Modern changes on the political map. Qualitative and quantitative changes on the political map

Concept "a political map of the World" includes two meanings. In a narrow sense, it is a map of the world on which the borders of all states are drawn, in a broad sense - the alignment of political forces, the political life of the world in general, of individual groups of countries, the most important political problems of our time.

The political map of the world is highly dynamic. Changes to political map there are quantitative and qualitative.

Quantitative changes:

accession to the state of newly discovered lands (in the past - colonies);

territorial gains or losses as a result of wars;

voluntary concessions (exchange) by countries of sections of the state territory;

unification or disintegration of states, etc.

Qualitative changes include:

the country's acquisition of political sovereignty;

the introduction of other, from the previously existing, forms of government and state structure;

the formation of interstate associations and political unions, etc.

Recently, quantitative changes are increasingly giving way to qualitative ones. This is the essence of modern processes - the path of dialogues, international contacts, the peaceful settlement of all disputes.

Territory and borders.

Geographers use two terms: "geographic space" and "territory", often filling them with the same meaning. However, the concept of "territory" differs from the concept of "space" in its concreteness, binding to certain coordinates on the earth's surface.

Territory - part of the land surface with its inherent natural, as well as created as a result of human activity, properties and resources.

Territory limits are defined by boundaries.

Political boundaries can be state and non-state. State boundaries define the boundaries of the state territory. Non-state borders that are political in nature are, for example, borders under international agreements, contractual, temporary, demarcation, etc.

State borders - these are lines and imaginary vertical surfaces passing along these lines that define the boundaries of the territory of the state (land, water, subsoil, air space), i.e. the limits of the spread of the sovereignty of a given state. The state border separates the territories of sovereign countries. This is both a political and an economic border, limited by the state system, national isolation, customs control, foreign trade rules, etc.

Land and sea state borders between neighboring states are established by agreement. There are two types of state border establishment - delimitation and demarcation. Delimitation - determination by agreement between the governments of neighboring states of the general direction of the state border and drawing it on a geographical map. Demarcation - drawing a line of the state border on the ground and marking it with appropriate border signs.

Distinguish between orographic, geometric and geographic boundaries.

Orographic border - it is a line that defines the boundaries and is drawn along natural (natural) boundaries, taking into account the terrain (it is drawn mainly along the mountain ridge and river beds).

Geometric border - it is a straight line connecting two locally defined points of the state border, which crosses the terrain without taking into account the relief.

Geographic (astronomical) border - it is a line passing through certain geographic coordinates and sometimes coinciding with one or another parallel or meridian. The last two types of borders are widespread in Africa and America. All types of borders exist in Russia.

On border lakes, the state border line runs in the middle of the lake or along a straight line connecting the outlets of the land state border to its shores. Inside the state territory, there are also boundaries of administrative-territorial units(for example, borders of republics, regions, states, provinces, lands, etc.). These are internal boundaries.

Specialists in international law under "territory" mean different areas of the globe with its land and water surface, bowels and air space, as well as outer space and the celestial bodies in it. Allocate state territory, as well as territories with international and mixed regime.

State is an territory , which is under the sovereignty of a separate state and limited by the state border. The territory of the state includes:

land within borders;

waters (internal and territorial);

airspace over land and water.

Most of the coastal states (there are about 100 in the world) have territorial waters. It is a strip of coastal sea waters ranging from 3 to 12 nautical miles from the coast.

To territories with a mixed regime relate continental shelf and economic zone... Economic zones and shelves often exceed the area of ​​the state's land territory and can significantly increase its resource potential.

Determination of the belonging, regime and boundaries of the relatively shallow areas of the World Ocean adjacent to the coast became in the second half of the XX century. into an important political and legal problem in connection with the possibility of exploration and development of natural resources of the continental shelf (oil, gas and other minerals). The depths of the shelf edge are usually 100-200 m. Countries of the world have the exclusive right to explore and exploit "their shelf", but do not have sovereign rights to the corresponding water area.

