1848The Year of Revolutions

WHAT HAPPENED IN 1848 The people across

Europe (and other places) revolted and attempted to overthrow their governments or initiate major reform

Revolutions occurred in more than 50 countries

STOP! Say something . . .

WHY DID THIS HAPPEN?1. Urban Workers: the working class,

toiling in the factories, were extremely unhappy

Their working and living conditions were awful and they demanded change

Angered by the massive divide between rich and poor

WHY DID THIS HAPPEN?2. The Countryside: Population growth from

industrialization had led to food shortages

1845 and 1846 saw a Potato Blight and starvation across Northern Europe (The years of the Irish potato Famine)

Farmers were upset as nobles tried to re-establish their dominance after the French Revolution

WHY DID THIS HAPPEN?3. The Impact of Ideas The French Revolution had

spread ideas throughout Europe

Also, with a more educated population, the works of 19th century philosophers were being read and discussed

The Big ideas . . . . Liberalism!Nationalism!Democracy!Socialism!

In February 1848, Karl Marx published his “Communist Manifesto”

IT SAYS, I SAY AND SO . . .A Quote from 1848 . . .

“Society was cut in two:

those who had nothing united in common envy,

and those who had anything united in common terror."

FRANCE Louis Philippe

was replaced in France by a democratic government

However, within four years Louis Napoleon returned France to monarchy

THE GERMAN CONFEDERATION After Napoleon, Germany

was divided in 39 states . .. Most of which experienced revolution

The revolutions were fueled by Nationalism and Freedom of Speech concerns

However, the Working Class and Middle Class could not come together to form functioning governments

By the end of the year, conservative forces had re-established all of the German princes

AUSTRIA The Austrian Empire was hit hardest by

Revolution Each of the different races within Austria

rose up in nationalist revolutions (Romanians, Italians, Czechs, Slovaks, Serbs, Poles, Ukrainians etc.)

The largest group was the Hungarians, the demonstrations were so large that they were promised a constitution and an elected parliament

Metternich was forced to resign! However, with help from Russian troops, the

Austrians managed to crush each of these rebellions and bring Hungary back under control

However, the passive aggressive actions of Hungary in future years led to a compromise . . . The Formation of the Austria-Hungarians Empire. Hungary was given special privileges within the Empire (1867)

ELSEWHERE Denmark Switzerland Poland Ukraine Brazil And many

others!

THE FINAL RESULT Although 1848 was the most turbulent

year in History – very little was actually accomplished

None of the Revolutions had any lasting success

Ultimately, the forces of the Old Regimes all re-established themselves and the most of the people of Europe were still desperate for freedom!

WHAT’S THE POINT? Why do we bother talking about this? Let’s think about it . . . If you were a

European leader and you experienced this, what would you do know?

The repression of the congress system had clearly failed

You don’t want to go through this again!

In groups, please discuss strategies that you might employ to create a lasting peace and stability.