Eastern Europe in the 21st century. History presentation "Europe in the late 20th - early 21st centuries"
By the 60-70s of the 19th century, the period of national liberation movements and revolutions, which had trembled for several decades, was ending in Europe. Despite the defeat of some speeches, a wave of struggle for the elimination of feudal remnants and national independence is sweeping throughout Europe. The peace that came to the countries of Europe gave impetus to their political and social development. The bourgeoisie occupied a special place in state and public life. The beginning of industrialization ensured a way out of the economic crisis and the demographic growth of the population of Europe.
Political development of European countries in the late 19th - early 20th century§
By the 70s. the national liberation movements and revolutions in Western Europe are coming to an end. Bourgeois national states took shape here in the form of constitutional monarchies or republics. The evolutionary nature of socio-political development began to prevail. A parliamentary system was formed on a two- or multi-party basis. The parliamentary tribune made it possible to express the demands and demands of the general population. Civil society was asserted with its knowledge of the principles of law and administration, autonomy of thinking.
In political life, the role of the industrial bourgeoisie, which was interested in the patronage of a strong state in order to protect its property, increased. It put the state apparatus, the parties, the unions of entrepreneurs, and other auxiliary organizations at the service.
England had a parliamentary monarchy and a two-party system. Liberals and conservatives alternated in power. The executive power and its administrative apparatus, represented by the cabinet of ministers, were strengthened.
In France, in 1870, a republican system was established, but the positions of the monarchists were still strong. The French bourgeoisie, impelled by the democratic strata, waged a long struggle to consolidate the republic. In 1875, the constitution of the Third Republic was adopted, providing for the creation of a bicameral parliament. The head of state was the President, who was elected by the Houses of Parliament. He had great powers. In the struggle for the establishment of the republic and its democratization, France experienced at the end of the 19th century. several major political crises.
In Germany, in 1871, a constitution was adopted, according to which the executive and partially legislative power was concentrated in the hands of the emperor. The highest representative body was the Reichstag, elected on the basis of universal suffrage. Laws adopted by the lower house of parliament were subject to approval by the upper house and the emperor. He appointed a chancellor, a union minister responsible only to him. In Prussia, the three-class electoral law was preserved in elections to the local Landtag.
In Italy, a bourgeois monarchy was established. Legislative power belonged to the king and parliament, which consisted of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The king appointed and dismissed the highest officials of the state, had the right to dissolve parliament. An extremely narrow stratum of the propertied classes received the right to vote.
The aggravation of social contradictions and the growth of the mass movement forced the ruling circles of many Western countries to democratize the political system, mainly along the path of expanding voting rights. In England, the suffrage reform of the 80s. increased the number of voters in parliament at the expense of the petty bourgeoisie and the top of the working class. The suffrage reform in Italy (1882) gave the right to vote to medium and even small proprietors. In Germany, a persistent struggle was waged by democratic forces for the abolition of the three-class electoral system in Prussia.
At the beginning of the XX century. Politicians of a new formation came to power, realizing the need to apply new methods of governing society. They embarked on reforms in social relations. Bourgeois reformism manifested itself mainly on the basis of liberalism, which seized the leading positions during the period of the establishment of industrial society. Political leaders of a liberal orientation in France (E. Combe, radicals), Italy (J. Giolitti), England (D. Lloyd George) carried out some reforms in order to reduce social tension. In Germany, where liberalism was weaker but the need for reform was felt, reformism was implemented on a conservative basis. His guide was the Imperial Chancellor B. von Bülow.
The social structure of European countries in the late 19th and early 20th centuries§
In the course of industrialization, the social structure of European society changed. As a result of the combination of industrial and banking activities, a financial aristocracy was formed, which included a narrow circle of individuals and families. She constituted the elite of Western society.
The symbol of power in France was the "200 families" who controlled the French Bank. In the psychology of the financial aristocracy, extreme individualism and a sense of community with their own kind were intertwined.
Representatives of the old aristocracy played a prominent role in society. In England, Germany, Italy and even in France, where the break with the feudal past occurred most radically, they were given access to power and business. People from the bourgeois strata sought to intermarry with them.
The industrial age created the conditions for entrepreneurship. A fairly large middle class arose, uniting the bourgeoisie, bureaucracy, and the intelligentsia. They were well-educated, hard-working people with a practical mind. For them, an interest in enrichment was combined with an interest in a business in which they often saw the meaning of their lives.
The industrial revolution led to the formation of a working class deprived of the means of production. Wage workers became the main producers of material goods.
The use of machines created conditions for the use of the labor of women and children. The wage gap between skilled and unskilled workers was quite high.
Agriculture in most Western countries employed a significant portion of the working population. In England, the peasantry practically disappeared. It was replaced by tenants and agricultural workers. In other countries, the position of wealthy peasants and farmers strengthened, but there were still many small peasants, especially in France.
Demographic processes of European countries in the late 19th - early 20th century§
Industrialization, the growth of agricultural productivity created the material prerequisites for meeting people's needs for food, increasing the population. There was a "first population explosion". The population of Europe in the 19th century doubled and by 1900 amounted to more than 400 million people. The rate of population growth increased especially sharply in the second half of the 19th century, which is explained by a decrease in mortality with a high birth rate. Advances in medicine in the fight against epidemics, improved healthcare contributed to a decrease in mortality. In the last third of the XIX century. the highest population growth was observed due to low mortality for that time and high birth rate. But at the turn of the XIX - XX centuries. a sharp downward trend in the birth rate. In many countries - England, Germany, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Belgium, Holland, the Scandinavian states - a demographic revolution began, which meant a decrease in fertility and mortality, an increase in life expectancy.
The demographic revolution began in France, which happened a century earlier, at the turn of the 18th - 19th centuries. It is directly related to the transformations caused by the French Revolution and the consequences of the Napoleonic Wars.
Western European countries are characterized by late marriages. The average age of marriage in Western countries was at the end of the 19th century. 25 - 28 years old. A new type of family was taking shape, in which the practice of conscious birth control was observed, which was caused by social and cultural progress. The birth rate was lower among the propertied classes, the middle strata, higher among unskilled workers, in poor families.
A characteristic feature of family and marriage relations has been an increase in the instability of marriages. However, divorce in the XIX century. It was possible only after a long and expensive procedure, so only representatives of wealthy strata could achieve a divorce. Marriage in most cases was terminated at the initiative of men. With the growth of their economic independence, women have become more proactive in the dissolution of marriage.
Migration of the population of European countries in the late 19th - early 20th century§
19th century is considered the century of mass migration movements. Migrations or movements of people were caused by many reasons - economic, political, national, religious.
The riches of the bowels of the New World, the expanses of land required labor. Legislation of the USA, Latin American countries patronized immigration. Recruitment centers were organized, a wide network of incentive societies for resettlement. In 1800 - 1900. 28 million people emigrated from Europe to America. The first place in terms of the number of migrants was occupied by England, from which about 13 million people left over the years. The main significance of the resettlement movements was that they accelerated the economic development of countries that needed an influx of labor, led to the colonization of sparsely populated areas, and contributed to the involvement of various regions in the world economy. At the same time, at the beginning of the 20th century. significantly reduced migration from England and Germany, but significantly increased from less developed countries - Italy, the Balkan countries, Eastern Europe. Migration from developed countries to economically backward countries increased in order to subjugate the latter. Migration from France to North Africa was of a similar nature. On the whole, European migration led to the settlement of many regions of North and Latin America, Australia, and Oceania.
Urbanization of European countries in the late 19th - early 20th century§
The rapid development of industrial production entailed urbanization, which means the concentration of population and economic life in cities, the growth of urban residents at the expense of the reduction of rural ones.
The process of urbanization began primarily in England and was closely associated with industrialization. In the middle of the XIX century. more than half of the population of England lived in cities at the beginning of the 20th century. - 2/3 of its total number. London, together with the suburbs, had more than 7 million inhabitants.
The influx of the rural population into the cities expanded the reserve army of labor, created new masses of consumers, which stimulated the development of mass production. Between 1880 and 1914, 60 million Europeans moved from the countryside to the cities. In 1900, there were 13 millionaire cities.
Urbanization developed spontaneously, uncontrollably, which led to the spread of various social diseases - crime, alcoholism, prostitution, and mental disorders. The state of the urban environment was deteriorating, which led to an ecological crisis. Therefore, the city authorities began to pay more attention to the process of urban improvement. The development of medical knowledge made it possible to identify the causative agents of epidemics, the breeding grounds of which were poor neighborhoods, where the population lived crowded, in unsanitary conditions. In the fight against epidemics, personal hygiene, air and habitat purification were required.
The layout of cities also began to change. New wide streets - avenues - were laid through the old center and suburbs. The need for the construction of public buildings has increased - department stores, libraries, exhibition halls, sports facilities. There have been changes in construction equipment, new building materials have appeared - metal, glass, concrete.
Enlightenment of European countries in the late 19th - early 20th century§
Technological progress and the transition to machine production associated with it required competent, skilled workers. Therefore, in Western countries in the second half of the XIX century. introduces universal primary education. The number of literate men by the end of the century reached 75 - 90% of the total. In a public school, children were taught to read and write, they were given elementary knowledge of arithmetic, they were introduced to history and religious dogmas. A characteristic of the school learning process was the memorization of a certain minimum of knowledge.
Children of wealthy parents had the opportunity to get a secondary education. With the development of industrial production, along with gymnasiums of a humanitarian profile, technical and real schools appeared, in which much attention was paid to the study of mathematics, physics, and chemistry. The secondary school was inaccessible to the bulk of the children, both because it was paid, and because the children of the poor had to earn a living from an early age.
After graduating from high school, education could be continued in higher educational institutions and get the profession of an engineer, agronomist, teacher, doctor. Higher education everywhere was paid. Women were denied access to universities.
Life of European countries in the late 19th - early 20th century§
The quality of nutrition of Western Europeans has generally improved, as the percentage of meat and fruits in the diet has increased. At the same time, the use of alcohol and tobacco increased. In Germany, the annual share of tobacco per person increased from 1 to 1.6 kg in 1870-1913. Coffee became the drink of choice, although the poor were often satisfied with its surrogate.
Wealthy families lived in palaces, mansions, apartments furnished with expensive furniture. The interior changed along with changes in artistic styles. In the Napoleonic era, furniture was distinguished by heavy weight, clear geometrism of the oval, circle, and rectangle. The atmosphere of the house was cold-official, ceremonial. In the middle of the century, furniture became lighter and pretentious, upholstered in plush and velvet (second Rococo). The Art Nouveau style of the end of the century brought sluggish outlines, streamlined shapes, and asymmetry. Luxury and well-being were emphasized - dark colors in the interiors, soft quilted furniture, heavy drapery.
Fashion in clothes dictated by the court gave way to bourgeois fashion. The men's suit as a whole has acquired uniformity, efficiency, practicality. It has become more strictly divided according to its functional purpose. Blazers and cardigans have become work clothes, tailcoat - in front. At the end of the XIX century. tuxedos (England) came into fashion, which were worn when going to a men's club, theater, restaurant.
The woman's clothes were very diverse and were designed to emphasize the wealth and prosperity of her husband. At the beginning of the XIX century. the women's dress resembled a tunic, the belt was under the breast itself, at the bottom of the skirt and on the sleeves there were many flounces. Women's attire was complemented by expensive jewelry. In the middle of the century, in women's fashion, where France set the tone, the style of the Second Empire was established - the clothes were extremely pretentious. The crinoline came into use, which was a shirred domed skirt with many petticoats or steel hoops. Golden lace was especially fashionable in the decoration. At the end of the XIX century. with the advent of new vehicles (car, tram), the spread of sports exercises, women's clothing has become simpler. An important factor that influenced the change in dress was the desire of women for equality, their struggle for education. There were female employees, doctors, teachers. A skirt with a blouse, a suit consisting of a skirt and a jacket, a coat came into use.
