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Franco-Prussian War
The Franco-Prussian War ended in a crushing Prussian victory over the French. It resulted in the unification of Germany, under Prussia's control. Also, it affected the balance of power in Europe, which now leaned to their favor and caused mayor governmental backlash in France. -
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First Boer War
The First Boer War consisted of the Boers of the Transvaal resisting the colonization of Brits and their attempts to take their land. Their victory was stamped at the Majuba Hill and gave the South African Republic a name in European societies. This was a huge blow to the British royalty and prestige. -
Triple Alliance Formation
The Triple Alliance consisted of Germany, Italy, and Austria-Hungary which was formed to counter the already powerful alliance of France and Russia. The pact reflected the growth of militarism in the area. It split Europeans and led to WW1. -
Treaty of Berlin
The Treaty of Berlin prevented conflict from spiraling out of control, among imperial powers, by setting boundaries and rules each country involved had to follow, in regards to the colonization of land in African soil. It created more demand of African resources and gave the Africans no protection against disregards of sovereignty. This all occurred from the "Scramble for Africa", which, at the time, was popular. -
Franco-Russian Alliance
France and Russia joined a military alliance to challenge the previous Triple Alliance made by their opposing party. This shifted European diplomacy as a whole, and established power rankings to balance each other out. Military planning was a positive to come out of this since all countries in the groups spent more on their defenses. -
Fashoda Incident
The Fashoda Incident was a standoff between British and French soldiers in, current day, Sudan. They exchanged blows and could've started WW1 early. France decided to back down, for the better of society, since they deemed war was inevitable but unnecessary. This was a warning to what would occur if any 2 countries decided to declare war on each other. -
Anglo-Japanese Alliance
The Anglo-Japanese Alliance was the first war to not be between Western powers. Russian influence in East Asia was at risk. This was when Japan was first viewed as a rising world power. Japan was now a part of international affairs in Europe, in trade, merchants, etc. -
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Russo-Japanese War
The Russo-Japenese war was an exclamation point in Japan's history as they defeated the Russian powerhouse. This proved that Japan, or any non-western power could compete with those westerners. This was the start of the Russian revolution and the derailment of the government as it elevated Japan's status. -
1st Moroccan Crisis
Germany put French power to the test over Morocco when the crisis started. The Entente Cordiale was ignored when a German ambassador gave their support to French enemies. This depended tension and made alliances in Africa stronger. -
Chinese Revolution
The Chinese revolution started when the Qing Dynasty came to an end after over 2,000 years of imperialism in China. The republic era of China was formed under the wing of Sun Yat-sen. This didn't last long however since hopes for national unity took longer than expected and many civil wars commenced. -
Establishment of KMT
The Kuomintang (KMT), or the Chinese Nationalist Party, was founded by Sun Yat-sen with the goal of unification and a new beginning for China after their revolution. It promoted republican beliefs and planed on ending foreign domination, which wasn't accomplished. It was heavily disputed whether Sun Yat-sen actually benefited the nation even though he had a legendary reign and massively applauded at the time. -
Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand
Franz Ferdinand was the Austria-Hungary heir and was assassinated by a Serbian nationalist in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina. This triggered outrage with a chain of military responses to the issue. This was the immediate cause of WW1 as news spread quickly around the world. -
Outbreak of WW1
After the previous assassination of the Austria-Hungary heir/representative, alliances and pacts followed which created separation in Europe and formed 2 teams: Central Powers and Allies. This conflict starting as just that, ended up becoming one of the deadliest wars in human history. Humanity still hasn't fully recovered from the war and industrialization minded war was started in WW1. -
Russian Revolution
The Russian government collapsed after many hardships including war fatigue and economic issues. Lenin and the Bolsheviks gained power in the October Revolution. This was the first communist state that withdrawaled from WW1. -
USA enters WW1
The main cause for the U.S's involvement in WW1, even after being neutral for years, was because of the Zimmerman Telegram that was leaked to their camp. Submarine warfare from the German was also taken personally by the U.S, as they saw it as a threat. This was a huge boost for the Allies and added credibility to their half. -
Paris Peace Conference
The Allies convened to negotiate in the wake of a war. Consequently, the conference produced the Versailles Treaty and other treaties with the defeated Central Powers. These treaties would be the basis of preventing wars in the future but instead caused increased dissatisfaction, especially on the part of Germany. -
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Series of Treaties (Saint-Germain, Sevres, Neuilly and Trianon)
Treaties such as the Saint-Germain, Sevres, Neuilly and Trianon dismantled the empires known as the Ottoman and Austria-Hungary. They redefined national boundaries and made new independent states. Although seen as unjust or destabilizing, these lines drawn drove alliances. -
Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles main clause was the heavy reparations that the German's owed. It restricted their sovereignty and their financial freedom. Their military was the main contributor to extremists ideals. -
League of Nations
The League of Nations was created to find peace between great powers and limit the possibility of war. Diplomacy was needed and aimed for. However, enforcement and the pulling out of key members caused the downfall of the league. It failed to prevent WW2 or any other conflicts. -
Formation of CCP
The CCP, Chinese Communist Party, was inspired by the Russian Revolution and started to promote a classless society. In Chinese politics, they became a leading force. They were also the main rivals of the KMT. -
Ruhr Crisis
