Chapter 19: The Age of Napoleon and the

Triumph of Romanticism

November 25, 2007

After the Thermidorian Reaction, French people wanted stability but the
Directory was not providing it. Instead, they turned to the army, the symbol
of order and virtue of the revolution, and Napoleon Bonaparte. His ambition
led France into wars of conquest and liberation across the Continent. He spread
the ideas of the revolution and provoked nationalism against France. This na-

Romanticism
tionalism and alliances nally defeated France.
ourished in the turmoil of the Revolution and wars and spread
across Europe. Some values, such as nationalism, supported the revolution;
others such as history and religion opposed its values.

Contents
1 The Rise of Napoleon Bonaparte 2
1.1 Early Military Victories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.2 The Constitution of the Year VIII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

2 The Consulate in France (17991804) 4

2.1 Suppressing Foreign Enemies and Domestic Opposition . . . . . . 4
2.2 Concordat with the Roman Catholic Church . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
2.3 The Napoleonic Code . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
2.4 Establishing a Dynasty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

3 Napoleon's Empire (18041814) 5

3.1 Conquering an Empire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
3.1.1 British Naval Supremacy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
3.1.2 Napoleonic Victories in Central Europe . . . . . . . . . . 6
3.1.3 Treaty of Tilsit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
3.2 The Continental System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

4 European Response to the Empire 7

4.1 German Nationalism and Prussian Reform . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
4.2 The Wars of Liberation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
4.2.1 Spain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

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 4.2.2 Austria . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
4.3 The Invasion of Russia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
4.4 European Coalition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

5 The Congress of Vienna and the European Settlement 11

5.1 Territorial Adjustments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
5.2 The Hundred Days and the Quadruple Alliance . . . . . . . . . . 12

6 The Romantic Movement 13

7 Romantic Questioning of the Supremacy of Reason 13
7.1 Rousseau and Education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
7.2 Kant and Reason . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

8 Romantic Literature 14
8.1 The English Romantic Writers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
8.1.1 Wordsworth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
8.1.2 Lord Byron . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
8.2 The German Romantic Writers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
8.2.1 Schlegel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
8.2.2 Goethe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

9 Romantic Art 17
9.1 The Cult of the Middle Ages and Neo-Gothicism . . . . . . . . . 17
9.2 Nature and the Sublime . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

10 Religion in the Romantic Period. 18

10.1 Methodism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
10.2 New Directions in Continental Religion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

11 Romantic Views of Nationalism and History 20

11.1 Herder and Culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
11.2 Hegel and History . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
11.3 Islam, the Middle East, and Romanticism . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

12 In Perspective 23

1 The Rise of Napoleon Bonaparte

1. Royalists hoped to restore monarchy legally. Monarchy = stability.

2. 1797 Spring electionsconstitutional monarchists & supporters majority.

3. Sept. 4 1797Directory set coup d'état put their supporters in oppo-

nents' seats.

4. Requested Napoleon to send army to Paris.

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 5. Napoleon born 1769 to poor lesser nobles in Corsica.
(a) 1785Commissioned artillery ocer
(b) Jacobin, revolutionist.

(c) 1793Recovered Toulon port from Britain.

(d) Appointed Brigadier General afterward.

(e) Defense of regime 13 Vendémiaire won him Italian command.

1.1 Early Military Victories

1. Oct. 1797 Treaty of Campo Formiotook Austria out of war. Napoleon

successmade treaty himself, against Paris. Soon dominated all of Italy,
Switzerland.

2. Nov. 1797Return to Paris; only Britain left. Attack Britain by taking

Egyptdrive eet from Mediterranean, cut communications with India,
damage trade.

(a) Failure; Admiral Horatio Nelson destroyed French eet Aug. 1

1798.
(b) Second Coalition against France: Austria, Russia, Ottoman, Britain.

(c) British drove French out, not Ottoman.

(d) Ottoman realized had to reform to resist Europe.

3. 1799French defeated in Italy, Switzerland; Russia, Austria threaten

invasion.

1.2 The Constitution of the Year VIII

1. Troubled econ. and international relations erode Directory's support.

2. Abbé Siéyès propose new constitution.

(a) Non-elected executive

(b) condence from below, power from above.

3. Would require another coup with military.

(a) Nov. 10 1799Napoleon + Siéyès coup.

(b) Underestimated Napoleon; he pushed Siéyès aside.

4. Dec. 1799Constitution of the Year 8one man ruleFirst Consul.

(a) Appealed to Republican principles.

