1) In the late 19th century, European powers scrambled to claim and colonize territories in Africa and Asia, dividing up regions like Africa at the Berlin Conference of 1884-1885. Only a few nations like Japan, China, Ethiopia, and the Boer Republics maintained independence.
2) Germany unified in the 1860s-1870s under Prussian leadership, becoming a dominant power in Europe and causing tensions with other nations like France and Russia. Chancellor Bismarck sought alliances to isolate France.
3) Great Britain had the most powerful navy and largest overseas empire but pursued a policy of "Splendid Isolation", abstaining from European affairs after the 1850s. The British Empire covered
