| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Appeasement | A diplomatic policy of making concessions to an aggressive power to avoid conflict, notably pursued toward Nazi Germany in the 1930s. |
| Cold War | The ideological and geopolitical conflict between the Soviet Union and the United States and their respective allies that lasted from the end of World War II until 1991, characterized by tension, proxy wars, and nuclear threat rather than direct military confrontation. |
| Communism | A political and economic ideology emphasizing collective ownership and state control that competed with democracy and fascism in 20th-century Europe. |
| Democracy | A system of government based on popular sovereignty and representation, representing one of the major ideological forces competing in 20th-century Europe. |
| Economic collapse | A severe breakdown of economic systems and structures, particularly referring to the Great Depression and post-war economic crises. |
| Extreme nationalism | An intense form of national pride and loyalty that prioritizes the nation above all other considerations, often leading to aggressive foreign policy. |
| Fascism | An authoritarian political ideology that emerged in the early 20th century, characterized by extreme nationalism, rejection of democracy, centralized autocratic government, and often the glorification of war and a charismatic leader. |
| Genocide | The deliberate and systematic destruction of a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group. |
| Political instability | A state of uncertainty and disorder in government and political systems, characterized by weak institutions and frequent changes in power. |
| Racist ideologies | Systems of belief asserting the superiority or inferiority of certain racial groups, used to justify discrimination and violence. |
| Standard of living | The level of material comfort and access to goods, services, and opportunities available to individuals or populations. |
| total war | A form of warfare in which all of a nation's resources and population are mobilized for the war effort, blurring distinctions between military and civilian targets. |
| Transnational union | Political and economic organizations that unite multiple nations across borders, such as the European Union. |
| World War I | The global conflict from 1914-1918 involving major European powers and their allies, resulting in massive casualties and reshaping of the international order. |
| World War II | The global conflict from 1939-1945 involving Nazi Germany, Imperial Japan, and their allies against the Allied powers, resulting in unprecedented destruction and loss of life. |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| disillusionment | A widespread loss of faith and confidence in traditional beliefs, values, and institutions following the enormous sacrifices of World War I. |
| economic production | The creation of goods and services, in which women became increasingly involved during the world wars. |
| lost generation | The generation of Europeans, particularly young men, who experienced disillusionment and cynicism as a result of World War I. |
| military mobilization | The organization and deployment of military forces and resources during wartime, in which women became increasingly involved during the world wars. |
| Newtonian universe | The classical physics framework based on Newton's laws that was challenged by early 20th-century physics, undermining faith in objective knowledge. |
| nuclear weapons | Weapons developed through advanced physics knowledge that emerged from the scientific developments of the early 20th century. |
| objective knowledge | The philosophical concept that truth and facts exist independently of individual perspectives or beliefs. |
| political mobilization | The organization of populations for political purposes, including women's increased participation during the world wars. |
| progress | The 19th-century belief that society and human civilization were advancing toward improvement and better conditions. |
| science and technology | Systematic study of the natural world and practical applications of scientific discoveries that yielded material benefits but also caused destruction. |
| World War I | The global conflict from 1914-1918 involving major European powers and their allies, resulting in massive casualties and reshaping of the international order. |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Appeasement | A diplomatic policy of making concessions to an aggressive power to avoid conflict, notably pursued toward Nazi Germany in the 1930s. |
| Cold War | The ideological and geopolitical conflict between the Soviet Union and the United States and their respective allies that lasted from the end of World War II until 1991, characterized by tension, proxy wars, and nuclear threat rather than direct military confrontation. |
| Communism | A political and economic ideology emphasizing collective ownership and state control that competed with democracy and fascism in 20th-century Europe. |
| Democracy | A system of government based on popular sovereignty and representation, representing one of the major ideological forces competing in 20th-century Europe. |
| diplomatic idealism | The approach to international relations based on principles of justice, cooperation, and moral ideals rather than purely strategic interests. |
