Q.

What were the social and ideological factors behind the recurrence of
revolutions across Europe, between 1820 and 1848? Why did this tide
ebb after 1850?

Ans: The years from 1820 to 1848 were a tumultuous and decisive era in the
history of Modern Europe. It was a period of recurring revolutions across
Europe. The rising Bourgeoisie class challenged the old monarchical
Reactionaries with their Liberal ideology. Ideologies such as Radicalism,
Republicanism, and Socialism began to make a foray. The worker
consciousness of a class struggle between the Proletariat and Bourgeoisie also
began to emerge. There is an understanding that the revolutions were born
from a conjunction of crucial economic, political and socio-cultural alterations
in the first half of the nineteenth century. We will however be examining only
the social and ideological factors in this answer and the reasons to why the
tide of revolution stated ebbing after 1850.

Before we go into the social and ideological factors it would be intelligent to

briefly look at the immediate background to the period which we are looking
at. At the Congress of Vienna in 1815, after Napoleons era, European leaders
worked out strategies to reorganize Europe and create a stable balance of
power. The Austrian diplomat Metternich would call several more gatherings
to try and preserve the European stability, but this wish for stability would
remain futile as Europe would never remain the very same as there were a lot
of dynamic forces working across Europe at the time.

In Great Britain for instance, the industrial revolution brought in wealth to the
entrepreneurs and manufacturers and created a Bourgeois class.
Consequently there was a greater desire for power among the Bourgeois and
they developed a liberal ideology involving the idea of a free market. The
middle class in Germany and Italy also desired to unify states and believed
that the government should take the initiative to do so. In many countries this
desired pace was not achieved, and the rulers did not share the same
philosophy, which made them demand a share in the power held by the
government. It was not surprising how such a situation laid the ground for a
conflict.
Thus, the years from 1815 to 1848 can be seen as a more subtle battle
between conflicting worldviews. On one hand we have the powerful
members of the old regime, who opposed changes of any kind and on the
other hand we have the forces of change - the bourgeois, liberals,
socialists, radicals, romantics and the nationalists. The struggle started
in the form of small-scale revolutions in 1830 and gained full momentum
by 1848, the year of the revolutions.

At the most basic level, the changes attempted by the French Revolution of
1789 had set a new model of state. The form of governmental organization,
political participation, production and property relations were all redefined.
Religion took a back seat in the society and the change involved the
replacement of an old regime with a civil society of property owners. These
revolutionary ideas from France spread across the European society by this
time and increased the antagonism and discontent of the people towards the
rulers. This combined with bad harvests, economic depression and food riots
amplified the discontent and anger in the European society. Unemployment
also reached high figures. However, it was not just a lack of food but also the
poor governance which was also a factor that caused unhappiness for many.

There was a large sense of nationalism which was created during the period
by foreign rule and hopes of unification. Italy was one such place which was
divided into various kingdoms such as Sicily, Piedmont etc. The Sicilian
Uprising in February 1848 was one of the first moves towards a united Italy.
The people who vouched for uniting their nations saw this as a chance and
similar uprisings took place in other cities such as Milan also.

In Hungary the reasons were different. The Hungarians were generally

unhappy with the Austrian rule and took to the streets demanding autonomy
in 1848. In Germany too such hopes prevailed. David Thomson writes, “The
central revolutionary impulse was one of nationalism- for the overthrow of
Austrian domination and of the princely sovereignties which served that
domination, and for the unification of German territories into one state”. As
we can see the hate of foreign rule and hopes of unification which manifested
in the form of nationalism was a major force behind the Revolutions of 1848.
Let us now analyze the ideological factors that were responsible for the
upheavals in early decades of 19th century. According to Sperber one
single most important factor which shaped the ideology of the 19th
century was the ideas and legacy of the French revolution of 1789. There
was a large wave of liberalism which hit the shores of Europe during the
period and was a cause of major unrest. The French people who had been
repressed by their rulers for many years were probably among the first to
imbibe this idea. Universal suffrage was still elusive in France and many felt
excluded by this. This probably was one of the most important ideological and
political factors behind the revolution since after the Paris Revolution we see
that the universal male suffrage was installed. The repressive nature of the
French government and their arbitrary decision to curb free speech was the
major cause of the Paris Revolution.

