METU NCC PSIR 110

INTERNATIONAL HISTORY 1914-1989

SPRING 2015
GLOSSARY 1
Great Powers
Traditionally those states that were held capable of shared responsibility for the
management of the international order by virtue of their military and economic
influence.
Isolationism
The policy or doctrine of isolating ones country by avoiding foreign entanglements
and responsibilities. Popular in Britain during the 19th century an in the United States
during the inter- war years.
Concert of Europe
The nineteenth-century European system of regulation of international affairs by the
Great Powers. Although much of the historical literature argues that the system was
successful in keeping the general peace of Europe because it was based on a
balance of power, more recent work has stressed the importance of shared rules of
conduct, values, goals and diplomatic practices in relations between the Great
Powers.
Entente Cordiale
A phrase coined to describe the Anglo-French rapprochement that took place in
1904. Subsequently used as a shorthand for the Anglo- French relationship in the
twentieth century.
Militarism
A rise in military expenditure, an increase in military and naval forces, more influence
of the military men upon the policies of the civilian government, and a preference for
force as a solution to problems.
Schlieffen Plan
The German pre-1914 plan for a pre-emptive military offensive against France,
which would involve troops passing through neutral Belgium. It is named after the
German army chief of staff, General Alfred von Schlieffen.
Bolsheviks
Originally in 1903 a faction led by Lenin within the Russian Social Democratic Party,
over time the Bolsheviks became a separate party and led the October 1917
revolution in Russia. After this Bolsheviks was used as shorthand to refer to the
Soviet government and communists in general.
U-boat
(English abbreviation of Unterseeboot) A German submarine.