World Wars
The history of 1914-1950 can be identified with the two most important historical events – the two World Wars. The reason for naming this war lies in its definition, in which it can be assumed that a significant part of the globe took part in the war. The international degree, the atrocities of warfare, and modern technologies differentiated these two wars and provided a better picture of the global trends. However, the importance lies not only in wars themselves but in the reasons behind them, such as the emergence of entirely new ideologies associated with two extremes.
World War I
WWI was associated with new European and American powers that collapsed the previously established Pax Britannica and outlined new dominating forces. The significant changes were in ideology and political power. One of the critical events during the war that contributed to the politics of the following century was the establishment of the first communist state, the USSR (Camiller 777).
Rise of the US
It is essential to name the result of the conflict rather than its reasons and proceedings. After defeating German-Austrian powers, the USA became one of the world’s wealthiest states and contributed to the financial recovery of major European countries (Camiller 709). Unfortunately, this reliance on the US led to the great depression for many states.
Spread of Fascism, Communism, and Capitalism
On the other side, consolidated but weak states like Germany faced the emergence of a new ideology, extremely nationalist, that put the German nation above any other. The birth of fascism is closely associated with the harsh economic situation after the war and the feeling of a losing country. Along with the spread of fascism across Italian and German nation-states, another global trend – communism – emerged in the form of political factions worldwide. Fascism, being spread among a few countries, directly affected WWII, in which the German, Italian, and Japanese powers conflicted with the rest of the world. The region for the significant events was mainly Europe, the US, and some of East Asia.
Although present in modern politics, fascism lost its influence and was replaced by less extreme versions of nationalism (Alvarez 63). As major war winners – the USA and USSR started a new war of information – the Cold War, in which two poles – capitalism and communism spread across all countries. This seriously impacted world history regarding countries that were obligated to decide which part to join, which we can still feel today.
Works Cited
Alvarez, Alex. Nationalism. “Race and Identity in the Second World War” The Routledge History of the Second World War, edited by Paul R. Bartrop, Routledge, 2020, pp. 53-67.
Camiller, Patrick, translator. Jorn, Leonard. Pandora’s Box: A History of the First World War by Jorn Leonhard, Verlag, 2018.