"In 1920, the West ruled huge amounts of the world"

This quote by Samuel P. Huntington is describing the period of history referred to as the Age of Imperialism, which began in the late 19th century and lasted up until the end of World War I. During this duration, the Western powers of Europe and the United States had a good deal of impact and control over much of the world. This was because of their superior military and economic power, in addition to their technological and cultural advances. By 1920, the Western powers had actually established colonies and protectorates in lots of parts of the world, and had a good deal of control over the political and economic systems of these areas. This quote is a tip of the power and influence that the West had over much of the world during this duration of history.