(b) Like Caesar, Augustus; modern dictators.

(c) First to use rhetoric or revolution & nationalism with military into
an empire ruled by himself.

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2 The Consulate in France (17991804)
Consulate ended revolution3E and peasants satised. New dominant classes
did not want to share with lower classesNapoleon gave them security, so they
approved constitution in plebiscite.

2.1 Suppressing Foreign Enemies and Domestic Opposi-

tion

1. Peace: Russia left; Austria defeated 1801 Treaty of Luneville took

Austria out; 1802 Treaty of Amiens took Britain out of war and peace
to Europe.

2. Generosity, attery, bribery to win enemies. General amnesty; employed

all men from political walks.

3. Ruthlessly suppress opposition.

(a) Highly centralized.

(b) Secret police.

(c) Suppress royalist rebellion in West; impose Paris rule on Brittany,

Vendée for the rst time in years.

4. Took advantage of opportunity to destroy enemies.

(a) 1804 assassination attempt from royalists, but used to to attack Ja-
cobins.

(b) Executed Bourbon Duke of Enghien in Germany; accused of par-

ticipating in royalist plot though Napoleon knew he was innocent.

2.2 Concordat with the Roman Catholic Church

1. Pius 6 exiled to France during French invasion of Italy.

2. 1801Peace with Pius 7 (r. 180023). Napoleon got what he wanted.

(a) Fired refractory clergy and those accepted revolution.

(b) State named and paid for bishops and one priest per parish.

(c) Church gave up claims to conscated property.

3. Catholicism is the religion of the great majority of French citizensnot

religious dominance that pope wanted.

4. Clergy swear loyalty to state.

5. 1802 Organic Articlessupremacy of state of church. Applied to

Protestants and Jews too.

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2.3 The Napoleonic Code

1. 1802 plebiscite ratied Napoleon consul for life; another constitution gave
him full power.

2. Civil Code of 1804 (Napoleonic Code)  reform and codication of

French Law. Guarded property, secured society against internal chal-
lenges.

3. Conservative to labor and womenno changes.

(a) Primogeniture right of eldest son to inherit mostabolished; equal

distribution among children (male and female).

(b) Divorce still more dicult for women.

(c) Before, regional dierences in law. Universal code end opportunities

for women to protect their interests amidst confusion.

2.4 Establishing a Dynasty

1. Dynasty = secure regime, make future assassination attempts useless.

2. New constitution declare Emperoroverwhelmingly ratied plebiscite.

Would not allow anyone to think his power depended on Church.

3. Invited Pius 7 to crown him, but pope agreed Napoleon crown himself.

3 Napoleon's Empire (18041814)

1. Conquered most of Europe.

2. Ended Old Regime throughout Western Europe.

3. Forced eastern states to reorganize.

4. Powerful nationalismmilitarily mobile France.

(a) 700,000 men under arms;

(b) 100,000 can be risked in a single battle;

(c) Loyalty → conscript unprecedented numbers.

5. No single enemy could match; even coalitions failed.

3.1 Conquering an Empire

1. 1802 Peace of Amiens merely truce.

2. Intervened in Haiti → British fear new empire.

→ reduced Austrian inuence; fewer but larger

all dependent on Napoleon.
3. Reorganization of Germany
German states

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3.1.1 British Naval Supremacy
1. Issue ultimatum; ignored; May 1803 declare war.
2. William Pitt the Younger reconstruct Third Coalition;

3. Aug. 1805 had Russia and Austria.

Oct. 21 1805Battle of TrafalgarAdmiral
Ended French hopes of invading Britain; guaranteed
4. Nelson destroy French

British control of sea.

& Spanish eets.

3.1.2 Napoleonic Victories in Central Europe

1. Dec. 2 1805Defeated Austrian & Russian forces at Austerlitz. Per-
haps greatest victory.

Treaty of Pressburg
control everything north of Rome
2. Followed with  Austria withdraw from Italy
Napoleon and became King of Italy.

3. Jul. 1806Confederation of the Rhinemost Western German

princes; withdraw from Holy Roman Empire → Francis II dissolve HRE;
call himself Francis I of Austria.

4. Prussia foolishly enter war.

(a) Oct. 14 1806Crush army at Jena and Auerstädt.

(b) Nov. 21Berlin Decrees forbid allies from importing British
goods.

5. Jun. 13 1807Defeated Russians at Friedland.

(a) Occupy E. Prussia.

