Notes, summaries, assignments, exams, and problems for History

Key European Union Institutions

• European Council

  Composed of the heads of state or government of EU member states. It identifies priorities and decides the general EU's political agenda.

• Council of the EU

  Made up of ministers from each EU country, corresponding to the matters being dealt with (e.g., environment, health). It passes European laws and budgets and coordinates economic and security policy.

• European Parliament

  Composed of representatives elected by the citizens from each EU country.

• European Commission

  Composed of a President and 28 Commissioners.

• Court of Justice of the EU

  Ensures EU law is applied the same way in every EU country.

• European Central Bank

  Manages the euro and EU monetary policy and keeps prices stable.

• European Court of Auditors

  Checks

Legislative Assembly (1791–1792)

Political Parties

• Girondins
• Jacobins
• Sans-culottes

Opposition to New Government

• The royal family.
• Nobles who fled the revolution lived abroad as émigrés.
• Church officials wanted church lands, rights, and privileges restored.
• European monarchs feared the revolution would spread to their own countries.

Growing Radicalism

Reasons:

• Unsatisfied expectations.
• Outbreak of war (France was invaded by Austrian and Prussian troops).

Results:

• Popular insurrection.
• The Commune took control of Paris.
• Voters began electing representatives for a new Convention which would write a republican constitution for France.

Convention (1792–1795)

Actions and Conflicts

• Established the Republic.
• Abolished the monarchy and executed the King.
• Faced domestic

The Bolsheviks (Radicals)

In the 1890s, the Bolsheviks encouraged industrial workers to protest against their living conditions, aiming to trigger a Marxist revolution. Consequently, the Tsar exiled many of them.

During a Social Democrat Conference, members debated whether to become a mass party or remain a small, revolutionary group. They eventually split into:

• Bolsheviks: A small, disciplined group led by Lenin.
• Mensheviks: A larger, mass-membership party.

The Bolsheviks smuggled newspapers to gain influence while maintaining a small, impactful core. Lenin was exiled during the war but returned during the February Revolution.

Lenin authored the April Theses, which promised freedom and advocated for transferring power to the Soviets. He sought to... Continue reading "The Rise of the Bolsheviks and the October Revolution" »

Fascism in Italy

The causes of the birth of Fascism in Italy were largely due to:

• Dissatisfaction with the peace agreements established after the First World War.
• The post-war situation, plagued by an economic crisis, unemployment, inflation, and social unrest.
• Revolutionary movements that frightened the most conservative sectors of society.

Fascism was the creation of journalist Benito Mussolini, who founded the National Fascist Party in 1921. He used paramilitary groups—the Italian Combat Squads (or Blackshirts)—to quash the workers’ movement. Mussolini gained support from large landowners, the small bourgeoisie, the Church, and King Victor Emmanuel III.

In 1922, the successful intervention of the Italian Combat Squads against trade unions... Continue reading "Fascism in Italy and Nazism in Germany: Origins and Rise to Power" »

The 10 Stages of Genocide

• Classification
• Symbolization
• Discrimination
• Dehumanization
• Organization
• Polarization
• Preparation
• Persecution
• Extermination
• Denial

The Holocaust and Nazi Germany

• Nuremberg Laws (1935): Racial laws stripping Jewish people of German citizenship.
• The Final Solution: The Nazi plan for the systematic mass murder of Jews during WWII.
• Extermination Camps: Operated by the Nazis; Auschwitz II was the most notorious.
• Auschwitz: The primary destination for Jewish deportations in Poland.
• Victimization: Hungary suffered the highest number of Jewish casualties.
• Conditions: Prisoners in ghettos, railway cars, and camps faced extreme overcrowding, starvation, and dehydration.
• Post-War Justice: Many Nazi leaders were executed by hanging for war crimes.

TYPE OF TXT: Primary source

As regards the form, it's a law-legal text/terms for economic text

AUTHOR: Libe progre Governmnt, at the proposal of ministry of development+approved by Cortes+Isa2 (queen)

ADDRESSEE: All the Spaniards, so it is a public text

Introduction

OBJECTIVE: Attract foreign capital to boost the construction of the railway in Spain

LOCA+DATE: Aranju, published in "", located in process of "Vicalvarada" to Progre Biennium 1854-56

Main idea: Boost the construction of the railway in Spain and the need to attract foreign capital

Introduction: The law approved in Cortes is ratified by Isabel II, Queen of Spain

Articles:

Their object is to regulate the general service of the rail network.

4,6: Explains to whom corresponds construction of general... Continue reading "Boosting Railway Construction in Spain: A Primary Source Law Text" »

The new Bourbonic Monarchy: The decrees of the new plant. Reforms. (Cádiz)

Government and Administration Reform.
The reorganization of the State (Felipe V, Fernando VI, and Carlos III) established a strong, centralized, and unified absolute monarchy, following the French model.
The Councils are relegated (except for Castilla) by the Secretaries of Dispatch.
The Decrees of New Plant: they suppressed the fueros and institutions of Aragon, being respected Navarrese and Basque.
The Courts were unique, keeping Navarre.
State intervention in the economy. Unique tax in Castilla.
The State created real manufactures.

-Church:
Control of the Church – applied the regalism and obtained the universal patronage.
Regalism: Doctrine that defends the primacy of real... Continue reading "Reforms of the Borbonic Monarchy: Cadiz Decrees and Modernization" »

The Fall of the German Democratic Republic

The swift and unexpected downfall of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) was triggered by the decay of other communist regimes in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union.

The Breach of the Berlin Wall

The Berlin Wall was, in effect, breached in the summer of 1989 when a reformist Hungarian government began allowing East Germans to escape to Austria. By the fall, thousands of East Germans had followed this route, while thousands of others immigrated to West Germany.

In an effort to halt the deterioration of its position, the SED Politburo deposed Honecker in mid-October and replaced him with another hard-line communist, Egon Krenz. Under Krenz, the Politburo sought to eliminate the embarrassment occasioned... Continue reading "German Reunification: The Fall of the Berlin Wall" »

What is the Meaning of City-States?

What is a Colony?

What is the Golden Age of Greece About?

What is the Parthenon?

What Was Inside the Parthenon?

Write a Little Biography of Alexander the Great

Wars Involving Carlos V

After he was crowned Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire in 1520, Carlos V's main aspiration was to establish a universal Christian empire. The following groups were opposed to this:

• The Protestants in the Holy Roman Empire
• France
• The Ottoman Empire
• The Pope

Carlos V was constantly engaged in wars:

• War against France
• War against the Pope
• Flanders
• War against the Ottoman Empire
• War against the Protestants

Felipe II and His Territories

Felipe II, the son of Carlos V, reigned between 1556 and 1598. He inherited the Kingdoms of Spain and Burgundy. His uncle Fernando inherited the Habsburg Empire and the right to the imperial title.

Social Problems in the 16th Century

• Banditry in the Crown of Aragón, where outlaws attacked travelers and rich