Modern era

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The modern era or the modern period is considered the current historical period of human history. It was originally applied to the history of Europe and Western history for events that came after the Middle Ages, often from around the year 1500. From the 1990s, it is more common among historians to refer to the period after the Middle Ages and up to the 19th century as the early modern period. The modern period is today more often used for events from the 19th century until today. The time from the end of World War II (1945) can also be described as being part of contemporary history. The common definition of the modern period today is often associated with events like the French Revolution, the Industrial Revolution, and the transition to nationalism towards the liberal international order.

Contents

The modern period has been a period of significant development in the fields of science, politics, warfare, and technology. It has also been an Age of Discovery and globalization. During this time, the European powers and later their colonies, strengthened its political, economic, and cultural colonization of the rest of the world. It also created a new modern lifestyle and has permanently changed the way people around the world live. [1] [2]

In the 19th and early 20th century, modernist art, politics, science, and culture have come to dominate not only Western Europe and North America, but almost every area on the globe, including movements thought of as opposed to the western world and globalization. The modern era is closely associated with the development of individualism, capitalism, urbanization, and a belief in the positive possibilities of technological and political progress.

The brutal wars and other conflicts of this era, many of which come from the effects of rapid change, and the connected loss of strength of traditional religious and ethical norms, have led to many reactions against modern development. Optimism and the belief in constant progress have been most recently criticized by postmodernism, while the dominance of Western Europe and North America over the rest of the world has been criticized by postcolonial theory.

Terminology

Eras can not easily be defined. 1500 is an approximate starting period for the modern era because many major events caused the Western world to change around that time: from the fall of Constantinople (1453), Gutenberg's moveable type printing press (1450s), completion of the Reconquista (1492) and Christopher Columbus's voyage to the Americas (also 1492), to the Reformation begun with Martin Luther's Ninety-five Theses (1517).[ further explanation needed ]

The term "modern" was coined shortly before 1585 to describe the beginning of a new era. [3]

The term "early modern" was introduced in the English language by American historians at the turn of the 20th century (around 1900). [4] It was long thought that the concept was invented either in the 1930s to distinguish the time between the Middle Ages and time of the late Enlightenment (1800), [5] or that "early modern" was not coined until the mid-20th century and only gained substantial traction in the 1960s and 1970s. [4] Nipperdey (2022) pointed to its widespread usage by American historians around 1900 already, adding: 'In the interwar years the term permeated all areas of professional activity from textbooks and graduate school seminars to conferences, research articles, and job descriptions.' [4] The difference between "early modern" and just "modern" was defined by the French Revolution and the Industrial Revolution. [4]

Sometimes distinct from the modern periods themselves, the terms "modernity" and "modernism" refer to a new way of thinking, distinct, from previous ways of thinking such as medieval thinking.

The European Renaissance (about 1420–1630) is an important transition period beginning between the Late Middle Ages and Early Modern Times, which started in Italy.

"Postmodernism", coined 1949, on the other hand, would describe rather a movement in art than a period of history, and is usually applied to arts, but not to any events of the very recent history. [6] This changed, when postmodernity was coined to describe the major changes in the 1950s and 1960s in economy, society, culture, and philosophy.

These terms stem from European History; in worldwide usage, such as in China, India, and Islam, the terms are applied in a very different way, but often in the context with their contact with European culture in the Age of Discoveries. [7]

Characteristics

Changes, mostly seen as advances, in all areas of human activity—politics, industry, society, economics, commerce, transport, communication, mechanization, automation, science, medicine, technology, religion, the arts, and other aspects of culture—appear to have transformed an Old World into the Modern or New World. In each case, the identification of the change over time can be used to demarcate the old and old-fashioned from the modern. [8]

Starting in western countries, the modern world has seen a systematic re-evaluation of value systems, monarchical regimes, and feudal economic systems. These have often been replaced by democratic and liberal ideas in the areas of politics, science, psychology, sociology, and economics. [9] [10]

Some events of modern history, though born out of context not entirely new, show a new way of perceiving the world. The concept of modernity interprets the general meaning of these events and seeks explanations for major developments. [11] Historians analyze the events taking place in Modern Times, since the so-called "Middle Ages" (between Modern and Ancient Times). [12]

Early modern period

Late 15th to 17th century

Renaissance and early Reformation (c. 1450–1600)

Late Reformation and early Baroque (c. 1600–1700)

The "Baroque" is a term usually applied to the history of art, architecture and music during this period.

18th century

Age of Enlightenment and early Age of Revolution (ca. 1700–1800)

19th century

Historians sometimes define a nineteenth century historical era stretching from 1815 (the Congress of Vienna) to 1914 (the outbreak of the First World War); alternatively, Eric Hobsbawm defined the "long nineteenth century" as spanning the years 1789 to 1914.

