Chapter 23.5
First Question:
The Congress of Vienna was a series of meetings of
European heads of government looking to
establish long-lasting peace and stability in
Europe after the defeat of Napoleon.
Question #2:
The Congress of Vienna took place from 1814 to 1815. It
was originally supposed to last only four weeks. Instead,
it went on for eight months! It was punctuated by
Napoleon Bonaparte’s return to power from March to July
1814 (although work continued uninterrupted).
NAPOLEON WAS DEFEATED AT THE BATTLE OF
WATERLOO, June 18th, 1814; a sigh of relief for
the participants of the Congress of Vienna!
Question #3:
PURPOSE OF THE CONGRESS OF
VIENNA

TO PREVENT FURTHER FRENCH AGGRESSION
(CONTAINMENT)

TO “UNDO” THE CHANGES BROUGHT BY THE
FRENCH REVOLUTION AND NAPOLEON
BONAPARTE and STOP THE SPREAD OF
“DANGEROUS” IDEAS

TO RESTORE THE “OLD ORDER” OF MONARCHY
AND ARISTOCRATIC POWER- LEGITiMACY

Perhaps most importantly: TO RESTORE THE
BALANCE OF POWER AMONG THE EUROPEAN STATES
Question #4:
There were hundreds of participants in the
Congress of Vienna, including kings, princes,
dukes and duchesses; each with their own
agenda, but only a handful of representatives
made the real decisions.
The Five Great Powers
 Austria
(the host country)
 Russia
 Prussia
 Great
Britain
 France
PRINCE METTERNICH
OF AUSTRIA

ARISTOCRATIC FOREIGN MINISTER
OF AUSTRIA

WAS A CONSERVATIVE
 THE OLD ORDER OF MONARCHY
AND ARISTOCRATIC RULE WITH
A STRONG BUREAUCRACY

OPPOSED THE IDEALS OF THE
FRENCH REVOLUTION:
NATIONALISM & LIBERALISM
 SAW THEM AS A THREAT TO THE
BALANCE OF POWER IN EUROPE

“When France sneezes, all of Europe
catches a cold.”

WAS SO INFLUENTIAL, THE PERIOD
FROM 1814-1848 BECAME KNOWN
AS THE AGE OF METTERNICH AND
PLAN TO RESTORE PEACE TO
EUROPE BECAME KNOWN AS THE
METTERNICH SYSTEM
LORD ROBERT CASTLEREAGH
OF GREAT BRITAIN

BRITISH FOREIGN MINISTER

SOUGHT TO MAKE SURE THAT
THE POWERS IN EUROPE
WERE BALANCED

FEARED RUSSIAN, PRUSSIAN,
AND FRENCH POWER

“ENGLAND HAS NO
PERMANENT FRIENDS, ONLY
PERMANENT INTERESTS.”
CHARLES MAURICE DE TALLEYRAND
OF FRANCE



FRENCH FOREIGN
MINISTER
SOUGHT TO
PRESERVE FRENCH
TERRITORY GAINED
BY NAPOLEON
FOUGHT TO
INCLUDE HIMSELF
(AND FRANCE) IN
THE INNER
NEGOTIATIONS
CZAR ALEXANDER I OF RUSSIA



CONSIDERED
HIMSELF A
GUARANTOR OF
EUROPEAN
SECURITY
SOUGHT TO GAIN
CONTROL OVER ALL
OF POLAND
HEAVILY
INFLUENCED BY
RELIGIOUS
MYSTICISM
KING FREDERICK WILLIAM III OF
PRUSSIA


HE AND HIS
MINISTERS WERE
ABLE TO SECURE
IMPORTANT
TERRITORIAL GAINS
FOR PRUSSIA
BECAME A POLITICAL
REACTIONARY AND
RENEGED ON HIS
PROMISE TO SUPPLY
PRUSSIA WITH A
CONSTITUTION
Question #5
Nations around France were
made stronger




The Austrian Netherlands and the Dutch
Republic were combined to form the Kingdom
of the Netherlands, providing for a strong
country on France’s northern border
38 independent German states were joined
together to create the German
Confederation, providing a strong power to
the east of France
Switzerland was recognized as an
independent (but neutral) nation
The Kingdom of Sardinia was strengthened,
providing for a strong power to the south of
France
National boundaries were changed to
contain France’s power
Question #6:

Balance of power is when nations have relatively
the same amount of power which prevents any
one nation from getting too powerful.
Redrawing the
Map of Europe
Question #7:
Defining Legitimacy
Legitimacy means lawful. A legitimate
ruler is one who has the right to rule
whether it be because of his/her
hereditary right to rule or the people give
him/her the right to rule through a fair
election.
 During Napoleon’s rule, he had replaced
many of the legitimate rulers and placed
his siblings on the throne.

