Political History

During the late seventeen hundreds and early eighteen hundreds, the world political system made a shift . Large monarchies began to crumble and sovereign nation-states began to be formed. Previous this period of time, the land was said to be property of a king, and the people had little or no political power. The ruling monarch made most if not all of the political decisions, as was his right by inheritance.

As time passed and kings could no longer control the far reaches of their kingdoms, democracies formed . The people came to believe that they owned the land and not some distant king. the American and French revolutions during the latter half of the seventeen hundreds helped strengthen these ideas. The real power should rest with the people not some distant monarch.

As democratic systems of government spread through the west the monarchies were also beginning to crumble. In China, in Germany, in Austria monarchies fell. It was the end of an era. And the few remaining European empires were also falling. Europeans were a formidable force on planet and began to believe that their way was superior and that westerners had way more rights and privileges than everyone else. Westerners still think this way today.

As time went by things sped up. By the nineteen century western political thought was spreading like wildfire. Technology was making advances as well. The industrial revolution helped fuel the rapid westernization of eastern countries as industrialized nations needed more and more resources to fuel their industries. So naturally next came a period of colonialism. America and European countries eagerly grabbed up smaller nations and claimed them as property. It was an era of imperialism and many countries became subject to foreign rule. These changes are easily seen in the online maps.

Map number one shows an Africa ruled largely by the regions indigenous peoples. There are few borders. The second map shows Africa after colonialism ran rampant . On this map there are many borders. The many colors indicate that the continent was grabbed up by multiple European countries. The third map shows a modern map with Africa now being largely free and divided into many nations.

The post world war two world is a different place than the world under colonialism. Study of world history is a valuable tool in teaching us how the recently liberated colonies will grow and relate to the rest of the world as these underdeveloped countries grow and become more industrialized. China, for instance(even though it was not