Euro History Essay Example

Euro History Essay The Age of Napoleon and the Triumph of Romanticism 1. The of Napoleon Bonaparte a. The chief threat to the Directory came form royalists who hoped to restore the Bourbon monarchy by legal means. Many of the emigres had returned to France and their plans for a restoration drew support from devout Catholics and from citizens disgusted from the outcome of the revoulution. Monarchy promised stability. b. The spring elections of 1797 replaced most incumbents with constitutional monarchists, giving them a majority in the national legislature.At the request of the Directors, Napoleon Bonaparte, the general in charge of the French invasion of Italy, had sent a subordinate to Paris to guarantee the success of the coup. 2. Early Victories of Napoleon c. Napoleon’s invasion of Italy was aimed towards depriving Austria of its rich Northern-Italian province of Lombardy. Napoleon was able to crush the Austrian and Sardinian armies. This skirmish was concluded with the Treaty of Campo Formio in Oct. 1797. This took Austria out of the war and crowned Napoleon’s campaign with success, allowing France to control all of Italy and Switzerland. . In November 1797, Napoleon returned home to confront France’s only remaining enemy, Britain. Instead of crossing the channel and invading Britain directly, Napoleon instead decided to attack Egypt from the Ottoman Empire. i. Napoleon easily overran Egypt, but the invasion was a failure because the French fleet was destroyed in 1798, cutting off the army form France. The Ottoman, Russians, Austrians, and British joined together to create the Second Coalition Against France in 1799 and the Russians and Austrians retook Italy and Switzerland from French control. 3.The Constitution of the Year VIII e. A new constitution was proposed by Abbe Sieyes. He wanted an executive body independent of the whims of electoral politics, a government based on the principle of â€Å"confidence form below, power from above. † ii. To do this, another coup would be necessary and Napoleon returned home to join with Abbe. The troops were able to ensure the success of the coup. iii. The proposed constitution divided executive authority among three consuls. Napoleon quickly pushed Sieyes aside and issued the Constitution of the Year VIII. iv.The new constitution established the rule of one man, the First Consul, Napoleon Bonaparte. v. He was the first modern political figure to use the rhetoric of revolution and nationalism, to back it with military force, and to combine these elements into a mighty weapon of imperial expansion in the service of his own power. 4. The Consulate in France (1799-1804) f. The Consulate ended the Revolution in France. The Third Estate had abolished hereditary privilege, and the careers thus opened to talent allowed them to achieve wealth, status and security for their property.Napoleon offered security for those of the wealthy upper Third Estate. vi. The voters approved his constitution. 5. Suppressing Foreign Enemies and Domestic Opposition g. Napoleon justified the public’s confidence in himself by making peace with France’s enemies. Russia had already left the Second Coalition. A campaign in Italy brought another victory over Austria in 1800. vii. The Treaty of Luneville took Austria out of the war. Britain was now alone and in 1802, the Treaty of Amiens brought peace to Europe. viii. Napoleon restored peace at home by using flattery and bribery to win over his enemies.He required that they be loyal to him and no more. Napoleon ruthlessly suppressed any opposition. ix. Napoleon established a centralized administration, employed a secret police and stamped out the royalist rebellion in the west. x. An attack on his life gave Napoleon an excuse to persecute the Jacobins. He also violated the sovereignty of the German state of Baden to seize and execute the Bourbon duke of Enghien. 6. Concordat with the Roman Catholic Church h. When the French armies invaded Italy, they had driven Pope Pius VI from Rome, and he eventually died in exile in France.Napoleon concluded a concordat with Pope Pius VII. This agreement required both the refractory clergy and those who had accepted the revolution to resign. i. It also declared that Catholicism is the religion of the great majority of French citizens. The clergy had to swear loyalty to the state. The Organic Articles of 1802 established the supremacy of state over the Church. 7. The Napoleonic Code j. In 1802, a plebiscite ratified Napoleon as consul for life, and he soon produced another constitution that granted him what amounted to full power.The Civil Code of 1804 was made to reform and codify French law. xi. The code safeguarded all forms of property and all the privileges based on birth that the revolution had overthrown remained abolished. xii. The conservative attitudes toward labor and women received full support. Workers’ organizations remained forbidden, and workers had f ewer rights than their employers. xiii. Property was distributed amongst all children rather than the eldest child receiving all of the land. Divorce remained more difficult for women than men and early on, code differed from region to region. . Establishing a Dynasty k. Napoleon tried to make himself emperor. He argued that establishing a dynasty would make the new regime secure and make further attempts on his life useless. Napoleon later became the Emperor of the French. 