In 1918 the German intellectual Oswald Spengler published his book Der Untergang des Abendlandes (The Decline of the West), in which he forecast that Europe would no longer be as powerful and as exciting after the Great War as it had been before. And indeed, by 1913 it had reached the peak of what it had been working for over the centuries, advancing more and more. It had colonised and subjugated the world. It was great and predominant in every respect, imposing its will on others and sweeping up almost the entire pool of international awards, especially the Nobel Prize. Nothing important could happen in the world without the knowledge and consent of Europe. But in August 1914 Europe lost its senses, as one British journalist wrote. Though perhaps that's what had to happen: once the Europeans had reached the summit, they had to climb down to make room for others. First of all for the Americans and the Japanese. After the war the Age of the Pacific started.

After such a bloodthirsty and gruelling war of attrition, Europe was no longer in a position to keep and exercise the political, cultural, and economic role it had enjoyed before August 1914.