European Politics, Late 19 th Century

1. European Politics, Late 19th Century 1850-1914

2. Criticism Re-established the Conservative Order Neglected Nationalism and Civil Liberties Destroyed the achievements of the French Revolution Legacy Condemned Slavery Created the “Concert of Europe” Similar to the League of Nations Created a Balance of Power Decades of lasting peace. Legacy of the Congress of Vienna

3. Crimean War, 1854-1856 • In 1853, Russia invaded Turkish territory in the Balkans • In 1854, France and Britain declared war on Russia • Austria remained neutral • War was badly planned by both sides, esp. Russia • After Nicholas I’s death, Czar Alexander II sued for peace • Treaty of Paris, 1856

4. Crimean War, 1854-1856 • The Crimean War destroyed the Concert of Europe • Austria and Russia became enemies • Russia withdrew from European affairs • Britain withdrew from European affairs • Austria became diplomatically isolated • Only Louis Napoleon and France gained prestige from the Crimean War • Louis Napoleon began to support national movements to make France the natural leader of free European states

5. France, 1850-1871 • From 1848 to 1851, Louis Napoleon worked to win the support of the people, the army, and the Catholic Church • Faced considerable opposition from the conservatives (royalists) in the National Assembly • Coup d’etat to restore universal male suffrage – December 1851 • 1852 Plebiscite – Napoleon III and the Second French Empire

6. France, 1850-1871 • Authoritarian government • Napoleon III controlled armed forces, police and civil service; only he could introduce legislation and declare war • Legislative Corps – universal male suffrage • 1852-1857 – Economic boom • Napoleon III invested in industrialization, transportation networks, social welfare programs, reconstructed Paris

7. France, 1850-1871 • Strong interest in public opinion • 1860s – “liberal empire” • Domestic problems: lower tariff, Panic of 1857, silkworm disease, plant lice • Trade unions were legalized; strikes allowed • Legislative Corps was granted more power; more freedom • 1870 Plebiscite – French people rejected parliamentary government • Foreign policies problems led to his downfall – Franco-Prussian War, 1870-1871

8. Napoleon III: Facelift for Paris

9. France, 1871-1914 • Franco-Prussian War brought an end to Napoleon III and the Second Empire in 1871 • Creation of the National Assembly and Paris Commune • Massacres in Paris, split between middle and working classes • Constitution of 1875 established the Third Republic, bicameral legislature • France failed to develop a strong parliamentary system because of the existence of a dozen political powers; need for coalitions • Between 1875 and 1914, there were more than 50 changes in the cabinet (executive ministers) • Third Republic was threatened by monarchists, the Catholic Church, and the Army

10. France, 1871-1914 • Two crises threatened the survival of the Third Republic in the 1880s and 1890s • General Georges Boulanger Affair, 1889 • Alfred Dreyfus Affair, 1895 • Radical republicans gained control of the government; army was purged • Church and state were officially separated in 1905 • Alienation of the French working classes remained a problem

11. Victorian England, 1850-1871 • Democratic reforms and continued economic growth prevented revolts in Britain • Exhibition of 1851 (Crystal Palace) • Queen Victoria (1837-1901) • Henry John Temple, Lord Palmerston (1855-1865) focused on foreign policy issues and opposed expanding the franchise

12. William Gladstone (Liberal) Benjamin Disraeli (Conservative) Conservatives vs. Liberals

13. Victorian England, 1850-1871 • Reform Act of 1867 lowered the monetary requirements for voting and enfranchised many male urban workers – 1 million to over 2 million voters • Industrial voters gave the Liberals a victory in 1868 • Both the Liberal and Conservative parties reorganized in order to manipulate the electorate • Gladstone’s first administration, 1868-1874 opened civil service positions to exams rather than patronage, dropped religious requirements for universities, established the secret ballot and abolished the practice of purchasing military positions (Spoils System v. Meritocracy) • Education Act of 1870 (Elementary Ed. For All) 5-13