9. Napoleon’s Empire (1804-1814) l. Everywhere, Napoleon’s advance unleashed the powerful force of nationalism. Napoleon could put 700,000 men under arms at one time, risk 100,000 troops in a battle, endure heavy loses, and fight again. 10. Conquering an Empire m. The Peace of Amiens between France and Britain was merely a truce.Napoleon sent an army to restore the rebellious colony of Haiti to French rule. This moved roused British suspicions and fear that Napoleon was planning a new French empire in the Americas, because Spain had recently restored Louisiana to French rule. n. Britain declared war in May 1803. William Pitt returned to the position of Prime Minister in 1804 and began to instruct the Third Coalition. By August 1805, he had persuaded Russia and Austria to join. On Oct. 21, 1805, Lord Nelson destroyed both Spanish and French vessels at the Battle of Trafalgar, winning the battle and losing no ships.Lord Nelson died during battle. This battle ensured that the French would not be invading England and it guaranteed England sea power throughout the whole war. o. In mid-October Napoleon forced an Austrian army to surrender at Ulm and occupied Vienna. On December 2, 1805, Napoleon defeated the combined Austrian and Russian forces at Austerlitz. The Treaty of Pressburg that followed won major concessions from Austria. The Austrians withdrew form Italy and allowed Napoleon of everything North of Rome. xiv. Napoleon made political changes in Germany.In July 1806, he orga nized the Confederation of the Rhine, which included most of the Western German princes. Their withdrawal form the H. R. E led Francis II to dissolve that ancient political body and henceforth, call himself Emperor Francis I of Austria. xv. Prussia also went to war on France. Napoleon’s army quickly crushed the famous Prussian army at Jena and Auerstadt on October 14, 1806. On November 21, he issued the Berlin Decrees, forbidding his allies form importing British goods. On June 13, 1807, Napoleon defeated the Russians at Friedland and occupied East Prussia. p.Tsar Alexander was ready to make peace. He and Napoleon met on a raft in the Niemen River while two armies and the King of Prussia waited on the bank. On July 7, 1807, they signed the Treaty of Tilsit, which confirmed France’s gains. Prussia lost half of its territories. Prussia openly and Russia secretly became allies with Napoleon. xvi. Members of Napoleon’s family governed important areas and territories . 11. The Continental System q. Napoleon knew that he must defeat the British before he felt safe. He continued the economic warfare the Berlin Decrees had begun, because he couldn’t face them on the seas. vii. Despite initial drops in exports and domestic unrest, the British economy survived. British control of the seas assured access to the growing markets of North and South America and of the Mediterranean. xviii. The Continental System badly hurt the economies of Europe. Napoleon rejected advice to turn his empire into a free-trade area. Instead, his tariff policies favored France, increased the resentment of foreign merchants, and made people more ready to engage in smuggling. r. European Response to the Empire xix. Feudal privileges disappeared and the peasants were freed from serfdom and manorial dues.In the towns, the guilds and local monarchies were dissolved and the established churches lost their independence and were made subordinate to the state. 12. German Natio nalism and Prussian Reform s. Many German intellectuals began to urge resistance to Napoleon on the basis of German nationalism. Many nationalists also criticized the German princes, who ruled selfishly and ineffectively and seemed ready to lick Napoleon’s boots. Many Germans sought to fix their problems by creating one, unified German state. t. Although they seemed defeated, Prussia still attempted to resist.The Prussian administrative and social reforms were the work of Baron vom Stein and Prince von Hardenburg. Neither intended to take power away from the nobles and Junkers. These reforms brought great changes in Prussian society. Stein’s work broke the Junker monopoly of land and abolished serfdom. Although it was abolished, Junkers ensured that vestiges of the system survived. Former serfs were set free, bit others stayed and continued to partake in manorial labor. The Junker holdings grew to the manorial lands given to the peasants. u. Military reforms sought to increase the supply of soldiers.Jena showed that an army of free patriots commanded by officers chosen on merit and not by birth could defeat an army of serfs and mercenaries commanded by incompetent nobles. The reformers also abolished inhumane military punishments, sought to inspire patriotic feelings in the soldiers, and gave promotions based on merit. v. These reforms enabled Prussia to regain its former power. Napoleon’s army= 42,000 men. Prussian army=270,000 men. 13. The Wars of Liberation w. Spain xx. The Spanish peasants were devoted to the ruling dynasty and especially to the Roman Catholic Church.France and Spain had been allies since 1796. Napoleon sent an army to Portugal to force them to abandon its traditional alliance with Britain. The army stayed in Spain, and used a revolt in Madrid as pretext to dispose of the Spanish Bourbons. Napoleon’s plan was to put his brother on the throne. Attacks on the privileges of the church increased public outrage. 