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Revolutions of 1848

The revolutions of 1848, known in some countries as the springtime of the peoples[2] or the springtime of nations, were a series of revolutions throughout Europe over the course of more than one year, from 1848 to 1849. It remains the most widespread revolutionary wave in European history to date.[3]

Date

12 January 1848 – 4 October 1849
(1 year, 8 months, 3 weeks and 1 day)

Springtime of Nations, Springtime of the Peoples,
Year of Revolution

See Events by country or region

  • Political change in a few countries
  • Significant social and cultural change

The revolutions were essentially democratic and liberal in nature, with the aim of removing the old monarchical structures and creating independent nation-states, as envisioned by romantic nationalism. The revolutions spread across Europe after an initial revolution began in Italy in January 1848.[4][5] Over 50 countries were affected, but with no significant coordination or cooperation among their respective revolutionaries. Some of the major contributing factors were widespread dissatisfaction with political leadership, demands for more participation in government and democracy, demands for freedom of the press, other demands made by the working class for economic rights, the upsurge of nationalism,[6] and the European potato failure, which triggered mass starvation, migration, and civil unrest.[7]


The uprisings were led by temporary coalitions of reformers, the middle classes, the upper classes (the bourgeoisie) and workers;[8] however, the coalitions did not hold together for long. Many of the revolutions were quickly suppressed, as tens of thousands of people were killed, and even more were forced into exile. Significant lasting reforms included the abolition of serfdom in Austria and Hungary, the end of absolute monarchy in Denmark, and the introduction of representative democracy in the Netherlands. The revolutions were most important in France, the Netherlands, Italy, the Austrian Empire, and the states of the German Confederation that would make up the German Empire in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The wave of uprisings ended in October 1849.

Louis Blenker (Germany)

Louis Blenker (Germany)

Carl Schurz (Germany)

Carl Schurz (Germany)

Franz Sigel (Germany)

Franz Sigel (Germany)

August Willich (Germany)

August Willich (Germany)

Alexander Asboth (Hungary)

Lajos Kossuth (Hungary)

Lajos Kossuth (Hungary)

Albin Francisco Schoepf (Poland, Hungary)

Albin Francisco Schoepf (Poland, Hungary)

Julius Stahel (Hungary)

Julius Stahel (Hungary)

Charles Zagonyi (Hungary)

Charles Zagonyi (Hungary)

Carlo Cattaneo (Italy)

Goffredo Mameli (Italy)

Age of Revolution

by Christopher Clark

Revolutionary Spring: Fighting for a New World 1848–1849

Colour Revolutions

Democracy in Europe

Protests of 1968

Revolutions of 1830

Revolutions of 1917–1923

Revolutions of 1989

Arab Spring

Breunig, Charles (1977), The Age of Revolution and Reaction, 1789–1850 ( 0-393-09143-0)

ISBN

Chastain, James, ed. (2005) Encyclopedia of Revolutions of 1848 [ online from Ohio State U.

http://www.ohio.edu/chastain/contents.htm

Clark, Christopher, (2023), Revolutionary Spring: Fighting for a New World, 1848–1849 ( 978-0-241-34766-9) Allen Lane. online book review

ISBN

Dowe, Dieter, ed. Europe in 1848: Revolution and Reform (Berghahn Books, 2000)

Evans, R. J. W., and Hartmut Pogge von Strandmann, eds. The Revolutions in Europe, 1848–1849: From Reform to Reaction (2000), 10 essays by scholars

. "The Revolutions of 1848" in J. P. T. Bury, ed. New Cambridge Modern History: The Zenith of European Power 1830–70 (1960) pp. 389–415

Pouthas, Charles

"Encyclopedia of 1848 Revolutions" new articles by scholars

The Revolutions of 1848 begin

Maps of Europe showing the Revolutions of 1848–1849 at omniatlas.com