Chapter 1 The Rise of Nationalism in Europe

Question 1 Write a note on:

(a) Giuseppe Mazzini 

(b) Count Camillo de Cavour

(c) The Greek war of independence

(d) Frankfurt parliament

(e) The role of women in nationalist struggles.

Answer 1  (a) Giuseppe Mazzini was born in Genoa on June 22nd, 1807 in a middle class family. He was a patriot, Italian revolutionary, founder of Young Italy and an important figure in liberal nationalism. He was one of the three revolutionaries who made a significant contribution in Italian unification. His efforts led to the unification of Italy. In 1830, he joined the revolutionary Carbonari (a secret association with political purposes) for which he was arrested soon and put in jail. There he organised a new political society called Young Italy, whose basic principle was the union of the several states and kingdoms into one republic. He founded underground societies like Young Italy in Marseilles, and Young Europe in Berne. To evoke people’s reaction Mazzini wrote several essays that voiced the injustice to the working class such as the peasants, professionals, artists, and intellectuals. He was elected as a member of a constituent assembly and acquired the responsibility of framing a constitution for the Roman Republic.

(b) Count Camillo de Cavour, a political leader and an Italian statesman, was born at Turin on the 1st of August 1810. At the age of ten he entered the military academy at Turin. He was a significant figure in the movement towards Italian unification and the founder of the original Italian Liberal Party. He founded the Agrarian Association in 1842 and the newspaper Il Risorgimento in 1847, where he struggled to establish a constitutional monarchy. Cavour was a liberal and had faith in free trade, public right of opinion and secular rule. So on becoming the prime minister of Piedmont-Sardinia on 4 November, 1852 Cavour strengthened the kingdom, reformed taxation, stabilised the currency, and improved the railway system. In 1853, he supported the French and British in the Crimean War with troops in anticipation to enhance the prestige of Piedmont-Sardinia. On March 17,1861 when Victor Emmanuel II became the king of Italy, Cavour was formally declared as the prime minister of Italy. Count Camillo de Cavour made considerable efforts for the creation of a modern Italian state. But unfortunately he died only three months after the declaration of a United Italy on 6 June, 1861.

(c) Greece had been a part of the Ottoman Empire since the fifteenth century. The growth of revolutionary nationalism in Europe sparked off a struggle for independence among the people of Greece. It began in 1821. Nationalists in Greece got support from other Greeks living in exile and also from several West Europeans who had soft corners for the ancient Greek culture. Poets and artists lauded Greece as the cradle of European civilization and mobilised public opinion to support its struggle against the Ottoman Empire. Finally, with the Treaty of Constantinople of 1832 Greece became an independent nation.

(d) In 1848, Germany was a divided country with different provinces like Austria and Prussia. In February 1848, when a rebellion took place in Paris King Louis Philippe was forced to run away. This ultimately boosted the confidence of other countries also and revolts started throughout Europe. Many German cities were shaken by revolts of crowds. This led to the fall of the conservative governments and liberals called for the National Assembly. It was attended by 831 delegates from all over Germany in a church in Frankfurt on May 18, 1848. Friedrich Wilhelm IV was elected as the president but it turned out to be futile due to lack of experience of the deputies. Instead of setting up a central power in Germany, the deputies debated about the fundamental rights of the German people. However, the Assembly continued its work and completed a Constitution. Radical political groups in Germany tried to impose the Constitution through civil war, but were suppressed.

(e) A large number of women participated actively in the political matters over the years. They formed many political associations, founded newspapers and took part in political meetings and demonstrations. This grabbed the attention of delegates of the Frankfurt parliament. So, on 18 May 1848, when the Constitution was drafted in the Frankfurt parliament the controversial issue of extending political rights to women was raised. Still women were deprived of suffrage rights during the election of the Assembly and they were admitted in the Frankfurt parliament assembly only as spectators. But this did not diminish their contribution to the national struggle. Delphine de Girardin, an educated woman, criticised by saying that if servants doing the household work were granted the right to vote then why not women who are mothers, housewives managing everything at home.

Question 2. What steps did the French revolutionaries take to create a sense of collective identity among the French people?

Answer 2  To make the French Revolution a success it was very important to instil a sense of unity in every citizen. To achieve it, various measures and practices were followed:

(i) A new French flag, the tricolour, was chosen to replace the former royal standard.