In accordance with the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea under continental shelf means the seabed and subsoil of underwater areas extending beyond the territorial waters of the state along the entire length of the natural continuation of its land territory up to the outer border of the underwater edge of the continent, or at a distance of 200 nautical miles from the baselines from which the width of the territorial waters is measured, if the outer border the submarine margin of the mainland does not extend this distance.

The establishment of economic zones was initiated in the late 60s by the Latin American states (which do not have a full-fledged shelf zone due to the great depths near the coast). By the mid-1980s, almost all other states of the world, including our country, followed their example. Economic zones now account for 40% of the world's oceans, including areas that provide 96% of the world's fish catch,

Economic zones - these are areas of the World Ocean outside the territorial waters about 200 nautical miles wide, in which the coastal state exercises sovereign rights to explore and develop mineral resources, conduct scientific research, and fish (i.e., these are zones of national jurisdiction over resources), and other countries enjoy freedom of navigation and have access to surplus allowable catch (under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea).

To territories with an international regime refers to the earth areas lying outside the state territory, which are in the common use of all states in accordance with international law. It is the open sea, the airspace above it and the deep seabed beyond the continental shelf.

At the same time, it has some features. international legal regime of the arctic regions open sea (Arctic Ocean). Canada, Russia and other countries, whose territory is washed by the waters of this ocean, have divided it into "polar sectors". " Polar sector»- space, the base of which is the northern border of the state, the top is the North Pole, and the lateral borders are the meridians. All lands and islands within the "polar sectors", ice fields near the coast are part of the state territories of these countries.

It should also be noted special international legal regime established under the agreement of 1959 in Antarctica ... The mainland is completely demilitarized and open for scientific research from all countries of the world.

Space is located outside the terrestrial territory and its legal regime is determined by the principles and norms of international space law.

Special territorial regimes - these are international legal regimes that determine the legal status and procedure for the use of any limited territory. So, the modes are known:

shipping on international rivers, straits and canals used for international shipping;

regimes for fishing and other types of marine fishing;

exploitation of mineral resources of the seabed (exploitation of the continental shelf, etc.);

the regime of water use and other types of economic activity on border rivers, etc.

Special types of territorial regime are the international legal lease of territory, the regime of "free economic zones", privileged in the customs relation, etc.

The political map of the world has gone through a long history of its formation, reflecting the entire course of development of human society.

1. Show the new sovereign countries that emerged on the political map of Eurasia after the collapse of the USSR in 1991.

Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan.

2. Why is it impossible to accurately name the number of countries on the political map of the world?

The number of countries exceeds the number of states. Since the concept of a country is much broader than the concept of a state. There are countries that are not recognized by other states as independent states (unrecognized states), there are also territories with an undefined status and dependent territories. Without the status of states, the last three categories of territories still have the status of countries.

3. How did the process of forming the political map of the world take place in different historical epochs?

Changes on the political map are quantitative (the accession of newly discovered lands to the state, territorial gains and losses after wars, the unification or disintegration of states, the exchange of land plots by states, etc.) and qualitative (the acquisition of sovereignty, a change in the form of government and state structure, education interstate unions, etc.). At present, quantitative changes are decreasing and mainly qualitative changes are taking place on the political map of the world.

4. Remember from the course of history and explain how they influenced the formation of the political map of the world: a) First World War; b) the formation of the USSR; c) World War II; d) the collapse of the Soviet Union.

a) States with a new socialist orientation appeared, the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the separation of Finland and Poland from the Russian Empire, the Baltic countries. b) The incorporation of the Baltic states into the USSR in 1940 c) The formation of socialist states in Eastern and South-Eastern Europe. The emergence of military blocs. d) Formation of new states, disintegration of Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia, unification of Germany

5. What is the fundamental difference between quantitative and qualitative shifts on the political map of the world?

Quantitative changes are associated with territorial gains, losses, voluntary concessions by states, etc.

Sale of Alaska by Russia to the USA;

USSR annexation of the Kuril Islands, southern Sakhalin, Kaliningrad region after the Second World War;

Japan - an increase in territory by building up the coastal line.

