Second World War Immediate Cause of War Having taken Memel, Hitler began to mature plans for an assault upon Poland. He demanded that Danzig should be incorporated in the German Reich and the Polish corridor should be ceded to Germany. This was the last straw. Chamberlain gave up his policy of appeasement and announced that […]
Read MorePost-War Germany (1918-1939) INTRODUCTION The military collapse of Germany in 1918 was followed by a short period of anarchy and confusion. The Kaiser fled to Holland and a provisional government was set up by Frederick Ebert, a saddler and a very able leader of the Socialist Republican Party. Communism became very active and the “Spartacans”, […]
Read MoreFascism In Italy (1920-1939) Origin of the Movement In Italy parliamentary government had only a limited success. The country as a whole was not ready for it. Besides, it retained much of its local and individualistic attitude and so required a strong unifying force for the development of a national outlook. It was this urgent […]
Read MoreEurope Between Two World Wars SECTION I BOLSHEVISM The Russian Revolution In Central Europe the Great War had secured the triumph of the principled of nationality and democracy. But in Russia it led to an upheaval which was as characteristically social and economic as it was national and political. It proved to be greatest social […]
Read MoreExpansion Of Europe: Imperialism Introduction One of the remarkable features of the nineteenth century was the feverish attempt of the European Powers to extend their control over the non-European world. It was a century during which the white races seized whatever regions of the earth still remained unappropriated, or were too weak to preserve themselves […]
Read MoreFirst World War (1914—1918) Alliances in Europe The Great war which broke out in August 1914 was the culmination of the developments of a generation or more. It has already been noticed how-the sudden and overwhelming victory of Germany in the Franco-Prussian War had made her at one stroke the leading power in Europe. With […]
Read MoreRe-Opening Of The Eastern Question Introduction As noticed before the Treaty of Berlin disappointed the hopes it had raised and so its terms were honoured more in their breach than in their observation. As a matter of fact the subsequent history of the Balkans is a tale of the successive violations of the Berlin settlement […]
Read MoreRussia (1881—1914) Alexander III (1881—1894) Alexander II, deservedly known as the “Czar Liberator” fell a victim to an assassin’s bomb. With his death the cause of reform in Russia received a stout blow and the country was given over to unmitigated reaction. This in its turn provoked revolutionary movements with the result that the domestic […]
Read MoreGerman Empire (1871-1914) Introduction The Franco-Prussian War not only marked an epoch in the history of Germany but profoundly modified the aspect of European politics. The defeat of France and the consolidation of German unity under the headship of Prussia completely changed the balance of power which had been established in 1815 by the Congress […]
Read MoreItaly After The Union (1870 – 1914) Introduction The year 1870 brought to a close what may be called the heroic age of Italian history. It was an age marked by high purpose, which invested with epic grandeur the achievements of Mazzini, Garibaldi and Cavour. Italy had been freed from foreign domination, united into one […]
Read MoreFrance Since 1870 Condition of France after Sedan The condition of France after the disaster of Sedan was truly deplorable. She had received a shattering blow which greatly undermined her prestige in Europe. Two provinces had been wrenched from her; armed forces and economic life had been thoroughly disorganised and she had been saddled with […]
Read MoreGrowth Of Socialism Introduction The Congress of Berlin in 1878 may be said to mark the close of an epoch in European history, the epoch of nationalist struggle against the reactionary policy of the Congress of Vienna. By that date the principles of liberalism and nationalism, struggles which the French Revolution had propounded, and which […]
Read MoreEastern Question From the Treaty of Paris to the Treaty of Berlin (1856-1878) At the Treaty of Paris, European statesmanship had failed to recognise that the Turkish Empire in Europe was doomed. The Powers, especially England, sought to bolster up what was evidently on the road to destruction, and so their attempts were reduced to […]
Read MoreThe Unification Of Germany (1850-1871) Unification Of Germany Compared With That Of Italy As Regards Methods And Principles The history of Germany in the nineteenth century seems at first sight to be very like that of Italy. In both cases the central theme was the same viz., the struggle for, and attainment of national unity. […]
Read MoreUnification Of Italy Introduction Italy, which was described by Metternich, the Austrian Chancellor as a mere ‘geographical expression’ in 1815 possessed a tradition of political unity which ran into distant past. This tradition in Italy was as old as the Roman Empire. Even after the disintegration of the Roman Empire the feeling of community persisted […]
Read MoreNapoleon Bonaparte Italian Campaign After the French Revolution, Napoleon quickly rose through the ranks and on the Italian expedition he proved himself as an able commander. Hearing about his successes in Italy, the French public enthroned him in their hearts and on the wave of rising popularity and his fresh success in Italy, he had […]
Read MoreCONGRESS OF VIENNA Introduction With the defeat of Napoleon in the final battle of Waterloo, Prince Metternich the Chancellor of Austria convened the Congress of European Power in Vienna. It was the first meet of its kind in the diplomatic history of Modern Europe wherein all the concerned powers affected by Napoleonic wars attended. Kings, […]
Read MoreThe French Revolution (1789) Causes Political Causes Louis XIV’s death in 1715 caused Royal absolutism’s (Royal absolutism – a monarchy without constitutional limits) demise too. His great-grandson, Louis XV neither had the capacity nor the ability to govern the country effectively. Numerous wars such as those of Austrian succession and the Seven Years war, resulted […]
Read MoreAmerican Revolution INTRODUCTION The American Revolution is considered as one of the greatest movements in human history for freedom and equality. The colonists found every cause as a pretext for quarrel with the British because they had reached a stage when British interference was viewed as a hindrance rather than help. Although American colonies were […]
Read MoreINDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION INTRODUCTION From the beginning of Human history numerous inventions and discoveries have changed the life of human beings. Discovery of fire and invention of wheel were such that they changed the course of human history, but Industrial evolution gave a new twist to the world in every aspect. The term Industrial Revolution is […]
Read MoreWith fall of USSR as super power the world has become unipolar revolving around US. During the cold war era NAM had helped in easing the tension due to increase in its membership, giving moral check on superpower overwhelming strength in UN assembly. NAM is committed to the universal problem of peace and freedom, equality […]
