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Ultimately, Britain's empire would gradually dissolve over the course of the 20th century, sharply reducing its global power projection.Īccording to Lyman Miller, 'he basic components of superpower stature may be measured along four axes of power: military, economic, political, and cultural (or what political scientist Joseph Nye has termed ' soft power')'. The UK would face serious political, financial and colonial issues after World War II that left it unable to match Soviet or American power. The British Empire was the most extensive empire in world history and considered the foremost great power, holding sway over 25% of the world's population and controlling about 25% of the Earth's total land area, while the United States and the Soviet Union grew in power before and during World War II. According to him, at that moment there were three states that were superpowers, namely the United States, the Soviet Union and the United Kingdom. Fox used the word superpower to identify a new category of power able to occupy the highest status in a world in which-as the war then raging demonstrated-states could challenge and fight each other on a global scale. Fox, an American foreign policy professor, elaborated on the concept in the book The Superpowers: The United States, Britain and the Soviet Union - Their Responsibility for Peace which spoke of the global reach of a super-empowered nation. This formed the foundation for the book The Geography of the Peace, which referred primarily to the unmatched maritime global supremacy of the British Empire and the United States as essential for peace and prosperity in the world.Ī year later in 1944, William T.

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The term in its current political meaning was coined by Dutch-American geostrategist Nicholas Spykman in a series of lectures in 1943 about the potential shape of a new post-war world order. This was because the United States and the Soviet Union had proved themselves to be capable of casting great influence in global politics and military dominance. The term was first used to describe nations with greater than great power status as early as 1944, but only gained its specific meaning with regard to the United States and to a lesser extent, the Soviet Union after World War II. However, a fundamental characteristic that is consistent with all definitions of a superpower is a nation or state that has mastered the seven dimensions of state power, namely geography, population, economy, resources, military, diplomacy and national identity. No agreed definition of what is a superpower exists and may differ between sources. Ĭountries with the military bases and facilities of the present sole superpower - the United States Today, scholars debate which countries and organizations to include in the list of superpowers, with the People's Republic of China, the European Union, the Republic of India, and the Russian Federation all being debated among scholars as potential superpowers. At the end of the Cold War and the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, the United States became the world's sole superpower. During the Cold War, the British Empire dissolved, leaving the United States and the Soviet Union to dominate world affairs. The term was first applied in 1944 during World War II to the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union. While a great power state is capable of exerting its influence globally, superpowers are states so influential that no significant action can be taken by the global community without first considering the positions of the superpowers on the issue.

Traditionally, superpowers are preeminent among the great powers. This is done through the combined means of economic, military, technological, political and cultural strength as well as diplomatic and soft power influence. For other uses, see Superpower (disambiguation).Ī superpower is a state with a dominant position characterized by its extensive ability to exert influence or project power on a global scale. For the fictional superhuman abilities, see Superpower (ability). This article is about the geographic and political term.