Portal:1920s

Portal topics: Activities; Culture; Geography; Health; History; Mathematics; Nature; People; Philosophy; Religion; Society; Technology; Random portal

The 1920s Portal

The 1920s (pronounced "nineteen-twenties" often shortened to the "'20s" or the "Twenties") was a decade that began on January 1, 1920, and ended on December 31, 1929. In America, it is frequently referred to as the "Roaring Twenties" or the "Jazz Age", while in Europe the period is sometimes referred to as the "Golden Twenties" because of the economic boom following World War I (1914–1918). French speakers refer to the period as the "Années folles" ("crazy years"), emphasizing the era's social, artistic, and cultural dynamism.

The 1920s saw foreign oil companies begin operations in Venezuela, which became the world's second-largest oil-producing nation. The devastating Wall Street Crash in October 1929 is generally viewed as a harbinger of the end of 1920s prosperity in North America and Europe. In the Soviet Union, the New Economic Policy was created by the Bolsheviks in 1921, to be replaced by the first five-year plan in 1928. The 1920s saw the rise of radical political movements, with the Red Army triumphing against White movement forces in the Russian Civil War, and the emergence of far-right political movements in Europe. In 1922, the fascist leader Benito Mussolini seized power in Italy. Other dictators that emerged included Józef Piłsudski in Poland, and Peter and Alexander Karađorđević in Yugoslavia. First-wave feminism made advances, with women gaining the right to vote in the United States (1920), Albania (1920), Ireland (1921), and with suffrage being expanded in Britain to all women over 21 years old (1928).

In Turkey, nationalist forces defeated Greece, France, Armenia and Britain in the Turkish War of Independence, leading to the Treaty of Lausanne (1923), a treaty more favorable to Turkey than the earlier proposed Treaty of Sèvres. The war also led to the abolition of the Ottoman Caliphate. Nationalist revolts also occurred in Ireland (1919–1921) and Syria (1925–1927). Under Mussolini, Italy pursued a more aggressive domestic and foreign policy, leading to the nigh-eradication of the Sicilian Mafia and the Second Italo-Senussi War in Libya respectively. In 1927, China erupted into a civil war between the Kuomintang (KMT)-led government of the Republic of China (ROC) and forces of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Civil wars also occurred in Paraguay (1922–1923), Ireland (1922–1923), Honduras (1924), Nicaragua (1926–1927), and Afghanistan (1928–1929). Saudi forces conquered Jabal Shammar and subsequently, Hejaz.

A severe famine occurred in Russia (1921–1922) due to the combined effects of economic disturbance because of the Russian Revolution and the Russian Civil War, exacerbated by rail systems that could not distribute food efficiently, leading to 5 million deaths. Another severe famine occurred in China (1928–1930), leading to 6 million deaths. The Spanish flu pandemic (1918–1920) and Russian typhus epidemic (1918–1922), which had begun in the previous decade, caused 25–50 million and 2–3 million deaths respectively. Major natural disasters of this decade include the 1920 Haiyuan earthquake (258,707~273,407 deaths), 1922 Shantou typhoon (50,000–100,000 deaths), 1923 Great Kantō earthquake (105,385–142,800 deaths), and 1927 Gulang earthquake (40,912 deaths).

Silent films were popular in this decade, with the highest-grossing film of this decade being either the American silent epic adventure-drama film Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ or the American silent war drama film The Big Parade, depending on the metrics used. Sinclair Lewis was a popular author in the United States in the 1920s, with his books Main Street and Elmer Gantry becoming best-sellers. Best-selling books outside the US included the Czech book The Good Soldier Švejk, which sold 20 million copies. Songs of this decade included "Mack the Knife" and "Tiptoe Through the Tulips".

During the 1920s, the world population increased from 1.87 to 2.05 billion, with approximately 700 million births and 525 million deaths in total. (Full article...)

More about the 1920s...

Refresh with new selections below (purge)

Selected article - show another

Lobby card

Subway Sadie is a 1926 American silent comedy-drama film directed by Alfred Santell. Adapted from Mildred Cram's 1925 short story "Sadie of the Desert", the film focuses on a relationship between New York salesgirl Sadie Hermann (Dorothy Mackaill) and subway guard Herb McCarthy (Jack Mulhall), who meet on the subway and become engaged. However, after Sadie receives a promotion, she must choose between her new job and marrying Herb. The cast also includes Charles Murray, Peggy Shaw, Gaston Glass, and Bernard Randall.

The film began production in May 1926. Arthur Edeson served as cinematographer, shooting around Central Park in areas like casinos and nightclubs. Distributed by First National Pictures, the film premiered in New York on September 12, 1926. Many publications wrote positively of the film, praising its acting and Santell's direction. Today, it remains unknown if a print of Subway Sadie has survived. (Full article...)

List of selected articles

edit

Featured picture

Credit: American Colony, Jerusalem

Sultan al-Atrash was a prominent Arab Druze leader, Syrian nationalist and Commander General of the Syrian Revolution (1925–1927). He fought against the Ottomans, French, and even against the Syrian government in days of dictatorship. One of the most influential figures in Syrian and Druze history, he played a major role in deciding the destiny of Jabal ad-Duruz and of Syria in general.

More selected images

More...

edit

Did you know...

...that bead crochet (pictured) was a popular method of creating women's fashion accessories during the 1920s?
... that in the 1920s and '30s, various countries such as Mexico, Brazil and Chile issued Art Deco stamps?
... that in 1926, Albert Einstein solved the tea leaf paradox, which states that if the tea in a teacup is stirred, the tea leaves will collect in the middle rather than at the edges?