| economic challenges | Financial difficulties and crises, such as economic collapse, that influenced political and social systems in the 20th century. |
| Economic collapse | A severe breakdown of economic systems and structures, particularly referring to the Great Depression and post-war economic crises. |
| Extreme nationalism | An intense form of national pride and loyalty that prioritizes the nation above all other considerations, often leading to aggressive foreign policy. |
| Fascism | An authoritarian political ideology that emerged in the early 20th century, characterized by extreme nationalism, rejection of democracy, centralized autocratic government, and often the glorification of war and a charismatic leader. |
| Genocide | The deliberate and systematic destruction of a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group. |
| ideological beliefs | Systems of ideas and values that shape political, social, and economic worldviews, such as democracy, communism, and fascism. |
| interwar period | The period between World War I (1918) and World War II (1939), characterized by political instability, economic crisis, and the rise of authoritarian regimes across Europe. |
| objective knowledge | The philosophical concept that truth and facts exist independently of individual perspectives or beliefs. |
| peace negotiators | Diplomats and leaders who participated in post-war settlements, such as the Paris Peace Conference after World War I. |
| Political instability | A state of uncertainty and disorder in government and political systems, characterized by weak institutions and frequent changes in power. |
| Racist ideologies | Systems of belief asserting the superiority or inferiority of certain racial groups, used to justify discrimination and violence. |
| reason | Rational thought and logical analysis, which Enlightenment thinkers prioritized but Romantic thinkers questioned. |
| relationship between the individual and the state | The fundamental question of how much power the state should have over individuals and their freedoms, a central ideological conflict in 20th-century Europe. |
| science and technology | Systematic study of the natural world and practical applications of scientific discoveries that yielded material benefits but also caused destruction. |
| Standard of living | The level of material comfort and access to goods, services, and opportunities available to individuals or populations. |
| total war | A form of warfare in which all of a nation's resources and population are mobilized for the war effort, blurring distinctions between military and civilian targets. |
| Transnational union | Political and economic organizations that unite multiple nations across borders, such as the European Union. |
| World War I | The global conflict from 1914-1918 involving major European powers and their allies, resulting in massive casualties and reshaping of the international order. |
| World War II | The global conflict from 1939-1945 involving Nazi Germany, Imperial Japan, and their allies against the Allied powers, resulting in unprecedented destruction and loss of life. |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| alliances | Formal agreements between nations to support each other militarily and politically, a key long-term cause of World War I. |
| casualties | Soldiers killed, wounded, or missing in combat; World War I saw unprecedented numbers of casualties due to new military technologies. |
| disillusionment | A widespread loss of faith and confidence in traditional beliefs, values, and institutions following the enormous sacrifices of World War I. |
| imperialism | The policy of extending a country's power and influence through colonization, military force, or other means over foreign territories and peoples. |
| July Crisis of 1914 | The series of diplomatic and military events in July 1914 following the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand that triggered the outbreak of World War I. |
| military technology | Weapons, equipment, and innovations used in warfare, such as machine guns, poison gas, tanks, and aircraft that fundamentally changed combat tactics in World War I. |
| mobilization | The process of organizing and preparing a nation's entire population and economic resources for war. |
| nationalism | A political ideology emphasizing loyalty to one's nation and national interests, which emerged as a reaction to Napoleonic expansion. |
| political participation | The involvement of citizens in the political process and decision-making of their nation. |
| social equality | The principle that all members of society should have equal rights, opportunities, and treatment. |
| total war | A form of warfare in which all of a nation's resources and population are mobilized for the war effort, blurring distinctions between military and civilian targets. |
| trench warfare | A military strategy involving fortified defensive positions with interconnected trenches, used extensively in World War I as a response to new military technologies. |
