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476
Fall of the Roman Empire
Odoacer, a Germanic barbarian took control of Rome. He forced Romulus, the emperor of Rome, to give up his crown. Although this was a bad time, many poor people were happy because they were being taxed heavily by Rome and couldn't afford food. Near the end, Mediolanum became the capital and replaced Rome.
https://www.ducksters.com/history/ancient_rome/fall_of_rome.php -
476
The Middle Ages
After the fall of the Roman Empire, no form of government stood up to unify the people in Europe. Alternatively, The Catholic Church was the main establishment that gave Kings and Queens their power and protection. The church began to establish Crusades and remove all Muslims from the Holy Land during the end of the 11th century.
https://www.history.com/topics/middle-ages/middle-ages -
1096
Crusades
Crusades were military expeditions led by European countries to secure the Holy Land (Israel) from Muslims. This resulted in 8 major battles between the two religions over a span of 200 years. In total, close to 2 million lives were lost. At the conclusion of the crusades, the muslims remained in control of the Holy Land but crusaders came back with many new fruits and spices.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.history.com/.amp/topics/middle-ages/crusades -
1300
The Renaissance
The Renaissance was a time period of "coming out of the dark" after the fall of the Roman Empire. A major part of the renaissance was a movement called humanism. Humanism was a belief that people should reach to learn about classical art, science, and literature. This was overall a better time for people to live. Many famous paintings and sculptures were created during this time, like The Mona Lisa.
https://www.ducksters.com/history/renaissance.php -
1517
Protestant Reformation
Reformation began in 1517 when people started reading the Bible for themselves. Many determined there were differences in the Catholic interpretation and their own. In fact, a monk named Martin Luther studied the Bible and found 95 discrepancies between the Bible and the Catholic doctrine, then posted them on the door of a Catholic church. This influenced the creation of a new religion, Protestantism, that became a new major religion.
https://www.ducksters.com/history/renaissance_reformation.php -
The Age of Enlightenment
The Enlightenment was a period in Europe when philosophers questioned the Catholic Church's authority. They reconsidered current politics, science, and philosophy and gathered that life could be improved through logical change. Isacc Newton and others provided outside information and theories that helped Europe improve academically.
https://www.history.com/topics/british-history/enlightenment -
The French Revolution
The French Revolution was the overthrow of the French Monarchy, led by General Napoleon Bonaparte. Many aristocrats along with the Royal Family were killed, and Napoleon eventually took over and became dictator. The Revolution was driven by poor conditions, poor education systems, starvation, high taxes etc., while the monarchy enjoyed lavish lifestyles.
https://www.ducksters.com/history/french_revolution/ -
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was when most agricultural civilizations transformed into industrial/manufacturing societies. Many new inventions were created during this time, such as, the lightbulb, steam engine, and telephone. Children started working in the factories/mines as early as 4 years old so they could help support their families. Workers often got Injured due to the highly dangerous conditions in the factories or mines. https://www.ducksters.com/history/us_1800s/industrial_revolution.php -
WWI
The start of WWI was initiated from the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria. Austria felt the need to avenge the assassination, so they prepared for war. Shortly after, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. Later, alliances were made and war broke out between the Allied Powers and the Central Powers. Finally, after years of fighting, the war ended and the Allied powers came out victorious.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.history.com/.amp/topics/world-war-i/world-war-i-history -
WWII
In 1939, Adolf Hitler invaded Poland. As a result, Great Britain and France declared war on Germany, which began WW2. Weeks later, the Soviet Union invaded Poland as well. Over the next few months, the Soviet Union and Germany invaded and occupied smaller countries in Europe. Part of Hitler's plan was to get rid of the Jew population all over Europe, and ended up killing 4 million during the Holocaust.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.history.com/.amp/topics/world-war-ii/world-war-ii-history -
The Cold War
The Cold War was a "war" mainly between the United States and the Soviet Union. There wasn't really a war, it was more of a race to who could be more technologically advanced. The space race was a time during the Cold War where the United States and Russia were fighting to complete space missions the first.
https://www.ducksters.com/history/cold_war/summary.php -
The Creation of the European Union
After World War II, European nations began to meet and discuss things that needed to be improved on, like economy and trade. Over a period of time, treaties and alliances were made and started to make Europe a stronger union. The European Union now has 3 major bodies of government: the Council, the European Parliment, and the European Commision.
https://www.ducksters.com/geography/country.php?country=European%20Union -
NATO/ Warsaw Pact
North Atlantic Treaty Organization (1949): A group of countries that pay into armies and “aid missions” that defend each other against non members that attack and terrorize others in the organization. The Warsaw Pact (1950) was a treaty signed in Warsaw, Poland, among the Soviet Union and 7 soviet states that was very much like NATO.
https://www.historychannel.com.au/articles/nato-established/ -
The Fall of the Berlin Wall
"Mr. Gorbachev, tear down that wall!" those were the words spoken by Pres. Ronald Raegan at the wall separating East and West Germany, at the start of the collapse of the Cold War and the Soviet Union. The Berlin Wall was constructed to Separate East (communist) and West Germany. Thousands of friends and families were separated from seeing each other, as the wall was 96 miles in length and heavily guarded by soldiers.
https://www.history.com/topics/cold-war/berlin-wall -
Collapse of the Soviet Union
In 1991, 14 out of 15 republics declared their independence from the USSR, due to poverty, economic instability, and poor standards of living, controlled by the Communist Party. This left Georgia the only loyal republic to the Soviet Union. Later, president Gorbachev resigned from his position as president, which marked the collapse of the Soviet Union.
https://www.history.com/topics/cold-war/fall-of-soviet-union
