World History II: Nationalism in Europe (Part 1)

Summary

This script explores the concept of nationalism and its impact on 19th-century European politics. Nationalism, defined as pride plus cultural identity, served as both a unifying and dividing force. While it strengthened nations like Britain and France, it threatened multinational empires like Austria and the Ottomans. The script also discusses the political spectrum, detailing the ideologies of liberals, conservatives, radicals, and reactionaries. The failed Revolutions of 1848, a year marked by widespread uprisings, highlighted the tension between people's desire for change and conservative resistance. The script concludes with the establishment of the Second French Republic and the rise of Louis Napoleon, emphasizing the persistent desire for political change in Europe.

Takeaways

• 📚 Nationalism is defined as pride plus cultural identity, which includes a shared language, history, geography, customs, and religion among a group of people.
• 🌍 In the 1800s, nationalism served as both a unifying and dividing force in Europe, strengthening countries with a strong cultural identity but causing tensions within multinational empires.
• 🏰 Nationalism was a challenge for empires like the Austrian Empire, Russian Empire, and Ottoman Empire, where multiple cultural identities existed under one rule.
• 🏛️ The political spectrum of the 1800s in Europe ranged from liberals advocating for change and democracy to conservatives preferring to maintain absolute monarchies.
• 🔄 Radicals were extreme liberals who believed violence was necessary for change, while reactionaries were extreme conservatives who would use violence to preserve the old order.
• 🗝️ The political spectrum's left-right orientation originated from the seating arrangement in the French National Assembly during the French Revolution.
• 💥 The Revolutions of 1848 were widespread attempts at political change across Europe, inspired by romantic ideals, but most failed due to poor leadership and the intervention of the Holy Alliance.
• 🇫🇷 France experienced a successful revolution in 1848, leading to the establishment of the Second French Republic and the election of Louis Napoleon as president, who later declared himself Emperor.
• 🔄 Despite the failures of the Revolutions of 1848, the desire for change and democracy among Europeans persisted, indicating ongoing political instability.
• 🌟 The political climate of Europe in the 1800s was marked by a struggle between the ideals of democracy and the reality of conservative rule, setting the stage for future conflicts and changes.

Q & A

What is the formula for nationalism as mentioned in the script?

Nationalism equals Pride plus cultural identity.

What are the components of cultural identity?

Cultural identity consists of a shared way of life for a group of people, including common language, history, geography, customs, religion, etc.

How did nationalism affect politics in Europe in the early and mid-1800s?

Nationalism acted as both a unifying and dividing force. It brought countries together with similar cultural identities but also caused divisions in multinational empires where different cultural groups had little loyalty to the central monarch.

What is the difference between a nation and a nation-state?

A nation is a group of people with a shared cultural identity, while a nation-state is a formal country with defined borders and governance.

What were the political ideologies prevalent in Europe during the 1800s?

The political ideologies included liberalism, conservatism, radicalism, and reactionism. Liberals wanted change and democracy, conservatives wanted to maintain the status quo, radicals believed in violent change, and reactionaries used violence to protect the old order.

How are political ideologies typically represented?

Political ideologies are represented on a political spectrum, with liberals on the left side advocating for change, conservatives on the right side preferring to keep things as they are, and radicals and reactionaries at the extreme ends.

What was the outcome of the Revolutions of 1848?

Most of the revolutions in 1848 failed due to poor leadership and the intervention of the Holy Alliance, which helped conservative monarchs maintain power. Only in France was there a successful change with the establishment of the Second French Republic.

Who was elected president of France in 1848, and what was his relation to Napoleon Bonaparte?

Louie Napoleon, also known as Napoleon III, was elected president of France in 1848. He was the nephew of Napoleon Bonaparte.

What was the role of the Holy Alliance in the Revolutions of 1848?

The Holy Alliance played a significant role in suppressing the revolutions of 1848 by intervening on behalf of conservative monarchs to maintain the balance of power and prevent the spread of liberal and nationalist ideas.

How did the French Revolution influence the politics of Europe despite its failure?

The French Revolution left a lasting impact by instilling the ideas of democracy and the possibility of people rising up against their governments. These ideas inspired the people of Europe to seek change and democracy.

