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Chapter
Nationalism
Triumphs
in
23
Europe
1800–1914
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1 Building a German Nation
2 Strengthening Germany
3 Unifying Italy
4 Nationalism Threathens Old Empires
5 Russia: Reform and Reaction
Chapter Review and Assessment
Unification in Europe, 1873
Nationalist movements led to the creation of several new nations across Europe.
CHAPTER EVENTS
GLOBAL EVENTS
SECTION
1
Building a German Nation
Reading Focus
Vocabulary
What early changes
promoted German
unity?
How did Bismarck unify
Germany?
What was the basic
political organization of
the new German
empire?
chancellor
Realpolitik
annex
kaiser
Reich
Taking Notes
Make a flowchart showing the key events
that led to a united Germany. Print out this
flowchart to help you get started. Add
more boxes as needed.
Otto von Bismarck, the chancellor of Prussia, led the drive for German
unity.
Setting the Scene
The Prussian legislators waited restlessly for Otto von Bismarck to speak.
They knew he wanted them to vote more money to build up the Prussian
army. Liberal members of the parliament, however, opposed the move. At
last, Bismarck rose and dismissed their concerns:
“Germany does not look to Prussia's liberalism, but to her
power…. The great questions of the day are not to be decided
by speeches and majority resolutions—that was the mistake of
1848 and 1849—but by blood and iron!”
—Otto von Bismarck, quoted in Modern and Contemporary European
History, 1815–1940 (Schapiro)
Bismarck delivered his “blood and iron” speech in 1862. It set the tone for
his policies in the years ahead. Bismarck was determined to build a strong,
unified German state, with Prussia at its head.
Steps Toward Unity
In the early 1800s, German-speaking people lived in a number of small and medium-sized states as well as in
Prussia and the Austrian Hapsburg empire. Napoleon's invasions unleashed new forces in these territories.
Between 1807 and 1812, Napoleon made important territorial changes in Germanspeaking lands. He annexed lands along the Rhine River for France. He dissolved the Holy Roman Empire
and organized a number of German states into the Rhine Confederation.
Impact of Napoleon
At first, some Germans welcomed the French emperor as a hero with enlightened, modern policies. He
encouraged freeing the serfs, made trade easier, and abolished laws against Jews. However, not all Germans
appreciated Napoleon and his changes. As people fought to free their lands from French rule, they began to
demand a unified German state.
Napoleon's defeat did not resolve the issue. At the Congress of Vienna, Metternich pointed out that a united
Germany would require dismantling the government of each German state. Instead, the peacemakers created
the German Confederation, a weak alliance headed by Austria.
Prussian Leadership In the 1830s, Prussia created an economic union called the Zollverein (tsawl fuh rīn). It
dismantled tariff barriers between many German states. Still, Germany remained politically fragmented.
In 1848, liberals meeting in the Frankfurt Assembly again demanded German political unity. They offered
the throne of a united German state to Frederick William IV of Prussia. The Prussian ruler, however, rejected
the notion of a throne offered by “the people.”
Bismarck and German Unity
Otto von Bismarck succeeded where others had failed. Bismarck came from Prussia's Junker (yung ker)
class, made up of conservative landowning nobles. Bismarck first served Prussia as a diplomat. In 1862,
King William I made him chancellor, or prime minister. Within a decade, the new chancellor had united the
German states under Prussian rule.
Bismarck's success was due in part to his strong will. He was a master of Realpolitik, or
realistic politics based on the needs of the state. Power was more important than principles.
Master of Realpolitik
Although Bismarck was the architect of German unity, he was not really a German nationalist. His primary
loyalty was to the Hohenzollerns, the ruling dynasty of Prussia. Through unification, he hoped to bring more
power to the Hohenzollerns.
Strengthening the Army As chancellor, Bismarck moved first to build up the Prussian army. Despite his
“blood and iron” speech, the liberal legislature refused to vote funds for the military. In response, Bismarck
strengthened the army with money that had been collected for other purposes. He then was ready to pursue an
aggressive foreign policy.
In the next decade, Bismarck led Prussia into three wars. Each war increased Prussian power and paved the
way for German unity.
Bismarck's first maneuver was to form an alliance in 1864 with Austria. They
seized the provinces of Schleswig and Holstein from Denmark. Prussia and Austria “liberated” the two
provinces, which were largely inhabited by Germans, and divided up the spoils.
Wars With Denmark and Austria
In 1866, Bismarck invented an excuse to attack Austria. The Austro-Prussian War lasted just seven weeks
and ended in a decisive Prussian victory. Prussia then annexed, or took control of, several other north German
states.
War and Power
Bismarck dissolved the Austrian-led German Confederation and created a new confederation dominated by
Prussia. He allowed Austria and four other southern German states to remain independent. Bismarck's
motives, as always, were strictly practical. “We had to avoid leaving behind any desire for revenge,” he later
wrote.
The Franco-Prussian War In France, the Prussian victory over Austria worried Napoleon III. A growing
rivalry between the two nations led to the Franco-Prussian War of 1870.
