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SUCCESSION: it can be a positive word; a mixture of succeed and session.

Yet, depending on the circumstances, succession may also lead to bad ‘cess’.

The first truly ‘world war’ was the War of the Spanish Succession, fought in the early 18th century; it lasted 19 years with 58 battles across three continents. By the time it was over, Spain lost half its European territory, France was bankrupt and England had become Britain.