Qualitative changes - the change of one formation to another, the conquest of sovereignty, the introduction of a new state structure, etc.

1917 Formation of the USSR;

The collapse of the USSR, the formation of 15 sovereign states;

The collapse of Yugoslavia, the formation of 5 sovereign states;

Division of Germany (FRG, GDR), unification of Germany.

6. It is known that part of the territory of the Netherlands is the lands reclaimed from the sea, which led to a change in the political map of the country. Is this change quantitative or qualitative?

Quantitative.

7. Using the textbook text and knowledge of history, fill in the table.

8. Give examples of quantitative and qualitative shifts on the political map of the world that are not mentioned in the text.

Quantitative changes

Accession of newly discovered lands (in the past);

Territorial gains or losses due to wars;

Unification or disintegration of states; voluntary concessions (or exchange) of land plots by countries;

Reclaiming land from the sea (reclaiming the territory).

Qualitative Changes

Historical change of socio-economic formations;

The country's acquisition of political sovereignty;

Introduction of new forms of government;

Formation of interstate political unions and organizations;

The emergence and disappearance of "hot spots" on the planet - hotbeds of interstate conflict situations;

Changing the name of countries and their capitals.

A POLITICAL MAP OF THE WORLD

Stages of the formation of the political map of the world

Forms of government and government. Independent States and Non-Self-Governing Territories.

Political map of the world: forecasts of the 21st century

The political map, like any other, depicts states, their borders, administrative-territorial divisions, the largest cities. All of this is understood as something much more - the patterns of placement of forms of government in the countries of the world, relations between states, territorial conflicts associated with the establishment of state borders.

The political map of the world is in the process of constant changes occurring as a result of wars, treaties, disintegration and unification of states, the formation of new independent states, changes in the forms of government, the loss of statehood / political sovereignty /, changes in the area of ​​states / countries / - the territory and water area, their borders, change of capitals, change of names of states / countries / and their capitals, change of forms of government, if they are shown on this map.

Only during the 1990s. a new state of Eritrea appeared on the political map of the world (the seceded province of Ethiopia on the shores of the Red Sea), Cambodia changed the form of government, becoming a constitutional monarchy.

Formation of a modern political map of the world mostly happened to New(the turn of the 17th - 16th centuries before the 1st World War) and Newest periods in history... The European colonization of the New World, which began in the 15th century with the capture by Europeans of the final points of the trans-Saharan trade - the cities of Ceuta and Melilla, the economic and political development of new territories led to significant changes on the political map - the emergence of new forms of state structure and government. The largest metropolises were Spain and Portugal, later joined by Great Britain, France, the Netherlands, Germany. Territories in America, Africa, Asia (with rare exceptions) received colonial status.

In the early 19th century, the national liberation movement in Latin America led to the formation of new independent states.

At the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, the struggle between the leading metropolises for the territorial redistribution of the world intensified, the peak of which was the 1st World War.

The ratio of area and population of metropolises and colonies at the beginning of the twentieth century

* In total, in 1900, the colonial possessions of all imperialist powers covered an area of ​​73 million square meters. km (55% of the land area) with a population of 530 million people (35% of the world's population).

The main milestones in the formation of a modern political map in Newest period there were the 2nd World War, 1950-60s (the collapse of the colonial system - the decolonization of Africa, Asia, Oceania, the Caribbean), the turn of the 1980s-90s. (major changes on the political map of Eastern Europe).

FORMS OF STATE STRUCTURE OF COUNTRIES OF THE WORLD

All objects of the political map of the world can be conditionally divided into two large groups: independent states and non-self-governing territories.

INDEPENDENT STATES. This status is enjoyed by monarchies and republics, they can conclude equal treaties with other states, be members of the UN, enter into international economic and political organizations... The form of government influences the socio-political life of countries, traditions, but does not determine either the level economic development nor

features of the internal political situation: often monarchies (for example, in Europe) are essentially more democratic than some republics.

