History of

International
System
Balatucan, Janelle S.
Rebusio, Joviel V.
International System
States engage with one another in an
environment.
All states are considered to be sovereign, and
some states are more powerful than others.
 The Peace of
Westphalia (1648)
In 1648, the Peace of Westphalia, which
ended the Thirty Years’ War between
Catholic states and Protestant states in
western and central Europe, established our
modern international system.
 The Peace of
Westphalia (1648)
The Peace of Westphalia is regarded as a
milestone in the development toward
tolerance and secularization.
Shifting Balances of
Power (1600–1800)
In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, the
nation-state emerged as the dominant political unit of
the international system. A series of powerful states
dominated Europe, with the great powers rising and
falling. Weaker states often banded together to
prevent the dominant power from becoming too
strong, a practice known as preserving the Balance Of
Power.
BALANCE OF POWER
The posture and policy of a nation or group of nations
protecting itself against another nation or group of nations
by matching its power against the power of the other side.
BALANCE OF POWER
1. increasing their own power

a 2. alliance

d b
c
Emergence of Nationalism
(1800-1945)
The nineteenth century brought two major changes to the
international system:

1. Nationalism emerged as a strong force, allowing nation-states

to grow even more powerful.
2. Italy and Germany became unified countries, which altered
the balance of military and economic power in Europe.
The problems raised by the unification of Germany contributed to World
War I (1914- 1918). In the aftermath of the war, the international system
changed dramatically again. The major powers of Europe had suffered
greatly, whereas the United States began to come out of its isolation and
transform into a global power. At the same time, the end of the Ottoman
and Austro-Hungarian empires created a series of new nations, and the
rise of communism in Russia presented problems for other nations. These
factors contributed to the Treaty of Versailles, the rise of Nazism and
communism, and World War II (1939-1945)
New World Orders (1945-
Present)
The end of World War II marked a decisive shift in the global
system. After the war, only two great world powers remained:
the United States and the Soviet Union. Although some other
important states existed, almost all states were understood
within the context of their relations with the two
superpowers. This global system was called Bipolar because
the system centered on two great powers.
Since the end of the Cold War and the fall of the Soviet Union, the nature
of the world has changed again. Only one superpower remains, leading
some scholars to label the new international system Unipolar. Others
point to the increasing economic power of some European and Asian
states and label the new system Multipolar. To some extent, both terms
are accurate. The United States has the world's most powerful military,
which supports the unipolar view, but the U.S. economy is not as powerful,
relative to the rest of the world, lending credence to the multipolar view.
lesson learned: