Ottoman Empire Decline After 1900

Shifts in State Power After 1900

• At the beginning of the 20th century, Western powers held a dominant position in the global balance of power.
• By the end of the 20th century, numerous land-based and maritime empires collapsed, which resulted in the rise of new states.

Decline of the Ottoman Empire

• By the last period, the Ottoman Empire had earned the nickname "the sick man of Europe" due to its internal issues and weakening power.
• The Tanzimat reforms were a series of defensive industrialization programs that failed to revitalize the Empire.
• The Young Ottomans, a group educated in Western ideas, pushed for significant political changes to align the Ottoman Empire with Western democratic powers.
• The Sultan initially agreed to create a parliament and a constitution but later reverted to authoritarian rule when threatened by war with Russia.
• The Young Turks emerged as another reform-minded group that called for the complete modernization of the Ottoman Empire based on Western European models.
• The Young Turks advocated for a turkic Ottoman state, which led to the exclusion and alienation of various ethnic minorities.
• In 1908, the Young Turks overthrew the sultan, implemented reforms like secularizing schools and law codes, establishing political elections, and mandating Turkish as the official language.
• These nationalistic policies alienated non-Turkish minorities, which led to their own nationalist movements and further fragmentation within the Empire.
• After World War I, the Ottoman Empire was dissolved, and its territories were divided into several independent states by victorious powers.

Collapse of the Russian Empire

• By the end of the 19th century, Russia had made progress in industrialization under Alexander II.
• Nicholas II continued this trend, but the growing middle class resented the authoritarian policies of the tsarist regime and sought greater political participation.
• Grievances arose among the working class due to the harsh effects of state-sponsored industrialization.
• The Russian Revolution of 1905 was suppressed with force by Tsar Nicholas II, but he introduced a constitution and legalized labor unions and political parties as concessions.
• Nicholas largely ignored these reforms, which caused tensions to re-emerge.
• World War I intensified popular discontent and led to the Russian Revolution of 1917.
• Vladimir Lenin, the leader of the Bolsheviks, led the revolution and established a communist state, which became the Soviet Union.

Fall of the Qing Dynasty in China

• Throughout the 19th century, China faced internal and external challenges that weakened its power.
• The Taiping Rebellion caused millions of deaths and significant economic devastation, which further destabilized the Qing dynasty.
• China lost the Opium Wars to Western powers and the Sino-Japanese War to Japan, highlighting its inability to compete with industrialized nations.
• The Boxer Rebellion, led by the Society of Righteous and Harmonious Fists, was an uprising against Qing authorities because they were seen as foreigners.
• The rebellion was quelled by foreign powers such as Britain, France, and Japan, who then imposed further demands on China.
• A revolutionary movement led by Sun Yat-sen gained momentum, resulting in the abdication of the Qing Emperor and the end of Imperial rule in China.
• A provisional government was established under Sun's leadership, but it was short-lived, and China eventually became a communist state under Mao Zedong after a series of power struggles and civil wars.

Mexican Revolution

• During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Mexico was ruled by dictator Porfirio Diaz.
• Diaz's policies angered various social classes in Mexico, which led to a widespread movement to overthrow him.
• Francisco Madero, Diaz's primary political rival, was elected in 1910 but was assassinated two years later.
• A decade of civil war ensued, involving peasant armies led by figures like Pancho Villa and Emiliano Zapata.
• These leaders were unable to seize state power.
• By 1917, the revolution concluded, and Mexico became a republic with a new constitution that enacted widespread reforms to address the grievances that had sparked the revolution.
• Reforms included universal male suffrage, minimum wages for workers, and the separation of the Catholic Church from political and economic power.
• The revolution was largely confined to Mexico and did not have the same international impact as the Chinese and Russian revolutions.