🚂Europe in the 19th Century Unit 12 – Belle Époque to WWI: Europe 1871-1914

Key Events and Timeline

• Franco-Prussian War (1870-1871) resulted in the unification of Germany and the establishment of the Third French Republic
• Scramble for Africa (1881-1914) saw European powers rapidly colonizing and dividing up the African continent
  • Berlin Conference (1884-1885) regulated European colonization and trade in Africa
• Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905) marked the rise of Japan as a major world power and the decline of Russian influence in the Far East
• Italo-Turkish War (1911-1912) resulted in Italy gaining control of Libya and the Dodecanese Islands from the Ottoman Empire
• First Balkan War (1912-1913) saw the Balkan League defeat the Ottoman Empire and divide its European territories
• Second Balkan War (1913) involved Bulgaria fighting against its former allies Serbia, Greece, and Romania over the division of Macedonia
• Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand (June 28, 1914) by Serbian nationalist Gavrilo Princip triggered the outbreak of World War I

Political Landscape

• Emergence of nation-states and nationalism across Europe challenged the traditional order of multi-ethnic empires
• Bismarck's system of alliances aimed to maintain the balance of power and isolate France
  • Triple Alliance (1882) between Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy
  • Reinsurance Treaty (1887) between Germany and Russia
• Franco-Russian Alliance (1894) countered the Triple Alliance and ended Germany's diplomatic isolation of France
• Entente Cordiale (1904) between Britain and France resolved colonial disputes and paved the way for closer cooperation
• Anglo-Russian Convention (1907) settled colonial rivalries in Asia and completed the Triple Entente between Britain, France, and Russia
• Rise of socialist and labor movements challenged the political status quo and advocated for workers' rights and social reforms
• Women's suffrage movements gained momentum, with some countries granting limited voting rights to women (New Zealand, Australia, Finland)

Social and Cultural Trends

• Rapid urbanization and industrialization led to the growth of cities and the emergence of new social classes (industrial working class, urban middle class)
• Expansion of public education and literacy rates contributed to the spread of ideas and the rise of mass media (newspapers, magazines)
• Changing gender roles and the "New Woman" challenged traditional notions of femininity and advocated for greater social and economic independence
• Rise of consumerism and leisure activities transformed daily life and popular culture (department stores, amusement parks, organized sports)
• Emergence of new intellectual and scientific theories challenged traditional beliefs (Darwin's theory of evolution, Freud's psychoanalysis, Einstein's theory of relativity)
• Growth of social reform movements addressed issues such as poverty, child labor, and public health (settlement houses, temperance societies)
• Increasing secularization and the decline of traditional religious authority in some parts of Europe

Economic Developments

• Second Industrial Revolution transformed manufacturing, transportation, and communication (steel production, electricity, automobiles, telephones)
• Expansion of global trade and the integration of world markets through improved transportation and communication networks
  • Construction of the Suez Canal (1869) reduced travel time between Europe and Asia
  • Completion of the Trans-Siberian Railway (1916) connected European Russia with the Pacific Ocean
• Rise of modern banking and finance facilitated the growth of international investment and capital flows (stock exchanges, central banks)
• Emergence of large corporations and trusts led to the concentration of economic power (Standard Oil, Krupp, Siemens)
• Growth of organized labor movements and trade unions sought to improve working conditions and wages (May Day, International Workers' Day)
• Increasing economic rivalry and competition for markets and resources among the major European powers

Technological Advancements

• Innovations in transportation revolutionized travel and trade (steamships, railways, automobiles, airplanes)
  • First successful powered flight by the Wright brothers (1903)
  • Launch of the Titanic (1912), the largest passenger ship at the time
• Developments in communication technology connected people and facilitated the spread of information (telegraph, telephone, radio)
  • Guglielmo Marconi's successful transatlantic radio transmission (1901)
• Advances in medicine and public health improved living conditions and life expectancy (germ theory, vaccines, antiseptics)
  • Louis Pasteur's development of the first vaccine against rabies (1885)
  • Discovery of X-rays by Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen (1895)
• Innovations in manufacturing and production increased efficiency and output (assembly line, mass production)
  • Henry Ford's introduction of the Model T automobile (1908) and the assembly line production method
• Military technology advancements changed the nature of warfare (machine guns, submarines, poison gas)
  • Invention of the machine gun by Hiram Maxim (1884)
  • Development of the first modern submarine, the German U-1 (1906)

Artistic Movements

• Impressionism (1860s-1890s) emphasized capturing the fleeting effects of light, color, and movement in painting (Claude Monet, Pierre-Auguste Renoir)
• Post-Impressionism (1880s-1900s) extended and challenged Impressionist ideas, focusing on subjective experience and symbolic content (Vincent van Gogh, Paul Gauguin)
• Art Nouveau (1890s-1910s) embraced a decorative, sinuous style inspired by natural forms and applied to architecture, interior design, and graphic arts (Gustav Klimt, Antoni Gaudí)
• Fauvism (1905-1908) emphasized bold colors and expressive brushwork, breaking away from representational art (Henri Matisse, André Derain)
• Cubism (1907-1914) revolutionized painting by fragmenting and reassembling objects from multiple perspectives (Pablo Picasso, Georges Braque)
• Expressionism (1905-1920s) sought to convey intense emotional experiences through distorted forms and vivid colors (Edvard Munch, Wassily Kandinsky)
• Modernist literature experimented with new forms and techniques to capture the complexities of modern life (James Joyce, Virginia Woolf, Marcel Proust)

Imperial Expansion

• Scramble for Africa saw European powers rapidly colonizing and dividing up the African continent for economic, strategic, and prestige reasons
  • British control of Egypt (1882) and the Suez Canal secured a vital trade route to India
  • French conquest of Algeria (1830-1847) and expansion into West and Equatorial Africa
  • German colonization of Namibia, Cameroon, Togo, and East Africa
• Expansion in Asia and the Pacific led to increased competition and conflict among European powers and the United States
  • British control of India and Burma, French control of Indochina, and Dutch control of the East Indies
  • U.S. acquisition of the Philippines, Guam, and Puerto Rico following the Spanish-American War (1898)
• Imperialism justified through ideas of racial superiority, "civilizing mission," and social Darwinism
• Colonial exploitation of raw materials, labor, and markets fueled European economic growth and industrial expansion
• Rise of anti-colonial movements and nationalist sentiments in colonized regions (Indian National Congress, Young Turks)

Road to World War I

• Increasing tensions and rivalries among European powers due to nationalism, imperialism, and militarism
  • Naval arms race between Britain and Germany
  • Russo-Austrian rivalry in the Balkans
• System of alliances divided Europe into two opposing blocs: the Triple Alliance (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy) and the Triple Entente (Britain, France, Russia)
• Moroccan Crises (1905-1906, 1911) heightened tensions between Germany and France over influence in North Africa
• Bosnian Crisis (1908-1909) saw Austria-Hungary's annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, angering Serbia and Russia
• Balkan Wars (1912-1913) destabilized the region and increased Serbian nationalism, which threatened Austria-Hungary
• Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand (June 28, 1914) by Serbian nationalist Gavrilo Princip triggered a chain reaction of events
  • Austria-Hungary's ultimatum to Serbia and declaration of war (July 28)
  • Russia's mobilization in support of Serbia, followed by Germany's declarations of war on Russia (August 1) and France (August 3)
  • German invasion of neutral Belgium led to Britain's declaration of war on Germany (August 4)
• Failure of diplomacy and the system of alliances drew the major European powers into a devastating global conflict