The Rise of Nationalism in Europe – Lecture Review

These flashcards cover key figures, events, concepts and definitions from the lecture on ‘The Rise of Nationalism in Europe’, aiding practice for exam preparation.

Who created the 1848 print series visualising a world of ‘democratic and social Republics’?

Frédéric Sorrieu, a French artist.

In Sorrieu’s first print, which symbols identify the allegory of Liberty?

The torch of Enlightenment and the Charter of the Rights of Man held by a female figure.

What shattered objects appear in the foreground of Sorrieu’s utopian print, and what do they represent?

Broken symbols of absolutist institutions, representing the fall of oppressive monarchies.

Define the term ‘Absolutist’ in a historical context.

A centralised, militarised and repressive monarchical government with no restraints on its power.

According to Ernst Renan, what binds people into a nation?

A heroic shared past, common glories, collective will in the present, and daily consent of its citizens.

What political change marked the French Revolution’s idea of the nation in 1789?

Sovereignty shifted from the monarch to the body of French citizens.

Name two measures French revolutionaries used to create collective identity.

Adoption of the tricolour flag and formation of a centralised administrative system with uniform laws.

What was the Napoleonic Code of 1804 best known for?

Abolishing birth privileges, establishing equality before the law, and securing property rights.

How did many Europeans initially react to French armies, and why did attitudes change?

They welcomed them as liberators, but hostility grew due to taxation, censorship and conscription.

Which empire exemplified Europe’s ethnic diversity before nation-states, housing Germans, Magyars, Italians and more?

The Habsburg (Austrian) Empire.

Who dominated continental society socially and politically before industrialisation?

A small landed aristocracy owning vast estates and speaking French in high society.

What did ‘liberalism’ mean to the 19th-century middle classes?

Individual freedom, equality before the law, representative government, and free markets.

What economic body did Prussia form in 1834 to promote free trade among German states?

The Zollverein customs union.

State the main goal of the Congress of Vienna (1815).

To restore pre-Napoleonic monarchies and create a conservative balance of power in Europe.

Who hosted the Vienna Congress and became synonymous with conservatism?

Austrian Chancellor Duke Metternich.

What did conservative regimes commonly impose to stifle liberal ideas after 1815?

Strict censorship of newspapers, books, plays and songs.

Name the Italian revolutionary who founded ‘Young Italy’ and ‘Young Europe’.

Giuseppe Mazzini.

Which 1830 event overthrew the Bourbon king and installed Louis Philippe?

The July Revolution in France.

What treaty recognised Greece as an independent nation in 1832?

The Treaty of Constantinople.

How did Romanticism promote nationalism?

By emphasising emotion, folk culture, and a shared cultural past to forge national unity.

Which brothers collected German folktales to foster national identity?

Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm.

Why did Polish clergy promote the Polish language after 1831?

As an act of resistance against Russian efforts to impose the Russian language.

What economic hardships sparked the Silesian weavers’ revolt of 1845?

Falling wages and exploitation by contractors amid competition from British machine-made textiles.

What major democratic assembly met in 1848 to draft a German constitution?

The Frankfurt Parliament in the Church of St Paul.

Why did King Friedrich Wilhelm IV refuse the Frankfurt Parliament’s crown?

He rejected a crown offered by a popularly elected assembly, fearing loss of monarchical authority.

How were women treated in the 1848 liberal movements in Germany?

They formed associations and attended meetings but were denied suffrage and sat only as observers.

Who engineered German unification through ‘blood and iron’ between 1864 and 1871?

Otto von Bismarck, the Prussian chief minister.

Where and when was the German Empire proclaimed?

Hall of Mirrors, Versailles, on 18 January 1871.

Which Italian state led political unification under King Victor Emmanuel II?

Sardinia-Piedmont.

Identify the Italian leader of the ‘Red Shirts’ who conquered southern Italy in 1860.

Giuseppe Garibaldi.

Which 1866 and 1870 events completed Italian unity?

Annexation of Venetia (1866) and Rome/Papal States (1870).

What 1707 act created the ‘United Kingdom of Great Britain’?

The Act of Union between England and Scotland.

How did Britain impose a common national identity on Scotland and Ireland?

Through political domination, suppression of Gaelic language/culture, and promotion of English symbols.

What is an allegory in art, and which female figures symbolised France and Germany?

A personification of an abstract idea; Marianne for France and Germania for Germany.

What does Germania’s crown of oak leaves represent?

Heroism, as the German oak symbolises strength and courage.

Define ‘Conservatism’ in the 19th-century European context.

A philosophy favouring tradition, monarchy, and gradual change to maintain social order.

Define ‘Plebiscite’.

A direct vote by the people on a specific proposal, often about sovereignty.

Define ‘Suffrage’.

The right to vote in political elections.

What region became the ‘powder keg’ of Europe due to nationalist tensions after 1871?

The Balkans, home to many Slavic peoples under Ottoman decline and great-power rivalry.

How did nationalism align with imperialism by the late 19th century?

Nationalist rivalries drove European powers to compete for colonies, resources and military dominance.

Why did anti-imperial movements in colonised countries adopt nationalism?

To unite diverse groups against foreign rule and establish independent nation-states.