Key Historical Events: Early 20th Century
World War I
Fueled by German attempts to alter the European balance maintained in the last third of the 19th century, Germany’s attitude unleashed an arms race between the major European powers and the formation of rival military alliances. The game of alliances in Europe implied that if only one of the countries entered the war, it could drag everyone else in, as indeed happened.
Russian Revolution
It was an empire with a huge territorial extension but with a social structure and politics far behind
Read MoreThe Spanish Restoration: 1874-1902
The Restoration Scheme
The issue that we will deal with covers the period from the fall of the First Republic until the proclamation of Alfonso XIII as king in 1902. The restoration of the monarchy of Alfonso XII represents a stage of stability that lasted until the late nineteenth century. It was prompted by the 1876 Constitution, the party system created by Canovas, and some economic prosperity. But these achievements do not hide major flaws of the system: electoral fraud and chieftaincy leaving
Read MoreSpanish Civil War: Causes, Key Events, and Aftermath in Extremadura
Spanish Civil War: Causes, Key Events, and Aftermath
The Civil War’s end marked the beginning of a modernization process, bringing Spain closer to Western democratic countries. At this time, democracy, communism, and fascism were political formulas that sought to address the crisis of capitalism and the demands of social groups. The reforms initiated by the Democratic Republic failed to stop the progressive establishment of groups advocating for a workers’ revolution or a strong authoritarian state,
Read MoreRussian Revolution and World Wars: Causes and Impacts
Item 8: The Russian Revolution
The economy and Russian society were the most backward in Europe, and the political system was outlined by the absolute power of the Tsar. The regime rested on three pillars:
- The nobility, who had the power of the land.
- The senior administration and military.
- The Orthodox Church, whose supreme leader was the Tsar himself.
During the reign of Alexander II, a series of economic and administrative reforms were attempted. One of the most notable was the abolition of the feudal
Read MoreRussian Revolution: From Tsarist Rule to the USSR
Pre-Revolutionary Russia: A Nation in Crisis
Pre-revolutionary Russia, despite being one of the great powers of Europe, hid a number of weaknesses that revealed it as one of the most backward countries on the continent.
Political Situation
Pre-revolutionary Russia was the last absolute monarchy in Europe, where Tsar Nicholas II (1896-1917) ruled with Tsarist autocracy. The Tsar held all the power and was the head of the Russian Orthodox religion.
Economic and Social Situation
Russia was primarily an
Read MoreUN Resolution on Franco’s Spain: Post-WWII Diplomatic Blockade
The UN Resolution on Relations with Spain
We are faced with a legal text, a resolution adopted by the UN General Assembly. The organization was recently established by the Allied nations after the end of the war (Charter of San Francisco, June 25, 1945) to achieve the maintenance of universal peace and fight for the establishment of human rights. World War II had just finished (August 1945), and the new world order of liberal democracies and the USSR sought to establish a country like Spain, which
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