(b) Became Master of all Germany.

3.1.3 Treaty of Tilsit
1. Jul. 7 1807Treaty of Tilsitconrm French gains.
(a) Napoleon and Tsar Alexander I meet on raft in Niemen River.

(b) Armies and nervous Prussian king watch.

(c) Prussia lose half of territory.

(d) Prussia openly became ally of Napoleon.

(e) Russia secretly ally.

Provoked opposition that

needed only encouragement and assistance to become resistance.
2. Assigned family members to rule kingdoms.

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3.2 The Continental System

1. After Tilsit, only Britain could assist. Must defeat Britain to feel safe.
2. Could not compete navally → continue econ. war. Want to:

(a) Cut o trade with Continent.

(b) Cause domestic unrest → drop Britain out of war.

3. 1807 Milan Decreeattempt to stop neutral nations from trading.

4. British econ. survived despite initial sueringcontrol of seas access
Americans, E. Mediterranean.

5. Continental system badly hurt Continental economies.

(a) Napoleon rejected free trade areapopular and helpful.

(b) Taris → increase resentment and smuggling, decrease enforcement.

This would help

bring about his ruin.
(c) Invaded Spain in 1808 in part to prevent smuggling.

4 European Response to the Empire

1. Imposed Napoleonic Code, abolished Old Regime everywhere.

(a) Freed peasants.

(b) Guilds and local oligarchies dissolved or lost power.

(c) Churches lost independence; subordinate to state.

(d) Tolerance replace monopoly.

2. But clear that his policies intended to benet France, not entire Europe.

3. Conquered states quickly grew stubborn.

4.1 German Nationalism and Prussian Reform

1. Emergence of nationalism in GermanyRomantic movement.

(a) Cultural nationalism prevail until humiliating defeat at Jena in 1806.

(b) Then sought to establish unied stateonly way to survive French.

i. Criticized German princesinecient, selsh, suck up to Napoleon.

ii. Example of France: powerful because entire population united.

2. Prussia only place for patriotismelsewhere collaborate with or ruled by

Napoleon.

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 (a) Nationalists from other states ed there.

(b) Reform and unication hated by King Frederick William 3 (r. 1797
1840) but came neverthelesshad to change to survive.

3. Reformers: Baron vom Stein (17571831) & Prince von Hardenberg

(17501822).

(a) Neither wanted to reduce power of king or nobles.

(b) Fight with their own version of the French weapons.

(c) Top-down reforms:

i. Abolish serfdom, but keep vestiges: staying on land → continue

manorial labor; own land only if forfeit a third to lord.→ Junker
holding increased. Rise of landless laborers created social prob-
lems.

ii. Abolished inhumane military punishment; sought to inspire pa-

triotism.

iii. Open ocer corps to commoners.

iv. Promoted based on merit.

v. Organize war colleges and develop military strategies and tactics.

4. Reforms helped regain power.

5. Napoleon restricted army to 42,000.

(a) Train one group each year, put them in reserve, then train another.

(b) By 1814 (broke with Napoleon in 1813) had 270,000.

4.2 The Wars of Liberation

4.2.1 Spain
1. Deeply rooted national resistance.

(a) Political unity in 1500s.

(b) Peasants devoted to ruling dynasty and Church.

2. 1807French army go to Iberian to force Portugal to abandon alliance

with Britain.

(a) Stayed in Spain to protect supply lines.

(b) 1808Revolt in Madrid. Napoleon used this to depose Spanish

Bourbons; placed Joseph (17681844) on throne.
3. Upper class prepared to collaborate, but peasants urged by lower clergy
and monks rebelled.

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 4. In Spain, faced guerrilla warfare.

5. British landed army under Sir Arthur Wellesley (17691852) (later Duke
of Wellington) to support.

Long peninsular campaign would drain French strength and hasten Napoleon's
defeat.
6.

4.2.2 Austria
1. Since defeat at Austerlitz (Sec. 3.1.2 on page 6), war of revenge in 1809.
2. Counted on distraction in Spain and aid from German princes.

(a) But German princes did not help.

(b) French quickly won Battle of Wagram.

3. Resulting Peace of Schönbrunn deprive Austria of much land and 3.5
M subjects.

4. Austrian Archduchess Marie Louise (17911847), daughter of Emperor

Francis I married Napoleon after divorced 46-year-old Josephine de Beauhar-
nais who bore no children.

4.3 The Invasion of Russia

1. Shaky Franco-Russian alliance at Tilsit ( 3.1.3 on page 6).

(a) Nobles disliked liberal France.

