ch. 2: The Historical Context of IR

Question 1

Treaties of Westphalia (1648)

Answer 1

These treaties marked the end of rule by religious authority in Europe and the emergence of secular authorities. Ended the Thirty Years’ War

Question 2

sovereignty

Answer 2

According to French philosopher Jean Bodin, “the absolute and perpetual power vested in a commonwealth”
- Leaders are limited by: divine law, natural law, type of regime, convenants

Question 3

impacts of the Treaties of Westphalia

Answer 3

1. All small states in central Europe attained sovereignty
2. The states sought to establish their own militaries
3. Established a core group of states that dominated the world until the beginning of the 19th century (Austria, Russia, Prussia, England, France, Netherlands)

Question 4

impacts of the American and French Revolution

Answer 4

1.) absolutist rule is subject to limits

Question 5

nationalism

Answer 5

when people come to identify with a common past, language, customs, and territory

Question 6

scorched earth policy

Answer 6

when you retreat, you destroy all available food and shelter behind you so that the enemy isn’t able to utilize those resources

Question 7

what discouraged another world war?

Answer 7

1. Europe’s political elites were united in their fear of revolution among the masses
2. Two of the major conflicts of interest confronting the core European states took place within culturally close territories: the unification between Germany and Italy
3. Imperialism-Colonialism: Rivalries between European states were played out in distant places

Question 8

who were the first to arrive in the New World?

Answer 8

• explorers seeking discovery, riches, and personal glory
• clerics seeking to convert the indigenous people to Christianity
• merchants seeking raw materials and trade relations

Question 9

imperialism

Answer 9

annexation of distant territory (most often by force) and it inhabitants to an empire

Question 10

colonialism

Answer 10

settling people from a home country among indigenous people of a distant territory (e.g putting people from Spain in Mexico)

Question 11

what were the types of motivations for European states to engage in territorial expansion?

Answer 11

• economic
• cultural and religious
• political

Question 12

balance of power

Answer 12

States will hesitate to start a war with an adversary whose power to fight and win wars is relatively balances because the risk of defeat is high. When one state/coalition of stats is much more powerful than its adversaries, asymmetrical war is relatively more likely

Question 13

When was the first time a European state turned to an Asian one to thwart a European power?

Answer 13

In 1902, Britain joined in a naval alliance with Japan to take down Russia

Question 14

Balfour Doctrine

Answer 14

In 1917, Britain had pledged to facilitate the establishment of Palestine of a homeland for the Jewish people, a pledge that would be honored 30 years later

Question 15

impacts of the end of WW1 on international relations

Answer 15

• three European empires were strained and finally broke up during/near the end of WW1, letting nationalism emerge
• Germany emerged from WW1 more dissatisfied
• enforcement of the Treaty of Versailles was given to the League of Nations, but the organizations didn’t have any legitimate power to carry out the task
• the blueprint for a peaceful international order enshrined by Wilson’s Fourteen Points failed

Question 16

League of Nations

Answer 16

intergovernmental organization designed to present future interstate wars

Question 17

outcomes of WW2

Answer 17

• emergence of two superpowers - US and Soviet Union
• intensification over time of fundamental incompatibilities between the two superpowers in national interests and ideology