What were the causes and outcomes of World War I (1914–1918)?

World War I (1914–1918): MAIN causes — Militarism (arms race, especially Germany vs Britain naval race), Alliance system (Triple Entente: UK-France-Russia vs Triple Alliance: Germany-Austria-Italy), Imperialism (competition for colonies), Nationalism (Balkans — 'powder keg of Europe'). Immediate trigger: Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand (heir to Austria-Hungary) at Sarajevo by Gavrilo Princip (Serbian nationalist), June 28, 1914. Two sides: Allied Powers (UK, France, Russia, Italy from 1915, USA from 1917, Japan) vs Central Powers (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Empire, Bulgaria). Key events: Trench warfare on Western Front; Gallipoli campaign; Battle of Somme (1 million casualties); USA joins 1917; Russia exits after revolution (Treaty of Brest-Litovsk); Germany surrenders November 11, 1918. Outcomes: (1) Treaty of Versailles (1919) — Germany blamed, war guilt clause; ₹6.6 billion reparations; territorial losses; army limited to 100,000. (2) Ottoman Empire dissolved; Middle East remapped (Sykes-Picot). (3) Austria-Hungary dissolved — new states: Poland, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, Hungary, Austria. (4) Russian Empire ended → Soviet Union. (5) League of Nations formed (Wilson's 14 Points). Indian connection: 1.5 million Indian soldiers fought; Home Rule League launched; Gandhi returns from South Africa.

What were the causes and outcomes of World War II (1939–1945)?

World War II (1939–1945): Causes — (1) Treaty of Versailles humiliation: Reparations and restrictions bred resentment in Germany. (2) Rise of fascism: Hitler (Germany), Mussolini (Italy), militarists (Japan). (3) Great Depression (1929): Economic devastation made extremist politics appealing. (4) Appeasement policy: UK and France conceded to Hitler's demands (Munich Agreement 1938 — Czechoslovakia). (5) German expansionism: Austria annexed 1938; Czechoslovakia 1939; Poland invasion triggered war. Two sides: Allies (UK, France, Soviet Union, USA, China) vs Axis (Germany, Italy, Japan). Key events: Battle of Britain (1940); German invasion of USSR (Operation Barbarossa, 1941); Pearl Harbor (December 7, 1941 — USA joins); Holocaust — 6 million Jews systematically murdered; Stalingrad (1942-43, turning point); D-Day Normandy invasion (June 6, 1944); Hiroshima-Nagasaki atomic bombs (August 6 and 9, 1945); Germany surrenders May 8 (VE Day); Japan surrenders September 2 (VJ Day). Outcomes: 70-85 million deaths (deadliest conflict ever); UN formed (1945); USA and USSR superpowers; Cold War begins; decolonisation accelerates; Israel created (1948); Nuremberg trials — war crimes accountability. India: Quit India Movement 1942; Subhas Chandra Bose + INA; famine 1943.

What was the Russian Revolution (1917) and how did it lead to the Soviet Union?

Russian Revolution (1917): Two revolutions in same year. February Revolution (March 1917 by Western calendar): Tsar Nicholas II abdicated; Provisional Government under Kerensky; continued in World War I — deeply unpopular. October Revolution (November 1917): Bolsheviks under Vladimir Lenin overthrew Provisional Government ('All power to the Soviets'); ended Russia's WWI participation (Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, 1918); began Communist rule. Background: Russia was economically backward; 1905 Revolution (failed); Bloody Sunday 1905; Rasputin controversy; WWI losses discredited Tsar. Lenin's ideology: Marxism-Leninism; party of professional revolutionaries (vanguard party) leads workers; immediate exit from WWI; redistribute land; nationalise industry. Civil War (1917-1922): Red Army (Bolsheviks) vs White Army (monarchists, Western-backed); Reds won. Soviet Union (USSR) formed 1922: Union of Soviet Socialist Republics — Russia + Ukraine + Belarus + Transcaucasia (later 15 republics). Stalin's rise (1924): Lenin died 1924; Stalin won power struggle vs Trotsky; collectivisation; rapid industrialisation; purges (millions killed). Cold War: USSR vs USA ideological conflict 1947-1991. USSR dissolved December 1991 — Russia and 14 independent states.

What was the Cold War and how did it shape the world (1947–1991)?