(b) Continental system prevented sale of timber to Britain.

(c) Only French aid in gaining Constantinople justify alliance.

(d) Polish Duchy of Warsaw (Napoleonic satellite) on Russian doorstep

and its enlargement with Austrian territory after Wagram anger
Alexander.

(e) Annexation of Hollands in violation of Tilsit, recognition of French

marshal Bernadotte as future King Charles 14 of Sweden, marriage
to Marie Louise disturb Tsar.

2. 1810Russian withdraw from Continental system and prepare for war.

3. Napoleon amass army of 600,000 with over 400,000 non-French.

4. Russians had 160,000. Scorched-earth: retreat and destroy all food and
supplies.

(a) Grand Army of Napoleon could not live o country; too big to main-
tain supply lines.

9
 (b) Eroded moral of Napoleon's army.

(c) Advisers urged him to abandon, but fear failed campaign undermine
empire.

(d) Pinned faith on Russian unwillingness to abandon Moscow w/o ght.

5. Sept. 1812Borodino, W. of Moscow, bloodiest battle of Napoleonic

Defeat.
era. French lost 30,000; Russians lost almost 60,000. But Russian army
not destroyed; France won nothing.

6. Russians burned Moscow. Napoleon captured it and oered peace to

Alexander, but ignored.

7. Winter set. Oct.remnant of Grand Army forced to retreat.

8. Dec.realized Russia would encourage plots against him at home.
9. Returned to Paris, leaving his army to retreat on its own. Perhaps only
100,000 survived.

4.4 European Coalition

1. Able to put down opponents and raise another 350,000 men.

2. Prussians, Austrians, even Russians did not want to risk another conict.

3. Could have negotiated decent peace oers, but Napoleon too ambitious.

4. 1813Last and most powerful coalition. Patriotic pressure and national

ambition.

(a) Russians, Prussians, Austrians drive from West, aided by British

money.

(b) Wellington's army marched in from Spain.

(c) Napoleon's new army inexperienced, poorly equipped.

(d) His generals lost condence and were tried.

(e) Napoleon himself exhausted and sick.

5. Still, successful in central Europe; defeated allies at Dresden.

6. Oct. 1813decisively defeated at Battle of Leipzig (German: Battle of

the Nations).

7. Mar. 1814marched into Paris. Napoleon abdicated; exiled to Elba o

Italy.

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5 The Congress of Vienna and the European Set-
tlement
1. Remove Napoleon → coalition disperse.

2. Robert Stewart, Viscount Castlereagh (17691822)  British foreign sec-

retary. Signed

3. Treaty of Chaumont on Mar. 9 1814. Restore Bourbons; France

return to 1792 borders.

4. Quadruple Alliance: Britain, Austria, Russia, Prussia. Details and

problems left for Vienna conference.

5.1 Territorial Adjustments

1. Sept. 1814Nov. 1815  Congress of Vienna.

2. All victors agree no one state dominate Europebetter not be France
again.

3. Restore Bourbontemporarily popular.

4. Non-vindictive boundary settlement keep France calm, satised.

5. Strengthen states around French borders.

(a) Establish kingdom of the NetherlandsBelgium & Luxembourg.

(b) Add Genoa to strengthen Piedmont in south.

6. Prussia given territory along Rhine to deter France.

7. Austria gain full control of N. Italy.

8. Most Napoleonic organization of Germany unchanged. Established rule

of legitimate monarchsreject republic, democracy.

9. Settlement of E. Europe sharply divided.

(a) Alexander 1 wanted all Poland.

(b) Prussia willing to give in exchange for all Saxony (previously allied
with Napoleon).

(c) Austria unwilling to give up its share of Poland or see Prussia or

Russia grow.

(d) Talleyrand  representative of France  secret alliance against

Russia.

(e) Alliance leaked → Alexander contented with smaller Poland and

Prussia with part of Saxony.

(f ) France included as fth power.

11
5.2 The Hundred Days and the Quadruple Alliance

1. Mar. 1 1815Napoleon return from Elba; united victors.

(a) French army still loyal.

(b) Many French people preferred his rule to restored Bourbons.

(c) Napoleon promise liberal constitution, peaceful foreign policy.

2. Allies declare him outlaw (new device under international law).

(a) Jun. 18, 1815  Wellington (Section 4.2.1 on page 8) aided by

Prussians under von Blücher defeated Napoleon at Waterloo in
Belgium.

