WHAP- 1900 CE to Present Vocab

World War I

Global conflict from 1914 to 1918 involving major European powers and their colonies, triggered by rising nationalism, alliances, and militarism

Archduke Francis Ferdinand

Heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne whose assassination in 1914 sparked the start of World War I

Triple Alliance

Pre-WWI military alliance between Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy

Central Powers

Alliance of Germany, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire, and Bulgaria during World War I

Total War

Warfare in which governments mobilize entire economies and civilian populations to support the war effort

Nationalism

Strong identification with and loyalty to one's nation, which fueled conflicts and independence movements

Self-determination

Principle that nations and peoples should have the right to choose their own government

Propaganda

Government messaging used to influence public opinion and encourage support for war

Armenians in Turkey

Ethnic group targeted in the Ottoman Empire during WWI in mass killings and deportations widely considered genocide

Zimmerman Telegram

Secret German message encouraging Mexico to attack the United States during World War I

Lenin and Bolsheviks

Marxist revolutionary group led by Vladimir Lenin that seized power in Russia in 1917

Bolshevik Communist State

Government established in Russia after the Bolshevik Revolution that created the foundation of the Soviet Union

Global war

Conflict that involves multiple continents and draws in many nations and their colonies

Influenza epidemic

Global flu pandemic of 1918 that spread rapidly during the end of World War I

Treaty of Versailles

1919 peace treaty ending WWI that imposed heavy punishments on Germany

League of Nations

International organization created after WWI to promote peace but weakened by lack of major powers

Fourteen Points

Woodrow Wilson’s plan for peace emphasizing self-determination and international cooperation

Mandate System

System where League of Nations allowed victorious powers to govern former colonies of defeated empires

Great Depression

Severe global economic crisis beginning in 1929 that caused widespread unemployment and instability

Totalitarianism

Political system where the state seeks total control over political, social, and economic life

Fascism

Authoritarian nationalist ideology emphasizing dictatorship, militarism, and suppression of opposition

Corporatism

Fascist economic system where the government organizes business and labor groups to serve state goals

Benito Mussolini

Fascist dictator of Italy who came to power in 1922

Nazism

Form of fascism in Germany based on extreme nationalism, racism, and anti-Semitism

Adolph Hitler

Nazi leader and dictator of Germany responsible for starting WWII and orchestrating the Holocaust

Scientific racism

Pseudoscientific belief that racial groups are biologically unequal and justify discrimination

Nuremberg Laws

Nazi laws that stripped Jews of citizenship and basic rights in Germany

Kristallnacht

1938 Nazi-organized attacks on Jewish homes, synagogues, and businesses across Germany

NEP (New Economic Plan)

Lenin’s policy allowing limited private trade to rebuild the Soviet economy after civil war

U.S.S.R.

Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, communist state formed in 1922 after the Russian Revolution

Joseph Stalin

Soviet leader who consolidated power and rapidly industrialized the USSR through authoritarian rule

Five-Year Plans

Soviet economic programs aimed at rapid industrialization and collectivized agriculture

New Deal

U.S. government programs created by Franklin Roosevelt to respond to the Great Depression

Mexican Revolution

Early 20th-century revolution that overthrew Porfirio Diaz and restructured Mexican society

Porfirio Diaz

Mexican dictator whose rule sparked the Mexican Revolution

Emiliano Zapata

Mexican revolutionary leader who fought for land reform and peasant rights

Lazaro Cardenas

Mexican president who expanded land redistribution and nationalized the oil industry

Turkish Nationalist Movement

Movement led by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk that replaced the Ottoman Empire with modern Turkey

Women’s suffrage

Movement that achieved voting rights for women in many countries in the early 20th century

Appeasement

Policy of giving concessions to aggressive nations to avoid war, used toward Nazi Germany before WWII

Axis Powers

Alliance of Germany, Italy, and Japan during World War II

Nanjing Massacre

1937 Japanese mass killing of Chinese civilians and prisoners in Nanjing

Holocaust

Nazi genocide that murdered about six million Jews and millions of other victims during WWII

Yalta Conference

1945 meeting of Allied leaders planning the political future of Europe after WWII

Potsdam Conference

Allied meeting discussing the occupation of Germany and postwar reconstruction

Cold War

Political and ideological rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union after WWII