Read MoreThere has never been complete solidarity within the non-aligned movement. Even at the Bandung Conference 1955) that was a preliminary meet leading to non- aligned summit at Belgrade in 1961, criticism was voiced against the concept of positive neutralism as advocated by Nehru. With the passage of time the movement has all the more ceased […]
Read MoreIndia played an important role in the multilateral movements of colonies and newly independent countries that developed into the Nonaligned Movement. The movement had its origins in the 1947 Asian Relations Meeting in New Delhi and the 1955 Asian-African Conference in Bandung, Indonesia. India also participated in the 1961 Belgrade Conference that officially established the […]
Read MoreNon-alignment upholds certain values- while opposing certain other values. Non-alignment stands- for dissociation from military alliances that came into existence as a result of rivalry between the super-powers. Military alliances attempt to create spheres of influence, promote arms race and thus increase tension in the world. It was on account of the membership of military […]
Read MoreNon-alignment is not neutrality or partiality. Neutrality is an attitude of non-participation or refusal to take sides on any issue irrespective of its merits whereas alignment implies advance declaration of the sides disregarding the merits. Whereas a non-aligned country will judge each case as arises on its merits as it sees it and not as […]
Read MoreNon-alignment is not an ideology or a static philosophy. It is dynamic and adjusts itself to reality and reconciles between the interests of one’s own country and that of other countries of the world. Non-alignment does not favour intervention but non- aligned States sometimes do interfere in the internal affairs of others as India did […]
Read MoreRivalry of Super Powers resulted in the formation of two hostile military blocs and an atmosphere of tension, distrust, and fear developed. As many former imperialist colonies were attaining independence, both sides tried to draw these new independent nations into their respective blocs. The ones joining the blocs were given economic and military aid and […]
Read MoreThe world was divided into capitalist and communist camps hampering cooperation and development. Russia formed the Iron Curtain and shut eastern Europe off from the western world. A succession of crises (eg Berlin Blockade/ Hungarian Revolution/ Cuban Missiles crisis), put the entire world in a constant danger of nuclear war. Both countries built up huge […]
Read MoreCuba woke many people to the dangers of thermonuclear war. The major obstacle to overcome was the deep distrust between the Soviets and Americans. Small measures were taken to gradually build mutual trust as a foundation. The first such step was installing the Hot Line between Washington and Moscow to reduce miscommunications and technical errors. […]
Read MoreUnited States had worked intensively to develop an atomic bomb before Nazi Germany could do the same under program known as Manhattan Project, since 1942. They successfully tested the first nuclear bomb at Almogordo, New Mexico. Soviet scientists successfully developed and tested their own atomic bomb in 1949. After the advent of Cold War Americans […]
Read MoreVietnam was part of French colony Indo-China since 1880. After World War II, French were defeated at Dien Bien Phu, in 1954. Vietnam was divided between North and South at the 17th parallel, communists controlling the North and planned elections to reunite the country in 1956. “democratic” South functioned under a series of American-backed dictators. […]
Read MoreCuba served as a playground for rich Americans and suffered under the corrupt dictatorship of Juan Batista. In the 1950s Fidel Castro started a small movement that gradually grew into a full-fledged revolution and overthrew Batista in 1959. When USA refused to recognize Castro’s regime, he formed closer ties with Russia. The U.S. responded by […]
Read MoreThe Berlin Wall was both the physical division between West Berlin and East Germany from 1961 to 1989 and the symbolic boundary between democracy and Communism during the Cold War. As Potsdam Conference allies divided Germany in four zones and the same was done with Germany’s capital city, Berlin. Berlin had been situated entirely within […]
Read MoreRelations between the two super-powers continued to deteriorate into the 1960s with two sides competing in: military build-ups and space race. American’s led the arms space by developing the nuclear bomb but the Soviets closed the gap fast and along with nuclear arsenal developed the long range Bison Bomber and intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), both […]
Read MoreWorld War II was global war, especially involving Europe’s colonial empires in Asia. By the mid twentieth century East Asia started developing economically and politically to challenge European supremacy. United States was worried about the further spread of Communism and Soviet power into East Asia. It decided to provide Japan with economic aid to help […]
Read MoreThe Berlin crisis prompted two rival alliances led by USA and Soviet Union to form various military alliances. In 1949 the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was formed mainly to stop Soviet expansion by pinning it in to the west and south. The main nations were the United States, Britain, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg […]
Read MoreVictors in World War II had drawn the line of demarcation between Soviet and Western spheres of influence in 1945. France, Britain, and the United States held the Western two-thirds of Germany, while Russia held the eastern third. Stalin and the Western allies were at odds over the fate of Germany. In 1948, the United […]
Read MoreThe Cold War was a period of hostility and competition between the United States and the Soviet Union that always stopped short of direct war between them. By 1948, two superpowers had established their spheres of influence in Europe and started confronting each other. Cold war never erupted into open warfare, mainly because their growing […]
Read MoreUnited States’ territory had been virtually untouched by the war and because of its vast resources and industrial strength it became the number one economic power in the world, controlling an estimated 60% of the world’s industrial production. United Nations, was headquartered in the United States which further symbolized America’s new role in world affairs […]
Read MoreIn the post-war years, Stalin’s domestic policy was driven by his intense suspicion of the West because of ideological differences between communism and capitalism along with incidents during the war. Stalin’s domination of Eastern Europe generally followed almost similar pattern with Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Bulgaria, and Romania, fell under Soviet domination with Soviet troops occupying […]
Read MoreHuman capacity for self-destruction reached new heights in World War II with 55 million deaths, 50 million refugees, Jewish persecutions and cities reduced to junkyards. Refugees flocked to the cities desperately seeking jobs, food, and shelter. Old animosities resurfaced even before the war was over. Western allies and Soviet Union established spheres of influence and […]
