Rise of Nationalism in Europe

The French Revolution

1. In 1848, Frederic Sorrieu, a French artist, prepared a series of four print visualizing his dream of a world made up
of ‘democratic and social republic, as he called them.
2. Artists of the time of the French Revolution personified Liberty as a female figure.
3. According to Sorrieu’s utopian vision, the peoples of the world are grouped as distinct nations, identified through
their flags and national costume.
4. This chapter will deal with many of the issues visualized by Sorrieu.
5. During the nineteenth century, nationalism emerged as a force which brought about sweeping changes in the
political and mental world of Europe.
6. The end result of these changes was the emergence of the nation-state in the place of the multi-national dynastic
empires of Europe.
7. A modern state, in which a centralized power exercised sovereign control over a clearly defined territory, had
been developing over a long period of time in Europe.
8. But a nation-state was one in which the majority of its citizens, and not only its rulers, came to develop a sense of
common identity and shared history or descent.

 Timeline of French revolution

• 1774 - Louis XVI of the Bourbon family of kings ascended the throne of France.
• 14th July 1789 - The fortress-prison, the Bastille was demolished.
• 5th May 1789 - Louis XVI called together an assembly of the Estates General to pass proposals for new taxes.
• 20th June 1789 - Members of the third estate assembled in the hall of an indoor tennis court in the grounds of
Versailles.
• 4th August 1789 - the Assembly passed a decree abolishing the feudal system of obligations and taxes.
• 26th August 1789 - Declaration of the Rights of Man
• 1791 - The National Assembly completed the draft of the constitution which limits the power of the king.
• April 1792 - The National Assembly voted to declare war against Prussia and Austria.
• 21st September 1792 – Convention abolished the monarchy and declared France a republic.
• 21st January 1793 - Louis XVI was executed publicly at the Place de la Concorde.
• 1793 to 1794 - The Reign of Terror
• July 1794 - Maximilian Robespierre arrested and beheaded.
• 1794 - The Convention free all slaves in the French overseas possessions.
• 1804 - Napoleon Bonaparte crowned himself Emperor of France.
• 1815 – Napoleon defeated at Waterloo.
• 1848 - Slavery was finally abolished in French colonies.
• 1946 - Women in France won the right to vote.
 The French Revolution is regarded as one of the most important events in history. It not only gave a huge
setback to monarchy but also gave the first clear expression to the idea of ‘nationalism’. The impact of the
revolution in France:
1. The first clear expression of nationalism came with the French Revolution in 1789.
2. The political and constitutional changes that came in the wake of the French Revolution led to the transfer of
sovereignty from the monarchy to a body of French citizens.
3. The ideas of la patrie (the fatherland) and le citoyen  (the citizen) emphasized the notion of a united community
enjoying equal rights under a constitution Nation now became supreme. Hymns were composed and oaths were
taken on the name of the nation. It was regarded as a ‘fatherland’.
4. The Estates General was elected by the body of the active citizens and renamed the National Assembly.
5. Internal customs duties and dues were abolished and a uniform system of weights and measures was
adopted.
6. The revolutionaries further declared that it was the mission and the destiny of the French nation to liberate the
peoples of Europe from despotism.
7. Students and other members of educated middle classes began setting up Jacobin club.
8. Their activities and campaigns prepared the way for the French armies which moved into Holland, Belgium,
Switzerland and much of Italy in the 1790’s.
9. The French armies began to carry the idea of nationalism abroad The French Revolution impacted the middle
class including professionals and students in many countries such as Switzerland, Holland, Italy and Belgium.
10. They also wanted to throw off the monarchies in the countries and become nations.

 Napoleon – Child of the French Revolution

The rise of Napoleon marked the rise of monarchy in France. However, Napoleon implemented some revolutionary
ideas and principles in France. He did this by taking the following steps:
 He introduced the Civil Code of 1804, also known as the Napoleonic Code. This Code instituted the principle of
equality of all people before the law, right to property was established and all privileges enjoyed by the people of high
birth and class were abolished.
 This Code was also promulgated to other parts of Europe which were controlled by France.
 In many European countries such as Switzerland, Germany, Dutch Republic and Italy, he simplified the
administrative machinery, ended the feudal system and liberated the peasants from serfdom.
 In towns, restrictions imposed on guilds were removed, and transport and communication systems were improved.
Businessmen, small industrialists and traders began to realise the importance and advantages of a uniform system of
laws.
 People of other European countries initially welcomed the French armies, but later began to oppose them because
of increased taxation and censorship imposed on the people. absolute monarchies. Because of many factors, the idea
of nationalism began to emerge in the later half
 Reasons for fall of napoleon
1. It became clear that the new administrative arrangements did not go hand in hand with political freedom.
2. Increased taxation and censorship,
3. forced conscription into the French armies required to conquer the rest of the Europe, all seemed to outweigh
the advantages of the administrative changes.