(b) Napoleon abdicated again (rst time Section 4.4 on page 10), exiled
to St. Helenatiny Atlantic island o cost of Africa; died 1821.
3. 100 Days (period of Napoleon's return) frightened great powers; made
peace settlement harsher for France.

(a) War indemnity + army of occupation.

(b) Alexander propose Holy Alliance with Austria and Prussia (Castlereagh
thought it absurd).

i. Tsar was embracing mysticism; though Holy Alliance valuable

tool for international relations.

ii. Became known as symbol for extreme political reaction.

4. Nov. 20 1815Renew Quadruple Alliance (Section 5 on the preceding

page).

(a) Equally coalition for maintaining peace.

(b) Never before existencepowers determined to prevent war.

(c) War aected entire civilian populations. Determined to prevent more

upheaval and destruction.

5. Congress aimed to prevent recurrence of Napoleonic nightmare.

(a) Treaty should secure peace, not victory.

(b) Stability, not punishing France.

6. Achieved its goals. France accepted, partly because it was recognized as

world power.

7. Established new legal framework treaties between states, not monarchs.

Remained while monarchs died.

8. European leaders considered more complex models political and economic

powergeneral economic growth could benet everybody.

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 9. Criticized for failing to recognize and provide nationalism and democracy.

(a) Desire for peace. Aimed to settle past illssucceeded.

(b) Settlement remained intact for over half a century; prevented general
war for a hundred.

6 The Romantic Movement

1. Emerged during French Revolution and conquests.

2. Romanticism was reaction against much of Enlightenment.

3. Imagination or intuition supplement reason as a means to understand

world.

4. Urged revival of Christianity.

5. Enjoyed art, literature, and architecture of medieval.

6. Interest in folk.

7. Dreams, hallucinationsphenomena suggesting world beyond empirical

observation and discursive reasoning fascinating.

7 Romantic Questioning of the Supremacy of Rea-

son
1. Individualism of Renaissance, Protestant devotion, personal piety, novels.

2. Sturm and Drang (Storm and Stress)  German poetry movement,

reject French rationalism on German literature.

3. Rousseau and Kantclosely related to Enlightenment; immediate intel-

lectual foundations.

Questioned whether rationalism sucient for human nature and principle

for society.
4.

7.1 Rousseau and Education

1. Society and material wealth corrupt human natureprofound impact on

Romantic writers.

2. 1762 Émile  novel, how to lead good happy life uncorrupted by society.

(a) Stages of human maturation; children given maximum freedom.

(b) Grow freely like plant; use trial and error to learn reality.

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 (c) Parent/teacher provide basic necessity, ward o obviously harmful.
Like gardener, stay out of way.

3. Men and women separate spheres due to physical dierences.

4. Humankind, nature, society organically interrelated.

7.2 Kant and Reason

1. 1781 Critique of Pure Reason

2. 1788 Critique of Practical Reason
3. Accept rationalism and human freedom, immortality, God.

4. Subjective human knowledge: mind not active mirror of worldinstead,

actively impose forms of sensibility and categories of understanding.
Human perceptions product of mind's activity + sensory experience.

5. Reality accessible by pure reason (phenomenal world, sensory experience)

limited.

6. Noumenal worldpractical reason, conscience. Moral and aesthetic

reality.

7. Categorical imperativeall humans innate sense of moral duty. Inner

command to act in every situation as one would have everyone else act in
same situation.

(a) Proof of humankind's natural freedom.

(b) From moral sense, God, eternal life, future reward/punish.

(c) Reason alone could not prove transcendental truths, but realities
known to all reasonable people.

8. Refute narrow rationality of Enlightenment. Romantics believed human

mind deeper than passive understanding of Hobbes, Locke, Hume. Believe
artists possess powers in abundance.

9. Others appealed to limits of human reason to set up new religious and

political ideals.

8 Romantic Literature
1. Neoclassical writers used derogatory: unreal, sentimental, excessively fan-
ciful.

2. Thomas Warton (172890): Romantic literature  medieval romances.

3. Johann Gottfried Herder (17441803): Romantic  Gothic.

14
 4. Did not observe classical forms and rules; free imagination.

Lectures on Dramatic
Art
5. August Wilhelm von Schlegel (17671845) 180911
 Dante, Petrarch, Boccaccio, Shakespeare, Arthurian legends, Cer-
vantes, Calderón all Romantic. Living, as opposed to mechanical, which
was classical literature.

