Concert of Europe and Nationalism

European powers convened in Vienna, united by their opposition to Napoleon.
They aimed to dismantle Napoleon's model of European conquest and its legal system, which they perceived as overly empowering to the elites.
The Congress of Vienna established the Concert of Europe, which was a commitment to reinstate conservatism across Europe.
This conservatism, distinct from American conservatism, championed the absolute authority of the monarch.
- The monarch's power was considered absolute, even if not divinely ordained.
- The monarch commanded the military.
- Elites primarily served the monarch, collecting taxes from the people, with the monarch receiving a portion.
- This arrangement granted elites local power while ensuring the monarch's national dominance.
The European conservatism in the 1700s and 1800s centered on the monarch as the absolute ruler, unquestioned and in command of the military.

Napoleon's ideas gained popularity beyond France, particularly in Germany and Italy, where people experienced a different way of life.
However, resentment arose due to French rule.
Napoleon's reign indirectly fueled nationalism.

Napoleon's reign indirectly gave urgency to the rise of nationalism.
People resented being governed by a foreign ruler (Napoleon).
This resentment led to the realization that they were German, and he was French.
Nationalism emerged as the idea that people should be governed by ethnicity or race, rather than geography.
This concept clashed with the conservatism promoted by the Concert of Europe and the Congress of Vienna.

The Congress of Vienna supported the continuation of absolute monarchies.
Simultaneously, a growing sentiment emerged that monarchs should not rule solely based on dynastic right.
Protests began in Germany as early as the 1820s, particularly at universities, which had been centers for political and cultural experimentation since the Reformation.
These protests were suppressed, likely by Baron von Metternich, a key figure of the Congress of Vienna.

By the 1830s, romanticism became a prominent idea.
Romanticism existed in tension with conservatism, as it emphasized national identity.

The seeds of nationalism predated Napoleon, but his actions intensified the movement.
Prior to this, language was not a primary determinant of governance; rulers were determined by land ownership.
Post-1815, the concept arose that governance should be based on ethnicity or race, which is the core of nationalism.

The painting of Lady Liberty leading the people exemplifies the spirit of the 1830 revolution in France.