 The treaty of Vienna 1815

after the defeat of Napoleon, the representatives of European powers, namely Austria, Britain, Prussia and Russia,
met at Vienna. This meeting is also known as the Treaty or Congress of Vienna. The chief architect and host of this
treaty was the Austrian Chancellor, Duke Metternich. The purpose of this treaty was to undo all the territorial changes
taken place during the Napoleonic wars and create a new conservative order in Europe.
 The Bourbon dynasty was restored to power.
 France lost most of the territories it had gained during Napoleon’s time. To prevent the expansion of
France in the future, certain states were set up along the boundaries of France.
 The German confederation of 39 states set up by Napoleon was not touched at all during this division.
 The kingdom of the Netherlands, including Belgium, was set up in the north of France.
 Genoa was added to Piedmont in the south of France.
 Russia was given a part of Poland, while Prussia was given a portion of Saxony.
The conservative regimes set up through the treaty of Vienna in 1815 were autocratic in nature. They tried to curb the
freedom of expression and imposed censorship laws on newspapers, books, plays and songs as they championed
freedom. The liberals were not happy with the autocratic ways of the conservatives and raised their voice against the
censorship of the press and the autocratic monarchical structures.

 Liberal Nationalism:
Due to industrialisation, new social groups emerged made of working-class population, and middle classes
made up of industrialists, businessmen, professionals. For these middle class members, idealogy of
nationalism was related to ideas of liberalism. According to them, liberalism stood for freedom for the
individual and equality of all before the law.
 Politically, it emphasised the concept of government by consent. Only in Jacobin period did all men
enjoy suffrage, the Napoleonic code went back to limited suffrage and reduced women to the status
of a minor.
 In the economic sphere, liberalism stood for the freedom of markets and the abolition of state-
imposed restrictions on the movement of goods and capital. In 1834, a customs union or zollverein
was formed at the initiative of Prussia and joined by most of the German states. The union abolished
tariff barriers and reduced the number of currencies from over thirty to two. The creation of a network
of railways further stimulated mobility, harnessing economic interests to national unification. A wave
of economic nationalism strengthened the wider nationalist sentiments growing at the time.

 A New Conservatism after 1815:

 After napoleon's defeat 1815, European governments were driven by a spirit of conservatism.
 Conservatives believed that established, traditional institutions of state and society – like the
monarchy, the Church, social hierarchies, property and the family – should be preserved. did not
propose a return to the society of pre-revolutionary days.
 Modernisation could make state power more effective and strong and strengthen autocratic
monarchies of Europe through :
o A modern army,
o an efficient bureaucracy,
o a dynamic economy,
o the abolition of feudalism and serfdom 
 Conservative regimes set up in 1815 were autocratic, imposed censorship laws etc
 
 The Revolutionaries:

 The fear of repression drove many liberal-nationalists underground. Secret societies were formed.
Most of these revolutionaries also saw the creation of nation-states as a necessary part of this
struggle for freedom.
 Italian revolutionary Giuseppe Mazzini, became a member of the secret society of the Carbonari. he
was sent into exile in 1831 for attempting a revolution in Liguria.
  He subsequently founded two more underground societies, first, Young Italy in Marseilles, and then,
Young Europe in Berne, whose members were like-minded young men from Poland, France, Italy and
the German states.
 Following his model, secret societies were set up in Germany, France, Switzerland and Poland.