During this century, the Spanish, Portuguese, and Ottoman Empires began to crumble and the Holy Roman and Mughal Empires ceased.

Napoleonic era (1799–1815)

The Napoleonic era is a period in the history of France and Europe. It is generally classified as the fourth stage of the French Revolution, the first being the National Assembly, the second being the Legislative Assembly, and the third being the Directory. The Napoleonic era begins roughly with Napoleon's coup d'état, overthrowing the Directory and ends at the Hundred Days and his defeat at Waterloo (November 9 1799 – June 28 1815). The Congress of Vienna soon set out to restore Europe to pre-French Revolution days.

Spreading of the Industrial Revolution

A Watt steam engine in Madrid. The development of the steam engine started the industrial revolution in England. The steam engine was created to pump water from coal mines, enabling them to be deepened beyond groundwater levels. Maquina vapor Watt ETSIIM.jpg
A Watt steam engine in Madrid. The development of the steam engine started the industrial revolution in England. The steam engine was created to pump water from coal mines, enabling them to be deepened beyond groundwater levels.

The Industrial Revolution was the major technological, socioeconomic, and cultural change in late 18th and early 19th century that began in Britain and spread throughout the world. During that time, an economy based on manual labour was replaced by one dominated by industry and the manufacture of machinery. It began with the mechanisation of the textile industries and the development of iron-making techniques, and trade expansion was enabled by the introduction of canals, improved roads, and then railways. The introduction of steam power (fuelled primarily by coal) and powered machinery (mainly in textile manufacturing) underpinned the dramatic increases in production capacity. [13] The development of all-metal machine tools in the first two decades of the 19th century facilitated the manufacture of more production machines for manufacturing in other industries.

The date of the Industrial Revolution is not exact. Eric Hobsbawm held that it "broke out" in the 1780s and was not fully felt until the 1830s or 1840s, [14] while T. S. Ashton held that it occurred roughly between 1760 and 1830 (in effect the reigns of George III, The Regency, and George IV). [15]

The effects spread throughout Western Europe and North America during the 19th century, eventually affecting the majority of the world. The impact of this change on society was enormous and is often compared to the Neolithic Revolution, when mankind developed agriculture and gave up its nomadic lifestyle. [16]

The First Industrial Revolution gave way to the Second Industrial Revolution around 1850, when technological and economic progress gained momentum with the development of steam-powered ships and railways, and later in the nineteenth century with the internal combustion engine and electric power generation.

Late 19th century

Following the Napoleonic Wars, the British Empire became the world's leading power, controlling one-quarter of the world's population and one-third of the land area. [17] It enforced a Pax Britannica, encouraged trade, and battled rampant piracy. [18]

Slavery was greatly reduced around the world. Following a successful slave revolt in Haiti, Britain forced the Barbary pirates to halt their practice of kidnapping and enslaving Europeans, banned slavery throughout its domain in 1833, and charged its navy with ending the global slave trade. [19] Slavery was then abolished in Russia in 1861, [20] by the Emancipation Proclamation in the United States in 1863, [21] and in Brazil in 1888. [22] (see Abolitionism).

Following the abolition of the slave trade, and propelled by economic exploitation, the Scramble for Africa was initiated formally at the Berlin West Africa Conference in 1884–1885. [23] All the major European powers laid claim to the areas of Africa where they could exhibit a sphere of influence over the area. These claims did not have to have any substantial land holdings or treaties to be legitimate. [24] The French gained major ground in West Africa, the British in East Africa, and the Portuguese and Spanish at various points throughout the continent, while Leopold II of Belgium was able to retain his personal fiefdom, Congo. [25]

Electricity, steel, and petroleum fuelled a Second Industrial Revolution which enabled Germany, Japan, and the United States to become great powers that raced to create empires of their own. [26] However, Russia and China failed to keep pace with the other world powers, which led to massive social unrest in both empires. [27]

20th century

While earlier centuries also saw significant developments, the 20th century was distinguished by the unprecedented pace and global scale of economic, technological, and cultural changes. [28]

Still, advancing technology and medicine have had a great impact even in the Global South. Large-scale industry and more centralized media made brutal dictatorships possible on an unprecedented scale in the middle of the century, leading to wars that were also unprecedented. [29] However, the increased communications contributed to democratization. [30]

Technological developments included the development of airplanes and space exploration, nuclear technology, advancement in genetics, and the dawning of the Information Age. [31]

Major political developments included the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, [32] two world wars, [33] [34] and the Cold War. [35] It also saw the former British Empire lose most of its remaining political power over Commonwealth countries, most notably by the dividing of the British crown into several sovereignties by the Statute of Westminster, [36] the patriation of constitutions by the Canada Act 1982, [37] and the Australia Act 1986, [38] as well as the independence of countries like India, Pakistan, South Africa, and Ireland. [39]

World War I

The First World War was a world conflict, ranging from July 1914 to the final Armistice on 11 November 1918. The Allied Powers, led by the British Empire, France, Russia until March 1918, Japan and the United States after 1917, defeated the Central Powers, led by the German Empire, Austro-Hungarian Empire and the Ottoman Empire. The war caused the disintegration of four empires — the Austro-Hungarian, German, Ottoman, and Russian ones — as well as radical change in the European and Middle Eastern maps. The Allied powers before 1917 are sometimes referred to as the Triple Entente, and the Central Powers are sometimes referred to as the Triple Alliance.

