History Of Europe

(14th to 20th century)Rachel IkekhuaAmy El Zayaty

Marianna GhattasIngy Mahmoud

• Beginning roughly in the 14th century in Florence, and later spreading through Europe with the development of printing press, a Renaissance of knowledge challenged traditional doctrines in science and theology, with the rediscovery of classical Greek and Roman knowledge. Simultaneously Protestant Reformation under Martin Luther questioned Papal authority. Henry VIII sundered the English Church, allying in ensuing religious wars between German and Spanish rulers.

• The Reconquista of Portugal and Spain led to a series of oceanic explorations resulting in the age of discovery hat established direct links with Africa, the Americas and Asia, while religious wars continued to be fought in Europe, which ended in 1648 with the Peace of Westphalia

• European overseas expansion led to the rise of colonial empires, producing the Columbian Exchange. The combination of resource inflows from the New World and the Industrial Revolution of Great Britain, allowed a new economy based on manufacturing instead of subsistence agriculture.

• Starting in 1775, British Empire colonies in America revolted to establish a representative government. Political change in continental Europe was spurred by the French Revolution. The French leader, Napoleon Bonaparte, conquered and enforced reforms through war up to 1815.

• The period between 1815 and 1871 saw a large number of revolutionary attempts and independence wars. In France and the United Kingdom, socialist and trade union activity developed. The last vestiges of serfdom were abolished in Russia in 1861[and Balkan nations began to regain independence from the Ottoman Empire. After the Franco-Prussian War, Germany and Italy unified into nation states, and most European states had become constitutional monarchies by 1871.

• Revolution which led to the formation of the communist Soviet Union. Hard conditions imposed on Germany by the Treaty of Versailles and the Great Depression led to the rise of fascism in Germany as well as in Italy, Spain and other countries. The rise of the irredentist totalitarian regime Nazi Germany led to a Second World War.

• Following the end of the Second World War, Europe was divided by the Iron Curtain between American dominated non-socialist countries of Europe and Soviet dominated socialist countries of Europe. Most non-socialist European countries came under US protection via NATO and formed the European Economic Community amongst themselves. The East was dominated by communist countries under the Soviet Union's economic and military leadership. There were also a number of neutral countries in between.

• In the late 1989, the Fall of Communism begun in countries allied with USSR: Poland, Hungary and Romania. The Soviet Union itself felt a bit later, in years 1990-1991, and countries which were Soviet republics became independent. As a consequence Europe's economic integration deepened, the continent became depolarized and the European Union expanded to include many of the formerly communist European countries, in 2004 and 2007.

Europe, in particular Ancient Greece, is the birthplace of Western culture. It played a major role in global affairs from the 16th century onwards, especially

after the beginning of colonialism. Between the 16th and 20th centuries, European nations controlled at various times the Americas, most of Africa,

Oceania, and large portions of Asia.

Europe is the world's second-smallest continent by surface area, covering about 10,180,000 square kilometers (3,930,000 sq mi) or 2% of the Earth's surface and about 6.8% of its land area. Of Europe's approximately 50 states, Russia is the largest by both area and population (although the country has territory in both Europe and Asia), Europe is the third-most populous continent after Asia and Africa, with a population of 733 million or about 11% of the world's population.