More Did you know

More...

edit

Related portals

Selected biography - show another

Hornsby in 1921

Rogers Hornsby (April 27, 1896 – January 5, 1963), nicknamed "the Rajah", was an American baseball infielder, manager, and coach who played 23 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played for the St. Louis Cardinals (1915–1926, 1933), New York Giants (1927), Boston Braves (1928), Chicago Cubs (1929–1932), and St. Louis Browns (1933–1937). He was named the National League (NL)'s Most Valuable Player (MVP) twice, and was a member of one World Series championship team.

Born in Winters, Texas, and raised in Fort Worth, Texas, Hornsby played for several semi-professional and minor league teams. In 1915, he began his major league career with the St. Louis Cardinals and remained with the team for 12 seasons. During this period, Hornsby won his first MVP Award and the Cardinals won the 1926 World Series. After that season, he spent one season with the New York Giants and another with the Boston Braves before being traded to the Chicago Cubs. He played with the Cubs for four years and won his second MVP Award before the team released him in 1932. Hornsby re-signed with the Cardinals in 1933, but was released partway through the season, effectively ending his career as a full-time player. He was picked up by the St. Louis Browns and remained there until his final season in 1937, though he made only 67 appearances for them as a player. From 1925 to 1937, Hornsby was intermittently a player-manager. After retiring as a player, he managed the Browns in 1952 and the Cincinnati Reds from 1952 to 1953. (Full article...)

List of selected biographies

Topics

edit

WikiProjects

You are invited to participate in WikiProject Years, a WikiProject dedicated to developing and improving articles about years, decades, centuries, and millennia.

edit

List articles

Category puzzle

Select [►] to view subcategories

More Did you know (auto generated)

... that in the 1920s, Australian journalist E. George Marks predicted military conflict in the Pacific between Japan and the United States?
... that Hans Robertson ran a studio in 1920s Berlin where he photographed celebrities such as artist Käthe Kollwitz, boxer Max Schmeling and dancer Gret Palucca?
... that 1920s and 1930s radio show actress Artie Belle McGinty played the original radio advertisement voice for Aunt Jemima?
... that Cleo Damianakes's 1920s book dust jacket designs "made sex respectable", but Hemingway did not like the "large misplaced breasts" on A Farewell to Arms?
... that the League for Human Rights, established in Germany in the early 1920s, was the first mass organization for homosexuals?
... that in the 1920s, a guard was posted outside the New York City Subway's Clark Street station to prevent sailors from using it at night?

edit

General images

The following are images from various 1920s-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Irving Berlin (left) and Al Jolson, c. 1927 (from 1920s)
Image 21920s phone (from 1920s)
Image 3The most memorable fashion trend of the Roaring Twenties was undoubtedly "the flapper" look. (from 1920s)
Image 4Frank Lloyd Wright, 1926 (from 1920s)
Image 5F. Scott Fitzgerald, 1929 (from 1920s)
Image 6Crowd gathering after the Wall Street Crash of 1929 (from 1920s)
Image 7Dow Jones Industrial, 1928–1930 (from 1920s)
Image 8Albert Einstein, 1921 (from 1920s)
Image 9Charlie Chaplin during the 1920s (from 1920s)
Image 10From left, clockwise: Third Tipperary Brigade Flying Column No. 2 under Seán Hogan during the Irish War of Independence; Prohibition agents destroying barrels of alcohol in accordance to the 18th amendment, which made alcoholic beverages illegal in the United States throughout the entire decade; In 1927, Charles Lindbergh embarks on the first solo nonstop flight from New York to Paris on the Spirit of St. Louis; A crowd gathering on Wall Street after the 1929 stock market crash, which led to the Great Depression; Benito Mussolini and fascist Blackshirts during the March on Rome in 1922; the People's Liberation Army attacking government defensive positions in Shandong, during the Chinese Civil War; The women's suffrage campaign leads to numerous countries granting women the right to vote and be elected; Babe Ruth becomes the most famous baseball player of the time. (from 1920s)
Image 11Buster Keaton in the 1922 short film The Frozen North (from 1920s)
Image 12Adolf Hitler (standing) delivers a speech in February 1925 (from 1920s)
Image 13Map of the world from 1920, two years after World War I (from 1920s)
Image 14Georgia O'Keeffe in 1920, photographed by Alfred Stieglitz (from 1920s)
Image 15Babe Ruth in 1920 (from 1920s)
Image 16Benito Mussolini and Fascist Blackshirts during the March on Rome in 1922. (from 1920s)
Image 17Prohibition agents emptying barrels of alcohol. (from 1920s)
Image 182 out of 10 best-selling American books in the 1920s were written by Sinclair Lewis (1885–1951) (from 1920s)
Image 19George Grosz in 1921 (from 1920s)
Image 20Paavo Nurmi in 1924 Summer Olympics (from 1920s)
Image 21Spanish troops in San Sebastián, prior to their departure to the Rif War. (from 1920s)
Image 22The period from the end of the First World War until the start of the Depression in 1929 is known as the "Jazz Age" (from 1920s)
Image 23D. W. Griffith at a rolltop desk, c. 1925 (from 1920s)
Image 24The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (Soviet Union) is created in 1922. (from 1920s)
Image 25The British and French colonial empires in 1920 (from 1920s)
Image 26Robert Goddard and his rocket, 1926 (from 1920s)
Image 27Thompson submachine gun (1921 model) (from 1920s)