Culture Of Italy

During the renaissance there was a surge of culture in art, literature, architecture, and more. The renaissance was also a time of individualism, which is the perfecting of the individual. Along with individualism, was secularism, a materialistic view of society. Humanism, revival of the classes, was also a big part of the renaissance.
The unification of Italy was when the Italian city states went from having individualistic views to becoming Itlay as we know it today. They were successful in their unification because of their extreme nationalism, which is pride in ones country, cultural unity, language, and belief. Some people who helped with Italy's unification were Gaaribaldi and Cavour.

A Political History of Spain

The modern history of Spain begins with the unification of the kingdoms of Aragon and Castille adn the marriage of Ferdinand and Isabella. A major political event of this era was the Spanish Inquisition in which many Jews and Muslims living in Spain at the time were either expelled or murdered. Spain really reached a poitical climax in the 16th century with the reign of the Habsburgs Charles I and Philip II. This is known as the Spanish Golden Age for the prosperity Spain enjoyed from its colonies in the New World. However, Spain experienced strain and pressure from mounting religious difficulties, including many costly wars. A prime example of such ventures is the Spanish Armada of 1588, which failed miserably. This would mark the beginning of the end for Spanish dominance. Spain's power was further depleted during the war of Spanish Succession, which involved a dispute over who was to acend to the throne of Spain. Although Spain was technically victorious in that a Bourbon king was allowed to come to power, Spain and France were not allowed to unify. This scared Spain so much that they became completely isolationist and in turn technologically backwards. Spain experienced another political change during the age of Napoleon when it came under control of Naopoleon's brother. Still Spain remained virtually weak for the ensuing decades. Up until the 20th century, the most significant event was the Spainsh American War, which also weakend Spain. During the 1900's, there was a period of authoritarian rule followed by the establishment of a republic. Spain experienced a civil war in the late 1930's, with the nationalistic rebels being victorious. It continued to endure a sense of separatism when it was not admitted into the United Nations until 1955. Today, it still remains rather isolated and involved in its own domestic terrorist problems.

Portugal, Spain, and Italy's Social Changes

Italy has socially changed greatly throughout European History. Towards the beginning was the Italian Renaissance, where women were denied all rights and were basically under their husband's rule and where a rigid class structure was present with the nobility at the top, followed by the merchants, then shopkeepers and professionals, and at the bottom were factory workers. After the World Wars, people saw that, although there still were and still are boundaries between classes, these boundaries can be negotiated and stretched. Women have more rights now and the class structure is much less strict in that people can move from class to class and there isn't too much of the status mindset tht there once was in Italy.

Spain changed greatly throughout Modern European history. Spain went through the "golden age" in which new culture was born and socially people became more into the class system because many people, especially nobles, became more wealthy. By the time the twentieth and twenty-first centuries came around, Spain and Portugal had social classes, but not rigid ones and women began to gain more rights.

Events in Modern-Day Spain

One of the most terrifying events in modern day Spain has been the terrorist attacks in 2000. An organization known as ETA, which is most likely composed of Basque separatists, has performed numerous attacks and assassinations in order to make their goal known: they would like to separate from Spain. However, in a time of terror around the world, such cries for attention are hardly noticed.

Spain During the Cold War

Although Spain was initially isolated both economically and politically following World War II and at the beginning of the Cold War, it eventually did gain acceptance into the United Nations in 1955. However such an advancement is most likely attributed to the strategical location of Spain and teh Strait of Gilbraltar. Good relations were necessary in order to maintain control of southern Europe. Moreover, the Spanish Miracle, or economic boom in the 1960's, pushed Spain to a leader in the tourism market. Thus, although a time of tension, the Cold War offered Spain a new hope.

Spain's Influence on World War II

Our involvement in the war that has become known as teh Spanish Civil War has proven vital for the Axis powers in World War II. As a rebel soldier and supporter of Francisco, I was only concerned with our victory, not the victory of the Germans. However, it was Germany's support that allowed them to test the success of the military strategy known as blitzkrieg. Additionally, the support of Germany on one side and the Soviet Union on the other proved to be a sort of proxy war, and was just a rehearshal for a much more vicious and devestating war that is now occuring throughout Europe and the rest of the world.

Impact of World War I on Portugal

Ever since the revolution in 1910 and the disposal of our Portuguese monarchy, our country has been in econonmic ruin. The economy has plunged into disarray and there is little relief from the government. To worsen matters, the government intervened in World War I using military force, which proved to be very costly. Such a venture is almost suicide when a nation can hardly support itself. Thus, because of the intervention in the Great War, the coup d'etat of 1926 was completely warranted and necessary.