Nationalist Revolutions
Chapter Eight
Political Philosophies
• Conservative
– Protected the traditional monarchies of Europe
– Usually wealthy and/or nobility
• Liberal
– Wanted to give more power to parliament
– Wanted educated and landowners to vote
– Middle class merchants and business owners
• Radical
– Favored drastic change for democracy for all
– Government should embrace Enlightenment ideas
Nationalism
•
What is nationalism?
– The belief that the greatest loyalty should be
to a nation of people who share a common
culture & history
•
What was the effect of nationalism?
– Tore apart centuries-old empires
– Gave rise to the nation-state
– Opposed by conservatives
Types of Nationalism
• Unification
– Merges culturally similar lands
• Separation
– Splits off culturally distinct groups
• State-building
– Binds separate cultures into one
Nationalism Causes Separation:
The Ottoman Empire
Nationalism Causes Separation:
The Ottoman Empire
• The Ottoman Empire
– Internal tensions among ethnic groups weakens empire
• Controls parts of present day Turkey, Greece, Bulgaria, Romania,
and others
– Ottomans granted equal citizenship to all
ethnicities
• Conservative Turks got angry: led to many ethnic
problems
Nationalism Causes Separation:
The Ottoman Empire
• Battle of Navarino
(1827)
– British, French, &
Russian fleet destroyed
the Ottomans
– Greece gained
independence
• Ottoman Empire
ultimately falls soon
after World War I
The Russian Empire
The Russian Empire
• Nationalism Shakes an Empire
– Controlled over a dozen different ethnicities
with different cultures
– Used the policy of “Russification”
• Forcing Russian culture on all peoples
– Actually strengthened ethnic cultures
Russian History
• By the 1800s, Russia still had not industrialized
– Society and economy based on the feudal system
• By the 1820s, many Russians believed that
serfdom must end
• Problem was the czar did not want to free them
– It would anger the landowners
– Czar needed support from landowners to stay in
power
The Crimean War (1853-1856)
• Russia vs. Ottoman
Empire
– Russia lost the war
– Industries & transportation
system failed to provide
adequate supplies for the
troops
– Proved that Russia
needed to modernize
Reform in Russia
• Czar Alexander II
– Committed to social and
economic reforms
• Freed the serfs in 1861 (Edict of
Emancipation)
– Was assassinated in 1881
• Political and social reforms
stopped
Reform in Russia
• Czar Alexander III
– Tightened government
control over country
– Encouraged industrial
development using
nationalism
The Russian Empire Falls
• The Russian Empire
would eventually fall due
to major problems during
World War I
– Russian Revolution of
1917
– Result would be the
creation of the Soviet
Union
The Austrian Empire
Nationalism Shakes an Aging
Empire
• The Austrian Empire
– Included people from many
ethnic groups
– Lost to Prussia in a war in 1866
• Results
– Split Austria & Hungary into
independent states
– Both ruled by emperor Francis
Joseph
» Called the Dual Monarchy
– New Empire was “AustriaHungary”
Views of Nationalism
• The Unification of Italy and Germany
– Italy
• Nationalists use their common bond to build
nation-states
– Germany
• Rulers use nationalism to unify their subjects
Nationalism: The Unification of Italy
• Italian Unification
– Italy forms from crumbling
empires
– 1815-1848 Italians want
independence from
foreign rulers
• Especially Austria
Nationalism: The Unification of Italy
• Northern Italian Unification
– Camillo di Cavour - Prime
Minister of Kingdom of
Sardinia (1852)
– Gets French help to win
control of Austrian-controlled
Italian land
– Other northern kingdoms
supported unification with
Sardinia
Nationalism: The Unification of Italy
• Southern Italian Unification
– Led by Guiseppe Garibaldi
– Known as the “Red Shirts”
for their attire during battle
– Leads nationalists who
conquer southern Italy
– Many in southern Italy
supported and followed
Garibaldi
Italian Unification
• Other important people
for unification
– Giuseppe Mazzini
•
•
•
•
Politician
Journalist
Activist
Known as the “Soul of Italy”
Nationalism: The Unification of Italy
• Cavour convinces Garibaldi to unite
southern Italy and Sardinia
– Garibaldi steps aside, allowing King of
Sardinia to rule
– 1861, Victor Emmanuel II was crowned King
of Italy
– A Constitutional Monarchy is formed
• Control of Venetia, Papal States
completes unification (1870)
Unification is Complete
The Unification of Germany
• Beginning in 1815:
– 39 German states formed the German
Confederation
– Austria controlled the Confederation
• Prussia
– Mainly German population
– Very powerful army
– Creation of liberal constitution
The German Confederation
The Unification of Germany
• Prussia controlled by the Junkers
– Conservative wealthy landowners
– Supported Prussian leader Wilhelm I
• Otto von Bismarck named Prime Minister
(1862)
– Junker “realpolitik” master
• Power politics without room for idealism
• Based on the needs of the state
• Used military force to achieve political gain
Kaiser Wilhelm I
Otto von Bismarck
The Unification of Germany
• Prussia Expands
– Prussia & Austria fight Denmark, gain two provinces
• Quick victory makes other German nations respect
Prussia
• Seven Weeks’ war
– Bismarck creates border dispute with Austria to
provoke war
– Prussia seizes Austrian territory, northern Germany
– Eastern & western parts of Prussian kingdom joined
for first time
The Seven Weeks’ War
The Unification of Germany
• The Franco-Prussian War
– Bismarck provokes war with France to unite
all Germans
• Manufactured a political incident
• Causes the French to declare war on Prussia
– Prussia defeats France
• Wilhelm is crowned “Kaiser” – emperor of a united
Germany – at Versailles
• Bismarck creates a Germany united under
Prussian dominance
A Shift in Power
• Balance of Power is Lost
– In 1815, the Congress of Vienna established five
powers in Europe
• Austria
• Russia
• Prussia
• Britain
• France
– By 1871, Britain & Prussia (now Germany) have
gained much power
– Austria & Russia are weaker militarily & economically
END