Read MoreDifference of ideology: Spread of Communism was feared by the capitalist states as it would entail loss of political power and the class division of wealth. This fear translated into conflict of ideologies; both political and economic. Both the camps feared attack from each other. Discriminatory treatment of Russia: In Russian Civil War (1918), capitalist […]
Read MoreThe Cold War is the name given to the relationship that developed primarily between the USA and the USSR after World War Two. The Cold War brought about geopolitical polarization, ideological realignments, and economic struggle between two world superpowers. The differences over distribution of spoils of 2nd World War and emergence of new super powers […]
Read MoreWhen the United Nations was established in 1945, 750 million people – almost a third of the world’s population – lived in Territories that were non-self-governing, dependent on colonial Powers. Today, fewer than 2 million people live in such Territories. The Charter of the United Nations established, in Chapter XI (Articles 73 and 74), the […]
Read MoreRampant conflicts are found in many areas that were once colonized or controlled by Western European or Soviet powers such as Africa, the Balkans, and Southeast Asia. Most of these conflicts such as the one in Kashmir, Chechnya, and Cyprus are large and complex, and involve multiple issues ranging from human rights to good governance. […]
Read MoreMalay empires of Srivijaya and Malacca covered modern day Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore while the Burmese, Vietnamese, and Khmer peoples governed much of Indochina. From the 1500s to the mid-1940s, colonialism was imposed over Southeast Asia. There were seven colonial powers in Southeast Asia: Portugal, Spain, the Netherlands, Great Britain, France, the United States, and Japan. […]
Read MoreJapan was able to make the transition to an industrial nation state while maintaining its own unique Japanese values of loyalty to the group and the emperor. For example, the Japanese corporation that evolved during this period can largely be seen as an updated version of the paternalistic feudal state, where the workers (peasants) owe […]
Read MoreJapan’s Tokugawa (or Edo) period, which lasted from 1603 to 1867, was dominated by Shoguns and who brought peace and prosperity to Japan but isolated Japan from external influence. Meiji Restoration of 1868 toppled the long-reigning Tokugawa shoguns, feudal society and agrarian state into powerful industrial state and transformed Japanese culture, politics and society. In […]
Read MoreIn the early 1800’s, China was largely cut off from trade with the outside world. Trade with Europe was channeled through port of Canton only. Chinese products, such as tea, silk and porcelain, were in high demand in Europe but Chinese imports were very limited. This led to a serious drain of silver from Britain. To […]
Read MoreBetween 1775 and 1875, Europeans lost more territory than they acquired in North America and Latin America, because of successful revolutions. Spanish colonial rule from Mexico to Argentina was overturned. There was a widespread feeling in Europe that colonies were more trouble than they were worth and the sooner or later colonies would revolt and […]
Read MoreSeven Major Consequences of World War II The End of the European Age. The rise of the US to superpower status. The expansion of the Soviet Union and its rise to superpower status. The emergence of the Cold War. The beginning of the nuclear age. The rise of nationalism and independence movements in Asia and […]
Read MoreMany new weapons of destruction were devised and used in the Second World War. The most dreadful of these was the atom bomb. The atom bomb was first devised in the United States during the Second World War. Scientists of many countries, including those who had come to the United States to escape the fascist […]
Read MoreThe Second World War was the most destructive war in history. The fascists had converted a large part of Europe into a vast graveyard and a slavecamp. The destruction caused by the war in terms of human lives has no precedent in history. Over 50 million people perished in the Second World War. Of them […]
Read MoreIn all the countries of Europe which had fallen victim to the aggressions of fascist countries, the people organized resistance movements. In many countries, the governments capitulated before the aggressors without much fighting but people of those countries continued to resist the fascist rule. When the government of France surrendered, the people of France organized […]
Read MoreAfter the defeat of Germany, the war in Asia continued for another three months. Britain and USA had launched successful operations against Japan in the Pacific and in the Philippines and Burma. In spite of serious reverses, however, the Japanese were still holding large parts of China. On 6 August 1945, an atom bomb, the […]
Read MoreAfter massive losses in Battle of Stalingrad in early 1943, the fascist countries began to suffer reverses in other areas also. Japan had failed to capture Australia and Hawaii. In North Africa, the German and Italian troops were routed by early 1943. The destruction of the fascist army in North Africa was also a major […]
Read MoreIn January 1942 the unity of the countries fighting against the fascist powers was cemented. The representatives of 26 nations, including Britain, the United States and the Soviet Union, signed a declaration, known as the United Nations Declaration. The signatories to this Declaration resolved to utilize all their resources to pursue the war until victory […]
Read MoreJapanese invaded China in 1931 and occupied Manchuria. Again in 1937, the Japanese started another invasion of China. Japan was also one of the three members of the Anti-Comintern Pact along with Germany and Italy. In September 1940, these three countries had signed another pact which bound them together even more. Japan recognized the leadership […]
Read MoreHitler had always coveted the vast territory and resources of the Soviet Union. despite the Non-Aggression Pact with Soviets it attacked the Soviet Union, on 22 June 1941. He thought that the destruction of the Soviet Union would take about eight weeks. Hitler had grossly underestimated the strength of the Soviet Union. In the first […]
Read MoreGermany launched her invasion of Norway and Denmark on 9 April 1940 and within three weeks completed the conquest of these two countries. In Norway, the German invaders were helped by Quisling, leader of Norway’s fascist party, who set up a puppet government in Norway under German occupation. In early May began the invasion of […]
Read MoreAllies policy of appeasement and their disunity had emboldened Hitler. After rearming Germany, the next embarked on reclaiming its territories. East Prussia had been separated from the rest of Germany. The city of Danzig which separated East Prussia from the rest of Germany had been made a free city independent of German control. Hitler had […]
Read MoreThree main factors, all resulting from World War I, led to World War II: the Treaty of Versailles, the Great Depression, and the Russian Revolution. Along with these factors the rise of the Nazis in Germany in the 1930’s disturbances in East Asia, also contributed to the outbreak of war. The treaty of Versailles had […]