Things were not much different in Austria. The Carlsbad Decrees of 1819
brought out by Metternich and the repressive system followed by him was
despised by the masses. The people having inspired by the success of the Paris
Revolution started in revolt, eventually Metternich being forced to resign. The
Vienna Legal/Political Reading Club also came out with constitutional
proposal, which included religious toleration, the right to petition, and the
abolition of censorship. These proposals show that the people of Vienna
wanted liberal change.

Similar petitions for change were made in the Germanic states also. The
people of Mannheim for instance made out a petition demanding trial by jury
and freedom of press amongst other things. Similar petitions were made in
Cologne and Mainz also. Some of them even suggested more extended
franchise, religious toleration, free speech, swearing of an oath to the
constitution by the armed forces etc. All these shouted out the people’s
urgency for change and then when they were denied they resorted to
revolution. These tides of liberalism swept through other countries such and
Spain and Hungary too.

A young intellectual movement called Romanticism meanwhile found grip in

Germany, Britain and to an extent France. It challenged the ideal of universal
standards for all mankind, and led to the glorification of the unique "national
genius" of each ethnic and linguistic group.

Another ideology which was of high importance was the doctrine of

socialism which came up with the rise of the working classes. Socialist ideas
had their roots in the thoughts of Rousseau and from extreme Jacobinism
during the French revolution. The trickling of these ideas was in response to
the growing contradiction between the increasingly poor majority and
increasingly wealthy minority. There was a concentration of capital which was
taking place in the hands of a few elite. Socialist voices demanded the rational
organization of the society in the form of an intellectual movement.

Much of the tension leading up to the 1848 revolution can be understood as

involving the interaction between the new political ideas which ultimately
stemmed from French Revolution and the social structure and social conflicts
which were present in the early decades of the 19th century. However, this
tide of recurring revolutions ebbed after 1850. The reasons were many.

There was a general lack of coordination and organization between the

revolutions which were happening in various parts of Europe. For instance,
the revolts in Prague, Vienna, and Budapest maintained no coordination
between them allowing the Austrian army to easily suppress them. The return
of the conservative and reactionary forces can be attributed to the middle
class to a certain extent. The fear of radicalism of the workers by the middle
class had prevented any lasting alliance. Thus when the radicals took control
of the revolutions in Paris and Eastern Europe, no support came in from the
middle class liberals. They preferred absolute rule and law and order, to the
uncertainty of radical revolution. In contrast to this we find the rulers of
different states cooperating with each other when it came to quelling the
revolution. The spirit of active cooperation among the rulers of the different
countries of Europe was instrumental in frustrating the revolutions.
Although the tide of the Revolution reached the frontiers of almost every state
in Europe their excitement did not last long due to absence of able and
talented leadership. There was no universal leader who could boast of
undisputed quality. Thus, owing to the lack of an able and undisputed leader,
the movements could not be properly organized and planned thereby getting
mercilessly curbed by the autocratic powers.
Another reason that several historians mention is the limited reach of the
revolts. David Thomson has remarked that the origin, birth and inspiration of
the Revolution of 1848 were the gift of the urban areas. This revolution
originated only in the cities of Europe. To the common people living the
villages the revolution did not mean much and were also ignorant of many its
facets according to him. Their faith was entrenched in the old traditions,
customs and political systems thereby limiting the scope of the revolution to
just the urban areas and failing to enlist the sympathy, support and
cooperation of the common people of the rural areas. The revolution failed in
the cities too due to the rising conflict between the labour class and the
middle class.
Thus, it may be concluded that the disunity of the revolutionists, the spirit of
cooperation among the rulers, indifferent leadership and the limited scope of
the revolution were the main reasons for the tide of revolution ebbing after
1850.