Unit 1, Lesson 4
German Unification
After failure of Frankfurt Assembly to achieve German unification in 1848 & 1849, Germans looked to Prussia for leadership in cause of German unification In course of 19th century, Prussia had become strong & prosperous state; its government was authoritarian; Prussian king had firm control over both government & army; Prussia was also known for its militarism In the 1860s, King William I tried to enlarge Prussian army; when Prussian legislature refused to levy new taxes for proposed military changes, William I appointed new prime minister (Count Otto von Bismarck) Bismarck has often been seen as foremost 19th-century practitioner of realpolitik (politics of reality, or politics based on practical matters rather than on theory or ethics) Bismarck was open about his strong dislike of anyone who opposed him; after his appointment, Bismarck ignored legislative opposition to military reforms; he argued instead that Germany doesn't look to Prussia's liberalism but to her power Bismarck proceeded to collect taxes & strengthen army; from 1862 to 1866, Bismarck governed Prussia without approval of parliament; in the meantime, he followed an active foreign policy, which soon led to war After defeating Denmark with Austrian help in 1864 & gaining control of duchies of Schleswig & Holstein, Bismarck created friction with Austrians & forced them into war on June 14, 1866; Austrians were no match for well-disciplined Prussian army & were decisively defeated on July 3 Prussia now organized German states north of Main River into North German Confederation; southern German states, which were largely Catholic, feared Protestant Prussia; however, they also feared France (their western neighbor), so they agreed to sign military alliances with Prussia for protection against France Prussia now dominated all of northern Germany, but problems with France soon arose; Bismarck realized that France would never be content with a strong German state to its east because of the potential threat to French security In 1870, Prussia & France became embroiled in dispute over candidacy of relative of Prussian king for throne of Spain; Bismarck took advantage of misunderstandings between French & Prussians to goad French into declaring war on Prussia on July 19, 1870; this conflict was called Franco-Prussian War French proved to be no match for better led & better organized Prussian forces; southern German states honored their military alliances with Prussia & joined war effort against French; Prussian armies advanced into France; at Sedan, on September 2, 1870, an entire French army & French ruler, Napoleon III, were captured Paris finally surrendered on January 28, 1871, & official peace treaty was signed in May; France had to pay 5 billion francs (1 billion dollars) & give up provinces of Alsace & Lorraine to new German state; loss of these territories left French burning for revenge Even before war had ended, southern German states had agreed to enter North German Confederation; on January 18, 1871, Bismarck & 600 German princes, nobles, & generals filled Hall of Mirrors in palace of Versailles (12 miles outside Paris); William I of Prussia was proclaimed kaiser of Second German Empire German unity had been achieved by the Prussian monarchy & Prussian army; authoritarian & militaristic values of Prussia were triumphant in new German state; with its industrial resources & military might, the new state had become strongest power on European continent
Russia
At beginning of 19th century, Russia was overwhelmingly rural, agricultural, & autocratic; Russian czar was still regarded as divine-right monarch with unlimited power; Russian government, based on soldiers, secret police, repression, & censorship, withstood revolutionary fervor of 1st half of 19th century In 1856, Russians suffered humiliating defeat in Crimean War; even staunch conservatives now realized that Russia was falling hopelessly behind western European powers; Czar Alexander II decided to make serious reforms Serfdom was largest problem in czarist Russia; on March 3, 1861, Alexander issued emancipation edict which freed the serfs; peasants could now own property & marry as they chose; government provided land for peasants by buying it from the landlords New land system wasn't that helpful to peasants; landowners often kept best lands for themselves; Russian peasants soon found that they didn't have enough good land to support themselves Emancipation of serfs led not to free, landowning peasantry, but to unhappy, land-starved peasantry that largely followed old ways of farming Alexander II attempted other reforms as well, but he soon found he could please no one; reformers wanted more changes & a faster pace for change, while conservatives thought the czar was trying to destroy the basic institutions of Russian society When group of radicals assassinated Alexander II in 1881, his son & successor Alexander III turned against reform & returned to old methods of repression
Emergence of Canadian Nation
By Treaty of Paris in 1763, signed at end of 7 Years' War, Canada passed from French to British By 1800, most of Canadian people favored more freedom from British rule; however there were also serious differences among colonists; Upper Canada (now Ontario) was mostly English speaking, while Lower Canada (now Quebec) was mostly French speaking After 2 short rebellions against government broke out in Upper & Lower Canada in 1837 & 1838, British moved toward change; in 1840, British Parliament formally joined Upper & Lower Canada into United Provinces of Canada, which was not self-governed Head of Upper Canada's Conservative Party (John Macdonald) became strong voice for self-government; British, fearful of American designs on Canada, finally gave in In 1867, Parliament passed British North America Act, which established Canadian nation (Dominion of Canada) with its own constitution; John Macdonald became 1st prime minister of Dominion; Canada now possessed parliamentary system & ruled itself, although foreign affairs remained in hands of British government