Much of the fighting in World War I took place along the Western Front, within a system of opposing manned trenches and fortifications (separated by a "no man's land") running from the North Sea to the border of Switzerland. On the Eastern Front, the vast eastern plains and limited rail network prevented a trench warfare stalemate from developing, although the scale of the conflict was just as large. Hostilities also occurred on and under the sea and — for the first time — from the air. More than 9 million soldiers died on the various battlefields, and nearly that many more in the participating countries' home fronts on account of food shortages and genocide committed under the cover of various civil wars and internal conflicts. Notably, more people died of the worldwide influenza outbreak at the end of the war and shortly after than died in the hostilities. The unsanitary conditions engendered by the war, severe overcrowding in barracks, wartime propaganda interfering with public health warnings, and migration of so many soldiers around the world helped the outbreak become a pandemic. [40]

Ultimately, World War I created a decisive break with the old world order that had emerged after the Napoleonic Wars, which was modified by the mid-19th century's nationalistic revolutions. The results of World War I would be important factors in the development of World War II approximately 20 years later.

Interwar period

The Interwar period was the period between the end of World War I in 1918 and the beginning of World War II in 1939. It included the Roaring Twenties, the Great Depression, and the rise of communism in Russia and fascism in Italy and Germany.

World War II

World War II was a global military conflict that took place in 1939–1945. It was the largest and deadliest war in history, culminating in The Holocaust and ending with the dropping of the atom bomb. [41]

Although Japan had invaded China in 1937, the conventional view is that World War II began on September 1, 1939, when Nazi Germany invaded Poland. Within two days, the United Kingdom and France declared war on Germany, even though the fighting was confined to Poland. Pursuant to a then-secret provision of its non-aggression Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, the Soviet Union joined Germany on September 17, 1939, to conquer Poland and divide Eastern Europe. [42] The Allies were initially made up of Poland, the United Kingdom, France, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa, as well as British Commonwealth countries which were controlled directly by the UK, such as the Indian Empire. All of these countries declared war on Germany in September 1939. [43]

Following the lull in fighting, known as the "Phoney War", Germany invaded western Europe in May 1940. Six weeks later, France, in the meantime attacked by Italy as well, surrendered to Germany, which then tried unsuccessfully to conquer Britain. On September 27, Germany, Italy, and Japan signed a mutual defense agreement, the Tripartite Pact, and were known as the Axis Powers. Nine months later, on June 22, 1941, Germany launched a massive invasion of the Soviet Union, which prompted it to join the Allies. Germany was now engaged in fighting a war on two fronts. [44]

On December 7, 1941, Japan attacked the United States at Pearl Harbor, bringing it too into the war on the side of the Allies. China also joined the Allies, as did most of the rest of the world. China was in turmoil at the time and attacked Japanese armies through guerrilla-type warfare. By the beginning of 1942, the alignment of the major combatants was as follows: the British Commonwealth, the Soviet Union, and the United States were fighting Germany and Italy; China, the British Commonwealth, and the United States were fighting Japan. [45] The United Kingdom, the United States, the Soviet Union, and China were referred to as a "trusteeship of the powerful" during World War II [46] and were recognized as the Allied "Big Four" in the Declaration by United Nations. [47] These four countries were considered the "Four Policemen" or "Four Sheriffs" of the Allies and were the primary victors of World War II. [48] Battles raged across all of Europe, in the north Atlantic Ocean, across North Africa, throughout Southeast Asia, throughout China, across the Pacific Ocean, and in the air over Japan. Italy surrendered in September 1943 and was split into a northern Germany-occupied puppet state and an Allies-friendly state in the south; Germany surrendered in May 1945. Following the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan surrendered, marking the end of the war on September 2, 1945. [49]

