Early 19th Century 2nd Period
Karl-Marx-007.jpg

Key Terms: Early Nineteenth Century
Modern European History

Bentham, Jeremy - An English philosophe during the early nineteenth century, Jeremy Bentham made his contribution to social thought via his belief in “utilitarianism,” an opposing side of conservatism. He believed strongly that instead of a minimalist approach in government to achieve greater freedom for the general public, that a stronger, more involved government would be superior. Additionally, Bentham believed the notion of “natural rights” to be a “meaningless abstraction” (txt 655). Utility in society would be the replacement of natural rights, utility being what brought about the most positive effects in society at the time. Government would be in charge of commanding a mixture of punishment and reward based on action, which he believed would lead to improved behavior. Also, his followers were “philosophic radicals.” (Ricky)

Carlsbad Decrees - Passed in 1819 after liberal university students killed their conservative teacher in Germany, these decrees limited academic freedom. The Decrees increased censorship, outlawed certain fraternities and political clubs, required that each state guarantee that its universities would remain conservative, and created black lists for “dangerous” students and professors. (Mackenzie)
The Carlsbad Decrees were intended to put the liberals back in their place. After the liberal demonstration (by killing the conservative teacher), the government held its people even more firmly, stripping people of even more rights. They were the conservatives' backlash against liberalism. (Sarah Shea)

Chartists - Chartism, led by the working class, was a movement in England between 1837 and 1848 that advocated the political rights of unpropertied laborers. The Chartists spelled out their demands to extend political democracy in “the People’s Charter.” The Charter called for universal male suffrage, annual elections for Parliament, a secret ballot, and no property requirements for members of Parliament. The Chartists held huge demonstrations and presented Parliament with petitions, which were constantly rejected. (Mackenzie)

Comte, Auguste-the inventor of the idea of positivism. He believed that just nature abides by certain laws e.g: gravity, so does society. In this way society has quasi-absolute laws under which it operates. (MDog)

Another philosopher of the early nineteenth century, Auguste Comte gained recognition and prominence via his philosophy, “positivism.” Comte, like the other philosophers of the time period, “was especially impressed… by the social role of religion, the conquests of natural science, and the possibilities of human progress” (txt 704). With his philosophy of “positivism,” Comte established himself as a world-renown philosopher. Comte established that the ultimate key to civilization is a human understanding of the world. Comte also divided history into three stages: the theological stage, the metaphysical stage, and the positive stage. Because of his beliefs, society more readily accepted the idea that human civilization progresses with knowledge. (Ricky)

positivism-a philosophy that all knowledge can only be achieved or garnered from experimentation, data, sensory experience, logical and mathematical treament, etc. (MDog)

A philosophy held by Auguste Comte, which stated that the key to human understanding came from objective and precise observation, with scientific laws that followed. In addition to what my fellow classmate (MDog) stated a few lines above, Comte also held that all of science had passed through the first two stages of history (theological, metaphysical), and was passing through the third stage (positive). (Ricky)

Corn Laws - During 1815 and 1828, tariffs on wheat were passed, leading to a massive class struggle. In the 1840’s, those who were not in favor of the tariffs (Whigs) called for a repeal following the bad harvests of the decade. In Ireland, an alarming number of one million people died from the potato blight while another one million left the country. Sir Robert Peel, the Prime Minister of England (Torie) helped the cause by putting aside his party's objectives and placing the country's need first, and as a result in 1846 the Corn Laws were repealed. (Kavitha)
Tories were in favor of the Corn Laws because it allowed them to keep their prices artificially high; the Whigs were against the Corn Laws because it forced them to pay artificially high prices. Also, the potato blight in Ireland stirred up more sentiments of animosity towards English control and their sense of nationalism increased. (Sarah Shea)