Read MoreEgypt In 1798 Egyptian expedition of Napoléon Bonaparte was the first major European involvement in this region. He wanted French blow to British Indian Empire and easily defeated Ottomans’ Mamluk Cavalry. British however retaliated by destroying the French fleet. This incident exposed the weakness of the Turks in that area and opened up this area […]
Read MoreEuropean nationalism was based on dominance of ethnic basis and prescribed that the ethnic minorities of the Ottoman Empire should have their own leadership. Common people in realms of Ottoman Empire had religious freedom and were in general satisfied with cultural and societal freedom. European powers needed to weaken the Ottoman Empire to increase their […]
Read MoreTurkish Ottoman Empire engulfed wide geographic area having diverse religious and ethnic populations. To manage such huge diversity Sultan Mehmed II established the millet system which gave religious freedom to minorities like different sects of Christianity, Jews, and Persians etc. in the Ottoman Empire According to the millet system, different religions were allowed to have […]
Read MoreSoon after Mohammed’s death in 632 C.E., the Islamic world suffered a religious/political schism that still constitutes the major divide among Muslims. The main reason for this is that because of theocratic (Government ruled by religious authority) nature of Islam that combines religion and politics, where religious law rules state and society. A split arose […]
Read MoreCaliphates (khalīfah, “successor”) was temporal and spiritual authority of the Muslim world. The first four caliphs—Abu Bakr, Umar I, Uthman, and Alī, established the administrative and judicial organization of the Muslim community and expanded the Islamic religion into new territories. As the empire grew tribal and clan form of government became increasingly inadequate. Umayyad Dynasty […]
Read MoreThe period of roughly 750-1000 C.E. is known as a cultural golden age for Islam. The basis for such a golden age was the orderliness and resulting prosperity that Arab rule brought the empire from India to the Atlantic. The Arabs flourished as middlemen in a trade that involved silks and porcelains from China, gems […]
Read MoreMuhammad, a prophet astute in statecraft and military strategy and an inspired statesman, changed the history and destiny of Arabia and of many other areas of the world. The new religion evolved into a way of life and recipe for community organization, providing a religious and ideological framework for uniting the Arab tribes, and a […]
Read MoreNEP was viewed by the Soviet government as merely a temporary expedient to allow the economy to recover while the Communists solidified their hold on power. By 1925 Nikolay Bukharin had become the foremost supporter of the NEP, while Leon Trotsky was opposed to it and Joseph Stalin was noncommittal. The NEP was dogged by […]
Read MoreNew Economic Policy (NEP) was the economic policy of USSR in period of 1921 to 1928, representing a temporary retreat from its previous policy of extreme centralization and doctrinaire socialism. The New Economic Policy was cleverly created curing a time of dire economic failure, famine, and unemployment. The NEP advanced with almost a capitalist approach to economic […]
Read MoreThe United States recovered from the Depression of the 1930s Roosevelt’s New Deal helped restore confidence to American companies and citizens. The New Deal identified problems, such as banking irregularities, and tried to address them. Roosevelt’s public work schemes also helped to ease the burden of unemployment. As the Depression gathered pace after 1929, Americans […]
Read MoreAlphabet agencies were new government departments set up to implement Roosevelt’s policies and were the best known aspects of the New Deal. Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA). This helped the poor in a number of basic ways, such as giving clothing grants and setting up soup kitchens for the poor. Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA). This […]
Read More“I pledge you, I pledge myself, to a new deal for the American people” Franklin D. Roosevelt The “New Deal” has become the accepted name for the policies followed by the Roosevelt administrations during the 1930s. This statement by Roosevelt during the election campaign of 1932 caught the attention of the American public. Roosevelt had […]
Read MoreAfter Great depression there was a growing realization that the laissez faire economics of the nineteenth century was ineffective and that governments must play a proactive role in reviving their national economies and looking after the welfare of their citizens. John Maynard Keynes, realized that neither individual businesses nor families have the resources to help […]
Read MoreAs the Depression spread and deepened, governments desperately sought ways to revive, or at least protect, their ailing economies. One tactic was to increase levels of protectionism; import tariffs were increased and import quotas, trading blocs, and bilateral trade pacts were established. This only reduced world trade to one-third. Another policy was to reduce government […]
Read MoreIn the nineteenth century, colonial India had become an exporter of agricultural goods and importer of manufactures. The great depression immediately affected Indian trade. British India adopted a protective trade policy which, though beneficial to the United Kingdom, caused great damage to the Indian economy. India’s exports and imports nearly halved between 1928 and 1934. […]
Read MoreThe Great Depression caused massive increase in unemployment. It also had great effect on industry as well as industrial production. A large no. of banks collapsed causing millions of people to lose their life savings. Gross National Product dropped by one third. Fall in agricultural prices led to farmers abandoning their fields. Mass migration patterns […]
Read MoreThe onset of Great Depression was caused by a crash in American stock market. There was a huge cash surplus in American economy due to unbalanced trade with world. In the US huge amounts of this cash surplus was in invested in the stock market. investors only had to pay just 10% cash for their […]
Read MoreIn the next decade after World War I, US became the new engine of growth, democracies were established in Eastern Europe, Germany stabilized and prosperity seemed to return. This was signaled by deluge of new technological breakthroughs and mass production of consumer goods. Beneath the illusion of political stability and economic prosperity there were serious problems having […]
Read MoreThe League of Nations as a peace-machinery depended upon the support of the Powers. But when the peace was disturbed due to the aggression of the Fascist Powers the Big Powers failed to stand up to the challenge and take effective steps for maintenance of world peace. The league of Nations, was torn into pieces […]
Read MoreThe League of Nations was the first major attempt as an international organization of state to maintain peace and promote international co-operation. But it failed. Some of the causes of its failure are briefly mentioned as follows:- The political background of Europe at the time of the birth of the League was not very conducive […]
