Metternich

THE GROWTH & SUPPRESSION OF DEMOCRACY FROM THE AGE OF METTERNICH TO WWI (1815-1914)

OVERVIEW

What is the Age of Metternich? From the fall of Napoleon in 1815 to the Revolutions of

1848

How was the age defined? Conservatism Against liberal nationalist self-determination ideals

Who is Metternich? Klemens von Metternich (1773-1859) Chancellor/Foreign Minister of Hapsburg Austria, chief

participant in the Congress of Vienna

OVERVIEW CONT.

2 nations developed bases for democracy: England: stable France: unstable, back & forth between revolution & reaction

3 Nations opposing democracy: Germany: Prussian militarists had gained control of the

unification process after constitutionalists failed Austria: Germanic Hapsburg rulers suppressed the move

toward autonomy of polyglot nationalities Russia: ruling class obsessed with “Autocracy, Orthodoxy, & Nationalism”

THE GROWTH OF DEMOCRACY

England

• Parliament• In 1815 (after Napoleonic Wars) represented aristocrats & wealthy• The Corn Laws of 1815• Raised grain prices & prohibited import of foreign grain• Benefited landowners who ran Parliament• Riots & unrest• Corn Laws repealed in 1846 (Anti-Corn Law League)

• Tories (1820s conservative party): restructured penal code, developed modern police force, legalized labor unions, granted basic civil rights to Catholics

• 1830 House of Commons Reform (lower house of Parliament)• Many of the boroughs that had representatives no longer existed,

while emerging industrial cities had none at all• The Great Reform Bill of 1832: abolished “rotten boroughs”,

expanded the electorate, & empowered the middle class

ENGLAND, CONT.

• The Chartist movement (1838-late 1840s)• Radical working-class activists • Advocated reforms such as: universal male suffrage, secret voting ballot, “one man one

vote”, abolition of property qualifications for public office, & public education for all classes

• Failed at the time, but reforms were eventually implemented• England was able to maintain stability during the Revolutions of 1848• Whig Party (liberals): William E. Gladstone• 1866: attempted to expand voter eligibility (failed)• Tory leader Benjamin Disraeli introduced The Second Reform Bill (1867)• Doubled size of electorate & gave vote to many industrial workers • Disraeli lost general election of 1868 victory for Gladstone

• Gladstone’s Reforms• Legalized labor unions, secret ballot introduced, free public education offered to

working-class children• Third Reform Bill of 1885: universal male suffrage

• The Social Welfare State• Unions gained right to strike • Government insurance provided for those with work-related injuries• Unemployment insurance & old-age pensions enacted• Compulsory school attendance laws

FRANCE• Bourbon Louis XVIII• Brother of Louis XVI (guillotined)• Issued a constitution, but gave power to small class of landowners & rich

• Charles X• brother of Louis XVIII• Repressive measures led to Paris riots in 1830• Soon abdicates rift between radicals who wanted to establish a republic &

bourgeoisie who wanted stability of a monarchy

• Louis Phillipe• Came to power with the help of Marquis de Lafayette • Aristocratic “bourgeoisie king”• Honored the Constitution of 1814• Proletariat had no representation• Abdicated in February 1848

• The Chamber of Deputies• Created by Louis XVIII’s 1814 constitution• Pressured by Parisian mobs to proclaim a republic & name a provisional

government until elections• Constituent Assembly established single-chambered Legislative Assembly &

president elected by universal male suffrage

France, cont.