Outlines

00:00

🌍 Nationalism in Europe: Definition and Impact

The paragraph introduces the concept of nationalism in Europe, emphasizing the need to define it before exploring its effects on European politics during the early and mid-1800s. Nationalism is defined as a combination of pride and cultural identity, which includes shared language, history, geography, customs, and religion. The speaker explains that while nationalism can unify people within a country, it can also divide multinational empires where different cultural identities coexist. Examples are given, such as the unifying effect of nationalism in countries like Great Britain and France, and the dividing effect in empires like the Austrian Empire, where various cultural groups had strong identities but little loyalty to the central monarchy. The paragraph also touches on the broader political spectrum of the time, ranging from liberals who sought change and democracy to conservatives who wished to maintain absolute monarchies, and radicals or reactionaries who believed in using violence to achieve their political goals.

05:01

🔥 The Revolutions of 1848: A Test of Nationalism and Political Ideologies

This paragraph delves into the political upheaval of 1848 across Europe, known as the 'Year of Revolutions.' It highlights how various countries experienced revolutions, either seeking to change their governments or to break away from them, inspired by romantic ideals of passion and unity. Despite the failure of most of these revolutions due to poor leadership and the effectiveness of the Holy Alliance in suppressing them, the paragraph underscores the persistence of the desire for change among Europeans. It also discusses the specific case of France, where Louis Philippe was ousted and replaced by the Second French Republic, which then elected Louis Napoleon as president, who later declared himself Emperor for life. The paragraph concludes by reflecting on the ongoing tension and instability in European politics, indicating that despite the balance of power maintained by the great powers, the populace was not content with conservative rule, and the quest for change continued.

Keywords

💡Nationalism

Nationalism is defined in the script as a sentiment that combines pride with cultural identity. It is an emotional connection to a shared culture, language, history, geography, customs, and religion. In the context of the video, nationalism is a driving force that can either unite or divide people, depending on whether they identify with a broader entity like an empire or a more specific one like a nation-state. For instance, the script mentions that while nationalism might unify the people of France or Britain, it could also divide the Austrian Empire, where multiple cultural identities coexisted.

💡Cultural Identity

Cultural identity refers to the shared characteristics that make up a group's culture, such as language, history, and customs. It is a significant component of nationalism, as it forms the basis of the pride that people feel towards their group. The script uses the example of the United States, where English is the common language, and shared holidays like the 4th of July contribute to a collective cultural identity.

💡Nation State

A nation state is a formal political entity where the state's boundaries correspond to the boundaries of a cultural group or 'nation'. The script explains that while nationalism often arises among people who share a cultural identity, not all groups with a strong sense of nationalism have their own nation state, which can lead to tensions and conflicts.

💡Empire

An empire is a group of territories under a single ruler or government. In the script, empires are contrasted with nation-states, particularly in the context of multinational empires like the Austrian, Russian, and Ottoman Empires. These empires encompassed many different cultural identities, which could lead to a lack of loyalty to the central power and a desire for independence among the constituent national groups.

💡Liberal

In the 1800s, a liberal in Europe was someone who sought change, including the end of absolute monarchies and the establishment of democracies. The script positions liberals on the left side of the political spectrum, advocating for change and reform. The year 1848 saw liberals across Europe rise up against conservative governments in a series of revolutions.

💡Conservative

Conservatives, as described in the script, were those who wished to maintain the status quo, particularly the absolute monarchy. They are placed on the right side of the political spectrum, opposing the changes that liberals were advocating for. The script notes that conservatives, often being monarchs or their supporters, had much to lose with any shift towards democracy or decentralization of power.

💡Radical

A radical, in the context of the script, is an extreme liberal who believes that violence is necessary to achieve change. Radicals are positioned at the far end of the political spectrum, to the left of liberals, advocating for the most drastic measures to bring about their vision of reform.

💡Reactionary

A reactionary is an extreme conservative who would use violence to preserve the old order. They are placed at the far end of the political spectrum, to the right of conservatives, and are willing to take extreme measures to prevent change. The script implies that reactionaries were a force against the liberal and nationalist movements of the time.

💡Political Spectrum

The political spectrum is a concept used to represent different political positions along a line, with liberals on the left advocating for change and conservatives on the right preferring to maintain the status quo. The script uses this spectrum to illustrate the range of political beliefs in 1800s Europe, from moderates in the center to radicals and reactionaries at the extremes.

💡Revolution of 1848

The Revolutions of 1848 refer to a series of widespread, but ultimately unsuccessful, revolutions across Europe. The script describes these events as an attempt by liberals to establish democracies and by nationalists to break away from empires. Despite the failure of most of these revolutions, they highlighted the political instability and the desire for change among the European populace.