In 1866, Field Marshal
Helmuth von Moltke
analyzed the importance of
Prussia's war against
Austria:
The war of 1866 was entered
on not because the existence
of Prussia was threatened,
nor was it caused by public
opinion and the voice of the
people; it was a struggle,
long foreseen and calmly
Bismarck furthered the crisis by rewriting and then releasing to the press a telegram that reported on a
prepared for, recognized as a
meeting between King William I and the French ambassador. Bismarck's editing of the “Ems dispatch” made necessity by the Cabinet, not
it seem that William I had insulted the Frenchman. Furious, Napoleon III declared war on Prussia, as
for territorial expansion, for
an extension of our domain,
Bismarck had hoped.
or for material advantage, but
for an ideal end—the
A superior Prussian force, supported by troops from other German states, smashed the badly organized and
establishment of power. Not
poorly supplied French soldiers. Napoleon III, old and ill, surrendered within a few weeks. France had to
a foot of land was exacted
accept a humiliating peace.
from Austria…. Its center of
gravity lay out of Germany;
Prussia's lay within it.
The German Empire
Prussia felt itself called upon
and strong enough to
assume the leadership of the
Delighted by the victory over France, princes from the southern German
German races.
Germans recalled only too well the invasions of Napoleon I some 60 years earlier. Bismarck played up the
image of the French menace to spur German nationalism. For his part, Napoleon III did little to avoid war,
hoping to mask problems at home with military glory.
states and the North German Confederation persuaded William I of Prussia
to take the title kaiser (kī zer), or emperor. In January 1871, German
nationalists celebrated the birth of the Second Reich, or empire. They called
it that because they considered it heir to the Holy Roman Empire.
—Helmuth von
Moltke, quoted in Readings
in European History
(Robinson)
Primary Sources Why,
according to von Moltke, did
Prussia go to war against
Austria?
Coronation Of Kaiser William I
A constitution drafted by Bismarck set up a two-house legislature. The
Bundesrat, or upper house, was appointed by the rulers of the German
states. The Reichstag, or lower house, was elected by universal male
suffrage. Because the Bundesrat could veto any decisions of the Reichstag,
real power remained in the hands of the emperor and his chancellor.
SECTION
2
Strengthening Germany
Reading Focus
Vocabulary
Taking Notes
the diagram started here. As you read
the section, add other causes that led to a
strong German nation.
Print out
What marked Germany
as an industrial giant?
Kulturkampf
social welfare
Why was Bismarck
called the Iron
Chancellor?
What policies did
Kaiser William II follow?
Germany increased its power by building up its industry and armed
forces.
Setting the Scene
In January 1871, German princes gathered in the glittering Hall of Mirrors
at the French palace of Versailles. They had just defeated Napoleon III in
the Franco-Prussian War. The palace of Louis XIV seemed the perfect
place to proclaim the new German empire. To the winners as well as to the
losers, the symbolism was clear. French domination of Europe, dating from
the age of Louis XIV, had ended. Germany, headed by William I and his
chancellor, Otto von Bismarck, was now the dominant power in Europe.
The German Industrial Giant
In the aftermath of unification, the German empire emerged as the industrial giant of
the European continent. By the late 1800s, German chemical and electrical industries
were setting the standard worldwide. German shipping was second only to Britain's
among the European powers.
Germany, like Great Britain, possessed several of the factors that
made industrialization possible. Germany's spectacular growth was due in part to
ample iron and coal resources, the basic ingredients for industrial development. A
disciplined and educated work force also helped the economy, and a rapidly growing
population—from 41 million in 1871 to 67 million by 1914—provided a huge home
market along with a larger supply of industrial workers.
Economic Progress
The new nation also benefited from earlier progress. During the 1850s and 1860s,
Germans had founded large companies and built many railroads. The house of Krupp
boomed after 1871. It became an enormous industrial complex that produced steel
and weapons for a world market. Between 1871 and 1914, the business tycoon
August Thyssen built a small steel factory of 70 workers into a giant empire with
50,000 employees.
German industrialists were the first to see the
value of applied science in developing new products such as synthetic chemicals and
dyes. They supported research and development in the universities and hired trained
scientists to solve technological problems in their factories.
Science, Government, and Industry
The German government promoted economic development. After 1871, it issued a
single currency for Germany, reorganized the banking system, and coordinated
railroads built by the various German states. When a worldwide depression hit in the
late 1800s, Germany raised tariffs to protect home industries from foreign
competition. The leaders of the new German empire were determined to maintain
economic strength as well as military power.
The Iron Chancellor
As chancellor of the new German empire, Bismarck pursued several foreignpolicy goals. He wanted to keep France weak and isolated while building strong
links with Austria and Russia. He respected British naval power but did not seek
to compete in that arena. “Water rats,” he said, “do not fight with land rats.”
Later, however, he would take a more aggressive stand against Britain as the
two nations competed for colonies to expand their overseas empires.
On the domestic front, Bismarck applied the same ruthless methods he had used
to achieve unification. The Iron Chancellor, as he was called, sought to erase
local loyalties and crush all opposition to the imperial state. He targeted two
groups—the Catholic Church and the socialists. In his view, both posed a threat
to the new German state.
Campaign Against the Church After unification, Catholics made up about a third
of the German population. The Lutheran Bismarck distrusted Catholics—
especially the clergy—whose first loyalty, he believed, was to the pope instead
of to Germany.
In response to what he saw as the Catholic threat, Bismarck launched the
Kulturkampf, or “battle for civilization.” His goal was to make Catholics put
loyalty to the state above allegiance to the Church. The chancellor had laws
passed that gave the state the right to supervise Catholic education and approve
the appointment of priests. Other laws closed some religious orders, expelled
the Jesuits from Prussia, and made it compulsory for couples to be married by
civil authority.
Bismarck's moves against the Catholic Church backfired. The faithful rallied
behind the Church, and the Catholic Center party gained strength in the
Reichstag. A realist, Bismarck saw his mistake and worked to make peace with
the Church.