It is possible that around 62 million people died in the war; estimates vary greatly. About 60% of all casualties were civilians, who died as a result of disease, starvation, genocide (in particular, the Holocaust), and aerial bombing. [50] The former Soviet Union and China suffered the most casualties. Estimates place deaths in the Soviet Union at around 23 million, while China suffered about 10 million. No country lost a greater portion of its population than Poland: approximately 5.6 million, or 16%, of its pre-war population of 34.8 million died. [51] The Holocaust (which roughly means "burnt whole") was the deliberate and systematic murder of millions of Jews and other "unwanted" groups during World War II by the Nazi regime in Germany. Several differing views exist regarding whether it was intended to occur from the war's beginning or if the plans for it came about later. Regardless, persecution of Jews extended well before the war even started, such as during Kristallnacht (Night of Broken Glass). The Nazis used propaganda to great effect to stir up anti-Semitic feelings within ordinary Germans. [52]

After World War II, Europe was informally split into Western and Soviet spheres of influence. Western Europe later aligned as NATO, and Eastern Europe as the Warsaw Pact. There was a shift in power from Western Europe and the British Empire to the two new superpowers, the United States and the Soviet Union. These two rivals would later face off in the Cold War. [53] In Asia, the defeat of Japan led to its democratization. China's civil war continued through and after the war, eventually resulting in the establishment of the People's Republic of China. The former colonies of the European powers began their road to independence. [54]

Cold War

The Cold War between the "West" (the United States, Western Europe, and Japan) and the "East" (the Soviet Union, Eastern Europe, and China) dominated politics from the end of World War II in 1945, until the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, at which point the Cold War ended and the post–Cold War era began (which includes most of the 1990s, the last decade of the 20th century). [55] [56]

The Korean War, Vietnam War, and Soviet–Afghan War, impacted political life, while the counterculture of the 1960s and the rise of computers changed society in different, complex ways, including higher social and local mobility. [57] [58]

1990s

At the end of the twentieth century, the world was at a major crossroads. Throughout the century, more technological advances had been made than in all of preceding history. Computers, the Internet, and other technologies radically altered daily lives. [59] However, several problems faced the world during the Cold War period and the 1990s that followed.

First of all, the gap between rich and poor nations continued to widen. Some said that this problem could not be fixed, arguing that there was a set amount of wealth and it could only be shared by so many. [60] Others claimed that powerful nations with large economies were not doing enough to help improve the rapidly evolving economies of the Third World. [61] Developing countries faced many challenges, including the scale of the task to be surmounted, rapidly growing populations, and the need to protect the environment, along with the associated costs. [62]

Secondly, disease threatened to destabilize many regions of the world. Viruses such as West Nile and Avian influenza continued to spread quickly and easily. [63] [64] In poor nations, malaria and other diseases affected the majority of the population. [65] Millions were infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, which was becoming an epidemic in southern Africa and around the world. [66]

Increased globalization, specifically Americanization, was also occurring. While not necessarily a threat, it was causing anti-Western and anti-American feelings in parts of the world, especially in the Middle East. [67] English was quickly becoming the global language, with people who did not speak it becoming increasingly disadvantaged. [68]