Cold War (1947–1991): Ideological, political, economic competition between USA (capitalism/democracy) and USSR (communism) — 'cold' because direct war never fought (nuclear deterrence). Origins: Post-WWII — USA and USSR had different visions for post-war Europe; Soviet expansion in Eastern Europe; Truman Doctrine (1947) — USA would resist communist expansion. Key features: Arms race — nuclear weapons; Space race (Sputnik 1957, Moon landing 1969); Proxy wars (Korea 1950-53, Vietnam 1955-75, Afghanistan 1979-89); Nuclear fear — Cuban Missile Crisis (1962, closest to nuclear war; Kennedy vs Khrushchev); Berlin Wall (1961-1989 — symbol of division). Key blocs: NATO (1949, USA-led military alliance, Western Europe) vs Warsaw Pact (1955, USSR-led, Eastern Europe). India's role: Led Non-Aligned Movement (with Nehru, Nasser, Tito) — refused to join either bloc; maintained relations with both. End of Cold War: USSR economic stagnation + Gorbachev's Glasnost/Perestroika reforms; Eastern European revolutions 1989; Berlin Wall fell November 9, 1989; USSR dissolved December 25, 1991. Outcome: USA emerged as sole superpower; NATO expanded eastward; 15 post-Soviet republics (Russia, Ukraine, Baltic states etc.).

World History — Revolutions, Wars & Decolonisation — TNPSC Group 1 Notes

American Independence (1776)

Background and Causes

British colonies in America: 13 colonies on eastern coast; part of British Empire; taxed without representation in Parliament.

Key grievances:

"No taxation without representation": Stamp Act (1765), Townshend Acts, Tea Act (1773) — taxes imposed without colonial consent
Boston Massacre (1770): British soldiers kill 5 colonists — fuels anti-British sentiment
Boston Tea Party (1773): Colonists dump British tea in Boston harbour — protest against Tea Act

Key Events

Event	Date	Significance
Lexington-Concord battles	April 1775	First shots of revolution
Second Continental Congress	May 1775	Coordinate resistance; appoint Washington as commander
Declaration of Independence	July 4, 1776	Thomas Jefferson drafted; all men created equal; inalienable rights
Battle of Yorktown	1781	British surrender; war effectively over
Treaty of Paris	1783	Britain recognised US independence
US Constitution	1787	World's oldest written constitution; federal system
Bill of Rights	1791	First 10 amendments; individual rights

Impact on the World

Inspired French Revolution (1789)
First successful anti-colonial revolution
Enlightenment ideas (Locke, Rousseau) put into practice
Federal democracy model influenced India's Constitution

French Revolution (1789–1799)

Three Estates

Estate	Who	Tax burden
First	Clergy	Exempt from most taxes
Second	Nobility	Exempt from most taxes
Third	Everyone else (98%)	Bore entire tax burden

Timeline

Event	Date	Significance
Estates-General convened	May 1789	Louis XVI summons to address financial crisis
Tennis Court Oath	June 1789	Third Estate declares itself National Assembly
Storming of the Bastille	July 14, 1789	Symbol of revolution; National Day of France
Declaration of Rights of Man	August 1789	Liberty, equality, fraternity
Women's March on Versailles	October 1789	Bread prices; Louis XVI brought to Paris
Execution of Louis XVI	January 1793	Monarchy abolished
Reign of Terror	1793–1794	Robespierre; thousands guillotined
Napoleon takes power	November 1799	End of revolutionary period

Legacy

Ended feudalism; spread ideas of liberté, égalité, fraternité
Inspired revolutions across Europe (1848 — "Year of Revolutions")
Influenced Indian nationalists and world's independence movements

Industrial Revolution (1760–1840)

Britain First

Why Britain: Coal + iron reserves; colonial trade; parliamentary stability; entrepreneurship; enclosure movement (created urban labour force)

Key inventions:

Invention	Inventor	Year	Impact
Steam engine (improved)	James Watt	1769	Powered factories and locomotives
Spinning jenny	James Hargreaves	1764	Multiplied textile production
Power loom	Edmund Cartwright	1785	Mechanised weaving
Steam locomotive	George Stephenson	1814	Railways — transformed transport

Impact

Factory system replaced cottage industry
Urbanisation — cities grew rapidly (London, Manchester, Birmingham)
New social classes: Industrial capitalists (bourgeoisie) and industrial workers (proletariat)
Child labour; poor working conditions — led to labour movements, trade unions
Spread to Europe, USA, Japan; Britain = "Workshop of the World" 1800-1850

Impact on India: British industrialisation led to deindustrialisation of India — Indian handloom and artisan industries destroyed by cheap machine-made British goods

World War I (1914–1918)

Causes (MAIN)