(ii) The Estates General was elected by the body of active citizens and renamed the National Assembly.

(iii) The ideas of la patrie (the fatherland) and le citoyen (the citizen) emphasised the nation of a united community enjoying equal rights under a constitution.

(iv) New hymns were composed, oaths taken and martyrs commemorated, all in the name of the nation.

(v) A centralised administrative system practising uniform laws for all citizens within its territory was set up.

(vi) Internal custom duties and dues were abolished and a uniform system of weights and measures was adopted.

(vii) Regional languages were discouraged and French was adopted as the common language of the nation.

Question 3. Who were Marianne and Germania? What was the importance of the way in which they were portrayed?

Answer 3 . In olden times the best way to present an idea was through symbolic personifications. This was the most common and appealing way to invite people’s attention. From 1789 females appeared in paintings as symbol of liberty and revolution. During the French Revolution, many symbolic personifications of ‘Liberty’ and ‘Reason’ appeared. Marianne was the female figure invented by artists in the nineteenth century to represent the French nation. Her characteristics were drawn from those of Liberty and the Republic—the red cap, the tricolour, the cockade. Statues of Marianne were erected in public places to remind the public of the national symbol of unity and to persuade them to identify with it. Marianne images were marked on coins and stamps. Similarly, Germania became the symbol of the German nation. This work was done by the artist Philip Veit. He depicted Germania as a female figure standing against a background where beams of sunlight shone through the tricolour fabric of the national flag. Germania was wearing a crown of oak leaves, as the German oak stands for heroism.

Question 4. Briefly trace the process of German unification.

Answer 4 . German unification was a long and complicated process. At the beginning of the 19th century, Germany was not a unified country. It was a collection of autocratic states (39 in all), where only the very wealthy and powerful ruled. It was a difficult affair to unite Germany. It took a long time to unite Germany into one country and the credit goes to Bismarck. He fought three wars to unify Germany.

(i) Danish-Prussian War in 1864: The 1864 Danish War helped Bismarck strengthen his internal position in Prussia. Danish King Friedrich VII died in 1864. Many European royals were independent having undersized territories. Often these territories were divided by different laws, customs, and even languages. Without much effort, Prussia defeated Danish. The Danish War was the first step in the unification of Germany.

(ii) Austro-Prussian War in 1866: In 1866 relations between Austria and Prussia worsened over the control of Schleswig-Holstein. However, the real concern was to emerge as the dominant force in Germany. Bismarck provoked quarrels with the Austrians to gain supremacy in Germany. He tactfully secured Italian support and French neutrality. Prussian troops occupied Holstein and the “Seven Weeks War” broke out between Prussia and Austria. During the Seven Weeks War (1866) Austria was totally crushed by Prussian forces at the Battle of Sadowa, and was completely removed from any role in German affairs. An extraordinary lenient treaty “The Treaty of Prague” was signed to expel Austria from the German Confederation so that Austria did not remain an enemy of Prussia. Prussia was now able to dominate the other German states without fear of Austrian intervention.

(iii) North German Confederation in 1866: After defeating Austria, Bismarck organised the North German Confederation in 1866. It was composed of Prussia and 17 small northern German states. It contained all German states. North of the Main River was successfully controlled by Prussia. The remaining German states were eventually forced to join, including Bavaria, Württemberg, Baden and Hesse-Darmstadt. Bismarck was now ready to take on France.

(iv) Franco-Prussian War in 1870-71: To complete German unification Bismarck had to deal with France. In 1870 Bismarck purposely created war with France. Bismarck suggested a German candidate’s name for the vacant Spanish throne. The hidden aim behind this move was to make the French emperor Napoleon III angry and declare war on Prussia and the North German Confederation. Prussia was completely victorious over France at the Battle of Sedan in 1870 and gained control over Alsace-Lorraine. For unification Bismarck followed ‘Blood and Iron’ policy. Thus, the long planned journey of German unification was completed in 1871 A.D.

Question 5. What changes did Napoleon introduce to make the administrative system more efficient in the territories ruled by him? Or Explain any three features of Napoleonic Code.

Answer 5  Though Napoleon was a dictator and was against democracy but he took certain measures to smoothly and proficiently run the administrative system.