6. Madame de Staël (17661817), Victor Hugo (180285)  brought Ro-

mantic Movement to France after it peaked in Germany and England.

(a) Strong classical inuence in France.

(b) 1816Henri Beyle (17831842) under pen-name Stendhal openly

declare himself Romantic.

(c) Praise Shakespeare; criticize classical dramatist Jean Racine (1639

99).

8.1 The English Romantic Writers

1. Believe poetry from freely owing impulses of mind.

(a) Contradict Locke: poetry mechanical exercise of wit following pre-

scribed ruled.

2. Samuel Taylor Coleridge (17721834)  imagination = God's work in

the mind.

(a) Poetry highest of human actsself-fulllment in transcendental world.

(b) Master of Gothic poems of supernatural.

(c) The Rime of the Ancient Marinercursed for killing albatross.

Crime against nature and God, guilt, punishment, redemption, hu-
mility, penance. At end, discover unity and beauty of all things.

8.1.1 Wordsworth
, William (17701850)  Coleridge's closest friend.

1. 1798 Lyrical Ballads  new poetry reject 18th century criticism.

2. 1803 Ode on Intimations of Immortality  console Coleridge, who was

suering crisis.

(a) Loss of poetic visionfelt happening to himself.

(b) Every human lose childlike vision and closeness to spiritual reality
when mature.

(c) Child recollect supernatural more easily.

(d) Again, urban living deaden imagination.

3. 1850 The Prelude autobiographical growth of poet's mind.

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8.1.2 Lord Byron
17881824, rebel among Romantics. Distrusted/disliked by British Romantics.

1. Outside England: embody new person French Revolution created.

2. Reject traditions, champion person liberty.

3. Skeptical, mocking, even of own beliefs.

4. 1812 Childe Harold's Pilgrimage  melancholy Romantic hero.

5. 1819 Don Juan  vulgar humor, acknowledge nature's cruelty and beauty,
admire urban life.

8.2 The German Romantic Writers

Novels sentimental; borrowed medieval romances.

1. Characters symbol of larger truth of life.

2. Avoid pure realistic description.

3. First: William Lovell (17935) by Ludwig Tieck (17731853).

(a) Contrast Lovell (love, imagination) to cold reason alone.

(b) Cold reason prey to unbelief, hatred of man, egoism.

(c) Two women Lovell naively loves with philosophy, materialism, skep-
ticism destroy Lovell.

8.2.1 Schlegel
, Friedrich (17671845)  1799 Lucinde
1. Attack prejudice against women.

2. Romantics could be involved in contemporary social issues.

3. Lucinde = perfect friend, companion, lover.

4. Shock contemporary morals: frank sex, Lucinde equal to male hero.

8.2.2 Goethe
, Johann Wolfgang von (17491832)  perhaps greatest German writer of
modernity.

1. Part of writer Romantic; other condemn Romantic excesses.

2. 1774 The Sorrows of Young Werther  series of letters, like many in 18th.

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 (a) Hero loves Lotte, who is married.

(b) Explore relationship with sentimentalism.

(c) Eventually part, but Werther kills himself.

Popular throughout Europe; admire emphasis on feeling and living

outside bounds of polite society.
(d)

3. Faust  Masterpiece; long dramatic poem.

(a) 1808Part IFaust with devil: soul  more knowledge than any
other human.

(b) Faust seduces Gretchen; she dies and goes to heaven but Faust real-
izes he must live.

(c) 1832Part IIFaust adventure with witches, myth creatures.

(d) At end, dedicate what remains of his life to help humanity. Overcome
restless striving that led him to make pact with devil. New knowledge
breaks pact; dies and goes to heaven.

9 Romantic Art
Reaction to 18th; Rococo → Renaissance; Neoclassical → Ancient; instead,
Romantic → Medieval. Represent stability and religious reverence missing
in their own lives.

9.1 The Cult of the Middle Ages and Neo-Gothicism

1. John Constable (17761837)  conservative.

(a) Salisbury Cathedral, from the Meadows  stable world, political tur-
moil nor industry destroy dominance of church and landed classes.

(b) Church and trees stand in stormenduring order.

(c) Liberal reformers  devil.

(d) Rainbow sacramental natureGod's blessing for traditional order.

2. Idealize rural lifeconnect to medieval, oppose urban, industry, com-

merce. Constable's paintings landscape largely disappeared in England.

3. Medieval cathedrals restored; new churches imitated.

(a) Houses of Parliament (18367)  most famous public buildings Neo-

Gothic.