Ordinary people wore what did not interfere with work and what could be afforded in abundance. The folk costume was supplanted by the pan-European urban type, although many of its details were preserved (ornament, decorations).
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Causes of the First World War. Side Plans
The following major wars preceded World War I:
Spanish-American (1898), the US imperialists sought to seize the economically and strategically important islands in the Pacific and Atlantic oceans and in the Caribbean, belonging to Spain. The outcome of this war was in favor of the United States, which predetermined the immeasurable economic and military superiority of the states over feudal Spain.
Anglo-Boer War (1899-1902). The reason for the war was the intention of England to seize two small Boer republics in southern Africa (now South Africa), on whose territory there were rich deposits of gold and diamonds. In 1900, England sent an army of 200,000 against the Boers (subsequently bringing its number to 450,000). Defending their independence, the Boers created an army of 60 thousand people on a militia basis. However, despite the partisan movement, they were forced to stop resistance in 1902.
Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905). Its cause was the clash of interests between tsarist Russia and imperialist Japan, which was striving to turn Korea, Manchuria and other regions of the Far East into its colonies. Russia had 300 thousand soldiers and 57 warships. With the help of the USA and England, Japan created a large army - 370 thousand people and 73 warships. Russia underestimated the strength of the enemy and poorly prepared for war. Military failures and the growth of the revolution within the country forced the tsarist government to accept the terms of peace dictated by Japan.
The First World War, which began on August 1, 1914 and lasted until November 11, 1918, arose as a result of the intensification of the political and economic struggle between the largest imperialist countries of Europe. This led to the division of the world into two hostile camps and the emergence of two groups: the Triple Alliance - Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy and the Triple Entente or Entente - England, France and Russia.
The war between the major European powers was beneficial to the US imperialists, since this struggle created favorable conditions for the further development of American expansion, especially in Latin America and the Far East. The American monopolies were betting on the maximum benefit from the war in Europe.
Due to the fact that the war for the redivision of the world affected the interests of all imperialist countries, most of the world's states gradually became involved in it. The war became a world war, both in its political goals and in scale.
In preparing for war, the imperialists saw in it:
First, a means of resolving external contradictions;
Secondly, a means that could help them cope with the growing discontent of the population of their own countries and suppress the growing revolutionary movement.
By its nature, the war of 1914-1918. was imperialistic, predatory, unjust on both sides. It was a war for who had more to rob and oppress.
The military action plans of the main participants in the war did not sufficiently take into account the increased role of economic and moral factors and were designed to conduct battles at the expense of mobilization reserves accumulated in peacetime. It was believed that the war would be short-lived.
Characteristic in this regard was Germany's strategic plan (the Schlieffen plan), which outlined the rapid defeat of the obviously superior forces of the Entente through major offensive operations, first against the armies of France and England, and then against Russia. This circumstance determined the choice of the strategic form of the offensive - a flank bypass and encirclement of the main enemy forces. In order to bypass and encircle the French army, it was planned to carry out a flank maneuver through Belgium, bypassing the main forces of the French army from the north. In the east, it was planned to deploy 15-16 divisions, which were supposed to cover East Prussia from a possible invasion of Russian troops.
Although the Schlieffen plan had such positive aspects as taking into account the factors of surprise and the role of the strategic initiative, the correct choice of the direction of the main strike and the concentration of forces in the decisive direction, on the whole it turned out to be flawed, since it incorrectly assessed the capabilities of its troops and the enemy.
The Austro-Hungarian war plan was strongly influenced by the demand of the German General Staff to tie down the Russian armies during the period of Germany's main attack on France. In this regard, the Austro-Hungarian General Staff planned active actions simultaneously against Russia, Serbia and Montenegro. It was planned to deliver the main blow from Galicia to the east and northeast. The Austro-Hungarian plan was built without any real consideration of the economic and moral possibilities of the country. The availability of forces did not correspond to the tasks set.
The French plan, although it provided for active offensive operations, was of a passive and expectant nature, since the initial actions of the French troops were made dependent on the actions of the enemy. The plan provided for the creation of three shock groups, but only one of them (Lorraine) received an active task - to advance on Lorraine and Alsace. The central grouping should become a connecting link, covering the border in its zone, and the Belgian grouping should act depending on the behavior of the enemy. If the Germans begin to advance through Belgian territory, then this army should be ready to attack in a northeasterly direction; if the Germans did not take active action in neutral Belgium, she was to advance in an easterly direction.
The British plan proceeded from the fact that the allies - Russia and France - should take on the entire burden of waging war on land. The main task of the British armed forces was considered to ensure dominance at sea. For operations on land, it was planned to transfer seven divisions to France.
The Russian war plan, due to the economic and political dependence of tsarist Russia on Anglo-French capital, provided for simultaneous offensive operations against Austria-Hungary and Germany. The plan had two options.
Option "A". If Germany concentrated the main forces against France, then the main efforts of the Russian army were directed against Austria-Hungary.
Option "G". In the event that Germany inflicted the main blow on Russia, the Russian army turned its main efforts against Germany. The Northwestern Front was supposed to defeat the 8th German Army and capture East Prussia. The Southwestern Front was tasked with encircling the Austro-Hungarian troops stationed in Galicia.
By the beginning of the First World War, the strategic deployment of troops in accordance with the adopted war plans was completed by Germany and France in 16-17 days. It took Russia 30 days to mobilize and deploy troops. By the beginning of the war, neither side had an overall superiority in forces.
In this way:
1. In the era of imperialism, when the contradictions inherent in capitalist society reach an extreme degree of aggravation, when the development of capitalism proceeds extremely unevenly and spasmodically, when there is an all-round increase in political reaction and military aggression, predatory, predatory, predatory wars are waged for the redivision of the world, for world domination. In the era of imperialism, wars develop into world wars.
2. The formation of alliances of the largest states of Europe was a clear preparation for war and indicated the irresistibility of its approach. Internal and external contradictions forced the ruling circles of the European states to accelerate the unleashing of the war. The imperialists tried to instill in the peoples the idea of the inevitability of armed clashes, in every possible way propagated militarism and fomented chauvinism. The bourgeoisie, playing on the patriotic feelings of the peoples, justified the arms race and camouflaged the predatory goals with false arguments about the need to defend the Fatherland from external enemies.
3. Common to all the plans of the countries participating in the First World War was that they expressed the aggressive aspirations of individual powers, as well as both warring coalitions. At the same time, they reflected sharp contradictions between the individual imperialist states within the coalitions, each of which sought to place more of the military burden on its allies and gain more wealth by sharing the booty.
The strategic plans were devoid of purpose, did not clearly define the direction of the main attacks and did not ensure the creation of the necessary superiority to achieve the goals of the war.
The first period of modern history opened with a tragic chapter in the history of mankind - the First World War. But it did not so much resolve the old problems and contradictions as it gave rise to new ones. The causes of the First World War are manifold.
The main causes of the war:
The struggle for spheres of influence between the leading countries of the world;
The desire for a new redistribution of the colonies;
The growth of internal political contradictions in European countries and the desire to resolve or avoid them with the help of war;
The formation of opposing military-political alliances: the Entente and the Triple Alliance, the arms race, the militarization of the economy.
Members:
Entente: France + UK + Russia
Triple (Quadruple) Union:
Germany + Austria-Hungary + Italy + Turkey
- Italy + Bulgaria
Mutual Claims:
Great Britain:
Germany is the main rival in European politics, in sea trade and in the struggle for colonies;
There was an undeclared economic and trade war between the countries;
Great Britain could not forgive Germany for supporting the Boers in the Boer War of 1899–1902
But at the same time, she sought to keep Germany as a rival to Russia and France on the European continent;
It sought to take away the oil-rich lands of Mesopotamia and the Arabian Peninsula from Turkey.
These and other foreign policy interests led Britain to abandon the policy of "brilliant isolation" and join the anti-German alliance.
France:
Germany is the main enemy on the European continent;
She sought to take revenge for the defeat in the Franco-Prussian war of 1870;
She hoped to return Alsace and Lorraine, to annex the Saar coal basin and the Ruhr;
French goods could not compete with German in the European market;
I was afraid of losing the colonies in North Africa.
For these reasons, France became an active participant in the anti-German bloc.
Russia:
She sought to expand her territory at the expense of Austria-Hungary, annexing Galicia;
Claimed control over the Black Sea straits Bosphorus and Dardanelles;
She regarded the construction of the Berlin-Baghdad railway as a violation of the agreement on the division of spheres of influence in the Balkans;
She hoped to maintain the role of "defender of all Slavic peoples" in the Balkans, supporting the anti-Austrian and anti-Turkish struggle of the peoples of the Balkans.
With the help of a victorious war, Russia sought to postpone the time for solving urgent domestic problems.
To solve these problems, Russia found allies in the person of Great Britain and France.
USA:
Strived to penetrate the European market;
They hoped to increase their influence in Asia and increase their penetration into China.
Those. become an active participant in European politics.
Germany:
The young dynamic state aspired to military, economic and political leadership;
The active conquest of sales markets led to a clash of interests with Great Britain;
Strived to preserve and expand colonial possessions at the expense of France, Holland, Belgium, Great Britain;
Intervened in the politics of the Middle East region.
Germany most aggressively sought dominance in world politics.
Austria-Hungary:
Expand your territory at the expense of Russia, Romania, Serbia;
Take away from Russia the role of "defender of all Slavic peoples";
Strengthen the authority of imperial power through a victorious war;
Suppress the growing anti-Austrian sentiment among the peoples of the multinational empire.
Having clashed with interests with Russia, Austria-Hungary found itself in the same bloc with Germany.
Italy:
The young state sought to strengthen its authority in Europe;
He hoped to get territorial acquisitions in Europe and in the colonies.
However, Italy had very limited capabilities for waging war, therefore, at the beginning of the war, she declared her neutrality and subsequently took the side of the Entente.
Turkey:
Competed with Russia and Great Britain for dominance over the Black Sea straits and influence on Middle East politics;
It sought to suppress the growing national liberation movement of the corrupted Slavic peoples on its territory.
Occasion:
June 28, 1914 in the capital of Bosnia - Sarajevo - a member of the secret Serbian patriotic organization "Young Bosnia" Gavriil Princip killed the nephew and heir of the Austro-Hungarian emperor Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophia.
Start of the war:
On July 23, Austria-Hungary issued an ultimatum to Serbia demanding that Austrian police be allowed into the country to investigate the murder. Serbia rejected this demand.
On July 29, Russia announced mobilization. Germany put forward an ultimatum to Russia demanding to stop mobilization. Russia rejected the ultimatum.
August 1 Germany declared war on Russia. This date is recognized as the beginning of the First World War.
| ENTENTE | TRIPLE ALLIANCE |
| Highly professional British army and navy; The inexhaustible human resources of the Russian army, the courage of Russian soldiers; BUT Industrial backwardness of Russia, poor development of communications. Corrupt and incompetent leadership of the Russian army; The British army is small The allies are geographically cut off from each other The French army was not prepared for a prolonged conflict; | The German army was the best in Europe in terms of training and organization; The German population was seized by high patriotism and faith in its great purpose. Highly equipped with heavy artillery, machine guns, submarines, a wide network of railways. The Austro-Hungarian army was built following the example of the German army. Strategic preparation for war. BUT the multinational composition of the Austro-Hungarian army |
Both sides were not ready for a long positional war, they did not expect the infantry to lose its ability to move. The most striking example of the misjudgment of the nature of modern warfare by the commanders on both sides was the widespread belief that the cavalry was the most important role.
Schlieffen plan.
Schlieffen plan- a strategic plan for lightning war, developed by the chief of the German General Staff von Schlieffen.
