Conflict and Change

Introduction

Europe has experienced many conflicts, invasions, and revolutions that have directly affected European culture and lifestyle throughout history.

Conflicts and Changes

Europe's history is filled with changes. Use the timeline below to explore some of the recent conflicts and changes that impact Europe today.

1780s-1880s

England is considered the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution for several reasons. Beginning in the late 18^thand early 19^th century, machine labor began to replace human labor as the principle means of manufacturing goods. The Industrial Revolution not only changed how work was completed, but it caused a major change in how and where people lived. The rapid, unplanned growth of cities around the new factories impacted the daily lives of people in the areas of crime, pollution, work hours, and changed the roles of women as well. The Industrial revolution also caused the rise of the middle class and helped develop new political philosophies such as socialism and communism.

1880s-1945

Countries in Europe became more powerful as a result of the Industrial Revolution. Along with the advances in machines, transportation, and water power, countries began to develop new and improved weapons. Many countries in Europe used the mass production of weapons to their advantage and eventually sought to expand their territory by taking land from less aggressive nations. This behavior eventually led to World War I from 1914-1918 and World War II from 1939-1945.

1940-1989

In the immediate years after WWII, the world would learn of the Nazi atrocities and its attempted genocide of the Jewish race through its death camps also called the Holocaust. During the Holocaust over 6 million European Jews were mass murdered by the German Nazis. Following the events of WWII, the Soviet Union and the United States became rivals and emerged as the two superpowers. Western Europe allied with the United States, and Eastern Europe allied with the communist Soviet Union. Both superpowers were nuclear powers and a new age, the Cold War had begun.

1989

By 1989, many people in Eastern Europe overthrew their communist governments and created new democratic nations. In 1990, East Germany and West Germany, once divided after WWII, unified to create one democratic state. In 1991, the Soviet Union dissolved resulting in the creation of thirteen independent countries including Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan.

1993

In 1993, the democratic nations in Western Europe formed the European Union (EU). The purpose of the European Union was to establish a solid political and economic union between European countries where goods and services could be traded freely. The free trade agreement supported the idea of a market economy throughout Europe. Later, the European Union established a common currency known as the Euro where a single currency among the twenty-eight members is used to trade goods and services.

Take A Closer Look...

Learn more about the European Union! Start your exploration with the links in the Additional Module resources page located at the start of this course.

Map of the European Union as of 2020

Image of an Arrow

Think About This

As we have learned, Europe has had its share of conflicts and resulting change over its very long history. Europe’s involvement in World Wars I and II has certainly changed the countries, hopefully for the good. We learned about the horror of the Holocaust and the changes that resulted from that tragedy. And we have learned that the European Union is an organization that benefits member countries through free trade, a common currency (the Euro) and other diplomatic and economic incentives.

MAPS CITED DIRECTLY ON IMAGE. ALL OTHER IMAGES CREATED BY GAVS