MONARCHY - a form of government in which power is concentrated in the hands of one person - the king, emperor, king, sultan and is inherited. In absolute monarchies, the power of the monarch is practically unlimited. Their number on the political map of the world is constantly decreasing, most of them are located in Asia (in fact absolute monarchies are Bhutan, Oman, UAE, Qatar, Bahrain and Kuwait).

The head of theocratic monarchies is a religious leader. Such states on Globe only a few - the Vatican, headed by the Pope; Saudi Arabia the king of this monarchy is both the head of the religious community of Sunni Muslims and the Sultanate of Brunei.

In constitutional monarchies, the power of the monarch is limited by the constitution, and in parliamentary - by parliament. In fact, monarchs "reign, but do not rule", having become a symbol of the nation and a tribute to tradition. Most monarchies have this form of government. Western Europe- Great Britain, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, etc.

By the end of the 1990s. there were about 30 monarchies in the world: 2 - in Oceania, 3 - in Africa, 13 - in Asia, 12 - in Europe, including Andorra, which is actually a republic, formally - a constitutional monarchy (principality), from the end of the XIII century ... under the double sovereignty of France and Spain. Some monarchies have republican elements, such as federalism. The supreme rulers of federal constitutional monarchies are elected: for five years by the hereditary rulers of the Malaysian sultanates (in Malaysia), the Supreme Council of the emirs (in the United Arab Emirates). The constitutional monarchy in Belgium since 1993, according to a referendum, began to consist of federations.

Countries of the world with a monarchical form of government

REPUBLIC. In the republics, the highest state power belongs to an elected representative body, and the head of state is elected by the entire population of the country who has the right to vote during elections. In presidential republics, unlike parliamentary ones, the powers of the head of state and head of government are concentrated in the hands of the president. Presidential republics are, for example, the USA, Argentina, Brazil.

The administrative-territorial units that are part of the unitary republics are directly subordinate to the central government.

Members of the federation within the federal republics have a certain political and economic independence and, as a rule, the attributes of state power - a flag, anthem, constitution, parliament. Federation members have common allies, or federal bodies management, army.

The members of the confederation, while maintaining their formal independence, have their own bodies of state power, but they also create joint bodies to coordinate the military and foreign policy actions of the confederations. According to the constitution, only Switzerland has the status of a confederation, although in fact, the form of government of this country is close to federal.

Almost 3/4 of the world's states are republics. This form of government, as a rule, was chosen from the beginning of the 19th century by the countries of Latin America that achieved independence, Russia after the revolution of 1917, almost all the former colonies in Asia and Africa in the middle of the 20th century. After World War II, the countries of Eastern Europe, Italy, Greece, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran were proclaimed republics.

The number of federal republics in the world is about 20; they were created mainly on the basis of ethnic or national differences (Russian Federation, Belgium, Switzerland, India, Pakistan, Myanmar, Nigeria), or taking into account the historical characteristics of the formation of statehood (USA, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Venezuela, Germany, Austria , Malaysia, UAE, South Africa, Comoros, Australia, Federation of Micronesia).

Countries of the world with a federal administrative-territorial structure

Charles Louis Montesquieu (1689-1755), the famous French educator, a representative of the philosophical school of natural law, considered the form of government to be a function of the climate and size of the country.

Vast empires are prone to despotic rule, because for stability in a large state, it is necessary that the remoteness of the places where orders are sent to be balanced by the speed of their implementation. Thus, small states by their nature must be republics, vast empires are ruled by despots, average size- to obey the monarch. This means that in order to preserve the principles of government, the state must keep its size unchanged: the state system can change depending on the expansion or contraction of the territory. Small states with a democratic system, as a rule, perish from an external enemy, and large ones - from internal problems. Thus, the optimal form of government will be one that combines the advantages and advantages of republican rule with the strength of the monarchy. Montesquieu considered the federation to be such a form of government: as a spatially unified union of sovereign republics, capable of resisting the enemy and maintaining its size not at the cost of losing democracy.