Terrorism, dictatorship, and the spread of nuclear weapons were also issues requiring immediate attention. Dictators such as Kim Jong-il in North Korea continued to lead their nations toward the development of nuclear weapons. [69] The fear existed that not only were terrorists already attempting to obtain nuclear weapons, but that they had already acquired them. [70]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ "Colonialism facts and information". Culture. 2023-10-06. Retrieved 2024-08-01.
  2. ↑ "How does colonialism shape the world we live in?". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 2024-08-01.
  3. ↑ "modern". The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (4th ed.). Houghton Mifflin. 2000. Archived from the original on June 22, 2008. Retrieved December 19, 2022.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Nipperdey 2022, p. 199.
  5. ↑ New Dictionary of the History of Ideas, Volume 5, Detroit 2005. s.v. "Modernism and Modern".
  6. ↑ "Definition of POSTMODERN". www.merriam-webster.com. 2 June 2023. Archived from the original on 1 January 2008. Retrieved 9 October 2022.
  7. ↑ "Islamic Culture and the Medical Arts: Late Medieval and Early Modern Medicine". www.nlm.nih.gov. Archived from the original on 2018-04-23. Retrieved 2022-10-09.
  8. ↑ Giddens, Anthony (1990). The Consequences of Modernity. Stanford University Press. pp. 1–5. ISBN   978-0804718912.
  9. ↑ Fukuyama, Francis (2011). The Origins of Political Order: From Prehuman Times to the French Revolution. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. pp. 321–323. ISBN   978-1846682568.
  10. ↑ Habermas, Jürgen (1989). The Structural Transformation of the Public Sphere. MIT Press. pp. 73–75. ISBN   978-0262581080.
  11. ↑ Berman, Marshall (1982). All That Is Solid Melts into Air: The Experience of Modernity. Verso. pp. 14–17. ISBN   978-0140109627.
  12. ↑ Davis, Natalie Zemon (1975). Society and Culture in Early Modern France. Stanford University Press. pp. 3–5. ISBN   978-0804709729.
  13. ↑ Meier, Gerald M.; Rauch, James E. (2000). Leading Issues in Economic Development. Oxford University Press. p. 98. ISBN   978-0-19-511589-5. Archived from the original on 2023-03-31. Retrieved 2023-02-08.
  14. ↑ Eric Hobsbawm, The Age of Revolution: Europe 1789–1848, Weidenfeld and Nicolson Ltd. ISBN   0-349-10484-0
  15. ↑ Joseph E Inikori. Africans and the Industrial Revolution in England: A Study in International Trade and Economic Development. Cambridge University Press. p. 102. ISBN   0-521-01079-9.
  16. ↑ Brown, Lester Russell (2003). Eco-economy: Building an Economy for the Earth. Earthscan. p. 93. ISBN   978-1-85383-904-7. Archived from the original on 2023-04-14. Retrieved 2023-02-08.
  17. ↑ Ferguson, Niall (2004). Empire: How Britain Made the Modern World. Penguin. pp. 70–72. ISBN   978-0141007540.
  18. ↑ Marshall, P. J. (2001). The Cambridge Illustrated History of the British Empire. Cambridge University Press. pp. 142–145. ISBN   978-0521002547.
  19. ↑ Hochschild, Adam (2005). Bury the Chains: Prophets and Rebels in the Fight to Free an Empire's Slaves. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. pp. 331–335. ISBN   978-0618619078.
  20. ↑ Riasanovsky, Nicholas (2005). A History of Russia. Oxford University Press. pp. 352–355. ISBN   978-0195153941.
  21. ↑ McPherson, James (1988). Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era. Oxford University Press. pp. 557–560. ISBN   978-0195038637.
  22. ↑ Bethell, Leslie (1970). The Abolition of the Brazilian Slave Trade: Britain, Brazil and the Slave Trade Question. Cambridge University Press. pp. 412–415. ISBN   978-0521074599.
  23. ↑ Pakenham, Thomas (1991). The Scramble for Africa. Harper Collins. pp. 112–115. ISBN   978-0349104492.
  24. ↑ Chamberlain, M.E. (2010). The Scramble for Africa. Routledge. pp. 54–57. ISBN   9781408220146.
  25. ↑ Hochschild, Adam (1998). King Leopold's Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror, and Heroism in Colonial Africa. Houghton Mifflin. pp. 88–92. ISBN   978-0618001903.
  26. ↑ Mokyr, Joel (1990). The Lever of Riches: Technological Creativity and Economic Progress. Oxford University Press. pp. 178–181. ISBN   978-0195074772.
  27. ↑ Hobsbawm, Eric (1987). The Age of Empire: 1875–1914. Weidenfeld & Nicolson. pp. 134–136. ISBN   978-0297793670.
  28. ↑ Hobsbawm, Eric (1994). The Age of Extremes: The Short Twentieth Century, 1914-1991. Michael Joseph. pp. 7–9. ISBN   978-0679730057.
  29. ↑ Overy, Richard (2005). The Dictators: Hitler's Germany, Stalin's Russia. Allen Lane. pp. 16–20. ISBN   978-0140281491.
  30. ↑ Diamond, Larry (2008). The Spirit of Democracy: The Struggle to Build Free Societies Throughout the World. Times Books. pp. 56–58. ISBN   978-0805089134.
  31. ↑ Standage, Tom (1998). The Victorian Internet. Walker & Company. pp. 100–102. ISBN   978-0802713667.
  32. ↑ Shlaim, Avi (2000). The Iron Wall: Israel and the Arab World. Penguin Books. pp. 4–7. ISBN   978-0140288704.
  33. ↑ Keegan, John (1998). The First World War. Knopf. pp. 14–17. ISBN   9780375400520.
