History glossary
Nationalism
the belief that a people with shared identity should have political power, often in their own nation-state.
- Category
- Ideology
What it means
Nationalism can unite people against empires or foreign rule, but it can also fuel exclusion, ethnic conflict, militarism, and claims over territory. It shaped revolutions, unifications, decolonisation, and the breakup of states such as Yugoslavia.
Related terms
Stories using this term
Imperial Japan
From Meiji modernisation to colonial rule, militarism, mobilisation and defeat, Imperial Japan rose as a modern empire before collapsing in 1945.
Apartheid South Africa
From white minority rule to mass resistance, Mandela's release and the first democratic election, apartheid reshaped South Africa and the world.
The Hundred Years War
From Edward III's claim to Joan of Arc, Agincourt and Castillon, the Hundred Years War reshaped England, France and medieval warfare.
The Holocaust
From legal discrimination to genocide, the Holocaust traces twelve years of escalating persecution that killed six million Jews and millions of others across Nazi-occupied Europe.
Nazi Germany
From Weimar collapse to WWII, Nazi Germany imposed totalitarian rule, expansion, and genocide.
The Anglo Boer Conflict
A war between Britain and Boer republics that exposed imperial costs and reshaped South Africa.
The Cold War
Rivalry between East and West shapes global politics - through proxy wars, propaganda, and nuclear tension.
The Kim Dynasty
North Korea’s Kim dynasty built a nuclear-armed regime, maintaining power through crises and control.
