European History Transformations

• The Protestant Reformation saw the fragmentation of religious thought, leading to religious wars.
• The Age of Exploration led to colonization, and the exploitation of the people and resources of colonies brought resources and wealth to Europe.
• After 1800, the Industrial Revolution brought capital accumulation and rapid urbanization to Western Europe, while several countries transitioned away from absolutist rule to parliamentary regimes.
• The Age of Revolutions saw long-established political systems upset and turned over. In the 20th century, World War I led to a remaking of the map of Europe as the large Empires were broken up into nation-states.
• Lingering political issues would lead to World War II, during which Nazi Germany perpetrated the Holocaust.
• After World War II, during the Cold War, most of Europe became divided by the Iron Curtain in two military blocs: NATO and the Warsaw Pact.
• The post-war period saw decolonization as Western European colonial empires were dismantled.
• The post-war period also featured the gradual development of the European integration process, which led to the creation of the European Union; this extended to Eastern European countries after the Fall of the Berlin Wall.

The key facts from the text above are as follows:

• The Protestant Reformation saw the fragmentation of religious thought, leading to religious wars.
• The Age of Exploration led to colonization, and the exploitation of the people and resources of colonies brought resources and wealth to Europe.
• After 1800, the Industrial Revolution brought capital accumulation and rapid urbanization to Western Europe, while several countries transitioned away from absolutist rule to parliamentary regimes.
• The Age of Revolutions saw long-established political systems upset and turned over. In the 20th century, World War I led to a remaking of the map of Europe as the large Empires were broken up into nation-states.
• Lingering political issues would lead to World War II, during which Nazi Germany perpetrated the Holocaust.
• After World War II, during the Cold War, most of Europe became divided by the Iron Curtain in two military blocs: NATO and the Warsaw Pact.
• The post-war period saw decolonization as Western European colonial empires were dismantled.
• The post-war period also featured the gradual development of the European integration process, which led to the creation of the European Union; this extended to Eastern European countries after the Fall of the Berlin Wall.

Test your knowledge about the significant historical transformations in Europe, from religious conflicts to colonial exploitation, industrial revolution, world wars, and the establishment of the European Union.