Early nineteenth century Europe was already a thriving economic powerhouse. Industrialization quickly emerged as other countries began adapting to a new world. However, as more and more resources are depleted, these countries looked to places far away, rich with raw materials needed to sustain their industrial development. This resulted in a policy known as imperialism. Because imperialism and industrialism were so prominent, they caused many changes all around the globe that ultimately shaped the present world. These changes were significant among conflicting European nations and other countries that became involved such as the United States. Changes in the balance of power among European nations were …show more content…
Before the first war, there were two successful military conflicts that fought for territories owned by the weak Ottoman Empire called the Balkan Wars (1912-1913). The Ottoman Empire lost a considerable amount of its territory in Europe which led to the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand and his wife in Saravejo, Bosnia on June 28, 1914 resulting in the first world war. World War I was mainly fought by European powers during 1914-1918 in Europe namely: Great Britain, France, Italy, Russia, Germany, and Austria-Hungary. The United States entered the war on April 6, 1917. The economic strain after World War I resonated around the world and caused the decline of many economies including Britain’s and Japan’s--who were highly dependent on international market trades. The emergence of new European nations: Latvia, Czechoslovakia, Estonia, Poland, Lithuania, and Yugoslavia; the separation of Austria-Hungary’s dual monarchy system including the transformation of Russia’s government from autocratic monarchy of the Russian Empire to communism of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republic plus the decline of the Ottoman Empire, changed the equilibrium in