Campaign Against the Socialists Bismarck also saw a threat to the new German
empire in the growing power of socialism. By the late 1870s, German Marxists
had organized the Social Democratic party, which called for parliamentary
democracy and laws to improve conditions for the working class. Bismarck
feared that socialists would undermine the loyalty of German workers and turn
them toward revolution. He had laws passed that dissolved socialist groups, shut
down their newspapers, and banned their meetings. Once again, repression
backfired. Workers were unified in support of the socialist cause.
Bismarck then changed course. He set out to woo workers away from socialism
by sponsoring laws to protect them. Bismarck made it clear that Realpolitik
influenced social reform as well as foreign policy:
Otto von
Bismarck
1815–1898
Bismarck spent his early
years on his father's country
estate. He worked briefly as
a civil servant, but found the
work boring. At 24, Bismarck
resigned his post as a
bureaucrat. “My ambition
strives more to command
than to obey,” the
independent-minded young
man explained.
The resignation did not end
his career in government.
While he was a delegate to
the Prussian assembly in
1847, his conservative views
and passionate speeches in
defense of government
policies won him the support
of the Prussian king. He was
rewarded with appointment
to the post of prime minister,
a position he held for 28
years.
Theme: Impact of the
IndividualWhat path did
Bismarck take to win
political power?
“Give the workingman the right to work as long as he is healthy,
assure him care when he is sick, and maintenance when he is old …
then the socialists will sing their siren songs in vain, and the
workingmen will cease to throng to their banner.”
—Otto von Bismarck, quoted in Economic Development of Europe (Ogg and
Sharp)
By the 1890s, Germans had health and accident insurance as well as
old-age insurance to provide retirement benefits. Thus, under Bismarck,
Germany was a pioneer in social reform. Its system of economic
safeguards became the model for other European nations.
Bismarck's plan was only partly successful. Although workers benefited from
his measures, they did not abandon socialism. In fact, the Social Democratic
party continued to grow in strength. By 1912, it had more seats in the Reichstag
than were held by any other party. Yet Bismarck's program showed that
conditions for workers could be improved without the upheaval of a revolution.
Later, Germany and other European nations would build on Bismarck's social
policies, greatly increasing government's role in providing for the needs of its
citizens.
Kaiser William II
In 1888, William II succeeded his grandfather as kaiser. The new emperor was
supremely confident of his abilities and wished to put his own stamp on Germany.
In 1890, he shocked Europe by asking the dominating Bismarck to resign. “There
is only one master in the Reich,” he said, “and that is I.”
William II seriously believed that his right to rule came from God. He expressed
this view when he said:
“My grandfather considered that the office of king was a task that God
had assigned to him…. That which he thought I also think…. Those
who wish to aid me in that task … I welcome with all my heart; those
who oppose me in this work I shall crush.”
—William II, quoted in Europe Since 1815 (Hazen)
Not surprisingly, William resisted efforts to introduce democratic reforms. At the
same time, his government provided services, from programs for social welfare, or
programs to help certain groups of people, to cheap transportation and electricity.
An excellent system of public schools, begun under Bismarck, taught students
obedience to the emperor along with reading, writing, and mathematics.
Like his grandfather, William II lavished funds on the German military machine,
already the most powerful in Europe. He also launched an ambitious campaign to
expand the German navy and win an overseas empire to rival those of Britain and
France. You will read in later chapters how William's nationalism and aggressive
militarism helped increase tensions on the eve of World War I.
SECTION
3
Unifying Italy
Reading Focus
Vocabulary
What were the key
obstacles to Italian
unity?
What roles did Count
Camillo Cavour and
Giuseppe Garibaldi
play in the struggle for
Italy?
What challenges faced
the new nation of Italy?
anarchist
emigration
Taking Notes
As you read, make a timeline to show
events from 1831 to 1871 in Italy. Print out the
timeline shown here to help you get started.
During the 1800s, influential leaders helped to create a unified Italy.
Setting the Scene
At the Congress of Vienna, Italian nationalists hoped to end centuries of
foreign rule and achieve unity. To Metternich, the idea of a unified Italy
was laughable. Italy, he was convinced, was a mere “geographic
expression.”
Although the people of the Italian peninsula spoke the same language, they
had not experienced political unity since Roman times. By the early 1800s,
though, Italian patriots were determined to build a new, united Italy. As in
Germany, unification was brought about by the efforts of a strong state and
a shrewd, ruthless politician—Count Camillo Cavour.
Obstacles to Italian Unity
For centuries, Italy had been a battleground for ambitious foreign and local
princes. Frequent warfare and foreign rule had led people to identify with
local regions. The people of Florence considered themselves Tuscans,
those of Venice Venetians, the people of Naples Neapolitans, and so on.
But as in Germany, the invasions of Napoleon had sparked dreams of
national unity.
The Congress of Vienna, however, ignored the nationalists. At Vienna,
Austria took control of much of northern Italy, while Hapsburg monarchs
ruled various other Italian states. In the south, a French Bourbon ruler was
put in charge of Naples and Sicily.
In response, nationalists organized secret patriotic societies and focused
their efforts on expelling Austrian forces from northern Italy. Between
1820 and 1848, nationalist revolts exploded across the region. Each time,
Austria sent in troops to crush the rebels.
Mazzini's Young Italy In the 1830s, the nationalist leader Giuseppe Mazzini
founded Young Italy. The goal of this secret society was “to constitute
Italy, one, free, independent, republican nation.” In 1849, Mazzini helped
set up a revolutionary republic in Rome, but French forces soon toppled it.
Like many other nationalists, Mazzini spent much of his life in exile,
plotting and dreaming of a united Italy.
