rejected membership of the LofN - putting 'America first'
- Harding was presentable and photogenic and used many forms of media for the
election campaign: radio, newspapers, movie clips
- had supported womens enfranchisement and so won over female voters
- largest landslide victory in Republican history
,- lowered federal govt expenditure: $5000 mil -> $3373 mil in 2 years
- approved some progressive-style legislation, such as the Sheppard-Towner Maternity
Aid Act
- however, vetoed the popular bonus for veterans and failed to pass an anti-lynching bill
through the Senate
- has been criticised for his lack of action, but he only served 1/2 a term
- reputation tarnished by the Teapot Dome Scandal, even though it didn't directly involve
him
- Coolidge kept federal govt spending at around $3 billion
- kept a small govt and said that it was ideal to stay out of American lives as much as
possible
- agreed to federal aid for relief of the Mississippi floods in 1927
- he was not an outgoing personality, but he made an effort
- met reporters regularly and invited congressmen to White House breakfasts
- greeted around 400 callers at the White House daily
- frequently cited the Bible and took great care to give crowd-pleasing photo
opportunities
- 'Silent Cal' - not speaking much and related this to staying out of American lives
- associated with peace and optimism, which is why many blame the GD on him
- many believed that Hoover was the wrong man for the job
- advocated for rugged individualism (voluntarism) but still used aid: in 1928, he urged
state governors to put $3 bill aside for public works in periods of unemployment
- claimed that the community coming together was the reason for the success of the
1927 Mississippi floods relief program, but in reality it was primarily govt resources
- came across as a progressive during the election campaign, but also advocated
voluntarism - contradictory
- Agricultural Marketing Act 1929 established a Federal Farm Board that could purchase
crops to stabilise prices
, - however, did not do much about rising employment: NYC hospitals recorded 95
deaths from starvation in 1931
- promoted the Glass-Steagall Act, which introduced greater stability in the banking
system
- reluctantly asked Congress to establish the RFC, which was given up to $2 billion to
lend to businesses such as banks, but failed to stop more banks collapsing
- Revenue Act of 1932 raised taxes and decreased the purchasing power of the
employed, worsening the Depression
- under pressure, he signed an Emergency Relief and Construction Act that provided
$300 million to states for 'the needy' and empowered the RFC to finance $1.5 billion for
revenue-raising public works such as toll roads
- mishandled the Bonus March: in 1932, around 40,000 veterans arrived in Washington
to request their bonus, promised to them after WW1 - Hoover ordered the burning of
their encampment when they didn't leave - Roosevelt: 'this elects me'
- nobody applauded during his acceptance speech at the National Convention, and he
was 'monotone and dispiriting'
- in contrast, Roosevelt was handsome, confident and optimistic - won by a landslide
- maybe he wasn't that bad, but he wasn't the right leader for the GD: not inspirational
and resisted federal intervention
- after WW1, the US entered into a period of isolationism
- emphasised the importance of cutting military spending to balance the budget
- however, some historians argue that isolationism was a myth
- the Harding admin entered the Washington Treaties 1922, where the UK, France, Italy
and more agreed to limit the naval arms race
- the US recognised that a stable Europe was important to US trade, and so intervened
to aid German financial stability
- Coolidge sent Marines into Nicaragua in 1926
- retained imperial possessions such as the Philippines
- BUT nonetheless the idea of isolationism was widespread after the war
- I made my notes based on the theme (eg civil rights) instead of doing it by years
(eg 1917-1933)
- I didn’t make notes for theme 4 (quality of life) because I didn’t think I would
actually answer it in the exam and that I would just choose the other question lol
(u can revise ¾ breadth studies if u are willing to take a gamble)
- I didn’t make notes for reagan, I just collected a load of statistics (bc u don’t
really need to write notes bc u are only using statistics in the exam)
THEME 1 (changing presidency)
1917-1933
- Harding 1921-23
- Coolidge 1923-29
- Hoover 1929-33
- Harding owned newspapers
- Coolidge soon left law for politics
- Hoover graduated from Stanford and made a $4 million fortune in the mining industry:
best example of rugged individualism
- favoured laissez-faire ideas of minimal federal government intervention
- Hoover became an international hero for his work aiding civilian victims of war and
Wilson put him in charge of food administration in 1917
- Harding served on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee from 1919, criticising the
League of Nations
- Coolidge hit headlines in 1910 when he was Massachusetts Governor for having a
tough stance over a Boston police strike - appealed to Americans suffering from post-
war economic problems
- by 1917, 27 states had banned alcohol and Temperance was one of the most
