Chapter 22: Political Upheavals and Social Transformation, 1815-1850

Congress of Vienna (1814-1815) * Tried to rebuild Europe after French Revolution and Napoleonic Wars * Hosted and controlled by Austrian Foreign Minister Klemens Von Metternich * Goal was to reconstruct through the “balance of powers” among European states * Alliance system was put in place to deal with future issues * Netherlands acted as buffer state against French power * Poland remained weak
Main Principles * Quadruple Alliance * Principle of Legitimacy * The principle rights of monarchs were to be upheld when faced with the right to “self-determination” * Great nations wouldn’t try to conquer smaller states to increase power * It was the responsibility of the Great Powers to maintain and control the existing boundaries and borders of all nations through cooperation
Conservatism and Liberalism were new ideologies
Romanticism was an intellectual movement that took place from late 18th century to early 19th century * Both conservatives and liberals accepted and rejected Romanticism * Romantics placed value in nature * Romantics also placed value in intuition over scientific knowledge * Romanticism’s validation of of individuals and individual experiences and justification of subjective knowledge challenged traditional authority
Nationalism: movement which tried to create a collective identity and political allegiance of people founded upon a shared cultural history and understanding * 1815-1850 * Meant to unite people against the tyrannical rule of monarchs * Embraced by those looking to overthrow foreign rule
Socialism: collective ownership, operation, and wealth of society * People should create a better social organization to better society * Hope was that industrial age would eradicate suffering of the poor
Karl Marx (1818-1883) * Believed that all societies evolved over course of history * The foundation of Marxist thought is based on his analysis of history
All of history is founded upon struggle in the classes
Neighborhoods developed around regional and ethnic migration * Developed support networks to provide safety
“Revolution in Government” (1820-1840) * Government started to take responsibility in managing industrial society * Beginning of “Welfare State”
Small protests and revolts broke out in response to poor social conditions in 1820s * Response to these revolts and protests was government repression and violence
French Revolution (1830)
Protests and Revolts took place in England, Germany, Greece, Belgium, Italy, Russia, and Switzerland as well * Crushed with force (government)
The Great Reform Bill of 1832 * Allowed for greater electoral participation * Fortified role of industrial elite * Didn’t satisfy radicals
People's Charter (1833) * Demanded universal suffrage, secret ballot, Parliament salaries, eradication of property requirements to hold office, equal election districts, and annual elections
Women were a key part of the workforce * Unions excluded women * Many served as domestic servants
The last great famine in European history was in 1846
There were high unemployment rates in 1846
Provisional Government: coalition of moderates and radicals insistent on keeping keeping the working classes from revolting
Louis Napoleon was elected to run France in 1848 * Executed a coup in 1851 and declared himself Emperor
Unification of German states was in shambles for an entire generation
Austria was a large multinational empire * Challenged by rise of nationalism and independence movements
Italy was divided and under the rule of foreign power
Austria and Prussia were determined to unite Germany under their control
Popular unrest in Europe was solved with minimal reforms