“Ideas grow quickly,” Mazzini once said, “when
watered by the blood of martyrs.” Although revolution had failed,
nationalist agitation had planted seeds for future harvests.
The Tide of Nationalism
First Stirrings of Nationalism
To nationalists like Mazzini, a united Italy made sense not only because of
geography, but also because of a common language and history.
Nationalists reminded Italians of the glories of ancient Rome and the
medieval papacy. To others, unity made practical economic sense. It would
end trade barriers among the Italian states and stimulate industry.
After the failed revolution in
northern Italy, many rebels
came through Genoa,
begging for funds to pay for
safe passage to Spain. An
impressionable Giuseppe
Mazzini described his
reaction to the situation:
“He held out a white
handkerchief, merely saying,
‘For the refugees of Italy.’ My
mother … dropped some
money into the
handkerchief…. That day
was the first in which a
confused idea presented
itself to my mind—I will not
say of country or of liberty—
but an idea that we Italians
could and ought to struggle
for the liberty of our
country…. The idea of an
existing wrong on my own
country, against which it was
a duty to struggle, flashed
before my mind on that day
for the first time, never again
to leave me.”
—Giuseppe Mazzini, Life and
Writings
Primary Sources How did
the man's request influence
Mazzini's thinking?
The Struggle for Italy
After 1848, leadership of the Risorgimento (ree sor jee mehn toh), or
Italian nationalist movement, passed to the kingdom of Sardinia. Its
constitutional monarch, Victor Emmanuel II, hoped to join other states to
his own, thereby increasing his power. *
In 1852, Victor Emmanuel made Count Camillo Cavour his prime
minister. Cavour came from a noble family but favored liberal goals. He
was a flexible, practical, crafty politician, willing to use almost any means
to achieve his goals. Like Bismarck in Prussia, Cavour was a monarchist
who believed in Realpolitik.
Cavour
Once in office, Cavour moved first to reform Sardinia's economy. He
improved agriculture, had railroads built, and encouraged commerce by
supporting free trade. Cavour's long-term goal, however, was to end
Austrian power in Italy and annex its provinces of Lombardy and Venetia.
Intrigue With France In 1855, led by Cavour, Sardinia joined Britain and
France in the Crimean War against Russia. Sardinia did not win territory,
but it did have a voice at the peace conference. Sardinia also gained the
attention of Napoleon III.
In 1858, Cavour negotiated a secret deal with Napoleon, who promised to
aid Sardinia in case it faced a war with Austria. A year later, the shrewd
Cavour provoked that war. With help from France, Sardinia defeated
Austria and annexed Lombardy. Meanwhile, nationalist groups overthrew
Austrian-backed rulers in several other northern Italian states. These states
then joined with Sardinia.
Next, attention shifted to the kingdom of the Two
Sicilies in southern Italy. There, Giuseppe Garibaldi, a longtime nationalist
and an ally of Mazzini, was ready for action. Like Mazzini, Garibaldi
wanted to create an Italian republic. He did not, however, hesitate to accept
aid from the monarchist Cavour. By 1860, Garibaldi had recruited a force
of 1,000 red-shirted volunteers. Cavour provided weapons and allowed two
ships to take Garibaldi and his “Red Shirts” south to Sicily.
Garibaldi's Red Shirts
With surprising speed, Garibaldi's forces won control of Sicily, crossed to
the mainland, and marched triumphantly north to Naples.
Garibaldi's success alarmed Cavour, who feared that the
nationalist hero would set up his own republic in the south. To prevent this,
Cavour urged Victor Emmanuel to send Sardinian troops to deal with
Garibaldi. Instead, the Sardinians overran the Papal States and linked up
with Garibaldi and his forces in Naples.
Unity at Last
In a patriotic move, Garibaldi turned over Naples and Sicily to Victor
Emmanuel. Shortly afterward, southern Italy voted to approve the move,
and in 1861, Victor Emmanuel II was crowned king of Italy.
Two areas remained outside the new Italian nation: Rome and Venetia.
Cavour died in 1861, but his successors completed his dream. In a deal
negotiated with Bismarck, Italy acquired Venetia after the Austro-Prussian
War. Then, during the Franco-Prussian War in 1870, France was forced to
withdraw its troops from Rome. For the first time since the fall of the
Roman empire, Italy was a united land.
Challenges Facing the New Nation
Italy faced a host of problems. Like the many states Bismarck cemented
into the German empire, Italy had no tradition of unity. Few Italians felt
ties to the new nation. Strong regional rivalries left Italy unable to solve
critical national issues.
Divisions The greatest regional differences were between the north and the
south. The north was richer and had more cities than the south. For
centuries, northern Italian cities had flourished as centers of business and
culture. The south, on the other hand, was rural and poor. Its population
was booming, but illiterate peasants could wring only a meager existence
from the exhausted farmland.
Hostility between Italy and the Roman Catholic Church further divided the
nation. Popes bitterly resented the seizure of the Papal States and of Rome.
The government granted the papacy the small territory of the Vatican.
Popes, however, saw themselves as “prisoners” and urged Italian
Catholics—almost all Italians—not to cooperate with their new
government.