Read MoreThe political background of Europe at the lime of the birth of the League was not conducive to a peace organization. The League never represented the world balance of forces. It was dominated by Anglo-French imperialism. It was wrongly based on the unanimity of all the member nations. The world was divided into the capitalistic […]
Read MoreThe primary function of the League was to prevent the outbreak of war by setting international quarrels and solving the disputes between States which might result in a war between them. During the first ten years of its existence, the League had several achievements to its credit. It settled several international disputes between States and nations […]
Read MoreThe history of the League can be divided into three main periods for the purpose of assessing its achievements. (i) Years immediately following the war: In this period, the League was practically kept in cold storage. The allied and associated powers adopted imperialist tactics and tried to suppress people’s revolutions in Russia, Germany and […]
Read MoreThe League of Nations was wracked by contradictions and insufficiencies from its very birth. The Covenant of the League was based on philosophy drafted by a small committees behind closed doors, thus violating its own spirit of “open covenants openly arrived at”. Only forty-two nations were represented at first meeting of The League in November […]
Read MoreThe League of Nations came into being after the end of World War One in reaction to the horrors witnessed in the war. The League of Nation’s task was simple – to ensure that war never broke out again. One of the main reasons for World War I was lack of forum for transparent diplomacy. Old […]
Read MoreAfter the Russian revolution, the Communist International (also known as the Third International or Comintern) was formed for promoting revolutions on an international scale. Communist parties were also formed in other countries, often with the active involvement and support of the Comintern. The leftwing sections in many socialist parties formed themselves into communist parties and […]
Read MoreIn spite of its many achievements and its growing strength, the Second International suffered from many weaknesses. It was a loose federation of socialist parties of many countries. While the socialist parties in many countries had become mass parties, basic differences had arisen among them. While some sections believed in a revolution to overthrow capitalism, […]
Read MoreSecond International’s campaign against militarism and war, asserting the principle of the basic equality of all peoples and their right to freedom and national independence were its most important achievements. In last decade of the 19th century, Europe was divided into blocs due to struggle over Imperialistic expansion in colonies. War seemed imminent and every […]
Read MoreThe growing popularity of socialism and many achievements made by the Soviet Union led to a redefinition of democracy. Most people who did not believe in socialism also began to recognize that for democracy to be real, political rights without social and economic rights were not enough. Economic and social affairs could not be left […]
Read MoreThe International had organised support for the Commune and after its destruction was engaged in aiding the refugees from Paris. The extermination of the Commune was followed by systematic attempts to destroy the International in almost every country of Europe. Despite initial resistance it collapsed as a result of internal differences because of its inherent […]
Read MoreThe war between France and Prussia led an uprising by the workers of Paris and they seized the power. In this army French army was defeated and the French emperor Louis Bonaparte was taken prisoner. The new government declared France a republic. This government was dominated by the propertied classes and had agreed to Bismarck’s […]
Read MoreThe formation in 1864 of the International Working Men’s Association, or the First International in 1864 was a landmark event in socialist movement by which “Socialism stepped on the stage of history as a world movement”. The meeting in London and was attended by delegates from Britain, France, Italy, Germany, Poland and Switzerland. Marx drafted […]
Read MoreMany groups and organisations were formed to spread socialist ideas and organise workers. One of these was the League of the Just which had members in many countries of Europe. Its slogan was ‘All men are brothers’. Thus internationalism was one of its important features. In 1847, its name was changed to the Communist League […]
Read MoreUnder capitalism, the means of production such as factories and the things produced by factories were owned and controlled by a few people. The vast majority of the people who worked in the factories have no rights, frequently without jobs and conditions of work and living are miserable. for a long time there were laws […]
Read MoreThe socialist movement began to develop in India with the Russian Revolution. Marxism made a major impact in Indian media at the time of the Russian Revolution. Of particular interest to many Indian papers and magazines was the Bolshevik policy of right to self-determination of all nations. Bipin Chandra Pal and Bal Gangadhar Tilak were […]
Read MoreThe overthrow of autocracy and the destruction of power of both the aristocracy and that of the Church were the first achievements of the Russian Revolution. The Czarist empire was transformed into a new state called the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (U.S.S.R). The policies of the new state were to be directed to the […]
Read MoreThe October Revolution had been almost completely peaceful but it faced opposition from various quarters later on. After Russia pulled out of World War I, millions of Russian soldiers filtered home. They were hungry, tired, and wanted their jobs back. There were shortages of food as farmers had not yet adjusted to new system of […]
Read MoreThe Congress of Soviets on the very next day of revolution issued a proclamation to all peoples and belligerent states to open negotiations for a just peace without annexation and indemnities. Russia withdrew from the war after ceding the territories that Germany demanded as a price for peace. Following the decree on land, the estates […]
Read MoreThe reign of Nicholas II, the last czar of Russia saw Imperial Russia go from being one of the foremost great powers of the world to economic and military collapse. He had become very unpopular among the population because of his unkept promises as well as violent suppression of ambitions of people. Under his rule, […]
Read MoreRussia had become more corrupt and oppressive under the weak-willed Romanov Czar Nicholas II. Russia’s imperialist interests in Manchuria at the turn of the century brought on the Russo-Japanese War, which began in February 1904 and resulted in major reverses for Russian army. Russian government allowed a conference of the regional governments to drum up […]
Read MoreIn the conditions that existed in Russia, even a moderate democrat or reformer had to be a revolutionary. Russian Revolution was a struggle of multitude of social classes like; Peasants, Workers, Intellectuals, people of occupied territories, and even the soldiers Socio-economic conditions caused many peasant rebellions in Russia before the nineteenth century but they were […]