  34. ↑ Beevor, Antony (2012). The Second World War. Weidenfeld & Nicolson. pp. 45–48. ISBN   978-0297860709.
  35. ↑ Gaddis, John Lewis (2005). The Cold War: A New History. Penguin Press. pp. 21–25. ISBN   978-1594200625.
  36. ↑ Townshend, Charles (2011). The British Empire: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press. pp. 106–107. ISBN   978-0199605415.
  37. ↑ Russell, Peter H. (2004). Constitutional Odyssey: Can Canadians Become a Sovereign People?. University of Toronto Press. pp. 123–126. ISBN   978-0802085917.
  38. ↑ Saunders, Cheryl (2011). The Constitution of Australia: A Contextual Analysis. Hart Publishing. pp. 68–70. ISBN   978-1841137346.
  39. ↑ Judt, Tony (2006). Postwar: A History of Europe Since 1945. Penguin Books. pp. 91–93. ISBN   978-0143037750.
  40. ↑ Barry, John M. (2004). The Great Influenza: The Epic Story of the Greatest Plague in History. Viking Penguin. ISBN   0-670-89473-7.
  41. ↑ Keegan, John (1989). The Second World War. Penguin. pp. 5–6. ISBN   978-0140113419.
  42. ↑ Roberts, Geoffrey (1995). The Soviet Union and the Origins of the Second World War. Macmillan. pp. 55–58. ISBN   978-0333640685.
  43. ↑ Overy, Richard (1995). Why the Allies Won. Pimlico. pp. 3–4. ISBN   9781845950651.
  44. ↑ Beevor, Antony (2012). The Second World War. Weidenfeld & Nicolson. pp. 137–139. ISBN   978-0297844976.
  45. ↑ Gilbert, Martin (1989). The Second World War: A Complete History. Henry Holt. pp. 223–225. ISBN   9780805005349.
  46. ↑ Doenecke, Justus D.; Stoler, Mark A. (2005). Debating Franklin D. Roosevelt's Foreign Policies, 1933–1945. Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 62–63. ISBN   978-0847694167. Archived from the original on 2016-12-03. Retrieved 2019-10-13.
  47. ↑ Hoopes, Townsend, and Douglas Brinkley. FDR and the Creation of the U.N. (Yale University Press, 1997), pp. 155–160.
  48. ↑ Gaddis, John Lewis (1972). The United States and the Origins of the Cold War, 1941–1947 . Columbia University Press. pp.  24–25. ISBN   978-0231122399.
  49. ↑ Hastings, Max (2011). Inferno: The World at War, 1939–1945. Knopf. pp. 510–512. ISBN   978-0307273598.
  50. ↑ Ferguson, Niall (2007). The War of the World: Twentieth-Century Conflict and the Descent of the West. Penguin. pp. 413–416. ISBN   978-0143112396.
  51. ↑ Snyder, Timothy (2012). Bloodlands: Europe Between Hitler and Stalin. Basic Books. pp. 67–69. ISBN   978-0465032976.
  52. ↑ Evans, Richard J. (2008). The Third Reich at War. Penguin. pp. 251–255. ISBN   978-1594202063.
  53. ↑ Leffler, Melvyn P. (1993). A Preponderance of Power: National Security, the Truman Administration, and the Cold War. Stanford University Press. pp. 15–17. ISBN   978-0804719247.
  54. ↑ Darwin, John (2008). After Tamerlane: The Rise and Fall of Global Empires, 1400–2000. Bloomsbury Press. pp. 357–360. ISBN   978-1596913936.
  55. ↑ Gaddis, John Lewis (2005). The Cold War: A New History. Penguin Press. pp. 35–40. ISBN   978-1594200625.
  56. ↑ Leffler, Melvyn P. (2007). For the Soul of Mankind: The United States, the Soviet Union, and the Cold War. Hill and Wang. pp. 80–85. ISBN   9780374531423.
  57. ↑ Westad, Odd Arne (2007). The Global Cold War: Third World Interventions and the Making of Our Times. Cambridge University Press. pp. 212–217. ISBN   978-0521703147.
  58. ↑ Castells, Manuel (1996). The Rise of the Network Society. Blackwell Publishers. pp. 3–8. ISBN   978-1557866172.
  59. ↑ Standage, Tom (1998). The Victorian Internet: The Remarkable Story of the Telegraph and the Nineteenth Century's On-line Pioneers. Walker & Company. pp. 200–202. ISBN   9780802713421.
  60. ↑ Sachs, Jeffrey D. (2005). The End of Poverty: Economic Possibilities for Our Time. Penguin Press. pp. 30–32. ISBN   978-1594200458.
  61. ↑ Stiglitz, Joseph E. (2000). "Globalization and Its Discontents". World Development. 28 (6): 1074–1076. doi:10.1016/S0305-750X(00)00031-4 (inactive 1 November 2024).{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of November 2024 (link)
  62. ↑ Collier, Paul (2007). The Bottom Billion: Why the Poorest Countries are Failing and What Can Be Done About It. Oxford University Press. pp. 40–42. ISBN   978-0195311457.
  63. ↑ Reiter, Paul (2010). "West Nile Virus in Europe: Understanding the Present to Gauge the Future". Eurosurveillance. 15 (10): 5–6. doi: 10.2807/ese.15.10.19508-en .
  64. ↑ "Avian Influenza A (H5N1) Infection in Humans". Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Retrieved 2024-09-04.
  65. ↑ "Malaria". World Health Organization (WHO). Retrieved 2024-09-04.
  66. ↑ "Global HIV & AIDS Statistics". UNAIDS. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
  67. ↑ Chomsky, Noam (2003). Hegemony or Survival: America's Quest for Global Dominance. Metropolitan Books. pp. 45–47. ISBN   978-0-8050-7400-0.
  68. ↑ Crystal, David (1997). English as a Global Language. Cambridge University Press. pp. 13–15. ISBN   978-0521592475.
  69. ↑ Cha, Victor D. (2012). The Impossible State: North Korea, Past and Future. Ecco. pp. 20–22. ISBN   978-0061998508.
  70. ↑ Allison, Graham (2004). Nuclear Terrorism: The Ultimate Preventable Catastrophe. Henry Holt and Co. pp. 15–18. ISBN   9780805078527.

