The face of Europe was forever changed in the early 20th century. Great dynasties and empires toppled, as a result of World War I, and from their ruin came many states, each with its own sovereign government and leadership. As these states strived for political success, they were halted by clashes of ideologies such as fascism, communism and capitalism. In order to develop these loosely organized lands into thriving states, democracy had to be restored and the people had to believe in the system.
Before World War I, there had been three empires, which controlled all of Europe. They were Tsarist Russian, the Hapsburg Empire and the Ottoman Empire. When the war was over Europe looked nothing like it did prior. Three great empires turned into 13 hard charging-states looking for some identity in the mess after World War I. These states formed their own constitutions with specific rights and laws outlined therein. What these new states failed to realize was that their constitutions were not feasible and, in most cases, unrealistic. Their fundamental aim was to subordinate politics to law, to "rationalize- power and sweep away the inconsistencies and irrational residues of the old feudal order, considering every aspect of social and political life in specific constitutional provisions (Mazower 7). There were too many "utopian schemes."" The Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes insisted "there is only one nationality for all the subjects of the Kingdom (Mazower 8). Skepticism of the government came from all angles because of the legal aspects of the new doctrines. This led into states feuding with themselves in civil wars. Seeing the fall of capitalism in Russia and how the country emerged victorious with communism, countries used the example of communism and its "Bolshevik- ideas as a way to move the state in a more right wing direction i.e. Fascism and Nationalism. .
Nationalism brought about internal upheavals.