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World History 1920-1921 AD

Finland Independent, Ireland Granted Home Rule, Kapp Putsch Fails, Gandhi -Independence Movement, Palestine Becomes British Mandate, Syria Becomes French Mandate, Prohibition Begun, Participate in League of Nations rejected, Women's Suffrage, Modern Turkey Founded, Aircraft Sink Battleship, Washington Naval Convention, US Burea of Budget, Reza Khan Ruler of Persia, Mongolion People's Government, Faisal Iraqi King , Immigration Quota, Treaty of Dorpat

1920 Finland Gains Independence Form Ussr -(12/6/20) Finland declared its independence on December 6th, 1917. First, however, a civil war ensued between Finnish Bolsheviks and their opponents. The opponents won after a difficult fight. In 1919, war broke out between Finland and the Soviet Union. The conflict was resolved by the Treaty of Dorpat, signed on October 14, 1920. This treaty reaffirmed Finland's independence.

1920 Ireland Granted Home Rule -(12/23/20) The British Parliament passed the Government Act. The Act called for the creation of separate parliaments in Northern and Southern Ireland. Each part of Ireland was also to retain its representation in the British Parliament. The Act was accepted in Northern Ireland. In the South, the Irish independence movement Sinn Fein won all but four seats in the new parliament.

1920 Kapp Putsch Fails -(3/13-17/20)Right wing forces, led by Wolfgang Kapp, attempted to overthrow the Weimar government. When the Socialists and Communists called a general strike, the leader realized they could not successfully overthrow the government.

1920 Gandhi Leader of Indian Independence Movement -Gandhi began a nationwide speaking campaign to enlist support for the non-cooperation movement. Indians were urged to boycott foreign goods, schools, law courts, official functions and the military. The Congress organization approved Gandhi's program and converted the movement into one whose official goal was the attainment of self-rule for India by peaceful and legitimate methods.

1920 Palestine Becomes British Mandate-Under terms agreed to at the Versailles Conference, the British government was given the mandate for Palestine. The conditions of the mandate were to be based on the terms set forth in the Balfour Declaration, with the exception that the Declaration would not apply to the area of Transjordan.

1920 Syria Becomes French Mandate -The Syrian National Congress declared its complete independence. However, Syria had been promised to the French. The League of Nations officially confirmed the French mandate, and French forces took Damascus by force. They had previously created a separate state out of Lebanon, which had a substantial Christian population.

1920 Prohibition Begun-(1/16/20) The Senate and House overrode the veto of President Wilson and enacted into law a bill outlawing the production, sale and transportation of all forms of liquor.

1920 Participate in League of Nations rejected-(11/19/20) On November 19th, the US Senate voted 53-38 against the Versailles Treaty. Approval would have resulted in American participation in the League of Nations. This participation was opposed by many as an infringement on American sovereignty.

1920 Women's Suffrage-(8/26/20) With the ratification of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution, women finally gained the right to vote.

1921

1921 Modern Turkey Founded -During World War I, Turkey had sided with Germany and Austria-Hungary; and as one of the defeated powers, the Ottoman Empire was forced to give up its remaining non-Turkish lands. On May 19th, one of Turkey's few heroes of the war, Mustapha Kemal Pasha, began organizing resistance to the further dismemberment of Turkey by the victorious powers. This led to his dismissal by the Sultan. Mustapha Kemal Pasha then went on to establish a Nationalist party. The Nationalists put forth a multi-point program including self-determination, security of Constantinople, opening of the Dardanelle Straits, rights for minorities and non-capitulation to any additional demands made by foreign powers.

The Nationalists won a subsequent election, and their program was adopted by the Parliament. In an attempt to stop the increasing influence of the Nationalists, the allies occupied Constantinople in March 1920 and dissolved the Parliament. The Nationalists then set up a provisional government at Ankara. In June, the Greeks initiated open warfare against the Nationalists. In August, the Sultan's government agreed to and signed the Treaty of Severes, actions which were denounced by the Nationalists. On January 20th, the Nationalists adopted a set of fundamental laws that became the foundation of the modern state of Turkey. These laws provided for the sovereignty of the people, a parliament elected by male suffrage, and a president with extensive powers.

1921 Reza Khan Becomes Ruler of Persia- (2/22/21) Reza Khan arrived in Teheran on February 22, commanding an army of 4,000 troops. His forces toppled the government and he became the new leader of Persia. His government renounced its agreement with the British. Reza Khan then entered into an agreement with the Soviets that called for the Soviets to withdraw from Persia and allowed Persia to abrogate all concessions. In 1925, Reza Khan became Reza Shah Pahlavi. He followed a policy of modernization and development in Persia.

1921 Mongolean People's Government Established -(7/6/21) With the support of the Soviet Union, the Mongolian Peoples Revolutionary Government was established. The new government was established after the White Russians were defeated.

1921 Faisal Becomes Iraqi King -(8/23/21)The British received the mandate for Iraq. An insurrection resulted,which lasted six months, until the British were able to put it down, in December 1920. In June 1921, Emir Faisal, formerly the King of Syria, arrived in Iraq. Faisal was soon proclaimed King of Iraq. He remained on the Iraqi throne until 1933.

1921 Immigration Quota -(5/19/21) For the first time, the United States passed a restrictive immigration quota. The quota was designed to maintain the "character" of the United States. It apportioned immigration certificates based on the population of the United States in the year 1910.

1921 US Burea of Budget -In 1921, President Harding established the Bureau of the Budget. The bureau, for the first time, placed formal restrictions on the spending of government funds. The Bureau of the Budget later became the Office of Management and Budget.

1921 Washington Naval Convention -(12/13/21)The United States, Britain, Japan, France and Italy met and agreed on a treaty limiting naval powers. The treaty called for a ratio of naval ships of 5 to 5 to 3 to 1.7 to 1.7. Thus, for every 5 large ships of the US and Britain, Japan could have 3 ships, and France and Italy, 1.7. The United States agreed to scuttle 30 war ships as a result of the treaty.

1921 Aircraft Sink Battleship -(9/23/21) The US Battleship "Alabama" was sunk on September 23rd, by Army Air Service. The battleship, which had to be destroyed anyway, was the subject of a test to determine the effectiveness of planes against ships. Leading the attack was Brigadier General Billy Mitchell. Mitchell claimed that surface ships were doomed when facing aircraft.