Nationalism was hardly a new phenomenon in the 20th century, stemming all the way back to the days of the Enlightenment. By the 1900s, though, it’s reach had captured the attention of the globe. By 1914, these feelings of superiority — while hardly new in Europe — were at a boiling point, with ethnic minorities demanding freedom from multinational empires, especially the Austro-Hungarian Empire; such demands culminated in the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the immediate cause of the Great War. Despite the unprecedented scope of the war, European nations did not panic, thinking — egregiously — that it would be over by the year’s end. Instead, the conflict lasted an astonishing four years, also owing to nationalism. Because of massive