Read MoreNineteenth century Europe was undergoing important social, economic and political transformation. Monarchies had been replaced by republics like France or had been transformed to constitutional monarchies like England. New middle classes were replacing the old feudal aristocracies. However Russia was still living in ‘the old world’ under the autocratic rule of the Czars, Romanovs had […]
Read MoreThe Russian Revolution of 1917 was rooted in a long history of oppression and abuse of people which set the stage for major change. Until they were freed in 1861 by Czar Alexander II, the majority of Russians were serfs who worked on the land and could be bought or sold just like property. Though […]
Read MoreExtreme right parties in Europe share some of the ideological aspects with fascism. For this reason, they are sometimes considered neofascist parties. The new discourse of the radical right is based on a new construction, a combination of an ethno-nationalism based on ‘cultural racism’, and a populist anti-political establishment rhetoric, but one that is anti-democratic. […]
Read MoreWith Germany at its weakest and most vulnerable point, Hitler took the opportunity to begin his ascent to power. Hitler had two significant ideas that helped launch him in to power. He had someone to blame for the economy and he had a plan for a swift economic recovery. In Germany, Hitler used the Jewish […]
Read MoreThere were several characteristics which Germany possessed after the First World War which made them vulnerable to being manipulated by someone like Adolf Hitler. Germany was economically devastated after a draining defeat in World War I. Due to the Versailles treaty, Germany was forced to pay incredibly sizeable reparations to France and Great Britain. In […]
Read MoreNazism triumphed in Germany within eleven years of the fascist capture of power in Italy,. Nazism was the German version of fascism & was much more sinister than the original Italian version The Nazis, under the leadership of Adolf Hitler, established the most barbarous dictatorship of modern times. After unification of Germany it had unsuccessfully […]
Read MoreFascism generally flourishes in countries with strong nationalism and weak democracies. Strong nationalism attracts people to fascism’s ultranationalist goals. “Weak democracy” means a democracy that is fairly new and not strongly entrenched making it incompetent and unresponsive leading to citizens becoming disenchanted with it. This also enables fascism to flourish because it is easier to […]
Read MoreFascism is a political ideology that believes in the superiority of the nation promoted by radical authoritarian nationalism. The term ‘fascism’ is of Italian origin and its prevalence started in Italy under the leadership of Benito Mussolini. The term is derived from the Latin word fasces, a bundle of rods that were tied around an […]
Read MoreThe First World War (1914-18) plunged Britain in a savage, utterly destructive war. Inevitably, India, being the largest British colony then, got drawn into the conflict as a major source of men and material. When war broke out in 1914, India was in a state of growing political unrest and was pushing for more self-government. […]
Read MoreThe war and the peace treaties transformed the political map of the world, particularly of Europe. Three ruling dynasties were destroyed — the Romanov in Russia during the war itself, the Hohenzollern in Germany and the Habsburg in Austria-Hungary. Soon after the war, the rule of Ottomans came to an end in Turkey. Austria and […]
Read MoreTechnological and industrial developments in Europe were advancing with unprecedented speed. Military technology was at the forefront of this trend. World War I turned out to be a showcase of new technologies that would change the nature, speed, and efficiency of warfare in the century to come. Tanks, airplanes, and submarines changed the way wars […]
Read MoreMany efforts were made to bring the war to an end. In early 1917, a few socialist parties proposed the convening of an international socialist conference to draft proposals for ending the war without annexations and recognition of the right of peoples to self-determination. However, the conference could not be held. The proposal of the […]
Read MoreThe outbreak of the war was preceded by a series of incidents which added to the prevailing tension and ultimately led to the war. One of these was the clash over Morocco. In 1904 Britain and France had entered into a secret agreement according to which Britain was to have a free hand in Egypt, […]
Read MoreThere were six major powers in Europe at this time—Britain, Germany, Austria-Hungary, Russia, France and Italy. Besides the conflicts resulting from rivalries over colonies and trade, there were conflicts among the major European powers over developments within Europe. A complex network of political and military alliances was maintained throughout the continent by 1900 to maintain […]
Read Morealong with secret alliances, militarism, and nationalism, Imperialism was one of the four contributing factors to the cause of World War I. It was the most important cause of WW1, because it created a build-up of tension in Europe & outside Europe, and through imperialism, the three other causes were able to affect the beginnings […]
Read MoreWorld War I which began in Europe in July 1914 soon engulfed almost the entire world. The damage caused by this war had no precedent in history. In the earlier wars, the civilian populations were not generally involved and the casualties were generally confined to the warring armies. The war which began in 1914 was a total war in which all […]
Read MoreANSWER: Colonists’ expansionist policies had severe impact on the indigenous population of the colonies. The Spanish rule in Americas had resulted large-scale extermination of original inhabitants/Native-Americans because of diseases against which the local population had no immunity. They were also forced to work in mines in hazardous condition and were massacred, if resisted. Europeans also […]
Read MoreANSWER: Military strength Asian and African state did not have the economic might of imperialist powers- to fight a long war. They fought with axes, bows and outdated firearms (if any), while Europeans had new rifles and a “maxim-gun” (a fast firing machine gun) + the naval artillery to pound the coastal cities of […]
Read MoreANSWER: The legitimacy of colonialism has been a longstanding concern for political and moral philosophers in the Western tradition. At least since the Crusades and the conquest of the Americas, political theorists have struggled with the difficulty of reconciling ideas about justice and natural law with the practice of European sovereignty over non-Western peoples. In […]
Read MoreANSWER: the later part of 19th century was a period of intense nationalism. Germany and Italy had just succeeded in becoming unified nations. Nationalism in the late 19th century came to be associated with chauvinism. Nationalist intellectuals in all European powers argued that national greatness meant seizing colonial territory. Once the scramble for colonies began, […]
Read MoreANSWER: Industrial Revolution created the capitalist system of production. The capitalist entrepreneurs used two ways to make big profits: Minimum wages to workers and increasing production levels. Low wages implied that majority of population had low purchasing power and resulted in low demand for products at home. Because of the “under-consumption” in domestic market, the […]
