Q and Ans: Rise of Nationalism in Europe

Ch - Rise of Nationalism in Europe

 Q. Describe steps taken by the French revolutionaries to create a sense of collective identity amongst the French people. 

Answer: French revolutionaries introduced various other measures such as:

1. The Estate General was elected by the body of active citizens and renamed the National Assembly.

2. New hymns were composed, oaths taken and martyrs commemorated all in the name of the nation.

3. A centralized administrative system was put in place and it formulated uniform laws for all citizens within its territory.

4. Internal customs, duties and dues were abolished and a uniform system of weights and measures was adopted.

5. Regional dialects were discouraged and French, as it was spoken and written in Paris, became the common language of the nation.

6. They further declared that it was the mission and the destiny of the French nation to liberate the people of Europe from despotism and help them to become nations.

Q. Explain the Civil Code of 1804 or Napoleonic Code.

Answer: Civil Code of 1804

• The Civil Code of 1804, also known as the Napoleonic Code, abolished all the privileges based on birth, established equality before the law and gave the right to property.

• The code which was introduced in the regions under French control, like Italy, Germany, Switzerland, simplified administrative divisions, abolished the feudal system and freed peasants from serfdom and manorial dues,

• In towns guild restrictions came to an end.

• Uniform weights and measures were adopted. A common national currency helped in the movement of goods and capital from one region to another.

• Transport and communication systems were improved.

Q. How did the local people in the areas conquered by Napoleon react to French rule? Explain. 

Answer:

The reactions of the local population to the French rule were mixed.

• Initially, in many places such as Holland and Switzerland, as well as in cities like Brussels, Mainz, Milan and Warsaw, the French armies were welcomed as harbingers of liberty. 

• As new administrative arrangements did not go hand in hand with political freedom, enthusiasm turned into hostility. 

• Increased taxation, censorship, forced conscription into the French armies to conquer the rest of Europe, outweighed the advantages of the administrative changes.

Q. Explain the conditions that were viewed as obstacles to the economic exchange and growth by the new commercial classes during the nineteenth century in Europe.

Answer:

In the economic sphere, liberalism stood for the freedom of markets and the abolition of state-imposed restrictions on the movement of goods and capital.

1. But in the 19th century, Napoleon’s administrative measures had created out of countless small principalities a confederation of 39 states. Each possessed its own currency, and weights and measures.

2. A merchant travelling from Hamburg to Nuremberg had to pass through 11 custom barriers and pay 5% duty at each one of them.

3. As each region had its own system of weights and measures this involved time-consuming calculations.

Such conditions were viewed as obstacles to economic growth and exchange by the new commercial classes who argued for the creation of a unified economic territory allowing free movement of goods, people and capital.

Q. What did Liberal Nationalism stand for? Explain any four ideas of Liberal Nationalists in the economic sphere. 

Answer:

Liberalism or Liberal Nationalism stood for freedom for the individual and equality of all before the law. 

Four ideas of Liberal Nationalists in the economic sphere are:

1. Liberalism stood for freedom of markets and abolition of state-imposed restrictions. For example, Napoleon’s administration was a confederation of 29 states, each of these possessed its own currencies, weight and measures. Such conditions were viewed as obstacles to economic exchange.

2. Liberal Nationalists argued for the creation of a unified economic territory allowing the unhindered movement of goods, people and capital.

3. In 1834, a customs union or ” Zollverein” was formed. The union abolished tariff barriers and reduced the number of currencies from 30 to 2.

4. The creation of a network of railways further stimulated mobility, harnessing economic interest to national unification.

Q. How did a wave of economic nationalism strengthen the wider nationalist sentiments growing in Europe? Explain.

Answer:

A wave of economic nationalism strengthened wider nationalist sentiments growing in Europe with:

(a) the demands of new commercial classes for a unified economic province for unconstrained transfer of commodities, people and funds.

(b) the formation of the Zollverein in 1834.

(c) the elimination of tariff barriers by the union.

(d) the reduction in the number of currencies from over thirty to two.

(e) the formation of a network of railways that further helped mobility and connected economic interests to national unification.

Q. Explain any three beliefs of the conservatism that emerged after 1815.

Answer:

Following were the beliefs of conservatism that emerged after 1815:

• The conservatives held the belief that established, traditional institutions of state and society like monarchy, church, social hierarchies, property and family must be protected and preserved.

