Topic 1-Early XX Century
- BIG INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENT
- INEQUALITY SOCIETIES
- EXPANSION OF THE GREAT POWERS
- COLONIALISM AND IMPERIALISM
The 20th century was characterized by the consolidation of scientific advances and the growing
technological development
The Big industry that grew at the end of 19th Century transformed the ways of working. Small artisanal
enterprises declined in the face of competition from large factories.
Proletariat
Middle Class
Bourgeoisie
The Bourgeoisie was the kind of owner of industries, financial institutions and the government.
The Proletariat consisted of workers who worked in industrial plants and received a salary.
They lived on poverty and gathered to ask for wage increases and better working conditions.
Middle Class was denominated to the population groups that were found in the urban media sectors, dedicated to specialized crafts, the medium and small commerce
Class inequalities between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat were increasingly pronounced. The working class received minimal wages, children worked, and working hours were long and exhausting, which led to large workers' strikes in the early 20th century.
With the technology and capital accumulation, the great powers embarked on the appropriation campaign, mostly by force, from territories rich in minerals and other raw materials in Africa and Asia.
The main colonial, industrial and financial power was Britain. In the British Empire “the sun was not set” mainly because of the predominance over the seas.
The colonizers imposed new forms of life and government.
Colonial imposition was done by force. Wars of resistance arose, such as The Boxer Rebellion in China and Zulu war in Africa.
