The age of revolutions 1815-1848, notes

The age of revolutions 1815-1848
-Chapter 4 Miller-


Introduction
The absence of wars between 1815-48, was compensated for and partly explained by, the high level of domestic disturbances
Since 1848 there have been few instances of spontaneous revolutions in Europe

4.1 Theories of revolutions

Broadly, there are 2 factors that start a revolution and which may also explain the degree of interconnection between revolutions



A Opposition to the established authorities
This may arise from:

1) The impetus (momentum) and pursuit of ideals. In the 1820-1840, a variety of causes involved a challenge to authority:
- Romanticism- the ‘spirit of change’
- Nationalism- which was undergoing a change of definition
- Liberalism – constitutionalism and democracy
- Socialism – utopian or scientific forms


2) The vulnerability (weakness) of the establishment

Simple disturbances were caused by the authorities themselves, this depends upon:

The availability of adequate forces to abort revolution.
The willingness of the government to act decisively.



4.2 Romanticism

The romantics were NEVER a political party, but romanticism had political implications although it is associated with music and arts.
It was a protest movement.
It emphasized the importance of human passion and imagination to creativity rather than science, which dominated the 1700 talets philosophy




a) The Return of God

· The Age of Reason meant that the Christians distanced from God
· But because of Romanticism, the century became a revival in Catholicism àpolitical repercussions

b) Glorification of individuality
· Action was valued more than thought and reason

c) An unfolding pattern of history
· Because of God’s will, supermen like Napoleon made actions which created a close sense of community within the nations

d) The excellence of diversity
· Leaders took usage of cultural quality, like language and for instance, strived after unification (e.g. Italy)à against absolutist repression by multinational empires

4.3 Nationalism

· Nation and nationalism can mean different things at different times, it can be radical or conservative

a) Political definition of nationalism
· Before 1789, the ‘nation was simply the ruling political class’
· The French revolution gave the wider community sharing polunalitical rights

b) Cultural definition of nationalism
· Languages and cultures were a growing tendency to see nationalism in terms of ethnic features à effects on old multinational empires

c) the significance of nationalism in 1848
· the strength of nationalist feeling was exaggerated by 1800 talets historians
· National unity was essential for the achievement of the economic and political modernization
· Nationalism and Liberalism were therefore linked

4.4 Liberalism

The rights of the individual citizen to pursue and protect his own interests.
There were different varieties:

1) Constitutionalism
- A guarantee of individual liberties and rights as a basic restriction on the government and other individuals
- A constitution à varies on different areas

2) Democracy
- Democracy is based on the principle of equal rights for all citizens
- State intervention, to defend the poor against the rich
- The constitution could be seen as a check against plundering democratic majorities as well as over powerful monarchs

4.5 Socialism

a) Saint Simon and the maximization of production

· Saint Simon, ex – army officer, reduced to secretarial
- looked to a more equal society
- increased productivity by eliminating wasteful competition
- the elimination of parasitic non productive classes
- abolition of inheritance to stimulate work

b) Utopian socialism
· Establishment of small scale cooperative units of industrial and agricultural workers à property is theft
· State sponsored cooperatives à end capitalism creating cooperative national workshops

c) Scientific Socialism
· The utopians thought in socialism in small terms
· Karl Max, adopted the idea of and improved it with advanced industrialization and with logical historical analysis:
- Economic production is the main determinant of the nature of society
- The dominant economic class always controls the state in its own interest
- With economic development, new classes emerge and then strive with the old to gain powerà challenge
- Class conflict would cease?

d) The role of socialism in the revolution 1820-48.
· Had limited influence in Germany and France because:
- The distraction of republicanism in France
- The absence of concentrated pockets of working class solidarity
- The artisans and tradesman in the small workshops, were susceptible to utopian socialism because of their comparable situation

4.6 Communications

a) Increased circulation of pamphlets and newspaper
b) Limited literacy àcirculation was restricted to the middle classes and artisans

4.7 This great and dangerous plot

a) Internal divisions between conspirators
E.g. Carbonarià secret societies of intellectuals and activists are weak to internal rivalries

c) The absence of internal unity


4.8 Social theories

Europe was subject to intense social and economic change, because
- a peasantry trapped in the new capitalist economy
- a demoralized working class
- an ambitious but frustrated middle class

