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Gandhi
An Indian revolutionary leader, who was extremely influential in the eventual ousting of the British from Indian territory. Especially of note was his insistence on maintaining a policy of strictly nonviolent protest. This insistence is probably why he was successful in his endeavor. -
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Mao Zedong
A nationalist leader in China. Largely influenced by Marxist ideas, under his rule China became the world's largest communist nation. Came up with the Great Leap Forward, and later, the Cultural Revolution. Maoism is a form of Marxist thought derived from Mao's ideas. -
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Juan Peron
An Argentinian soldier and politician. He and his wife, Eva, were immensely popular for their policies on the empowerment of the working class. -
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WWI
A war triggered by the assassination of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand, and made infinitely worse by the complicated webs of alliances countries had in place in this era. At the time, the biggest and bloodiest war in history (though it was later upstaged). Saw the introduction of trench warfare to the world. -
Russian Revolution
The destruction of the Czarist monarchy. Ended with the formation of the Soviet Union. Bolsheviks take over, Russian Civil War begins. -
Wilson's 14 Point Plan
A proposal issued by U.S. President Woodrow Wilson toward the end of WWI. His hope was that it would prevent such a large war from being necessary ever again (oh D:). The Treaty of Versailles was based on it, but didn't follow the plan very precisely. -
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Nelson Mandela
Leader of the African National Congress who was arrested for military protests against apartheid. Became a symbol for the anti-apartheid movement. In 1994 he became the first black president of South Africa following the nation's first free elections. -
Treaty of Versailles
The peace settlement negotiated by the Allies with Germany at the end of WWI. Included the infamous guilt-clause, which sent Germany into such a pit of economic and morale-based depression, and this is what set the stage for WWII to begin. -
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League of Nations
The first permanent international organization dedicated to maintaining peace. First suggested by Wilson in his 14-Point Plan, but the United States didn't actually join. Dissolved due to WWII. -
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Hitler's Rise To Power
As leader of the National Socialist German Workers' Party (Nazis), Hitler used his speaking skills and promises to restore Germany to its former glory to get himself into a position of control over the entire country. -
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Chinese Civil War
A conflict between the Chinese Nationalist and Communist Parties. China divided at the end, into Taiwan and Mainland China. -
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Stalin's Five Year Plan
Stalin set up five different plans during this span of time with the purpose of improving Soviet agricultural and industrial output. He declared them successful, even though his quotas were not met. -
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The Great Depression
The worldwide economic downturn occurring after the U.S. stock market crashed. Pretty much everyone was struggling to put food on the table. -
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WWII
A huge, huge war. Involved most of the world's nations, and is currently the deadliest conflict in human history. Included such important events as the Holocaust and the first use of nuclear weapons, the latter of which sparked the Cold War after the end of WWII. -
Creation of Pakistan
At almost the exact same time that India is freed from British rule, it is split into what is now today's India and Pakistan. Pakistan is a Muslim state that is on bad terms with India. -
Indian Independence
Britain finally gives India its independent status, simultaneously splitting the territory into India and Pakistan. The two countries go on to fight indefinitely. -
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Cold War
The period of great tension between the United States and the Soviet Union. At any moment, either one could fire a nuke on the other, and both sides were terrified of that, which, incidentally, was what prevented either of them from firing. -
Formation of NATO
A military alliance of democratic nations against Soviet agression. Their goal was to maintain peace through collective defense in postwar Europe. NATO still exists, despite the ending of the Cold War. -
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Vietnam War
A conflict between North and South Vietnam. N. Vietnam was communist and S. Vietnam didn't want to be, so of course the U. S. helped them out. After enough time passed, people got sick of it. Eventually, we got out of the war with the Paris Peace Accords, though they didn't really stick in Vietnam. -
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Warsaw Pact
Basically the antithesis of NATO. Russia felt as though it needed to be included in a similar group to avoid losing an advantage to the capitalist countries. The two organizations provided the foundation for the Cold War. -
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Great Leap Forward
A plan created by Mao to help China's economy and industry. It didn't atually end all that well, in that quite a few people died by the end of it. -
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Cuban Missile Crisis
After the Bay of Pigs incident, Castro didn't want anything more to do with the U.S. He made an alliance with the Soviet Union. This meant the Soviets were allowed to build nuclear weapons in Cuba. Everyone freaked out, and Kennedy demanded that they be removed from Cuba. The Soviet Union conceded, on the terms that the U.S. remove their weapons from Turkey. -
Helsinki Accords
A nonbinding agreement intended to reduce tension between the East and the West by having all borders go back to they way they were right after WWII. -
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Islamic Revolution
Iran's monarchy is taken out of power and replaced by an Islamic republic. They tried to reduce Western influence as much as possible. -
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Iran - Iraq War
Conflict between Iraq and Iran caused by grabs for land by Iraq. U.S. got involved when they started attacking oil tankers in the Persian Gulf. The Persian Gulf War followed this, during which Iraq invaded Kuwait and took control of oil fields. Kuwait was later liberated by the U.S. and its allies. -
Tiananmen Square Incident
A famous event which occurred in China. Student protesters were openly fired upon by armed forces, and the casualties were reported as being from the hundreds to the thousands. Internationally, it has become a symbol of government censorship and, indeed, most Chinese people do not know about it. -
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Fall of USSR
Process by which the Soviet Union gradually lost power, during which it tried and failed to expand, ill-timed reforms, and loss of territory drove the state to dissolution. -
German Reunification
The process following the tearing down of the Berlin Wall during which Germany became one country again, and Berlin became a single city. With this development, democracy spread across Europe and the Iron Curtain separating the continent was dissolved. -
September 11 Attacks
A terrorist attack on the United States by the group al-Qaeda. Four airplanes were captured and flown into the World Trade Center in New York City and the Pentagon in Washington, D.C. This event triggered the War on Terror, a campaign in which the U.S. and its allies began to remove terrorist groups.