(b) Town halls, schools, railroad stations built live medieval.

(c) Aristocratic country houses rebuilt to resemble castles.

(d) Castle of Neuschwanstein (186986) by King Ludwig II of Bavaria.

i. Interior never completed.
ii. Almost bankrupted Bavarian monarchy.

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9.2 Nature and the Sublime

Portray majestic power of nature as no previous generation had done.

1. Mysterious, unruly naturenot Newtonian order.

2. The sublime elements of nature that arouse strong emotion (fear, dread,
awe) and question our lives.

3. Often traveled to remote areas to portray unruly, dangerous scenes to

immediately grip viewer.

4. Nature = set of innite forces that overwhelm mankind.

(a) The Polar Sea (Caspar David Friedrich (17741840))  ship trapped
and crushed by polar ice eld.

(b) Darknesshuman beings in night, moonlight and torches.

5. Joseph Mallord William and

Turner (17751851)  nature industry.

(a) 1844 Rail, Steam and SpeedThe Great Western Railway railway
engine through storm.

(b) Technology part of nature but strong enough to dominate.

6. Friedrich + Turner symbolize contradictory forces of Romantic art: awe-

some power of nature + awesome human power of industry that could
challenge or surpass nature.

10 Religion in the Romantic Period.

institutions
mystics.
Sought foundations of religion in inner emotions. Faith, experience,
central to human life. Forerunners were

10.1 Methodism

Originated in middle of 18th against deism, rationalism in Anglican Church.

1. Important part of background of English Romanticism.

2. Leader: John Wesley (170391).

(a) Mother (had 18 children) carefully supervised education and religious

development.

(b) Organized Holy Club at Oxford while studying for Anglican priest.

(c) Left for missionary to Georgia (1735).

(d) German Moravians on ship impressed him with faith during storm
on ship. They knew better the meaning of justication by faith. . .

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 (e) 1738Return to London; worship with Moravians. 1739conversion
experience; felt assured of salvation.

3. Could not preach his conversion in Anglican church.

4. 1739Preached in open elds near cities and towns.

(a) Charles (brother, 170788) organize Methodist societies.
(b) Sent missionaries to Americagreatest success.

5. Inward, heartfelt religion, possibility of Christian perfection in this life.

6. Highly emotional → relief from dry deism.

10.2 New Directions in Continental Religion

1. After Thermidorian reaction, Catholic revival in France.

(a) Disapprove religious policy of revolution;

(b) anticlericalism on Enlightenment.

2. 1802 The Genius of Christianity by Viscount François René de Chateaubriand

(17681848)

(a) Bible of Romanticism  essence of religion is passion.

(b) Foundation of faith was emotion in teachings and sacraments.

3. 1799 Speeches on Religion to its Cultured Despisers by Friedrich Schleier-

macher (17681834).
(a) Response to Lutheran orthodoxy & Enlightenment rationalism.

(b) Religion not dogma or ethics: intuition of absolute dependence on

innite reality.

(c) Institutions, doctrine, moral activity express primal feeling indirectly.

(d) Every religion unique in its expression of primal intuition of innite
in the nite.

i. Every religion unique version of common emotional experience.

ii. Interpret religion the same way other Romantics interpret cul-
tures.

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11 Romantic Views of Nationalism and History
1. Glorify individual and culture (esp. Germany).

2. Germany idealism: world = creation of subjective egos.

3. J. G. Fichte (17621814)  Germany philosopher, nationalist.

(a) Individual ego linked to Absolute that underlies all existing things.

(b) World is truly creation of humankind.

4. World is the way it is because especially strong people conceive

of it as a particular way and impose their wills on other people.

(a) Napoleon example.

(b) Justify glorication of great persons and their overriding opposition.

11.1 Herder and Culture

German Romantics search their past in reaction to copying of French in 18th,

French Revolution impacts, and Napoleon's imperialism.

1. Johann Gottfried Herder (17441803)  resented French cultural domi-

nance.

2. 1778 On the Knowing and Feelings of the Human Soul  reject mecha-
nism.

(a) Humans and society develop organically.

(b) Humans dierent at dierent times and places.

3. Urge preservation of German songs, sayingsrevive folk culture.

(a) Jakob (17851863) & Wilhelm (17861859) Grimmfairy tales.

4. Each language and culture unique expression of a people.

(a) Reject common language like French;

(b) Reject universal institutions.

(c) They were tyranny over individuality.

