Notes, summaries, assignments, exams, and exercises for History for Secondary education

Alexander Kerensky

Member of the Socialist Revolutionary Party and an active participant in the Provisional Government and the Petrograd Soviet.

April Theses

Document published by Lenin stating there should be no support for the Provisional Government and advocating withdrawal from World War I.

Bolsheviks

Marxist revolutionary group led by Lenin that sought a socialist revolution and aimed to give power to the workers.

Communism

Economic and social system created by Karl Marx, proposing that everything produced is shared instead of being kept by the one who created it.

Dual Power

Term referring to the two governing bodies in Russia after the February Revolution: the Provisional Government and the Petrograd Soviet.

Duma

National Russian parliament formed...

Napoleon's Rise and Fall (1804-1815)

Domestic Policy

Napoleon declared himself Emperor of France in 1804. He established the Civil Code, a set of laws that applied equally to all citizens. It introduced new legal concepts such as:

• Civil marriage
• Divorce
• Adoption
• State education

International Policy

Napoleon expanded his empire through numerous military victories over other European powers. He defeated all the countries allied against France except Great Britain. His power began to decline because he had to divide his forces between two distant fronts: Spain and the Russian Empire. Napoleon was finally defeated in 1815 at the Battle of Waterloo.

Consequences of the French Revolution and Napoleonic Empire

The main consequence of the French Revolution and...

The First Stage (1939-1941)

Victories of the Axis Powers

Germany launched a "blitzkrieg" or lightning war, concentrating a great force of tanks and planes to break through enemy lines. Thanks to Russia's neutrality, the Nazis conquered most of Western Europe (Denmark, Norway, Luxembourg, Belgium, the Low Countries, and France). The United Kingdom managed to stop them.

Italy supported Germany and attacked France from the south. France was forced to sign an armistice and recognize the division of its territory:

• An occupied territory under German control
• A collaborationist government in the south established in the city of Vichy.

The Nazis went on to conquer:

• North Africa
• The Balkans

They started the invasion of Russia, reaching Moscow and Stalingrad (...

Tension Factors

PATRIOTISM: People were deeply patriotic and wanted their country to be the best.

ARMS RACE: Germany, Russia, and Britain were building up lots of warships.

WAR PLANS: In 1914, the situation in Europe was tense. Secret alliances and the desire to grow empires had built up a dangerous climate of war.

KAISER: Germany had become very strong and its rivals were suspicious of their ruler, Wilhelm II.

COLONIAL EMPIRES: Some European countries, such as France and Britain, had created large worldwide empires and had become very rich.

ALLIANCES: In the years before the war, the nations of Europe were constantly making alliances. Germany with Austria-Hungary and Italy in 1881 to protect each other in the event they were attacked by France....

Eleanor Roosevelt (1884–1962)

As the Chair of the United Nations Human Rights Commission, Eleanor Roosevelt was the driving force in creating the 1948 charter which will always be her legacy: The Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Born in New York City, Eleanor married rising politician Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1905 and became fully immersed in public service. By the time they arrived in the White House in 1933 as President and First Lady, she was already deeply involved in human rights and social justice issues. Continuing her work on behalf of all people, she advocated equal rights for women, African Americans, and Depression-era workers, bringing inspiration and attention to their causes. Courageously outspoken, she publicly supported...

The Spanish-American War and the 1898 Crisis

Before 1898, Cuba demanded autonomy from the central government. Although there were insurrections, General Valeriano Weyler crushed the rebellion with cruelty. The United States began to support the Cuban rebels. The American battleship, USS Maine, exploded mysteriously in Havana harbor; Americans blamed the Spanish for the explosion and declared war on Spain.

The Treaty of Paris and the Colonial Loss

The Spanish-American War took place in both the Pacific and Atlantic. Spain was forced to surrender due to the superiority of the American army. Under the Treaty of Paris (1898), Spain ceded its possessions of Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the Philippines. Consequently, Spain lost its overseas possessions and...

Russia and the Soviet Union's Path to Reform

After World War II, the Soviet Union and the United States engaged in a Cold War, trying to increase their worldwide influence. The Soviet Union extended over Eastern Europe, establishing permanent Communism. However, big changes and reforms were on the horizon.

Gorbachev Moves Toward Democracy

• Brezhnev and the Politburo (the ruling committee of the Communist Party) crushed all political disagreement and also restricted freedom of speech and worship.
• After Brezhnev's death in 1982, his two successors died after only about a year in office. Therefore, the Politburo debated between two men. One was Mikhail Gorbachev, who finally became the party’s new general secretary.
• The Politburo did not realize that

The 1815 Vienna Settlement

The 1815 Vienna Settlement established the Concert of Europe to:

• Achieve a balance of power.
• Prevent continental war.
• Maintain absolute monarchies.
• Uphold established territorial arrangements.

Revolutions of 1848

Liberalists, Nationalists, and Socialists fought for the rights of the lower classes during the 1848 revolutions.

Unification of Germany

Before 1806, the region consisted of 300 individual states from the Holy Roman Empire. Following the Napoleonic era, nationalism grew, though Germany remained under Austrian influence within the German Confederation.

• 1840: The Zollverein (customs union) was created between Prussia and other states, angering Austria.
• 1848-1849: Revolutions occurred; however, the Kaiser refused the crown