1. T hese problems caused the peasants to rebel. 2. Guerilla bands cut lines of communication, killed stragglers, destroyed isolated units, and then disappeared into the mountains. Britain sent an army as well, beginning a ong peninsular war that would drain French strength from elsewhere in Europe. x. Austria xxi. The Austrians counted on Napoleon’s distraction in Spain, French war weariness, and aid from other German princes. The German princes did nothing, for Napoleon was in charge. The French army swiftly marched into Austria and won the Battle of Wagram. The Peace of Schonbrunn deprived Austria of much land and 3. 5 million subjects. Napoleon married the Austrian archduchess Marie Louise, for his wife who was 46 years old bore no child. Napoleon then divorced his wife Josephine and married the 18 year old archduchess. 4. The Invasion of Russia y. Russian nobles disliked the alliance because of the liberal policies of France and because of the Continental System prohibited ti mber sales to Britain. Napoleon gave the Russians no help in taking Constantinople from the Ottoman Empire. At the end of 1810, Napoleon withdrew from the Continental System and began to prepare for war. z. Napoleon amassed an army of more than 600,000 men, including a core of Frenchmen and 400,000 soldiers from other parts of his empire. The Russians retreated, for they only had an army of 160,00 troops, not enough to battle Napoleon.They decided to follow a â€Å"scorched earth† policy, burning everything in their frantic wake. Napoleon’s army could not live off of the land. xxii. Rain, heat and food and water shortages eroded at the morale of the army and Napoleon was urged to retreat. {. In September 1812, Russian public opinion forced the army to give Napoleon the battle he wanted despite the Russian general Mikhail Kutuzov’s wish to let the invader brave the Russian winter. The Battle of Borodino claimed 30,00 French lives and 60,000 Russian lives, yet it was regarded as a loss for Napoleon because he gained nothing at all. xiii. The Russians set fire to the city of Moscow and Napoleon eventually took the city. His armies were diminished and winter was about to fall upon Russia, so Napoleon attempted to make peace with Alexander, but he refused. By October, all that was left of Napoleon’s army was forced to retreat. Napoleon realized that this ordeal put him in danger at home. He returned with only 100,000 of the original 600,00 men. 15. European Coalition |. Napoleon was able to put down his opponents in Paris and gather another army of 350,000 men.Napoleon would not consider peace with Austria although Austria was ready to accept it. }. In 1813, patriotic pressure and national ambition brought together the last and most powerful coalition against France. The Russians drove westward and Prussia and Austria soon joined them. Vast amounts of British money supported them. Spain marched an army into France and Napoleon’s w orn-out, inexperienced and poorly equipped army could not hold out. The generals were tired and defeat was unavoidable. Still, Napoleon waged a skillful campaign in central Europe and defeated the allies at Dresden.The combined armies at Leipzig defeated Napoleon in October at the Battle of the Nations. Allied armies marched into Paris in March 1814, and Napoleon went into exile in Elba. 16. The Congress of Vienna and the European Settlement ~. Fear of Napoleon and hostility to his ambitions had held the coalition together. As soon as he was removed, each nation pursued their separate ambitions. Robert Stewart, British foreign secretary, helped achieve an agreement between the states. He brought about the signing of the Treaty of Chaumont on March 9, 1814.It restored the Bourbons to the French throne and the contracted France to its frontiers of 1792. Britain, Austria, Prussia and Russia agreed to for a Quadruple Alliance for 20 years. 