5. Revival of interest in history, philosophy.

6. Expanded to embrace world culturesability of Romantic imagination to

t into any age or culture → study of non-Western religion, comparative
literature, philology.

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11.2 Hegel and History

, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich (17701831). Most complicated and signicant philoso-

pher of Western civilization.

1. Ideas develop in evolutionary fashion with conict.

2. Thesis is predominant set of ideas.

3. Antithesis are conicting ideas that challenge thesis.
4. Synthesis emerges through patterns of thought clash, becoming new the-
sis.

5. Periods of world history are characterized by their thesis.

6. Several important conclusions:

All periods of history are equally important because each is necessary

for achievements of later periods.
(a)

All cultures are valuable because each contribute to necessary clash of

values/ideals that lets humanity develop.
(b)

7. 1806 The Phenomenology of Mind

8. 182231 Lectures on the Philosophy of History.
9. Many other works published after death.

10. Ideas became widely known through lectures at Univ. Berlin.

11.3 Islam, the Middle East, and Romanticism

Romanticism modied European understanding of Arab and Islamic worlds

while still preserving long-standing attitudes.

1. Energized Christianity (Methodism, Chateaubriand (Section 10.2 on page 19))

renew sense of necessary conict.

(a) Chateaubriand invoke notion of Crusade in French parliament relat-

ing to Barbary pirates of N. Africa.

(b) Medieval Crusades re Romantic imagination.

i. 1825 Tales of the Crusaders by Sir Walter Scott (17711832).

ii. Portrayed Muslim soldiers heroically.

iii. Ignored havoc on people of Middle East.

Greek Revolution
2. Nationalism with Romanticism cast Ottoman Empire and Islam unfavor-
ably. (Chapter 20).

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3. Other Romantic sensibilities → see Muslim world more positively.

(a) Emphasis on world literature → enjoy The Thousand and One Nights.
(b) First English 1778 from French.
(c) Reject classicism for folk and fairy Arabian Nights mysterious, ex-
otic.

(d) 1859 Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám of NishapurPersian poet of 12th.

Translated by Edward FitzGerald (180983).

4. Herder & Hegel give Arabs distinct historical roles.

(a) Herder: one of many communities that manifest human spirit.

(b) Hegel: Islam important stage of development of world-spirit, but

already done its job, no longer signicant.

(c) Outlooks penetrated 19th intellectual life → Islam could be ignored.

5. Thomas Carlyle (17951881) (Brit. historian, social commentator) new,

positive qualities to Muhammad.

(a) Dislike Enlightenment injury to religion, spiritual values.

(b) Drawn to German theories of history.

(c) 1841 On Heroes and Hero-Worship  Muhammad embody hero as

prophet.

(d) Renounce Christian/Enlightenment view of Muhammad as impostor.

(e) Similar to Schleiermacher (Section 10.2 on page 19)  subjectively

experience God.

(f ) Historically friend; did not believe Muhammad was last prophet.

6. Napoleon reshaped thought towards Islam and Middle East most in long
run.

(a) 1798 Egyptian Expeditionstudy of Arab would be important ac-

tivity of French intellectual life.

(b) Had to be clear: not destroy Islam but liberate Egypt from Ottoman
Empire military clique.

(c) Took scholars to converse with educated people.

(d) Napoleon met with local Islamic leaders; had speeches & proclama-
tions translated to classical Arabic.

(e) Cultural sensitivity and study of Qur'an impressed Egyptian scholars.

(f ) Discovered Rosetta Stone (now in British Museum).

(g) Scholars published 180928 Description of Egypt  focused on an-
cient.

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 i. Impact: Islam only part of larger cultural story.

ii. Understand Egypt and Islam through European thought (not

necessarily Christian)

(h) Cultural impacts:

i. Increase European visitors to Middle East.

ii. Architecture based on Egyptian models (Washington Monument).

12 In Perspective
Romantic ideals contributed to nationalism, which would become one of the
strongest forces of the 19th and 20th centuries. Enlightenment championed
cosmopolitanism but Romanticism championed individual cultures. Cultural
nationalism was transformed into a political creedevery people, ethnic group,
or nation ought to be a distinct political entity in order to secure its character.
France under Napoleon demonstrated the power of nationhood. Others desired
this same strength. Napoleon toppled ancient political structures such as the
Holy Roman Empire; this proved the need for new political organization. The
Congress of Vienna ignored such desires for new organization, but for the rest
of the 19th century, such growing power had to be unleashed.

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