The essence of the plan: during the first month, defeat France by invading its territory through Belgium, because. Russia will need at least a month and a half to fully mobilize and concentrate its troops on the border. Then it was planned to transfer all German troops against Russia and end the war in two months.
However, from the first days, events did not develop as the German command planned:
Belgium offered strong resistance;
France launched an offensive into German territory, invaded Alsace and Lorraine;
Great Britain entered the war;
Russia launched an offensive without waiting for the full deployment of its troops.
By September, the blitzkrieg plan is thwarted.
The course of hostilities. (independent work of students)
Study the course of hostilities according to available sources and evaluate them from the point of view of one of the warring parties
| date of | Event | Result |
| September 5 - 12, 1914 August - September 1914 October 1914 December 1914 | Battle of the Marne Battle of Galicia Battle of Tannenberg Austro-Hungarian troops launched an offensive against Serbia. Turkey entered the war on the side of the Triple Alliance, declaring war on Russia, Great Britain and France. Great Britain established a continental naval blockade of Germany Counteroffensive of the Serbian army Sarakamysh operation (Transcaucasia) | Anglo-French troops stopped the advance of the German army. A 600 km Western Front was formed from the borders of Switzerland to the Atlantic coast. Germany is forced to wage war on two fronts. The Russian army occupied Lvov. The German army surrounded the Russian army. Russia lost about 20 thousand people killed and was forced to leave East Prussia. They captured 45% of the territory of Serbia, including the capital - Belgrade. The Caucasian Front was formed. German cruisers entered the Black Sea and fired at Odessa, Sevastopol, Novorossiysk, Feodosia. The small German fleet was locked up in the ports of the North and Baltic Seas. The territory of Serbia was cleared of the troops of the Habsburg Empire, the Serbian troops continued their offensive on the territory of Austria-Hungary. The Nis Declaration was adopted, which formulated the strategic goal of Serbia in the war: the unification of all South Slavic lands around the Serbian dynasty of Karageorgievich. The Russian army defeated the Turkish one and transferred the fighting to the territory of Turkey. |
The results of the military campaign in 1914:
The strategic plans of the countries of the Quadruple Alliance were thwarted, the plan for a blitzkrieg failed. Germany is forced to wage war on two fronts.
The war acquired a protracted character, turning into a positional ("sitting", trench) war. The parties abandoned large-scale hostilities, which were now mainly defensive in nature.
The war required the mobilization of all the economic and human resources of the warring states. The war included 38 states, in which approximately 75% of the population lived, more than 70 million men fought in the active armies.
| date of | Event | Result |
| January 1915 February - March 1915 April 1915 May 1915 Autumn 1915 | German aircraft began to raid the east coast of England. Anglo-German naval battle at Dogger Bank in the North Sea Beginning of the offensive of the Russian army in the Carpathians French offensive in Champagne. English offensive on Nevshtal Russian troops captured the fortress of Przemysl Germany declared an unlimited submarine war against Great Britain Anglo-French fleet attacked the Dardanelles (Turkish fortifications) German gas attack near Ypres (chlorine) Entente troops landed in the Gallipolli region (Turkey) Counteroffensive of the German-Austrian army on the Eastern Front Italy left the Triple Alliance and entered the war on the side of the Entente A German submarine sank the huge American passenger liner Lusitania Bulgaria entered the war on the side of the Triple Alliance, attacking Serbia | Sunk German cruiser "Blucher" These actions did not bring tangible results to the Allies. Over 100 thousand Austrians were taken prisoner. The Austro-German command concentrated its main forces on the Eastern Front. The waters surrounding England and Ireland were declared a military zone and any ship in these waters would be |
After a decade of stability in the political life of Western European countries, the time has come for social conflicts. In the 1960s, speeches by different segments of the population under various slogans became more frequent.
In France in 1961-1962. there were demonstrations and strikes (more than 12 million people participated in a general political strike) demanding an end to the revolt of ultra-colonialist forces in Algeria (these forces opposed the granting of independence to Algeria). In Italy, mass demonstrations of workers against the activation of neo-fascists took place, and the movement of workers spread, putting forward both economic and political demands. In England, the number of strikes in 1962 increased 5.5 times over the previous year. The struggle for higher wages also included "white collars" - highly skilled workers, employees.
The events of 1968 in France became the highest point of social performances during this period.
Dates and events:
- May 3- the beginning of student protests in Paris with the demands of the democratization of the higher education system.
- the 6th of May- Police siege of the Sorbonne University.
- May 9-10- students build barricades.
- may 13- mass demonstration of workers in Paris; the start of a general strike; by May 24, the number of strikers in the country exceeded 10 million people; among the slogans carried by the demonstrators were the following: "Farewell, de Gaulle!", "Ten years is enough!"; the workers of the car factory near Mantes and the Renault factories occupied their factories.
- 22nd of May- The issue of confidence in the government was raised in the National Assembly.
- May 30- President Charles de Gaulle dissolved the National Assembly and called new parliamentary elections.
- June 6-7- the strikers went to work, insisting on wage increases by 10-19%, more vacations, and expanding the rights of trade unions.
These events proved to be a serious test for the authorities. In April 1969, President de Gaulle put forward a bill for the reorganization of local government to a referendum, hoping to get confirmation that the French still supported it. But 52% of voters rejected the bill. Immediately after this, de Gaulle resigned. In June 1969, the representative of the Gaullist Party, J. Pompidou, was elected the new president of the country. He defined the main direction of his course with the motto "Continuity and Dialogue".
1968 was marked by serious political events in other countries as well. This autumn in Northern Ireland civil rights movement intensifies.
History reference
In the 1960s, the following situation developed in Northern Ireland. According to religious affiliation, the population was divided into two communities - Protestant (950 thousand people) and Catholic (498 thousand). The Unionist Party, which ruled from 1921, consisted mainly of Protestants and advocated maintaining ties with Great Britain. The opposition to it was made up of several parties supported by Catholics and advocating the self-government of Northern Ireland, the unification of Ireland into one state. Key positions in society were occupied by Protestants, Catholics were more often on the lower rungs of the social ladder. In the mid-1960s, unemployment in Northern Ireland was 6.1%, while in the UK as a whole it was 1.4%. At the same time, unemployment among Catholics was 2.5 times higher than among Protestants.
In 1968, clashes between representatives of the Catholic population and the police escalated into an armed conflict, which included Protestant and Catholic extremist groups. The government brought troops into Ulster. The crisis, sometimes aggravating, sometimes weakening, dragged on for three decades.
In the conditions of social tension in the late 1960s, neo-fascist parties and organizations became more active in a number of Western European countries. In Germany, success in the elections to the Landtags (land parliaments) in 1966-1968. achieved by the National Democratic Party (NDP), headed by A. von Thadden, which managed to attract young people into its ranks by creating organizations such as the Young National Democrats and the National Democratic Union of Higher Education. In Italy, the Italian Social Movement (the party was founded by supporters of fascism back in 1947), the New Order organization, and others expanded their activities. Neo-fascist "fighting groups" sacked the premises of left-wing parties and democratic organizations. At the end of 1969, the head of the ISD, D. Almirante, stated in an interview: “Fascist youth organizations are preparing for a civil war in Italy ...”
Social tension and the aggravated confrontation in society found a special response among the youth. The speeches of young people for the democratization of education, spontaneous protests against social injustice have become more frequent. In West Germany, Italy, France and other countries, youth groups emerged that occupied extreme right or extreme left positions. Both of them used terrorist methods in their struggle against the existing order.
Ultra-left groups in Italy and Germany carried out explosions at railway stations and trains, hijacking aircraft, etc. One of the most famous organizations of this kind was the "red brigades" that appeared in Italy in the early 1970s. They proclaimed the ideas of Marxism-Leninism, the Chinese Cultural Revolution and the experience of the urban guerrilla (guerrilla war) as the basis of their activities. A notorious example of their actions was the kidnapping and murder of a well-known political figure, the chairman of the Christian Democratic Party, Aldo Moro.
In Germany, the “new right” created “national revolutionary basic groups” that advocated the unification of the country by force. In different countries, the ultra-right, who adhered to nationalist views, carried out reprisals against people of other beliefs, nationalities, faiths, and skin colors.
Social Democrats and Social Society
A wave of social action in the 1960s led to political change in most Western European countries. In many of them, social democratic and socialist parties came to power.
In Germany, at the end of 1966, representatives of the Social Democrats joined the coalition government with the CDU / CSU, and since 1969 they themselves formed the government in a bloc with the Free Democratic Party (FDP). In Austria in 1970-1971. For the first time in the history of the country, the Socialist Party came to power. In Italy, the basis of the post-war governments was the Christian Democratic Party (CDA), which entered into a coalition with parties of the left and right. In the 1960s, the left-wing social democrats and socialists became its partners. The leader of the Social Democrats, D. Saragat, was elected president of the country (1964).
Despite the difference in situations in different countries, the policy of the Social Democrats during this period had some common features. They considered the creation of a social society, the main values of which were proclaimed freedom, justice, solidarity, as their main, “never ending task”. In this society, they considered themselves as representatives of the interests not only of workers, but also of other sections of the population. In the 1970s and 1980s, these parties began to rely on the so-called "new middle strata" - the scientific and technical intelligentsia, employees. In the economic sphere, the Social Democrats advocated a combination of different forms of ownership - private, state, etc. The key provision of their programs was the thesis of state regulation of the economy. The attitude towards the market was expressed by the motto "Competition - as much as possible, planning - as much as necessary". Particular importance was attached to the "democratic participation" of the working people in resolving issues of organizing production, setting prices, and wages.
In Sweden, where the Social Democrats had been in power for several decades, the concept of "functional socialism" was formulated. It was assumed that the private owner should not be deprived of his property, but should be gradually involved in the performance of public functions through the redistribution of profits. The state in Sweden owned about 6% of production capacity, but the share of public consumption in the gross national product (GNP) in the early 1970s was about 30%.
Social-democratic and socialist governments allocated significant funds for education, health care, and social security. To reduce the unemployment rate, special programs for the training and retraining of the workforce were adopted.
Government social spending, % of GDP
Progress in solving social problems was one of the most significant achievements of social democratic governments. However, the negative consequences of their policy soon became apparent: excessive “overregulation”, bureaucratization of public and economic management, overstrain of the state budget. A part of the population began to form a psychology of social dependency, when people, not working, expected to receive as much social assistance in the form of social assistance as those who worked hard. These "costs" drew criticism from conservative forces.
An important aspect of the activities of the social democratic governments of the Western European states was the change in foreign policy. Particularly significant, truly historic steps in this direction have been taken in the Federal Republic of Germany. The government that came to power in 1969, headed by Chancellor W. Brandt (SPD) and Vice-Chancellor and Minister of Foreign Affairs W. Scheel (FDP), made a fundamental turn in "Ostpolitik". W. Brandt revealed the essence of the new approach in his first speech in the Bundestag as chancellor: “The FRG needs peaceful relations in the full meaning of these words also with the peoples of the Soviet Union, and with all the peoples of the European East. We are ready for an honest attempt to reach an understanding so that the consequences of the catastrophe that the criminal cabal has brought upon Europe can be overcome.
Willy Brandt (real name - Herbert Karl Fram) (1913-1992). After graduating from high school, he began working for a newspaper. In 1930 he joined the Social Democratic Party of Germany. In 1933-1945. was in exile in Norway, and then - in Sweden. In 1945, he participated in the re-establishment of the Social Democratic Party of Germany, and soon became one of its leading figures. In 1957-1966 served as mayor of West Berlin. In 1969-1974. - Chancellor of Germany. In 1971 he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Since 1976 - Chairman of the Socialist International (an international organization of social democratic and socialist parties, founded in 1951).
Dates and events
- Spring 1970- the first meetings of their leaders in the years of existence of the two German states - W. Brandt and W. Shtof in Erfurt and Kassel. August 1970 - an agreement was signed between the USSR and the FRG.
