19151959

1915–1959 refers to the period spanning the middle of World War I through the late 1950s. It encompasses the end of the Great War, the interwar era, the economic upheavals of the 1930s, World War II, and the early Cold War. The era witnessed dramatic geopolitical realignments, social transformation, and rapid technological change that helped shape much of the 20th century.

Geopolitically, the period saw the collapse of empires, the rise of new nation-states, and the beginning of decolonization. Key milestones include the Russian Revolution of 1917, the treaties and redrawn borders after 1918, and the emergence of rival political blocs after 1945. The postwar order created international institutions such as the United Nations, the International Monetary Fund, and the World Bank, anchoring a new framework for global cooperation and tension during the Cold War.

Economically and socially, the span includes the Great Depression of the 1930s, followed by recovery and growth in the postwar era. Industrial production, electrification, mass media, and consumer culture transformed daily life. Advances in transportation and communication—air travel, automobiles, radio, and cinema—accelerated cultural exchange. Social movements gained momentum in various countries, advancing women’s rights and welfare reforms, while education and science expanded rapidly.

Culturally and scientifically, modernist movements and new forms of expression emerged, alongside significant breakthroughs in physics and technology. The late 1950s heralded the space-age beginnings, with satellite and rocketry developments signaling a shift toward new frontiers. The period ends with a world increasingly divided by the Cold War yet united by rapid global interconnectedness that would define subsequent decades.