Invasion of Russia:
Napoleon’s downfall began in 1812 when he decided to invade Russia. In the Continental System, the Russian refused to remain, leaving Napoleon to invade. He knew that if he did not punish the Russians for ignoring the Continental System, other nations would follow suit. In the Grand Army there were more than 600,000 men entered Russia. The refused to do battle, instead they retreated for 100s of miles They burned their own villages and countryside to keep Napoleon’s army from finding food. At Bossino, the Russians did fight, Napoleon’s army did won an unsettled victory, which cost many lives. Reaching Moscow, Grand Army found the city ablaze. There was no food or supplies for his army, Napoleon abandoned the Russian capital in late October. When winter began, Napoleon led the “Great Retreat” in the west across Russia. Thousands of soldiers starved and froze along the way. Fewer than 40,000 of the original 600,000 soldiers arrived back in Poland in January 1813. This led other European states to rise up and attack the French army. This will lead to the exile of Napoleon.
Napoleonic Code:
Before the revolution, France had almost 300 different legal systems; Napoleon's completed a single code for the nation. The 7 law codes were created but most important was civil code (Napoleonic code), introduced in 1804. Many principles that the revolutionaries had fought for: equality of all citizens before the law, the right of the individual to choose a profession, religious toleration, and the abolition of serfdom and all feudal obligation. During the radical stage of the revolution, new laws had made divorce easier and allowed children, even daughters, to inherit property on an equal basis. Civil code under these laws; women were new “less equal than man.” The code treated women like children, who needed protection and who did not have a public role. This led to unify the government and Napoleon became the emperor of France.
Battle of Waterloo:
After Napoleon returned to France from his exile, Russia, Great Britain, Austria, and Prussia pledged to defeat the man they called “ Enemy and Disturber of the Tranquility of the World.” Another French Army of devoted veterans was raised by Napoleon who was rallied from all over France. He attack on the allied troops stationed across the border in Belgium. At Waterloo, Napoleon meet the British and Prussian army under the Duke of Wellington and was defeat. The victorious allies exiled him to St. Helena. Napoleon remained in exile until his death in 1821. The European rulers moved to restore the old order. This was the goal of the victors when they met at the Congress of Vienna in September 1814.
Congress of Vienna:
Liberalism:
In 1815 through 1830, conservative government throughout Europe worked to maintain the old order. Powerful forces for change known as Liberalism and nationalism- were also at work. Liberalism is a political philosophy that grew out of the enlightenment. Liberalism held that people should be as free as possible from government restraint. Liberal beliefs included the protection of civil liberties, the basic rights of all people. Civil liberties included equality before the law and freedom of assembly, speech, and the press.Liberal believed the freedoms should be guaranteed by a document. Many liberals favored a government ruled by the constitution. Liberal believed that written documents would help guarantee people’s right. Most liberals wanted religious toleration and separation of church and state; also demanded the rights of peaceful opposition to the government. Liberal belief that a government's power comes from the rule of law and citizens who are allowed to vote. They thought the right to vote and hold office should be open only to men of property. Liberalism was tied to middle-class men who wanted voting rights for themselves so they could store power with the landowning classes. Liberals feared mob rule and had little desire to let the lower classes share power. In the earlier centuries, people’s loyalty belonged to a king or their town. In the 19th century, people began to feel that their chief loyalty was to the nation. Today we have a government, constitution, and right of freedom because of liberalism.
The Revolution of the 1830s:
The government in Europe maintain the old order during the 19th century. In the beginning of 1830, the forces of change liberalism and nationalism began to break through the conservative domination of Europe. In France, Bourbon monarch Charles X, a reactionary, attempted to censor the press and take away voting rights form much of middle class. Liberals overthrew Charles X in 1830 and established a constitutional monarchy. Louis Philippe took the throne. Political support for the new monarch came from upper middle class. Nationalism was the chief force in all three of them. Belgium had been annexed to the former Dutch Republic in 1815, rebelled and created an independent state. Poland and Italy were ruled by foreign powers, made efforts to break free. Russian troops crushed the Polish attempt to establish an independent Polish nation. Austrian troops marched south and put down revolts in a number of Italian states. It caused severe economic problems in 1848, brought hardship in France to the lower middle class, workers, and peasants.
