UNIDAD EDUCATIVA PARTICULAR “SAN JOSÉ DE CALASANZ”

Name:…………………………………………………… Date: ……….…………………………….

Grade: 2do bachillerato Subject: History and Social Sciences

PART V: MAJOR CONFLICTS OF THE LAST DECADE

The 1900s
This decade opened the century with some amazing feats like the first flight by
the Wright brothers, Henry Ford's first Model-T, and Einstein's Theory of
Relativity. It also had hardships like the Boxer Rebellion and the San Francisco
Earthquake.
The 1900s also saw the introduction of the first silent movie and teddy bear. Plus,
don't miss out in discovering more about the mysterious explosion in Siberia.
The 1910s
This decade was unfortunately dominated by the first "total war" -- World War I.
It also saw other huge changes during the Russian Revolution and the beginning
of Prohibition. Tragedy struck when a fire rampaged through Triangle Shirtwaist
Factory, the "unsinkable" Titanic hit an iceberg, and the Spanish flu killed millions
around the world.
On a more positive note, people in the 1910s got their first taste of an Oreo
cookie and could fill out their first crossword.
The 1920s
The Roaring '20s were a time of speakeasies, short skirts, the Charleston dance,
and jazz music. The 1920s also showed great strides in Women's Suffrage and
archaeology hit the mainstream with the discovery of King Tut's Tomb.
There were an amazing number of cultural firsts in the 1920s, including the first
talking film, Babe Ruth hitting his home-run record, and the first Mickey Mouse
cartoon.
The 1930s
The Great Depression hit the world hard in the 1930s. The Nazis took advantage
of this situation and were able to come to power in Germany, establish their first
concentration camp, and begin a systematic persecution of Jews in Europe.
Other news in the 1930s included the disappearance of Amelia Earhart, a wild and
murderous crime spree by Bonnie and Clyde, and the imprisonment of Al Capone
for income tax evasion.
The 1940s
World War II was already underway by the time the 1940s began and it was
definitely the big event of the first half of the decade. Plus, the Nazis established
death camps in their effort to murder millions of Jews during the Holocaust.
When World War II ended, the Cold War began. The 1940s also witnessed the
assassination of Gandhi and the beginning of Apartheid.
The 1950s
The 1950s are sometimes referred to as the Golden Age. Color TV was invented;
the polio vaccine was discovered; Disneyland opened; and Elvis gyrated his hips
on The Ed Sullivan Show. The Cold War continued as the Space Race between the
United States and the Soviet Union began.
The 1950s also saw segregation ruled illegal in the U.S. and the beginning of the
Civil Rights movement.
The 1960s
To many, the 1960s can be summed up as the Vietnam War, hippies, drugs,
protests, and rock and roll. (A common joke goes "If you remember the sixties,
you weren't there.")
Although those were important aspects of this decade, other events occurred as
well. For instance, the Berlin Wall was built, the Soviets launched the first man
into space, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated, the Beatles become
popular, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. made his "I Have a Dream" speech, and so
much more!
The 1970s
The Vietnam War was still a major event in the beginning of the 1970s. There
were other tragic events this decade as well, including the deadliest earthquake
of the century, the Jonestown massacre, the Munich Olympics massacre, and the
nuclear accident at Three Mile Island.
Culturally, disco became extremely popular and Star Wars hit theaters.
The 1980s
Mikhail Gorbachev's policies of glasnost and perestroika began the end of the
Cold War. This was soon followed by the surprising fall of the Berlin Wall.
There were also some disasters this decade, including the eruption of Mt. St.
Helens, the oil spill of the Exxon Valdez, the Ethiopian Famine, a huge poison gas
leak in Bhopal, and the discovery of AIDS.
Culturally, the 1980s saw the introduction of the mesmerizing Rubik's Cube toy,
Pac-Man video game, and Michael Jackson's Thriller video.
The 1990s
The Cold War ends, Nelson Mandela
is released from prison, the Internet
becomes popular - in many ways
the 1990s seemed a decade of both
hope and relief.
Unfortunately, the decade also saw
its fair share of tragedy, including
the Oklahoma City bombing,
Columbine High School massacre,
and the Rwandan genocide.
The most relevant wars were the following:
1. World War I
The war fought between July 28, 1914, and November 11, 1918, was known at
the time as the Great War, the War to End War, and (in the United States) the
European War. Only when the world went to war again in the 1930s and ’40s did
the earlier conflict become known as the First World War. Its casualty totals were
unprecedented, soaring into the millions. World War I is known for the extensive
system of trenches from which men of both sides fought. Lethal new technologies
were unleashed, and for the first time a major war was fought not only on land
and on sea but below the sea and in the skies as well. The two sides were known
as the Allies or Entente—consisting primarily of France, Great Britain, Italy, Russia,
and later the United States—and the Central Powers, primarily comprised of
Austria-Hungary (the Habsburg Empire), Germany, and the Ottoman Empire
(Turkey). A number of smaller nations aligned themselves with one side or the
other. In the Pacific Japan, seeing a chance to seize German colonies, threw in
with the Allies. The Allies were the victors, as the entry of the United States into
the war in 1917 added an additional weight of men and materiel the Central
Powers could not hope to match.
The war resulted in a dramatically changed geo-political landscape, including the
destruction of three empires: Austro-Hungarian, Ottoman and Russian. New
borders were drawn at its conclusion and resentments, especially on the part of
Germany, left festering in Europe. Ironically, decisions made after the fighting
ceased led the War to End War to be a significant cause of the Second World War.
As John Keegan wrote in The First World War (Alfred A. Knopf, 1999), "The First
World War was a tragic and unnecessary conflict … the train of events that led to
its outbreak might have been broken at any point during the five weeks of crisis
that preceded the first clash of arms, had prudence or common goodwill found a
voice."
Causes of World War I
Prime Minister of Germany Otto von Bismarck had prophesied that when war
again came to Europe it would be over "some damn foolish thing in the Balkans."
Indeed, the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir apparent to the
Habsburg throne of Austria-Hungary, and his wife, Sophie, by a Serbian nationalist
on June 28, 1914, was the match that lit the fuse—but it didn’t create the powder
keg. The outbreak of war between European nations was the result of several
factors:
 Concern over other countries’ military expansion, leading to an arms race
and entangling alliances
  Fear of losing economic and/or diplomatic status
 Long-standing ethnic differences and rising nationalism in the Balkans
 French resentment of territorial losses in the 1871 Franco-Prussian War
 The influence exerted by military leaders