Vatican City
As Italian nationalists unified
Italy, the Papal States lost
their independence. Today,
only one Papal State exists:
Vatican City. Located in
Rome, Vatican City is the
world's smallest and least
populated nation. At just over
In the late 1800s, unrest increased as radicals on the left struggled against a 108 acres, it is “just big
enough to keep body and
conservative government. Socialists organized strikes while anarchists,
soul together,” noted Pope
people who want to abolish all government, turned to sabotage and
Pius XI. In 1929, the Italian
violence. Slowly, the government extended suffrage to more men and
government granted the
passed laws to improve social conditions. Still, the turmoil continued. To
pope control of Vatican City.
distract attention from troubles at home, the government set out to win an
This gave him political
overseas empire.
independence as head of the
Catholic Church. Named a
United Nations world
Progress Despite its problems, Italy did develop economically, especially
after 1900. Although the nation lacked important natural resources such as heritage site, Vatican City
houses St. Peter's Basilica,
coal, industries did sprout up in northern regions. Industrialization, of
the Sistine Chapel, and other
course, brought urbanization as peasants flocked to the cities to find jobs in churches and museums.
Under Victor Emmanuel, Italy was a constitutional monarchy with
a two-house legislature. The king appointed members to the upper house,
which could veto bills passed by the lower house. Although the lower
house consisted of elected representatives, only a small number of men had
the right to vote.
Turmoil
factories. As in other countries, reformers campaigned to improve
education and working conditions.
The population explosion of this period created tensions. One important
safety valve for many people was emigration, or movement away from
their homeland. Many Italians left for the United States, Canada, and Latin
American nations.
Looking Ahead
Although unification brought great challenges, it also brought increased
strength. By 1914, Italy was significantly better off than it had been in
1861. But it was hardly prepared for the great war that broke out in that
year and into which it was soon drawn.
Theme: Political and
Social SystemsWhy do you
think the government
granted the pope control of
Vatican City?
SECTION
4
Nationalism Threatens Old Empires
Reading Focus
How did nationalism
contribute to the
decline of the Austrian
empire?
What were the main
characteristics of the
Dual Monarchy?
How did the growth of
nationalism affect the
Balkans?
Taking Notes
the table shown here. As you read this
section, add information about the threats and
changes that led to the decline of the Hapsburg and
Ottoman empires.
Print out
Desires for national independence threatened to break up the Austrian
and Ottoman empires.
Setting the Scene
The Hapsburgs had controlled the Holy Roman Empire for nearly 400
years when Napoleon invaded the German-speaking states. Austria's center
of power now lay in Eastern Europe. Further wars resulted in continued
loss of territory to Germany and Italy. Why did nationalism bring new
strength to some countries and weaken others?
In Eastern Europe, the Austrian Hapsburgs and the Ottoman Turks ruled
lands that included diverse ethnic groups. Nationalist feelings among these
subject people contributed to tensions building across Europe.
A Declining Empire
In 1800, the Hapsburgs were the oldest ruling house in Europe. In addition
to their homeland of Austria, over the centuries they had acquired the
territories of Bohemia and Hungary, as well as parts of Romania, Poland,
Ukraine, and northern Italy.
Since the Congress of Vienna, the Austrian emperor
Francis I and Metternich, his foreign minister, had upheld conservative
goals against liberal forces. “Rule and change nothing,” the emperor told
his son. Under Francis and Metternich, newspapers could not even use the
word constitution, much less discuss this key demand of liberals. The
government also tried to limit industrial development, which would
threaten traditional ways of life.
Challenge of Change
Austria, however, could not hold back the changes that were engulfing the
rest of Europe. By the 1840s, factories were springing up. Soon, the
Hapsburgs found themselves facing the problems of industrial life that had
long been familiar in Britain—the growth of cities, worker discontent, and
the stirrings of socialism.
Equally disturbing to the old order were the urgent
demands of nationalists. The Hapsburgs presided over a multinational
A Patchwork of People
empire. Of its 50 million people at mid-century, fewer than a quarter were
German-speaking Austrians. Almost half belonged to different Slavic
groups, including Czechs, Slovaks, Poles, Ukrainians, Romanians, Serbs,
Croats, and Slovenes. Often, rival groups shared the same region. The
empire also included large numbers of Hungarians and Italians.
The Hapsburgs ignored nationalist demands as long as they could.
“Peoples?” Francis I once exclaimed. “What does that mean? I know only
subjects.” As you have read, when nationalist revolts broke out across the
Hapsburg empire in 1848, the government crushed them.
Amid the turmoil, 18-year-old Francis Joseph inherited the
Hapsburg throne. He would rule until 1916, presiding over the empire
during its fading days into World War I.
Early Reforms
An early challenge came when Austria suffered its humiliating defeat at
the hands of France and Sardinia in 1859. Francis Joseph realized he
needed to strengthen the empire at home. Accordingly, he made some
limited reforms. He granted a new constitution that set up a legislature.
This body, however, was dominated by German-speaking Austrians. The
reforms thus satisfied none of the other national groups that populated the
empire. The Hungarians, especially, were determined to settle for nothing
less than total self-government.
The Dual Monarchy
Austria's disastrous defeat in the 1866 war with Prussia brought renewed
pressure for change from Hungarians within the empire. One year later,
Francis Deák (deh ahk), a moderate Hungarian leader, helped work out a
compromise that created a new political power known as the Dual
Monarchy of Austria-Hungary.
Under the agreement, Austria and Hungary were separate states. Each had
its own constitution and parliament. Francis Joseph ruled both, as emperor
of Austria and king of Hungary. The two states also shared ministries of
finance, defense, and foreign affairs, but were independent of each other in
all other areas.
