age of metternich: austria

AP Euro: The Age of Metternich & Nationalist Revolts (Detailed Notes)

I. The Age of Metternich & The Congress of Vienna

  • Background

    • Post-Napoleonic era: European powers sought stability and order

    • Congress of Vienna (1815): Established the balance of power & aimed to suppress revolutionary movements

    • Rise of “isms”: Nationalism, Liberalism, Conservatism, Socialism, etc.

    • France’s political shifts

      • 1830: Liberalism struggles but gains some ground

      • 1848: Liberalism and nationalism become stronger forces

II. Austria Under Metternich: Conservative Stronghold

  • Clemens von Metternich (1773-1859)

    • Austrian foreign minister & architect of conservative European order

    • Feared nationalism & liberalism as threats to the Habsburg monarchy

    • Used the Concert of Europe to maintain conservative rule and suppress revolutions

  • Liberalism in Austria

    • Strongest among university students

    • Students saw the Habsburg system as outdated compared to Napoleonic France

    • Inspired by Napoleon’s nationalism-based unity

  • Nationalism in Austria

    • Napoleon’s invasions fostered a common Austrian identity

    • Young people frustrated with old regime’s resistance to change

III. The Burschenschaften & The Carlsbad Decrees (1819)

  • Burschenschaften:

    • Student-led nationalist and liberal groups in Austria

    • Advocated for national unity & constitutional governance

    • Criticized the Habsburg monarchy as outdated

  • The Kotzebue Assassination & Metternich’s Response

    • August von Kotzebue: Conservative playwright critical of Burschenschaften

    • Carl Sand (a Burschenschaft member) assassinated Kotzebue

    • Sand was mentally unstable; assassination not orchestrated by Burschenschaften

    • Metternich used the murder as a pretext for repression

  • Carlsbad Decrees (July 1819)

    • Banned Burschenschaften & other nationalist groups

    • Imposed strict censorship on press & speech

    • Established secret police to monitor dissidents

    • Set a precedent for conservative suppression of liberal movements

    • Similar to Four Ordinances in France (1830), though Austria acted earlier

IV. The 1848 Vienna Uprising: A Turning Point

  • The Revolutions of 1848

    • Began in France (February 1848) → Spread across Europe

    • Metternich’s famous quote: “When France sneezes, Europe catches a cold.”

  • Austria’s Political Landscape in 1848

    • Liberalism weakened by Carlsbad Decrees, but not eliminated

    • Nationalism replaces liberalism as the dominant revolutionary force

    • Austrian Empire was multiethnic

      • Major ethnic groups: Germans, Hungarians (Magyars), Czechs, Slovaks, Romanians, Poles, etc.

  • March 1848: Uprising in Vienna

    • Inspired by France’s Revolution of 1848

    • Metternich forced to resign & flee Austria

    • Habsburgs attempted to appease the revolutionaries by abolishing serfdom

  • Abolition of Serfdom

    • Serfdom officially ended in Austria

    • Weakened the revolutionary movement as peasants became loyal to the monarchy

    • Many peasants prioritized economic freedom over political reforms

V. Hungarian Nationalism & The Magyar Uprising

  • Hungarian (Magyar) Revolt led by Lajos Kossuth

    • Demanded an independent Hungarian government

    • Encouraged other nationalist groups in Austria to join the movement

  • Fragmentation of the Nationalist Alliance

    • Ethnic divisions weakened the revolution

    • Magyars wanted Hungarian independence, but not independence for all ethnic groups

    • Other nationalities (Czechs, Slovaks, Romanians) felt betrayed by Hungarian leadership

  • Pan-Slavism:

    • Attempted unification of Slavic peoples (Poles, Czechs, Russians, Ukrainians)

    • Weaker than Pan-Germanism or Italian nationalism

    • Did not effectively unite Slavic groups against Austria

VI. Austria’s Counterattack & The Failure of the 1848 Revolutions

  • Northern Italian Revolt (1848-1849)

    • Led by Piedmont-Sardinia

    • Aimed to expel Austria from northern Italy

    • Defeated by Austrian forces

  • Russia Intervenes (1848)

    • Tsar Nicholas I sent Russian troops to crush Hungarian nationalism

    • Habsburgs survived with Russian support

    • Reinforced the Concert of Europe’s conservative dominance

  • Aftermath

    • Revolutions crushed, but Austria was weakened

    • Metternich’s conservative order was fragile

    • Austria’s weakness would be exploited later by Prussia (German Unification)

VII. Key Takeaways

  • Austria’s conservative dominance (1815-1848) relied on Metternich’s leadership

  • Carlsbad Decrees (1819) stifled liberalism but did not eliminate it

  • 1848 Revolutions in Austria driven more by nationalism than liberalism

  • Multiethnic nature of Austria made nationalism a divisive force

  • Hungarian revolution ultimately failed due to ethnic divisions & Russian intervention

  • Austria survived the revolutions but remained vulnerable

  • Prussia would later take advantage of Austria’s decline (German Unification, 1871)

VIII. Important Dates to Remember

  • 1815: Congress of Vienna establishes Metternich’s conservative order

  • 1819: Carlsbad Decrees suppress liberal movements

  • 1830: French Revolution sparks minor unrest in Austria

  • 1848: Revolutions sweep Europe; Metternich resigns

  • 1848-1849: Hungarian Uprising crushed by Austrian & Russian forces