The Congress of Vienna Background: During the Napoleonic Era, , the map of Europe and the system of states was widely remodeled. French Revolutionary Armies had: –vastly expanded French territory by annexing large parts of the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, and Italy. –Erected new states closely tied to France Kingdom of Holland Confederation of the Rhine 5 Italian Republics

The Congress of Vienna Background (cont’d.): Several old-established states survived, but with modified frontiers: –Austria, Prussia, Spain, Naples, Portugal Only parts of Europe to escape revolutionary remodeling were: –Great Britain, Scandinavia, and Russia

The Congress of Vienna Background (cont’d.): After entering Paris in March, 1814, the allies restored the Bourbon dynasty to the throne. In the first Treaty of Paris (5/1814), the allies offered France relatively lenient terms. –France lost all conquests of the revolutionary and Napoleonic periods, but was permitted to retain its frontiers of –France regained almost all of its colonies. –France was not required to pay an indemnity.

The Congress of Vienna Background (cont’d.): However, following Napoleon’s return and his defeat at Waterloo, the allies imposed harsher terms on France in the Congress of Vienna and the 2nd Treaty of Paris (11/1815).

The Congress of Vienna (1814) Dominant players: –Great Britain, Prussia, Russia, and Austria. Most participating diplomats were “conservative reactionaries”. –Opponents of change. –Believed only hope of maintaining peace in Europe was the return of strong monarchies. –Inspired by the conservative writer, Edmund Burke.

The Congress of Vienna (1814) (cont’d.) “conservative reactionaries” (cont’d.) –Leading diplomats were: Austrian Foreign Minister, Prince Klemens von Metternich. Czar Alexander I of Russia. Prince Karl von Hardenberg of Prussia. British Foreign Secretary, Lord Castlereagh. French Foreign Minister, Charles-Maurice de Talleyrand.

The Congress of Vienna (1814) (cont’d.) “conservative reactionaries” (cont’d.) –Hoped to check the spread of liberalism. Opposed to individual freedom, free press, freedom of religion. –Hoped to check the spread of nationalism. Conservatives (particularly Metternich) feared nationalism--a threat to the traditional political order. Liberals typically supported nationalist leaders who wanted their countries free from foreign control. Boundaries redrawn reflecting the wishes of the rulers rather than the people they ruled.

The Congress of Vienna (1814) (cont’d.) 3 goals of the Congress: Compensation: to countries for expenses they incurred while fighting the French. Legitimacy: restoring to power the royal families who ruled before Napoleon. Balance of power: to ensure that no country would be able to dominate continental Europe.

The Congress of Vienna (1814) (cont’d.) Compensation –France required to give up recently gained territory and pay a large indemnity to other countries for war damages. –Prussia and Russia sought territorial expansion which GB and Austria feared would tilt the balance of power. Prussia gained lands along the Rhine and 1/2 of Saxony. Russia, Prussia, and Austria partitioned Poland.

The Congress of Vienna (1814) (cont’d.) Legitimacy –Reestablished monarchies in France, Spain, Portugal, Naples, Sardinia, and Sicily. Louis XVIII (Bourbon) assumed reign of France. –French boundaries reduced to those of –Established buffer states. Neutral territories. Netherlands, German Confederation, Switzerland.

The Congress of Vienna (1814) (cont’d.) Balance of Power Quadruple Alliance: –GB, Austria, Prussia, and Russia formed to enforce the settlements of the Congress. France admitted 3 years later. Holy Alliance: –Russia, Prussia, and Austria as a cooperative union of Christian monarchs. –Pius VII and GB declined participation.

The Congress of Vienna (1814) (cont’d.) Balance of Power (cont’d.) Concert of Europe –term applied to meetings of the 2 alliances –helped maintain the balance of power in Europe for almost 30 years

The Congress of Vienna (1814) (cont’d.) France and Revolution Untamed: –Revolutionary eruptions in 1830, 1848, 1851, and –Metternich quoted: “Revolution was the disease which must be cured, the volcano which must be extinguished, the gangrene which must be burned out with a hot iron, the hydra with jaws open to swallow up the social order.”