14. Educational Standards: England 1872 • The following are the six Standards of Education contained in the Revised code of Regulations, 1872 STANDARD I • Reading One of the narratives next in order after monosyllables in an elementary reading book used in the school. • Writing Copy in manuscript character a line of print, and write from dictation a few common words. • Arithmetic Simple addition and subtraction of numbers of not more than four figures, and the multiplication table to multiplication by six. • STANDARD II • Reading A short paragraph from an elementary reading book. • Writing A sentence from the same book, slowly read once, and then dictated in single words. • Arithmetic The multiplication table, and any simple rule as far as short division (inclusive). • STANDARD III • Reading A short paragraph from a more advanced reading book. • Writing A sentence slowly dictated once by a few words at a time, from the same book. • Arithmetic Long division and compound rules (money). • STANDARD IV • Reading A few lines of poetry or prose, at the choice of the inspector. • Writing A sentence slowly dictated once, by a few words at a time, from a reading book, such as is used in the first class of the school. • Arithmetic Compound rules (common weights and measures). • STANDARD V • Reading A short ordinary paragraph in a newspaper, or other modern narrative. • Writing Another short ordinary paragraph in a newspaper, or other modern narrative, slowly dictated once by a few words at a time. • Arithmetic Practice and bills of parcels. • STANDARD VI • Reading To read with fluency and expression. • Writing A short theme or letter, or an easy paraphrase. • Arithmetic Proportion and fractions (vulgar and decimal).

15. Great Britain, 1871-1914 • Between 1874 and 1914, the Liberal and Conservative parties alternated in power at regular intervals • Growth of political democracy and expansion of suffrage • Reform Act of 1884 enfranchised all taxpayers • Redistribution Act of 1885 (Response to Demographics) • Parliamentary Act of 1911 • In 1911, members of the House of Commons began to get paid – more democratization of Parliament • Social legislation included giving trade unions the right to strike, limited work week (56 hours) • Living and working conditions had improved for industrial workers

16. Great Britain, 1871-1914 • Trade unions began to advocate more radical changes – socialism • Fabian Socialists • Neither advocated class struggle or revolution • Labour Party in 1900 • Liberal Party began a program of social welfare to keep support of the workers • David Lloyd George • National Insurance Act of 1911 • Workman’s compensation and pension laws; increased taxes on the wealthy • These were the first steps toward the British welfare state

17. Great Britain, 1871-1914 • Irish question – Act of Union, 1801 • Growth of nationalism • In 1869, Gladstone ended the domination of the Church of Ireland • Discontent over British land ownership gave rise to acts of terrorism • Land Act of 1881 was too late (Irish Want Home Rule) • Home Rule Act of 1914 • Problems in Northern Ireland – Ulster (A divided Province) • World War I diverted attention away from Irish problems • Dominion/Commonwealth statuses of Canada, Australia, and New Zealand • Between 1815 and 1914, Britain made the shift from classical liberalism (and laissez-faire) to political democracy and socialism

18. Cuchallain: Origins of The Fighting Irish • seanchai (pronounced: shanachie) Irish Story Tellers • He stood before the Druids in the Hall of Heroes and exclaimed "I care not whether I die tomorrow or next year, if only my deeds live after me". • "We were heart companions,We were companions in the woods,We were fellows of the same bed,Where we used to sleep the balmy sleep.After mortal battles abroad,In countries many and far distant,Together we used to practice, and goThrough each forest, learning with Scathach".

19. THE TOWN I LOVED SO WELL In my memory I will always see The town that I have loved so well Where our school played ball by the Gas-yard wall And we laughed through the smoke and the smell Going home in the rain, running up the dark lane Past the jail and down behind the fountain Those were happy days, in so many, many ways In the town I loved so well In the early morning the Shirt Factory horn Called women from Graigeen, The Moor and The Bog While the men on the dole played a mother's role Fed the children, and then walked the roads And when times got rough there was just about enough But they saw it through without complaining For deep inside was a burning pride For the town I love so well There was music there in the Derry air Like a language that we could all understand I remember the day, when I earned my first pay As I played in the samll pick-up band Then I spent my youth, and to tell you the truth I was sad to leave it all behind me For I'd learned about life and I'd found me a wife In the town I loved so well But when I returned, how my eyes were burned To see how a town could be brought to its knees By the armoured cars and the bombed out bars And the gas that hangs on to every breeze Now the Army's installed by the old Gas-yard wall And the damned barbed wire gets higher and higher With their tanks and guns, oh my God what have they done To the town I love so well Now the music's gone, but they still carry-on Though their spirit's gone, but never broken They will not forget for their hearts are all set On tomorrow, and peace once again For what's done is done, and what's won is won And what's lost is lost and gone forever I can only pray for a bright brand new day In the town I love so well

20. Spain, 1871-1914 • Both Spain and Italy had constitutional monarchies • Conservative social groups controlled both nations and both were still largely agricultural and characterized by sectionalism • Spanish-American War, 1898 • Teddy and The Rough Riders • Generation of 1898 • Violence erupted in 1909 when the working classes demanded reforms in Spain U.S.S. Maine