💡Holy Alliance

The Holy Alliance was a coalition of European monarchs formed to suppress revolutionary movements and maintain the balance of power as established by the Congress of Vienna. The script mentions that the 1848 revolutions tested the effectiveness of the Holy Alliance, which succeeded in suppressing most of the uprisings, thus maintaining the conservative status quo.

Highlights

Nationalism defined as pride plus cultural identity.

Cultural identity includes common language, history, geography, customs, and religion.

Nationalism can be both unifying and dividing, depending on the political context.

Nationalism in the 1800s Europe was a significant factor in both unifying and dividing forces.

The concept of a nation-state versus a cultural identity that may not have a formal country.

The Austrian Empire as an example of a multinational empire with multiple cultural identities.

Nationalism as a dividing force in empires with diverse cultural identities.

Political ideologies in 1800s Europe ranged from liberal to conservative, with radicals and reactionaries at the extremes.

Liberals sought change, democracy, and independence; conservatives wanted to maintain absolute monarchy.

The political spectrum, with liberals on the left and conservatives on the right, originated from the French Revolution.

The Revolutions of 1848 were an attempt to bring about change and democracy across Europe.

The failure of most 1848 revolutions due to poor leadership and the effectiveness of the Holy Alliance.

The map of Europe in 1848 showing the widespread nature of the revolutions.

The success of the French Revolution in 1848, leading to the creation of the second French Republic.

Louis Napoleon's election as president and later declaration as Emperor for life.

The enduring desire for change and democracy among Europeans despite the failure of the 1848 revolutions.

The potential for a different approach to change governments and the balance of power in Europe.

