My Science School

          Throughout its existence, Malaysia was occupied and ruled by different countries and powers. The early settlers of Malaysia came from China. Before the Britishers set foot, the country was occupied by the Arabs, Portuguese and Dutch. The Britishers came in the 1800s and ruled the country for almost a century.

          During the Second World War, Japan occupied Malaysia. After the war, the communists started a terrorist campaign against the British and Malaysia finally gained independence in 1957. Since then, it has a democratic system of government. It has a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy.

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          Legends say that Singapore was founded by a Malay prince who set foot on the island in the 13th century. We don’t know if this is true, but the modern-day Singapore was born in 1819. Sir Stamford Raffles, a trader with the British East India Company founded the island country.

          Many Chinese people came to the island for work and trade. For almost hundred years, Britain ruled the country. Though Singapore joined the Federation of Malaysia in 1963, it backed out to become a separate nation in 1965. Singapore is one of the richest Southeast Asian countries whose money comes from international trade, banking and shipping.

          Singapore transitioned to a first world country from a third world country under the leadership of their first Prime Minister, Lee Kuan Yew.

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          Thailand has had contacts with many countries like India, China and Burma. In fact, the first settlers of Thailand came from southern China. But the country has never been colonized by Europeans.

          Thailand was earlier known as Siam. The Chakri dynasty founded their kingdom in 1782 with Bangkok as their capital.

          The twentieth century saw the power alternating between the military and democratic forces. After years of unrest, an elected coalition government was set up in the 1990s.

          Thailand has a mixed population, including refugees of the Vietnam War who were offered assylum here.

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          What is the image that you get when someone talks about Nepal? High mountains covered in snow, the busy temple streets of Kathmandu, steaming momos, stories about Yeti, the abominable snowman and much more. Tourism has brought much attention to this country. In fact, Nepal runs on the money obtained from tourism.

          Nepal, as we know today was unified by the Gorkha kingdom in the 18th century. The Shah Dynasty established itself in the country with some help from the British Empire. It was never colonized, but it served as a buffer state. In 1990, the people of Nepal protested for a democracy as a result of which king Birendra gave up his powers. Nepal became a constitutional monarchy with the king as its head.

          Various social issues existed in the country that led to the Nepalese Civil War. The war which started in 1996 lasted for ten years and in the end, a democratic government took shape. A new constitution was announced in 2015, according to which, Nepal is a federal secular parliamentary republic.

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          We all know that Asia is the largest continent, covering almost one third of the total land surface of the earth. Asia holds the largest population as well.

          The Asian landmass is unique; it has the highest peak - Mount Everest- and the lowest elevation - Dead Sea- of the world. Russia is the largest Asian country while Maldives is the smallest. Asian culture is as varied as its geography. It has more than 2,300 languages.

          Asia saw the birth of great civilizations. The 1600s brought in enormous changes in Asia as the Europeans set foot in the continent. By the 1800s, many of the Asian countries were colonized by European countries, who looted and exploited their wealth. Rebellions and wars later, many countries freed themselves from the hands of the colonizers.

          Asia now includes more than 45 countries including India, China, Thailand, Jordan, Sri Lanka and many more.

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          The Czech Republic and Slovakia are separate countries today. Earlier, these countries were a single entity under the name Czechoslovakia.

          In the year 1918, Bohemia united with its neighbours Slovakia to form an independent republic. An oppressive communist government ruled Czechoslovakia from 1948. The situation changed dramatically when Alexander Dubcek became the leader. He lifted the censorship on media and liberalized the country. This period of reformation is known as ‘Prague Spring’, but it did not last long. The Soviet Union invaded the country in 1968.

          The country held a democratic election in 1989. Both the Czechs and Slovakians had different interests as a result of which Czechoslovakia was split into two independent countries. This peaceful separation is often known as the ‘Velvet Divorce’! The countries still share close ties with each other.

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          At first, France had monarchical rule. Now, France is governed by what is known as the ‘fifth republic’. The transition from an absolute monarchy to a liberal republic is story of revolution and war. France was first ruled by the Celts, who were followed by the Romans, the Moors and the Franks. Its story was pretty much the same as its European neighbours.

         The Middle Ages of France was marked by a series of long wars with England. France lost the Hundred Years War which left the country in debt. Much later, in the 18th century, the dissatisfied peasants revolted against the monarchy, leading to the French Revolution. The king and queen were executed and finally Napoleon Bonaparte took over the country.

         Napoleon redesigned the nation. He conquered most of Europe before he was defeated at Waterloo by the British. During World War II, Germany occupied France, leading to much chaos and unrest. After the war, France sided with the Capitalist West to rebuild the nation.

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          The Magyar kings were ruling Hungary when the Turks took over. This happened in the 1600s. Later, the Turks were driven out by the Habsburgs, the rulers of Austria. Austria- Hungary was defeated in World War I after which, Hungary proclaimed its independence.

Hungary was taken over by the communists in 1948. A period of rapid industrialisation followed. It was accompanied by poor wages and strict government control. Fed up of this oppression, Hungarians started a revolt in 1956. But the Soviet Union crushed the rebellion using cruel means. Many of the protestors were killed.

          The country did not have democratic elections till 1990. Jozsef Antall became the first democratically elected president after the Second World War.

