The Paris Charter of 1990 was an attempt by the governments of Western Europe, the United States, and Canada to seize upon the demise of the Soviet Union and ensure the transition of Eastern European countries into the new world order. The nations of Western Europe wanted to integrate the newly-independent nations of Eastern Europe into their ideological framework of capitalism, democracy, and individual liberty.

Perestroika and glasnost were two reform movements initiated during the last communist administration to govern the Soviet Union, led by Mikhail Gorbachev. Perestroika was the name given to the policy of economic reform that allowed for the development of rudimentary capitalism, and glasnost was the policy of political reform designed to provide openness and governmental transparency.

Margaret Thatcher was the leader of the British Conservative Party for much of the 1980s. Her policy of Thatcherism defined British conservatism at the time. She wanted to scale back Britain’s welfare state and lower taxes for the wealthiest people in Britain. She did a great deal to fix the British economy, but is widely despised in many sections of British society for her policies that greatly harmed the British working class and the British welfare state.

Whilst the European Union frequently divides public opinion in all of these countries, support in Germany is usually much stronger than it is in France, Great Britain, and Italy. Switzerland, famous for its neutrality, is not even a member of the European Union.

The First Moroccan Crisis took place in 1905 when the German Kaiser visited Morocco and declared himself in support of Moroccan independence. This was seen as a direct challenge to French control over the territory and almost led to war. At a conference to decide the issue, Germany found that it was supported only by Austria-Hungary and that Britain, Italy, Russia, and the United States (as well as several other countries) all supported French claims.

In the late 1930s, Adolph Hitler, as leader of the Nazi Party and Chancellor of Germany, sought to annex the German-speaking lands that were not under German control. Many nations were worried about Hitler's aggressiveness and wanted to avoid another World War, and British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain followed a policy of Appeasement, which sought to accede certain things to Germany while avoiding war. Chamberlain famously stated in 1938, after the Munich Pact, that he had achieved "peace in our time." Nazi Germany would invade Poland and start World War II on September 1, 1939.

The Holy Alliance was formed in the wake of the Napoleonic wars in Europe. Napoleon had launched a continent-wide revolution as he completely remade the legal systems of the countries he conquered with his Civil Code and further destabilized European politics by ushering in the era of arming the masses. The reactionary powers in Austria, Prussia, and Russia feared that, despite Napoleon's ultimate defeat, revolutionary wars would continue to plague Europe. The three core members pledged to offer aid in putting down revolutions across Europe. The Holy Alliance would play an important part, for instance, in putting an end to the revolutions of 1848.

The primary purpose of the Congress of Vienna was to ensure a balance of powers among the European states in the aftermath of the defeat of Napoleon.

Mercantilism was the dominant economic philosophy of Europe during the eras of global colonization. The colonizing powers sought to strengthen their own country and colonies at the expense of their rivals through methods such as high tariffs on imports, government subsidies for domestic products, forbidding trade with certain countries, and government-mandated monopolies.

Neville Chamberlain followed the policy of "appeasement," believing that Hitler would tone down German aggression if given the territory he wanted. Chamberlain resigned from the office of Prime Minister 1940, after the obvious failure of appeasement seen in the beginning of World War II.