Parliament Building In Budapest
Although Hungarians welcomed the compromise, other subject peoples
resented it. Restlessness increased among various Slavic groups, especially
the Czechs in Bohemia. Some nationalist leaders called on Slavs to unite,
insisting that “only through liberty, equality, and fraternal solidarity” could
Slavic peoples fulfill their “great mission in the history of mankind.” By
the early 1900s, nationalist unrest often left the government paralyzed in
the face of pressing political and social problems.
Balkan Nationalism
Like the Hapsburgs, the Ottomans ruled a multinational empire. It
stretched from Eastern Europe and the Balkans to North Africa and the
Middle East. There, as in Austria, nationalist demands tore at the fabric of
the empire.
In the Balkans, Serbia had won autonomy in 1817, and southern Greece
won independence in the 1830s. But many Serbs and Greeks still lived in
the Balkans under Ottoman rule. The Ottoman empire was home to other
national groups, such as Bulgarians and Romanians. During the 1800s,
various subject peoples staged revolts against the Ottomans, hoping to set
up their own independent states.
Such nationalist stirrings became mixed up with the ambitions of the great
European powers. In the mid-1800s, Europeans came to see the Ottoman
empire as “the sick man of Europe.” Eagerly, they scrambled to divide up
Ottoman lands. Russia pushed south toward the Black Sea and Istanbul,
which Russians still called Constantinople. Austria-Hungary took control
of the provinces of Bosnia and Herzegovina. This action angered the Serbs,
who also had hoped to expand into that area. Meanwhile, Britain and
France set their sights on other Ottoman lands in the Middle East and
North Africa.
In the end, a complex web of competing interests contributed to a series of
crises and wars in the Balkans. Russia fought several wars against the
Ottomans. France and Britain sometimes joined the Russians and
sometimes the Ottomans. Germany supported Austrian authority over the
discontented national groups. But Germany also encouraged the Ottomans
because of their strategic location in the eastern Mediterranean. In
between, the subject peoples revolted and then fought among themselves.
By the early 1900s, observers were referring to the region as the “Balkan
powder keg.” The explosion that came in 1914 helped set off World War I.
SECTION
5
Russia: Reform and Reaction
Reading Focus
Vocabulary
How did conditions in
Russia affect progress?
Why did czars follow a
cycle of absolutism,
reform, and reaction?
How did the problems
of industrialization
contribute to the
growing crisis and
outbreak of revolution?
Taking Notes
colossus
emancipation
zemstvo
pogrom
Duma
As you read this section, make an
outline of the information. Use Roman
numerals for the main headings. Use
capital letters for the subheadings, and
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Print out this outline that has been started
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Industrialization and reform came more slowly to Russia than to Western
Europe.
Setting the Scene
Although serfdom had almost disappeared in Western Europe by the
1700s, it survived and spread in Russia. Masters exercised almost total
power over their serfs. In the 1800s, a noble who became a revolutionary
described the brutal treatment of serfs:
“I heard … stories of men and women torn from their families
and their villages, and sold, or lost in gambling, or exchanged
for a couple of hunting dogs, and then transported to some
remote part of Russia to create a [master's] new estate; … of
children taken from their parents and sold to cruel masters.”
—Peter Kropotkin, Memoirs of a Revolutionist
Reformers hoped to free Russia from autocratic rule, economic
backwardness, and social injustice. But efforts to modernize Russia had
little success, as czars imprisoned critics or sent them into icy exile in
Siberia.
Conditions in Russia
By 1815, Russia was not only the largest, most populous nation in Europe
but also a great world power. Since the 1600s, explorers had pushed the
Russian frontier eastward across Siberia to the Pacific. Peter the Great and
Catherine the Great had added lands on the Baltic and Black seas, and
czars in the 1800s had expanded into Central Asia. Russia had thus
acquired a huge multinational empire, part European and part Asian.
Other European nations looked on the Russian colossus, or giant, with a
mixture of wonder and misgiving. It had immense natural resources.
Russia's vast size gave it global interests and influence. But Western
Europeans disliked its autocratic government and feared its expansionist
aims.
Despite efforts by Peter and Catherine to westernize
Russia, it remained economically undeveloped. By the 1800s, czars saw
the need to modernize but resisted reforms that would undermine their
absolute rule. While the czars wavered, Russia fell further behind Western
Europe in economic and social developments.
Obstacles to Progress
A great obstacle to progress was the rigid social structure. Landowning
nobles dominated society and rejected any change that would threaten their
privileges. The middle class was too small to have much influence. The
majority of Russians were serfs, laborers bound to the land and to masters
who controlled their fates.
Serfdom Most serfs were peasants. Others might be servants, artisans, or
soldiers forced into the czar's army. As industry expanded, some masters
sent serfs to work in factories but took much of their pay.
Many enlightened Russians knew that serfdom was inefficient. As long as
most people had to serve the whim of their masters, Russia's economy
would remain backward. Landowning nobles had no reason to improve
agriculture and took little interest in industry.
Russian Absolutism
For centuries, czars had ruled with absolute power, imposing their will on
their subjects. The changes brought about by the Enlightenment and the
French Revolution had almost no effect on Russian autocracy.
When Alexander I inherited the throne in 1801, however, he
seemed open to liberal ideas. The new czar eased censorship and promoted
education. He even talked about freeing the serfs.
Alexander I
By the time Napoleon invaded Russia in 1812, Alexander had drawn back
from reform. Like earlier czars, he feared losing the support of nobles. At
the Congress of Vienna, he joined the conservative powers in opposing
liberal and nationalist impulses in Europe.
Revolt and Repression When Alexander I died in 1825, a group of army
officers led an uprising known as the Decembrist Revolt. They had picked
up liberal ideas while fighting Napoleon in Western Europe and now
demanded a constitution and other reforms. The new czar, Nicholas I,
suppressed the Decembrists and cracked down on all dissent.