Transcripts

in this section we're going to talk

about nationalism in Europe but before

we do that we have to Define what is

nationalism and then we're going to go

into how nationalism affected the

politics of Europe in the early and mid

1800s so that's our essential question

for this lesson what is nationalism and

how did it affect the politics of Europe

in the early and mid

1800s so let's define nationalism I like

to put it into a formula nationalism

equals Pride plus cultural identity now

you know what pride is it's an emotion

it's uh to feel proud of something to

take ownership in it to really respect

it and love it um so you know what pride

is but what is cultural identity well

culture is a shared way of life for a

group of people so a Common Language

history geography Customs religion Etc

these are the things that make up a

culture for example in America we have a

common language of English we have a

common history that we share in American

history we all live within the United

States we have certain Customs like

holiday

Traditions uh you know apple pie and the

4th of July things like that those are

the things that really unite Americans

as a cultural identity like there are

certain things you say yeah that's

American and that's part of the cultural

identity so when you take pride in that

cultural identity that's what is that's

what nationalism is and nationalism is

usually for a group of people that have

uh a country together but not always

because a nation state is a formal

country but as we're going to see in

Europe in the 1800s there were lots of

people that had a cultural identity took

pride in it so they had nationalism but

didn't actually have their own country

and that's going to cause a problem

later on so let's talk about nationalism

in Europe in the 1800s nationalism for

some countries was a unifying force it

brought countries together because they

all for the most part had the same

cultural identity so in Great Britain

and France and countries like that if

everybody identifies as French for

example in France they'll all work

together and take pride in in their

country and the country actually becomes

stronger because of that but for some

Nations nationalism was a dividing Force

especially Empires that are called

multinational Empires with many cultural

identities Austrian Empire the Russian

Empire the Ottoman Empire so take

Austria for example it was run and ruled

and controlled by austrians but they

also had hungarians serbs cots Czechs

bosan Herz ganians Etc so there are many

different culture identities and each

one of those groups of people really

felt proud of their own cultural

identity and not a lot of loyalty to the

Austrian Monarch and in some cases they

wanted to break away and create their

own country so in those examples in

those countries nationalism was a

dividing force and we'll talk more about

that in the next

section so there was also a lot of

different political ideas in Europe at

this time uh if you were a liberal in

Europe in the 1800s that meant you

wanted change you wanted to end the

absolute monarchy you wanted to bring in

democracy you wanted to declare

independence from your mother country in

some examples um if you were a

conservative you wanted things to stay

the same so conservatives were monarchs

or people who supported the monarchs

they wanted to keep absolute monarchy

because they had a lot of power in the

old

system and then if you were Radical you

were an extreme liberal you believed in

violence was the only way to achieve

change and if you were reactionary you

an extreme conservative so you'd use

violence to protect the old way and we

typically plot political ideas on What's

called the political Spectrum it's this

line that goes in One Direction and the

other in the middle we have moderate

that's kind of middle of the road not

too conservative not too liberal but

based on your feelings you'd be plotted

somewhere along the Spectrum so

typically we put liberal uh or the idea

of changing things on the left side and

the left and right by the way for

Liberal conservative goes back to the

National Assembly in the French

Revolution where the delegates sat in

the National Assembly if they were for a

change they would sit on the left if

they were for keeping things the old way

they would sit on the right of the room

so liberal means change so if you are a

liberal in the political Spectrum we'd

put you on the left side of the spectrum

and if you're a conservative you want to

keep the old way uh we'd plot you on the

right side of the spectrum and then

here's radical and reactionary all the

way down the end so you can actually

have different degrees of how liberal

you are or how conservative you are when

you get plotted on a political Spectrum

for example we would probably Place Lou

the 16th somewhere over here very

conservative because obviously he was an

absolute monarch who wanted to keep all

that power and we would put someone like

rpar over on the radical way down the

radical end of the left side of the

spectrum because he believed that

violence was the only way to achieve the

right change needed in

France so all of these political uh

feelings and sentiments and tensions

kind of boil and come to a head uh in

the Revolutions of 1848 liberals wanted

democracy uh and in some cases

Independence if you're in a

multinational Empire um and wanted to

change the conservative way of

government conservatives obviously these

monarchs won't allow this they don't

want to lose the power they have it's

the same story we saw in the French

Revolution but all over Europe so in

1848 we have What's called the year of

revolutions and there every major

country in Europe has a revolution on

their hands for either changing the

government or breaking away uh from that

government

it's inspired by those romantic ideals

of passion and emotion and following

your heart and everybody working

together um but with the exception of

France all of these revolutions fail in

1848 we'll talk about France in a minute

um mostly because of poor leadership if

you get everybody just rise up and

spontaneously try to overthrow a

government that's not going to go very

well but these revolutions also show us

that the holy Alliance worked that Holy

Alliance that concert of Europe that was

created by metni

that PCT that these countries would jump

in and put down any revolutions it

actually was tested in 1848 and it

worked so the conservatives keep their

power in most of Europe after

1848 and if you look at this map every

single one of these uh red spots right

here is where a revolution popped up in

the year 1848 so there was a revolution

in Paris France against the conservative

government there were revolutions all

over what will become Italy because

people wanted to change this and become

one Italy you have Vienna they want to

change the government in Austria to

democracy but look at in Budapest this

is the Hungarian part of the Austrian

Empire people were rising up to actually

create a separate country called Hungary

so there were Revolutions in every major

country in Europe in 1848 and only

France is really succeeding all the

other ones are put

down so what happens in France after

1815 after the Congress of Vienna well

you know that Louis the 18th is restored

through legitimacy to the throne but he

dies a few years later he succeeded by

his cousin Charles I 10th but in 1830

Charles I 10th in a bloodless Revolution

overnight is overthrown by the people

and replaced by Louis Philipe the next

in line to be king and Louis Philipe

calls himself the citizen King he

promises that he will work with the

people he creates the National Assembly

and allows the National Assembly to

create laws that he will approve so he

promises to work with the people but by

1848 the people don't believe that Louis

Philipe is listening to the people

enough and he's ousted by the National

Assembly so in 1848 the French people

create the second French Republic the

first one was the one they created the

French Revolution and they go to elect a

new leader they go to elect a president

and they elect Louie Napoleon or

Napoleon theii who is the nephew of

Napoleon bonapart so Napoleon's nephew

Louis Napoleon is elected president of

France in 1848 and surprise surprise in

1852 he declares himself Emperor for

life and actually rules longer than his

uncle did he rules all the way until

1870 so here's Louis Napoleon or

Napoleon

theii so just summing up this section

what do we have to take away from all of

this the French Revolution although it

failed left a mark on the people of

Europe that idea of democracy and people

rising up did not go away even though

the French Revolution failed and

inspired the people of Europe to want

democracy and want change the

Revolutions of 18 48 were an attempt to

make that change but they failed but

this showed us how tense and unstable

the politics of Europe were that even

though there's this balance of power

even though there's the great Powers

these five countries in charge the

people in those countries aren't happy

with their conservative

governments and even though the 1848

revolutions fail and this romantic

Revolution style doesn't work the people

of Europe still want change in their on

their continent and the next section

what we're going to look at is is there

a different way a different way to

change the governments and the balance

of power in Europe other than romantic

Revolution