1890s1910s

The period commonly described as the 1890s through the 1910s spans roughly a generation at the turn of the 20th century. It featured continuing industrialization and urbanization associated with the Second Industrial Revolution, marked by widespread electrification, the expansion of rail networks, the telegraph and telephone, and the early growth of the automobile and aviation. Mass production and consumer society expanded, with innovations such as the moving assembly line credited to Ford in the 1910s.

In international politics, imperial powers extended their reach, while major conflicts such as the Spanish-American War (1898) and the Russo-Japanese War (1904–1905) shifted power balances. Nationalism and reform movements rose in many states; the United States pursued Progressive Era reforms and overseas influence, while the United Kingdom, Germany, and others faced social tensions that fed into later upheavals. The era also saw the expansion of suffrage movements and labor organizing.

In science and culture, the period witnessed breakthroughs in physics (X-rays discovered in 1895; radioactivity in 1896; Einstein’s theories in 1905), chemistry, and medicine. The arts moved from realism and impressionism toward modernism. The first sustained powered flight occurred in 1903; cinema emerged as a new medium. In daily life, electrification and new consumer goods began to reshape routines.

The period culminated in World War I (1914–1918), which altered political borders, economies, and societies worldwide. The war and its aftermath fostered revolutions, territorial redrawing, and a reorientation of international relations, helping to define the early 20th century.