rise of nationalism in europe

frederic sorrieu’s painting (1848)

it visualised his dream world made of democratic and social republics

it showcases people of various nations marching towards a statue of liberty

usa and switzerland, which had already become nation-states by then, had already passed the statue

france had just reached the statue with germany behind it

the scattered remains around them symbolise the monarch

god and his angels are watching from above

modern-state

a centralised power exercises sovereign control over a clearly defined territory

nation-state

citizens and rulers share a common identity, history and descent. this commonness was forged through past struggles

ernst renan’s view on a nation

renan believed that a nation is a culmination of a long past of common endeavours, sacrifices and struggles

he says that the existence of a nation is a daily plebiscite (a vote where all people of a region are asked to reject or accept)

measures and practices the french revolutionaries brought into france that sparked nationalist feelings

the ideas of la patrie & la citoyen emphasised the idea of a united community enjoying equal rights under the constitution

a new tricolor flag replacing the former royal standard

french, as spoken in paris, made the common language of the nation

internal custom duties and dues abolished, and a uniform system of weights and measures adopted

hymns composed & oaths taken to commemorate the nation

how the ideas of french revolution spread to the rest of europe

when the news of events in france reached the rest of europe, the members of educated middle class began setting up jacobin clubs

the activities of these jacobin clubs allowed the french armies to move into holland, belgium, switzerland and italy in 1790s

this led to an outbreak of the revolutionary wars, and the french armies began to spread the idea of nationalism abroad

napoleonic code (1804)

after getting in control of various territories, napoleon set up many reforms that he had already introduced in france. through a return to monarchy napoleon had destroyed democracy in france, but his revolutionary principles made the whole system rational and efficient. this was the civil code of 1804

it did away with all privileges based on birth, established equality before law and secured the right to property

in dutch republic, switzerland, italy and germany, administrative divisions were simplified

feudal system was abolished and peasants were freed from serfdom and manorial dues

in towns, guild restrictions were removed

transport and communication systems were improved

uniform weights and measures

reactions of french territories to the french rule

the reactions of local population to the french rule were mixed

initially, holland & switzerland, as well as brussels, milan and warsaw, the french armies were welcomed as harbingers of liberty

but soon they became hostile as they realised that the new administrative arrangements did not help with political freedom. there was increased taxation, censorship and forced enlistment into the army

habsburg empire

the habsburg empire, that ruled austria-hungary (pre-nationalism), was a patchwork of many different regions

it included the alpine region, where the aristocracy was german speaking. it also included the lombardy and venetia provinces which were italian speaking

in hungary, half the population spoke magyar while the other half spoke other dialects

in galicia, the aristocracy spoke polish

besides these 3, there were various peasant peoples who lived within the boundaries of the empire

different social classes in europe before nationalism

the aristocracy was the dominant class on the continent. the members of this class were united by a common way of life. they owned estates and townhouses in the countryside. they spoke french for purposes of diplomacy. their families were often connected by marriages

the majority of the population was made up of peasants who farmed in lands to the west

after industrialisation, new social groups called the working-class population, and the middle class (made of businessmen and professionals) rose

liberal nationalism/ liberalism

the educated, liberal middle class spread the ideas of national unity, or liberalism, following the abolition of aristocratic privileges

for the new middle class, liberalism stood for freedom of the individual and equality of all before law

politically, it emphasised the concept of government by consent. it stood for the end of autocracy, a constitution and representative government through parliament

socially, it stood for universal suffrage. in revolutionary france, the right to vote and get elected was granted to only property-owning men. although under the jacobins all men enjoyed the right to vote, the napoleonic code went back to limited suffrage

economically, liberalism stood for freedom of markets and abolition of state-imposed restrictions on movement of goods.

zollverein

a customs union formed in 1834 at the initiative of prussia and joined by most german states, which abolished tariff barriers are reduced the number of currencies from over 30 to 2. they also created a network of railways, stimulating mobility and harnessing economic interests to national unification

conservatism

following the defeat of napoleon in 1815, the ideology of conservatism grew within the european government

they believed that the established, traditional institutions like the monarchy, church and hierarchies should be preserved

most conservatives, however, did not suggest a return to a pre-revolutionary society. instead, they thought that napoleon’s changes could strengthen the traditional institutions

treaty of vienna

in 1815, representatives of britain, russia, prussia and austria, who had collectively defeated napoleon, met at vienna to draw up a settlement for europe

it was hosted by the austrian chancellor duke metternich

the delegates drew up the treaty with the aim to undo most of the changes that had come about in europe during the napoleonic wars

the bourbon dynasty of france was restored to power and france lost the territories it had annexed under napoleon

a series of states were set up around france to prevent future french expansion

austria was given northern italy, russia was given part of poland, and prussia was given a part of saxony

the main intention of the treaty was to restore the monarchies and create a new conservative order in europe

conservative regions after 1815

the conservative regimes set up in 1815 were autocratic

they did not tolerate criticism and curbed activities that questioned the legitimacy of autocratic governments

they imposed censorship laws to control what was said in newspapers, books and songs

giuseppe mazzini

during the years after 1815, liberal-nationalists went underground due to fear of repression. they made secret societies to spread the idea of opposing monarchial forms

giueseppe mazzini, an italian revolutionary, joined a secret society called carbonari. at 24, he was sent to exile for attempting a revolution. soon, he founded young italy in marseilles and young europe in berne which had like-minded members

