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The rise of Napoleon and his subsequent conquests of the European states had
upset the social order and the political system of the pre-Revolutionary days. A
conference was needed to discuss solutions to these problems and thus was called
at Vienna, the capital of Austria.
The root problem facing the European powers at the Vienna Congress was
whether the changes made by Napoleon to the map and to the government of
Europe be allowed to remain permanently or whether the former political and
social order of Europe be restored. The decisions at the Congress of Vienna
showed that the victorious powers chose to destroy the principles of the Napoleon
had instituted. This was a reaction against the principles of the French Revolution.
On the whole, the aims of the Congress of Vienna were the following:
1. the Congress of Vienna was said to be a congress to divide the spoils among the
four victorious states Britain, Austria, Prussia and Russia ;
2. to sweep away the ideas popularized by the French revolution and Napoleon ;
3. to prevent future aggression from France ;
4. and to work out an effective means among the four great powers to tackle future
problems were also important aims of the Congress of Vienna.
I. Outstanding personalities in the Congress:
The congress included all the European states except Turkey. Even France, the
defeated nation, was represented. But the negotiations were dominated by 5
men.
1) Metternich of Austria:
He was the Austrian Chancellor and Foreign Minister who presided over the
congress and became its guiding spirit. He became the most outstanding
figure in Europe from 1815-1848 which was a period often referred to as the
era of Metternich. He was the embodiment of the older Europe of the
monarchies fighting against the newer Europe of revolutionary ideals. He
devoted his life vanquishing revolutionary principles spread by Napoleons
army. He regarded himself as the apostle of conservatism. His thoughts were
too deeply rooted in the old order to find the ideas of liberty and equality
attractive.
His policies in the congress:
a. He sought to prevent the outbreak of revolutions in Europe through the
joint efforts of the five great European powers. He opposed nationalist
and revolutionary movements as they would threaten the existence of the
Austrian Empire which was multi-racial state.
4) Hardenberg of Prussia
Hardenberg cared relatively little for the general European settlement but a
great deal for the fortunes of Prussia. His attention was concentrated on
gaining as much territories as possible for the loss of Prussian Poland to
Russia and to reassure Prussias position in Germany.
5) Castlereagh of England
He was the British Foreign Minister. He had a typically practical Bristish
mind as opposed to Alexander Is idealism. What worried him most was how
to keep the European continent open to British trade. Napoleon had tried to
close Europe to British goods. He had also attempted to invade England. In
fact, the Napoleonic war had greatly upset the British trade pattern. For these
reason, he wanted to achieve peace in Europe. Only by this could it be
possible for English trade and commence to proper and develop. As such, it
was necessary to create a balance of power in Europe. The wealth,
population and territory of the states needed to be carefully redistributed.
This would ensure that no one power would be too strong to endanger to
others. His idea of a balance was, first to contain France. He was adamant on
keeping the French out of the lowland countries. The next problem was to
strengthen central Europe as a buffer between France and Russia. He also
believed that the joint meetings of persons in authority were a better method
of removing international misunderstanding.
II. Treaties signed before the Vienna Congress:
1. The treaty of Chaumont (March 1814)
By this treaty, Austria, England, Prussis and Russia promised:
a. to unite in alliance for 20 years;
b. to prevent Napoleon returning to Europe;
c. to restore the status quo, to quarantee the territorial settlement.
2. The First Treaty of Paris (May 1814)
The terms imposed on France were lenient:
a. France was not forced to disarm;
b. She did not pay any indemnity;
c. She did not restore the works of arts which she had removed from Italy or
Germany;
d. Her boundaries were to be those of 1792;
e. France ceded Mauritius, Malta and other territories to England and Spain.
III.The Vienna Settlement:
The main part of the 1815 peace settlement was worked out at Vienna. The
Vienna Congress rounded up its business with the signing of the Treaty of
Vienna in June, 1815. Other arrangements relating to France alone were stated
in the Second Treaty of Paris of November, 1815. To uphold the Treaty of
Vienna (Sept,1815), two other arrangements were made, they were the Holy
Alliance and the Quadruple Alliance (Nov,1815).