Militarism: Germany-Britain naval arms race; military planning (Schlieffen Plan)
Alliance system: Triple Entente (UK, France, Russia) vs Triple Alliance (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy)
Imperialism: Competition for African/Asian colonies
Nationalism: Balkan nationalism; Serbia wanted South Slav unification; Austro-Hungarian anxiety

Trigger: Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand at Sarajevo (June 28, 1914)

Key Events

Event	Significance
Schlieffen Plan	Germany attacks France through Belgium → UK joins (violated neutrality)
Trench warfare	Western Front stalemate; millions died in trenches
Battle of Somme (1916)	1 million casualties in 4 months
USA enters (1917)	Zimmermann Telegram to Mexico; unrestricted submarine warfare
Russian Revolution (1917)	Russia exits; Treaty of Brest-Litovsk (1918)
Armistice (Nov 11, 1918)	11th hour, 11th day, 11th month — Germany surrenders

Treaty of Versailles (1919)

Germany accepts sole blame ("war guilt" clause, Art 231)
₹6.6 billion reparations
Territorial losses: Alsace-Lorraine (France), Polish Corridor, colonies
Army limited to 100,000
Seeds of WWII: German humiliation → Hitler's rise

League of Nations

Proposed: Woodrow Wilson (US President) — 14 Points
Formed: 1920; Geneva, Switzerland
USA never joined: US Senate rejected; Wilson's own party split
Failures: No military force; could not stop Japan (Manchuria 1931), Italy (Ethiopia 1935), Hitler
Dissolved: 1946; replaced by United Nations

Russian Revolution (1917)

Two Revolutions

February Revolution (February 1917):

Food shortages + WWI defeats → mass protests in Petrograd
Tsar Nicholas II abdicates
Provisional Government (Kerensky) — continued the war — mistake

October Revolution (October 1917):

Bolsheviks (Lenin) overthrow Provisional Government
"Peace, Land, Bread" — masses respond
All power to Soviets (workers' councils)

Lenin's Rule (1917–1924)

Exit from WWI (Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, March 1918)
Civil War vs White Army (1917-1922) — Red Army wins
New Economic Policy (NEP) — limited capitalism allowed
USSR formed December 1922

Stalin's Rule (1924–1953)

Collectivisation of agriculture — millions starved (Ukrainian famine 1932-33)
Five Year Plans — rapid industrialisation
Purges — millions executed or sent to Gulag
WWII — Soviet Union's decisive role (10 million soldier deaths)

World War II (1939–1945)

Timeline

Date	Event
September 1939	Germany invades Poland; UK and France declare war
May–June 1940	Fall of France; Dunkirk evacuation
July–October 1940	Battle of Britain (air war)
June 1941	Operation Barbarossa — Germany invades USSR
December 7, 1941	Pearl Harbor — Japan attacks US naval base; USA joins war
1942–43	Battle of Stalingrad — turning point; Germany loses 300,000+
June 6, 1944	D-Day — Allied landings in Normandy
May 8, 1945	Germany surrenders (VE Day)
August 6, 1945	Hiroshima atomic bomb (Little Boy)
August 9, 1945	Nagasaki atomic bomb (Fat Man)
September 2, 1945	Japan surrenders (VJ Day)

Holocaust

Systematic murder of 6 million Jews by Nazi Germany
Also killed: Roma, disabled, homosexuals, Soviet POWs, political opponents
Concentration camps: Auschwitz (largest), Treblinka, Dachau
Nuremberg Trials (1945-46): First international war crimes tribunal — Nazi leaders tried; crimes against humanity concept established

United Nations (1945)

Founded: October 24, 1945 (UN Day)
Headquarters: New York
San Francisco Conference: Charter signed by 50 nations
UNSC (Security Council): 5 permanent members (P5) — USA, UK, France, USSR (now Russia), China — each has veto power
India: Founding member; advocates for permanent UNSC seat

Cold War (1947–1991)

Phases

Phase	Events
Early Cold War (1947-53)	Truman Doctrine; Marshall Plan; Berlin Blockade; NATO; Korean War
Intense period (1953-62)	Sputnik; Hungarian Revolution; Cuba; Berlin Wall; Cuban Missile Crisis
Détente (1963-79)	Nuclear Test Ban Treaty; SALT; Nixon-Brezhnev; Helsinki Accords
Second Cold War (1979-85)	Soviet invasion of Afghanistan; Reagan vs USSR
End (1985-91)	Gorbachev; Berlin Wall falls 1989; USSR dissolves 1991