The Beginning of Nationalism in Europe

 During the mid-eighteenth century, there were no nation states in Europe. Italy, Germany and Switzerland were not
one nation but were divided into various kingdoms. Central and eastern Europe was under absolute monarchies.
Because of many factors, the idea of nationalism began to emerge in the later half the eighteenth century. These
were

a. Rise of the new middle class: The aristocratic class in Europe was a dominant class, but it comprised only few
people. Most of the people in Europe were peasants. The Industrial Revolution resulted in the emergence of the
labour or working class. Many small industrialists, businessmen and professionals who formed the middle class
gained prominence. These classes supported the abolition of aristocratic privileges, demanded equality and
advocated the idea of nationalism.

b. Liberalism: The middle class stood for ‘liberalism’. Liberalism in political terms stood for equality, freedom, formation
and working of government by consent. In the economic field, liberalism advocated the freedom of markets and the
abolition of unjust duties on the movement of goods from one territory to the other. This led to the beginning of
economic nationalism in Europe which also contributed to the rise of nationalism.

c. Rise of New Conservatism and its opposition by the people: After the defeat of Napoleon, there was a rise of new
conservatism. Conservatives supported the rule of monarchy. Monarchy was restored in France and strengthened in
Prussia, Belgium and Austria. Autocratic governments were set up in these countries. This led to the rise of many
secret societies in Europe which trained revolutionaries. The aims of these revolutionaries were to fight for liberty,
equality and the formation of nation states. The period from 1830 to 1848 is regarded as the Age of Revolutions m in
Europe. During this period, the revolutionaries limited the power of the monarchy, and the independence of Greece
further led to the rise of nationalistic feelings in Europe. Women in Europe demanded political rights equal to men and
stressed on the principles of liberty and equality for them too.

d. Cultural movement: Art, painting, poetry, stories and music played an important role in strengthening the feeling of
nationalism. Many Romantic artists romanticised human feelings and emotions. This was done to create a common
cultural past as the basis of a nation. Stress was laid on vernacular languages and folklore. This gave communities
who were living under the control of other powerful nations a cultural identity. For example, the people of Poland who
were under Russian control defied the ban on speaking Polish. This was a kind of struggle to overthrow the Russian
yolk from their territory and to become an independent nation.

e. Hunger, hardships and revolts: During the 1830s, many countries in Europe were suffering from economic
slowdown. Stiff competition in the arena of industrial production and the hardships of the peasants struggling under
the feudal rule led to wide protest movements in many European states. In 1848, there were shortages of food. The
number of unemployed people was increasing. Many people in Paris came out on the roads and protested. Similar
protests and movements also took place in Germany and in many countries of central and eastern Europe. All the
above factors gave rise to the feeling of nationalism, and people demanded more liberty and equality in society

 The Age of Revolutions: 1830-1848

 As conservative regimes tried to consolidate their power, liberalism and nationalism came to be
increasingly associated with revolution in many regions of Europe . revolutions were led by the
liberal-nationalists belonging to the educated middle-class elite.
 France
o In the first upheaval which took place in France in July 1830 resulted in liberal
revolutionaries overthrowing Bourbon kings.
o In the late 1820's and into the 1830s, King Charles X of France issues a series of rulings that were
seen as diminishing the civil liberties and rights of the French. This act combined with his dismissal of
the Prime Minister, the four ordinances that limited freedoms, and the Three Glorious Days (a period
in which the Crown attacked and arrested opposition newspaper sources) ultimately led to a
revolution.
o The French Revolution of 1830, also known as the July Revolution, Second French Revolution or
Trois Glorieuses ("Three Glorious [Days]" in French, saw the overthrow of King Charles X, the French
Bourbon monarch, and the ascent of his cousin Louis-Philippe, Duke of Orléans, who himself, after 18
 precarious years on the throne, would in turn be overthrown in 1848. It marked the shift from one
constitutional monarchy, under the restored House of Bourbon, to another, republic monarchy
o The rise of food prices and a year of bad harvest led to widespread pauperism in town and
country. The year 1848 was one such year. Food shortages and widespread unemployment
brought the population of Paris out on the roads. Barricades were erected and Louis Philippe
was forced to flee.
 A National Assembly proclaimed a Republic
 granted suffrage to all adult males above 21
 and guaranteed the right to work
 National workshops to provide employment were set up
o 1845,
o Silesia-Weavers revolted against contractors for the drastic reduction in their payments.
o This revolution received scorns and threats alternately and resulted in the death of eleven
weavers.
 Belgium: The July Revolution sparked an uprising in Brussels which led to Belgium breaking away
from the United Kingdom of the Netherlands.
 Greece: The Greek war of independence against Ottoman Empire created nationalist feelings across
Europe. Many supported their cause, inspired by the idea of the the cradle of European civilisation 's
struggle against a Muslim empire. Eventually, the Treaty of Constantinople of 1832 recognised
Greece as an independent nation. The Greek independence surged a change in art and poetry
fuelling the era of romanticism
 The Romantic Imagination and National Feeling: Culture played an important role
in creating the idea of the nation: art and poetry, stories and music helped express
and shape nationalist feelings.
 Romanticism, a cultural movement which sought to develop a particular form of
nationalist sentiment. They strove to create a sense of a shared collective heritage, a
common cultural past, as the basis of a nation.
 In Germany, there was emphasis on folk culture while Poland, which had been
partioned amonst various powers, retained it's national identity by its usage of the
Polish language.