21. Unification of Italy, 1871 Count of Cavour Victor Emmanuel Garibaldi

22. Rise of Nationalism: Italian Unification 1. Rise of Romanticism and Nationalism 2. Mazzini and Garibaldi unify young republicans against Austria 3. Cavour (Prime Minister) and Victor Emmanuel King a. Piedmont or Sardinia conflict with Austrians b. Values economic unity v. romantic c. Creates alliance w/ France after assistance in Crimean War d. Austria is driven from Italy, Northern Provinces join Piedmont. e. Cavour v. Romantics (Garibaldi) move to unite Italy. f. Gradual Process from 1859-1870 g. In reality Italy was conquered h. Legacy of corruption and competition w/ Austria

23. Italy, 1871-1914 • Italy was divided by an agricultural South and industrial North • Pope Pius IX refused to recognize Italian sovereignty over Rome; Catholics were forbidden to vote in national elections • Between 1896 and 1914, northern Italy experienced rapid industrialization • Rise of a labor movement and the Italian Socialist party, 1892 • Universal male suffrage, 1912 • Extensive corruption and weak government • Giovanni Giolitti (1903-1914) • Problem of imperialistic pretensions (Ethiopia, 1896 & Libya, 1912)

24. Unification of Germany, 1871

25. The New Germany, 1871-1914 • German constitution provided for a federal system, bicameral legislature • Individual states kept their own kings • Bundesrat and Reichstag; universal male suffrage • Ministers of the government were only responsible to the emperor • Political democracy failed to develop in Germany before World War I • Otto von Bismarck and the army prevented democracy

26. The New Germany, 1871-1914 • The German (Prussian) army viewed itself as the defender of the monarchy • Strong Prussian military tradition • Most laws did not required parliamentary majority (except military appropriations bills) • Until 1878, Bismarck worked with the National Liberals • Kulturkampf – attack on the Catholicism in Germany • Center Party, 1870

27. The New Germany, 1871-1914 • In 1878, Bismarck allied himself with the Center Party and the Conservatives to persecute the socialists • Social Democratic Party, 1877 • Antisocialist laws – outlawed the party, meetings and publications • Social welfare legislation provided benefits, workmen’s compensation, and social security • Failed to stop the growth of socialism • Fired by the new emperor, William II in 1890

28. The New Germany, 1871-1914 • Kaiser William II (1888-1918) • By 1914, Germany was the strongest military and industrial power on the continent • By 1912, the Social Democrat Party was the single largest party in the Reichstag; revisionism • Conservatives and William II tried to block demands for more democracy by focusing on an aggressive foreign policy • Pan-German League and the growth of anti-Semitism

29. Austria, 1850-1871 • Emancipation of serfs, 1848 • All revolutionary constitutions were abolished and autocracy was re-imposed • Alexander von Bach • After Austria’s loss to France and Sardinia in 1859. Emperor Francis Joseph created the Reichsrat • After Austria’s loss to Prussia in 1866, the dual monarch of Austria-Hungary was created • Ausgleich, Compromise of 1867

30. Austria-Hungary, 1871-1914 • After a creation of a dual monarchy in 1867, Germans still dominated the government • Universal male suffrage, 1907 • Prime ministers frequently ignored the parliament and ruled by emergency decree • Increased German nationalism • Growth of Social Democrats and Christian Socialist parties • Karl Lueger and anti-Semitism in Vienna • Hungary also issues with different nationalities and worked for complete separation from Austria

31. Russia, 1850-1881 • After the defeat in the Crimean War, Czar Alexander II (1855-1881) turned his efforts to reforming Russia • On March 3, 1861, Alexander II emancipated Russia’s serfs • Benefits of emancipation were limited – mir (village commune) • In 1864, Alexander II created a system of zemstvos – local self-governments • Legal reforms of 1864 • Opposition arose against Alexander II; the People’s Will (anarchist group) assassinated Alexander II in 1881 • Czar Alexander III had no interest in reforms

32. Russia, 1881-1914 • Czar Alexander III created an oppressive government after his father’s assassination in 1881 • Czar Nicholas II (1894-1917) • Industrialization led by the government • Sergei Witte pushed the government toward massive railroad construction and protective tariffs • By 1900, Russia was the fourth largest producer of steel • Marxist Social Democratic Party

