AP®︎ European History: Topic 8.6 Practice Test
Prepare for your quiz, test, or the AP exam with focused practice questions on Topic 8.6 of AP European History – Fascism and Totalitarianism.
Questions List
Topic 8.6
Question 1 Easy
This question tests the following: KC-4.2.II
What was one major factor that led to the rise of fascism after WWI?
What You’re Being Tested On:
Explore the learning objectives taken directly from the College Board’s AP® European History Curriculum. Ensure you’re prepared for the exact topics covered on the AP® exam, in-class tests, and quizzes, and gain confidence in your mastery of the material.
Topic 8.6: Fascism and Totalitarianism
Thematic Focus: States and Other Institutions of PowerSOP
European states and nations developed governmental and civil institutions from 1450 to the present to organize society and consolidate political power, with a variety of social, cultural, and economic effects.
Learning Objective: Unit 8: Learning Objective H
Explain the factors that led to the development of fascist and totalitarian regimes in the aftermath of World War I.
Historical Developments: KC-4.2.II
The ideology of fascism, with roots in the pre-World War I era, gained popularity in an environment of postwar bitterness, the rise of communism, uncertain transitions to democracy, and economic instability.
Historical Developments: KC-4.2.II.A
Fascist dictatorships used modern technology and propaganda that rejected democratic institutions, promoted charismatic leaders, and glorified war and nationalism to attract the disillusioned.
Historical Developments: KC-4.2.II.B
Mussolini and Hitler rose to power by exploiting postwar bitterness and economic instability, using terror, and manipulating the fledgling and unpopular democracies in their countries.
Historical Developments: KC-4.2.II.C
Franco’s alliance with Italian and German fascists in the Spanish Civil War—in which the Western democracies did not intervene—represented a testing ground for World War II and resulted in authoritarian rule in Spain from 1936 to the mid-1970s.
Historical Developments: KC-4.2.II.D
After failures to establish functioning democracies, authoritarian dictatorships took power in central and eastern Europe during the interwar period.
Thematic Focus: Economic and Commercial DevelopmentsECD
Economic development, especially the development of capitalism, played an important role in Europe’s history, often having significant social, political, and cultural effects.
Learning Objective: Unit 8: Learning Objective I
Explain the consequences of Stalin’s economic policies and totalitarian rule in the Soviet Union.
Historical Developments: KC-4.2.I.D.ii
After Lenin’s death, Stalin undertook a centralized program of rapid economic modernization, often with severe repercussions for the population.
Historical Developments: KC-4.2.I.E
Stalin’s economic modernization of the Soviet Union came at a high price, including the liquidation of the kulaks (the land-owning peasantry) and other perceived enemies of the state, devastating famine in the Ukraine, purges of political rivals, and, ultimately, the creation of an oppressive political system.
Illustrative Examples specific knowledge students should know & demonstrate
- Radio
- Joseph Goebbels
- Leni Riefenstahl
- Architecture
- Cult of personality
- Poland
- Hungary
- Romania
- Collectivization
- Five Year Plan
- Great purges
- Gulags
- Secret police
