What was the world like in the 1900s and 1910s The twentieth century started out with Britain being the most powerful nation in the world But by 1919 the world had become a very different place World War I 1914 1918 was on a scale not seen before Age of imperialism At the turn of the century the British Empire was at its height This was the age of imperialism Great Britain under the rule of Queen Victoria had many colonies around the world including India Canada New Zealand Australia and South Africa This meant Great Britain was a strong global influence What was popular in the United Kingdom would be spread around the world to its colonies
These British soliders are returning home from fighting in World War I in 1915 Around this time the global influence of the United States began to strengthen It was the beginning of the American Century in which American manufacturing power would overtake the European industrial powers and empires of the United Kingdom Germany and France
World War I The big event that affected people all over the world was World War I 1914 1918 About 8 5 million people were killed and more than 21 million wounded 2 It was the first industrial war though people had thought that new technologies would stop wars Instead technological advances and mass production made World War I one of the most brutal and horrific wars the world had ever seen The war changed the way people thought The social restrictions in place before the war now seemed less important When people were dying what did it matter what style of jacket one wore to a formal dinner The general public wanted to be freer from these restrictions and this was displayed in various ways from the way people dressed to the kind of music they enjoyed Fight for the right to vote Women around the world had been fighting for their right to vote since the nineteenth century particularly in the United States and United Kingdom However other countries gave women the right to vote earlier than the United States and United Kingdom did For example New Zealand granted the right in 1893 Australia in 1902 Finland in 1906 and Norway in 1913 3
Bicycles became a symbol of new freedom and rights for women see page 47 Campaigners for women’s rights would often hold demonstrations and perform militant actions in order to draw attention to their plight In the United Kingdom campaigners chained themselves to railings refused to pay taxes and went on hunger strike if they were imprisoned One suffragette Emily Davidson died after she threw herself under the king’s horse 4 World War I sped up the franchise of women because while men were away fighting women did many of the jobs that the men had left
