World War II: Causes, Consequences, and Totalitarian Regimes
Causes of World War II
- Nationalist Discontent: Significant nationalist tensions in Germany and Italy.
- Product Shortages: Widespread shortages of essential goods.
- Economic Protectionism: Increased economic protectionism following the Great Depression of the 1930s.
- Expansionist Policies: Aggressive expansionist policies pursued by Germany, Italy, and Japan.
- Appeasement: The policy of appeasement adopted by Great Britain towards Germany and Italy.
- Failure of the League of Nations: The League of Nations’
Almoravid Art and Architecture in Al-Andalus
Almoravid Art in Al-Andalus
As stepped battlements (in Umayyad Cordoba and the world), tumid intersecting arches decorated at the top, and so on. Inside, there is a kind of battery for ablutions. It would be reasonable to think that this construction was related to the Great Mosque, with the task of purifying the faithful before entering the sacred enclosure. Decoration in red and white with the same type of geometric patterns in Madinat al-Zahara.
The Collapse of Almoravid Power and the Second Taifa
Read More1936 Spanish Elections: Prelude to Civil War
The 1936 Spanish Elections and the Path to Civil War
In February 1936, elections were held again in Spain. The result was the victory of a leftist coalition called the Popular Front. It was a movement influenced by the Socialist International in Moscow, which had come to power in France and desired a similar outcome in Spain. However, Spanish socialist Largo Caballero’s aim was not a democratic and socialist revolution, but rather a regime akin to Soviet (Russian) socialism. The Republican Left
Read MoreSpain’s Economic Shift & Opposition (1950s-1970s)
Economic Policy: Stabilization
- Government intervention and the pursuit of autarky had stunted growth because it was unsustainable (due to its high cost and poor results).
- From 1951, the new government granted a certain freedom of prices. Although wages were taxed, additional income for “overtime” allowed an improvement for workers.
- Agriculture and exports of oil, wine, and citrus fruit were the main activity for most Spaniards, but from 1950, a period of very strong industrial growth began.
- To this
Nazism, WWII, and the Cold War: Origins and Key Conflicts
The Establishment of Nazism in Germany
The Weimar Republic
In 1918, nearing the end of World War I, Kaiser Wilhelm II abdicated, and the Weimar Republic was proclaimed. Germany accepted military defeat and the harsh peace conditions imposed by the victors in the Treaty of Versailles, which many Germans blamed for causing the war. The postwar years were marked by economic crisis, poverty, and unemployment. The Republic faced threats from leftist revolutionary movements and far-right coup attempts.
Hitler
Read MoreBourgeois Revolutions: America and France
Bourgeois Revolutions
Bourgeois revolutions took place in the late eighteenth century. These were political, economic, social, scientific, and artistic revolutions that marked the passing of the old world, the Ancien Régime, and the beginning of the contemporary world.
Political Objectives of the Revolutions
At the end of the 18th century, the political objectives of the revolution were:
- To create a liberal political system based on respect for what were considered natural human rights: liberty, property,