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Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east. Europe shares the landmass of Eurasia with Asia, and of Afro-Eurasia with both Africa and Asia. Europe is commonly considered to be separated from Asia by the watershed of the Ural Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian Sea, the Greater Caucasus, the Black Sea, and the waterway of the Bosporus Strait.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of Europe</span>

The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe, classical antiquity, the Middle Ages, and the modern era.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Imperialism</span> Extension of rule over foreign nations

Imperialism is the maintaining and extending of power over foreign nations, particularly through expansionism, employing both hard power and soft power. Imperialism focuses on establishing or maintaining hegemony and a more or less formal empire. While related to the concept of colonialism, imperialism is a distinct concept that can apply to other forms of expansion and many forms of government.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">World War II</span> 1939–1945 global conflict

World War II or the Second World War was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers. Nearly all the world's countries—including all the great powers—participated, with many investing all available economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities in pursuit of total war, blurring the distinction between military and civilian resources. Tanks and aircraft played major roles, with the latter enabling the strategic bombing of population centres and delivery of the only two nuclear weapons ever used in war. World War II was the deadliest conflict in history, resulting in 70 to 85 million deaths, more than half being civilians. Millions died in genocides, including the Holocaust of European Jews, as well as from massacres, starvation, and disease. Following the Allied powers' victory, Germany, Austria, Japan, and Korea were occupied, and war crimes tribunals were conducted against German and Japanese leaders.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">20th century</span> One hundred years, from 1901 to 2000

The 20th century began on 1 January 1901 (MCMI), and ended on 31 December 2000 (MM). It was the 10th and last century of the 2nd millennium and was marked by new models of scientific understanding, unprecedented scopes of warfare, new modes of communication that would operate at nearly instant speeds, and new forms of art and entertainment. Population growth was also unprecedented, as the century started with around 1.6 billion people, and ended with around 6.2 billion.

Superpower describes a sovereign state or supranational union that holds a dominant position characterized by the ability to exert influence and project power on a global scale. This is done through the combined means of economic, military, technological, political, and cultural strength as well as diplomatic and soft power influence. Traditionally, superpowers are preeminent among the great powers. While a great power state is capable of exerting its influence globally, superpowers are states so influential that no significant action can be taken by the global community without first considering the positions of the superpowers on the issue.

<i>Pax Britannica</i> Period of relative world peace under British dominance

Pax Britannica refers to the relative peace between the great powers in the time period roughly bounded by the Napoleonic Wars and World War I. During this time, the British Empire became the global hegemonic power, developed additional informal empire, and adopted the role of a "global policeman".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cold War</span> Geopolitical tension between US and USSR

The Cold War was a period of global geopolitical tension and struggle for ideological and economic influence between the United States and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc, that started in 1947, two years after the end of World War II, and lasted until the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991. The term cold war is used because there was no direct fighting between the two superpowers, though each supported opposing sides in major regional conflicts known as proxy wars. Aside from the nuclear arms race starting in 1949 and conventional military deployment, the struggle for dominance was expressed indirectly via psychological warfare, propaganda campaigns, espionage, far-reaching embargoes, sports diplomacy, and technological competitions such as the Space Race.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Great power</span> Nation that has great political, social, and economic influence on a global scale

A great power is a sovereign state that is recognized as having the ability and expertise to exert its influence on a global scale. Great powers characteristically possess military and economic strength, as well as diplomatic and soft power influence, which may cause middle or small powers to consider the great powers' opinions before taking actions of their own. International relations theorists have posited that great power status can be characterized into power capabilities, spatial aspects, and status dimensions.

Human history is the record of humankind from prehistory to the present. Modern humans evolved in Africa around 300,000 years ago and initially lived as hunter-gatherers. They migrated out of Africa during the Last Ice Age and had spread across Earth's continential land except Antarctica by the end of the Ice Age 12,000 years ago. Soon afterward, the Neolithic Revolution in West Asia brought the first systematic husbandry of plants and animals, and saw many humans transition from a nomadic life to a sedentary existence as farmers in permanent settlements. The growing complexity of human societies necessitated systems of accounting and writing.

