xxxvi 1750 to 1900 soprano Jenny Lind, French actress Sarah Bernhardt, and Australian soprano Nellie Melba performed before enraptured crowds across Europe and America World’s fairs and expositions became popular in the mid-19th century, beginning with London’s Great Exhibition at the Crystal Palace on view in Hyde Park from April to October of 1851 Blending technology and art, powerful machines and homey kitchen tools, 13,000 international displays attracted more than million visitors and trumpeted the achievements of the British Empire and its colonial domains The Crystal Palace exhibition set a new standard for the promotion of trade and agriculture and inspired similar extravaganzas in Paris, Vienna, Brussels, Barcelona, Melbourne, and cities in the United States Held in Philadelphia in 1876, America’s Centennial Exposition highlighted the nation’s manufacturing power and, indirectly, its recovery from the recent Civil War A 40-foot Corliss steam engine, the world’s largest, powered the entire exhibition; Alexander Graham Bell introduced his new telephone to fairgoers from around the world, including the French sculptor who was in the process of crafting the Statue of Liberty At France’s 1889 exposition in Paris, commemorating the French Revolution, the Eiffel Tower was unveiled “Exotic” natives of colonized countries, like Samoa, or natives set apart within their own countries, like American Indians, were displayed at various fairs as examples of the progress Western civilization had made in manufacturing, trade, and culture and was now bringing to the world’s “backward” peoples WARFARE Improvements in weapons technology, fueled by the Industrial Revolution, helped make warfare in the late 18th and 19th centuries more deadly and sophisticated Civilians were drawn into wars more deeply than before, both as targets of enemy forces and as conscripts bound to military service As traditional military powers, including the Ottoman Empire and China, lagged, Western nations expanded their global imperialistic aims Although most of this period’s wars pitted nation against nation, warfare against internal foes, including America’s indigenous people and nomadic peoples and rebels in China, was also widespread Weaponry Trends Although the ballistics revolution did not fundamentally change the tools of Western warfare, it significantly improved their effectiveness Guns, artillery, and warships continued to be the basic components of combat, but all benefited from innovations linked to the developing sciences of engineering, physics, and chemistry Smoothbore muskets began to give way to rifled guns that permitted much greater accuracy and impact Cannons with rifled interiors and shapes that took account of air resistance could propel their payloads farther more precisely As steam power replaced sails, and steel hulls replaced wooden ones, warships became stronger, faster, and more dependable The development of interchangeable components by American Eli Whitney and others made it easier for even inexperienced soldiers to set up, load, fire, and repair both cannons and guns Gunpowder, invented much earlier in China, was also reengineered for greater force and reliability Manpower Trends Wars became bigger in the 18th and 19th centuries, partly because of new military and political systems for conscripting huge numbers of soldiers and supplying their battlefield needs In the process, the use of cavalry—soldiers on horseback—began to wane, while the use of infantry—men on foot—expanded, as did women’s roles in supporting troops with laundry, food preparation, medical aid, and weapons repair and service During the Crimean War, Englishwoman Florence Nightingale helped pioneer a new standard for nursing injured soldiers Slowly, battlefield improvements in medical care (including anesthesia) and food safety would help reduce military casualties from causes not directly related to combat By 1750 the feudal concept that vassals were obliged to fight for the interests of their overlords was already in decline, even though the British Royal Navy for many years continued to use impressment to force citizens and colonials into naval service, when volunteers fell short In the American colonies, especially Massachusetts Bay, men aged 16 to 60 were required to join local militias during times of threat, usually from Native tribes In the American Revolution, these mili-