| women's suffrage | The right of women to vote, which was achieved in Western Europe through feminist efforts and in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union through government policy. |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Bolshevik Revolution | Lenin's communist revolution in October 1917 that seized power from the Provisional Government and established a communist state in Russia. |
| civil war | Armed conflict between communist forces (Reds) and their opponents (Whites) in Russia from 1918-1922. |
| communist state | A political system based on communist ideology where the state controls the means of production and aims to eliminate class distinctions. |
| February/March Revolution | The 1917 revolution that overthrew the Tsarist autocracy and established the Provisional Government. |
| incomplete industrialization | Russia's delayed and partial development of industrial economy compared to Western European powers, creating economic and social tensions. |
| Marxist-Leninist theory | A communist ideology combining Marx's theories of class struggle and revolution with Lenin's strategies for implementing communist revolution in less industrialized societies. |
| New Economic Policy | Lenin's economic compromise that allowed limited free-market principles and private enterprise to improve economic performance while maintaining communist political control. |
| Petrograd Soviet | The council of workers and soldiers in Petrograd (now St. Petersburg) that played a key role in the Russian Revolution. |
| political stagnation | A lack of political progress or reform in the Russian government, contributing to discontent and revolutionary sentiment. |
| Provisional Government | The temporary government established after the February Revolution that was eventually overthrown by the Bolsheviks. |
| Russian Revolution | The series of revolutions in Russia (1917) that overthrew the Tsarist autocracy and led to the establishment of a communist state. |
| social inequality | Unequal distribution of wealth, power, and social status among different classes in Russian society. |
| Soviets | Councils of workers, soldiers, and peasants that emerged during the Russian Revolution and served as instruments of revolutionary power. |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| democratic successor states | New independent nations created from the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman empires after World War I, including Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, and Yugoslavia. |
| imperial balance of power | The distribution of colonial territories and strategic influence among European imperial powers, altered by the mandate system following World War I. |
| League of Nations | An international organization created after World War I to maintain peace and resolve disputes between nations, weakened by the absence of major powers including the United States, Germany, and the Soviet Union. |
| mandate system | A system established by the League of Nations to administer former German and Ottoman territories as mandates held by victorious powers, particularly France and Great Britain. |
| reparations | Compensation payments imposed on defeated nations, particularly Germany, as punishment for war damages and losses. |
| Versailles settlement | The peace agreement ending World War I that imposed war guilt and reparations on Germany, creating political and economic instability in the postwar period. |
| Weimar Republic | The democratic German government established after World War I that struggled to achieve political and economic stability due to the harsh terms of the Versailles settlement. |
| Wilsonian idealism | President Woodrow Wilson's vision for international peace based on democratic principles, national self-determination, and collective security through the League of Nations. |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| American investment capital | Funds provided by the United States to European economies after World War I, whose withdrawal following the 1929 crash caused financial collapse in Europe. |
| cooperative social action | A policy approach used in Scandinavian countries involving collective economic and social measures to address the Great Depression. |
| depreciated currencies | Currencies that declined in value, reflecting economic weakness and disrupting international trade patterns. |
| extremist movements | Radical political movements that gained strength as Western democracies failed to overcome the Great Depression. |
| Great Depression | A severe worldwide economic crisis in the 1920s and 1930s caused by weaknesses in international trade, monetary practices, and speculation that undermined Western democracies. |
| international trade | The exchange of goods and services between nations, which experienced disruption and weakness during the global economic crisis. |
| Keynesianism | An economic theory and policy approach adopted in Britain emphasizing government intervention to manage economic cycles and address depression. |
| monetary theories | Economic principles and practices governing the supply and use of money that contained weaknesses contributing to the global economic crisis. |
| National government | A political alliance formed in Britain combining parties across the political spectrum to address the economic crisis. |
| nationalistic tariff policies | Protective trade barriers imposed by individual nations to shield domestic industries, which disrupted international trade and contributed to economic weakness. |