• They never proposed a pre-revolutionary period to return to but they knew that as Napoleon had carried out changes, modernisation would in fact contribute to a strong monarchy. They believed that it would strengthen the power of the state and make it much more effective.

• For them it was a firm belief that aristocratic monarchies of Europe would gain much from a modern army, an efficient bureaucracy, a dynamic economy, the abolition of feudalism and serfdom. ‘

Q. Explain any four changes brought about in Europe by the Treaty of Vienna(1815)

Answer:

Napoleon was defeated in 1815 by collective European powers i.e. Britain, Russia, Prussia, and Austria. The representatives of European powers drew up the Treaty of Vienna at a congress hosted by Austrian Chancellor Duke Metternich to undo the changes that had come about Europe during the Napoleonic wars. Following changes were brought about in Europe by this treaty:

• The Bourbon dynasty that was destroyed during the French Revolution was restored. French lost the territories it has annexed under Napoleon.

• A series of states were set up on the boundaries of France to prevent French expansion in the future.

• The Netherlands which included Belgium was set up in the north. Genoa was added to Piedmont in the south.

• Prussia was given important new territories on its western frontiers. Austria was given control of northern Italy.

• The German confederation of 39 states set up by Napoleon was left untouched. Russia was given part of Poland and Prussia was given part of Saxony.

• Monarchy was restored and a new conservative order was created in Europe.

Q. Culture had played an important role in the development of nationalism in Europe during the 18th and 19th centuries. Support the statement with examples.

Answer:

Culture played an important role in creating the idea of a nation in Europe in the following ways.

• Art, music, literature and drama helped to express, shape and strengthen nationalist sentiments.

• Romantics like the German philosopher Johann Gottfried Herder held the view that true German culture could be discovered only among the common people, the das volk.

• Glorification of reason and science was criticised by the romantic artists, rather they favoured emotions, intuitions and mystical feelings.

• Language too boosted nationalism. The Polish people opposed the Russian occupation and the ban on the Polish language, by using it in the Church gathering for all religious ceremonies and for religious instruction. The Polish language became a weapon of the nationalists.

• Two Germans, Grimm Brothers, used stories and folktales written in German to promote the German spirit against the domination of the French.

• Operas and music, like that of Karol Kurpinski, kept alive the national spirit.

• Folk dances like the polonaise and mazurka became national symbols.

Q. Explain the contribution of Giuseppe Mazzini in spreading revolutionary ideas in Europe.

Answer:

• Italian revolutionary Giuseppe Mazzini was born in Genoa in 1807. He became a member of the secret society of the Carbonari. 

• At the age of 24, he was sent into exile in 1831 for attempting a revolution in Liguria. He founded two underground societies, first, Young Italy in Marseilles and Young Europe in Berne. The members of the society were drawn from Poland, France, Italy and the German states.

• Mazzini strongly believed that God had intended nations to be the natural units of mankind. So Italy could not continue to be a patchwork of small states and kingdoms. It had to be forged into a single unified republic within a wider alliance of nations. This unification alone could be the basis of Italian liberty.

• Following his model, secret societies were set up in Germany, France, Switzerland and Poland. 

• Mazzini’s relentless opposition to monarchy and his vision of democratic republics frightened the conservatives. Metternich described him as ‘the most dangerous enemy of our social order’.

Q. Explain any three ways in which nationalist feelings were kept alive in Poland in the 18th and 19th centuries. 

Answer:

The three ways in which nationalist feelings were kept alive in the 18th and 19th centuries in Poland:

(i) Emphasis on vernacular language. Language played an important role in developing nationalist sentiments. The use of the Polish language came to be seen as a symbol of struggle against Russian dominance. For example, In Poland, following an armed rebellion against Russian rule, Polish was used for church gatherings and religious instruction. As a result, many priests and bishops were put in jails or sent to Siberia as punishment for their refusal to preach in Russian.

(ii) Emphasis on the collection of local folklore. It was not just to recover an ancient national spirit, but also to carry the modern nationalist message to the large audience who were mostly illiterate.

(iii) Use of music to keep the nationalist feeling alive. For example, Karol Kurpinski, celebrated the national struggle through his operas and music, turning folk dances like the polonaise and mazurka into nationalist symbols.