- December 1970- an agreement was signed between Poland and Germany. Both treaties contained the obligations of the parties to refrain from the threat or use of force, recognized the inviolability of the borders of Poland, the FRG and the GDR.
- December 1972- an agreement was signed on the foundations of relations between the GDR and the FRG.
- December 1973- the agreement between the FRG and Czechoslovakia recognized the Munich agreements of 1938 as "void" and confirmed the inviolability of the borders between the two states.
The "Eastern Treaties" caused a sharp political struggle in the FRG. They were opposed by the CDU / CSU bloc, right-wing parties and organizations. Neo-Nazis called them "agreements on the sale of the territory of the Reich", claiming that they would lead to the "Bolshevization" of the FRG. The treaties were supported by communists and other leftist parties, representatives of democratic organizations, and influential figures in the evangelical church.
These treaties, as well as the quadripartite agreements on West Berlin, signed by representatives of the USSR, the USA, Great Britain and France in September 1971, created a real basis for expanding international contacts and mutual understanding in Europe. On November 22, 1972, a preparatory meeting was held in Helsinki to hold the International Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe.
Fall of authoritarian regimes in Portugal, Greece, Spain
The wave of social action and political change that began in the 1960s reached Southwestern and Southern Europe as well. In 1974-1975. in three states at once there was a transition from authoritarian regimes to democracy.
Portugal. As a result of the April Revolution of 1974, the authoritarian regime was overthrown in this country. The political upheaval carried out by the Movement of the Armed Forces in the capital led to a change of power on the ground. The basis of the first post-revolutionary governments (1974-1975) was the block of leaders of the Movement of the Armed Forces and the communists. The program statement of the National Salvation Council put forward the tasks of complete de-fascism and the establishment of democratic orders, the immediate decolonization of the African possessions of Portugal, the implementation of agrarian reform, the adoption of a new constitution of the country, and the improvement of the living conditions of workers. The first transformations of the new government were the nationalization of the largest enterprises and banks, the introduction of workers' control.
In the course of the political struggle that then unfolded, forces of various orientations came to power, including the right-wing block of the Democratic Alliance (1979-1983), which tried to roll back the reforms that had begun earlier. The governments of the Socialist Party founded by M. Soares and the Social Democratic Party, which were in power in the 1980s and 1990s, took measures to strengthen the democratic system and the entry of Portugal into European economic and political organizations.
In Greece in 1974, after the fall of the military dictatorship established since 1967 (or the “regime of colonels”), power passed to a civilian government headed by K. Karamanlis. Political and civil liberties were restored. The governments of the right-wing New Democracy Party (1974-1981, 1989-1993, 2004-2009) and the Panhellenic Socialist Movement - PASOK (1981-1989, 1993-2004, since 2009), with differences in domestic and foreign policy in general, contributed to democratization of the country, its inclusion in the processes of European integration.
In Spain after the death of F. Franco in 1975, King Juan Carlos I became the head of state. With his approval, a gradual transition from an authoritarian regime to a democratic one began. As defined by political scientists, this process combined a "democratic break with Francoism" and reforms. The government headed by A. Suarez restored democratic freedoms and lifted the ban on the activities of political parties. It managed to conclude agreements with the most influential, including the opposition, left-wing parties.
In December 1978, a constitution was adopted in a referendum, proclaiming Spain a social and legal state. The aggravation of the economic and political situation in the early 1980s led to the defeat of the Union of Democratic Center led by A. Suarez. As a result of the parliamentary elections of 1982, the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) came to power, its leader F. Gonzalez headed the country's government. The party aspired to social stability, achievement of the consent between different layers of the Spanish society. Particular attention in its programs was paid to measures to increase production and create jobs. In the first half of the 1980s, the government carried out a number of important social measures (shortening the working week, increasing holidays, passing laws that expand the rights of workers, etc.). The policies of the socialists who were in power until 1996 completed the process of peaceful transition from dictatorship to a democratic society in Spain.
1980s: wave of neoconservatism
By the mid-1970s, in most Western European countries, the activities of social democratic and socialist governments increasingly ran into insurmountable problems. The situation became even more complicated as a result of the deep crisis of 1974-1975. He showed that serious changes are needed, a restructuring of the economy. There were no resources for it under the existing economic and social policy, state regulation of the economy did not work.
In this situation, the conservatives tried to give their answer to the challenge of the times. Their orientation towards a free market economy, private entrepreneurship, individual activity was well aligned with the objective need for extensive investment (investment of funds) in production.
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, conservatives came to power in many Western countries. In 1979, the Conservative Party won the parliamentary elections in Great Britain, and M. Thatcher headed the government (the party remained in power until 1997). In 1980 and 1984 Republican R. Reagan was elected President of the United States. In 1982, a coalition of the CDU / CSU and the FDP came to power in Germany, G. Kohl took the post of chancellor. The long-term rule of the Social Democrats in the countries of Northern Europe was interrupted. They were defeated in the elections of 1976 in Sweden and Denmark, 1981 - in Norway.
It was not for nothing that the conservative leaders who won during this period were called neoconservatives. They have shown that they can look ahead and are capable of change. They were distinguished by a good understanding of the situation, assertiveness, political flexibility, appeal to the general population. Thus, the British conservatives, led by M. Thatcher, came out in defense of the "true values of British society", which included diligence and thrift, disdain for lazy people; independence, self-reliance and striving for individual success; respect for laws, religion, the foundations of the family and society; contributing to the preservation and enhancement of the national greatness of Britain. New slogans were also used. After winning the 1987 elections, M. Thatcher said: "Our policy is that everyone with an income becomes an owner ... We are building a democracy of owners".
Margaret Thatcher (Roberts) was born into a merchant family. From a young age, she joined the Conservative Party. She studied chemistry and later law at the University of Oxford. In 1957 she was elected to parliament. In 1970, she took a ministerial post in a conservative government. In 1975 she headed the Conservative Party. In 1979-1990. - Prime Minister of Great Britain (in terms of the duration of continuous stay in power, she set a record in the political history of Great Britain of the 20th century). In recognition of her services to the country, she was awarded the title of baroness.
The main components of the policy of the neoconservatives were: the curtailment of state regulation of the economy, the course towards a free market economy; cuts in social spending; reduction in income taxes (which contributed to the revitalization of entrepreneurial activity). In social policy, the neoconservatives rejected the principles of equality and the redistribution of profits (M. Thatcher even promised in one of her speeches to "end socialism in Britain"). They resorted to the notion of a "two-thirds society", in which it is considered the norm for the well-being or even "prosperity" of two-thirds of the population, while the remaining third lives in poverty. The first steps of the neo-conservatives in the field of foreign policy led to a new round of the arms race, an aggravation of the international situation.
Later, in connection with the beginning of perestroika in the USSR, the proclamation by M. S. Gorbachev of the ideas of a new political thinking in international relations, Western European leaders entered into a dialogue with the Soviet leadership.
At the turn of the century
The last decade of the XX century. was filled with events of a turning point. As a result of the collapse of the USSR and the Eastern bloc, the situation in Europe and the world has changed radically. The unification of Germany (1990), which took place in connection with these changes, after more than forty years of existence of two German states, became one of the most important milestones in the recent history of the German people. G. Kohl, who was the Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany during this period, went down in history as the "unifier of Germany."
The feeling of the triumph of ideals and the leading role of the Western world arose in the 1990s among many leaders of Western European countries. This, however, did not eliminate their own, internal problems in these countries.
In the second half of the 1990s, the positions of conservatives in a number of countries weakened, representatives of liberal, socialist parties came to power. In the UK, the government was headed by Labor leader Anthony Blair (1997-2007). In 1998, the Social Democrat Gerhard Schroeder was elected Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany. However, in 2005 he was replaced by the representative of the CDU/CSU bloc Angela Merkel, the country's first female chancellor. And in Britain in 2010, a coalition government was formed by the Conservatives. Thanks to this change and renewal of power and political course, modern European society is self-regulating.
References:
Aleksashkina L. N. / General History. XX - the beginning of the XXI century.
In 1989-1990, radical changes took place in all Eastern European states, as a result of which the communist parties were removed from power. They received two names: a) "velvet" revolutions (meaning that the change of the ruling political forces took place peacefully, without violence and blood, only Romania and Yugoslavia were a certain exception); b) democratic revolutions (implies the transition from totalitarianism to democracy).
There are several points of view on the nature of the events of 1989-1990. The most reasoned and generally accepted is that these were mass people's democratic revolutions. As a result of mass demonstrations (especially in the GDR, Czechoslovakia, Romania), new political forces came to power, which began to carry out changes of revolutionary content. In Poland, Hungary, Yugoslavia, although they were not accompanied by mass movements at that particular time, they were the result of long evolutionary processes in the 1980s. This evolution took place under the pressure of the masses and led to revolutionary political changes.
The scale of changes at the turn of the 1980s and 1990s is noteworthy. Over the course of about a year, from mid-1989 to mid-1990, a series of revolutions took place in the countries of Central and South-Eastern Europe. There was a phenomenon not seen in Europe since 1848 - a chain reaction of the influence of one country on others. In June 1989, the anti-socialist opposition won the parliamentary elections in Poland. In October of the same year, at the congress of the Hungarian Socialist Workers' Party, the reformist direction won, which reorganized the HSWP into a social democratic party and spoke in favor of a market economy, a variety of forms of ownership. In November, the plenum of the Central Committee of the Bulgarian Communist Party removed T. Zhivkov, and in Czechoslovakia, after student unrest, the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia was removed from power. In November-December 1989, a coalition government was formed in the GDR. December brought the overthrow of the Ceausescu regime in Romania. In January 1990, the actual disintegration of the SKJ took place, and the disintegration of Yugoslavia began. In May 1990, a general strike led to the formation of a coalition government in Albania.
The revolutions of 1989-1990 in the countries of the region were the result of national crises, a combination of internal and external factors. The main foreign policy prerequisite was the "perestroika" in the USSR, which prepared the way for the demolition of the old system ideologically and politically: this means openness, new in ideology, Moscow's refusal to dictate in the socialist camp. Analyzing internal factors, it should first of all be emphasized that socialism as a path of development and its Stalinist model were, on the whole, foreign to the countries of Europe. None of them was able to adapt to it either through national specifics, or through partial reforms, or through crises. The conservative administrative-command system turned into a brake on development: the actual one-party system did not allow taking into account the requirements of the time; the monopoly on power led to the political and moral degradation of the leading stratum of the party-state and economic apparatus; the dominant ideology was in a state of stagnation.
It is also necessary to pay attention to the fact that some elements or remnants of civil society remained in the countries of the region: non-communist parties within the national fronts in Czechoslovakia, Bulgaria and other informal associations. Economic problems have accumulated and worsened. All of the above, taken as a whole, necessitated radical changes and the speed of the collapse of the administrative-command system in the countries of Central and South-Eastern Europe.
The content of revolutions is a radical change in the political forces in power. In some countries (for example, Poland and Czechoslovakia), power has passed to clearly non-socialist and even anti-communist movements. In others (for example, in Bulgaria, the Yugoslav republics of Serbia and Montenegro), the communist parties and their programs were modernized, which allowed them to retain power for some time.
The general direction of all revolutions is one-dimensional. Their destructive aspect was directed against totalitarianism, the absence or violation of civil rights, against an inefficient administrative-command economy, and corruption. The creative side was focused on the establishment of political pluralism and real democracy, the priority of universal human values, the development of the economy in accordance with the laws in force in highly developed countries, and the improvement of living standards. If we formulate the positive direction of the revolutions extremely briefly, then it is necessary to single out two main directions of movement - towards democracy and the market.