United Nations

International organization founded in 1945 to promote peace and cooperation between nations

Iron Curtain

Division separating communist Eastern Europe from democratic Western Europe

Containment

U.S. strategy aimed at preventing the spread of communism during the Cold War

Truman Doctrine

U.S. policy providing aid to countries resisting communism

Marshall Plan

U.S. economic aid program rebuilding Western Europe after WWII

Berlin Airlift

Allied operation supplying West Berlin after a Soviet blockade in 1948

NATO

Military alliance of Western nations formed to counter Soviet expansion

Warsaw Pact

Military alliance of Soviet Union and Eastern European communist states

Proxy Wars

Conflicts where major powers support opposing sides without fighting directly

Korean War

Cold War conflict between communist North Korea and U.S.-supported South Korea

Domino Theory

Idea that if one country became communist nearby nations would also fall to communism

Ho Chi Minh

Communist leader who led Vietnamese independence and resistance to U.S. intervention

Non-Aligned Movement

Coalition of states that avoided alignment with either Cold War superpower

May Fourth Movement

Chinese nationalist protest movement promoting modernization and reform

Dr. Sun Yat-Sen

Chinese revolutionary leader who helped overthrow the Qing dynasty

CCP

Chinese Communist Party that eventually gained control of China in 1949

Mao Zedong

Communist leader who established the People’s Republic of China

Kuomintang

Chinese nationalist political party that fought the communists in the Chinese Civil War

Long March

Strategic retreat of communist forces that strengthened Mao’s leadership

Great Leap Forward

Mao’s campaign to rapidly industrialize China that resulted in famine

Cultural Revolution

Mao’s movement attacking traditional culture and political opponents

Deng Xiaoping

Chinese leader who introduced market reforms while maintaining communist rule

Decolonization

Process by which colonies gained independence after World War II

Amritsar

Site of a 1919 British massacre of Indian protesters that intensified independence movements

Indian National Congress

Major political organization leading the struggle for Indian independence

Muslim League

Political organization advocating Muslim political rights and creation of Pakistan

Pakistan

Muslim-majority state created in 1947 during the partition of India

Mohandas Gandhi

Indian leader who used nonviolent resistance against British colonial rule

Civil disobedience

Nonviolent refusal to obey unjust laws as a form of protest

Salt March

Gandhi’s protest against British taxation of salt in India

Muhammad Ali Jinnah

Leader of the Muslim League and founder of Pakistan

Jawaharlal Nehru

First prime minister of independent India

Gamal Abdel Nasser

Egyptian leader who promoted Arab nationalism and nationalized the Suez Canal

Suez Crisis

1956 conflict triggered when Egypt nationalized the Suez Canal

Iranian Revolution

1979 uprising that replaced Iran’s monarchy with an Islamic republic

Kwame Nkrumah

Leader of Ghana’s independence movement and advocate of Pan-Africanism

FLN

Algerian nationalist organization that fought France for independence

Biafran Civil War

Nigerian civil war sparked by an attempted regional secession

Pan-Africanism

Movement promoting unity and solidarity among African peoples

Negritude

Cultural movement celebrating African heritage and identity

Idi Amin

Ugandan military dictator known for brutal rule in the 1970s

Balfour Declaration

British statement supporting a Jewish homeland in Palestine

Zionist Movement

Movement advocating the creation of a Jewish state in Palestine

PLO

Palestinian political organization seeking Palestinian self-determination

Pan-Arabism

Ideology advocating political unity of Arab nations

Augusto Pinochet

Chilean military dictator who took power in a 1973 coup

Neocolonialism

Continued economic influence of powerful countries over former colonies

Dollar Diplomacy

U.S. policy using economic investment to expand influence abroad

Good Neighbor Policy

U.S. policy improving relations with Latin American countries

Sandinistas

Socialist revolutionary movement that overthrew the Nicaraguan dictatorship

PRI

Mexican political party that dominated national politics for much of the 20th century

Drug cartels

Organized criminal groups controlling illegal drug production and trade

Liberation theology

Religious movement linking Christian teachings with social justice and activism

Sputnik

First artificial satellite launched by the Soviet Union in 1957, starting the space race