A buffer state is a country geographically lying between two rival or potentially hostile great powers. Its existence can sometimes be thought to prevent conflict between them. A buffer state is sometimes a mutually agreed upon area lying between two greater powers, which is demilitarised in the sense of not hosting the armed forces of either power. The invasion of a buffer state by one of the powers surrounding it will often result in war between the powers.

The early modern period is a historical period that is part of, or immediately preceded, the modern period, with divisions based primarily on the history of Europe and the broader concept of modernity. There is no exact date that marks the beginning or end of the period and its extent may vary depending on the area of history being studied. In general, the early modern period is considered to have lasted from around the start of the 16th century to the start of the 19th century. In a European context, it is defined as the period following the Middle Ages and preceding the advent of modernity; but the dates of these boundaries are far from universally agreed. In the context of global history, the early modern period is often used even in contexts where there is no equivalent "medieval" period.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of Western civilization</span>

Western civilization traces its roots back to Europe and the Mediterranean. It began in ancient Greece, transformed in ancient Rome, and evolved into Medieval Western Christendom before experiencing such seminal developmental episodes as the development of Scholasticism, the Renaissance, the Reformation, the Enlightenment, the Industrial Revolution, the Scientific Revolution, and the development of liberal democracy. The civilizations of Classical Greece and Classical Rome are considered seminal periods in Western history. Major cultural contributions also came from the Christianized Germanic peoples, such as the Franks, the Goths, and the Burgundians. Charlemagne founded the Carolingian Empire and he is referred to as the "Father of Europe." Contributions also emerged from pagan peoples of pre-Christian Europe, such as the Celts and Germanic pagans as well as some significant religious contributions derived from Judaism and Hellenistic Judaism stemming back to Second Temple Judea, Galilee, and the early Jewish diaspora; and some other Middle Eastern influences. Western Christianity has played a prominent role in the shaping of Western civilization, which throughout most of its history, has been nearly equivalent to Christian culture.. Western civilization has spread to produce the dominant cultures of modern Americas and Oceania, and has had immense global influence in recent centuries in many ways.

The military history of Europe refers to the history of warfare on the European continent. From the beginning of the modern era to the second half of the 20th century, European militaries possessed a significant technological advantage, allowing its states to pursue policies of expansionism and colonization until the Cold War period. European militaries in between the fifteenth century and the modern period were able to conquer or subjugate almost every other nation in the world. Since the end of the Cold War, the European security environment has been characterized by structural dominance of the United States through its NATO commitments to the defense of Europe, as European states have sought to reap the 'peace dividend' occasioned by the end of the Cold War and reduce defense expenditures. European militaries now mostly undertake power projection missions outside the European continent. Recent military conflicts involving European nations include the 2001 War in Afghanistan, the 2003 War in Iraq, the 2011 NATO Campaign in Libya, and various other engagements in the Balkan and on the African continent. After 2014, the Russian annexation of Crimea and the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian War prompted renewed scholarly interest into European military affairs. For further the context see History of Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of colonialism</span>

The historical phenomenon of colonization is one that stretches around the globe and across time. Ancient and medieval colonialism was practiced by the Phoenicians, Greeks, Romans, Turks, Han Chinese, and Arabs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Western world</span> Countries with an originally European shared culture

The Western world, also known as the West, primarily refers to various nations and states in the regions of Western Europe, Northern America, and Australasia; with some debate as to whether those in Eastern Europe and Latin America also constitute the West. The Western world likewise is called the Occident in contrast to the Eastern world known as the Orient. The West is considered an evolving concept; made up of cultural, political, and economic synergy among diverse groups of people, and not a rigid region with fixed borders and members. Definitions of "Western world" vary according to context and perspectives.

The political history of the world is the history of the various political entities created by the human race throughout their existence and the way these states define their borders. Throughout history, political systems have expanded from basic systems of self-governance and monarchy to the complex democratic and totalitarian systems that exist today. In parallel, political entities have expanded from vaguely defined frontier-type boundaries, to the national definite boundaries existing today.

In many periodizations of human history, the late modern period followed the early modern period. It began around 1800 and, depending on the author, either ended with the beginning of contemporary history in 1945, or includes the contemporary history period to the present day.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anti-imperialism</span> Political stance in opposition to interventionist or expansionist policies

Anti-imperialism in political science and international relations is opposition to imperialism or neocolonialism. Anti-imperialist sentiment typically manifests as a political principle in independence struggles against intervention or influence from a global superpower, as well as in opposition to colonial rule. Anti-imperialism can also arise from a specific economic theory, such as in the Leninist interpretation of imperialism, which is derived from Lenin's 1917 work Imperialism, the Highest Stage of Capitalism. People who categorize themselves as anti-imperialists often state that they are opposed to colonialism, colonial empires, hegemony, imperialism and the territorial expansion of a country beyond its established borders.

References

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