Read MoreANSWER: During the initial period of Industrial Revolution, the pursuit of colonies had slowed down. Between 1775 and 1875, Europeans lost more territory than they acquired in North America and Latin America, because of successful revolutions. Spanish colonial rule from Mexico to Argentina was overturned. The 1870s and 1880s witnessed a retreat from the free […]
Read MoreANSWER: Colonialism means the practice of acquiring colonies by conquest (or other means) and making them dependent. The country which is subjugated by a metropolitan capitalist country is described as a colony, and what happens in a colony is colonialism. Until recent years, most countries of Asia, Africa and other parts of the world were […]
Read MoreANSWER: Colonialism is a practice of domination, which involves the subjugation of one people to another. One of the difficulties in defining colonialism is that it is hard to distinguish it from imperialism. The term colony comes from the Latin word colonus, meaning farmer. This root reminds us that the practice of colonialism usually involved the […]
Read MoreANSWER: When the Industrial Revolution was gaining strength in England— and the same was generally true in other countries— the growing belief was that governments should not interfere with business and industry. The theory known as laissez-faire or ‘let us alone’, was then a kind of religion among capitalists. According to the laissez faire idea, […]
Read MoreANSWER: The system of society which came into being as a result of the industrial revolution may be termed industrial capitalism. Industrial capitalism refers to an economic and social system in which trade, industry and capital are privately controlled and operated for a profit. Industrial capitalism is characterized by a complex division of labor between […]
Read MoreANSWER: Since the Industrial Revolution was so new at the end of the 18th century, there were initially no laws to regulate new industries. For example, no laws prevented businesses from hiring seven-year-old children to work full time in coal mines or factories. No laws regulated what factories could do with their biohazard waste. Free-market […]
Read MoreANSWER: As England was the first country where industries developed, she gained almost complete control over world markets. Even when people in other countries began to use machines they found they could not compete with England’s low prices. To help keep these low priced products from coming into their markets many countries introduced protective tariffs, […]
Read MoreANSWER: The triumph of the mercantile middle class in the English Revolution of the 1600’s and the growth of European colonial empires, especially that of Britain, had created global trade links such as had never been seen before. Europe’s higher standard of living made its goods and labor more expensive, which led to an influx of […]
Read MoreANSWER: Advances in agricultural techniques and practices resulted in an increased supply of food and raw materials, changes in industrial organization and new technology resulted in increased production, efficiency and profits, and the increase in commerce, foreign and domestic, were all conditions which promoted the advent of the Industrial Revolution. Many of these conditions were […]
Read MoreANSWER: England took the lead in industrial revolution, because of following reasons It had accumulated vast profits which could provide the necessary capital through overseas trade including slave trade. It had acquired colonies which ensured a regular supply of raw materials as well as markets There was a prolific exchange of scientific and technological ideas. […]
Read MoreANSWER: Like Germany, Italy was also divided into a number of states. It was a patchwork of states under Byzantine, Lombard, Norman, German, French, Spanish, and Austrian rulers. Political fragmentation brought economic and cultural fragmentation as well. The major states in the early 19th century Italy were Sardinia, Lombardy, Venetia, Kingdom of the Two Sicilies […]
Read MoreANSWER: Germany and Italy were two important nations which emerged as united, independent states in the 19th century. Germany had been fragmented into as many as 300 separate states in the 18th century. Some of these states were very small and did not extend beyond the limits of a city. The division of Germany into […]
Read MoreANSWER: The first successful revolution that overthrew the autocratic monarchy took place in England in the seventeenth century. This had resulted in the establishment of the supremacy of Parliament in England. However, Parliament at that time was not a truly democratic institution. The right to vote was limited to a very small percentage of the […]
Read MoreANSWER: After the revolts of 1830 had been suppressed, the revolutionary movements in Europe again gained momentum. In 1848, revolutions broke out in almost every country of Europe, which dealt a mortal blow to the countries of the Holy Alliance. Early in 1848, there was a revolt in Italy. In February, revolution broke out in […]
Read MoreANSWER: Revolution in Spain gave advantage to the colonies in S. America to throw off the yoke of Spanish rule. Inspiration came from the newly formed republic to the north, the United States. United States also stood up to protect the Americas from foreign intervention in the famous Monroe Doctrine in 1823. Britain too supported […]
Read MoreANSWER: The fear of revolutionary unrest served as the pretext for the right of other powers to intervene to maintain the existing order. In 1815, the rulers of Austria, Britain, Russia and Prussia formed an alliance with declared aim of to suppress any attempt by the people to overthrow a ruler whom these countries considered […]
Read MoreANSWER: The Congress of Vienna created enough powers of similar strength and influence that none of them could go too far without being overwhelmed by a coalition of the others. It mediated numerous tensions and conflicting interest through peaceful negotiations. The Congress also stopped potentially explosive issues from getting out of hand: the Poland issue […]
Read MoreANSWER: After Napoleon’s domination of Europe from around 1800 to 1814, the rulers of Europe wanted to insure that no one would ever be able to come so close to taking over all of Europe again. Napoleon had spread the idea of liberalism, in Western and Central Europe and also spread the idea of nationalism in […]
Read MoreANSWER: The French Revolution had been a world-shaking event. For years to come its direct influence was felt in many parts of the world. It inspired revolutionary movements in almost every country of Europe and in South and Central America. For a long time the French Revolution became the classic example of a revolution which […]
Read MoreANSWER: A major result of the Revolution was the destruction of feudalism in France. All the laws of the old feudal regime were annulled. Church lands and lands held in common by the community were bought by the middle classes. The lands of nobles were confiscated. Privileged classes were abolished. After Napoleon seized power the […]