NON-SELF-GOVERNING TERRITORIES

The great geographical discoveries and the seizure of lands in the New World by the European powers led to the emergence of new forms of state structure of territories that fell into the dependence of the metropolises.

The term territory in political geography is currently used in relation to lands that do not have a sovereign status; less habitable, developed, with limited rights of local government or to lands with an undefined status (for example, Western Sahara).

Non-self-governing territories include colonies (countries under the rule of a foreign state and deprived of political and economic independence), protectorates (in this form, dependence was established by an unequal treaty, according to which external economic and political relations were transferred to the protector state).

Colonies are officially defined as territories officially included in the UN list and are subject to the independence requirement. Not included in the "colonial list" and "overseas departments", "freely associated states".

Modern colonies are important for the metropolises, mainly from military-strategic positions. So, Great Britain continues to hold Gibraltar on the coast of Spain, the Falkland Islands (Malvinas), because of which in 1982. an armed conflict broke out between Great Britain and Argentina. "Overseas territory" of France is Polynesia, where on about. Mururoa tests nuclear missiles in the atmosphere. A cosmodrome has been built in French Guiana, the "overseas department" of France.

Mandatory (or mandated) territories... This was the name of the former colonies of Germany, which after the 1st World War, under the mandate of the League of Nations, came under the control of the victorious countries: East africa- Tanganyika (Great Britain), Togoland and Cameroon (divided between Great Britain and France), German South West Africa - Namibia (Union of South Africa), Rwanda-Urundi (Belgium), German New Guinea (Australia), Caroline, Marshall and Mariana islands (Japan), islands of Nauru and Samoa (New Zealand). After World War II, the mandate system of the League of Nations was replaced by the UN trusteeship system. So, after World War II, the Mariana, Marshall and Caroline Islands were transferred to the custody of the United States, which in 1991. gained independence.

Non-Self-Governing Territories

Note. The status of "free association" implies that the state has internal self-government and a certain degree of independence in the field of foreign policy.

Dominions in 1867-1947 the parts of the British Empire that were part of the British Commonwealth of Nations, which recognized the British Queen as the head of state, were called, for example, Canada (since 1867), the Australian Union since (1901), New Zealand(since 1907), the Union of South Africa (since 1910).

After the formation in 1947 of the Commonwealth, in which by the beginning of the 1990s. included 48 independent states and territories dependent on Great Britain, Australia and New Zealand, the term "dominion" fell out of use, although 17 former dominions still continue to recognize the English queen as the head of state.

The Commonwealth includes formally equal countries, but different in terms of economic development, ethnic, linguistic, confessional characteristics, etc. The Commonwealth has neither a single constitution, nor alliance-treaty agreements, nor official attributes; it does not appear in the international arena (for example, in the UN, in any international actions, etc.). Members of the Commonwealth have the unconditional right to unilaterally withdraw from it whenever they wish. Burma, Ireland, Pakistan took advantage of it. All states that are part of the community have full sovereignty in their internal and external affairs. The decisions of the annual conferences are not valid for the country that did not vote for them.

Most members of the Commonwealth have a traditional form of government: either republics (India, Bangladesh, Nigeria, Ghana, Zambia, Zimbabwe, etc.), or their little monarchy (Great Britain, Malaysia, Brunei, Swaziland, etc.). Some of the community members are Canada, the Australian Union (Australia), New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Tuvalu, Mauritius, Antigua and Barbuda, the Commonwealth of the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Grenada, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Saint Christopher and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Jamaica - do not consider themselves either republics or monarchies. Their inhabitants are actually not considered subjects of the Queen of Great Britain, but only citizens of their states. Almost any questions inner life and external (international) relations of these states (officially: "states within the Commonwealth"), their parliaments and governments can decide independently, formally independently of Great Britain. At the same time, they voluntarily chose the Queen of Great Britain as the head of state, a symbol of supreme power, having enshrined this in the constitutions. Some of them use the attributes of Great Britain (for example, New Zealand - the English anthem "God Save the Queen", English orders that the Queen of Great Britain awards New Zealanders on the proposal of the New Zealand government, etc.); in fact, all of them, albeit to varying degrees, are guided by the politics, laws, traditions of Great Britain (including linguistic, cultural, everyday, ceremonial ceremonies, etc.), live, as it were, with an eye on England.