• Louis Napoleon Bonaparte• Second Republic• Eradicated socialism & radicalism• Reelected & proclaimed himself Emperor Napoleon III• Autocratic, but not absolutist • Napoleon controlled finances & initiated legislation• Immensely popular because of his public works projects & subsidies to industry

(stimulated economy)• The Liberal Empire: eased censorship & granted amnesty to political prisoners• Downfall: foreign affairs• Crimean War: prevent Russian dominance in the Black Sea• French backed down in 1860confrontation with US over a French satellite in Mexico• Franco-Prussian War (unify Germany): disaster for France• Resulted in the end of the Second Empire & began the Third Republic• Controlled by monarchists & bourgeoisie• National Assembly suppressed the Paris Commune (radical socialist counter-government)

• Chamber of Deputies (1875)• The French government alternated and fell dozens of times until WWI• Governments lacked stability because of the multiparty system• Dreyfus Affair: Jewish army captain falsely accused by antirepublican conservatives• Had universal male suffrage & social welfare system similar to Britain

THE SUPPRESSION OF DEMOCRACY

Germany• Congress of Vienna established the German Confederation (39 states)• Burschenschafts: radical student groups dedicated to the unification of Germany under a

single constitution• Organized a convention in 1817 & 1819; attempted assassination of reactionary politicians

• Carlsbad Decrees: Metternich’s anti-subversive laws designed to get the liberals out of Austria, its press, & the universities • Secret police controlled publishing & university discussions• Carlsbad Diet drove liberalism & nationalism underground

• The Zollverein • Economic union of seventeen German states established in response to the Revolutions

of 1830• Prussian King Frederick William IV• Called nominal legislative assembly instead of military after revolutions of 1848• Granted a constitution & established a House of Representatives elected by universal male

suffrage• Controlled by wealthiest classes

• Frankfurt Assembly established nature of the future union of Germany• Supporters of Greater Germany wanted to include Austria and to have a Hapsburg

emperor rule over the Union• Supporters of Lesser Germany wanted to exclude Austria and to have Prussia lead the

union • Austria backed away from the union• Frankfurt Assembly failed• German unification was left to Prussian militarism & Bismarck’s policy of “Blood & Iron”

AUSTRIA

• Reactionary government left untouched in the Revolution of 1830

• Parisian rebellions in 1848 Louis Kossuth, a Hungarian nationalist, aroused separatist sentiment in the Hungarian Diet• National assembly legal in the empire • Riots in Vienna & Metternich fled the country • Hungarians, Czechs, & 3 Northern Italian provinces of the empire declared autonomy

• The Prague Conference• Czech response to the all-German Frankfurt Conference• Austroslavism: Slavic groups within the empire would remain part of the empire &

set up autonomous national governments• Austrian armies restored Hapsburg authorities before this idea could be adopted

• Franz Joseph• Replaced Emmperor Ferdinand I• Conservative forces within the government centralized power & suppressed opposition

• Austro-Prussian War (1866)• Austria was defeated• The Compromise of 1867: set up constitutional government with limited suffrage,

granted Hungarians autonomy, & created a dual monarchy (Austria-Hungary)• Exclusion of Slavic minorities encouraged the Pan-Slavic movement to seek

independence for ethnic minorities WWI

REVOLUTIONS OF 1848France

Causes Length of Time

Protagonist Events Results

• Economic changes in England

• Social pressures in France

• Political demonstrations outlawed (political banquets held – later outlawed

• Louis Napoleon & Guizot when 52 protestors were killed during anti-censorship demonstrations

1847-1848

Louis Blanc, Pierre Proudhon, Louis Cavaignac, Sophonse de Lamartine, Napoleon III

• Louis Philippe fled to England

• Guizot resigned as barricades emerged across Paris

• 2nd Republic formed in 1848 based on universal male suffrage

• Class struggle: rich vs. poor & rural vs. urban

• Urban workers attempted Marxist takeover & failed

• Napoleon III reigned after winning landslide election

• Dismissed National Assembly

• Ruled with complete power

REVOLUTIONS, CONT.German States

Causes Length of Time

Protagonists Events Results

• 39 Germanic states began to demand rights after word of French revolutions spread

February 1848- May 1848

• French leaders

• Bourgeoisie of Germany

• Richard Wagner

• Germans in Baden demanded a Bill of Rights in February

• crowd threatened palace in Berlin after demonstrators were killed

• William Frederick IV supports revolutionaries

• King Ludwig abdicated in Bavaria

• Saxony heard calls for reforms

• King maintained leadership

• Bismarck comes to power under Wilhelm I

• Bismarck unites western German states into modern Germany through dictatorial rule