 Germany
 1848: The Revolution of the Liberals:

 In the German regions a large number of political associations whose members were middle-class
professionals, businessmen and prosperous artisans came together in the city of Frankfurt and
decided to vote for an all-German National Assembly.
 On 18 May 1848, 831 elected representatives marched in a festive procession to take their places in
the Frankfurt parliament convened in the Church of St Paul. They drafted a constitution for a German
nation to be headed by a monarchy subject to a parliament.
 When offered the crown on these terms, Friedrich Wilhelm IV, King of Prussia, rejected it and joined
other monarchs to oppose the elected assembly.
 The social basis of parliament eroded. The parliament was dominated by the middle classes who
resisted the demands of workers and artisans and consequently lost their support. In the end troops
were called in and the assembly was forced to disband.
 Despite their participation they were denied suffrage. When the Frankfurt parliament convened in the
Church of St Paul, women were admitted only as observers to stand in the visitors’ gallery.
 Monarchs were realized that the cycles of revolution and repression could only be ended by granting
concessions to the liberal-nationalist revolutionaries.
 Hence, in the years after 1848, the autocratic monarchies of Central and Eastern Europe began to
introduce the changes that had already taken place in Western Europe before 1815. Thus serfdom
and bonded labour were abolished both in the Habsburg dominions and in Russia. The Habsburg
rulers granted more autonomy to the Hungarians in 1867
 Consequences of Liberal Movement
o Liberal movements were crushed by the powerful conservative forces. However, old order
could not be restored.
o Monarchs realized the importance of granting concessions to the liberal nationalist
revolutionaries for preventing unrest in the society.
o Serfdom and bonded labour were abolished both in Habsburg dominions and in Russia.
o Hungarians were granted more autonomy in 1867.
 Unification of Germany
 Prussia, a German kingdom, took the leadership in uniting various German states. Otto von Bismarck, the
Chief Minister of Prussia, aimed to achieve the goal of unification with the help of the Prussian army and the
bureaucracy.
  Spread over seven years, the Prussian army with the help of the Austrian, French and Danish armies fought
three wars and successfully incorporated all the small German kingdoms. This marked the process of
completion of German unification.
 The German unification was completed in 1871 and in the same year William I was declared as the emperor
of Germany at the Palace of Versailles.
 The process of the unification of Germany exhibited the power of the Prussian state. Many new reforms were
initiated in banking, currency, administration and judiciary in Germany.
 Movement and Women Rights
o In spite of all these efforts by the women, they still were only allowed to observe the functioning of the
Frankfurt parliament.
o Women opposed this by founding newspapers, forming political associations and organizing public
meetings and organizations. Famous activist Louise Otto- Peter wrote in her first editorial paper that
liberty without liberty to women is liberty given only to half of humanity
o Carl Welcker a member of Frankfurt parliament ridiculed this demand as being against nature
o They were denied the right to vote
o The awareness of women’s right based on political and social equality is called feminism

 Unification of Italy
 During the middle of the 19th century, Italy was divided into seven states. Northern Italy was ruled by the
Austrian part of the Habsburg Empire, Central Italy by the Pope, while the southern part and Parma by the
Bourbon kings of Spain.
 Only one state, Sardinia Piedmont, was ruled by an Italian princely house.
 Mazzini was the leader of the Republican Party. He had formed secret societies like Young Italy to
regenerate Italy by education. The rebellions staged by the revolutionaries in 1831 and 1848 failed.
 The responsibility of unifying Italy came to Victor Emmanuel the II, King of Sardinia Piedmont.
 The chiefminister of Piedmont, Count Camillo di Cavour, helped the king in forming an alliance with France,
and they defeated the Austrian in 1859.
 Giuseppe Garibaldi played an important role in the unification of Italy. He joined the war along with his
armed volunteers called the ‘Red Shirts’.
 In 1860, Garibaldi and his troops marched into Southern Italy and the kingdom of two Sicilies and
succeeded in winning the support of the local peasants in order to drive out the Spanish rulers.
 In 1861, Victor Emmanuel the second was announced King of united Italy.
 In 1867, Garibaldi and his volunteers attacked the French troops stationed in the Papal state.
 Italy offered them the possibility of economic development and political dominance. Italy was neither a
revolutionary nor a democrat.
 Italian population, among whom rates of illiteracy were high, remained blissfully unaware of liberal-
nationalist ideology. Some peasants even believed that la Talia was the wife of victor Emmanuel

