Reaction, Revolution & Romanticism 1815-1850

(1)

Reaction,

Revolution &

Romanticism

1815-1850

Chapter 21

(2)

Overview of the 19

thth

Century

_Century

1815-1830

The Age of

Metternich

– Reaction and

Restoration – “Turn

Back the Clock”

(3)

The Conservative Order

• _{The Peace Settlement, Vienna}

– Restoration of Louis XVIII of France

• Granted a “Constitutional Charter” promising legal equality and the continuation of the Napoleonic Code – _{Viscount Castlereagh}_{of Britain-determined to keep the}

Continental Alliance together and keep Russia at bay

– _{Prince Talleyrand}_{of France-survived the revolution and} played a role in the post Napoleonic government

– _{Prince Klemens von Metternich}_of

Austria-Principle of Legitimacy-restoration of kings Balance of political and military power

(4)

Results of the Congress of Vienna

• France

’s borders returned to 1790-had to pay

700 million francs in damages-occupied for 5

yrs.

• _{Dutch Republic}

_{restored as Kingdom of}

Netherlands and given Belgium

• Switzerland

restored to independent neutrality

• Austria

got parts of Northern Italy

• Germany

reorganized as loose Confederation

with left bank of Rhine going to Prussia

• Russia

kept Finland and most of Poland

(5)

(6)

Congress of Vienna

• _{Good Points:}

– Minimum French resentment due to moderate terms

– Ended 2 centuries of colonial rivalry-Britain unchallenged for next 70 yrs.

– Control of Poland was

smoothed over for the next 50 years.

– Austria-Prussian competition in Germany smoothed over for the next 50 yrs.

• _{Bad Points:}

– Nationalists and democrats

disappeared

– The will of the

people was totally ignored

(7)

• _{The Ideology of Conservatism}

_{The Ideology of Conservatism}

– _{Edmund Burke}_(1729-1797),

Reflections on the Revolution in France

• Founder of conservative philosophical movement

• Society is a contract-sudden & violent change unacceptable

• Yet wanted reform of corrupt British patronage system

• Wanted strong political parties to counter royal power

– _{Joseph de Maistre}_(1753-1821)

• Wanted restoration of divine

(8)

Concert of Europe

1. France included in the Q. A. 2. Troppau Council of 1820

a. Spain and Italian Carbonari b. Intervention principle

(9)

Revolt in Latin America

– _{Simón Bolivar} (1783-1830) “The George Washington” of Latin

America-brutal & bloody war for independence-freed Columbia in 1819 and

Venezuela in 1821

– José de San Martín (1778-1850)-liberated the south-Chile, Peru & Argentina

– Monroe Doctrine, 1823-US attempted to keep European powers out with this

(10)

Repression in Central Europe

• Central Europe was dominated by aristocratic

landowners (Junkers), autocratic monarchies and

Metternich’s ring of spies.

• _{King Frederick William III}

_(1797-1840)

encouraged by Baron Heinrich von Stein and Baron

Karl von Hardenberg-began reforms in response to

defeat by Napoleon-abolished serfdom, expanded

education, created local town governments and

created universal conscription.

(11)

Repression in Central Europe

• After 1815 the King became more reactionary

encouraged by Metternich.

• _{Burschenschaften}

_{movement, student societies,}

1817-1819-dedicated to creating a united Germany

as inspired by Friedrich Ludwig Jahn-who had

organized gymnastic societies to promote German

youth and patriotism-they alarmed the governments

• _{Karlsbad Decrees}

_{of 1819 closed the}

(12)

The Greek Revolt (1821-1832)

– Under Turkish control for 400 years

– Allowed to maintain language, culture and religion

– Became a popular European cause-only succeeded because of European intervention

– 1827-British & French fleet defeated the Ottoman Navy – 1828-Russian Army invaded

(13)

Restoration in France

• _{Louis XVIII}_{(1814-1824) was a reluctant moderate} who allowed the reforms of the Revolutionary period to remain

• Charles X (1824-30) his younger brother was more reactionary:

– Granted an indemnity to nobles who lost land in the Revolution

– Gave Catholic Church control over education & instituted the death penalty for sacrilege

(14)

Coronation of King Charles X of France

(15)

Russia: Autocracy of the Tsars

• Russia was rural,

agricultural and autocratic • _{Alexander I}_(1801-1825)

grew up with the

Enlightenment-willing to make reforms

• _{Michael Speransky}_{, his} advisor helped him to

– Free political prisoners

– Reform educational system – Relax censorship

(16)

Russia: Autocracy of the Tsars

• Nicholas I (1825-1855) hesitated when his older

brother Constantine refused the throne

• Decembrist Revolt-young officers in the Northern

Union revolted & demanded a constitution

• Nicholas I brutally crushed the rebellion-he was a

reactionary who increased the bureaucracy and established a secret police to spy on all

(17)

Great Britain

• Napoleonic Wars prevented political reform

• Parliament was as sovereign as most continental rulers-English Press had much freedom

• _{Act of Union of 1801}_{-ended separate Irish and}

Scottish Parliaments-United Kingdom of Great Britain • _Tories_{in charge until 1830, sympathetic to the king.} • Whigs gained support

of new middle class

• _{Corn Laws}_{-1815 heavy} tax on imported grains • _{Peterloo Massacre}

(18)

A Brief Definition of Ideologies

• _Liberals

_{encourage changes to the status quo to}

promote liberty (1819)

• _Radicals

_{demanded drastic or wholesale change}

to the status quo (1820s)

• _{Conservatives}

_{wanted to maintain the status}

quo

(19)

Ideologies of Change

• Liberalism was a political philosophy that grew out of the Enlightenment-belief in freedom for people

economically and politically. • Political liberals believed in

the protection of civil

liberties, equality before the law, freedom of assembly, speech, and press as well as freedom from arbitrary

arrest. Some advocate

religious freedom and the separation of church & state

• John Stuart Mill (1806-1873) an English

philosopher who

advocated liberalism in his work On Liberty in 1859. He argued for the

protection of all opinions, even unpopular ones. Mill expanded the meaning of liberalism when he wrote

(20)

Ideologies of Change

• Thomas Malthus

(1766-1834) wrote a book-Essay on the Principles of Population

in which he argued population would always increase faster than food production

• David Ricardo (1772-1823) wrote Principles of Political Economy in which he

described the “Iron Law of Wages” in which he argued like Malthus that government interference in wages did not good.

Rev. Thomas Malthus

(21)

Nationalism

• Nationalism was a

powerful ideology that grew out of the French

Revolution-the concept of community with a common language, customs,

traditions and institutions. • Nationalism threatened old

multi-ethnic empires, as the concept of national

self-determination developed. • It was spread as a reaction

to Napoleon-at first it was allied with liberalism in the

(22)

Early Socialism

• _Socialism

_{was a political philosophy that argued}

against competition and for equality.

• _{Utopian Socialist}

_{were against private property}

and the ruthless competition of the Ind. Rev

• _{Henri de Saint-Simon}

_(1760-1825)

Encouraged a cooperative society with

equality for women

(23)

Early Socialism

• Robert Owen (1771-1858) Est. an ideal workers’

community at New Lanark, Scotland

• Louis Blanc (1813-1882)

In his book The Organization of Work, he denounced

competition

and encouraged governments to intervene on behalf of the worker • Flora Tristan (1803-1844) tried to

combine socialism and feminism in her work Worker’s Union

New Lanark, Scotland