Austria's Success Post-Vienna: A Historical Perspective

The Congress of Vienna, which took place from 1814 to 1815, was a series of international diplomatic meetings held in Austria to establish peace and a balance of power in Europe after the downfall of Napoleon Bonaparte. Klemens von Metternich, the Austrian statesman, chaired the Congress, which was attended by representatives of all European powers except the Ottoman Empire. The Congress aimed to prevent future wars by resizing the main powers so they could balance each other out and remain at peace, while also suppressing revolutionary and nationalist movements. Austria, Prussia, Russia, and Great Britain, the four powers chiefly responsible for Napoleon's overthrow, played a dominant role in the negotiations. The Congress of Vienna successfully prevented large-scale wars in Europe for nearly a century, but it also drew criticism for suppressing national, democratic, and liberal movements and benefiting traditional monarchs.

Austria's territorial gains

The Congress of Vienna (1814-1815) was a series of international diplomatic meetings held in Vienna, Austria, to discuss and agree upon a new layout of the European political and constitutional order after the downfall of the French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte. The meetings were chaired by Austrian statesman Klemens von Metternich.

Austria gained much of northern Italy, including Lombardy-Venetia, and Ragusa in Dalmatia. They also regained control of the Tyrol and Salzburg, as well as the former Illyrian Provinces.

The Final Act, which embodied all the separate treaties, was signed on June 9, 1815, a few days before the Battle of Waterloo. The Act included the following provisions:

• Russia received most of the Duchy of Warsaw (Poland) and retained Finland.
• Prussia received three-fifths of Saxony, western parts of the Duchy of Warsaw, Gdańsk, and the Grand Duchy of the Lower Rhine.
• A German Confederation of 39 states was formed under the presidency of the Austrian Emperor.
• The United Kingdom of the Netherlands was formed, including the former Austrian territory that became Belgium in 1830.
• Sweden sold Swedish Pomerania to Prussia.
• The neutrality of the 22 cantons of Switzerland was guaranteed.
• The former Electorate of Hanover was expanded to a kingdom.
• Most of the territorial gains of Bavaria, Württemberg, Baden, Hesse-Darmstadt, and Nassau were recognised.
• Ferdinand III was restored as Grand Duke of Tuscany.
• The Papal States were restored to the Pope, except for Avignon and the Comtat Venaissin, which remained part of France.
• The King of Sardinia gained control of Genoa.
• The Duchies of Parma, Piacenza, and Guastalla were given to Marie Louise of Austria for her lifetime.
• The slave trade was condemned.
• Freedom of navigation was guaranteed for many rivers, including the Rhine and the Danube.

The Concert of Europe

The period between 1815 and 1914 is known as the Concert of Europe. During this period, the Great Powers of Europe maintained the balance of power and supported world peace. The Concert of Europe, also known as the Congress System, was established after the Congress of Vienna in 1815. It describes the peaceful functioning of an international system based on the balance of power that existed in Europe from the end of the Napoleonic Wars in 1815 to the outbreak of World War I in 1914.

The Conservative Order

The Congress of Vienna, which took place from 1814 to 1815, was a series of international diplomatic meetings chaired by Austrian statesman Klemens von Metternich. The purpose of the Congress was to establish a long-term peace plan for Europe by settling critical issues arising from the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. The Congress was also an attempt to prevent another large-scale war in Europe, which it successfully achieved for nearly a century.

To achieve this, Metternich and the other four represented states sought to restore old ruling families and create buffer zones between major powers. To contain France, the House of Orange-Nassau was put on the throne in the Netherlands, which formerly comprised the Dutch Republic and the Austrian Netherlands (Belgium). To the southeast of France, Piedmont (officially part of the kingdom of Sardinia) was enlarged. The Bourbon dynasty was restored to France and Spain, and other legitimate rulers returned to the Italian states. To contain the Russian Empire, Poland was divided between Austria, Prussia, and Russia.

The Concert of Europe, also known as the Congress System or the Vienna System, was a system of dispute resolution adopted by the major conservative powers of Europe to maintain their power, oppose revolutionary movements, weaken the forces of nationalism, and uphold the balance of power. It grew out of the Congress of Vienna and operated from the end of the Napoleonic Wars (1815) to the early 1820s. The Concert of Europe was founded by Austria, Prussia, the Russian Empire, and the United Kingdom, with France later established as a fifth member. The leading personalities of the system were British Foreign Secretary Lord Castlereagh, Austrian Chancellor Klemens von Metternich, and Tsar Alexander I of Russia.

The Congress of Vienna and the resulting Concert of Europe succeeded in creating a balance of power and peaceful diplomacy for almost a decade. However, by 1823, the diplomatic system failed, and the rest of the 19th century was marked by more revolutionary fervor, war, and the rise of nationalism.

The Holy Alliance

The avowed purpose of the Holy Alliance was to promote the influence of Christian principles in the affairs of nations. The alliance was inspired by Alexander I, perhaps under the influence of the spiritual adviser Baroness Barbara von Krüdener. It was written by the Tsar and edited by Ioannis Kapodistrias and Alexandru Sturdza. Under the treaty, European rulers would agree to govern as "branches" of the Christian community and offer mutual service.

The agreement was initially kept secret and was mistrusted by liberals. The Austrian state chancellor and foreign minister, Prince Klemens von Metternich, made it a bastion against democracy and citizen-nationalism. The Holy Alliance was also used to coordinate the suppression of Polish efforts to restore an independent state.

The alliance is usually associated with the later Quadruple and Quintuple Alliances, which included the United Kingdom and (from 1818) France. These alliances aimed to uphold the European peace settlement and balance of power in the Concert of Europe concluded at the Congress of Vienna.

The Congress's impact on France

The Congress of Vienna, which took place from September 1814 to June 1815, had a significant impact on France, which was one of the key participants in the negotiations. The objective of the Congress was to establish a long-term peace plan for Europe and restore the balance of power among the major European nations after the defeat of Napoleon Bonaparte.

France's position at the negotiation table was relatively weak compared to that of Britain, Prussia, Austria, and Russia, due in part to Napoleon's recent defeat and the military strategy of the previous two decades. As a result, France had to give up all its recent conquests, while the other four major powers made territorial gains. France's borders were restored to their pre-Napoleonic size from 1792, and any territories taken by Napoleon between 1795 and 1810 were returned.

The restored Bourbon monarch, Louis XVIII, sent Charles-Maurice de Talleyrand as his representative to the Congress. Talleyrand faced challenges as he attempted to ensure France's interests were protected and that the country rejoined the group of Great Powers. Louis XVIII, however, distrusted Talleyrand and secretly negotiated with Metternich, the Austrian statesman who chaired the Congress.

Talleyrand played a crucial role in the Congress's proceedings. He skilfully manoeuvred himself into the inner councils of the four major powers (Britain, Prussia, Austria, and Russia) and formed alliances with the lesser powers, including Spain and Sweden. Despite France's weak position, Talleyrand's diplomatic skills helped ensure that the country was admitted to the core group of five powers that made the critical decisions during the Congress.

The Congress of Vienna had both positive and negative consequences for France. On the one hand, it resulted in the loss of territories for France and a reinforcement of the Conservative Order, which aimed to contain potential outbreaks of revolution. On the other hand, it contributed to a period of relative peace and stability in Europe, with France regaining its position as one of the Great Powers. The Congress's settlement also gave birth to the Concert of Europe, an international political doctrine emphasising the maintenance of political boundaries and the balance of powers, which guided European foreign policy until the outbreak of World War I in 1914.

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