What would you say was the worst year in the 20th century in terms of world events, disasters, turmoil, war etc? I would say 1941. WW2 was at its worst with Germany invading the Soviet Union, (which was the largest military invasion in history) Pearl Harbor was attacked forcing the US into the conflict, Britain was heavily bombed through air-raids and the the holocaust began. Can't imagine any year worse than that, but that's just my opinion, what is yours?

What an interesting question. You're talking about worldwide, but it's hard to say because where one lives makes all the difference!

What an interesting question. You're talking about worldwide, but it's hard to say because where one lives makes all the difference!

For America, the worst year was probably 1968. The Tet Offensive in Vietnam enraged the country, Martin Luther King was assassinated which then lead to blacks rioting all across the nation, and hippies protested at the Democratic convention.

I think anything from 1901-1945 were considered to be the worst in the 20th century, especially when political leaders could get away with harsh genocide before the United Nations was formed.

1919 was pretty bad, due to the ongoing flu pandemic, the passing of the 18th Amendment, and Woodrow Wilson's stroke, which doomed the League of Nations and essentially made possible the rise of the Nazi Party over a decade later.

1937 had Stalin's Great Purge and FDR's infamous Court Packing fiasco, which severely discredited the New Deal leading to World War II.

The early 1940s in general were an incredibly dark time for global politics, however they were one of the greatest times for movies, not to mention they saw the establishment of classic cartoon characters and superhero comics, making them a pivotal time for the growth of 20th century media.

1968 is easily one of the most terrible years for American politics, due to the assassinations of Bobby Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr., the Tet Offensive, the race riots, and the election of Nixon. Like the early 40s, though, 1968 was a mostly solid time for media, particularly science fiction movies and some music, though 1964, 1967, and 1969 were superior years in the latter regard, imo.

All things considered, 1919 is the worst. Unlike the other contenders, it had little in the way of redeeming media. Even though Felix the Cat made his debut that year and George Gershwin wrote "Swanee" (which would pretty much become the first true roaring 20s song), the 20th century still hadn't quite fully discovered its voice, yet.

For Germans, probably 1945.

I would say the era roughly from 1929 to 1945 was the worst.  It's hard to say what years specifically were the worst.  If you were American, 1933 and 1941 were probably the worst.  If you were in Germany or Japan, 1945 was the worst.  The second half of the 1910s weren't a walk in the park either.