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In the 20th century, Russia was an autocratic regime. Russian citizens had no political rights. Russia also was an economically and socially backward and unfair country. There were important economic differences between the wealthy few and the rest of the
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The military failures in the war, the enormous number of casualties and the suffering of the civil population sparked a series of revolutions in 1917.
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The Treaty of Versailles ends World War One and imposes heavy reparations payments on Germany.
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The Assembly of the League of Nations meets for the first time in Geneva, Switzerland. The US is notably absent, the Senate having voted against joining the League in November 1919.
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The United States convenes the Washington Conference, attended by Britain, France, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, China, Japan, and Portugal. The Conference results in a naval armaments treaty that sets a ratio for tonnage of capital ships (over 10,000 tons, with guns bigger than eight inches) for Great Britain, the US, Japan, France, and Italy. The ratio agreed upon, in that order, is 5:5:3:1.67:1.67.
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King Victor Emmanuel declares Mussolini premier in an attempt to head off violent conflict between the Fascists and the Communists.
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Adolf Hitler and General Ludendorff, a World War One hero, lead a small contingent of followers in a harmless, comical attempt at rebellion, for which Hitler is imprisoned for two years.
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Lenin's death leaves some question as to who will be his successor. Joseph Stalin eventually beats out Leon Trotsky to take control of the Soviet government.
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Displaces the ruling Bloc National, in a marked victory for the left, but proves unable to govern effectively.
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The Dawes Plan restructures the schedule of German reparations payments so as to reduce the amount of annual payments, and grants Germany a large loan.
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Pacts are signed in efforts to stabilize relations with Germany and its neighbors. The pacts usher in a period of peace and prosperity.
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Pilsudski maintains this position until his death in May 1935.
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The Samuel Commission, under the Conservative government, releases a report which advises wage cuts for miners. The Triple Alliance responds by striking, which is emulated by many other industries in England to protest he Conservative government's policies.
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A provisional government is established to take Spain from monarchy to republicanism.
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Gombos becomes prime minister, an office he uses like a dictatorship, setting the tone for Hungarian government during the remaining inter-war years.
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The last major League of Nations-sponsored disarmament conference meets from February to July 1932 at Geneva, with 60 nations in attendance, including the United States. However, this conference, like it's predecessors, fails to secure any agreement, and organized disarmament remains an unaccomplished goal.
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In an attempt to reel in the chaos of the German government, President Paul von Hindenburg declares Hitler chancellor, the first major step in Hitler's ascent to dictatorship.
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The Popular Front, a leftist party, institutes social legislation and allows wide public participation in the government, but ultimately fails to curtail the depreciating economy.
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Generals Goded, Mola, and Francisco Franco lead troops in rebellion against the republic, sparking the Spanish Civil War.
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Spanish Nationalists Bomb Guernica The small northern town of Guernica is bombed, and civilians are gunned down as they flee the scene. In this brutal massacre 1500 die and 800 are wounded, but the military targets in the town remain intact.
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September 18, 1938: Britain and France appease Hitler by signing the Munich Pact, which grants Hitler control of the Czech Sudetenland.
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Madrid falls to Francisco Franco's forces, effectively ending the Spanish Civil War. Franco's oppressive dictatorship begins.
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In response to Hitler's continued aggression in Eastern Europe, Britain and France go to war with Germany in an attempt to stop Hitler's bid for global hegemony.