(i) Napoleon reformed the French legal system because the old feudal and royal laws were very confusing and conflicting to the people.

(ii) The Napoleonic Code of 1804 was a major step in establishing the rule of law. This Code was exported to the regions under French control.

(iii) In countries like the Dutch Republic, Switzerland, Italy and Germany feudalism was abolished and peasants were freed from serfdom and manorial dues.

(iv) All privileges based on birth were taken away. The equality before the law was established and the right to property was secured.

(v) Transport and communication systems were also paid attention and were improved.

(vi) Low class people like peasants, artisans, workers and new businessmen were given more freedom.

(vii) Uniform laws were adopted for all. Be it a businessman and a small-scale producer of goods—all began to realise that uniform laws, standardised weights and measures, and a common national currency would facilitate the movement and exchange of goods and capital from one region to another.

DISCUSS

Question 1. Explain what is meant by the 1848 revolution of the liberals. What were the political, social and economic ideas supported by the liberals? Or Give the meaning of liberalism.

Answer 1 . The word ‘liberal’ is derived from the Latin word ‘liber’ that means ‘free’. Liberalism means a political system or tendency opposed to centralisation and absolutism. It emphasises on absolute and unrestrained freedom of thought, religion, conscience, creed, speech, press, and politics. Liberals believed that government is necessary to protect individuals from being harmed by others, not to pose a threat to liberty. In nineteenth century a series of republican revolts started against European monarchies. It began in Sicily and spread over to France, the German and Italian states, and the Austrian Empire. This was the time when the liberals became active. Their significant role in political and economic fields changed the outlook of European countries. In the economic field Liberals in the 19th century urged the end of state interference in the economic life of society. They fought for the freedom of markets and the abolition of stateimposed restrictions on the movement of goods and capital. In 1834, a customs union or zolverein 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 thirty to two. The construction of a network of railways stirred economic growth and economic nationalism which eventually strengthened nationalism. In the political field Primary aim of liberals was to establish freedom for the individual and equality of all before the law. It believed that government should be formed with the consent of people. It was against autocracy and clerical privileges and favoured a constitution and representative government through parliament. During that time property-owning men only had right to vote and get elected. The Napoleonic Code also preferred limited suffrage and reduced women’s role also. Women were considered as the subject to the authority of fathers and husbands. This led to the rise of movement by women and non-propertied men demanding equal political rights.

Question 2. Choose three examples to show the contribution of culture to the growth of nationalism in Europe. 

Answer 2 (i) Culture played a vital role in creating the idea of the nation: art and poetry, stories and music helped express and arouse nationalist feelings. Romantic artists and poets made deliberate efforts to create a sense of shared collective heritage, a common cultural past as the basis of a nation.

(ii) The German philosopher Johann Gottfried Herder stated that true German culture was to be discovered among the common people. It was through folk songs, folk poetry and folk dances that the true spirit of nation was popularised. So collecting and recording these forms of folk culture was essential to the project of nation-building. The French painter Delacroix depicted an incident through his painting in which 20,000 Greeks were assumed to have been killed by Turks. By dramatising the incident and focusing on the suffering of women and children Delacroix wanted to appeal to the emotions of the spectators and create sympathy for the Greeks. Karol Kurpinski celebrated the national struggle through his operas and music, turning folk dances like the polonaise and mazurka into nationalist symbols.

(iii) Language played an important role in developing nationalist sentiments. Regional languages had always been an obstacle in the unification of a country. To overcome it, a common national language was adopted. The Polish language was forced out of schools and the Russian language was made obligatory everywhere.

(iv) In 1831, an armed rebellion against Russian rule took place but it was crushed. After the failure of this rebellion, members of the clergy in Poland began to use language as a weapon of national resistance. Polish became a common language in church gatherings and all religious instruction. As a result, several priests and bishops were put in jail by the Russian authorities as punishment for their refusal to preach in Russian. The use of Polish came to be seen as a symbol of the struggle against Russian dominance.

Question 3. Through a focus on any two countries, explain how nations developed over the nineteenth century?

Answer 3 The development of the German and Italian nation-states in the nineteenth century.