Q. Explain the Greece war of struggle.

Ans.  Greece had been part of the Ottoman Empire since the fifteenth century.

• The growth of revolutionary nationalism in Europe sparked off a struggle for independence amongst the Greeks which began in 1821.

• Nationalists in Greece got support from other Greeks living in exile and also from many West Europeans who had sympathies for ancient Greek culture.

• Poets and artists lauded Greece as the cradle of European civilisation and mobilised public opinion to support its struggle against a Muslim empire.

• The English poet Lord Byron organised funds and later went to fight in the war, where he died of fever in 1824.

• Finally, the Treaty of Constantinople of 1832 recognised Greece as an independent nation.

Q. Explain any five economic hardships that Europe faced in the 1830s. 

Ans. Following are the causes of economic hardships in Europe during the 1830s:

1. Europe had come under the grip of large-scale unemployment. In most of the countries, there were more seekers of jobs than employment.

2. Cities had become overcrowded and slums had emerged as a population from the rural areas migrated to the cities.

3. Small producers in towns were often faced with stiff competition from imports of cheap machine-made goods from England where industrialization was more advanced especially in the field of textile production.

4. In those regions of Europe, where aristocracy still enjoyed power, peasants struggled under the burden of feudal dues and obligations.

5. The rise of food prices and bad harvests added to the hardships of the peasants.

Q. Describe the impact of the ‘Revolution of Liberals’ of 1848 in Europe.

Answer:

The Revolution of the Liberals in 1848 was led by the educated middle classes.

The impact of the Revolution was:

• In France, it brought about the abdication of the monarch and a republic based on the principles of universal male suffrage was set up.

• Germany, Poland, Italy, Austro-Hungarian Empire did not exist as independent nation-states. Men and women of liberal middle classes combined their demands for constitutionalism and national unification. They wanted a nation-state on parliamentary principles—a constitution, freedom of the press and freedom of association.

• In the German regions, middle-class professionals, businessmen and rich artisans came to the city of Frankfurt to vote for an all-German National Assembly. The Frankfurt Assembly was convened, they drafted a constitution, headed by a monarchy subject to the crown. However, king Friedrich Wilhelm-IV of Prussia refused to accept the crown.

Q. Describe the process of unification of Germany. 

Answer:

Unification of Germany:

In the 18th century, Germany was divided into a number of states. Some of these states ceased to exist during the Napoleonic wars. At the end of the war, there were still 39 independent states in Germany. Prussia was most powerful, dominated by big landlords known as Junkers.

(i) Nationalist feelings were widespread among middle-class Germans who had tried to unite the different regions of the German federation into a nation-state governed by an elected Parliament.

(ii) In May 1848, a large number of political associations came together to vote for an All-German National Assembly. Their representatives met at Frankfurt and the Frankfurt Assembly proposed the unification of Germany as a constitutional monarchy under the King of Prussia as emperor.

(iii) The King of Prussia rejected the offer and the liberal initiative of nation-building was repressed by combined forces of the monarchy, the military and the ‘Junkers’.

(iv) Then on, Prussia under its Chief Minister Otto von Bismarck led the movement for the unification of Germany. Bismarck carried out this process with the help of the Prussian army and the bureaucracy. He fought three wars over seven years with Denmark, Austria and France. Prussia was victorious in all these wars and the process of unification was completed as a result of Prussia’s victory over France.

(v) Consequently, on 18th January 1871, an assembly comprising of princes of German states, representatives of the army, important Prussian ministers and Bismarck gathered in the Palace of Versailles and proclaimed the Prussian King, Kaiser William, the new German Emperor.

Q. Describe the impact of the ‘Revolution of Liberals’ of 1848 in Europe.

Answer:

The Revolution of the Liberals in 1848 was led by the educated middle classes.

The impact of the Revolution was:

• In France, it brought about the abdication of the monarch and a republic based on the principles of universal male suffrage was set up.

• Germany, Poland, Italy, Austro-Hungarian Empire did not exist as independent nation-states. Men and women of liberal middle classes combined their demands for constitutionalism and national unification. They wanted a nation-state on parliamentary principles—a constitution, freedom of the press and freedom of association.

• In the German regions, middle-class professionals, businessmen and rich artisans came to the city of Frankfurt to vote for an all-German National Assembly. The Frankfurt Assembly was convened, they drafted a constitution, headed by a monarchy subject to the crown. However, king Friedrich Wilhelm-IV of Prussia refused to accept the crown.