France and Belgium occupied the border of the German Ruhr after Germany indefinitely stoped the reparations. Passive resistance led to inflation in Germany, which left them worrying less about the plot of land. The Treaty of Versailles was exposed for its weak and unfollowed rules. -
Dawes Plan
The Dawes Plan reconstructed and brought back Germany by giving them more leadway in their restrictions. It stabilized their economy and eased tensions between Germany and the U.S. It led to the economic dependence of Germany on this treaty and without it they would be owing millions for millions. -
Death of Sun-Yat Sen
Sun Yat-sen's death caused by cancer, left a gap in the government that the KMT couldn't fill. Chiang Kai-shek emerged as the next in line and this turned China as more militaristic. The CCP died out just after this tragedy. -
Locarno Treaties
The Locarno treaties were about settling border disputes established after WW1. Germany, France, and Belgium were the main contributors. Eastern Europe stirred clear of the treaty and the diplomatic relations that came from it. -
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Northern Expedition
The KMT launched a campaign in the efforts to defeat warlords. This campaign consisted of a large mob, led by Cheng Kai-shek to establish control over much of Northern China. It started a civil war which lasted years. -
Kellog-Briand Pact
This pact included 60 nations which renounced war and convinced each other of peace. As symbolic as it was, it lacked enforcement just like other efforts. It also failed in aggression and countries checking each other for peace. -
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Great Depression
With US mortgages, the plan developed by Dawes stabilized the economy and restructured Germany's repayments. For a short time, it eased tensions and aided Germany's recovery. The treaties were regarded as the pinnacle of interwar diplomacy and improved relations. However, they disregarded Eastern Europe. The KMT ended up being left without a leader after Sun Yat-sen's passing the ball. This escalated the conflict with the CCP. -
Japanese Invasion of Manchuria
Japan invaded Manchuria in order to grow its empire and obtain resources. Despite denouncing the incident, the Group of Nations did nothing substantive. This signaled an enormous shift in Japan's militaristic direction and its acceptance of the League. -
World Disarmament Conference
This conference aimed to limit weapon use, especially at a large scale, like in war. It failed to gain trust and only more deadly weapons have been on display. Hitler was the first to withdrawal and didn't take it serious. -
Hitler Rise to Power
After massive uproar of the horrible living conditions in Germany, they were forced to giving the job of chancellor to Hitler. he quickly changed the views of the military and built an empire made for aggression. Foreign policies weren't his top priority and wasn't planning on taking them serious. -
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Long March
The CCP took a long march of 6,000 km to avoid the KMT's attacks. The Communist's tenacity was definitely on display. This strengthened the reputation of Mao Zedong and how he was viewed in a power standpoint. -
Italian Invasion of Abyssinia
Italy, like most Axis Powers, disobeyed treaties by attacking Ethiopia for resources. Mussolini wasn't reprimanded and kept going without fail. This showed how aligned Mussolini was with Hitler's plans and the leaps and bounds he would go to for them to have a functioning alliance. -
Rome-Berlin Axis
Following the attacks on Ethiopia, Italy and Germany formed an alliance. Italy took a full 180 on the relations with Britain and France to pursue this new lifestyle. It appeared to cause a deadly view of how Europe would shape up and made a huge impact on both sides. -
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Spanish Civil War
This brutal contest came from the disagreements of the republican and nationalist sides of Spain. Germany and Italy had support on their like-minded sibling, Franco and the nationalists, while the rest of the Allies stood for a republic. This war highlighted the damage parties would have and previewed WW2. -
German Occupation of Rhineland
Hitler dismissed the Treaty of Versailles by remilitarizing the Rhineland. He wasn't backed by the Allies since they deemed it morally wrong and disobeyed the commandments that were in place. Nazi expansion was taking its first steps into world domination. -
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Sino-Japanese War
China fell victim to Japan's onslaught as massacres were happening left and right until China couldn't keep up and waved the white flag. This strengthened Japan's resources and military power. There was added to fear to Japan's reigning importance outside the West, as we would see in WW2. -
Anschluss
Germany's annexation of Austria, which against violated everything the Treaty of Versailles stood for, was mostly ignored out of fear of what Germany would do if you got on their bad side. Countries turned a blind eye and did nothing to stop it while they still could. Hitler's ambitions grew greater and he was around 1/3 of the way there to conquer all of Europe. -
Start of WW2 (German invasion of Poland)
Finally, after countless attacks elsewhere, Germany snuck into Poland on the Night of Broken Glass. This invasion was calculated and implemented old military tactics like blitzkrieg. This was the moment all hell broke loose and WW2 started. -
German Invasion of USSR
Operation Barbarossa, which opened the Eastern Front, broke the relation Germany and Russia had at the time. This was Germany's most unsuccessful takeover, since they failed to capture the capital and other big cities. There were many deaths still and now, more than ever, this war was shaping up to be a bloodbath. -
Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor
On a cold night in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, a bomb detonated, sent by Japan. It killed over 2,000 people and really took the U.S by surprise. This led to their entry in WW2. -
Japan declares war on the U.S and Britain
Following the attack on Pearl Harbor, Japan ended up declaring war on the U.S and Britain, after their surprise attack was a success. This made WW2 a global back and forth and was the gateway to much more blood spilling. The Allies only came back stronger and didn't give up as easy as the Axis Powers believed. -
Japans Surrender ending WW2
After the devastating Kawasaki and Nagashima bombs, sent in response of Japan's bombs of their own, Japan surrendered. Russia was also beginning to have conflict with Japan, which they feared. The signing took place miles from Pearl Harbor and this ended WW2 officially.