1) Unification of Germany with the help of army: In 1848, an attempt was made to unite different regions of the German confederation into a nation state governed by an elected parliament. It took a long time to unite Germany into one country and the credit goes to Bismarck. He fought three wars to unify Germany. The 1864 Danish War helped Bismarck strengthen his internal position in Prussia. Bismarck provoked quarrels with the Austrians to gain supremacy in Germany. He tactfully secured Italian support and French neutrality. During the Seven Weeks War (1866) Austria was totally crushed by Prussian forces at the Battle of Sadowa, and was completely removed from any role in German affairs. After defeating Austria, Bismarck organised the North German Confederation in 1866. It was composed of Prussia and 17 small northern German states. It contained all German states. North of the Main River was successfully controlled by Prussia. The remaining German states were eventually forced to join.

2) An event that mobilised nationalist feelings among the educated elite across Europe was the Greek war of independence. Greece had been part of the Ottoman Empire since the fifteenth century. The growth of revolutionary nationalism in Europe sparked off a struggle for independence amongst the Greeks which began in 1821. Nationalists in Greece got support from other Greeks living in exile and also from many West Europeans who had sympathies for ancient Greek culture.Chief Minister Cavour who led the movement to unify the regions of Italy was neither a revolutionary nor a democrat. Like many other wealthy and educated members of the Italian elite, he spoke French much better than he did Italian. Through a tactful diplomatic alliance with France engineered by Cavour, Sardinia-Piedmont succeeded in defeating the Austrian forces in 1859. Apart from regular troops, a large number of armed volunteers under the leadership of Giuseppe Garibaldi joined the fray.Giuseppe Mazzini was born in Genoa in 1807, and he became a member of the secret society of the Carbonari. As a young man of 24, 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. Mazzini believed that God had intended nations to be the natural units of mankind.

Question 4. How was the history of nationalism in Britain unlike the rest of Europe?

Answer 4 . Before the eighteenth century there was no British nation. The people of different identities lived in the British Isles and were called ethnic ones. The ethnic group comprised of English, Welsh, Scot or Irish. These groups had their own cultural and political traditions. But when slowly and steadily the influence and power of English nation grew in, it extended its influence over the other nations of the islands. The Act of Union of 1707 between England and Scotland resulted in the formation of the ‘United Kingdom of Great Britain’. This gave power to England to impose its influence on Scotland. The British parliament was henceforth dominated by its English members. This led to the demolition of Scotland’s distinctive culture and political institutions. The Catholic clans that inhabited the Scottish Highlands suffered terrible repression whenever they attempted to assert their independence. The Scottish Highlanders were forbidden to speak their Gaelic language or wear their national dress, and large numbers were forcibly driven out of their homeland. The condition of Ireland was not different from Scotland. The country was divided between Catholics and Protestants. The English helped the Protestants of Ireland to establish their supremacy over Catholics. Catholics revolted but were soon suppressed and Ireland was forcibly included into the United Kingdom in 1801. This amalgamation led to the growth of new, powerful nation ‘British nation’. The symbols of the new Britain like the British flag (Union Jack), the national anthem (God Save Our Noble King), the English language were actively promoted.In the light of the above, we can say that the history of nationalism in Britain was completely unlike the rest of Europe.

Question 5. Why did nationalist tensions emerge in the Balkans? 

Answer 5 . The Balkans consisted of regions of modern day Romania, Bulgaria, Albania, Greece, Macedonia, Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Slovenia, Serbia and Montenegro and their inhabitants were broadly known as Slavs. When the Ottoman Empire collapsed, it initiated nationalism in the Balkans states. Soon the feeling of nationalism spread and the situation became very unstable. The Ottoman Empire tried to control the situation by strengthening itself through modernisation and internal reforms but in vain. Gradually, its European nations got separated and fought for independence and political rights. In the race to expand their territories and to impose their supremacy on each other, Slavic nationalities quickly got into severe clashes. As a result, the Balkan area became an area of intense conflict. Matters were further worsened because the Balkans also became the scene of big power rivalry. During this period, there was intense rivalry among the European powers over trade and colonies as well as naval and military might. These rivalries were very evident in the way the Balkan problem unfolded. Each power—Russia, Germany, England, Austria, Hungary was keen on countering the hold of other powers over the Balkans, and extending its own control over the area. This led to a series of wars in the region.