-the Habsburg Possessions ruled directly by the Habsburg dynasty, which often produces the Holy
Roman Emperor (rules within Empire & outside of it)
-Holy Roman Emperor Francis II dissolves Holy Roman Empire in wake of reorganization of Germany,
renames Habsburg Possessions the Austrian Empire, becomes Francis I, Emperor of Austria in 1804
-Confederation of the Rhine: beside the new Austrian Empire
Napoleon set that up, loose group of German states excluding Austria & Prussia
Confederation of the Rhine (1806)
-Created by Napoleon
-Union of 15 German states (at first)
-Napoleon as protector
-Union expanded to include almost every state in Germany except for Austria & Prussia
-End of Holy Roman Empire
-Towards German national consciousness?
-Fr. revolutionaries & Napoleon thought they were fighting for liberation, the idea of the nation/people
as sovereign
-people began looking into folk tales in Germany spread out across all the states, cultural & political
institutions to reflect idea of nationality, philosophers began referring to the German states as a whole
similarly occurred in Spain & Italy: appealed to shared culture to resist imposition of Fr. revolutionary
ideology, which didn’t seem so universal anymore, the concept of the nation (defined by shared culture,
history, etc.) should be the basis of sovereignty
modern idea of Nationalism, nation as the source of loyalty & belonging, as the category entitled to
institutions of gov’t
Napoleon’s Decline & Fall
-flawed policies, resistance & overextension
-Duke of Wellington (1769-1852)
-Invasion of Russia (June 1812), disastrous for Napoleon
the Continental System didn’t hold well: Russia had to trade w/ Britain to maintain economy
Napoleon invaded Moscow, Oct.: beginning of Fr. retreat, Fr. weren’t used to harsh weather
conditions, after:of 375,000 Fr. troops, only 20,000 returned, reduced Napoleon’s forces in Eastern
Europe, as in Spain (on both sides of his Empire, his forces were failing)
-March 1813: new coalition against Napoleon formed, leading to crush of Napoleon:
-Defeat at Leipzig (Oct. 1813)
coalition powers crossing into Fr. from both sides, defeating Napoleon, the Bourbon dynasty was
briefly restored:
-Louis XVIII (r. 1814-1824, except for the Hundred Days when Napoleon returned)
the Hundred Days made the allied powers want to punish Fr. a bit more (Fr. people were still loyal to
Napoleon), allies took away a bit more territory, but the Hundred Days didn’t really change anything
-Waterloo (June 1815)
-Exile on St. Helena
The Congress of Vienna: 1814-1815
-Kingdom of France was restored, various German states between France & Russia, new organization of
Germanic Confederation, Prussia (which has gotten bigger), the Austrian Empire (controls some territory
in Italy)
I. Participants II. Goals
III. Results
IV. Significance/Legacy
-started in Sept. 1814, met in Vienna, during the Congress Napoleon returned for Hundred Days & was
defeated again, final act of Congress was signed in June 1815
I: Key Players at the Congress
-major victors: Great Britain, Prussia, Russia, Austria (joined by Fr. over course of the Congress, allies
needed restored Fr. monarch to be successful)
-Prince Klemens von Metternich (1773-1859)
dominant figure of Congress & post-Napoleonic Europe
-Czar Alexander I (r. 1801-1825)
only ruler who took part directly, he thought Russia’s major share in victory against Napoleon meant
that Russia deserved dominant role in maintaining peace
-Viscount Castlereagh (1769-1822)
-Prince Karl August von Hardenberg (1750-
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