World History From 1800 to Present Essay

Three Political Changes Since 1800

Since the early 19^th century, the world has experienced numerous political changes resulting from ideological influences. The most notable ideas that impacted global politics included religion, socialism, nationalism, imperialism, and liberalism. Some of the changes affected a significant part of the world, specific regions, or particular countries. Ideally, the three greatest political changes from 1800 were the revolutions that created democratic nations, colonialization, and communism.

Although the American Revolution and the French Revolution started before the 19^th century, the two political changes significantly influenced other nations. Haitian and Latin American Revolutions are perfect examples of political changes that drew inspirations from the French and American Revolutions, commonly termed as the Atlantic Revolutions. Understandably, the root cause of the Atlantic Revolutions had been the Enlightenment Movement, where great philosophers urged people to stand against oppression. The convergence of people from different parts of the world at the Atlantic basin, which acted as a global cultural and intellectual exchange centre, led to a wealth of knowledge¹. Once the people started sharing ideas, common identities formed, and people realized their potential to eliminate the tyrants and colonizers. Between 1791 and 1804, the Haitians fought against the French to create a democratic and sovereign nation. Similar events also happened in Latin American between 1808 and 1825². The results were establishment of newly independent states, where Enlightenment had inspired the pursuit of liberty and equality.

Another notable political change was the colonization of most Asian and African countries. The main causative factor for the colonization was the imperialism resulting from the industrialization of the European nations. Another reason that promoted colonialization, especially of African countries, was Social Darwinism. The 19^th century Industrial Revolution in Europe gave rise to new economic needs. The high demand for raw materials and the market for finished goods led to European nations seeking solutions abroad. Asia and Africa became the most appropriate destinations as the two regions were endowed with natural resources and considerable populations to consume manufactured European goods. Additionally, the Europeans applied Charles Darwin’s principles of survival of the fittest to justify Africa’s colonization. The idea was known as Social Darwinism which was a form of scientific racism viewing the less industrialized societies as backward, unfit, and uncivilized³. Hence, the Europeans legitimized their imperialism and colonization by claiming it is a natural phenomenon for the stronger human race to control the weaker ones.

Lastly, communism remains a significant political change experienced in the 20^th century that had far-reaching and longstanding consequences globally. The communists were inspired by the political and philosophical socialist ideas of Karl Marx. Marx advocated for a classless society after experiencing the oppression peasants and working-class people went through at the hands of the industrial owners. Although most socialist believed in the achievement of their goals democratically, the case was different in Russia as the leader was authoritarian⁴. Therefore, the Russian Revolution, which bore communism, championed for uncompromising revolution to remove Tsar Nicholas II⁵. Even after the process, communism continued to be a global threat throughout the 20^th century until the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Overall, there have been many great political changes in the world since 1800. The remarkable ones include revolutions, colonization, and the emergence of communism. Revolutions were inspired by Enlightenment ideas and led to the installation of sovereign states. On the other hand, colonization resulted in the domination of Asian and African countries by European powers who were pursuing their imperialistic instincts. Finally, communism emerged from the socialistic ideas of Karl Marx and became a dominant political force in Russia almost throughout the entire 20th century.

Three Factors or Events Since 1800 that Established the Dominance of Certain Nations

Different powers had dominance over the world or specific regions from 1800. For instance, the Ottoman Empire had controlled a significant part of Eastern Europe for almost six centuries from the 13^th century. Various factors or events enabled specific powers to dominate over a particular part of the globe. Ideally, Industrial Revolution, Imperialism, and Great Wars are the three events that have been most significant in establishing certain states’ dominance in terms of economic, trade, and military power.

In the 19th century, the European nations were busy searching and acquiring overseas territories. The French, Italians, British, Belgians, Dutch, and Germans were the main powers competing for colonies in Africa and Asia. One of the factors that compelled European powers to acquire overseas territories was economic benefits. Since European nations were rapidly industrializing, there was a need to look for new sources of raw materials for their industries and also markets for manufactured goods⁶. Another reason was prestige and bragging rights, as those states with more colonies perceived themselves as the superpowers. Lastly, Europeans had the misguided belief that colonization was a way of enhancing civilization among the world’s most backwards societies. Nevertheless, imperialism allowed the European powers to amass wealth, which contributed to their dominance in the global political and economic arena.

The second factor that contributed to the establishment of powerful states from 1800 was the Industrial Revolution. Specifically, the Industrial Revolution had significant impacts on the British economic and political power. Since the British were the first country to undergo Industrial Revolution, the results were the creation of substantial wealth. Hence, Britain had excessive income for intensifying their arms, expanding its territories, and dominating international trade. Due to Industrial Revolution, Britain emerged as a powerful European nation with immense influence on regional and global affairs. As a result, during the scramble and partition for colonies, the British acquired the highest number of colonies in Asia and Africa⁷. It also became the world-leading naval power, which compelled other nations to submission whenever a stalemate was experienced.

Finally, the First and Second World War, famously known as the Great Wars became the most significant events in establishing the U.S. as the world superpower. During the First World war, America maintained their neutrality with President Woodrow Wilson urging Americans to avoid being emotionally and ideologically involved in the conflict. At the time, the conflict was perceived as a European affair, and America did not want to interfere⁸. However, towards the end of the war, America joined and became influential in finding the solutions that culminated in the Treaty of Versailles. As a result, America emerged as a respectable nation after helping the warring countries resolve the issue. Similarly, during the Second World War, the U.S entry into the war on the Allied Powers’ side led to a decisive victory and end of the bloody conflict⁹. The U.S. singlehandedly ended the war by dropping atomic bombs on two Japanese cities, Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The resultant effect was the emergence of the U.S. as the world superpower, and it has since then dominated global affairs.

Generally, the Industrial Revolution, imperialism, and the Great Wars contributed significantly to establishing certain countries as economic, trade, and military powers. Britain became an influential political and economic power due to Industrial Revolution. On the other hand, most European nations amassed immense wealth leading to their domination of the world from 1800. Lastly, the U.S became a global superpower after playing decisive roles during the First and Second World war.

Bibliography

Huntington, Samuel P. “The clash of civilizations?” In Foreign Affairs, pp. 22-49. Council on Foreign Relations, 2009.

Strayer, Robert W. Ways of the World: A brief global history with sources. Bedford/St. Martins, 2011.

Footnotes

1. Strayer, Robert W. “Atlantic Revolutions, Global Echoes (1750-1914).” Ways of the World: A brief global history with sources. Bedford/St. Martins, 2011.
2. Strayer. “Revolutions of Industrialization (1750-1914)”. 2011.
3. Strayer. “Colonial Encounters in Asia and Africa (1750-1950).” 2011.
4. Huntington, Samuel P. “The clash of civilizations?” In Foreign Affairs, pp. 22-49. Council on Foreign Relations, 2009.
5. Strayer. “Milestones of the last Century, War and Revolution (1900-1950). 2011.
6. Strayer. “Colonial Encounters in Asia and Africa (1750-1950).” 2011.
7. Strayer. “Colonial Encounters in Asia and Africa (1750-1950).” 2011.
8. Strayer. “Milestones of the last Century, War and Revolution (1900-1950). 2011
9. Huntington, Samuel P. “The clash of civilizations?” 2009.