SS HIST-Nationalism in Europe

 Nationalism in Europe

Notes

6/4/21

H.w. prepare notes and learn

The Habsburg Empire that ruled over Austria-Hungary was a patchwork of many different regions and peoples- Discuss

1.       Austria-Hungary included the Alpine regions, Tyrol, Austria, Sudetenland and Bohemia where the aristocracy was predominantly German-speaking.

2.      Austria-Hungary alsoincluded the Italian-speaking provinces of Lombardy and Venetia.

3.      In Hungary, half of the population spoke Magyar while the otherhalf spoke avariety of dialects.

4.      In Galicia, the aristocracy spokePolish.

5.      Besides these three dominant groups, there also lived withinthe boundaries of the empire, a mass of subject peasant peoples –Bohemians and Slovaks to the north, Slovenes in Carniola, Croatsto the south, and Roumans to the east in Transylvania.

How did nationalism and the idea of the nation-state emerge in Europe?

a)    Growth of New Middle Class

1.      In Western and parts of Central Europe the growth of industrialproduction and trade led to the growth of towns and cities.

2.      This led to the emergenceof commercial classes and new social groups such as middle class. (middle classes made up of industrialists, businessmen, professionals)

3.      In Central and Eastern Europe these groups were smaller in numbertill late nineteenth century. It was among the educated, liberal middleclasses that ideas of national unity following the abolition ofaristocratic privileges gained popularity.

b)    Liberal Nationalism

1.       The term ‘liberalism’ derivesfrom the Latin root liber, meaning free. For the new middle classesliberalism stood for freedom for the individual and equality of allbefore the law.

2.      Politically, liberalism emphasisedthe end of autocracy and clerical privileges, a constitution andrepresentative government through parliament.

3.    In the economic sphere, liberalism stood for the freedom of marketsand the abolition of state-imposed restrictions on the movementof goods and capital.

c)    New Conservatism

1.      Conservatism – A political philosophy that stressed the importance of tradition, like themonarchy, the Church, social hierarchies, property and the family – should be preserved

2.      Following the defeat of Napoleon in 1815, European governmentswere driven by a spirit of conservatism. Most conservatives did not proposea return to the society of pre-revolutionary days. Rather, they realized that from the changes initiated by Napoleon (Modernization) we can strengthen traditional institutions like the monarchy.

3.      Modernizationcouldmake state power more effective and strong. A modern army, anefficient bureaucracy, a dynamic economy, the abolition of feudalismand serfdom could strengthen the autocratic monarchies of Europe. This is called new Conservatism.

d)    Changes introduced in Vienna Congress

1.      In 1815, representatives of the European powers – Britain, Russia,Prussia and Austria – who had collectively defeated Napoleon, metat Vienna to draw up a settlement for Europe. The Congress washosted by the Austrian Chancellor Duke Metternich.

2.      The delegatesdrew up the Treaty of Vienna of 1815 with the object of undoingmost of the changes that had come about in Europe during theNapoleonic wars.

3.      The Bourbon dynasty, which had been deposedduring the French Revolution, was restored to power, and Francelost the territories it had annexed under Napoleon.

4.      A series of stateswere set up on the boundaries of France to prevent French expansionin future. Thus the kingdom of the Netherlands, which includedBelgium, was set up in the north and Genoa was added to Piedmontin the south. Prussia was given important new territories on its westernfrontiers, while Austria was given control of northern Italy.

5.      But theGerman confederation of 39 states that had been set up by Napoleonwas left untouched. In the east, Russia was given part of Polandwhile Prussia was given a portion of Saxony.

e)     The Revolutionaries

1.      After 1815, the fear of repression drove manyliberal-nationalists underground. Secret societies sprang up in manyEuropean states to train revolutionaries and spread their ideas.

2.      Tobe a revolutionary one has to have a commitment to oppose monarchical forms, fight for liberty and freedom. Most of theserevolutionaries also saw the creation of nation-states as a necessarypart of this struggle for freedom.

3.      Italian revolutionary Giuseppe Mazzini was born in Genoa in 1807and became a member of the secret societyof the Carbonari. As a young man of 24, he was sent into exile in1831 for attempting a revolution in Liguria.

4.      He subsequently foundedtwo more underground societies, first, Young Italy inMarseilles,and Young Europe in Berne, whose members were like-mindedyoung men from Poland, France, Italy and the German states.

