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Chinese nationalists oust the last Qing emperor, Puyi
In 1911, nationalists threw out the Qing dynasty, which had been ruling China for 400 years. Nationalism was on the rise, and China needed to modernize, and the only way to do that was to throw out the emperor. -
World War I begins as Austria declares war of Serbia
The world was on the verge of war due to alliances between nations. Then, a Serbian nationalist killed the Austrian prince Franz Ferdinand, and all hell broke loose. The Austrians declared war on the Serbs, the Russians declared war on the Austrians due to Slavic ties with the Serbs, the Germans and Italians took the side of the Austrians due to their alliance, and the French and English took the Russian side due to their treaty. The world war had begun. -
US enters war
In 1917, after all of Europe had erupted into war, the United States decided the join the war on the side of the Allies. They sided with them due to financial and historical ties with the British. This would prove to be the tipping point in the war, as the Allies went on to defeat the Central Powers. -
Armistice signed as Allies defeat Central Powers
In 1918, when the Germans surrendered, an armistice was signed, which stopped the fighting. Representatives from all sides met in Versailles to discuss. However, the Treaty of Versailles was very bad, and was nicknamed the treaty build of quicksand. One of the problems was the war guilt clause, which blamed the war on Germany. -
Gandhi leads Indian camapaign of civil disobedience
After World War I, when India's attempt to win independence failed, protestors began to assemble against the British. These failed with lots of bloodshed in several massacres. So, Gandhi tried a different approach. He revolted peacefully. And others followed. Gandhi's genius ended up winning India its independence through his ways of peaceful protest. -
Mustafa Kemal transforms Turkey into Republic
After the separation of the Ottoman Empire, Mustafa Kemal emerged and turned Turkey into a republic. Kemal wanted to modernize Turkey and succeeded in doing so. Several of his reformations included creating plans to industrialize, giving women more rights, and separating church from state. -
Mao Zedong leads Long March
Communism was on the rise in China when a civil war erupted between the nationalists and communists. The nationalists surrounded the communists in the south of China. Then, amazingly, the Communists marched 6,000 miles to safety in the north while retreating from the nationalists. This event is called the Long March, and inspired the communists to succeed in their war against the nationalists.