The French Union includes overseas departments of France - the islands of Martinique, Guadeloupe, Reunion and overseas territories - French Guiana, French Polynesia.

The number of Non-Self-Governing Territories on the political map of the world continues to decline.

The huge colonial empires of France, England, Spain actually disintegrated. In March 1990, Namibia gained independence, in the early 1990s. - Caroline, Marshall and Mariana Islands.

Macau has the status of a Portuguese territory with internal self-government rights; this territory should come under the jurisdiction of China by the end of 2000.

Puerto Rico has the status of a state freely associated with the United States.

Political map of the world: forecasts for the 21st century

According to the forecasts of Saul Cohen, ex-president of the Association of American Geographers, in 25-30 years the number of countries in the world will increase by 50 percent.

The scale of changes in the political map is great: at the end of the 19th century, there were only sixty independent states. The main part of the modern states of the world gained independence after 1944.

Self-determination tendencies will prevail: ethnic communities seek to create formations that take into account their historical experience. It is likely that state borders that do not correspond to the linguistic and territorial identity of the nations living there will lose their significance.

On the other hand, regional groupings such as the European Union, which increase the economic and technological interdependence of states, challenge the established notions of state sovereignty and negate the meaning of borders.

What probable changes in state borders can be predicted based on these positions?

Australia will split into several states, one of which will be created by the aborigines.

In Europe: Catalonia and the Basque Country will officially leave Spain. Brittany will break away from France. Belgium will disintegrate into Flanders and Wallonia. The Sami will create their country in the northern regions of Norway, Sweden and Finland, they will be joined by the northern regions of Russia and Canada: in the future - the Confederation of the Arctic Circle.

Russia: new states will emerge in the Far East, in the Urals, in Eastern and Western Siberia. Tatarstan, Dagestan, Kaliningrad, Tuva and Buryatia will gain independence.

Asia: India loses Punjab and part of Kashmir. Afghanistan splits into at least three ethnic public education... The Philippines will lose Mindanao, where the majority is Muslim. A significant part of Kazakhstan will join Russia. From China, breaking the resistance of the Chinese - the Han people, Tibet and the Khingan region stand out. Taiwan will merge with China, while Inner Mongolia will become part of independent Mongolia. Three autonomous regions are formed - Inner, North and South-East China. Several industrial centers such as Shanghai will gain pseudo-independence and will resemble today's Hong Kong.

In Africa: Ethiopia, apart from Eritrea, will lose Ogaden to Somalia. Rich natural resources the provinces of Kasai and Katanga will be separated from Zaire. The result civil war in Sudan, there will be the formation of two states - the Arab (northern part) and the Nilotic (southern part). South Africa can split into three states, and one of them is the Zulu Country.

In America: Brazil will have three autonomous regions... Canada will disappear altogether. Mexico will crumble into four or more pieces. Over time, the borders of the United States may take on different shapes.

List of literature

Hermann Van der Vee. History of the world economy: 1945 - 1990 .-- Moscow: Nauka, 1994.

Capitalist and Developing Countries on the Eve of the 90s (Territorial and Structural Shifts in the Economy in the 70s and 80s) / Ed. V.V. Volsky, L.I. Bonifatieva, L.V. Smirnyagin. - M .: Publishing house of Moscow State University, 1990.

Mironenko N.S. Introduction to the geography of the world economy. - M .: Publishing house of the University named after Dashkova, 1995.

Models in geography / Ed. P. Haggett, J. Chorley. - M .: Progress, 1971.

Naumov A.S., Kholina V.N. Geography of people: Tutorial(Educational series "Step by step": Geography.) - M .: Publishing house of the gymnasium "Open World", 1995.