The destructive aspect was fruitful - the old political systems perished very quickly. With the creation of a new society, things were not so simple and fast, the transition to a market economy is especially slow. This is due to many reasons. The objective factors include an archaic and cumbersome economic structure, the need for huge investments in production and the social sphere, and different starting positions of states. Czechoslovakia and the GDR can be somewhat conditionally classified as states with a fairly high level of development, Poland, Hungary, Croatia and Slovenia are countries of medium development, and Bulgaria, Romania, four other republics of the former Yugoslavia (Serbia, Montenegro, Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina), Albania - low. Among the subjective circumstances, it should be noted the persistence of anti-capitalist forces, the high social cost of reforms (unemployment, inflation) and various forms of protest, the psychology of leveling established under socialism, the lack of the necessary scientific justification for changes.
The events of 1989–1990 were characterized by the instability of the ideological and political forces that took part in them. They can be described as anti-totalitarian, but more precisely - it is impossible, since they were far from a clear ideological and socio-political self-determination. In essence, these were shaky coalitions of very diverse in socio-political and ideological terms, unformed currents (for example, Solidarity in Poland, the Civil Forum in Czechoslovakia). They were united only in the struggle against the old government, therefore, soon after the victory, the motley associations disintegrated. In each country there were a large number of political parties that aspired to power and found it difficult to find a common language. The path to stability was very difficult due to the usually difficult economic situation, social tension, sharp political confrontations, and nostalgia for a significant part of the population for the times of socialism.
From a social point of view, the main content of the modern period is manifested in the dynamic stratification and polarization of society. On the one hand, a small group of the rich appeared, on the other hand, workers deprived of their former social protection. The stratification is accelerating as market relations take shape and covers all segments of the population, but to varying degrees. The number one dramatic social problem is unemployment.
From the standpoint of geopolitics and international relations in Europe and the world, the revolutions of the turn of the 1980s and 1990s led to a sharp change in the foreign policy and economic orientations of the countries of Central and South-Eastern Europe. At the turn of 1990-1991. The military-political organization of the Warsaw Pact was liquidated. CMEA, introducing from January 1, 1991. mutual settlements in convertible currency, died, which dealt a severe blow to the economies of all Eastern European states. From the very beginning of the 1990s, the vast majority of countries in the region (with the exception of Serbia and Montenegro) have been characterized by a desire to join the European Community, NATO and other Western structures as quickly as possible. At the same time, it became clear that their integration with the West would be difficult, long and painful.
NATO expansion threatened to disrupt the existing balance of international forces. It met with strong opposition from Russia and Belarus, who did not want to border on the states of the super-powerful bloc. And yet, the process of moving NATO to the east has begun. In the spring of 1999, the first group of Eastern European states, the Czech Republic, Poland, and Hungary, were admitted to the bloc. During the aggression of NATO countries against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (March-June 1999), all the former socialist countries of Central and Eastern Europe supported military operations against the two Yugoslav republics, provided their airspace for NATO aircraft, etc. Macedonia allocated its territory for the deployment of the bloc's ground forces before their entry into Kosovo. During and after the anti-Yugoslav aggression, the neighboring states of the FRY (Macedonia, Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina) forced their movement into NATO. In general, this course is pursued by all states of Central and Eastern Europe, with the partial exception of Serbia, Montenegro, and Albania. It seems that in the near future there will be a further expansion of the NATO bloc at the expense of another group of countries in the region.
More complex and lengthy is the process of accession of the countries of the region to the European Community (EU). On the one hand, the states of Central and Eastern Europe would like to quickly receive great benefits and advantages from economic unification with the most developed countries of Europe (investments in the structural restructuring of the economy, direct financial assistance in raising living standards to Western European levels, a single market for labor, goods and capitals). On the other hand, the countries of the European Union are aware of both the need to find huge sums to bring the economic systems of the Central European states up to the level of Western Europe, and the complexity and duration of the processes of economic restructuring in the former socialist countries. Therefore, the European Community did not force the process of its own expansion. Only at the summit in December 2001. The leaders of the EU states decided to accept the first group of Central European countries in their ranks in 2004 and determined the list of "applicants" from 10 republics. The rest (including Bulgaria and Romania) were asked to wait until at least 2007.
We have to admit that during the 1990s Russia lost its role as a center of economic attraction for the countries of Central and South-Eastern Europe. Germany, Italy, Austria, etc. took its place. In 1999, the countries of the European Union accounted for up to 60% of the foreign trade turnover of the countries of the region.
The process of eliminating socialism in the countries of the region as a whole followed similar paths. At the same time, it is necessary to pay attention to some national features of both the events of 1989–1990 and subsequent developments.
Poland. At the plenum of the Central Committee of the PUWP (January 1989), the supporters of radical reforms achieved the adoption of decisions on the transition to political pluralism and on the dialogue of the Communist Party with other social and political forces. In February-April 1989, a series of meetings of the "round table" (PUWP, opposition, Catholic Church) took place, at which the parties agreed to allow opposition activities, the legalization of "Solidarity
”, changing the electoral law. The opposition won the parliamentary elections (June 1989). At the end of 1989, a coalition government was formed in Poland, which was headed by T. Mazowiecki, a representative of Solidarity and the Catholic Church, and in which there were only four ministers -
communist.
After that, the process of formation of new political and economic structures accelerated. Even the name of the state has changed: Rzeczpospolita Polska (Republic of Poland) instead of Poland. President in the 1991 elections the former leader of Solidarity, L. Walesa, was elected. Solidarity split, and a significant part of the members of this trade union-party went over to the opposition to the government and the president. In January 1990, the PZPR was transformed into the Social Democracy of the Republic of Poland, which supports a multi-party system and a market economy. There are more than 50 parties in the country, many of which are Catholic.
The transfer of the economy to the laws of the market took place under the leadership of the Minister of Finance L. Balcerowicz and was carried out by the method of "shock therapy". Free prices were immediately introduced, borders were opened for foreign goods, and the privatization of state property began. The market stabilized, but the Polish industry more or less adapted to the new conditions only in the mid-1990s. Unemployment was and remains massive. Serious economic problems persist, despite the large amount of Western assistance (investment, "writing off" half of the external debt).
Domestic political life in the 1990s was characterized by instability. Governments changed frequently. President Walesa was in constant conflict with Parliament. Since November 1995, the leader of the Social Democracy Aleksander Kwasniewski has been the President of Poland.
East Germany. In the summer of 1989, the emigration of citizens of the GDR to the FRG became massive - by the end of the year, over 200,000 had moved to West Germany. Mass demonstrations took place in many cities demanding the immediate start of political and economic reforms. In October 1989, E. Honecker was forced to resign from senior positions in the party and the state. Parliament excluded from the constitution an article on the leading role of the Communist Party, formed a coalition government. The border with West Berlin was opened. The SED acknowledged its mistakes and abuses and changed its name to the Party of Democratic Socialism (PDS).
In the parliamentary elections (March 1990), the PDS was defeated. The process of preparing for the unification of East and West Germany began. The symbol of the Iron Curtain, the Berlin Wall, was destroyed. By decision of the parliaments of the GDR and the FRG, on July 1, 1990, an agreement on the economic and monetary union of the two parts of Germany began to operate. On October 3, 1990, the GDR ceased to exist, and five new federal states of the FRG appeared in its place. The two parts of Germany united.
Czechoslovakia. In the autumn of 1989, opposition demonstrations take place, which consolidates, begins to lead the masses and demands a transition to a multi-party system and a market economy. After the November 17, 1989 dispersal of a demonstration of Prague students, there has been an increase in protest. The opposition created a socio-political association "Civil Forum", headed by Vaclav Havel. It led mass demonstrations under the slogans of a return to democracy and humanism.
In December 1989, the CPC essentially capitulated, agreeing with the parliament's decision to repeal the constitutional article on the leading role of the Communist Party. The Federal Assembly elected A. Dubcek as its chairman, V. Havel as its president, and formed a multi-party government. In 19901991 The country was named the Czech and Slovak Federal Republic. Denationalization began, an agreement was signed on the withdrawal of Soviet troops. The restructuring of the economy proceeded without any particular social upheavals. A law on lustrations was adopted, prohibiting former functionaries of the HRC and state security workers from holding any leadership positions.
In the parliamentary elections (June 1992) in both the Czech Republic and Slovakia, parties won, whose leaders immediately announced an imminent but civilized "divorce" of the two republics. In the July (1992) presidential elections in the Federal Assembly, V. Havel, a supporter of a unified state of Czechs and Slovaks, was not elected. A.Dubchek, standing in the same positions, died in a car accident. At the end of November 1992, the parliament by a small majority approved the liquidation of the CSFR. On the night of January 1, 1993, new states appeared on the political map - the republics of the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
The President of the Czech Republic is V. Havel (in January 1998 he was elected for a second five-year term). Until the end of 1997, the government of the country consisted of representatives of right-wing political forces, and the leader of the Civic Democratic Party, V. Klaus, was the prime minister. Since 1998, socio-economic activities in the country have been carried out by the "left" government, headed by the leader of the Czech Social Democrats, Milos Zeman.
The number one strategic direction of all domestic policy in the Czech Republic has remained unchanged throughout the existence of the republic - an active transition to the market and civil society, but without shock therapy. Reforming the economy is proceeding very successfully, with the best indicators among the former socialist countries.
Since 1999, the Czech Republic has been a member of NATO. It is part of a group of countries whose admission to the European Union is scheduled for 2004. The largest trading partner of the Czech Republic is Germany (about 1/3 of imports and exports).
In Slovakia, reforms are taking place somewhat more slowly, but with good results. Since the end of the 90s, a coalition of right-wing and centrist forces has been in power (President Rudolf Schuster, the government of M. Dzurinda).
Bulgaria. Radical reforms in this country were launched "from above" - the new communist leadership. The Communist Party retained power for some time, and then continued to occupy fairly strong political positions in the country.
The collapse of the Bulgarian "perestroika" led in November 1989 to the removal of T. Zhivkov. Minister of Foreign Affairs Petr Mladenov was elected General Secretary of the Central Committee of the BKP, who soon took over the established post of President of Bulgaria. In January 1990, at an extraordinary congress, the BCP adopted the "Manifesto on Democratic Socialism" (recognition of the deformations of socialism, condemnation of the national policy of T. Zhivkov, refusal of a leading role, a course towards a radical renewal of socialism in Bulgaria). Shortly after the congress, the BKP was renamed the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP).
The Union of Democratic Forces (SDS) was created, which united 16 anti-communist parties. This movement became the main opposition force. It was headed by the philosopher Zhelyu Zhelev.
In June 1990, parliamentary elections were held, in which the BSP gained a slight advantage over the opposition. But in August 1990, the Great People's Assembly elected J. Zhelev as president, and at the end of the year formed the first coalition government in which the socialists had more than half of the portfolios.
Zh. Zhelev was the President of Bulgaria until the end of 1996. In 1997-2001. the head of state was Petr Stoyanov, a representative of the anti-socialist forces. November 2001 The leader of the Socialist Party, Georgy Parvanov, was elected president for a five-year term.
The country's government alternately consisted of socialists, then right-wing parties. Since summer 2001 The Prime Minister of Bulgaria is the former monarch of the country, Simeon II.
Romania. In December 1989, a peaceful demonstration with anti-dictatorial slogans took place in the small town of Timisoara. It was brutally suppressed by security forces and troops. The workers of the city responded to the massacre with a general strike, which was the beginning of a democratic revolution. Unrest swept many cities. In Bucharest, they took on the character of a clash with government troops. On the orders of Ceausescu, the special units opened fire on the protesters, but the army as a whole declared its neutrality, and later went over to the side of the rebels.
The demonstrators seized the building of the Central Committee of the RCP. For several days in the capital there were battles with special forces loyal to the dictator. Resistance was soon crushed, and power passed to the National Salvation Front. N. Ceausescu and his wife Elena were captured and shot by a military court.
