The UK granted India, its most important colony, independence, and by the 1960s, most of the rest of its colonies were independent. The colonial empires of France, the UK, and Portugal were the next go, collapsing in waves of independence movements across the Old World (this had already happened to most colonies in the New World between 17). The End of Colonialismīut this was not to last. Millions of people moved when these empires disintegrated, whether forced to or voluntarily, and for a time it was thought a new geopolitical order would bring some territorial stability. Former territories of Germany, the Ottoman Empire, and so forth went to France and the UK, in particular. Sudan) shownĭisintegration was a sort of "feeding frenzy" for the wars' winners. Color: colonial possessions gray: independent states present-day country boundaries (except S.
Upwards of 100 million people died as a result of these upheavals, and the century wasn't even half over.įig. A resurgent Germany, the Third Reich, was also crushed. Fascist Italy, which had ruled colonies in Africa, and Imperial Japan, losers in World War II, were next to go. The Ottoman, German, and Austro-Hungarian empires fell during World War I. Imperial China, which had lasted in some form or another since 221 BC, finally collapsed in 1912. The Russian Empire of the tzars collapsed, only to be replaced by the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. In the 20th century, the geopolitical world map saw the disintegration of some European and Asian empires and the birth of others. Let's look at the historical progression of state disintegration to understand some examples of this process at work today. It can result in new and internationally-recognized boundaries for two or more independent states, or consist of breakaway regions not recognized as independent states by most or all of the international community. Disintegration can be peaceful, via independence referendums, or violent, via secession and civil war.
An example of a country that dissolved peacefully was Czechoslovakia.ĭisintegration of States: A condition whereby nation-states cease to exist because devolution of powers has failed to preserve unity in their constituent territories, leading to a breakup. An example of a country that disintegrated successfully, with all constituent parts becoming UN members, was the USSR. Some states fail but the parts that break away, or attempt to do so, are not recognized by other countries, nor do they become UN members. Disintegration happens when such devolutionary strategies fail. Governments rarely wish to lose territories, but if these agitate enough for independence, it can be a good idea to at least grant them autonomy and set up some sort of a federal system to avoid bloodshed. You can also go in-depth with our explanation of Devolution in Sudan. In this explanation, we will look at this process and some examples. It may start with the removal of a single card, and the house disintegrates as it becomes apparent that that one card was key to the integrity of the country. But internal weaknesses or outside interference, like an ill-placed card or a swipe of the hand, can combine to send the whole edifice tumbling down. It is built from diverse groups whose contributions to the whole create strength and unity. The lifespan of a country sometimes resembles a house of cards.
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