HIST420 - European Ir 1648 - 1914

This course will examine the international politics of Europe in the 18th and 19th centuries, up to the outbreak of World War I. During these centuries, the European great powers experienced significant internal transformations and also a revolution in their relations, both of which reinforced and accelerated each other. In the process, Europe asserted a dominant position in world politics, but also sowed the seed for the terrible castrophes of the 20th Century. The course will address this transformation of European diplomacy with special attention to the rivalries between the great powers, the impact of nationalism and emerging mass politics, the interplay between military and economic power, and the relationship between the European powers and the rest of the world.