Yugoslavia. In January 1990, at the XIV (extraordinary) Congress of the Union of Communists, the disintegration of the federal state begins. The delegations of Slovenia and Croatia left it after refusing to accept their proposals to hold multi-party elections as early as 1990 and to turn the Republican NC into independent parties. As a result, the LCY actually split, the social democratization of the republican communist parties began, numerous new parties and movements appeared, and the ideas of nationalism and anti-communism spread rapidly and widely.
In 1990, elections were held to the republican assemblies (parliaments), in which the former communist parties were defeated in Croatia and Slovenia, did not receive a majority in Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, but retained power in Serbia and Montenegro. After the elections, the real disintegration of the SFRY begins, which was facilitated by the loss of the integrating factor in the person of the SKJ, the strengthening of centrifugal tendencies, and the great socio-economic and cultural differences between the republics.
In the second half of the 1990s, Slovenia and Croatia proclaimed their state sovereignty and began to form the main institutions of the state (the army in the first place). The federal authorities and Serbia opposed the withdrawal of the republics from the multinational state. May 1991 hostilities began against Croatia and Slovenia, which continued until March 1, 1992. They were terminated under the influence of the following factors: a) recognition by the West of the independence of Slovenia, Croatia and other Yugoslav republics; b) development of the process of disintegration (separation from the federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia); c) strong pressure from the international community (UN, West, Russia). Military clashes were the most violent on the territory of Croatia.
In September 1991 A referendum was held in Macedonia, which resulted in the proclaiming of a new sovereign republic. The Yugoslav army was withdrawn from it without armed clashes.
In April 1992, Serbia and Montenegro merged into the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (the so-called "Little Yugoslavia"). Undoubtedly, it dominated it until the end of the 90s, Serbia and its leader Slobodan Milosevic determined the foreign and domestic policy.
The events of the first half of the 1990s in Bosnia and Herzegovina, known as the "Bosnian crisis", had the most tragic character. Here in 1992-1995 there was a civil war with an interethnic character.
The population of Bosnia and Herzegovina is multinational - 40% Muslims ("Bosnyaks"), 32% Serbs, 18% Croats. In 1990–1991 there was a sharp polarization of the population and political parties along ethnic lines. Muslims and Croats were in favor of the sovereignty of the republic, the Serbs were against it. In January 1992, the Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina, by a majority of votes (Croats and Muslims), approved a memorandum of sovereignty and elected the leader of the Muslim community as president. The Serbian faction left the parliament, and the Serbian regions declared their autonomy and insubordination to the decision of the Assembly.
In April 1992, in accordance with the memorandum, Bosnia and Herzegovina was proclaimed independent and immediately recognized by the EU. In the same month, a civil war begins in Bosnia. At the end of April, the "Serbian Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina" was self-proclaimed. In June 1992, the federal army was withdrawn, and since that time the war has continued between the formations of the three communities.
In June 1992, by decision of the UN Security Council, harsh economic sanctions were imposed against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the Bosnian Serbs, subjectively recognized as aggressors, the only culprits of the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Since 1992, UN peacekeeping forces (“blue helmets”) have been stationed on the territory of the former Yugoslavia, performing the following functions: separation of the warring parties, control over the observance of truces, protection of humanitarian convoys. The international community has also developed and tried to implement several plans for a peaceful settlement of the Bosnian crisis, but for various reasons they have not been implemented.
Since August 1995, NATO forces began to deliver massive strikes against military targets of the Bosnian Serbs, thereby supporting the large-scale offensive of Muslims and Croats. The Serbs were defeated and lost a significant part of the territory. The success of this joint operation against Republika Srpska predetermined future agreements on Bosnia and Herzegovina.
In October 1995, a truce came, and in late October - mid-November, negotiations were held at the American airbase in Dayton between Croatian delegations, Muslims from Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Serbia (representing the interests of the Bosnian Serbs). On December 14, 1995, a solemn signing of the peace treaty took place in Paris, which was attended by the leaders of the guarantor states (USA, England, France, Germany, Russia). The main provisions of the Dayton Accords can be summarized as follows: a) Bosnia and Herzegovina is a single (outwardly) state with a president, parliament, and government; b) it consists of two parts - the Croatian-Muslim Federation (51% of the territory) and the Serbian Republic (49%); c) the division of land, compliance with the treaty and peacekeeping are provided by the so-called multinational forces (mainly from NATO countries and under the command of this bloc), which replace the UN peacekeeping battalions; d) Sanctions against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia are gradually lifted. In the second half of the 1990s, the situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina outwardly normalized, but it still does not exist as a single state. The multinational force continues to be the only guarantor of peace in Bosnian lands.
In the late 1990s, important events took place in and around Serbia and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. In Serbia, an anti-socialist opposition was formed and actively operated, opposing, first of all, the president of the republic, the leader of the Socialist Party, Slobodan Milosevic. In 1997, S. Milosevic, fearing defeat in the elections in Serbia, achieved his own election to the post of President of the FRY.
1999 - the apogee of the Kosovo crisis. Recall that Kosovo is an autonomous region within Serbia, at least 90% of whose population at the end of the 20th century were Albanians. Since the end of the 40s, active work has been carried out here to separate the region from Serbia and Yugoslavia. In 1990, the "Declaration of Independence of Kosovo" was adopted. In 1997, the Albanian Kosovo Liberation Army was formed, which soon declared open war on Belgrade under the slogan of complete independence and annexation to Albania. Since the spring of 1998, a real civil war began in the region with an ethnic character and numerous victims.
The West accused Serbia and the FRY of genocide against the Kosovo Albanians and offered to sign an agreement that would effectively separate Kosovo from Serbia in a few years. The refusal of the Yugoslav delegation to sign the humiliating document served as a pretext for NATO aggression against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (March-June 1999). It was attended by 19 developed countries of the world with an economic potential equal to 679 Yugoslav. It took place without the sanction of the UN. More than 25,000 air raids were made, more than 1,000 cruise missiles and 31,000 depleted uranium shells were fired.
The leadership of the FRY (S. Milosevic) and Serbia was forced to capitulate. A multinational military force was introduced into Kosovo, dominated by NATO troops. Since the end of 1999, the region has been gradually sovereignized (in violation of the UN Security Council resolution on the territorial integrity of the FRY) and the remnants of Serbs and Montenegrins have been ousted from it.
In 2000, S. Milosevic lost the presidential elections in the FRY to Vojislav Kostunica. In 2001 The new Prime Minister of Serbia, Zoran Djindjic, ordered the extradition of S. Milosevic to the International War Crimes Tribunal in the former Yugoslavia (The Hague).
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1. Western and Northern Europe in the late XX - early XXI centuries. 2. Eastern Europe in the late XX - early XXI centuries. Topic: "Europe at the end of the 20th - beginning of the 21st centuries"
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The dominant development in the second half of the XX century. considered to be a significant progress along the path of scientific and technological progress. However, even in these decades, the Western world faced a number of problems, upheavals - everything that is called "challenges of the time." technological and information revolution, collapse of colonial empires, global economic crises of 1974-1975. and 1980-1982, social performances in the 60-70s. XX century, separatist movements, etc. All of them demanded some kind of restructuring of economic and social relations, the choice of ways for further development, compromises or toughening of political courses.
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France In France, it was necessary to overcome the consequences of the occupation and the activities of the collaborationist governments. After the end of the war, coalition governments were established in most Western European countries. The main measures were: the restoration of democratic freedoms, the cleansing of the state apparatus from members of the fascist movement, the nationalization of a number of sectors of the economy and enterprises. In France, 5 largest banks, the coal industry, the Renault automobile plants (the owner of which collaborated with the occupation regime), and several aviation enterprises were nationalized.
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In France, the constitution of the Fourth Republic was adopted in 1946. In addition to democratic rights, the French constitution of 1946 proclaimed the rights to work, rest, social security, education, the rights of workers to participate in the management of enterprises, trade union and political activity, the right to a strike "within the law", etc. In accordance with the provisions of the constitutions in many countries, social insurance systems were created, which included pensions, sickness and unemployment benefits, and assistance to large families. A 40-42-hour week was established, paid holidays were introduced. This was done largely under pressure from the working people.
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After a decade of stability in the life of the Western European states, a period of upheaval has come. in France towards the end of the 1950s. there was a crisis situation caused by the frequent change of governments of socialists and radicals, the collapse of the colonial empire (the loss of Indochina, Tunisia and Morocco, the war in Algeria), the deterioration of the situation of workers. In such a situation, the idea of "strong power", an active supporter of which was General Charles de Gaulle, received more and more support. In May 1958, the command of the French troops in Algiers refused to obey the government until Charles de Gaulle returned to it. The general declared that he was "ready to take over the power of the Republic" on condition that the 1946 constitution be repealed and emergency powers granted to him. In the fall of 1958, the constitution of the Fifth Republic was adopted, which provided the head of state with the broadest rights,
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In December, de Gaulle was elected president of France. Having established a "regime of personal power", he sought to resist attempts to weaken the state from within and without. But on the issue of colonies, he decided that it was better to carry out decolonization “from above”, while maintaining influence in the former possessions, than to wait for a shameful expulsion, for example, from Algeria, which fought for independence. De Gaulle's readiness to recognize the right of the Algerians to decide their own fate caused an anti-government military mutiny in 1960. In 1962, Algeria gained independence.
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in France in 1961-1962. Demonstrations and strikes were organized demanding an end to the rebellion of the ultra-colonialist forces. The high point of social action during this period was the events of May - June 1968 in France (the number of strikers in the country exceeded 10 million people). The government was forced to make concessions. The participants of the strike achieved: wage increase by 10-19%, increase in holidays, expansion of the rights of trade unions. These events proved to be a serious test for the authorities. In April 1969, President de Gaulle put forward a bill on the reorganization of local self-government to a referendum, but the majority of those who voted rejected the bill. After that, Charles de Gaulle resigned. In June 1969, J. Pompidou was elected the new president of the country.
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In the late 90s. in many European countries, the liberals replaced the conservatives in power; in France, as a result of parliamentary elections, a government was formed from representatives of leftist parties.
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Germany and Italy for Germany, Italy, it was about the complete elimination of the remnants of Nazism and fascism, the creation of new democratic states. significant battles unfolded around the elections to constituent assemblies, the development and adoption of new constitutions. In Italy, the events associated with the choice of a monarchical or republican form of state went down in history as a “battle for the republic” (the country was proclaimed a republic as a result of a referendum on June 18, 1946). The constitutions of 1947 in Italy (which entered into force on January 1, 1948) and those of 1949 in West Germany became the most democratic constitutions in the history of these countries.
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The 1950s constituted a special period in the history of Western European countries. Post-war industry was created using new machines and technologies. A scientific and technological revolution began, one of the main manifestations of which was the automation of production. The qualifications of workers increased, and their wages also increased. in Germany during the 1950s. wages have doubled. In some countries, for example, in Italy, Austria, the figures were not so significant. Governments periodically “frozen” salaries. This caused protests and strikes by workers. Economic recovery in Germany and Italy. In the post-war years, the economy here was more difficult to establish than in other countries. Against this background, the situation in the 1950s regarded as an "economic miracle". American assistance under the Marshall Plan served as a significant help.
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The period of stable development coincided with the coming to power of the conservatives. Thus, in Germany, the name of K. Adenauer, who held the post of chancellor in 1949-1963, was associated with the revival of the German state, and L. Erhard was called the "father of the economic miracle." The Christian Democrats partly retained the façade of "social policy", they spoke of a welfare society, social guarantees for working people. In Germany, the theory of the "social market economy" was established, focused on supporting private property and free competition.
