Chs. 20–21 : Age of Ideologies & Nation-Building (1815–1871)

37 vocabulary flashcards covering the key ideologies, events, and figures from Chapters 20–21 on European revolutions and nation-building (1815–1871).

Congress of Vienna

1814–1815 meeting of European powers that restored monarchies and sought to suppress future revolutions.

Conservatism

Ideology favoring tradition, monarchy, church authority, and resistance to rapid political change.

Holy Alliance

Coalition of Russia, Austria, and Prussia created in 1815 to uphold Christian monarchy and quash liberal movements.

Concert of Europe

Diplomatic system in which major powers cooperated to maintain the post-Napoleonic balance of power.

Censorship

Government suppression of speech and press used to silence dissent during the post-Napoleonic era.

Liberalism

Belief in individual rights, free markets, constitutional government, and limited state power.

Nationalism

Doctrine that people sharing language and culture deserve independent, self-governing states.

July Revolution (1830)

French uprising that deposed Charles X and established a constitutional monarchy under Louis-Philippe.

Belgian Independence

1830 secession from the Netherlands, justified on the basis of distinct national identity.

Political Refugee

Individual who flees a country due to political unrest, persecution, or revolution.

Abolitionist Movement

Campaign to end slavery; succeeded in Britain in 1833 and spurred global debate.

Haitian Revolution

1791–1804 slave revolt that created the first Black republic and intensified discussions on slavery.

Socialism

19th-century critique of capitalism advocating communal or state ownership of production (Saint-Simon, Owen, Fourier).

Communism

Marx and Engels’ vision of a classless society achieved through proletarian revolution.

Class Struggle

Marxist concept describing historical conflict between exploiting and exploited social classes.

Anarchism

Radical ideology calling for abolition of the state and all hierarchical authority.

Early Feminism

Movement demanding women’s access to education, legal rights, and political participation.

Romanticism

Cultural movement emphasizing emotion, nature, individuality, and national folklore.

Revolutions of 1848

Europe-wide uprisings fueled by food shortages, unemployment, and political repression; largely unsuccessful but influential.

Second Republic (France)

Government formed after the 1848 revolution; later led by Louis-Napoleon.

Louis-Napoleon (Napoleon III)

Elected president of the Second Republic who became emperor and embodied authoritarian nationalism.

Unification of Italy

Process (completed 1870) that merged Italian states under Piedmont-Sardinian monarchy.

Count Camillo di Cavour

Prime minister who engineered northern Italian unification through diplomacy and war.

Giuseppe Garibaldi

Nationalist leader whose Redshirts conquered southern Italy, facilitating national unity.

Unification of Germany

Consolidation of German states under Prussian leadership, proclaimed in 1871.

Otto von Bismarck

Prussian chancellor who employed Realpolitik, warfare, and diplomacy to unite Germany.

Franco-Prussian War

1870–1871 conflict that completed German unification and toppled France’s Second Empire.

Militarism

Policy of glorifying military power and maintaining large standing armies.

Emancipation of the Serfs (1861)

Reform by Tsar Alexander II freeing Russian peasants from bondage.

Alexander II

Russian tsar (r. 1855–1881) who initiated modernization, notably by freeing the serfs.

U.S. Civil War

1861–1865 conflict that preserved the Union and abolished slavery.

Reconstruction

Post-Civil War effort to reintegrate Southern states and extend civil rights to freed slaves.

Eastern Question

Diplomatic issue concerning the decline of the Ottoman Empire and rivalries among European powers.

Ottoman Empire (“Sick Man of Europe”)

Weakening multi-ethnic empire whose decline destabilized 19th-century international relations.

Crimean War

1853–1856 conflict revealing Ottoman weakness and European power rivalries.

Pan-Slavism

Movement promoting unity of Slavic peoples; intensified Balkan nationalism.

Nation-State

Political entity whose territorial boundaries coincide with a shared national identity.