| overproduction | The production of goods in excess of market demand, leading to falling prices and economic instability during the 1920s and 1930s. |
| Popular Front | A political alliance and policy approach in France and Spain combining left-wing parties and progressive policies to address economic crisis and extremism. |
| speculation | Risky investment practices based on anticipated price changes rather than fundamental value, which contributed to economic instability. |
| stock market crash | The sharp decline in stock prices in 1929 that triggered financial collapse and cut off American investment capital to Europe. |
| Western democracies | Democratic nations in Western Europe that were undermined and weakened by the Great Depression and the rise of extremist movements. |
| World War I debt | Financial obligations incurred by European nations during World War I that destabilized economies in the 1920s and 1930s. |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| authoritarian dictatorship | A system of government in which power is held by a single leader or small group with little regard for constitutional limits or democratic processes. |
| charismatic leaders | Political figures who attract followers through personal magnetism and appeal rather than through institutional authority, often used by fascist regimes to consolidate power. |
| collectivization | Stalin's policy of consolidating individual peasant farms into large state-controlled collective farms (kolkhozes) to increase agricultural production. |
| Communism | A political and economic ideology emphasizing collective ownership and state control that competed with democracy and fascism in 20th-century Europe. |
| cult of personality | A system of promoting and glorifying a leader through propaganda and ideology, making the leader appear infallible and worthy of absolute devotion. |
| democratic institutions | The systems, structures, and processes that support democratic governance, including representative legislatures, constitutional protections, and rule of law, which fascist regimes rejected and dismantled. |
| economic instability | A period of economic uncertainty, inflation, unemployment, and financial crisis that created conditions favorable to the rise of authoritarian movements in post-World War I Europe. |
| economic modernization | The process of transforming an economy through industrialization, technological advancement, and reorganization of production systems. |
| Fascism | An authoritarian political ideology that emerged in the early 20th century, characterized by extreme nationalism, rejection of democracy, centralized autocratic government, and often the glorification of war and a charismatic leader. |
| Five Year Plan | Stalin's centralized economic program that set ambitious production targets for Soviet industry and agriculture over five-year periods. |
| Franco | Francisco Franco, Spanish military leader who led fascist forces during the Spanish Civil War and established an authoritarian dictatorship in Spain. |
| Great purges | Stalin's campaign of terror in the 1930s involving mass arrests, executions, and deportations of perceived political rivals and enemies of the state. |
| Gulags | Soviet labor camps where political prisoners and other perceived enemies of the state were imprisoned under brutal conditions. |
| Hitler | Adolf Hitler, German Nazi dictator who rose to power in 1933 by exploiting economic crisis and national humiliation, establishing a totalitarian fascist regime. |
| interwar period | The period between World War I (1918) and World War II (1939), characterized by political instability, economic crisis, and the rise of authoritarian regimes across Europe. |
| kulaks | Land-owning peasants in the Soviet Union who were targeted for liquidation during Stalin's collectivization policies. |
| Mussolini | Benito Mussolini, Italian fascist dictator who rose to power in 1922 by exploiting postwar discontent and established the first fascist totalitarian state in Europe. |
| nationalism | A political ideology emphasizing loyalty to one's nation and national interests, which emerged as a reaction to Napoleonic expansion. |
| postwar bitterness | The widespread resentment and disillusionment among populations following World War I, stemming from economic hardship, national humiliation, and the failure of peace settlements to meet expectations. |
| propaganda | Systematic dissemination of information, often misleading or biased, designed to promote a particular political ideology or leader and manipulate public opinion. |
| secret police | A covert law enforcement agency used to suppress opposition and maintain state control through surveillance and intimidation. |
| Spanish Civil War | A conflict from 1936-1939 in Spain between fascist forces led by Franco and republican/leftist forces, which served as a testing ground for fascist military tactics and ideologies before World War II. |
| terror | The systematic use of violence, intimidation, and fear by authoritarian regimes to suppress opposition and maintain control over the population. |
| totalitarian rule | A system of government in which the state exercises complete control over all aspects of public and private life, eliminating individual freedoms and political opposition. |