17. Territorial Adjustments . The Congress of Vienna gathered in September 1814, but did not conclude its work until November 1815. The 4 great powers conducted the important work of the conference. All the victors agreed that no single state should be allowed to dominate Europe and all were determined to prevent France from doing so again. The restoration of the Bourbons was meant to keep France calm and safe. The powers also strengthened the states around France’s borders to serve as barriers to renewed French expansion. They established the kingdom of Netherlands. Prussia was given important new territories along the Rhine River to deter French aggression in the West. Austria gained full control over Northern Italy. The H. R. E was not revived and as for Germany, most of Napoleon’s territorial holdings were left untouched. . Alexander I of Russia wanted all of Poland under his rule and Prussia was willing to it to them for all of Saxony, which allied with Napoleon.Austria didn’t allow the surrender of Po land for fear that Russia would penetrate deeper into Europe and Prussia would gain more power. 18. The Hundred Days and the Quadruple Alliance . Napoleon’s return from Alba on March 1, 1815, further united the victors. The French army was still loyal to Napoleon and many people still preferred his rule to that of the Bourbons. The coalition was diminishing, so Napoleon escaped to France and retook all power. He declared a liberal constitution and promised a peaceful foreign policy. They declared Napoleon an outlaw and sent their armies to crush him.Napoleon was defeated at Waterloo in Belgium on June 18, 1815. Napoleon was again exiled to Saint Helena where he died in 1821. . The Hundred Days frightened the great powers and made the peace settlement harsher for France. The victors imposed an army of occupation on the French. Alexander proposed a Holy Alliance, in where the monarchs promised to act in accordance with Christian Principles. . England, Austria, Prussia and Russi a renewed the Quadruple Alliance on November 20, 1815 and this time, the powers were determined to prevent war.The chief aims of the Congress of Vienna were to prevent a recurrence of the Napoleonic nightmare and to maintain peace. They aimed to establish a framework for stability, not to punish France. . The nations established a new legal framework whereby treaties were made between monarchs. The European leaders had come to calculate the nature of political and economic powers. 19. The Romantic Movement . Romanticism was a reaction against much of the thought of the Enlightenment. Writers and artists saw the imagination or such intuitive intellectual faculty supplementing reason as a means to perceive and understand the world.Many encouraged a revival of Christianity in all of Europe. Romantics liked the art, literature and architecture of medieval times. 20. Rousseau and Education . Rousseau shared in many of the enlightened ideas, but he also opposed many of its facets. His con viction that society and material prosperity had corrupted human nature profoundly influenced Romantic writers. In his novel Emile, Rousseau set forth his view on how the individual could develop to lead a good and happy life uncorrupted by society. xxiv.In Emile, Rousseau stressed the difference between children and adults. He distinguished the stages of maturation and urged that children should be raised with the maximum amount of freedom. Each child should be able to grow freely and to learn by trial and error what reality is like and how to deal with it. The parent or teacher would only be there to provide the child with the necessities of life and to keep them from harm. xxv. Rousseau also though that adults should allow the child’s sentiments, as well as he or she’s reason, to flourish. 21. Kant and Reason Immanuel Kant wrote the two greatest philosophical writings of the late 18th century: The Critique of Pure Reason and The Critique of Practical Reason. He soug ht to accept the rationalism of the Enlightenment and to still preserve a belief in human freedom, immortality and the existence of God. For Kant, the human mind does not simply reflect the world around it like a passive mirror; rather, it actively imposes on the world of sensory experience. In other words, the mind perceives the world as it does because of its own internal mental categories. Kant found the sphere of reality that was accessible to pure reason. Kant believed that beyond reality there was a â€Å"noumenal† world. This world is a sphere of moral and aesthetic reality known by â€Å"practical reason† and conscience. He also believed that humans possess an innate sense of moral duty or awareness, which he called categorical imperative. Kant postulated the existence of God, eternal life, and future rewards and punishments. 22. Romantic Literature . The word Romantic was used to describe literature that neoclassical writers considered unreal, sentimental or e xcessively fanciful.In England and Germany, the term came to be applied to all literature that did not observe classical forms and rules and gave free play to the imagination. Wilhelm von Schlegel wrote Lectures on Dramatic Art and Literature. 