Nationalism in Europe – Key Vocabulary

52 vocabulary flashcards summarising the major terms and concepts on the rise of nationalism in Europe and its global impact.

Frédéric Sorrieu's Utopian Vision

A series of four prints (1848) by the French artist Frédéric Sorrieu imagining a world of ‘democratic and social Republics’; peoples of Europe and America parade past a statue of Liberty amid the ruins of absolutism, while Christ, saints and angels bless the fraternity of nations.

Utopian

Relating to an ideal society so perfect that it is unlikely ever to exist in reality.

Absolutist

A form of rule with no legal restraints on a monarch’s power; historically, a centralised, militarised and repressive monarchy.

Symbols of Liberty in Sorrieu's print

A female figure of Liberty holding the torch of Enlightenment and the Charter of the Rights of Man.

Nation-State

A state in which a majority of citizens share a common identity and history, forged through struggle, replacing multi-national dynastic empires.

German Flag in Sorrieu's print (1848)

Black–red–gold tricolour representing liberal hopes to unite German-speaking principalities under a democratic constitution.

Ernst Renan's Definition of Nation

A nation is a ‘large-scale solidarity’ built on a long past of endeavour and sacrifice; its existence is a ‘daily plebiscite’ and a guarantee of liberty.

First Clear Expression of Nationalism

The French Revolution of 1789, which transferred sovereignty from the monarchy to the citizens of France.

Measures to Create Collective Identity in France (French Revolution)

Adoption of ‘la patrie’ and ‘le citoyen’, a tricolour flag, National Assembly, new hymns/oaths, uniform laws, abolition of internal duties, metric system, and promotion of Parisian French.

Mission of the French Nation (Revolutionary Idea)

Revolutionaries claimed it was France’s destiny to liberate other European peoples from despotism, spreading nationalism through revolutionary wars.

Napoleonic Code (Civil Code of 1804)

Abolished birth privileges, established legal equality and property rights, simplified administration, ended feudalism and guilds, and standardised laws, measures and currency.

Mixed Reactions to French Rule in Conquered Areas

Initial welcome as ‘harbingers of liberty’ faded to hostility due to higher taxes, censorship and forced conscription.

Liberalism (Early 19th-Century Europe)

Ideology advocating individual freedom and legal equality; politically sought constitutional, representative government, and economically favoured free markets and removal of trade barriers.

Suffrage and Liberalism

Early liberalism limited voting to property-owning men; the Napoleonic Code curtailed suffrage further and treated women as legal minors.

Zollverein (1834)

Prussia-led customs union abolishing internal tariffs and reducing currencies from 30+ to two, boosting mobility and economic nationalism among German states.

Conservatism (After 1815)

Philosophy emphasising tradition, monarchy, Church and social hierarchies, favouring gradual change while modernising to strengthen existing institutions.

Treaty of Vienna (1815)

Settlement by Britain, Russia, Prussia and Austria after Napoleon’s defeat; restored old monarchies, reduced France’s borders and re-established a conservative order.

Nature of Conservative Regimes (After 1815)

Autocratic, intolerant of dissent; imposed censorship to suppress ideas of liberty and freedom linked to the French Revolution.

Revolutionary (Post-1815)

Anyone committed to overthrowing conservative monarchies and establishing liberty, often through nation-state creation.

Giuseppe Mazzini

Italian revolutionary (1805-72); ex-Carbonari, founder of Young Italy and Young Europe, preaching a unified Italian Republic; dubbed ‘the most dangerous enemy’ by Metternich.

July Revolution (France, 1830)

Liberal uprising that overthrew the restored Bourbon king and installed constitutional monarch Louis Philippe; inspired Belgium to break from the Netherlands.

Greek War of Independence (1821)

Nationalist revolt against Ottoman rule, backed by European philhellenes; Greece recognised as independent by the Treaty of Constantinople (1832).

Romanticism's Role in Nationalism

Cultural movement emphasising emotion and folk traditions to foster a shared heritage and national feeling.

Johann Gottfried Herder and "das volk"

German thinker (1744-1803) who argued true culture resides in common people’s folk songs, poetry and dances (volksgeist).