Read MoreANSWER: Napoleon established his style of rule in the countries he overran. Napoleon’s imperial rule inadvertently spread these ideas of Nationalism and Liberalism the territories he conquered. This had three effects, all of which combined to overthrow Napoleon. First of all, the empire’s non-French subjects picked up the ideas of Nationalism and Liberalism and used […]
Read MoreANSWER: Napoleon was charismatic, a master psychologist and politician, and dominated his period of polity. To a large extent, Napoleon’s career resulted from the military and political forces he inherited from the Revolution and exploited for his own purposes. Politically, France had suffered a full decade of revolutionary turmoil by 1799, making the government unstable […]
Read MoreANSWER: Every government in Europe was based on privilege. France had destroyed feudalism and monarchy and founded new institutions based on liberty and equality, whereas in neighboring countries the old way of life remained. If these ideas were applied, the entire old order of Europe would be destroyed. Fearing the spread neighboring countries issued the […]
Read MoreANSWER: Discontent or even abject poverty is not enough to make a successful revolution. Revolutionary thinking and ideas must precede revolutionary action to focus on an ‘enemy’ and provide ideals to fight for. Enlightenment philosophers rejected hierarchical government and religious superstition. Writings attacking religion fed the fires of revolution because the Church gave support to […]
Read MoreANSWER: Early modern French society was legally stratified by birth and characterized by extreme inequalities. At the head of the French state was the king, an absolute monarch. Louis XVI was the king of France when the revolution broke out. He was a man of mediocre intelligence, obstinate and indifferent to the work of the […]
Read MoreANSWER: Just a decade after American revolution the French Revolution, a watershed event in modern world history changed Europe irrevocably, It began in 1789 and ended in the late 1790s with the ascent of Napoleon Bonaparte. During this period, French citizens razed and redesigned their country’s political landscape, uprooting centuries-old institutions such as absolute […]
Read MoreANSWER: There were several important implications from the views of the Age of Enlightenment. The first was the awareness of the process of human reasoning as an important intellectual power in generating new knowledge. Secondly, scientists and social scientists had an important responsibility to help in the effort to create a society as “new intellectuals” […]
Read MoreANSWER: The words of the Declaration of Independence regarding the equality of all men and the ‘inalienable rights’ of man electrified the atmosphere in America and outside. Lafayette, the French general who fought on the side of American revolutionaries, was soon to become a hero of the French Revolution. Thomas Paine also participated in the […]
Read MoreANSWER: When the war of independence started, each of the 13 colonies was a separate state with its own army, boundaries, customs duties and finances. But they co-operated against a common enemy. In 1781, as states of the United States, they united through a plan for a national government. A constitutional convention was called in […]
Read MoreANSWER: The Revolution generated radical changes in the principles, opinions, and sentiments of the American people. New ideas and issues affected social customs, political ideals, and gender and racial roles as the thirteen colonies evolved into the United States. Debate and conflict over government authority, diverse state economies, federal control of western territories, and […]
Read MoreANSWER: The representatives of the 13 American colonies met as a group in what is called the First Continental -Congress at Philadelphia in 1774. This Congress appealed to the English King to remove restrictions on industries and trade and not to impose any taxes without their consent. The King declared their action a mutiny […]
Read MoreANSWER: The thirteen British colonies in America strongly resented the economic and political exploitation by the British. The leaders in the Massachusetts colony called together representatives from other colonies to consider their common problems. In this Massachusetts assembly, they agreed and declared that the English Parliament had no right to levy taxes on them. ‘No […]
Read MoreANSWER: When America was colonized, land and other resources were present in ‘wild’ abundance. The colonies worked hard, devised local solutions and increasingly became prosperous both economically and culturally. They developed their own social and political structures. These assemblies enacted laws concerning local matters, and levied taxes. However, they were under the rule of the […]
Read MoreANSWER: colonization of Americas was result of clash and competition of European empires for twin ideas of locating sources of precious metals and expanding Christianity. European countries started exploring unchartered territories because of increasing population and economic prosperity at home. They came to the Americas to increase their wealth & broaden their influence over world […]
Read MoreANSWER: Montesquieu was not the first scholar to develop the theory of separations of powers. Its origin can be traced back to Aristotle, the father of Political Science. He in his book “The Spirit of Laws” published in 1748 gave the classic exposition of the idea of separation of powers. During his days the Bouborne […]
Read MoreANSWER: There were several important implications from the views of the Age of Enlightenment. The first was the awareness of the process of human reasoning as an important intellectual power in generating new knowledge. Secondly, scientists and social scientists had an important responsibility to help in the effort to create a society as “new intellectuals” […]
Read MoreANSWER: The main characteristic of the intellectual movement of the Age of Enlightenment was the emergence of personalities such as political reformists, cultural critics, religious sceptics, historians and social thinkers. Among them were Mary Wollstonecraft, Henri de Saint-Simon, Adam Smith, Jean Condorcet, Jacques Rousseau, Thomas Hobbes and Montesquieu. Most philosophers who emerged in this era […]
Read MoreANSWER: Wars during the 1700s were most often fought within countries over secession to a throne rather than between countries. Monarchies still often ruled during the 1700s, but with less security than in earlier times. The English executed their king in 1642, France executed their king and queen (in 1793 and 1794 respectively) during the […]
Read MoreANSWER: The Enlightenment saw more than new advances in the sciences. The very revolutionary nature of those scientific discoveries ensured that no field of thought would remain untouched especially about religion and philosophy. First of all, there was the Protestant Reformation. Reformation led to a series of religious wars that ravaged Europe for nearly a […]
Read MoreNorth Korea, South Korea and the Korean War Relevancy G.S. Paper 2 Why in news? North Korea and South Korea have jointly declared that the Korean War will be finally over. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and South Korean President Moon Jae-in met for the first time on Friday. In this meeting they pledged to […]
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