Power Struggles and Social Transformations in Post-Napoleonic Europe

The Habsburg Empire

The Domain of the Aristocracy

Without a strong industrial and commercial bourgeoisie, the Hapsburg Empire was in the hands of the landed aristocracy, and the majority of the population, especially in the Danube and the Balkans, was made up of peasants in slavery.

After 1815 in Europe, they were spreading the liberal theories, which were in opposition to those of mold monarchy.

The Habsburg Empire, we can certainly say it was a multinational empire, given the multitude of peoples who lived eleven minorities over Judaism.

Metternich and the Police

Son of the sovereign reformer Leopold II, Francis I, and his prime minister Metternich abandoned the idea of ​​a centralized state, leaving the government and administration of the local nobles.

Main objective of Metternich was to nip in the bud any rebellion by the liberal and nationalist forces, through the use of a new structure: the police.

Germany and Prussia

What are the Conflicts between Austria and Prussia?

The federal solution dictated by Metternich to Germany was meant to conceal the potential conflict between Austria and Prussia.

The Prussian King Frederick William III decided to abandon the reform to apply, on the contrary, the freedom-of Karlsbad decrees restricting press freedom and strongly teaching.

In the years following, Prussia managed to avoid riots with the police, the only occurred in 1832 in Hambach, in Westphalia, which was repressed.

Prussia, unlike Austria, during this time he met a certain economic dynamism. The economist Friedrich List, he did advocate of a customs union in the federation that favored exchanges and prevented through very high customs tariffs, trade with other European countries (especially England).

The Restoration of the Bourbons

Unlike what happened in other European countries, the restoration of the Bourbons in France, did not take place through the military, but the Senate asked Napoleon to Louis XVIII to become the ruler of the people of Paris, after swearing on the Constitution and to observe it observe.
But the French king, did not want to be just ruler of the people of Paris called because of it, this time, in fact, is strongly advocated by him in the paper that went into effect because it was granted by the sovereign.

In the paper he wrote that became king thanks to providence, and that the card had to be understood as a renewal to "ancient and venerable institutions."

But, contrary to what the king wrote, the elected body that would represent the third state, appeared to be a compromise between the French economic elite and the monarchy itself.

Indeed suffrage was only 100,000, and only the top 50 taxpayers could aspire to be elected to the chamber.

Louis XVIII failed to impress the minds of the nostalgic or the Napoleonic period, neither the liberals nor the monarchists.

With the fear of a rise of Napoleon, the elections of 1815 gave the victory to the Ultras who were known as "the epitome".

But the room was thus formed shortly thereafter dissolved due to climate vindictive and extremely bloody. Louis XVIII had no children, so his successor had to be Charles, his brother, and after he, his nephew Charles Berry.

The Assassination of Charles Berry

Charles Berry, in February 1820 he was assassinated by an extremist, his assassination ascended the throne his father,

Charles X parliament voted the death penalty against the sacrilege in the churches, made a series of laws in favor of noble emigrants, and gave privileges badly taken off during the revolutionary period, the clergy.
After the Congress of Vienna the conservative organizations disbanded, while s'irrobustirono those liberals including: Society of Young Germany, The hetairia in Greece, the union for the public good in Russia, now patriotic national in Poland, The Adelaide, the Carbonari, now the sublime perfect masters in Italy.

Although all these associations have different programs, they had in common the desire for transformation of the state in parliamentary and constitutional way, to this objective was added for some states the liberation from the foreign state within its borders.

Other ideas, more democratic, had been inspired by Françoise Babeuf, and advocated an ideal communist-style (no private property, but the property belongs to all).

Because of police control, secret societies were very closed and had its own rules of behavior that ensured absolute secrecy.

Only the highest hierarchical degrees knew of the composition of the whole organization, and depending on the degree knew a certain amount of components.