Sir Robert Peel - Sir Robert Peel was the Prime minister during the Great Hunger. He was a Tory, which were in favor of the corn laws, but he takes a trip to Ireland and sees the suffering from lack of food. After this trip he betrays his party for the good of the people and leads the movement to repeal the corn laws. The corn laws were repealed in 1846, the same day Peel was voted out of office. This is right before 1848 though, and Peels sacrifice helps avoid and English revolt in 1848. (Laura)

As Peel entered office in the heart of a recession, he imposed an income tax to make up the deficit. He did much better than he had hoped, and the new funding gave momentum to the corn laws repeal, though it was crushed in the house of commons in 1842. His Factory Act of 1841 set regulations on hours for women and children, as well as safety standards. There has been speculation that the Irish famine was just a convenient excuse for Peel to end the Corn Laws, as he was already a known proponent of free trade. Jordan

Communist Manifesto 1848. Written by both Marx and Engels. Engels is not known for his contributions as much though. This essay is widely know for spreading Marx's views of socialism and the constant struggle between the proletariat and bourgeoisie. One of the main focuses of the manifesto was economic determinism. Marx believed class conflict was inevitable. Although he came from a middle class family, Marx strongly advocated for the violent rise of the proletariat. He describes the bourgeoisie as the ones who own the means of production and the proletariat as isolated from the means of production. (Mary)
Three main points of the Communist Manifest include: (1) Inevitable class conflicts (2) The development of class consciousness, meaning that all proletariats need to start identifying uniformly as proletariats (3) The worldwide revolution of the proletariat. Marx believed that man is inherently good, but that private property/ environment can make man evil. He believed in abolition of private property, abolition of the family, free love, and kids being raised communally. (SHea).

Crystal Palace Exhibition of 1851 - This world fair was the idea of Prince Albert, the husband of Queen Victoria in England. The purpose of the event was to show the success of Industrial Revolution. Although countries from all over the world brought their unique inventions, England especially demonstrated its confidence by not only hosting the fair but also showing off its superior machinery and manufactured goods. The major themes during the exhibition were free and the mixing of classes. (Kavitha)

When one tries to understand the importance of the Crystal Palace Exhibition of 1851, it is critical that he know the major sections that showcased their greatness and the most spectacular items showcased. At the exhibition, Russia came with their raw materials, Austria and Italy came with their fine arts, and the British came with their machinery and manufactured goods. Additionally, the major items showcased were the printing press, the locomotive, Krupp guns, and the Colt Revolver. This exhibition was important because it gave the public the opportunity to experience the near future in a unique way. (Ricky)

Before the exhibition proved to be a success, conservative critics would comment that it was simply impossible to have the poor and rich together because their would be class conflict. The critics even portrayed foreigners in racist cartoons, arrogantly dehumanizing the "have-not" nations/races. The queen controversially attended on common day, and everything was fine despite claims of class warfare and terrorist attempts. England shows it is confident in its people and social system. Jordan

cult of domesticity - This was an image widely shared by the majority of Europeans, in which a woman’s place or role in the house was to maintain the protective calm of the home by cooking and preparing the food, cleaning, and mending clothes. The stay-at-home wife became one of the chief identifiers of the middle class and was considered an honorable occupation. (Hannah)

Decembrist Revolt - The Revolt took place in Russia on December 26, 1825 in the Senate Square of St. Petersburg. Liberal army officers led a coup against Nicholas I (brother of the late Tsar Alex I), who was poised to take the Russian throne after his elder brother Constantine had willingly relinquished his place in the line of succession. The coup failed, however, and Nicholas proceeded to rule with an iron, conservative fist from 1825-1855. (Chuma)

factory System This was both a cause and effect of the Industrial revolution. The increase of factories in the early 19th century directly corresponded to the urbanization movement. All across europe, people were no longer needed on the farms so they in turn moved to the cities to find work. This transition can also be described as moving from the "cottage industries" to the "putting out systems". In these factories, production was expedited because all stages of production were now in the same place. (Mary)

