Question
“The Austrian Empire maintained the dominant position among the German states between 1815 and 1848.” Discuss.
▶️Answer/Explanation
Ans:
Candidates must offer a considered and balanced review of the statement that Austria dominated the German states during this period (from the Congress of Vienna to the revolutions of March 1848 in Germany). Austrian dominance under Metternich can be traced both in terms of locus of power (Vienna, Berlin or Frankfurt) and in terms of repressing Liberal/Nationalist movements (for example the Wartburg festival, October 1817).
Indicative content
• The German Confederation (Bund) was an association of 39 states set up by the Congress of Vienna. It included Austria and Prussia as well as an array of medium and small states (the Confederation’s Assembly or Bundestag sat in Frankfurt).
• In support of the statement are the Karlsbad Decrees of 1819; these included extra powers for the police, censorship and restrictions on the freedom of movement. They were instigated by Metternich in response to the murder of Kotzebue, who was in the pay of the Tsar, in March 1819. These decrees were passed into law by the Confederation’s Assembly in September 1819.
• Also in support of the statement, the Final Act of the Congress of Vienna, devised by Metternich between 1819 and 1820, was the constitution that the German Confederation adopted in May 1820.
• It severely restricted the powers of the Confederation, leaving de facto power with Vienna. Those who argued for a stronger and more liberal German state were arrested. Attempts at revolution between 1830 and 1831 in German states were generally unsuccessful; although a constitution did come into effect in Saxony in September 1831.
• For balance, candidates could argue that Austria maintained a dominant position in the early years of this period, up to about 1830. However, the degree of control was arguably declining after that date with the continued growth of German nationalism (for example the Hambach festival, 1832); the increasing economic power of Prussia and the creation of the Zollverein.
Question
Examine the significance of Garibaldi’s leadership in the unification of Italy between 1848 and 1870.
▶️Answer/Explanation
Ans:
Candidates must consider the importance of Garibaldi in the unification of Italy as opposed to that of other leaders both within Italy and beyond, or that of other factors, such as the weakness of Austria.
Indicative content
• In 1848, Garibaldi returned from South America and led a small group of Red Shirts in the defence of Milan against the Austrians. In 1849 he was a deputy in the Roman Assembly and he proposed that Rome become an independent republic. He led the defence of Rome against French and Neapolitan forces before leading a retreat of his men through Central Italy and escaping.
• In 1859, Garibaldi led troops successfully for Victor Emmanuel of Piedmont against the Austrians. In 1860 Garibaldi and his 1000 men set out to conquer Sicily and Naples. For the sake of Italian unification, he then handed these conquests to the Piedmontese king.
• He led attempts in the 1860s to attack the Papal States but was defeated at Aspromonte and Mentana. He also took part in the Piedmontese war against Austria in the Tyrol in 1866.
• His leadership was significant as he achieved many of the Italian military successes of the Risorgimiento and he acted as an inspiration to Liberal and Nationalist Italians. On the other hand, he experienced many setbacks such as his defeats in the Papal States in the 1860s and the loss of his home town Nice to the French after the Franco-Austrian War of 1859.
• For balance candidates could argue that the role of Cavour was more important in that, for example, he was able to involve Napoleon III’s France on the side of Piedmont against Austria in 1859; also there were his attempts to modernize Piedmont. Other candidates could stress the importance of the role of Victor Emmanuel or the weakness of Austria both diplomatically and militarily after 1849. Other relevant factors in the unification of Italy should also be allowed if coherently argued, for example the importance of foreign powers such as France in 1859 and Prussia in 1866.
Question
To what extent did Mazzini’s ideology contribute to Italian unification?
▶️Answer/Explanation
Ans:
The focus must be on the importance of Mazzini’s Republican ideology in the unification of Italy. Candidates are required to show an understanding of what this ideology was and the extent to which it inspired other leaders in the unification process. Other factors leading to unification could also be examined such as the roles of Cavour and Garibaldi; however, the main focus of responses should be Mazzini’s ideological contribution to unification.
Indicative content
- Mazzini believed in a united Republican Italy, as such, he founded Young Italy in 1832. He was linked to various Italian nationalist rebellions before and after his time as a Triumvir of the ill-fated Roman Republic of 1849.
- Even after the Piedmontese-led unification of Italy, completed with the addition of Venetia in 1866 and Rome in 1870, Mazzini remained critical, disliking the role of the House of Savoy and even agreeing to lead a Republican rebellion in Sicily as late as 1870.
- Some candidates may argue that Mazzini’s ideology was of very limited significance. They may stress instead the importance of Cavour’s domestic reforms in Piedmont to make it the leading liberal Italian state and his astute foreign policy, such as his actions during the Crimean War and the Plombières Agreement.
- Others may underline the role of Garibaldi’s military campaigns in the south in 1860 and his willingness to hand his conquests to King Victor Emmanuel II.
- Some candidates may also, or alternatively, stress the role of foreign powers in achieving unification, especially France under Napoleon III.
- Finally, candidates could argue that Mazzini’s ideas, while of limited practical importance, did play a significant role in inspiring others, especially Garibaldi and his followers. Perhaps the fear of a united Republican Italy also helped make a united monarchical Italy more acceptable.
Question
Discuss the objectives of Bismarck’s foreign policy between 1871 and 1890.
▶️Answer/Explanation
Ans:
Candidates are required to offer a considered and balanced review of what the key aims of Bismarck’s foreign policy were following the unification of Germany.
Note: This is not a question on the wars of German unification.
Indicative content
- After the defeat of France (1870–1871), Bismarck’s main objective was to keep France isolated. His fear was that France would ally with another European power and, ultimately, that Germany could face a two-front war.
- To achieve French isolation, Bismarck had to keep on good terms with both Austria-Hungary and Russia (hence the Dreikaiserbund of 1873).
- However, Austro-Russian rivalry in the Balkans posed a serious threat to Bismarck’s policy. He had to use diplomacy to prevent conflict between Austria-Hungary and Russia. After the Russian victory over the Ottoman Empire (1877–1878) and the Treaty of San Stefano 1878, Bismarck offered himself as “honest broker” and hosted the Congress of Berlin 1878.
- As Austro-Russian relations worsened in the later 1870s and 1880s, Bismarck concluded the Dual Alliance with Austria-Hungary in 1879 (enlarged in 1882 to include Italy) and the Reinsurance Treaty with Russia (1887). As long as these alliances remained, France would lack a major Continental European ally.
- With Britain, Bismarck also sought good relations and was generally unwilling to become involved in colonial disputes in Africa and Asia. Bismarck hosted the Berlin Conference (1884–1885), which settled a number of colonial disputes.
- Bismarck’s foreign policy objectives could be argued to have a domestic dimension—the preservation of his supporters in power. In making this argument candidates could suggest that Bismarck’s brief interest in the acquisition of colonies in 1884 and 1885 was a response to sections of German public opinion that, through the formation of the German Colonial League in 1882, vociferously demanded overseas territory. In this way Bismarck aimed to assist the popularity in the German elections of parties that supported him.
- Another area where domestic and foreign policy arguably overlap is the Kulturkampf. Internationally, this policy certainly alienated the Pope and Catholic opinion; however it was mainly focused on domestic policy and consolidation of the new German Empire.