Political Unification of Italy and Germany:
Giuseppe Garibaldi:
After Cavour provoked the Austrians into declaring war, a peace settlement gave Nice and Savoy to the French. Lombardy was given to Piedmont and Austria retained control of Venetia. Cavour’s success caused nationalists in other Italian states to overthrow their government and join their states to Piedmont. Giuseppe Garibaldi, a dedicated patriot, raised an army of a thousand volunteers. A branch of the Bourbon dynasty ruled the Two Sicilies and a revolt had broken out in Sicily against the king. Garibaldi’s forces landed in Sicily, by July 1860, controlled most of the island. In August, Garibaldi’s forces crossed over to the mainland and began to march up the Italian Peninsula. The entire Kingdom of the Two Sicilies fell in September. Garibaldi chose to turn over his conquest to Piedmont. On March 17, 1861, a new state of Italy was proclaimed under King Victor Emmanuel II. This led to Italy being unified and stayed together.
Otto von Bismarck:
In the 1860s, King William I tried to enlarge the Prussian army. When the Prussian legislature refused to levy new taxes for the proposed changes, William I appointed a new prime minister, Count Otto von Bismarck. Bismarck was seen as a practitioner of realpolitik. Bismarck openly voiced his strong dislike for anyone who opposed him. He ignored the legislative opposition to the military reforms. He proceeded to collect taxes and strengthen the army. From 1862 to 1866, Bismarck governed Prussia without the approval of the parliament. He followed an active foreign policy, which led to war. Bismarck goaded the Austrians into a war on June 14, 1866. Austrian were no match for the Prussian army. He pushed the French into declaring war on Prussia on July 19, 1870, which caused the Franco-Prussian war. Bismarck and 600 German princes, nobles, and generals filled the Hall of Mirrors in the palace of Versailles, outside of Paris. William I of Prussia was proclaimed Kaiser of the second German Empire. The Prussian monarchy and the Prussian army had achieved the German unity. German had become the strongest power in Europe.
Latin American Revolutions and Romanticism:
Miguel Hidalgo:
In 1810, Mexico experienced a revolt. The first hero of Mexican independence was Miguel Hidalgo. Miguel was a parish priest, Hidalgo liked in a village about 100 miles from the Mexico city. He studies the French Revolution. He roused the local Native Americans and mestizos to free themselves from the Spanish. On September 16, 1810, Hidalgo led this ill-equipped army of 1,00s of Native Americans and mestizos in an attack against the Spaniards. His forces were crushed and a military court sentenced Hidalgo to death. On September 16, the first day of the uprising is Mexico’s independence day. The role of Native Americans and mestizos in Mexico’s revolt against Spanish control frightened the creoles and peninsulares. The cooperated in defeating the revolutionary forces. Creoles and Peninsulares decided to overthrow Spanish rule. The conservative elites wanted an independent nation ruled by a monarch. They selected a creole military leader, Agustin de Iturbide, to set up a new government. In 1821, Mexico declared its independence from Spain. Iturbide named himself emperor in 1822 but was disposed of in 1823. Mexico then became a republic.
Jose de San Martin and Simon Bolivar:
The success of the American Revolution and the ideals of the French Revolution spread throughout Latin America. José de San Martin of Argentina and Simon Bolivar of Venezuela, both members of the Creole elite, were hailed as the “Liberators of South America.” Bolivar began the struggle for Venezuelan independence in 1810. He also led revolts in New Granada (Colombia) and Ecuador. In 1819, these countries had formed Gran Colombia. In 1810, the forces of San Marin had liberated Argentina from Spanish authority. In January 1817, San Martin led his forces over the Andes Mountains to attack the Spanish in Chile. Two out of three of the pack mules and horses died during the trip. Soldiers suffered from lack of oxygen and severe cold while crossing mountain passes more than 2 miles above sea level. San Martin’s forces were defeated at the Battle of Chacabuco on February 12, 1817. Chile declared its independence in 1818. In 1821, San Marin advanced on Lima, Peru, the center of Spanish authority. “Liberator of Venezuela,” took on the task of crushing the last significant Spanish army of Ayacucho on December 9, 1824. At the end of 1824, Perú, Uruguay, Paraguay, Colombia, Venezuela, Argentina, Bolivia, and Chile had become free of Spain. In 1838 through 1839, they divided into 5 republics.
Romanticism:
At the end of the 1700s, a new intellectual movement, known as Romanticism, emerged as a reaction to the ideas of the Enlightenment. Romantics emphasized feeling, emotions, and imagination as sources of knowing. Romantics valued individualism or the belief in the uniqueness of each person. Many romantics rebelled against middle-class conventions. Male romantics grew long hair and beards, and men and women often wore outrageous clothes in order to express their individuality. Romantic architects revived medieval styles and built castles, and other things in a style called neo-gothic. By the mid-nineteenth century, romanticism had given way to a new movement called realism.