In 1920 most of the European countries had democratic governments established.

Thus in the post-World War I there was the success of democracy almost in every European state. But soon after there was severe constraints on democracy.

The causes were as follows:

(1) Economic crisis in Germany in early 1920 and the Great Depression of 1929 totally destabilized the European economy.

ADVERTISEMENTS:

(2) Some states of Europe in the period, immediately after World War 1, suffered racial instability as a result of conflicting ethnic groups.

(3) Defects that existed in some of the new constitutions also helped the emergence of authoritarian rule.

(4) The democracy in the post­war period was severely weakened by the absence of any really popular statesman during the inter-War years.