Nicholas used police spies to hunt out critics. He banned books from
Western Europe that might spread liberal ideas. Only approved textbooks
were allowed in schools and universities. Many Russians with liberal or
revolutionary ideas were judged to be insane and shut up in mental
hospitals. Up to 150,000 others were exiled to Siberia.
To bolster his regime, Nicholas I embraced the
three pillars of Russian absolutism symbolized in the motto “Orthodoxy,
Autocracy, and Nationalism.” Orthodoxy referred to the strong ties
between the Russian Orthodox Church and the government. Autocracy was
Nicholas I and Absolutism
the absolute power of the state. Nationalism involved respect for Russian
traditions and suppression of non-Russian groups within the empire.
Still, Nicholas realized that Russia needed to modernize. He issued a new
law code and made some economic reforms. He even tried to limit the
power of landowners over serfs. But he could see no way to change the
system completely without angering Russian nobles and weakening the
power of the czar. Before he died, he told his son, “I am handing you
command of the country in a poor state.”
Reforms of Alexander II
Alexander II came to the throne in 1855 during the Crimean War. The war
had broken out after Russia tried to seize Ottoman lands along the Danube.
Britain and France stepped in to help the Turks, invading the Crimean
peninsula that juts into the Black Sea. The war, which ended in a Russian
defeat, revealed the country's backwardness. It had only a few miles of
railroads, and the military bureaucracy was hopelessly inefficient. Many
felt that dramatic changes were needed.
Emancipation A widespread popular reaction followed. Liberals demanded
changes, and students demonstrated for reform. Pressed from all sides,
Alexander II finally agreed to reforms. In 1861, he issued a royal decree
that required emancipation, or freeing the serfs.
Freedom brought problems. Former serfs had to buy the land they had
worked for so long. Many were too poor to do so. Also, the lands allotted
to peasants were often too small to farm efficiently or to support a family.
As a result, peasants remained poor, and discontent festered.
Still, emancipation was a turning point. Many peasants moved to the cities,
taking jobs in factories and building Russian industries. Equally important,
freeing the serfs boosted the drive for further reform.
Other Reforms Along with emancipation, Alexander set up a system of
local government. Elected assemblies, called zemstvos, were made
responsible for matters such as road repair, schools, and agriculture. At the
local level, at least, Russians gained some experience of self-government.
The czar also introduced legal reforms based on ideas such as trial by jury.
He eased censorship and tried to reform the military. A soldier's term of
service was reduced from 25 years to 15, and brutal discipline was limited.
Alexander also encouraged the growth of industry in Russia, which still
relied almost entirely on agriculture.
A movement to liberate women also swept the urban centers of Russia.
Since they were denied education in Russia, hundreds of privileged young
women left their homes and families to study abroad in the few universities
that would accept them. Many came to support revolutionary goals.
Reaction to Change
Alexander's reforms failed to satisfy many Russians. Peasants had freedom
but not land. Liberals wanted a constitution and an elected legislature.
Radicals, who had adopted socialist ideas from the West, demanded even
more revolutionary changes. The czar, meantime, moved away from
reform and toward repression.
In the 1870s, some socialists carried the message of
reform to the peasants. They went to live and work among the peasants,
sometimes preaching rebellion. These educated young men and women had
little success. The peasants scarcely understood them and sometimes turned
them over to the police.
Revolutionary Currents
The failure of this “Go to the People” movement, combined with renewed
government repression, sparked anger among radicals. Some turned to
terrorism. A revolutionary group calling itself the People's Will
assassinated officials and plotted to kill the czar. Their first attempts failed.
Then, on a cold March day in 1881, terrorists hurled two bombs at
Alexander's carriage. One struck down several guards. The second killed
the leader known to some as the “czar emancipator.”
Alexander III responded to his father's assassination by
reviving the harsh methods of Nicholas I. To wipe out liberals and
revolutionaries, he increased the power of the secret police, restored strict
censorship, and exiled critics to Siberia. He relied on his adviser and
former tutor, Constantine Pobedonostsev (puh beh duh naws tsehv), who
rejected all talk of democracy and constitutional government as “the lies of
hollow and flabby people.”
Crackdown
The czar also launched a program of Russification aimed at suppressing the
cultures of non-Russian peoples within the empire. Alexander insisted on
one language, Russian, and one church, the Russian Orthodox Church.
Poles, Ukrainians, Finns, Armenians, and many others suffered
persecution. The Russification campaign also targeted Jews and Muslims
in the empire.
Russia had acquired a large Jewish population
when it carved up Poland and expanded into Ukraine. Under Alexander III,
persecution of Russian Jews increased. The czar limited the number of
Jews who were allowed to study in universities and practice professions
such as law and medicine. He revived old laws that forced Jews to live in
certain restricted areas.
Persecution and Pogroms
Official persecution encouraged pogroms, or violent mob attacks on Jews.
Gangs beat and killed Jews and looted and burned their homes and stores.
The police did nothing to stop the violence. Faced with savage persecution,
many Jews escaped from Russia. They became refugees, or people who
flee their homeland to seek safety elsewhere. Large numbers of Russian
Jews went to the United States. Though they often faced prejudice and
great hardship there, they were safe from pogroms and official persecution.
Jewish immigrants sent joyful news back to Russia: “There is no czar in
America!”
