Renaissance and Enlightenment Cultural Movements

Transition from manual labor to machine-based manufacturing
Key figures: James Watt, Richard Arkwright, Samuel Slater
Characteristics: urbanization, growth of capitalism, and development of new social classes

Causes: imperialism, nationalism, and militarism
Key events: assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, trench warfare, and the Treaty of Versailles
Major players: Allied Powers (France, Britain, Russia) vs. Central Powers (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Empire)
Consequences: rise of the United States and Soviet Union, redrawing of national borders, and the Russian Revolution

Causes: German aggression, appeasement policy, and fascist ideology
Key events: invasion of Poland, Battle of Britain, D-Day, and the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
Major players: Allied Powers (United States, Britain, Soviet Union) vs. Axis Powers (Germany, Italy, Japan)
Consequences: devastation of Europe, rise of the United States and Soviet Union as superpowers, and the formation of the United Nations

Revival of classical Greek and Roman culture led to a renewed interest in humanism, individualism, and secularism
Key figures like Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Galileo Galilei made significant contributions to art, literature, science, and philosophy
Characteristics of this era include a flourishing of art, literature, science, and philosophy, which had a profound impact on Western society

The Age of Reason emphasized individual rights, democracy, and science, leading to the development of modern science and emergence of modern democracy
Key figures like Isaac Newton, John Locke, Voltaire, and Immanuel Kant played crucial roles in shaping the Enlightenment
Characteristics of this era include the emergence of modern scientific thought, the development of democratic ideals, and an emphasis on individual rights and reason

The transition from manual labor to machine-based manufacturing led to urbanization, growth of capitalism, and the development of new social classes
Key figures like James Watt, Richard Arkwright, and Samuel Slater made significant contributions to the industrialization process
Characteristics of this era include the growth of cities, the emergence of new social classes, and the development of new technologies

The emphasis on emotion, imagination, and individualism led to a focus on nature, beauty, and the supernatural
Key figures like William Wordsworth, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, and Lord Byron were prominent romantic writers
Characteristics of this era include a focus on the emotional and the irrational, an emphasis on individualism, and a fascination with the mysterious and unknown

The rejection of traditional forms and values led to experimentation, innovation, and fragmentation in art, literature, and culture
Key figures like Pablo Picasso, James Joyce, and Virginia Woolf were prominent modernist artists and writers
Characteristics of this era include a rejection of traditional forms and values, an emphasis on experimentation and innovation, and a focus on the fragmented and the subjective

Causes of the war included imperialism, nationalism, and militarism, leading to the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and the outbreak of war
Key events of the war included trench warfare, the Treaty of Versailles, and the Russian Revolution
Major players in the war were the Allied Powers (France, Britain, Russia) and the Central Powers (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Empire)
Consequences of the war included the rise of the United States and Soviet Union, the redrawing of national borders, and the devastation of Europe

Causes of the war included German aggression, the appeasement policy, and fascist ideology, leading to the invasion of Poland and the outbreak of war
Key events of the war included the Battle of Britain, D-Day, and the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
Major players in the war were the Allied Powers (United States, Britain, Soviet Union) and the Axis Powers (Germany, Italy, Japan)
Consequences of the war included the devastation of Europe, the rise of the United States and Soviet Union as superpowers, and the formation of the United Nations

The Holocaust was a systematic persecution and extermination of six million Jews and millions of others deemed undesirable by the Nazi regime during WW2.
The Nazi regime deliberately and organizedly targeted Jews, Romani people, homosexuals, disabled individuals, and others for extermination.
Concentration camps, including Auschwitz, were established where prisoners were subjected to forced labor, starvation, and brutal living conditions.
The Nazis used gas chambers to kill millions of people, often using Zyklon B, a cyanide-based pesticide.
Perpetrators included the SS, police, and ordinary civilians, driven by a combination of anti-Semitic ideology, racism, and xenophobia.

The Nuremberg Laws (1935) stripped Jews of their citizenship and prohibited intermarriage between Jews and non-Jews.
Kristallnacht (1938) saw widespread violence and destruction of Jewish property and businesses.
The Wannsee Conference (1942) was where the Nazis planned and coordinated the "Final Solution," the extermination of all Jews in Europe.

D-Day was the largest seaborne invasion in history, which took place on June 6, 1944, during WW2.
The Allied forces, consisting of American, British, Canadian, and French troops, launched a massive invasion of Nazi-occupied France.
The invasion was code-named "Operation Overlord" and aimed to establish a foothold in Western Europe.
The Allies used a combination of airborne troops, naval gunfire, and amphibious landings to breach the German defenses.
The invasion force consisted of over 156,000 troops, 5,000 ships, and 13,000 aircraft.

The airborne assault began at 1:30 AM, with paratroopers and glider troops landing behind enemy lines.
The amphibious landings began at 6:30 AM, with troops landing on five beaches along a 50-mile stretch of coastline.
The Americans landed on Omaha and Utah beaches, while the British landed on Gold, Juno, and Sword beaches.
The Germans launched a series of counterattacks, but the Allies were able to establish a solid foothold and begin pushing inland.