5.      Mazzini believed that Italy had to be forged into a single unifiedrepublic and this unification alonecould be the basis of Italian liberty. Metternichdescribed him as ‘the most dangerous enemy of our social order’.

Period from1830-1848 was described as the Age of Revolutions

1.      The first upheaval took place in France in July 1830. The Bourbonkings, who had been restored to power during the conservativereaction after 1815, were now overthrown by liberal revolutionarieswho installed a constitutional monarchy with Louis Philippe at itshead.

2.      The July Revolution of France sparked an uprising inBrussels which led toBelgium breaking away from the UnitedKingdom of the Netherlands.

3.      Greece hadbeen part of the Ottoman Empire since the fifteenth century. Thegrowth of revolutionary nationalism in Europe sparked off a strugglefor independence in 1821.Nationalists in Greece got support from other Greeks living in exileand also from many West Europeans. Finally, the Treaty of Constantinople of 1832recognized Greece as an independent nation.

4.      In 1848 food shortages and widespreadunemployment brought the population of Paris out on the roads.Louis Philippe was forced to flee. ANational Assembly proclaimed a Republic, granted suffrage to alladult males above 21, and guaranteed the right to work. France became a republic.

5.       Earlier, in 1845, weavers in Silesia had led a revolt against contractorswho supplied them raw material and gave them orders for finishedtextiles but drastically reduced their payments.

The Romantic Imagination and National Feeling( Role of culture for the growth of Nationalism in Europe)

1.      Romanticism, a cultural movement in which culture played an important role increating the idea of the nation. Such as art, poetry, stories and musichelped express and shape nationalist feelings.

2.      Romantics such as the German philosopher Johann GottfriedHerder claimed that true German culture was to bediscovered among the common people throughfolk songs, folk poetry and folk dances that the true spirit of thenation was popularized. So collecting and recording theseforms of folk culture was essential to the project of nation-building.

3.      Romantics of Polandemphasized on vernacular language and the collection of localfolklore to recover an ancient national spirit. National feelings were keptalive through music and language in Poland.

4.      Karol Kurpinskicelebrated the national struggle through his operas and music, turningfolk dances like the polonaise and mazurka into nationalist symbols.Language too played an important role in developing nationalistsentiments.

5.      After Russian occupation, the Polish language was forcedout of schools and the Russian language was imposed everywhere.In 1831, an armed rebellion against Russian rule took place. Following this, Polish was used for Church gatherings and all religious instruction.The use of Polish came to be seen as asymbol of the struggle against Russian dominance.

Silesian Revolt (The journalist Wilhelm Wolff described the events in a Silesian village as follows)

1.      In Silesian village cotton weaving is the most widespread occupation. The misery of the workers isextreme. The contractors reduced the prices of the goods they order.

2.      On 4 June 1845 a large crowd of weavers emerged fromtheir homes and marched in pairs up to the mansion of theircontractor demanding higher wages. They were treated withscorn and threats alternately.

3.      Following this, a group of themforced their way into the house, smashed its elegant windowpanes,furniture, porcelain … another group broke into thestorehouse and plundered it of supplies of cloth which they tore to shreds.

4.       The contractor fled with his family to aneighbouring village which, however, refused to shelter such aperson.

5.      He returned 24 hours later having requisitioned the army.In the exchange that followed, eleven weavers were shot dead.

1848 was described as the Revolution of the Liberals

1.      In 1848 food shortages and widespreadunemployment brought the population of Paris out on the roads.Louis Philippe was forced to flee. ANational Assembly proclaimed a Republic, granted suffrage to alladult males above 21, and guaranteed the right to work. France became a republic.

2.      In Germany, Italy, Poland, the Austro-HungarianEmpire – men and women of the liberal middle classes combinedtheir demands for the creation of a nation-state on parliamentaryprinciples – a constitution, freedom of the press and freedomof association.

3.      On 18 May 1848,831 elected representatives of German Confederation marched in a festive procession to taketheir places in the Frankfurt parliament convened in the Church ofSt Paul. They drafted a constitution for a German nation to beheaded by a monarchy subject to a parliament.

4.      When the deputiesoffered the crown on these terms to Friedrich Wilhelm IV, King ofPrussia, he rejected it and joined other monarchs to oppose theelected assembly.

5.      Women had formed theirown political associations, founded newspapers and taken part inpolitical meetings and demonstrations. After 1848, the autocraticmonarchies of Central and Eastern Europe began to introduce some changes like abolition of serfdom, bonded labouretc.