2. The World War II

The Second World War was
arguably the most significant
period of the 20th century. It
brought about major leaps in
technology and laid the
groundwork that permitted
post-war social changes
including the end of European
colonialism, the civil rights
movement in the United
States, and the modern women’s rights movement, as well as the programs for
exploring outer space. The primary combatants were the Axis nations (Nazi
Germany, Facist Italy, Imperial Japan and their smaller allies) and the Allied
nations, led by Britain (and its Commonwealth nations), the Union of Soviet
Socialist Republics and the United States of America. The Allies were the victors.
Two superpowers, the USA and USSR, emerged from World War II to begin a Cold
War with each other that would define much of the rest of the century.
The United States Enters World War II
The United States of America had technically remained on the sidelines until near
the end of 1941, although it had provided aid to Britain and the Soviet Union.
After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, December 7, 1941, (see The Pacific
War, below) Congress declared war on Japan. Nazi Germany, honoring its pact
with Japan, then declared war on the U.S.; Italy, Romania and other countries
within the European Axis alliance did the same. America was now at war with all
the Axis belligerents and would bring the full weight of its industrial power, vast
natural resources and large population onto the side of the British
Commonwealth and its allied nations such as the Free French, Free Poles, etc.
An American officer, Major General Dwight D. Eisenhower (soon promoted to
lieutenant general) was named supreme commander, Allied Expeditionary Forces,
European Theater of Operations. Although the battle-tested British were skeptical
about his lack of command experience, Eisenhower proved to be skilled in the
diplomacy required to coordinate the commanders and forces of the many Allied
nations.
American troops first saw land combat against the soldiers of Nazi Germany, Italy
(and some Vichy French) after the U.S. and the United Kingdom invaded Algeria
and Morocco in North Africa during Operation Torch on November 8th, 1942.
They pushed east toward Tunis and came within a dozen miles of their objective
before German counterattacks threw them back. In February 1943 at Kasserine
Pass Rommel inflicted on the U.S. forces one of the worst defeats in America’s
military history but failed to achieve his strategic goals. Allied armies squeezed
the Axis from the west and from the east. The Axis commanders—Rommel had
been recalled to Europe—surrendered in May. Some troops were successfully
evacuated to Sicily, but North Africa had cost the Axis 650,000 casualties; Britain’s
losses were little more than a third of that, and America, arriving much later,
suffered less than 20,000.
 UNIDAD EDUCATIVA PARTICULAR “SAN JOSÉ DE CALASANZ”
Name:…………………………………………………… Date: ……….…………………………….
Grade: 2do bachillerato Subject: History and Social Sciences

PART V: MAJOR CONFLICTS OF THE LAST DECADE WORKSHEET #9

1. What is the 1900s most important accomplishment, and write a little more
about it.
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2. Why did the WWI happen and who were the main characters?
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3. Why did the US were participants of the WWII?
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4. Were the 70s a relevant decade? Why?
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5. What were the outbreak of war?
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