Grimm Brothers and Nation-building

Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm collected German folktales (1812) and compiled a 33-volume dictionary, strengthening German identity and resisting French influence.

Language as a Weapon of National Resistance (Poland)

After 1831 Russian repression, Polish clergy used Polish in church services; language became a key symbol of anti-Russian struggle.

Economic Hardship in Europe (1830s)

Population boom, rural-to-urban migration, competition from British goods, lingering feudal dues and bad harvests drove widespread poverty.

Paris Revolt (1848)

Food shortages and unemployment led Parisians to barricade streets, forcing Louis Philippe to flee; a republic granted universal male suffrage and set up national workshops.

Silesian Weavers' Revolt (1845)

Weavers protested falling payments, destroyed a contractor’s mansion; army fired, killing eleven protesters.

Revolution of the Liberals (1848)

Middle-class uprisings across Europe demanding constitutions, press freedom, association rights and national unification.

Frankfurt Parliament (1848)

All-German assembly that drafted a constitutional monarchy; Prussian king refused the crown, and the parliament collapsed.

Women's Role and Rights in Liberal Movements

Women organised associations, newspapers and protests but were denied voting rights, even as observers in bodies like the Frankfurt Parliament.

Carl Welcker's View on Women's Rights

Liberal politician who claimed nature assigned public roles to men and domestic roles to women; opposed gender equality.

Louise Otto-Peters' View on Women's Rights

Feminist journalist insisting ‘Liberty is indivisible’; urged male liberals to extend freedom to women.

Changes by Autocratic Monarchies After 1848

To prevent unrest, rulers abolished serfdom in Habsburg lands and Russia, and granted greater Hungarian autonomy (1867).

Nationalism After 1848

Shifted from liberal-democratic ideals to a narrow, intolerant creed often used by conservatives for state power and militarism.

German Unification Process

Led by Prussia and Otto von Bismarck; three wars (Denmark, Austria, France) ended in victory and proclamation of Kaiser William I in 1871 at Versailles.

Italy's Situation Before Unification

Fragmented into seven states; north under Austria, centre under the Pope, south under Bourbon Spain; Sardinia-Piedmont alone ruled by an Italian dynasty.

Key Figures in Italian Unification

Mazzini (ideologue), Victor Emmanuel II (monarch), Cavour (diplomat/strategist) and Garibaldi (Red-Shirt guerrilla leader).

Italian Peasantry's Awareness of Unification

High illiteracy left many peasants unaware of nationalist ideas; some thought ‘La Talia’ was the king’s wife.

Formation of the British Nation-State

Evolved gradually; the 1707 Act of Union merged England and Scotland into the UK of Great Britain, extending English dominance.

Suppression of Scottish Culture

Highlanders were barred from wearing tartan or speaking Gaelic, and many were driven from their lands to promote a British identity.

Incorporation of Ireland (1801)

After crushing Catholic revolts, Britain forced Ireland into the UK, ensuring Protestant dominance backed by the British army.

Symbols of the New British Nation

British flag (Union Jack), anthem (‘God Save Our Noble King’) and the spread of English language represented the new national identity.

Personification of a Nation

Artistic device depicting a nation as a female figure, giving concrete form to an abstract concept.

Marianne (France)

Female allegory of France, wearing a red cap, tricolour and cockade; statues and images promoted republican unity.

Germania (Germany)

Female allegory of Germany, crowned with oak leaves symbolising heroism.

Allegory

Representation of an abstract idea through a person or object; carries both literal and symbolic meanings.

Symbolic Meanings in Art (Germania's attributes)

Broken chains: freedom; eagle breastplate: imperial strength; oak crown: heroism; sword & olive branch: readiness for war and peace; black-red-gold tricolour: 1848 liberal flag; rising sun: new era.

Nationalism and Imperialism (Late 19th Century)

Nationalism became narrow and aggressive, with major powers using nationalist aspirations of others to further imperial control.

The Balkans and Nationalist Tension

Ethnically diverse region of the Ottoman Empire where rival nationalisms and Great-Power ambitions ignited conflicts leading to WWI.

Global Spread of the Nation-State Idea

Anti-imperial movements worldwide adopted the concept of organising society into independent nation-states, adapting European ideas to local conditions.