Great Britain
GB managed to avoid revolutionary upheavals of 1st half of 19th century In 1815, GB was governed by aristocratic landowning classes, which dominated both houses of Parliament; in 1832, Parliament passed bill that increased number of male voters; new voters were chiefly members of industrial middle class; by giving industrial middle class an interest in ruling Britain, Britain avoided revolution in 1848 In 1850s & 1860s, Parliament continued to make both social & political reforms that helped country to remain stable Another reason for Britain's stability was its continuing economic growth; by 1850, British middle class was already prosperous as result of Industrial Revolution; after 1850, working classes finally began to share some of this prosperity; real wages for laborers increased more than 25% between 1850 & 1870 British feeling of national pride was well reflected in Queen Victoria, whose reign from 1837 to 1901 was longest in English history; her sense of duty & moral respectability reflected attitudes of her age (which has been known as Victorian Age)
Nationalism in US
Government under US Constitution had committed US to 2 of the major forces of 1st half of 19th century: liberalism & nationalism; however, national unity hadn't come easily 2 factions had fought bitterly about division of power in new government Federalists had favored strong central government; Republicans feared central power & had wanted federal government to be subordinate to state governments; early divisions had ended with War of 1812 against British; surge of national feeling had served to cover over nation's divisions Election of Andrew Jackson as president in 1828 had opened new era in American politics; property qualifications for voting had been reduced & right to vote was eventually extended to almost all adult white males By mid-19th century, slavery had become threat to American national unity; there were 4 million black slaves in South by 1860, compared with 1 million in 1800 South's economy was based on growing cotton on plantations, chiefly by slave labor; invention of cotton gin by Eli Whitney in 1793 had made it easier to clean cotton of its seeds, thus increasing cotton production South was determined to maintain both its cotton economy & plantation-based slavery; at same time, abolitionism arose in the North & challenged Southern way of life As opinions over slavery grew more divided, compromise became less possible; Abraham Lincoln said in speech in Illinois in 1858 that "this government can't endure permanently 1/2 slave & 1/2 free"; when Lincoln was elected president in November 1860, die was cast On December 20, 1860, South Carolina convention voted to secede from US; in February 1861, 6 more Southern states did the same, & rival nation (Confederate States of America) was formed; in April, fighting erupted between North & South (Union & Confederacy) American Civil War (1861 to 1865) was extraordinarily bloody struggle; over 600k soldiers died, either in battle or from deadly diseases spawned by filthy camp conditions; Union, with more men & resources, gradually wore down Confederacy On January 1, 1863, Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation declared most of nation's slaves "forever free"; surrender of Confederate forces on April 9, 1865, meant that US would be "1 nation, indivisible"; national unity had prevailed in US
Italian Unification
In 1850, Austria was still dominant power on Italian Peninsula After failure of revolution of 1848, people began to look to northern Italian state of Piedmont for leadership in achieving unification of Italy; royal house of Savoy ruled Kingdom of Piedmont, which included Piedmont, island of Sardinia, Nice, & Savoy; ruler of kingdom, beginning in 1849, was King Victor Emmanuel II King named Camillo di Cavour his prime minister in 1852; Cavour was dedicated political leader; as prime minister, he pursued policy of economic expansion that increased government revenues & enabled kingdom to equip a large army However, Cavour knew that Piedmont's army wasn't strong enough to defeat Austrians; he would need help, so he made alliance with French emperor Louis-Napoleon, & then provoked Austrians into invading Piedmont in 1859 Final result of conflict that followed was peace settlement that gave French Nice & Savoy; Cavour had promised Nice & Savoy to French for making alliance Lombardy (which had been under Austrian control) was given to Piedmont, while Austria retained control of Venetia; Cavour's success caused nationalists in some other northern Italian states (Parma, Modena, & Tuscany) to overthrow their governments & join their states to Piedmont Meanwhile, in southern Italy, new leader of Italian unification had arisen; Giuseppe Garibaldi, dedicated Italian patriot, raised army of 1000 volunteers (called Red Shirts due to the color of their uniforms) Kingdom of 2 Sicilies (Sicily & Naples) was ruled by branch of Bourbon dynasty, & a revolt had broken out in Sicily against the king Garibaldi's forces landed in Sicily &, by the end of July 1860, controlled most of the island; in August, Garibaldi & his forces crossed over to mainland & began victorious march up Italian Peninsula; Naples & entire Kingdom of 2 Sicilies fell in early September Garibaldi chose to turn over his conquests to Piedmont; on March 17, 1861, new kingdom of Italy was proclaimed under King Victor Emmanuel II However, task of unification wasn't yet complete; Venetia in the north was still held by Austria, & Rome was under the control of the pope (supported by French troops) Italians gained control of Venetia as result of a war between Austria & Prussia; in the Austro-Prussian War of 1866, the new Italian state became an ally of Prussia; Prussia won the war, & the Italians were given Venetia In 1870, during Franco-Prussian War, French troops withdrew from Rome; their withdrawal enabled Italian army to annex Rome on September 20, 1870; Rome became capital of united Italian state