 Great Britain – A Nation State

 The transformation of Great Britain into a nation state was not a sudden process but a long drawn one.
There was no one British nation before the eighteenth century.
 People residing in the British Isles were mainly English, Welsh, Scots and Irish. These ethnic groups had
distinct political and social traditions.
 As the English nation grew in wealth and power, it began to dominate the other islands.
 In 1688, the English Parliament seized power from the monarchy. The Parliament passed the Act of Union,
1707, by which England and Scotland were unified resulting in the formation of the ‘United Kingdom of
Great Britain’.
 The Parliament was dominated by the English, and the political and cultural identities of the Scots were
systematically suppressed. The Catholics in Scotland were brutally suppressed whenever they wanted to
regain their independence.
 Ireland was inhabited by the Protestants and the Catholics. The English supported the Protestants and
established their rule with their help and support. Catholics, who constituted a majority in Ireland, revolted
against the British on numerous occasions but were suppressed.
 Ireland forcibly became a part of Britain in 1801 After a failed revolt led by Wolfe Tone and his United
Irishmen (1798). The English language dominated, and both Scotland and Ireland were subordinate to
England.
 A new “British Nation was formed with her various symbols such as the British flag (Union Jack), the
national anthem (“God Save Our Noble King”) and the English language

 Visualising the Nation

o Nation was personified in the female form by the artists of the 19 th century.
o Female allegories such as that of liberty, justice and republic were invented.
o In France, the idea of a people‟s nation was the christened Marianne. She was characterized by the
ideas of liberty and republic.
 o In Germany, Germania became the allegory of the nation.
o Different Allegories- Symbols and Significance
 Broken chains- Liberty
 Breastplate with eagle- Strength
 Crown of oak leaves- Heroism
 Sword- Readiness to fight
 Olive branch around the sword- Willingness to make peace
 Rays of the rising sun- Beginning of a new era
 Black, red and gold tricolour- Flag of the liberal nationalist
 Fasces or bundle of rods with axe in middle – strength in unity
 Red Phyrgian cap – freedom of a slave / liberty cap – wore by French before stroming of
Bastille
 Nationalism and Imperialism
 Nationalism culminated into imperialism in the last quarter of the 19th century.
 The Balkans in Europe after 1871
o The Balkans comprised modern-day Romania, Bulgaria, Albania, Greece, Macedonia, Croatia,
Bosnia-Herzegovina, Slovenia, Serbia and Montenegro.
o The disintegration of the ruling Ottoman Empire and the spread of the ideas of romantic nationalism
made this area explosive.
o The European subject nationalities started breaking from its control to declare independence.
o The Balkan revolutionaries‟acts were directed to gain back the long-lost independence.
o The Balkan States were fiercely jealous of each other and wanted to gain more territory at the
expense of the other.
 There was intense rivalry among the European powers over trade, colonies, naval might and military
might. European powers such as Russia, Germany, England and Austro-Hungary were keen on
opposing the hold of other powers over the Balkans for extending their own area of control.
 All these events ultimately triggered the First World War (1914).
 Nationalism stained with imperialism led Europe to disaster.
 Many colonized countries in the world started to oppose imperial domination. The anti-imperialist
movements developed as nationalist movements.

Some Important Definitions

a. Absolutism: It is a form of government which is authoritative and dictatorial. It is centralised, militarised and
repressive. People have no liberty and freedom.
b. Plebiscite: It is a direct system of voting where all the people residing in a territory are asked to vote to accept or
reject the proposal.
c. Suffrage: The right to vote.
d. Conservatism: It is a political philosophy which stresses on the importance of traditions and customs. Conservatives
prefer slow and gradual changes rather than quick changes.
e. Allegory: An allegory is an abstract idea which is expressed through a person or a thing. It can be literal or
symbolic.