mazzini believed that god had intended nations to be the natural units of mankind, so italy had to be forged into a unified republic

mazzinis relentless opposition to monarchy frightened the conservatives. metternich called him ‘the most dangerous enemy of our social order’

july revolution

in july 1830, the bourbon kinds who had been restored to power during conservatism, were overthrown by liberal revolutionaries who installed a constitutional monarchy with louis philippe at its head

this revolution sparked an uprising in brussels which led to belgium breaking away from the netherlands

the greek war of independence

the greek war of independence was an event that mobilised nationalist feelings across europe

greece was a part of the ottoman empire since the 15th century. the growth of revolutionary nationalism in europe sparked a struggle of independence amongst the greeks which began in 1821

nationalists in greece got support from greeks in exile and west europeans who had sympathies for ancient greek culture

poets and artists mobilised public opinion to support its struggle against a muslim empire

the english poet lord byron organised funds and went in the war

finally, the treaty of constantinople 1832 recognised greece as an independent nation

romanticism

it was a cultural movement which sought to develop a nationalist sentiment. romantic artists and poets criticised the glorification of reason and science, and instead focused on emotions and feeling. their effort was to create a sense of collective belonging

german philosopher johann gottfried claimed that the true german culture was to be discovered among the common people, das volk. through collection of folklore, the spirit of the nation would be popularised

romanticism in poland

poland supported nationalist feelings through music and language

karol kurpinski celebrated national struggle through operas and music

after russian occupation on poland, polish language was forced out of schools and replaced by russian. the clergies in poland used polish language for religious instruction and used it as a weapon against russian dominance

hunger, hardship and revolt in the 1830s

the 1830s were years of great economic hardship in europe

the first half of 19th century saw an enormous increase in population all over europe. people from rural areas migrated to cities to live in overcrowded slums

the conditions of workers in towns were extreme. in 1845, the weavers of silesia village led a revolt against contractors, because they had reduced their payments. however, they lost and got threatened by the army

in 1848, paris revolted due to shortage of food and unemployment. barricades were erected and louis philippe was forced to flee. as a result, a national assembly was formed and all men above age of 21 were given the right to vote. national workshops were set up to provide employment

may revolution

in may 1848, elected representatives assembled in the church of st. paul to draft the german constitution. according to this constitution, the nation was to be headed by a monarchy which was under parliamentary control

the king of prussia, friedrich wilhem IV, rejected these terms and joined other monarchs to oppose the assembly

the parliament was dominated by middle class, who resisted the demands of workers and eventually lost their support. thus, the troops were called in and they had to disband

issue of political rights to women

giving political rights to women was a dispute within the liberal movement. a number of women had actively participated over the years

they set up their own political groups, founded newspapers and took part in meetings

unification of germany

after 1848, national sentiments were promoted by conservatives for capturing state power and political dominance over europe (they used nationalism in their favour)

the middle class tried to unite the different regions into the german nation-state by an elected parliament. prussia took on the leadership of this movement for this national unification

prussia’s CM otto von bismarck led this unification with the help of prussian army

= three wars with austria, denmark and france ended with prussian victory and completed the process of unification

= in 1871, an assembly comprising the princes of the german states, reps of the army and important ministers declred kaiser william I the new german emperor

unification of italy

in the middle of 19th century, italy was divided into 7 states, out of which only one state, sardinia-piedmont was ruled by an italian. the north was ruled by austrian habsburg, the center was ruled by the pope and south was ruled by the bourban king of spain

in 1860, the army under garibaldi marched into south italy, the kingdom of the two sicilies. they won the support of the local peasants and drove off the spanish rulers

in 1861, victor emmanuel II was declared king of united italy, and was joined by several other states

by march 1860, the entire central italy was unified

the unification process of italy was completed when rome joined in 1871

giuseppe garibaldi

he was a prominent personality in the unification of italy

in 1833, he met mazzini and joined the young italy

he participated in an uprising in piedmont. he supported victor emmanuel 2’s effects to unify italy

he led the march into south italy to free it from the chains of the spanish bourbon rulers

unification of britain

the unification of britain was a slow and gradual process. it occurred because the english nation grew in wealth and was able to extend its influence on the other nations of the island (scotland, wales, ireland). england had already become free from the monarch in 1688

scotland: the act of union 1707 between england and scotland resulted in the formation of the united kingdom of great britain. by this act, scotland became a part of england

ireland: it was a country divided into catholics and protestants. the english supported the protestants to dominate the majority catholic country. in 1798, after a revolt led by wolfe tone and his irishmen against british, ireland was forcibly included the united kingdom of britain in 1801

these countries faced severe suppression. the scottish highlanders were not allowed to speak gaelic or wear their national dress.

allegory

in the 18th and 19th centuries, artists portrayed the nation as female figures. they personified the nation and did not stand for any particular woman in real life. this figure was called an allegory of the nation

france; marianne (red cap, tricolor and cockade)

german; germania (crown of oak leaves; heroism)

imperialism

by the last quarter of the 19th century, nationalism lost its idealistic liberal democratic sentiment

nationalist groups began to have conflict and were ready to start war

the balkans was a region of geographical and ethnic differences, whose inhabitants were known as slavs

a large part of the balkans was under the ottoman empire. the different groups of balkans were in constant conflict. during this time, many powerful european nations competed to gain control over the balkans. this led to a series of wars and finally the first world war

nationalism, aligned with imperialism, led europe to disaster in 1914