33. Revolution of 1905 • Russo-Japanese War, 1904-5 • Major food shortages in Russian cities • January 9, 1905 – workers went to the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg to present a petition of grievances • “Bloody Sunday” • Workers went on a general strike, zemstvos demanded a parliamentary government, peasants revolted • October Manifesto, 1905 • Creation of the Duma • Assassination of Peter Stolypin, 1911

34. the “new imperialism” 1875-1914

35. imperialism and the balance of power

36. extent of colonialism (1939)

37. percentage of territories belonging to the european/us colonial powers (1900)

38. The “new imperialism”

39. characteristics of the “new imperialism” • Europeans continued to dominate less technologically orientated, non-Europeans • Europeans continued to emigrate into colonized areas • Europeans were no longer just after gold and silver, but industrial raw materials and new markets • Much more rapid and deeper penetrations into non-European Areas than previous imperialism • Most of the “new imperialism” was directed toward the domination of Africa and Asia, instead of just trading posts and some missionary activity • But why???

40. 1. nationalistic competition • After 1871 and the unifications of Germany and Italy, nationalism was tied to conservatism (not liberalism) – it was loud and chauvinistic • “a true nationalist places his country above everything else” • “exclusive pursuit of national policies” and “ the steady increase in national power—for a nation declines when it loses military might.” • European nations competed for foreign ports and coaling stations for their navies • Colonies were a source of international prestige; failure to enter the race for colonies was a sign of weakness

41. Social Darwinism • Social Darwinists believed in the struggle between nations, the fit are victorious and survive • Superior races must dominate inferior races to show how strong they are • Herbert Spencer -Social Statics (1896)

42. 2 Social Darwinism • Racism and anti-Semitism was revived and strengthened by new biological arguments • Houston Stewart Chamberlain and the concept of the Volk – German racial superiority • The Foundations of the Nineteenth Century (1899) argued that the Germans were the only pure successors to the Aryan race, the original creators of Western culture

43. 3 Social Darwinism • “The path of progress is strewn with the wrecks of nations; traces are everywhere to be seen of the [slaughtered remains] of inferior races … Yet these dead people are, in very truth, the stepping stones on which mankind has arisen to the higher intellectual and deeper emotional life of today.” Karl Pearson • “To the development of the White Man, the Black Man and the Yellow must ever remain inferior, and as the former raised itself higher and yet higher, so did these latter seem to shrink out of humanity and appear nearer and nearer to the brutes.” Anonymous Englishman

45. 3. religious/humanitarian • Europeans had the moral responsibility to “civilize” ignorant peoples • Introduction of modern industry, cities, western culture, and new medicines to “primitive” cultures • Spread of Christian missionaries (both Catholic and Protestant) to Africa and Asia • Missionaries often set up schools and hospitals

46. 3. religious/humanitarian • Rudyard Kipling “Take up the White Man’s burden— Send forth the best ye breed— Go bind your sons to exile— To serve your captives’ need; To wait in heavy harness On fluttered folk and wild— Your new-caught, sullen peoples, Half-devil and half-child. • European officials attempted to “westernize” colonial peoples • Another form of racism

47. 4. economic • There was a great demand for natural resources and products not found in Western nations; i.e. rubber, oil, and tin • European investors advocated direct control of areas with raw materials and markets instead of just trading activities • European finances dominated a large part of the world – economic imperialism • Businessmen invested where it was most profitable, not necessarily where their own countries had colonies; most colonies were viewed as wastelands

48. marxist response • Marxists argued that imperialism was economically motivated and associated it with the demise of capitalism • Vladimir Lenin in Imperialism, the Highest Stage of World Capitalism, argued that capitalism concentrates wealth into ever fewer hands and eventually forced the wealthy to invest abroad instead of at home, establish colonies, and exploit small, weak nations • The only cure for imperialism, was the destruction of capitalism

49. european emigration • During the 1800s, European leaders urged their citizens to move to colonies • During the 1840s, thousands of French citizens moved to Algeria; started farms and seized land from local farmers • British emigrants rushed to Australia and New Zealand in the 1850s, searching for gold • “the sun never sets on the British Empire” • Some, like Cecil Rhodes, became powerful and wealthy emigrants; made a fortune in gold and diamonds in South Africa and founded a new colony: Rhodesia

50. forms of imperialism • Colony – a territory that an imperial power rules directly through colonial officials • Protectorate – a territory has its own government but its policies are guided by a foreign power (sometimes called a “puppet government”) • Sphere of influence – a region of a country in which an imperial power has exclusive investment or trading rights (esp. prevalent in China)