This system gave rise to large industrial towns such as Manchester and Birmingham in England, but these towns were also hubs of disease and filth, as the poor factory workers were pushed to the limits of their health by factory owners. Factory owners had no concern for the welfare of their workers, so regulations were few and far between as products and wealth flowed out of the city, but only barely trickled down to the working class. Jordan

Hugo, Victor - Hugo was a Frenchman who wrote the famous novel Les Miserables in 1862. He wrote this romantic novel with the objective to reconcile religion and revolution. The phrase “per aspera ad astra” meaning “from the broken to the stars” from this time represents his goal to inspire optimism and progress in France. (Kavitha)

He also wrote "The Hunchback of Notre Dame". His vivid, thorough description have an engrossing property that makes his works very difficult to put down. Furthermore, his works were serialized in order to make more money when sold. His work were characteristic of the Romantic Period. (Shreds)

Irish Potato Famine - In 1845, as was one of the last great subsistence crises in Europe, the destroyed potato harvest forced hundreds of thousands of tenant farmers off their land to starve causing almost a quarter of the population to die. The Irish received little assistance but instead were blamed for their laziness because potatoes were supposedly an easy crop to grow. Wealthy landowners also cause problems by exporting grain to England for a bigger profit, leaving the Irish peasantry with nothing to eat. This also sparked a massive Irish migration to America where the Irish brought their hatred for the English. (Hannah)

Kossuth, Louis (Lajos) Was a Hungarian Nationalist who led a revolt against the foreign Austrian government. Unlike the later Serbian Black Hand, he wanted more representation in the government no necessarily separation from the empire. (MDog)

Lord Byron He was a Romantic writer known for emphasizing melancholy young defiant men. These men have come to be known as the "Byronic Heroes" because of his work. He romanticized the idea of a young troubled man triumphing over adversity even when times were the roughest. (Mary)

Louis Blanc - He was an elected socialist during the elections after the establishment of the 2nd Republic in France. Because he was a clear minority, he could not pass radical bills but he did succeed in passing public works programs, such as building roads around Paris to create more jobs for the working class. His plan became popular, however the moderates bcame increasingly unhappy. Eventually in June 1848 the workshops were banned, leading to the June Days rebellion in which the middle class suppresses the working class rebellion. (Kavitha)

Louis Napoleon Bonaparte - Louis Bonaparte was the nephew of the more well-known Napoleon Bonaparte, emperor of France in the early 19th century. He rose to political prominence largely due to his last name, and in December 1848, Louis became France’s first president (the Second Republic had just begun in 1848). In his campaign speeches, he presented himself as a man of the people who would keep their best interests at heart, yet in 1852 he proclaimed himself Emperor. (Chuma)

Louis Philippe- After Charles X flees to London, a new bourbon king, Louis Philippe, is put in power. His liberal views put him there, but he wouldn't stay liberal for long. As "citizen king" during his "July Monarchy" he revised the Charter of 1814, doubling the number of votes, eliminating hereditary privilege in the Chamber of Peers, and reducing censorship. But his liberal reforms stop there because he soon realizes liberalism could only work to an extent, and he felt he hit that point. By 1848 the people are demanding new, liberal leadership. He follows after Charles X and flees to England, leaving France to go into their 2nd republic. (Sarah T)

Luddites- A group of skilled artisans in the textile business who rioted after they were replaced with less skilled, lower wage workers because of mechanized innovation. They forced the government to call in to question the ideas of organized labor and striking. Although Labor unions were later approved striking like this weren’t allowed until later. (MDog)

Malthus, Thomas - Malthus wrote An Essay on the Principle of Population as It Affects the Future Improvements of Society in 1798 arguing that unless human population was depleted by death from war, famine, etc., the population would increase faster than the supply of food. He advocated continence but had a pessimistic outlook because of two things that contradicted each other, 1. Food is necessary, and 2. Sex is necessary. (Hannah)