important issues in US politics - ppl argued that it led to urban crime, Communism,
poor work performance and poverty to name a few
- in 1919, the 18th Amendment made it illegal
,- brewing companies such as Pabst had been set up by Germans and so ppl said it was
patriotic to avoid beer
- food staple such as grain should not be wasted during wartime
- Roosevelt ended it in 1933
- WW1 prompted the first Red Scare
- Americans scared of Communism as it goes against US capitalistic values
- 1919: 3600 strikes, 1/5 of American workers participated - blamed on Communism
- race riots blamed on Communists: 1919 Red Summer
- Palmer Raids: 1919-1920
- anarchist bomb destroyed part of Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer's house and
spread anarchist leaflets across Washington streets
- during the Palmer Raids, around 6000 supposed aliens were arrested in 36 cities, but
Secretary of Labor concluded that only 556 deserved deportation - only a minority of
this 556 were Communists
- Americans paid no federal taxes prior to the war and rarely saw any government
employees
- the war brought an unprecedented rise in federal intervention and contributed to the
want for a 'return to normalcy'
- Sedition Act 1918 gave govt extra power to silence opponents of war
- 5 million men were drafted in 1917
- flu pandemic straight after the war which killed 600k
- Harding won mostly because he promised a return to an earlier period
- Harding rejected membership of the LofN - putting 'America first'
- Harding was presentable and photogenic and used many forms of media for the
election campaign: radio, newspapers, movie clips
- had supported womens enfranchisement and so won over female voters
- largest landslide victory in Republican history
,- lowered federal govt expenditure: $5000 mil -> $3373 mil in 2 years
- approved some progressive-style legislation, such as the Sheppard-Towner Maternity
Aid Act
- however, vetoed the popular bonus for veterans and failed to pass an anti-lynching bill
through the Senate
- has been criticised for his lack of action, but he only served 1/2 a term
- reputation tarnished by the Teapot Dome Scandal, even though it didn't directly involve
him
- Coolidge kept federal govt spending at around $3 billion
- kept a small govt and said that it was ideal to stay out of American lives as much as
possible
- agreed to federal aid for relief of the Mississippi floods in 1927
- he was not an outgoing personality, but he made an effort
- met reporters regularly and invited congressmen to White House breakfasts
- greeted around 400 callers at the White House daily
- frequently cited the Bible and took great care to give crowd-pleasing photo
opportunities
- 'Silent Cal' - not speaking much and related this to staying out of American lives
- associated with peace and optimism, which is why many blame the GD on him
- many believed that Hoover was the wrong man for the job
- advocated for rugged individualism (voluntarism) but still used aid: in 1928, he urged
state governors to put $3 bill aside for public works in periods of unemployment
- claimed that the community coming together was the reason for the success of the
1927 Mississippi floods relief program, but in reality it was primarily govt resources
- came across as a progressive during the election campaign, but also advocated
voluntarism - contradictory
- Agricultural Marketing Act 1929 established a Federal Farm Board that could purchase
crops to stabilise prices
, - however, did not do much about rising employment: NYC hospitals recorded 95
deaths from starvation in 1931
- promoted the Glass-Steagall Act, which introduced greater stability in the banking
system
- reluctantly asked Congress to establish the RFC, which was given up to $2 billion to
lend to businesses such as banks, but failed to stop more banks collapsing
- Revenue Act of 1932 raised taxes and decreased the purchasing power of the
employed, worsening the Depression
- under pressure, he signed an Emergency Relief and Construction Act that provided
$300 million to states for 'the needy' and empowered the RFC to finance $1.5 billion for
revenue-raising public works such as toll roads
- mishandled the Bonus March: in 1932, around 40,000 veterans arrived in Washington
to request their bonus, promised to them after WW1 - Hoover ordered the burning of
their encampment when they didn't leave - Roosevelt: 'this elects me'
- nobody applauded during his acceptance speech at the National Convention, and he
was 'monotone and dispiriting'
- in contrast, Roosevelt was handsome, confident and optimistic - won by a landslide
- maybe he wasn't that bad, but he wasn't the right leader for the GD: not inspirational
and resisted federal intervention
- after WW1, the US entered into a period of isolationism
- emphasised the importance of cutting military spending to balance the budget
- however, some historians argue that isolationism was a myth
- the Harding admin entered the Washington Treaties 1922, where the UK, France, Italy
and more agreed to limit the naval arms race
- the US recognised that a stable Europe was important to US trade, and so intervened
to aid German financial stability
- Coolidge sent Marines into Nicaragua in 1926
- retained imperial possessions such as the Philippines
- BUT nonetheless the idea of isolationism was widespread after the war
