International relations (1814–1919)

This article covers worldwide diplomacy and, more generally, the international relations of the great powers from 1814 to 1919. This era covers the period from the end of the Napoleonic Wars and the Congress of Vienna (1814–1815), to the end of the First World War and the Paris Peace Conference (1919–1920).

Important themes include the rapid industrialization and growing power of Great Britain, the United States, France, Prussia/Germany, and, later in the period, by Italy and Japan. This led to imperialist and colonialist competitions for influence and power throughout the world, most famously the Scramble for Africa in the 1880s and 1890s; the reverberations of which are still widespread and consequential in the 21st century. Britain established an informal economic network that, combined with its colonies and its Royal Navy, made it the hegemonic nation until its power was challenged by the united Germany. It was a largely peaceful century, with no wars between the great powers, apart from the 1853–1871 interval, and some wars between Russia and the Ottoman Empire. After 1900, there was a series of wars in the Balkan region, which exploded out of control into World War I (1914–1918) — a massively devastating event that was unexpected in its timing, duration, casualties, and long-term impact.

In 1814, diplomats recognized five great powers: France, Britain, Russia, Austria (in 1867–1918, Austria-Hungary) and Prussia (in 1871–1918, the German Empire). Italy was added to this group after its unification in 1860 ("Risorgimento"); by 1905 two rapidly growing non-European states, Japan and the United States, had joined the great powers. Romania, Bulgaria, Serbia, and Montenegro initially operated as autonomous vassals, for until 1878 and 1908 they were legally still part of the declining Ottoman Empire, before gaining their independence.