| totalitarianism | A system of government that seeks to control all aspects of public and private life, using propaganda, terror, and modern technology to maintain absolute power over the state and its citizens. |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| American isolationism | The United States policy of avoiding political and military involvement in European affairs during the interwar period. |
| Annexation of Austria | Nazi Germany's 1938 incorporation of Austria into the Third Reich, violating the Treaty of Versailles. |
| Appeasement | A diplomatic policy of making concessions to an aggressive power to avoid conflict, notably pursued toward Nazi Germany in the 1930s. |
| Extreme nationalism | An intense form of national pride and loyalty that prioritizes the nation above all other considerations, often leading to aggressive foreign policy. |
| Fascism | An authoritarian political ideology that emerged in the early 20th century, characterized by extreme nationalism, rejection of democracy, centralized autocratic government, and often the glorification of war and a charismatic leader. |
| fascist states | Totalitarian nations governed by fascist ideology, including Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, and Imperial Japan during the interwar and World War II periods. |
| Italian invasion of Ethiopia | Italy's 1935 military conquest of Ethiopia, demonstrating fascist expansion and the League of Nations' inability to stop aggression. |
| Munich Agreement | The 1938 agreement between Britain, France, Germany, and Italy that allowed Nazi Germany to annex the Sudetenland from Czechoslovakia. |
| Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact | The 1939 agreement between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union pledging mutual non-aggression and secretly dividing Eastern Europe into spheres of influence. |
| Racist ideologies | Systems of belief asserting the superiority or inferiority of certain racial groups, used to justify discrimination and violence. |
| Remilitarization of the Rhineland | Nazi Germany's 1936 military reoccupation of the Rhineland, a demilitarized zone established by the Treaty of Versailles. |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Allied victories | The military successes of the Allied powers (primarily Britain, the Soviet Union, and the United States) against the Axis powers in World War II. |
| Axis powers | The alliance of fascist nations led by Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, and Imperial Japan during World War II. |
| Blitzkrieg | A German military strategy of rapid, coordinated attacks using aircraft, tanks, and infantry to quickly overwhelm enemy forces, literally meaning 'lightning war.' |
| industrialized warfare | Military conflict characterized by the large-scale use of industrial technology, mass production of weapons, and mechanized military forces. |
| Operation Barbarossa | The German military invasion of the Soviet Union launched in 1941, representing a major campaign of World War II. |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| anti-Semitism | Prejudice, hatred, or discrimination against Jewish people. |
| Auschwitz | A major Nazi death camp in occupied Poland where over one million people, primarily Jews, were murdered during the Holocaust. |
| Axis powers | The alliance of fascist nations led by Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, and Imperial Japan during World War II. |
| collaborationist governments | Governments that cooperated with Nazi Germany and other Axis powers, often by assisting in the persecution of targeted groups. |
| cultural identities | The shared beliefs, values, traditions, and characteristics that define a group of people and distinguish them from other groups. |
| death camps | Concentration camps established by Nazi Germany specifically designed for the systematic murder of prisoners, including Auschwitz. |
| fascist states | Totalitarian nations governed by fascist ideology, including Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, and Imperial Japan during the interwar and World War II periods. |
| Holocaust | The systematic, state-sponsored persecution and murder of six million Jews by Nazi Germany and its collaborators between 1933 and 1945. |
| national identities | The sense of belonging to a nation, shaped by shared history, language, culture, and political institutions. |
| Nuremberg Laws | A series of discriminatory laws enacted by Nazi Germany in 1935 that stripped Jews of citizenship and legal rights. |
| racial order | A hierarchical system based on racial classification, used by Nazi Germany to justify the persecution and elimination of groups deemed racially inferior. |
| racism | The belief that certain races are inherently superior or inferior to others, used to justify discrimination and persecution. |
| Roma | An ethnic group targeted for persecution and murder by the Nazis as part of their racial ideology. |
| totalitarian powers | Authoritarian regimes that seek total control over all aspects of society, including politics, economy, culture, and individual life. |
| Wannsee Conference | A 1942 meeting of Nazi officials where the systematic genocide of European Jews, known as the 'Final Solution,' was coordinated and planned. |