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A wave of social action led to political change in most Western European countries. Many of them in the 60s. Social Democratic and Socialist parties came to power. In the FRG, at the end of 1966, representatives of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) entered the coalition government, and since 1969 they themselves formed the government. In Italy, the basis of the post-war governments was the Christian Democratic Party (CDA), which entered into a coalition with parties of the left and right. In the 60s. its partners were the left - the social democrats and socialists. The leader of the Social Democrats, D. Saragat, was elected president of the country. Despite the differences in situations in different countries, the policy of the Social Democrats had some common features. They considered the creation of a “social society” to be their main value, the main values of which were proclaimed freedom, justice, solidarity. The key provision of their programs was the thesis of state regulation of the economy. The attitude towards the market was expressed by the motto: "Competition - as much as possible, planning - as much as necessary."
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An important aspect of the activities of the social democratic governments of the Western European states was the change in foreign policy. Particularly significant steps in this direction have been taken in Germany. The government that came to power in 1969, headed by Chancellor W. Brandt (SPD) and Vice-Chancellor and Minister of Foreign Affairs W. Scheel (FDP), made a fundamental turn in "Ostpolitik", concluding in 1970-1973. bilateral treaties with the USSR, Poland, Czechoslovakia, confirming the inviolability of the borders between the FRG and Poland, the FRG and the GDR. These treaties, as well as the quadripartite agreements on West Berlin, signed by representatives of the USSR, the USA, Great Britain and France in September 1971, created a real basis for expanding international contacts and mutual understanding in Europe.
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In the mid 70s. Significant political changes have taken place in the states of Southwestern and Southern Europe. In Portugal, as a result of the April Revolution of 1974, the authoritarian regime was overthrown. The first post-revolutionary governments (1974-1975), which consisted of the leaders of the Movement of the Armed Forces and the Communists, focused on the following tasks: defashization and the establishment of democratic orders, the decolonization of the African possessions of Portugal, the agrarian reform, the adoption of a new constitution of the country, improving the living conditions of workers. Later, the right bloc Democratic Alliance (1979-1983) came to power, which tried to curtail the transformations that had begun earlier, and then the coalition government of the socialist and social democratic parties, headed by the leader of the socialists M. Soares (1983-1985).
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In Greece, in 1974, the regime of "black colonels" was replaced by a civilian government, which consisted of representatives of the conservative bourgeoisie. It didn't make any major changes. In 1981 -1989. and since 1993, the Panhellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK) party was in power, a course of democratization of the political system and social reforms was pursued.
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In Spain, after the death of F. Franco in 1975, King Juan Carlos I became the head of state. With his approval, the transition from an authoritarian regime to a democratic one began. The government headed by A. Suarez restored democratic freedoms and lifted the ban on the activities of political parties. In December 1978, a constitution was adopted proclaiming Spain a social and legal state. Since 1982, the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party has been in power, its leader F. Gonzalez headed the country's government. Particular attention was paid to measures to increase production, create jobs. The result of the policy of the socialists, who were in power continuously until 1996, was the completion of a peaceful transition from dictatorship to a democratic society.
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Crisis of 1974-1975 seriously complicated the economic and social situation in most Western European countries. Changes were needed, a restructuring of the economy. There were no resources for it under the existing economic and social policy, state regulation of the economy did not work. Conservatives tried to give an answer to the challenge of time. Their focus on a free market economy, private enterprise and initiative was well aligned with the objective need for extensive investment in production. In the late 70s - early 80s. conservatives came to power in many Western countries. In 1979, the Conservative Party won the parliamentary elections in Great Britain, the government was headed by M. Thatcher (the party remained ruling until 1997. In 1982, G. Kohl took the post of chancellor in Germany. The long-term rule of the Social Democrats in the countries of Northern Europe was interrupted They were defeated in elections in 1976 in Sweden and Denmark, in 1981 in Norway.
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In countries (Eastern Europe), a gap between constitutions and reality in the sphere of the rights and freedoms of citizens has appeared. Their violations by party communists were massive. This caused dissatisfaction among their population, which, in the conditions of the weakening of totalitarianism in the USSR in 1989-1990, led to democratic transformations and the collapse of the omnipotence of the communists. In August 1980, in Poland, in Gdansk, a free trade union association arose, which received the name "Solidarity". L. Walesa, an electrician of the local shipyard, became its leader. Soon it turned into a mass organized socio-political movement (up to 10 million members). The new leader, V. Jaruzelsky, under pressure from Moscow, introduced martial law in the country and arrested 5,000 trade union activists. In connection with the beginning of "perestroika" in the USSR, V. Jaruzelsky was forced to agree to the legalization of the activities of "Solidarity", to free parliamentary elections, the establishment of the post of president of the country and the creation of a second chamber in the Sejm - the Senate. The June 1989 elections ended with the victory of Solidarity, and its faction in the Sejm formed a democratic government headed by T. Mazowiecki.
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In 1990, the leader of Solidarity, L. Walesa, was elected president of the country. He supported Balcerowicz's radical reform plan, which led to a temporary painful decline in the living standards of the population. With his active participation, Poland began to move closer to NATO and the European community. Temporary economic difficulties associated with mass privatization, as well as the discovery of secret ties in the past with the secret services of some figures from Walesa's entourage led to the fact that A. Kwasniewski defeated him during the 1995 presidential election.
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In Czechoslovakia, after the beginning of “perestroika” in the USSR, G. Husak refused to change the political course and enter into a dialogue with the opposition, and in 1988 he was forced to resign from the post of communist leader. In November 1989, the "Velvet Revolution" took place in Czechoslovakia, during which, under the pressure of mass peaceful protests, the communists were forced to agree to the formation of a government with the participation of representatives of the democratic opposition. A. Dubcek became speaker of the parliament, and V. Havel, a democratic writer, became president. In Czechoslovakia, there was a peaceful transition from communist dictatorship to parliamentarism. Democratic transformations began in political and public life. On January 1, 1993, Czechoslovakia split into two states - the Czech Republic and Slovakia. V. Havel was elected President of the Czech Republic.
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The democratization of public and state life also took place in the GDR, where the democratic opposition won the first free elections in March 1990. As a result of a popular uprising, the hated communist regime of N. Ceausescu was overthrown in Romania in December 1989. The struggle of the Albanians to eliminate the communist regime in their country ended in 1992. Changes did not pass by Bulgaria, where democratic forces also came to power. According to the new constitution of 1991, the Bulgarian People's Republic became the Republic of Bulgaria. The process of democratization of public and state life has spread to the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. In the early 1990s, new constitutions were adopted in a number of Eastern European states, and important changes were made to the constitutions of others. They changed not only the names of states, but also the essence of the social and political system, they perceived universal democratic values. According to the new
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The new Romanian constitution was approved in November 1991. Instead of the Romanian People's Republic, the Republic of Romania appeared. The Constitution of the Republic of Serbia and Montenegro, which arose after the collapse of the Yugoslav Federation, was adopted in April 1992. The constitutions also fixed the changes in the functions of the head of state, in the role of which the collective body ceased to act. The post of President of the State was restored everywhere. It was often envisaged that he would be elected by popular vote, and he himself was endowed with significant powers of authority, the right of a suspensive veto, and sometimes the right to dissolve parliament (in certain cases).
According to the decisions of the Yalta and Potsdam conferences of the heads of the great powers (1945) on the post-war structure of Europe, the countries of Eastern and South-Eastern Europe were included in the sphere of interests of the USSR. In most of them, the communist parties were popular, since they were the organizers of the anti-fascist resistance. Until 1948, the Soviet leadership avoided gross interference in the affairs of the "people's democracy" countries. However, with the unfolding of the Cold War, especially after the creation of the NATO bloc, such interference became clear. This led to a conflict with Yugoslavia, whose leadership was focused on building socialism, but showed greater independence. After Stalin's death, the "ideological chauvinism" of the Soviet leadership did not disappear, but rather intensified. Although there was a relative reconciliation with Yugoslavia, the Soviet leadership (N.S. Khrushchev, L.I. Brezhnev) constantly clashed with the leaders of Albania, China, North Korea, Cuba, Romania, who pursued an independent course. Particularly acute, right up to the armed clashes in 1969, was the conflict with China.
In Europe, by the beginning of the period we are studying, there was a bloc of socialist countries whose organizational structures were the Warsaw Pact Organization (WTO) and the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (CMEA). The weight of the socialist system in the world economy was quite weighty: in 1980 the USSR accounted for 25% of world industrial production, Czechoslovakia, the GDR and Romania were among the ten leading industrial powers in the world.
However, the degree of rootedness of Soviet-type state socialism was not very high, it was the less, the more obediently the leaders of the countries followed the Soviet recipes. Political regimes of European socialist countries by the 1980s resembled the Soviet liberal-bureaucratic regime (1953-1991), with the political and ideological monopoly of the ruling party, implemented by relatively mild methods. Throughout the post-war period, the Western bloc sought to separate the socialist countries from the USSR, which was the most important task of the special services.
In the Polish People's Republic (PNR) at the turn of the 1970-80s. real Soviet-style socialism entered a state of crisis. Then an independent trade union "Solidarity" arose, headed by L. Walesa, an electrician of the local shipyard. became an opposition force. Soon, Solidarity turned into a mass organized socio-political movement (up to 10 million members) and began attempts to seize power from the Polish United Workers' Party (PUWP). In December 1981, the new president of Poland, General W. Jaruzelski, who was popular in the country, introduced martial law and arrested about 5 thousand trade unionists, martial law was introduced in the country, Solidarity was banned, but its influence remained.
In the second half of the 1980s. in the Soviet-controlled part of Europe, they noticed that Gorbachev's perestroika had an anti-socialist and pro-Western orientation. This inspired the political opposition that existed and was sometimes active throughout the entire socialist period. Anti-socialist and anti-Soviet movements in the countries of Eastern Europe have traditionally been called "democratic" in the West.
Thus, the strike demonstrations organized by Solidarity in the summer of 1988 forced the communists to negotiate with the leadership of Solidarity. In connection with the beginning of “perestroika” in the USSR, V. Jaruzelsky and his entourage were forced to agree to the legalization of the activities of Solidarity, to competitive parliamentary elections, reforming the institution of the country's president and creating a second chamber in the Sejm - the Senate.
The June 1989 elections ended with the victory of Solidarity, and its faction in the Sejm formed a government headed by T. Mazowiecki. In 1990, the leader of Solidarity, L. Walesa, was elected president of the country. He supported L. Balcerowicz's plan for radical market reforms, which was actually developed by the IMF and the World Bank. With the active participation of the new president, Poland began to move closer to NATO and the European community. The economic difficulties associated with mass privatization, as well as the revelation of secret connections in the past with the secret services of some figures from Walesa's entourage and himself led to the fact that A. Kwasniewski, a former active communist, won the presidential election in 1995.
Already in the early 1990s. Russian troops were withdrawn from the country. By this time, the Warsaw Pact and the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance had already ceased to exist. In 1994, Poland announced its desire to enter Western structures, which it succeeded in: in 1999, despite diplomatic condemnation from Russia, it became a member of NATO, and in 2004, a member of the European Union. In recent years (during the reign of the Kaczynski brothers), difficulties have been growing in Russian-Polish relations related to mutual economic and political claims. Poland even blocked the signing in 2006 of a new cooperation agreement between the EU and Russia. At present, the Polish leadership agrees to the deployment of American missile defense facilities in the country, which further complicates the situation.
It should be noted that Poland is the largest state in the CEE region in terms of territory and population (36 million people), and, in principle, relations with it are important.
In the autumn of 1989 in Czechoslovakia (Czechoslovakia) there was a so-called. "velvet revolution". This state arose in 1919. As a result of the Munich agreement (September 1938) between the Western powers and Nazi Germany, in March 1939 Czechoslovakia ceased to exist. The Czech Republic was annexed to the Reich with the status of protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia. Its powerful military-industrial complex worked for Germany until the end of World War II. There was no noticeable resistance or sabotage. Until June 22, 1941, the USSR maintained formal diplomatic relations with Slovakia, formally independent, but actually controlled by the Reich.