Illegitimate Rulers…
e
e
e
e
e
e
e
Jerome Bonaparte - King of Westphalia.
Joseph Bonaparte - King of Spain
Louise Bonaparte - King of Holland
Pauline Bonaparte - Princess of Italy
Napoléon Francis Joseph Charles King of Rome
Elisa Bonaparte - Grand Duchess of
Tuscany
Caroline Bonaparte - Queen of Naples
Example of restoring a legitimate ruler to the
throne: LOUIS XVIII IS RESTORED AS THE
BOURBON MONARCH OF FRANCE
Question #8:
The Competing Philosophies at the
Congress of Vienna


Conservatives- usually wealthy property owners and
nobility. They argued for protecting the traditional
monarchies of Europe. They want little to no change to
the old order.
Liberals- mostly middle-class business leaders and
merchants. They wanted to give more power to elected
parliaments, but only the educated and the landowners
would vote

In a nutshell, liberalism means wanting a constitution.
Having a constitution gives power to the people, thereby
taking power away from the monarchs and nobility.
Constitutional reforms often coincided with demands for
national self-determination

Radicals- favored drastic change to restore democracy
to all people. They believed that governments should
practice the ideals of the French Revolution: liberty,
equality, fraternity
Question #9:
Nationalism

Promoted national and cultural unity that
could become a political “reality”
 Language
 Ethnicity
 Territory
 Religion

French nationalism propelled Napoleon to
power, but it also led to his downfall as
countries under French domination
eventually rebelled against Napoleon
Fear This!





The conservative old order (Metternich and
the Congress of Vienna) feared nationalism’s
threat to the balance of power in Europe
The emergence of new nation-states and the
redrawing of national borders was seen as a
threat to the major powers of Europe
Nationalism’s focus on democratic and
liberal reforms also worried Europe’s power
elite
Rising nationalism would create an
environment of “aggression and conflict”
Did they have a right to be afraid? Look @
history- Bosnia/Croatia, Czechoslovakia, Russia
Question # 10:
THE CARLSBAD DECREES
IN THE GERMAN CONFEDERATION


ISSUED IN 1819
SUPPRESSED ANY OPPOSITION TO
METTERNICH’S CONSERVATIVE POLICIES
 PRESS CENSORSHIP WAS IMPOSED
 A SECRET POLICE AND SPY NETWORK KEPT TRACK
OF AND ROOTED OUT OPPOSITION
 THE GOVERNMENT CRACKED DOWN ON
UNIVERSITIES (STUDENTS AND TEACHERS) WHICH
OFTEN CHALLENGED GOVERNMENT POLICIES AND
TENDED TO FAVOR A MORE LIBERAL COURSE
Question #11:
The Concert of Europe

The Concert of
Europe was a
series of alliances
devised by
Metternich that
assured nations
would help one
another if any
revolution broke
out.
THE QUADRUPLE ALLIANCE
GREAT BRITAIN
 RUSSIA
 PRUSSIA
 AUSTRIA


Would briefly become the Quintuple
Alliance when France joined, but Great
Britain would eventually drop out over the
argument of Greek independence (another
example of the power of nationalism).
THE HOLY ALLIANCE
1815
Formed by Czar Alexander I, Emperor
Francis I of Austria, and King William
Francis I of Prussia to combat the forces
of revolution (liberalism and nationalism)
 They pledged to base their relationships
with other nations on Christian principles
 Short-lived

The Holy Alliance, 1815
Question #12:
The Congress of Vienna…
Short-term Success; Long-term Failure







Influenced world politics for the next 100 years
Led to peace in Europe for the next 18 years
Decreased the size and power of France
Increased the power of Britain and Prussia
Increased nationalism in Italy, Germany,
Greece, and other areas put under foreign
control
These nationalistic feelings would lead to
revolutions in 1830 and 1848
These revolutions would lead to new nations
being formed and the independence of
Spanish colonies.