REVOLUTIONS, CONT.Hapsburg Empire

Causes Length of Time

Protagonists

Events Results

• Multiethnic empire held together by force

• Empire was in decline & not united

• All ethnic groups attempted to gain autonomy as nationalism spread

• The Communist Manifesto was published in German

February 1848-August 1849

• Empire burst

• Conservative Russian Tsar Nicholas I reassembled the empire

• Hapsburg Empire returned to former state of multiethnic empire (Croats, Slovaks, Germans, Austrians, Poles, Huns, Serbs, Ruthenians, Italians, Czechs)

• Central authority weakened

• Empire would only last to 1918

REVOLUTIONS, CONT.Hungary

Causes Length of Time

Protagonists

Events Results

• Ethnic oppression by Austrian Hapsburgs

• Hungarian Parliament had been called in 1825 to address financial matters

• Bloodless revolution in March led by governor & Prime Minister

March 1848

• Louis Kossuth

• Louis Bathyany

• Took advantage of general revolutions throughout the empire

• Austria grants autonomy

• After Austria crushes smaller revolutions, new emperor Franz Josef I returns to crush Hungary

• Austria gains support from Russia

• Hungarians defeated

• Returned to former multiethnic state

• Practiced passive resistance against the Hapsburgs

REVOLUTIONS, CONT.

Italian States

Causes Length of Time

Protagonists Events Results

• Guiseppe Mazzini & others write about Italian nationalism & greatness of Roman Empire

• Citizens of Milan revolted in March

• Revolution spreads

March – May 1848

• Giuseppe Mazzini

• Giuseppe Garibaldi

• Revolutions = Venetian & Roman republics

• Austrians marched through Piedmont & conquered most of Italy by May 1849

1000 people killed by Austrians, who regained power throughout the peninsula

REVOLUTIONS, CONT.

Poland

Causes Length of Time

Protagonists

Events Results

Prussians armed Polish prisoners & encouraged them to lead a revolution against Russia

March-June 1848

• Jerry Zdrada

• Frederick William IV

• Natalis Sulerzyski

• Sereryn Elzanowski

• Prussians arm Poles to weaken Russians

• Poles & Prussians ended up in armed conflict Prussian victory

• Poles learn they can’t bargain with Germanic states

• Focused on economic growth rather than political

RUSSIA FROM NAPOLEONIC WARS TO WWI (1815-1914)

• Alexander I• Extends the reforms of Catherine the Great• Modernized government function & offered greater freedom to Jews

• Held back by Napoleon’s invasion from 1812-1820• Ordered statewide censorship & adherence of all subjects to the Russian

Orthodox Church

• Constantine vs. Nicholas • Decemberist Revolt• Army officers supported Constantine, but were crushed by Nicholas

• Nicholas• Continued Alexander’s autocratic policies• Created the “Third Section”: secret police who prevented the spread of Western or

revolutionary ideas• “Orthodoxy, Autocracy, Nationality”• Russian intellectual response:• Slavophiles: upheld Slavic/Russian culture & wanted an agrarian society (the mir)• Westernizers: “extend the genius of Russian culture” by industrializing &

establishing constitutional government

• Alexander II• Emancipation Proclamation of 1861: ended serfdom• Murdered by the Narodniks (radical Slavophiles)

RUSSIA, CONT.

• Industrialization• By the beginning of WWI, 25 of 140 million were urban• Trans-Siberian Railroad• Growing proletariat was largely employed in state-owned factories

that exploited and abused them

SAMPLE ESSAYS“Adam Smith’s enormous authority resides, in the end, in the same property that

we discover in Marx: not in ideology, but in an effort to see the bottom of things. In both cases their greatness rests on an unflinching confrontation with

the human condition as they could best make out.”