Naumov A.S., Kholina V.N. Geography of the population and economy of the world: Textbook (Educational series "Step by step": Geography.) - M .: Publishing house of the gymnasium "Open World", 1997.

Smirnyagin L.V. Geography of the world economy and socio-cultural context // Questions of economic and political geography of capitalist and developing countries. Issue 13. - M .: ILA RAN, 1993.

Haggett P... Geography: Synthesis of Modern Knowledge. - M .: Progress, 1979.

Haggett P. Spatial analysis in economic geography. - M .: Progress, 1968.

Harvey D. Scientific explanation in geography (general methodology of science and methodology of geography). - M .: Progress, 1974.

V. N. Kholina Geography human activity: economics, culture, politics .: Textbook for 10-11 grades of schools with in-depth study of humanitarian subjects. - M .: Education, 1995.

Economic geography of capitalist and developing countries / Ed. V.V. Volsky and others - M .: Publishing house of Moscow State University, 1986.

http://www.altnet.ru/~rim/lekcicon/020/liter2.htm

Can be viewed in two aspects. The first is a simple publication on paper that displays how the world works in terms of the alignment of political forces. The second aspect considers this concept from a broader perspective, as about the formation of states, their structure and split, about the rearrangement of forces in the political world, about the advantage and influence of large and powerful states on the world economy. The past gives us a picture of the future, which is why it is so important to know the stages in the formation of the political map of the world.

general information

Any state has its own life cycle... It is a hump-like curve. At the beginning of its journey, the country is being built and developed. Then comes the peak of development, when everyone is happy and everything seems to be good. But sooner or later, the state loses its strength and power and begins to gradually fall apart. It has always been, is and will be. That is why, over the centuries, we have seen the gradual rise and fall of great empires, superpowers and huge colonial monopolies. Let's consider the main stages of the formation of the political map of the world. The table is shown in the figure:

As you can see, many historians distinguish exactly five stages modern history... V various sources you can find only 4 main ones. This dilemma has arisen a long time ago, since the stages of the formation of the political map of the world can be interpreted in different ways. The table of the main sections, proposed by us, contains the most reliable information to date.

Ancient period

V ancient world the first great states enter the arena of major events. You all probably remember them from history. It's glorious Ancient Egypt, powerful Greece and invincible Roman Empire. Simultaneously with them, there were less significant, but also quite developed states in the Middle and East Asia... Their historical period ends in the 5th century AD. It is generally accepted that it was at this time that the slave system was becoming a thing of the past.

Medieval period

In our minds, during the period from 5 to 15 centuries, there have been many changes that cannot be covered with one sentence. If historians of that time knew what a political map of the world was, the stages of its formation would have already been divided into separate parts. After all, remember, during this time Christianity was born, arose and disintegrated Kievan Rus, begins to arise In Europe, large feudal states are gaining strength. First of all, these are Spain and Portugal, which are vying with each other to make new geographical discoveries.

At the same time, the political map of the world is constantly changing. The formation stages of that time will change further destiny many states. The mighty Ottoman Empire will survive for several more centuries, conquering the states of Europe, Asia and Africa.

New period

From the late 15th - early 16th centuries begins new page in the political arena. This was the time when the first capitalist relations began. Centuries when huge colonial empires began to emerge in the world that conquered the whole world. The political map of the world is often changed and altered. The stages of formation are constantly replacing each other.

Spain and Portugal are gradually losing their power. It is no longer possible to survive due to the robbery of other countries, because more developed states are switching to completely new level production of goods - manufactory. This gave impetus to the development of such powers as England, France, the Netherlands, Germany. After the American Civil War, they are joined by a new and very large player - the United States of America.

The political map of the world changed especially often at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. The stages of formation during that period depended on the outcome of successful military campaigns. So, if back in 1876 the European countries captured only 10% of the territory of Africa, then in just 30 years they managed to conquer 90% of the entire territory of the hot continent. The whole world has entered the new 20th century, already practically divided between the superpowers. They ruled the economy and ruled alone. Further redistribution was inevitable without war. So a new period ends and begins newest stage formation of the political map of the world.