France
In France, events after revolution of 1848 moved toward restoration of monarchy 4 years after his election as president in 1848, Louis-Napoleon returned to people to ask for restoration of empire; in this plebiscite; 97% responded with a yes vote; on December 2, 1852, Louis-Napoleon assumed title of Napoleon III, Emperor of France; Second Empire had begun Government of Napoleon III was clearly authoritarian; as chief of state, Napoleon III controlled armed forces, police, & civil service; only he could introduce legislation & declare war Legislative Corps gave appearance of representative government, because members of group were elected by universal male suffrage for 6-year terms, but they could neither initiate legislation nor affect the budget Napoleon III completely controlled the government & limited civil liberties; nevertheless, the 1st 5 years of his reign were a spectacular success; to distract public from their loss of political freedom, he focused on expanding economy; government subsidies helped foster rapid construction of railroads, harbors, roads, & canals; iron production tripled In midst of economic expansion, Napoleon III also carried out vast rebuilding of Paris; old Paris of narrow streets & walls was replaced by modern Paris of broad boulevards, spacious buildings, public squares, an underground sewage system, new public water supply system, & gaslights New Paris served military purpose as well; broad streets made it more difficult for would-be rebels to throw up barricades & easier for troops to move rapidly through city in event of revolts In 1860s, opposition to some of Napoleon's economic & government policies arose; in response, Napoleon III began to liberalize his regime; for example, he gave legislature more power In plebiscite held in 1870, French people gave Napoleon another victory; however, this triumph was short-lived; after the French were defeated in the Franco-Prussian War in 1870, the 2nd Empire fell
Austrian Empire
Nationalism was major force in 19th-century Europe; however, one of Europe's most powerful states (the Austrian Empire) was a multinational empire that had been able to frustrate desire of its ethnic groups for independence After Hapsburg rulers crushed revolutions of 1848 & 1849, they restored centralized, autocratic government to the empire; however, Austria's defeat at hands of Prussians in 1866 forced Austrians to make concessions to fiercely nationalistic Hungarians Result was Compromise of 1867, which created dual monarchy of Austria-Hungary; each of these 2 components of the empire now had its own constitution, its own legislature, its own government bureaucracy, & its own capital (Vienna for Austria & Budapest for Hungary); holding the 2 states together were single monarch (Francis Joseph was both emperor of Austria & king of Hungary) & common army, foreign policy, & system of finances In domestic affairs, Hungarians had become independent nation; compromise didn't satisfy other nationalities that made up multinational Austro-Hungarian Empire
Breakdown of Concert of Europe
Revolutions of 1848 had failed; by 1871, both Germany & Italy would be unified; changes that made this possible began with Crimean War Crimean War was result of long-standing struggle between Russia & Ottoman Empire Ottoman Empire had long controlled much of the territory in southeastern Europe; by beginning of 19th century, Ottoman Empire was in decline, & its authority over territories in the Balkans began to weaken Russia was especially interested in expanding its power into Ottoman lands in the Balkans; this expansion would give Russia access to Dardanelles & thus the Mediterranean Sea; Russia would become major power in eastern Europe & could challenge British naval control of eastern Mediterranean Other European powers feared Russian ambitions & had their own interest in decline of Ottoman Empire In 1853, Russians invaded Turkish Balkan provinces of Moldavia & Walachia; in response, Ottoman Turks declared war on Russia; GB & France, fearful of Russian gains, declared war on Russia the following year; this conflict came to be called Crimean War Crimean War was poorly planned & poorly fought Eventually, heavy losses caused Russians to seek peace; by Treaty of Paris, signed in March 1856, Russia agreed to allow Moldavia & Walachia to be placed under protection of all great powers Effect of Crimean War was to destroy Concert of Europe; Austria & Russia had been 2 chief powers maintaining status quo in 1st half of 19th century; they were now enemies because Austria (which had its own interests in the Balkans) had refused to support Russia in Crimean War Defeated & humiliated Russia withdrew from European affairs for next 20 years; Austria was now without friends for next 20 years; this new international situation opened door for unification of both Italy & Germany
abolitionism
a movement to end slavery
kaiser
emperor
emancipation
freeing
plebiscite
popular vote
militarism
reliance on military strength
secede
withdraw