4.9 Peasantry

rural interests were still predominant in central and Eastern Europe , only in Britain did industrial workers make up 25%of the population
the east system was feudal landlord power and serfdom
semi feudal and serfdom still prevailed in eastern Germany, Habsburg, Russia, Danube provinces of Moldavia and Wallachia
The peasantry were vulnerable (weak) to powerful long terms trends

a) Population pressure
· The European population grew enormously from 187 to 266 million in 1850. This together with inefficient farming techniques the result was rural poverty and migration to the cities

b) the decline of rural manufacturing

c) Commercialism
There was a lot of competition within the agriculture. àThe bigger farmer absorbing the holdings of weaker neighbors was likely to survive
Rural unrest was normalàin 1846 some Polish noblemen were killed in a peasant revolt

4.10 The laboring and dangerous classes

The cities were the storm centers of the revolutions
Towns played a key role in this proto-industrial phase of European economic history
There were at least 3 working classes:

The factory proletariat (factories and mines)- a small number, relatively high wages, illiteracy and dialect which made communication difficult
The Lumpen proletariat-criminal elements were growing in numbers, but too busy surviving to be revolutionary
The Artisans- the traditional craftsmen (weavers, metal workers in small workshops), they were the main factor in the revolution
The new factories and mechanization threatened them with redundancy (arbetslöshet)
They were attracted by socialism and had tradition of self defense by political activity




4.11 The middle classes

The new middle classes sought to break the discrimination which deprived them from the vote
In France only 25% of the adult middle class had a vote in 1948 and the situation was worse elsewhere
European bureaucracies and officer corps were still dominated by the aristocracy

a) the business and financial class
· these groups had to lose too much from disorder and wanted to be accepted by the ‘establishment’ rather than overthrow it, on the other hand they:
- wanted specific reforms such as free trade and an improved financial system
- to view of a breakdown in order might force them to take action in self defense if the regime proved unreliable

b) the intelligentsia
academics, doctors, lawyers, and officials were very political and tended to speak for the middle classes:
- education: Unlike businessmen, they were high-educated and been exposed to radical ideas
- repression- they were a subject to police restrictions, repression and censorship
- Frustration- by the 1840’s they were more high educated-people than jobs for them. Opportunities were limitated. They were not total revolutionaries; they wanted greater opportunities but also to maintain order as well.

4.12 Weakness at the top

The regimes lacked adequate forces and proper anti riot provision
The real problem was a lack of will to use force in the right amount at the right time
- unpreparednessàthe outbreaks were often unexpected
- Moldering buildingsàdisunity among the big powers and their leaders incapable of doing a good job because of personal reasons like age.
- Pessimismà

4.13 The accelerator

In 1848 few expected or wished a revolution
The key factor in 1848 was the coincidence between a severe economic and social crisis and political difficulties
Intensified social tension and aggravated differences within the elite set against unresponsive regimes which were unwilling or unable to maintain order or deal with the causes resulted in political mobilization
Special incidents:

a) Economic crisis
· In some places the grain price went up with 50 % and potato 100%. These affected different groups in different ways:
- an increased cost of living for the poorer classes in town and country, who already had very low living standards
- reduced demand for manufactured goods-
- the contraction of credit- credit was reduced by the use of bullion to pay for grain imports, rising interests rates and the withdrawal of British capital

b) Social tension
Deteriorating social conditions, rising death rates, increased crime, prostitution. Europe’s society was practically in ruins

c) Political mobilization
The situation (1848) was beginning to improve and more action was expected from the government than they were prepared to take. The worse was when the middle class became involved, conscious of the government’s mistakes. They did so to exploit the situation in their own interest
Their main objective was modernization on the British model.
This resulted with some sort of constitution which guaranteed individual rights
They usually opposed democracy, because they did not want to lose power
It results: deepening loss of confidence in government and the breakdown of political systems

Conclusion

In Britain in 1948 the disturbances amounted to the Chartist demonstration at Kennington Common. There was no revolution
A flexible constitution broke the opposition (middle class mostly)
Sir Robert Peel’s economic reforms in the 1840’s stimulated growth and retarded price increases