Q. Explain the causes of conflict in the ‘Balkan area’ after 1871. 

Answer:

The nationalist tensions emerged in the Balkans due to the following reasons:

(i) Balkans was a region of geographical and ethnic variation comprising modern-day Romania, Bulgaria, Albania, Greece, Macedonia, Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Slovenia, Serbia and Montenegro whose inhabitants were known as the Slavs. A large part of the Balkans was under the control of the Ottoman empire.

(ii) After the decline of the Ottoman empire and the growth of romantic nationalism in the Balkans, the region became very explosive. Its European subject nationalities broke away from its control and declared independence.

(iii) As the different nationalities struggled to define their identity and independence, the Balkan area became an area of intense conflict. The Balkan states were fiercely jealous of each other and each hoped to gain more territory at the expense of others.

(iv) Balkan also became the scene of big power rivalry. Russia, Germany, England, Austria, Hungary — all big powers were keen on countering the hold of other powers. This ultimately turned Balkan into a war region which eventually provided a minor cause for the First World War.

Q. How had the female figures become an allegory of the nation during the nineteenth century in Europe? Analyse. 

Answer:

• Artists in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries portrayed nations as female figures. 

• The female form, that was chosen to personify the nation, did not stand for any particular woman in real life. Rather it sought to give the abstract idea of the nation in concrete form. That is, the female figure became the allegory of the nation.

• In France, she was named Marianne —a popular Christian name and in Germany, Germania.

• Germania wears a crown of oak leaves as the German oak stands for heroism. 

• The characteristics of Marianne were drawn from those of Liberty and Republic —the red cap, the tricolour and cockade.

Q. Explain the process of unification of Italy. 

• Answer:

Italy too had a long history of political fragmentation. Italians have scattered over dynastic states and the multinationals Hamburg Empire. Italy was divided into seven states. The Italian language did not have one common form.

• Guiseppe Mazzini had played an important role in the unification of Italy. He formed a secret society called ‘Young Italy’ in Marseilles, to spread his goals. He believed Italy could not continue to be a patchwork of small states and had to be forged into a single unified republic.

During the 1830s, Mazzini sought to put together a coherent programme for the unitary Italian Republic. As uprisings in 1831 and 1848 had failed, the mantle now fell on Sardinia-Piedmont under its ruler Emmanuel II to unify Italy.

• Under Chief Minister Cavour, Sardinia-Piedmont succeeded in defeating the Austrian forces in 1859. He was the chief minister, who led the movement to unify Italy. He formed a tactful diplomatic alliance with France and defeated the Austrian forces. 

• Even Guiseppe Garibaldi joined the fray. In 1860, they marched towards South Italy and the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, and with the help of the local peasants, drove out the Spanish rulers. 

Finally, in 1861, Victor Emmanuel II was proclaimed as King of United Italy.

Q. Describe the process of the Unification of Britain.

Answer:

Nationalism in Britain was different from the rest of Europe.

(i) Nationalism in Britain was not the result of a sudden uprising or revolution. It was the result of a long-drawn-out process.

(ii) There was no British nation before the 18th century. The inhabitants of the British Isles were ethnic ones — English, Welsh, Scot or Irish. Though each had its own culture and political traditions, the English nation steadily grew in wealth, importance and power and expanded its influence over other nations, such as Scotland.

(iii) The British Parliament was dominated by its English members. They tried to suppress Scotland’s distinct culture and political institutions. They could neither speak their language nor could they wear their national dress. A large number of them were driven out of their homeland.

(iv) In 1688, through a bloodless revolution, the English Parliament seized power from the monarchy and became the instrument to set up a nation-state at its centre.

(v) By the Act of Union in 1707, Scotland was incorporated in the United Kingdom. Though the Irish Catholics were against a union with England, Ireland was forcibly incorporated in the United Kingdom in 1801.

(vi) Thus it was parliamentary action and not revolution or war that was the instrument through which the British nation was formed.

(vii) A new ‘British Nation’ was formed through the propagation of English culture. The symbols of New Britain—” the British Flag (Union Jack), National Anthem (God save our noble King) and the English language” were promoted, and the older nations became the subordinate partners in the Union.