Building Russian Industry
Under Alexander III and his son, Nicholas II, Russia finally entered the
industrial age. In the 1890s, Count Serge Witte, finance minister to
Nicholas, focused on economic development. Witte encouraged railroad
building to connect iron and coal mines with factories and to transport
goods across Russia. He secured foreign capital to invest in transportation
systems and industry. Loans from France helped build the Trans-Siberian
Railroad. Begun in the 1890s, it linked European Russia to the Pacific
Ocean.
The drive to industrialize increased political and social problems.
Government officials and business leaders applauded and encouraged
economic growth. Nobles and peasants opposed it, fearing the changes
brought by the new ways.
Industrialization also created new social ills as peasants flocked to cities to
work in factories. Instead of a better life, they found long hours and low
pay in dangerous conditions. In the slums around the factories, poverty,
disease, and discontent multiplied.
Russia's Long Iron Road
Beginning in the 1890s,
Russian workers laid more
than 5,000 miles of track to
build the Trans-Siberian
Railroad, the longest railroad
in the world at that time.
Siberia's harsh landscape
and climate challenged
workers. Iron, stone,
hardwoods, and food had to
be shipped thousands of
miles to the crews.
In the chilling winters, many
workers died from
Radicals sought supporters among the new industrial workers. At factory
gates, socialists handed out pamphlets that preached the revolutionary
ideas of Karl Marx. Among the revolutionaries of the 1890s was young
Vladimir Ulyanov, whose older brother had been executed for plotting to
kill Alexander III. Like many revolutionaries, Ulyanov used an alias, or
false name—Lenin. In 1917, Lenin would take power in a revolution that
transformed Russia.
hypothermia. With no safety
devices, some fell to their
deaths onto frozen rivers. To
lay tracks in some areas,
workers had to dynamite
permanently frozen soil.
These explosions often
proved fatal, as did
epidemics of bubonic plague,
anthrax, and cholera.
Theme: Geography and
History What geographic
and climatic challenges did
the railroad builders face in
Siberia?
Turning Point: Crisis and Revolution
War broke out between Russia and Japan in 1904. Nicholas II called on his
people to fight for “the Faith, the Czar, and the Fatherland.” But despite
their efforts, the Russians suffered one humiliating defeat after another.
News of the military disasters unleashed pent-up
discontent created by years of oppression. Protesters poured into the
streets. Workers went on strike with demands for shorter hours and better
wages. Liberals called for a constitution and reforms to overhaul the
inefficient, corrupt government.
A Peaceful March
As the crisis deepened, a young Orthodox priest, Father George Gapon,
organized a march for Sunday, January 22, 1905. Father Gapon felt certain
that the “Little Father,” as many Russians called the czar, would help his
people if only he understood their sufferings. The parade flowed through
the icy streets of St. Petersburg toward the czar's lavish Winter Palace.
Chanting prayers and singing hymns, workers carried holy icons and
pictures of the czar. They also brought a petition for justice and freedom,
which was addressed to Nicholas.
Fearing the marchers, the czar had fled the palace and
called in soldiers. As the people approached, they saw troops lined up
across the square. Suddenly, gunfire rang out. Men and women ran and
fell. More shots left hundreds dead or wounded in the snow.
Bloody Sunday
A woman stumbling away from the scene of the massacre moaned: “The
czar has deserted us! They shot away the orthodox faith.” Indeed, the
slaughter marked a turning point for Russians. “Bloody Sunday” killed the
people's faith and trust in the czar.
In the months that followed Bloody Sunday,
discontent exploded across Russia. Strikes multiplied. In some cities,
workers took over local government. In the countryside, peasants revolted
and demanded land. Minority nationalities called for autonomy from
Russia. Terrorists targeted officials, and some assassins were cheered as
heroes by discontented Russians.
The Revolution of 1905
At last, the clamor grew so great that Nicholas was forced to announce
sweeping reforms. In the October Manifesto, he promised “freedom of
person, conscience, speech, assembly, and union.” He agreed to summon a
Peter
Stolypin
1862–1911
Violence surrounded Peter
Stolypin, who was once
described as “a tall stiff man
with a dead white face and a
dead white beard.” As
governor and later prime
minister, he used harsh
Results of the Revolution The manifesto won over moderates, leaving
measures to silence
socialists isolated. These divisions helped the czar, who had no intention of opposition. On his orders,
letting strikers, revolutionaries, and rebellious peasants challenge him.
trials of terrorists were held
within 24 hours of arrest;
In 1906, the first Duma met, but the czar quickly dissolved it when leaders executions were held
immediately upon conviction.
criticized the government. Nicholas then appointed a new prime minister,
More than 1,000 suspected
Peter Stolypin (stuh lee pihn). Arrests, pogroms, and executions followed
terrorists were executed in
as the conservative Stolypin sought to restore order.
less than a year. The noose
used to hang them came to
be known as “Stolypin's
Stolypin soon realized that Russia needed reform, not just repression. To
necktie.”
regain peasant support, he introduced moderate land reforms. He
Duma, or elected national legislature. No law, he declared, would go into
effect without approval by the Duma.
strengthened the zemstvos and improved education. These reforms were
too limited to meet the broad needs of most Russians, and dissatisfaction
still simmered. Stolypin was assassinated in 1911. Several more Dumas
met during this period, but new voting laws made sure they were
conservative. By 1914, Russia was still an autocracy, simmering with
unrest.
Stolypin and his family were
also the targets of violence.
In 1907, his opponents
bombed his house, killing
many servants and severely
injuring his children. Four
years later, Stolypin himself
was assassinated while
attending the theater.
Theme: Impact of the
IndividualHow did Stolypin
deal with terrorism?