Assess the above quote. What ideas did both men draw upon in order to formulate their ideas? What were their conclusions & why were they so different?

“Attempts at reform & modernization in 19th-century Russia were inevitably diluted by the habit of reaction.”

Assess the validity of this statement by offering factual evidence.

“Austria’s suppression of Slavic autonomy wihtin the empire created more dissolution than unity.” Defend or refute this statement.

Evaluate the achievements of Napoleon III.

Compare & contrast the growth and suppression of democracy in 19th-centuray Europe.

SAMPLE MULTIPLE-CHOICE

1) The period from the fall of Napoleon in 1815 to the Revolutions of 1848 is often referred to as the Age of Metternich for all the following reasons EXCEPT:

A) The reactionary policies of Prince Metternich of Austria dominated continental politics

B) Republicanism was suppressed & nationalistic urges of most ethnic groups were denied

C) Support of the Old Order was widespread among the political elite

D) The industrial middle class was increasingly denied representation in government

E) The liberal ideas of the French Revolution were suppressed

1) The period from the fall of Napoleon in 1815 to the Revolutions of 1848 is often referred to as the Age of Metternich for all the following reasons EXCEPT:

A) The reactionary policies of Prince Metternich of Austria dominated continental politics

B) Republicanism was suppressed & nationalistic urges of most ethnic groups were denied

C) Support of the Old Order was widespread among the political elite

D) The industrial middle class was increasingly denied representation in government

E) The liberal ideas of the French Revolution were suppressed

The wealth of the industrial middle class gave it leverage with the government

2) All of the following policies reflect the conservative nature of the British government from 1815-1825 EXCEPT:

A) The Corn Laws

B) The Peterloo Massacre

C) The “Rotten Borough system”

D) The Six Acts of 1819

E) The establishment of a modern police force

2) All of the following policies reflect the conservative nature of the British government from 1815-1825 EXCEPT:

A) The Corn Laws

B) The Peterloo Massacre

C) The “Rotten Borough system”

D) The Six Acts of 1819

E) The establishment of a modern police force

This was a reform since crime was on the rise in the rapidly expanded cities

3) Metternich and other diplomats were able to accomplish all of the following as a result of the Congress of Vienna (1814-1815) EXCEPT:

A) Switzerland was recognized as a neutral nation

B) Metternich gained status internationally as a minster of Europe

C) The balance of power between nations and alliances was restored

D) Italy was unified under Sardinian leadership

E) The Netherlands were reunited with Belgium politically

3) Metternich and other diplomats were able to accomplish all of the following as a result of the Congress of Vienna (1814-1815) EXCEPT:

A) Switzerland was recognized as a neutral nation

B) Metternich gained status internationally as a minster of Europe

C) The balance of power between nations and alliances was restored

D) Italy was unified under Sardinian leadership

E) The Netherlands were reunited with Belgium politically

Italy was not unified by the Congress of Vienna

4) Which would be the best description of the political situation in France from 1815 to the start of WWI?

A) A series of contrasting types of governments were established and removed

B) There was a gradual but continual move toward reform & greater representation for all classes

C) There was a disintegration of republicanism

D) Imperialism replaced Bourbon despotism

E) Ceaseless despotism was relieved by brief periods of revolution

4) Which would be the best description of the political situation in France from 1815 to the start of WWI?

A) A series of contrasting types of governments were established and removed

B) There was a gradual but continual move toward reform & greater representation for all classes

C) There was a disintegration of republicanism

D) Imperialism replaced Bourbon despotism

E) Ceaseless despotism was relieved by brief periods of revolution

Instability of individual governments & change of types of government prevailed

5) Elected by a landslide after the failed Revolution of 1848, he founded the Second French Empire:

A) Louis XVIII

B) Louis Philippe

C) Louis Napoleon

D) Louis Blanc

E) Louis Quatorze

5) Elected by a landslide after the failed Revolution of 1848, he founded the Second French Empire:

A) Louis XVIII

B) Louis Philippe

C) Louis Napoleon

D) Louis Blanc

E) Louis Quatorze

A nephew of the great & first Napoleon, he capitalized on his uncle’s fame to get elected and to establish and empire

6) The Revolutions of 1848

A) Overthrew the governments of France, Germany, & Russia

B) Erupted in England as well as on the continent

C) Marked the decline of political influence of the proletariat

D) Gave rise to Communism & realpolitik

E) Dissipated the nationalistic urges of the peoples of Eastern Europe

6) The Revolutions of 1848

A) Overthrew the governments of France, Germany, & Russia

B) Erupted in England as well as on the continent

C) Marked the decline of political influence of the proletariat

D) Gave rise to Communism & realpolitik

E) Dissipated the nationalistic urges of the peoples of Eastern Europe

The failure of the revolutions inspired new methods of getting power for the “have-nots”

7) The original goal of the Frankfurt Assembly (1848-1849) was to

A) Design and implement a constitutional government for a unified Germany

B) Consolidate Germany under Austrian Hapsburg leadership

C) Unify the northern states of Germany under Prussia

D) Create a united Germany for Germans only

E) Convince Prussia to unite Germany by force

7) The original goal of the Frankfurt Assembly (1848-1849) was to

A) Design and implement a constitutional government for a unified Germany

B) Consolidate Germany under Austrian Hapsburg leadership

C) Unify the northern states of Germany under Prussia

D) Create a united Germany for Germans only

E) Convince Prussia to unite Germany by force

The other issues came up during the conference and helped wreck the chances for a democratic Germany

8) Which is the best characterization of the status of reform in Russia from 1815-1914?

A) “Orthodoxy, Autocracy, Nationality” was the slogan of all

B) Repeated attempts to Westernize & reform resulted in reaction

C) Gradual democratization was effected by the “Westernized” intelligentsia

D) A purge of all Western influences was effected by the “Slavophiles”

E) There was a total suppression of all attempts to reform & modernize

8) Which is the best characterization of the status of reform in Russia from 1815-1914?

A) “Orthodoxy, Autocracy, Nationality” was the slogan of all

B) Repeated attempts to Westernize & reform resulted in reaction

C) Gradual democratization was effected by the “Westernized” intelligentsia

D) A purge of all Western influences was effected by the “Slavophiles”

E) There was a total suppression of all attempts to reform & modernize

For every step forward, a step back

9) All of the following represent a change in the democratic movement in Europe in the last three decades of the 19th century EXCEPT:

A) Liberals sought to limit government authority in social & economic affairs

B) Suffrage had expanded to include most of the male population

C) Liberals argued for government regulation of industry

D) Governments became increasingly involved in alleviating poverty

E) Industrial workers demanded a higher standard of living

9) All of the following represent a change in the democratic movement in Europe in the last three decades of the 19th century EXCEPT:

A) Liberals sought to limit government authority in social & economic affairs

B) Suffrage had expanded to include most of the male population

C) Liberals argued for government regulation of industry

D) Governments became increasingly involved in alleviating poverty

E) Industrial workers demanded a higher standard of living

This was the liberal program in the earlier part of the century. Abuses of industrialization changed it.

10) Between the end of the Second Empire in 1871 and the start of WWI, France

A) Had one stable government

B) Had developed a two-party system

C) Suffered a single-party dictatorship

D) Had dozens of separate and unstable governments

E) Was ruled by socialist radicals

10) Between the end of the Second Empire in 1871 and the start of WWI, France

A) Had one stable government

B) Had developed a two-party system

C) Suffered a single-party dictatorship

D) Had dozens of separate and unstable governments

E) Was ruled by socialist radicals

The coalition governments often fell at the hint of a major crisis

11) All of the following are features of the social welfare systems that had developed in France & England before WWI EXCEPT:

A) The right of workers to strike

B) Government insurance for job injuries

C) Old-age pensions

D) Compulsory school attendance

E) Universal suffrage

11) All of the following are features of the social welfare systems that had developed in France & England before WWI EXCEPT:

A) The right of workers to strike

B) Government insurance for job injuries

C) Old-age pensions

D) Compulsory school attendance

E) Universal suffrage

Women did not get the vote until after WWI in Britain, after WWI in France

12) “He is guilty! Damn that Jewish officer and his rabble-rousing novelist friend! Republicans and their spies will be the ruin of us. That cursed officer has become a symbol. Let him not blind us to the truth that we need a king. May he rot on Devil’s Island.”

