On 30 March 1912, in Fes, Sultan Abd al-Hafid was forced to sign the treaty that made Morocco a French protectorate. That November, while the First Balkan War was being fought, the Assembly of Vlorë proclaimed an Albanian state, free and independent.
The First World War broke old empires apart. Finland's parliament declared its separation from Russia in December 1917, and in October 1918 the Regency Council in Warsaw declared Poland independent. Germany lost all its colonies, each of which became a League of Nations mandate. In Seoul in March 1919 the Korean Declaration of Independence was read out in public against Japanese rule.
In December 1921 the Anglo-Irish Treaty created the Irish Free State, and in February 1922 Britain recognised Egypt as independent, with tight limits. Mustafa Kemal's nationalists then ended the sultanate and founded the Republic of Turkey. By 1939 the map was being redrawn by force: Nazi Germany had absorbed Austria and declared a protectorate over the Czech lands.
The events that carry the story, in date order. Each card links to its full entry on the page for its year.
· Fes, Morocco · Africa
On 30 March 1912 Sultan Abd al-Hafid signed, under duress, the treaty that created the French protectorate in Morocco. A French Resident-General held absolute power at home and abroad, while the Sultan kept only the right to sign decrees submitted to him.
Why it is interesting. The Sultan kept only the right to sign decrees that the French Resident-General put before him.
· Vlorë, Ottoman Empire · Europe
Date may use an older calendar.
On 28 November 1912, in the middle of the First Balkan War, the Assembly of Vlorë declared a parliamentary Albanian state. It decided that Albania should be free and independent. The Treaty of London of 30 May 1913 later partitioned much of the claimed land among neighbours.
Why it is interesting. The declaration came in the middle of the First Balkan War and created the first Albanian state in modern history.
· Lhasa, Tibet · Asia
Some details uncertain.
The 13th Dalai Lama held that the fall of the Qing dynasty ended Tibet's relationship with China. He came back to Lhasa in 1913 and issued a proclamation setting out Tibet's relationship with Beijing.
Why it is interesting. Almost no country formally recognised the independence he proclaimed, and he rejected Chinese titles, saying he meant to rule in both temporal and religious matters.
· Finland · Europe
The Parliament of Finland adopted the Declaration of Independence, announcing Finland's separation from Russia and tabling a bill to make it an independent republic. The date is celebrated as Independence Day in Finland.
Why it is interesting. The declaration is marked every year as Finland's Independence Day.
· Ottoman Empire · Middle East
Date may use an older calendar.
After the First World War the empire's territories were divided into new states, with League of Nations mandates giving France Syria and Lebanon and Britain Mesopotamia and Palestine. The 1920 Treaty of Sèvres never took effect.
Why it is interesting. The Turkish War of Independence forced the powers back to the table, leading to the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne.
· Seoul, Korea under Japanese rule · Asia
The protests started in Seoul, where the Korean Declaration of Independence was read aloud in public, and spread across Korea and among Korean communities abroad. They were largely peaceful but often put down with violence. The movement led to the Korean Provisional Government.
Why it is interesting. Largely peaceful protests that began with a reading of Korea's Declaration of Independence inspired the May Fourth Movement in China.
· Berlin, Germany
Some details uncertain.
Most German colonies slipped from Germany's control as the First World War began, and the Treaty of Versailles formally confiscated them after the German defeat. Each colony then became a League of Nations mandate under an Allied administrator.
· the Rif, Spanish Morocco (now Morocco) · Africa
Soon after crushing a Spanish offensive at Annual, Riffians under Abd el-Krim declared an independent republic on 18 September 1921. Its capital was Ajdir and Abd el-Krim served as president.
Why it is interesting. The Spanish army used chemical weapons against the Rif republic, its first widespread use since the First World War.
· London, United Kingdom · Europe
British and Irish representatives signed the treaty in London on 6 December 1921, bringing the Irish War of Independence to a close. Michael Collins and Arthur Griffith were among the Irish signatories, and the terms created an Irish Free State as a self-governing dominion.
Why it is interesting. The treaty was approved only narrowly, and the split it caused led to the Irish Civil War.
· Egypt · Middle East
On 28 February 1922 Britain formally recognised Egypt as a sovereign, independent state, ending the protectorate. British archives say it ended exactly forty years of occupation, but a 'reserved points' clause greatly restricted that independence.
Why it is interesting. Egypt's independence came with a 'reserved points' clause that left Britain with major powers.
· Anatolia and East Thrace · Middle East
Some details uncertain.
Turkish nationalists led by Mustafa Kemal Pasha, later Ataturk, resisted the occupation and partition of the defeated Ottoman Empire. Their victory ended the sultanate and caliphate and produced the Republic of Turkey.
Why it is interesting. The war that ended the Ottoman sultanate and caliphate also brought the Republic of Turkey into being.
· Iraq · Middle East
Iraq declared independence on 3 October 1932 under a Hashemite monarchy, ending the period of British administration that had followed Ottoman rule.
Why it is interesting. Independence ended British administration that had followed generations of Ottoman rule.
· Austria · Europe
Some details uncertain.
On 12 March 1938 Austria was absorbed into Nazi Germany, realising the old idea of a Greater Germany. Nazi agents in Austria had encouraged pro-union feeling there beforehand.
Why it is interesting. The peace treaties signed in 1919 had expressly banned any union between Austria and Germany.
· Prague, Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia (now Czech Republic) · Europe
Some details uncertain.
After the Slovak parliament voted for an independent state, President Emil Hácha was coerced in Berlin into signing away Czechoslovakia's independence. Hitler declared the Protectorate from Prague Castle on 16 March.
Why it is interesting. German troops entered Ostrava on 14 March to stop Poland from taking the region.
One line each, in date order. Every link opens the event’s full entry, with its summary, notes and sources, on the page for its year.