Already during the war, close relations were established between the Czechoslovak government in exile and Moscow. In 1945, the Treaty of Friendship between Czechoslovakia and the USSR was signed. At the same time, Czechoslovakia renounced its rights to Transcarpathian Ukraine, which was part of it earlier. In the early post-war years, while maintaining close relations with the Soviet Union, Czechoslovakia retained its basic democratic institutions. The then popularity of the USSR contributed to the fact that the influence of the Czechoslovak communists was very great. In February 1948, with the support of the USSR, they pushed other political forces out of power and established a regime in the country that did not differ from those that were being formed at that time in the entire Eastern European region.
Until the end of the 1960s. there were no strong anti-Soviet sentiments in Czechoslovakia. The situation was changed by the events of 1968, when an attempt was made in Czechoslovakia to liberalize the existing communist regime, which aroused fears and suspicions of the Soviet leadership. The USSR and other countries participating in the Warsaw Pact sent their troops to the territory of Czechoslovakia, which eventually led to the cessation of reforms and radical changes in the leadership of the country and the Communist Party. After that, at the level of mass consciousness, a reaction of alienation from the “big brother” arose.
In Czechoslovakia, after the start of “perestroika” in the USSR, General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia G. Husak refused to change the political course and enter into a dialogue with the opposition, and in 1988 was forced to resign from the post of leader. In November 1989, the Velvet Revolution took place in Czechoslovakia, during which, under the pressure of mass peaceful protests, the communists were forced to agree to the formation of a government with the participation of representatives of the democratic opposition. A. Dubcek became speaker of the parliament, and V. Havel, a democratic writer, became president.
Prague took a course towards establishing close relations with Western countries. In 1992, Russian troops were withdrawn from the country, and in 1993 this state itself disintegrated (without serious conflicts) into the Czech Republic and Slovakia. V. Havel was elected President of the Czech Republic. The desire of both states to integrate into Western structures remained, however, the Czech Republic, as an economically more developed one, moved towards this faster and already in 1999 became a member of NATO. Slovakia joined this organization only in 2004. In the same year, both states became members of the EU. Slovakia during the 1990s showed more interest in cooperation with Russia, especially in the economic sphere, but things never went beyond declarations and statements.
Unlike Czechoslovakia, Hungary was an ally of Nazi Germany and was defeated along with it. The territory of the country was occupied by Soviet troops, and the USSR actively influenced the development of Hungarian political processes. By 1949, the Stalinist regime was established in Hungary, headed by the leader of the local Communist Party, F. Rakosi. Contrary to the existing national traditions, the country began to copy the Soviet model of socialism in detail, which led to an aggravation of socio-economic and political contradictions. The influence of pro-fascist elements, who carried out anti-communist and anti-Semitic propaganda, remained strong. The consequence of these contradictions was a deep internal political crisis in Hungary, which broke out in the autumn of 1956 in the form of armed clashes and almost led to the collapse of Hungarian socialism. After the events of 1956, the Soviet Union authorized the implementation of a fairly reasonable and independent economic policy in Hungary, which made the country relatively prosperous within the framework of the socialist camp. But, on the other hand, the changes that took place to some extent blurred the ideological foundations of the existing regime, so Hungary, like Poland, began dismantling the socialist system earlier than other Eastern European countries.
In October 1989, in Hungary, the communists (Hungarian Socialist Workers' Party) were forced to agree to the adoption of a law on the multi-party system and the activities of parties. And then the country's constitution was amended. They envisaged "a peaceful political transition to a rule of law state in which a multi-party system, parliamentary democracy and a socially oriented market economy are implemented." In the March 1990 elections to the Hungarian State Assembly, the Communists were defeated, and the Hungarian Democratic Forum won the majority of seats in parliament. After that, any mention of socialism was excluded from the constitution. Unlike other countries in the region, Hungary's transition to "Western values" took place in an evolutionary way, but the general vector of its movement towards integration into European structures coincided with the vector of movement of other post-communist CEE states. Hungary is a member of the EU and NATO.
The democratization of public and state life also took place in the GDR, where the democratic opposition won the first free elections in March 1990. Then there was the unification of Germany through the absorption of East Germany (GDR) by West Germany (FRG).
When considering the events of the end of 1989, it must be taken into account that in early December 1989, during the meeting of M. Gorbachev and George W. Bush (old) in Malta, Gorbachev actually surrendered the Soviet sphere of influence in Eastern Europe to the West, more precisely, to the USA.
Events in the countries of South-Eastern Europe developed exceptionally dramatically. It should be noted that the most significant states of this region gained sovereignty with the active support of Russia. This applies to Bulgaria, Romania, and Serbia and Montenegro, which were part of the former Yugoslavia. Moreover, Russia often provided this assistance to the detriment of its own foreign policy interests, based on pan-Slavic romanticism, which began to dominate public opinion from the 2nd half of the 19th century. and retains some influence to this day.
During the First World War, Bulgaria became an ally of the countries of the German bloc. In April 1941, Bulgaria participated in the German aggression against Yugoslavia and Greece, but the Bulgarian government declined to participate in hostilities against the USSR, citing strong Russophile sentiments among the population. After the Red Army reached the borders of Bulgaria on September 5, 1944, the USSR declared war on it, but there were actually no military operations, since the Bulgarian army refused to fight, and a change of power took place in the country. The government of the Fatherland Front declared war on Germany and its allies, and the Bulgarian troops at the final stage of the war fought on the side of the anti-Hitler coalition. In fact, already in 1944, the establishment of the communist regime began, which ended in 1948, when the People's Republic of Bulgaria was proclaimed.
Until the end of the 1980s. relations between the USSR and Bulgaria developed steadily, there were no significant anti-communist forces inside the state. As in other countries of Eastern Europe, democratic changes in Bulgaria began at the end of 1989. At the same time, just like in other states of the region, the task of integration into Western structures was set almost immediately. Later, there was a sharp distancing from Russia, with which a visa regime was established. Currently Bulgaria is a member of NATO, in 2004 it was admitted to the EU. Russian-Bulgarian relations have been in a state of stagnation for a long time, the mutual trade turnover remains insignificant.
Romania, neighboring Bulgaria, also actively participated in the war against the USSR from the very beginning, in the period 1941-1944. it included as provinces not only Bessarabia, but also the Northern Black Sea region, including Odessa. At the same time, the state tried to maintain contacts with Great Britain and the USA. On August 23, 1944, a coup d'etat took place in Romania, it broke the bloc with Germany and joined the anti-Hitler coalition. It is noteworthy that the Romanian King Mihai was awarded the highest award of the USSR - the Order of Victory. However, already in 1946, the monarchy in Romania was abolished, and a communist regime was established in the country. Soviet-Romanian relations since the late 1950s. developed somewhat differently than the relations of the USSR with other Eastern European countries. After Nicolae Ceausescu came to power in 1965, the Socialist Republic of Romania (SRR) distanced itself from the Soviet Union. The Romanian leadership openly expressed its negative attitude towards the entry of Warsaw Pact troops into Czechoslovakia in 1968. Romania was the only socialist country that maintained diplomatic relations with Israel after the Arab-Israeli war of 1967. In addition, Romania demonstrated a certain level of independence within the framework of the Warsaw Pact and CMEA . By 1980, the powerful economic development of the country led it to the top ten industrialized countries of the world. In December 1989, as a result of an armed putsch with an imitation of a "mass popular uprising", the regime of N. Ceausescu (rather liberal, but with a strong personality cult of the president) was overthrown. The president himself, along with his wife E. Ceausescu, was killed. This was presented by Western and Soviet (Gorbachev's) propaganda as the overthrow of the "hated communist regime."
After the fall of socialism, Romania, like other Eastern European countries, headed for integration with the West. However, the rapid decline in living standards turned Romania into one of the poorest countries in Europe, which did not allow it to quickly achieve the goal of its policy - accession to the EU. This happened only in 2007. Relations with Russia are in a state of stagnation, while unitarian sentiments regarding unification with Moldova are popular in Romania itself.
The worst events since the early 1990s deployed in Yugoslavia. Russia throughout the 19th century. actively contributed to Serbia's aspirations for independence from the Ottoman Empire. In 1878, as a result of the Russian-Turkish war, the independence of Serbia was recognized by Istanbul. The country was proclaimed a kingdom. At the forefront of the country's foreign policy was the task of uniting the southern Slavs into a single state. This goal was achieved after the First World War, when the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes was formed (since 1929 - Yugoslavia).
In foreign policy, the country retained its orientation towards the Entente. From the very beginning, ethnic contradictions emerged within the state, primarily between Serbs and Croats. April 6, 1941 Germany and its allies started the war against Yugoslavia and Greece. On April 10, Croatia declared independence, and on the 17th, Yugoslavia capitulated. A very strong partisan movement was formed in the country, but the Red Army, which in October 1944 entered its territory, played a decisive role in the liberation of Yugoslavia. On April 11, 1945, a friendship treaty was concluded between the countries. However, due to the desire of the Yugoslav communists to maintain independence in decision-making, in the summer of 1948 the treaty was denounced, and relations between the countries ceased. They returned to normal only in 1955, when an agreement on friendly relations was signed again. Nevertheless, Yugoslavia never became a member of the Warsaw Pact, and had an observer status in the CMEA. In the late 1980s in the country, on the one hand, the monopoly of the communists on power is ending, on the other hand, disintegration processes are taking place, actively supported by the West.
"Perestroika" in the USSR and the weakening of the communist position in Eastern Europe led to significant changes in the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, which was dominated by Serbia and its communist leadership. At the same time, Serbia sought to preserve the existing federation, while Slovenia and Croatia insisted on turning it into a confederation (1991). In June 1991, the Slovenian Assembly declared its independence, and the Croatian Council adopted a declaration declaring the independence of Croatia. Then a regular army was sent from Belgrade against them, but the Croats and Slovenes began to resist by force of arms.
Belgrade's attempts with the help of troops to prevent the independence of Croatia and Slovenia ended in failure due to the support of the separatists from the European Union and NATO. Then part of the Serbian population of Croatia, supported by Belgrade, began an armed struggle against the independence of Croatia. Serb troops took part in the conflict, a lot of blood was shed, the conflict between Croatia and Serbia waned after the UN peacekeeping troops entered Croatia in February 1992. Even more bloody events accompanied the independence of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The latter led to the collapse of the country in 1991: Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Macedonia declared independence; and only the latter managed to do it peacefully. In other cases, there was an armed conflict with the central government. Russia recognized their independence, but supported the Serbs in all conflicts. Such support was due, first of all, to civilizational factors and led to complications in Russia's relations both with other countries of the region and with the main powers of the West. Most of all, this manifested itself in 1999 during the Kosovo crisis, and direct NATO aggression against Yugoslavia, which already consisted only of Serbia and Montenegro. Russia, supporting Belgrade, actually found itself on the verge of a diplomatic conflict with Western countries. At the same time, Serbia, where pro-Western forces came to power, throughout this period did not demonstrate readiness for broad economic cooperation, and in 2000, almost immediately after the end of the Kosovo crisis, a visa regime was introduced between the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the Russian Federation.
In 2008, Russia supported Serbia's desire to maintain territorial integrity and condemned Western countries for recognizing the independence of Kosovo.
In Albania, the communist regime was dismantled in 1992.
In the early 1990s in a number of Eastern European states, new constitutions were adopted, or important changes in existing ones. They changed not only the names of states, but also the essence of the social and political system, they perceived "Western democratic values." The constitutions also fixed the changes in the functions of the head of state, in the role of which the collective body ceased to act. The post of President of the State was restored everywhere.