To whom is the speaker referring?

A) Leon Gambetta

B) Marshal MacMahon

C) Alfred Dreyfus

D) Major Esterhazy

E) Georges Boulanger

12) “He is guilty! Damn that Jewish officer and his rabble-rousing novelist friend! Republicans and their spies will be the ruin of us. That cursed officer has become a symbol. Let him not blind us to the truth that we need a king. May he rot on Devil’s Island.”

To whom is the speaker referring?

A) Leon Gambetta

B) Marshal MacMahon

C) Alfred Dreyfus

D) Major Esterhazy

E) Georges Boulanger

The infamous Dreyfus Case pitted supporters of a republican government against the conservative classes. Strong evidence indicates that Major Esterhazy was the guilty party who passed military secrets to the Germans

13) The accused in the above passage was exonerated, party through the efforts of Emile Zola, the writer. The conflict involved an attempt by a rival political faction to embarrass the government with trumped-up charges of espionage. Which faction was responsible for the false imprisonment of the man referred to above?

A) Monarchists

B) Liberals

C) Republicans

D) Radical workers

E) Socialists

13) The accused in the above passage was exonerated, party through the efforts of Emile Zola, the writer. The conflict involved an attempt by a rival political faction to embarrass the government with trumped-up charges of espionage. Which faction was responsible for the false imprisonment of the man referred to above?

A) Monarchists

B) Liberals

C) Republicans

D) Radical workers

E) Socialists

Although a court-martial never found him innocent, the president of France pardoned him and public opinion turned against the monarchists & other conservative factions.

14) The man whose reestablishment of a French Empire brought in the mid-1800s temporary prosperity then ruinous defeat to the nation was

A) Cavour

B) Louis Napoleon

C) Louis Kossuth

D) Leon Gambetta

E) Georges Boulanger

14) The man whose reestablishment of a French Empire brought in the mid-1800s temporary prosperity then ruinous defeat to the nation was

A) Cavour

B) Louis Napoleon

C) Louis Kossuth

D) Leon Gambetta

E) Georges Boulanger

Cavour was the unifer of Italy; Gambetta and Boulager were French politicians; Louis Kossuth was the Hungarian nationalist hero

15) The uprisings of the Revolutions of 1848 occurred in most of Europe with the exception of

A) Russia and England because Russia was too backward and unindustrialized and England was too advanced politically, economically, and industrially

B) Russia and England because both were controlled by a merciless government – the tsar in Russia & Parliament in England

C) Russia & Austria because both were controlled by long-established monarchies and punished serfs harshly

D) Austria & Switzerland because Austria was controlled by a long established monarchy & punished serfs harshly, and Switzerland was too isolated

E) England and France because England had the most stable government & France had the least stable

15) The uprisings of the Revolutions of 1848 occurred in most of Europe with the exception of

A) Russia and England because Russia was too backward and unindustrialized and England was too advanced politically, economically, and industrially

B) Russia and England because both were controlled by a merciless government – the tsar in Russia & Parliament in England

C) Russia & Austria because both were controlled by long-established monarchies and punished serfs harshly

D) Austria & Switzerland because Austria was controlled by a long established monarchy & punished serfs harshly, and Switzerland was too isolated

E) England and France because England had the most stable government & France had the least stable

Russia & England were the only two major nations to escape revolution in 1848; England was the most advanced & Russia was the least