A. Problem of Poland-Saxony:
Immediately after the opening of the Congress of Vienna, quarrel broke out
among the powers over Poland and Saxony. Before the Battle of Nations
between France and Europe, Alexander I promised to abolish the Grand
Duchy of Warsaw which Napoleon had created. The Tsar wanted to occupy
Poland, Austria who wanted Poland was to be compensated by taking
Lombardy and Venetia. Prussia desired to annex the whole of Saxony in
exchange for the Polish territory she was surrendering to Russia.
Britain, Austria and France were against it. Britain was worried about the
expanding influence of Russia in eastern Europe. Austria feared the
strengthening of Prussia as her rival. France liked to see Poland
independent. Seeing his rivals deadlocked, Tallreyrand won Britain and
Austria over to a secret alliance. They would fight Russia and Prussia unless
the latter withdrew their demands. In fact, neither side was willing to go to
war at this moment. A compromise was then made:
1. Russia aquired greater part of Poland, to whom he promised a
constitution within a dependent kingdom.
2. Austria got Galicia.
3. Prussia got about 2/5 of Saxony and retained a corridor to North Sea.
4. Cracow, Polands old capital, became an independent republic. (At this
point, Napoleon escaped from Elba. War reopened in 1815 March. His
reappearance made the powers unite again and then continued their
work at Vienna.)
B. Guiding priciples:
1. Balance of power to prevent the status quo by preventing any of the
Great powers from gaining too much and dominating Europe. For
example, France was not dismembered but treated leniently instead for
the peace makers of the Vienna Settlement felt that achieving in Europe
as a whole was more important than punishing France.
2. To restrain the power of France although France should not be punished
too severely, she had to be restrained so that she would not be able to
threaten the strong buffer states was put around France.
3. Legitimacy It meant that the dynasties of Europe that had reigned in
pre-revolutionary days should be restored to their thrones. This principle
of legitimacy was supported by Talleyrand as a device for protecting
France against drastic punishment and adopted by Metternich as a
d. France had to restore the art treasures to other countries on the frontier
were taken away from.
IV. Evaluation of the Congress of Vienna:
A. Merits:
1. The adjustment of balance of power and the checking of France were on the whole
successful. No power dominated Europe as it had been under Napoleon. It had created
a lasting peace in Europe for about 40 years until the Crimean War broke out in 1854.
It might even be said that this aim was achieved for about 100 years. Between 1815
and 1914, there was no general European War. The great powers in this period went to
war only in isolated conflicts of a short period of time.
On the other hand, it might be pointed out that this long-term peace was not attributed
to the 1815 settlement alone. It was also the outcome of other factors. The general
exhaustion of the European powers after the Napoleonic wars was one of the reasons.
Europe then witnessed the rapid industrialization. Many European governments were
preoccupied with the improvement of conditions at home and suppression of
revolutions. Thus, there was little time for them to wage war. Europe thus enjoyed
long-term peace.
2. Another merit was the international guarantee of permanent neutrality of
Switzerland. Only a geographical expression in 1789, Switzerland became an
independent state in central Europe after 1815.
3. Credit should also go to the 1815 Congress for its policy of moderation
Towards France. France was rather generously treated. She was allowed to attend the
Congress of Vienna and was admitted as one of the five great powers in Europe. The
significance was that hostile feeling both inside against Louis XVII and outside
towards the European states was avoided. This would also have the effect of
strengthening the constitutional monarchy headed by Louis XVIII. It was expected that
constitutional monarchy would bring a reconciliation of the old and revolutionary
forces. If France had internal peace, Europe would also be safe.
4. The 1815 Congress should also be credited for starting the system of
Settling international disputes through negotiation. It led to the Congress system which
was a leading step to future international system of meeting whereby conflicts and
problems common to the European powers after 1815 were settled.
5. By strengthening Prussia and Piedmont-Sardinia, the congress contributed
indirectly to the unification of Italy and Germany. The decisions taken by the 1815
peace-makers for Prussia and Piedmont-Sardinia to take up the leadership in the
German and Italian unification and to found national states by 1871.
6. Largely through the effect of England, and important concession was
made to humanitarianism. Slave trade was declared inhuman and was abolished by
Spain, France, Holland and Sweden and promised to be abolished by Portugal.