Newest stage

The redistribution of the world after the First World War made huge adjustments in the first of all four disappeared powerful empires... This is Great Britain, the Ottoman Empire, Russian empire and Germany. Many new states were formed in their place.

At the same time, a new trend appears - socialism. And on the map of the world there is a huge state - the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. At the same time, such powers as France, Great Britain, Belgium and Japan are strengthening. Some of the lands of the former colonies were transferred to them. But this redistribution does not suit many, and the world is again on the verge of war.

At this stage, some historians continue to write about the modern period, but now it is generally accepted that with the end of World War II, modern stage formation of the political map of the world.

Modern stage

The Second World War outlined for us those borders, most of which we see today. First of all, this concerns the states of Europe. The greatest result of the war brought about the fact that completely disintegrated and disappeared New independent states appeared in South America, Oceania, Africa, Asia.

But the most big country in the world - the USSR. With its breakup in 1991, another important stage... Many historians identify it as a subsection of the modern period. Indeed, after 1991, 17 new independent states were formed in Eurasia. Many of them decided to continue their existence within the borders Russian Federation... For example, Chechnya defended its interests for a long time until, as a result of hostilities, the power of a powerful country defeated.

At the same time, changes continue in the Middle East. Some Arab states are uniting there. In Europe, a unified Germany appears and the FRY Union collapses, as a result of which Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, Croatia, Serbia and Montenegro appear.

Continuation of a story

We have presented only the main stages of the formation of the political map of the world. But the story doesn't end there. As events show recent years, soon it will be necessary to allocate a new period or redraw the maps. After all, judge for yourself: two years ago Crimea belonged to the territory of Ukraine, and now it is necessary to completely redo all the atlases in order to change its citizenship. And also troubled Israel, drowning in battles, Egypt on the verge of war and a redistribution of power, incessant Syria, which can be wiped off the face of the Earth by powerful superpowers. All this is our modern history.

The political map of the world is (in a narrow sense) - one of the varieties geographic maps, on which the borders of states, capitals, roads, big cities... (in a broad sense) - this is the entire world arena as a whole, which reflects the main changes taking place in the world. political-geographical

Changes on the political map of the world: 1) Quantitative - the accession of open territorial changes or losses due to lands, wars, unification or disintegration of states 2) Qualitative - a change in socio-historical formations, the country's acquisition of sovereignty, a change in the state system

Stages of the formation of the Political Map of the World Ancient (before the 5th century AD) - the emergence and collapse of the first states: Ancient Egypt, Ancient Greece. Medieval (V-XVI centuries) - the emergence of large feudal states in Europe and Asia. New (XVI-XIX centuries) - the formation of the colonial empire The newest (first half of the XX century) - the formation of socialist countries, the collapse of the colonial system. Modern, in which there are three main stages: a) the emergence of the world socialist system, the formation of independent states in Asia. b) Formation of independent African states. c) The collapse of the socialist economic system and the ensuing changes on the political map of Europe and Asia.

Changes on the PKM in recent and modern times: Europe: the collapse of the USSR into 15 countries (CIS-11 countries)

Changes to the PKM in recent and modern times: Asia: 1990, the Yemen Arab Republic and the NDRY merged into the Republic of Yemen with the capital in Sanaa

1997 - Hong Kong became part of China 2000 - Macau became part of China (owned by Portugal)

Africa: 1990 - Namibia was the last to gain independence in Africa. 1993 Eritrea achieved independence by freeing itself from Ethiopia 1995 Ethiopia became a federation

Changes to the PCM in recent and modern times: Australia and Oceania 1994 - became the independent Republic of Pallau, freed from the Federated States of Micronesia 2006 - the capital of Pallau was moved to Melekeok

225 - 230 states on the political map of the world. Principal states Unrecognized by any state Recognized only by non-UN member states Recognized by some UN member states UN member states not recognized by some other states.