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          If you see the world map before the 1990s, you would get a totally different picture. In it, you have Yugoslavia, a large country that included Croatia. Bosnia- Herzegovina, Dalmatia, Serbia, Slovenia and Montenegro. These Balkan states were either ruled by the Ottoman or the Austria-Hungary Empire before its unification.

          Though Yugoslavia was torn apart during the Second World War, it pieced itself together in 1945 under a communist government. But its people found it difficult to live with such religious and ethnic diversity. This tension led to war which later split the country into five different nations in the 1990s. They are Croatia, Bosnia- Herzegovina, Dalmatia, Slovenia and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. In 2003, the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was renamed as Serbia and Montenegro. Now, we have five different nations in place of Yugoslavia.

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          Poland was once the centre of the Slavic empire. Ironically, this country disappeared from the map without a trace during the Second World War.

          Poland was occupied by Nazi Germany during the war years. It dehumanized the Polish and killed thousands of them. The history of Poland during the war years is about gas chambers, gunshots and fear.

          After the war, Poland was governed by the communists of the Soviet Union. This period was not much different from the previous regime. Poverty prevailed: the wages were low and the living conditions pathetic. This led to strikes and riots that demanded better wages and political reform. In 1989, the Solidarity Workers Party won the elections thus bringing democracy in place. People enjoyed greater freedom, but the economic crisis was not completely solved. Poland joined the Schengen Area in 2007. As a result, the country borders were dismantled and people now enjoy greater freedom of movement within the European Union.

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          Germany is notorious for its involvement in World War I and II. The defeat of Germany in World War I left the country in crisis. Germany was asked to pay a heavy compensation to France and Britain. This devastated the country economically.

          In addition to that, hyperinflation swept the nation; people were starving and the government was in utter chaos. The Nazis came to power in this vulnerable situation. They promised to make Germany great again under the leadership of Adolf Hitler.

          Hitler’s effort to create a master race was catastrophic. He could not create a glorious Germany; it lost again in World War II. The country was divided into four zones, one each under the US, Britain, France and the Soviet Union respectively. The Berlin Wall was built in 1961 which divided the country into East and West Germany. East Germany had communist rule while West Germany was backed by the US. The wall stood for thirty years and was finally demolished in 1990, reuniting East and West Germany.

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          Portugal is unique in many ways; it is one of the first global empires and the first empire to have maritime relations with other parts of the world. Portugal also had the longest dictatorship in Europe. Like many other European countries, Portugal was under the control of the Greeks, Romans and the Moors subsequently.

          During the 15th century, the Portuguese started marine explorations towards the Far East and South America. They enjoyed monopoly over the spice trade back then. Remember Vasco da Gama, the first explorer who came to India by sea? He was Portuguese.

          Portugal became independent from Spanish rule in 1668 under the Treaty of Lisbon. During the First World War, the Portuguese sided with the Allies. Unrest prevailed in the country which led to a military regime headed by Antonio Salazar. This autocratic regime is known as Estado Novo regime. A peaceful movement called Carnation Revolution later established democracy. Much later, Portugal joined the European Union in 1986.

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          Britain became a world superpower with the help of the sea and seafarers. It had a huge naval fleet which helped it to create a vast empire overseas. Britain started off with trade and ended up being the rulers, expanding the empire by establishing colonies wherever possible.

          The colonies of Britain were rich in natural resources which they looted. The wealth amassed from the colonies made Britain the richest country of the world and the territorial control gave them enormous power. By the 1980s, industries became the backbone of Britain’s economy.

          Britain’s involvement in World War I and II affected its economy. Most of its colonies emerged as independent countries by the 1960s. This led to the weakening of its political power. It suffered greatly in the 2008 financial crisis as well. Though it has lost its old glory, the UK is still powerful diplomatically.

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           We all know about Queen Elizabeth II, the monarch of the United Kingdom which is one of the most powerful nations in the history of the world. Centuries before Queen Elizabeth came to the scene, the United Kingdom was not a single entity, but separate kingdoms of England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland. These kingdoms later merged together to form the first industrial nation in the world.

          The Middle Ages were marked by a series of wars across Europe. However, England and Wales managed to unite in the mid-1500s. Later, Scotland joined this entity in 1707. Thus, Great Britain was born. Ireland joined the union, but after the Irish Civil War, the Republic of Ireland became independent, leaving the province of Northern Ireland with the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom that we see in the map today was formed in 1801. The nation is not very large, but holds a diverse population of different cultures.

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          Ireland was a single kingdom before it was divided into the Republic of Ireland, a free country and Northern Ireland, a part of the United Kingdom. Before the English came, Ireland was ruled by the Celts and the Vikings. The major chunk of Irish history is about its struggles against the English.

          The English invaded the land under King Henry II in the 12th century. They first occupied the lands around Dublin and later spread northwards. During the 1600s, Northern Ireland was given to the Protestants from England and Scotland. The rest of Ireland was predominantly Catholic. The Protestants soon outnumbered them in the north. This angered the Catholics in the south who demanded a split from the Protestant north. The split took place in 1921; the south was renamed as the Irish Free State. The Irish Free State became an independent republic in 1949. However, Northern Ireland remained a part of the United Kingdom. Fights broke out time and again after this, but both parties came to a peace agreement in 1994.

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