World History II – 3rd Quarter Common Assessment Study Guide

Vocabulary flashcards based on key concepts from World History II lectures.

Otto von Bismarck

Unified Germany using Realpolitik; led Prussia in wars that created the German Empire.

Henry Bessemer

Invented the Bessemer Process for mass‑producing steel.

James Hargreaves

Invented the Spinning Jenny, increasing textile production.

Edward Jenner

Developed the first smallpox vaccine.

Cecil Rhodes

British imperialist; promoted expansion in Africa; founded De Beers.

Woodrow Wilson

U.S. president during WWI; proposed Fourteen Points and League of Nations.

Giuseppe Garibaldi

Unified southern Italy with his 'Red Shirts.'

Eli Whitney

Invented the cotton gin; increased cotton production and slavery.

Matthew Perry

Opened Japan to trade through the Treaty of Kanagawa.

James Watt

Improved the steam engine; powered industrialization.

Adam Smith

Wrote The Wealth of Nations; supported laissez‑faire capitalism.

Kaiser Wilhelm II

German emperor during WWI; militaristic policies increased tensions.

Karl Marx

Co‑wrote the Communist Manifesto; predicted class revolution.

Camillo di Cavour

Unified northern Italy as prime minister of Piedmont‑Sardinia.

Boers

Dutch settlers in South Africa; fought Britain in the Boer War.

John Kay

Invented the Flying Shuttle, speeding up weaving.

Louis Pasteur

Developed germ theory, pasteurization, and vaccines.

Realpolitik

Politics based on practicality and power.

Communist Manifesto

Critique of capitalism; predicted proletarian revolution.

Capitalism

Private ownership and profit‑based economy.

Imperialism

Strong nations dominating weaker regions.

Cottage Industry

Home‑based textile production before factories.

Urbanization

Movement of people to cities for industrial jobs.

Laissez‑faire Capitalism

Government should not interfere in business.

Industrialization

Shift to machine production and factories.

Collective Bargaining

Worker‑employer negotiations for better conditions.

Enclosure Movement

Landowners fenced land; farmers moved to cities.

Indian National Congress

Indian nationalist group seeking independence.

Suez Canal

Connected Mediterranean to Red Sea; shortened route to India.

Sepoy Mutiny

1857 rebellion of Indian soldiers against British rule.

Opium Wars

Britain vs. China over opium trade; resulted in unequal treaties.

Social Darwinism

Belief that stronger nations were 'fitter' to rule.

Socialism

Government/community ownership of major industries.

Spheres of Influence

Foreign control of trade areas in China.

Scramble for Africa

Rapid European colonization of Africa.

Open Door Policy

U.S. policy allowing equal trade rights in China.

Cotton Gin

Machine that cleaned cotton; increased slavery.

Japan’s Meiji Government

Modernized and industrialized Japan.

Spinning Jenny

Multi‑spindle spinning machine.

Steam Engine

Powered factories and transportation.

Agricultural Revolution

New farming methods increased food supply.

Entrepreneur

Person who organizes and risks capital in business.

Nationalism

Pride in one’s nation; desire for unity or independence.

Boer War

British victory over Boers in South Africa.

Triple Entente

Alliance of France, Russia, and Britain.

Afrikaners

Dutch‑descended settlers in South Africa.

Schlieffen Plan

Germany’s plan to defeat France quickly.

Triple Alliance

Alliance of Germany, Austria‑Hungary, and Italy.

Geographic outcome of colonization of Africa

European‑drawn borders ignored ethnic groups, causing long‑term conflict.

First industry to industrialize

Textiles.

Why slavery was abolished in Great Britain

Moral opposition and economic changes made slavery less profitable.

Fate of capitalism (Communist Manifesto)

Workers overthrow owners; classless society forms.

Motivation behind Boxer Rebellion & location

Anti‑foreign resentment; occurred in China.

Results of urbanization

Overcrowding, pollution, poor sanitation, factory labor.

First area to industrialize & why

Britain; had resources, capital, and stable government.

Resources that made India valuable to Britain

Cotton, tea, spices, opium, jute, large market.

Why African slave trade increased early in industrialization

Demand for raw materials increased labor needs.

Why women & children were preferred in factories

Cheap labor; easily controlled; small hands for machines.

'Jewel in the crown' of Britain & why

India; most valuable colony due to resources and markets.

Two African nations that resisted imperialism

Ethiopia and Liberia.

Region governed by spheres of influence

China.

Conflict that caused Britain to take direct control of India

Sepoy Mutiny (1857).

Berlin Conference

Meeting where Europeans divided Africa without African input.

Form of imperialism used in China

Spheres of Influence.

Result of Commodore Perry’s interaction with Japan

Japan opened ports; Meiji modernization began.

Causes of the Scramble for Africa

Resources, nationalism, competition, Social Darwinism, missionary motives.

Results of the Russo‑Japanese War

Japan defeated Russia; became a major world power.

Ottoman Empire location

Europe, Asia, Africa.

Trigger that started WWI

Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand.

Effects of WWI

Treaty of Versailles, new nations, casualties, economic ruin, League of Nations.

Causes of WWI

Militarism, Alliances, Imperialism, Nationalism (M.A.I.N.).

Total War

Nations devote all resources to the war effort.

Reasons the U.S. joined WWI

Unrestricted submarine warfare, Lusitania, Zimmerman Telegram.

New weapons/techniques in WWI

Machine guns, tanks, poison gas, submarines, airplanes, trench warfare.

Treaty of Brest‑Litovsk

Russia exited WWI; gave land to Germany.

New source of power that revolutionized the 19th century

Steam power.