23. English Romantic Writers . The English Romantics believed poetry was enhanced by freely following the creative impulses of the mind. These ideas opposed that of Locke. . Wordsworth and Coleridge published Lyrical Ballads together in 1798 as a manifesto of a new poetry that rejected the rules of 18th century criticism. Many Romantic writers and poets disliked and distrusted Lord Byron. He rejected the old traditions and championed the cause of personal liberty. Byron wrote Don Juan. 24. The German Romantic Writers . Romantic novels were highly sentimental and borrowed material from medieval romances. The characters were treated as symbols of the larger truth of life. xxvi. Friedrich Schlegel wrote the progressive early Romantic novel Lucind e that attacked prejudices against women as capable of being little more than lovers and domestics.His novel reveals the ability of Romantics to become involved in the social issues of their day. xxvii. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe towered above all other German writers. As the greatest German writer f modern times, Goethe defies easy classification. Goethe wrote both The Sorrows of Young Werther and Faust. 25. The Cult of the Middle Ages and Neo-Gothicism . Constable and other Romantics tended to idealize rural life because they believed it was connected to the medieval past and was opposed to the increasingly urban, industrializing, commercial society that was developing around them. 26.Nature and the Sublime . Romantic artists also sought to portray nature in all of its majestic power as no previous generation of European artists had ever done. The artists were drawn toward the mysterious and unruly side of nature rather than toward the rational Newtonian. Their works often sought to portray that they and others termed the sublime. The sublime: subjects from nature that aroused strong emotions, such as fear, dread, and awe, and raised questions about whether and how much we control our lives. . Romantics saw nature as a set of infinite forces that overwhelmed the smallness of humankind. 7. Religion in the Romantic Period . During the Middle Ages, the foundation of religion had been the authority of the church. The Romantic thinkers sought the foundations of religion in the inner emotions of humankind. These thinkers also saw religious faith, experiences and institutions as central to human life. 28. Methodism . Methodism originated in the middle of the 18th century as a revolt against deism and rationalism in the Church of England. The Methodist revival formed an important part of the background of English Romanticism.In 1739, Wesley, the leader of the Methodist movement, began to preach in the open fields near the cities and towns. Methodist societies began to form and missionaries were sent overseas in their name. Methodism stressed inward, heartfelt religion and the possibility of Christian perfection in this life. 29. New Directions in Continental Religion . Against the Newtonian view of the world and of a rational God, the Romantics found God immanent in nature. 30. Herder and Culture . Romanticists glorified both the individual person and individual cultures.German Romantic writers went in search of their own past in reaction to the copying of French manners in 18th century Germany, the impact of the French revolution, and the imperialism of Napoleon. Herder saw human beings and societies as developing organically over time. Human beings were different at different times and places. Herder revived German folk culture by urging the collection and preservation of distinctive German songs and sayings. Herder opposed both the concept and the use of a common language as well as universal institutions. 31. Hegel and History Hegel is one of the most complicated and significant philosophers in the history of Western civilization. Hegel believed ideas develop in an evolutionary fashion that involves conflict. At any given time, a predominant set of ideas, which he termed thesis, holds sway. Conflicting ideas, termed antithesis, challenge the thesis. As these patterns of thought clash, a synthesis emerges that eventually becomes the new thesis. xxviii. Several important philosophical conclusions followed form this analysis. 3. The belief that all periods of history have been f almost equal value because each was, by definition, necessary to the achievements of those that came later. 4. Also, cultures are vulnerable because each contributes humankind to develop. 32. Islam, the Middle East, and Romanticism . The new religious, literary, and historical sensibilities of the Romantic period modified the European understanding of both Islam and the Arab world while at the same time preserving long-standing attitudes. In the 19th century, Islam was unfavorable in the political life. Also, other Romantic sensibilities induced Europeans to see Muslims in a positive fashion.The Romantic emphasis on the value of literature drawn from different cultures and ages allowed many 19th century European readers to enjoy Middle Eastern writing and stories. Mohammad caused Islam to be seen as a monotheistic faith rather than a polytheistic faith. Hegel believed that Islam had already played its role in history and that its role was now extinguished. Two cultural effects in the West of Napoleon’s invasion were an increase in the number of European visitors to the Middle East and a demand for architecture based on ancient Egyptian models.