Economic History and Global Conflicts Review

A set of vocabulary flashcards covering economic philosophies, world wars, political ideologies, and modern global conflicts based on the lecture notes.

Mercantilism

An economic philosophy prevalent from the 16th to 18th centuries stating that a nation's power is determined by its gold supply and that it must export more than it imports.

Adam Smith

Considered the father of capitalism and author of 'An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations', he argued against mercantilism and for the 'invisible hand' of the market.

Second Industrial Revolution

A period in the late 1800s marked by an unprecedented increase in economic productivity, the rise of city populations, and new transportation technology like railroads and canals.

Sherman Antitrust Act

A Progressive Era law that allowed the government to investigate, regulate, and control large companies to prevent the restriction of competition.

Hawley-Smoot Tariff

A tariff during the Great Depression that led to international retaliatory tariffs and the paralysis of global trade.

Keynesian Economics

An economic theory advocated by John Maynard Keynes suggesting that government intervention, such as reducing interest rates and infrastructure investment, can stabilize the economy.

Supply Side Economics (Reaganomics)

The 1980s policy focusing on increasing the ability of suppliers to produce by reducing regulation and taxation.

Gross Domestic Product (GDP)

The measure of a country's total economic output.

Penal Colony

A settlement established for prisoners, such as Australia, founded in $1788$ under Captain Arthur Phillip to alleviate overcrowding in British prisons.

Meiji Restoration

The $1868$ event that returned Japan to imperial rule and led to the adoption of Western technology and military styles to modernize the economy.

Second Sino-Japanese War

A conflict between Japan and China from $1937$ to $1945$ sparked by imperialist tensions and a dispute in Peking.

Militarism

One of the causes of World War I, defined as countries building up their armed forces during peacetime to expand diplomatic power and influence.

Trench Warfare

A form of combat used in WWI where troops lived in thousands of miles of trenches for protection, leading to high casualties and 'shell shock' (PTSD).

Treaty of Versailles

The $1919$ peace agreement between the Allies and Germany that ended WWI but imposed harsh economic sanctions and fueled future resentment.

Bolsheviks

A faction of the Russian socialist movement led by Vladimir Lenin that initiated the $1917$ Russian Revolution and formed the Soviet Union in $1922$.

Mexican Revolution

A movement from $1910$ to $1920$, led by a coalition of liberals and revolutionaries, which resulted in the Constitution of $1917$ and significant land and labor reforms.

Fascism

A political philosophy that glorifies the nation and race above the individual, characterized by centralized government under a dictator and social regimentation.

Communism

A political and economic theory where all property is publicly owned and the working class (proletariat) controls the means of production.

The Holocaust

The intentional genocide of approximately $6,000,000$ Jews by Nazi Germany during World War II.

D-Day

The massive Allied invasion of Normandy, France, on June $6$, $1944$, which marked the beginning of operations on the Western Front.

Marshall Plan

The American initiative used to rebuild Western Europe and Japan following the conclusion of World War II.

United Nations

An international organization formed after WWII to promote cooperation and diplomacy, which voted in $1947$ to partition Palestine into Jewish and Arab states.

Berlin Airlift

A $1948$–$1949$ operation where Western Allies flew over $200,000$ flights to deliver fuel and food to West Berlin during a Soviet blockade.

War on Terror

A foreign policy initiative launched by George W. Bush in response to the September $11$ attacks, leading to invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq.

ISIS

A terrorist organization, also known as ISIL, that identified as a caliphate in $2014$ and claimed ownership of all traditionally-Muslim lands worldwide.