Key Events

Event	Year	Significance
Truman Doctrine	1947	USA to resist communist expansion
Marshall Plan	1948	$13 billion to rebuild Western Europe
Berlin Blockade/Airlift	1948-49	USSR blockades West Berlin; USA/UK airlift
NATO formed	1949	Western military alliance (26 members now)
Korean War	1950-53	First proxy war; armistice, divided Korea
Sputnik	1957	First satellite (USSR) — starts Space Race
Cuban Missile Crisis	1962	Closest to nuclear war; Kennedy vs Khrushchev; resolved
Berlin Wall built	1961	Divided Berlin; symbol of Cold War division
Vietnam War	1955-75	USA vs communist North Vietnam; USA lost
Moon landing	1969	USA wins Space Race (Armstrong walks on Moon)
Soviet-Afghan War	1979-89	USSR invades Afghanistan; USA aids mujahideen
Berlin Wall falls	1989	Symbol of Cold War's end
USSR dissolves	December 25, 1991	15 independent republics; Cold War ends

Decolonisation of Asia and Africa

Asia (1940s–50s)

Country	Independence	From
India	August 15, 1947	Britain
Pakistan	August 14, 1947	Britain
Indonesia	August 17, 1945	Netherlands (declared); 1949 recognised
Vietnam	September 2, 1945	France (declared); fought 1946-54
Burma (Myanmar)	January 4, 1948	Britain
Ceylon (Sri Lanka)	February 4, 1948	Britain
Malaysia	August 31, 1957	Britain

Bandung Conference (1955): 29 Asian-African nations; led to Non-Aligned Movement (1961)

Africa (1950s–60s)

"Year of Africa" 1960: 17 African nations gained independence
Ghana: First sub-Saharan country (1957, Kwame Nkrumah)
French colonies mostly 1960; Portuguese colonies 1974-75 (after Carnation Revolution)
Apartheid in South Africa: Racist system (1948-1994); ended with Nelson Mandela elected President 1994

Key Colonial Legacy Issues

Arbitrary borders (straight lines drawn by Europeans) — cause of ongoing African conflicts
Economic underdevelopment — resources extracted, industry not built
Language/cultural imposition

Board Exam Tips

American Independence: July 4, 1776; Declaration of Independence (Jefferson); World's oldest written Constitution (1787)
French Revolution: Storming of Bastille = July 14, 1789; Liberty, Equality, Fraternity; Three Estates
Industrial Revolution: Britain first; James Watt steam engine; destroyed Indian handloom industry
WWI: 1914-1918; Sarajevo assassination trigger; Treaty of Versailles (1919); League of Nations
League of Nations: Wilson's idea; USA never joined; failed; dissolved 1946 → UN
Russian Revolution: Feb 1917 (Tsar abdicates); Oct 1917 (Lenin + Bolsheviks); USSR formed 1922
WWII: 1939-1945; Pearl Harbor (Dec 7, 1941); Stalingrad = turning point; D-Day = June 6, 1944
Hiroshima: August 6, 1945; Nagasaki: August 9, 1945
UN: October 24, 1945; 5 P5 members with veto; HQ New York
Cuban Missile Crisis (1962): Closest to nuclear war; resolved peacefully
Berlin Wall: Built 1961; fell November 9, 1989
Cold War ended: USSR dissolved December 25, 1991
Bandung Conference 1955: Led to Non-Aligned Movement 1961
Year of Africa: 1960 — 17 African nations independent
Apartheid ended: South Africa 1994; Mandela President

Frequently Asked Questions

French Revolution (1789–1799): Causes — (1) Financial crisis: France bankrupt after American War support + excessive royal spending; taxation fell on commoners (peasants + bourgeoisie), not nobles/clergy. (2) Social inequality: Three estates — First (clergy), Second (nobility) exempt from most taxes; Third (everyone else — 98% of population) bore the tax burden. (3) Enlightenment ideas: Philosophers Voltaire, Rousseau, Montesquieu challenged divine right of kings; promoted liberty, equality, sovereignty of people. (4) Food crisis: Bread prices soared 1788-89; hungry urban poor mobilised. Key events: Storming of the Bastille (July 14, 1789) — symbolic start; Declaration of Rights of Man (August 1789) — liberty, equality, fraternity; execution of Louis XVI (1793); Reign of Terror under Robespierre (1793-94); Napoleon Bonaparte rises (1799). Outcomes: (1) Ended feudalism and absolute monarchy in France. (2) Spread ideas of liberty, equality, nationalism, republicanism across Europe. (3) Revolutionary wars spread these ideas through military conquest. (4) Napoleon's rise — unintended consequence. Impact on India: Tipu Sultan sought French alliance against British; French ideas influenced early Indian nationalists.