Congress of Vienna
The Congress of Vienna[a] of 1814–1815 was a series of international diplomatic meetings to discuss and agree upon a possible new layout of the European political and constitutional order after the downfall of the French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte.[1] Participants were representatives of all European powers and other stakeholders. The Congress was chaired by Austrian statesman Klemens von Metternich, and was held in Vienna from September 1814 to June 1815.
For other uses, see Congress of Vienna (disambiguation).
The objective of the Congress was to provide a long-term peace plan for Europe by settling critical issues arising from the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars through negotiation. The goal was not simply to restore old boundaries, but to resize the main powers so they could balance each other and remain at peace, being at the same time shepherds for the smaller powers. More generally, conservative leaders like Metternich also sought to restrain or eliminate republican, liberal, and revolutionary movements which, from their point of view, had upended the constitutional order of the European ancien régime, and which continued to threaten it.
At the negotiation table, the position of France was weak in relation to that of Britain, Prussia, Austria, and Russia, partly due to the military strategy of its leader, Napoleon Bonaparte, over the previous two decades, and his recent defeat. In the settlement the parties did reach, France had to give up all recent conquests, while the other three main powers made major territorial gains around the world. Prussia added territory from smaller states: Swedish Pomerania, most of the Kingdom of Saxony, and the western part of the former Duchy of Warsaw. Austria gained much of northern Italy. Russia added the central and eastern parts of the Duchy of Warsaw. All agreed upon ratifying the creation of the new Kingdom of the Netherlands, which had been created just months before from formerly Austrian territory, and would serve as a buffer between the German Confederation and France.
The immediate background was Napoleonic France's defeat and surrender in May 1814, which brought an end to 23 years of nearly continuous war. Remarkably, negotiations continued unaffected despite the outbreak of fighting triggered by Napoleon's return from exile and resumption of power in France during the Hundred Days of March to July 1815. The Congress's agreement was signed nine days before Napoleon's final defeat at Waterloo on 18 June 1815.
Some historians have criticised the outcomes of the Congress for causing the subsequent suppression of national, democratic, and liberal movements,[2] and it has been seen as a reactionary settlement for the benefit of traditional monarchs. Others have praised the Congress for protecting Europe from large and widespread wars for almost a century.
Preliminaries[edit]
The Treaty of Chaumont in 1814 had reaffirmed decisions that had been made already and that would be ratified by the more important Congress of Vienna. They included the establishment of a confederated Germany, the division of Italy into independent states, the restoration of the Bourbon kings of Spain, and the enlargement of the Netherlands to include what in 1830 became modern Belgium. The Treaty of Chaumont became the cornerstone of the European Alliance that formed the balance of power for decades.[1]
Other partial settlements had already occurred at the Treaty of Paris between France and the Sixth Coalition, and the Treaty of Kiel that covered issues raised regarding Scandinavia. The Treaty of Paris had determined that a "general congress" should be held in Vienna and that invitations would be issued to "all the Powers engaged on either side in the present war".[3] The opening was scheduled for July 1814.[4]
Other stakeholders, entertaining side program[edit]
Virtually every state in Europe had a delegation in Vienna – more than 200 states and princely houses were represented at the Congress.[30] In addition, there were representatives of cities, corporations, religious organizations (for instance, abbeys) and special interest groups – e.g., a delegation representing German publishers, demanding a copyright law and freedom of the press.[31] With them came a host of courtiers, secretaries, civil servants and ladies to enjoy the magnificent social life of the Austrian court. The Congress was noted for its lavish entertainment: according to a famous joke of an attendee, it danced a lot but did not move forward.[32] On the other hand, the possibilities for informal gatherings created by this "side program" may have helped ensure the Congress's success.
The Final Act, embodying all the separate treaties, was signed on 9 June 1815 (nine days before the Battle of Waterloo).[42] Its provisions included:
Representatives of Austria, France, Portugal, Prussia, Russia, Sweden-Norway, and Britain signed the Final Act. Spain did not sign, but ratified the outcome in 1817.
Subsequently, Ferdinand IV, the Bourbon King of Sicily, regained control of the Kingdom of Naples after Joachim Murat, the king installed by Bonaparte, supported Napoleon in the Hundred Days and started the 1815 Neapolitan War by attacking Austria.
Later criticism and praise[edit]
The Congress of Vienna has been criticized by 19th century and more recent historians and politicians for ignoring national and liberal impulses, and for imposing a stifling reaction on the Continent.[2] It was an integral part in what became known as the Conservative Order, in which democracy and civil rights associated with the American and French Revolutions were de-emphasized.[2]
In the 20th century, however, historians and politicians looking backward came to praise the Congress as well, because they saw it did prevent another widespread European war for nearly 100 years (1815–1914) and a significant step in the transition to a new international order in which peace was largely maintained through diplomatic dialogue. Among these is Henry Kissinger, who in 1954 wrote his doctoral dissertation, A World Restored, on it and Paul Schroeder. Historian and jurist Mark Jarrett argues that the diplomatic congress format marked "the true beginning of our modern era". To his analyses the Congress organisation was deliberate conflict management and was the first genuine attempt to create an international order based upon consensus rather than conflict. "Europe was ready," Jarrett states, "to accept an unprecedented degree of international cooperation in response to the French Revolution."[60] Historian Paul Schroeder argues that the old formulae for "balance of power" were in fact highly destabilizing and predatory. He says the Congress of Vienna avoided them and instead set up rules that produced a stable and benign equilibrium.[61] The Congress of Vienna was the first of a series of international meetings that came to be known as the Concert of Europe, which was an attempt to forge a peaceful balance of power in Europe. It served as a model for later organizations such as the League of Nations in 1919 and the United Nations in 1945.
Before the opening of the Paris peace conference of 1918, the British Foreign Office commissioned a history of the Congress of Vienna to serve as an example to its own delegates of how to achieve an equally successful peace.[62] Besides, the main decisions of the Congress were made by the Four Great Powers and not all the countries of Europe could extend their rights at the Congress. The Italian peninsula became a mere "geographical expression" as divided into seven parts: Lombardy–Venetia, Modena, Naples–Sicily, Parma, Piedmont–Sardinia, Tuscany, and the Papal States under the control of different powers.[63] Poland remained partitioned between Russia, Prussia and Austria, with the largest part, the newly created Kingdom of Poland, remaining under Russian control.
The arrangements made by the Four Great Powers sought to ensure future disputes would be settled in a manner that would avoid the terrible wars of the previous 20 years.[64] Although the Congress of Vienna preserved the balance of power in Europe, it could not check the spread of revolutionary movements across the continent some 30 years later.
Some authors have suggested that the Congress of Vienna may provide a model for settling multiple interlocking conflicts in Eastern Europe that arose after the break-up of the Soviet Union.[65][66]