Manchester, England Manchester was a city that sprung up due to the rise of railroads and industry in England. The first passenger railroad ran from Manchester to Liverpool in 1830. Unfortunately, with the increase of industry, population, and wealth also came the social, economical, and environmental consequences of industry as well. The city was filthy, filled with poverty, and disease was rampant. There were also no minimum wages for factory workers or regulations for conditions. (Mary)
Manchester, while becoming a very populated city, was not properly represented in Parliament. Cities like Manchester and Birmingham were the economic engines of the country, but they had no representation. The unfair political representation in England was one of their biggest problems in the years surrounding 1848. Rather than highly-populated cities having representation, Rotten Boroughs (like Dunwhich) got reps. in Parliament. (Shea)

Metternich, Klemens von - Metternich was the foreign minister of Austria, the big whig of international relaitons, and THE leading exponent of conservative ideology in the early 19th century. He was the dominant voice at the Congress of Vienna – the vision of a restored conservative order in Europe was his own vision. He was also the man behind the German Confederation, which allowed him to control central European affairs. Metternich would continue to dominate until the Revolutions of 1848. Thus, the period from 1814-1848 was deemed the Age of Metternich. (Chuma)

Mill, John Stuart - John Stuart Mill exemplified the broadest meaning of liberalism. He was extraordinarily learned as a philosophe, economist, and writer, and because of this he was fearful of the intolerance of the political majority and advocated freedom of thought. He also supported universal suffrage as a check on the elite majorities so that the minorities would not be overlooked. Under the influence of his wife he also advocated the emancipation of women. His essay On Liberty, written in 1859, declares that society can have no higher interest than the freedom of every citizen. (Hannah)

July Revolution - The shift of power in France from Louis the XVIII to Charles X cause tension with the liberals because unlike Louis XVIII who tried to walk the tightrope between liberalism and conservatism, Charles X was very conservative and basically declared war on liberals. The final straw came with his issuing of the July Ordinances. The Parisians took to the streets in protestation for 3 days of fighting. During this time 700 people were killed and Charles fled to London. The July Revolution shows the revolution is not dead. (Laura)

July Ordinances - In response to growing radicalism, Charles X of France passed the July Ordinances in 1830, which disenfranchised ¾ of eligible voters, dismissed the Chamber of Deputies, and increased the government’s power over censorship. Angry liberal Parisians took to the streets, and thus began the July Revolt of 1830. Seven hundred people were killed, and Charles X fled to London and then abdicated in August. (Mackenzie)

June Days - This 1848 revolt in Paris was sparked in large part by the efforts of Louis Blanc (socialist) to improve the well-being of the working classes by implementing National Workshops (public works programs), and the moderate government’s decision to outlaw them in June of that year. The revolt was working class versus a coalition between the middle class and the moderate French government. The middle class / government won, but over 1000 died, heightened class warfare ensued, and the working classes learned that liberal philosophy doesn’t serve their interests, prompting them to search for a more radical ideology (like, say, Marxism). (Chuma)

Peterloo Massacre - The Peterloo Massacre occurred during a peaceful demonstration of 50,000 workers in St. Peter’s Field. Soldiers came in and charged the crowd. They were not provoked but it is argued that they had been at past demonstrations, which had turned violent and so that clouded their decision-making. The incident killed 11 people and wounded hundreds. (Laura)

It is also important to look at the way in which this event was portrayed in popular culture at the time. The picture we looked at shared many qualities with the woodcut of the Boston Massacre and was highly politicized. To add fuel to the fire, the officers were depicted as selfish, corpulent brutes only concerned with meat and pudding. Such depictions helped to shape public opinion and rouse resentment from the working class against those in authority positions (Shred).

proletariat - The proletariats can be described as the “have nots.” They are the working class and are paid wages rather than benefiting off profit. They are isolated from the means of production, otherwise known as capitol. Marx argues that there are only two classes, the bourgeoisie and the proletariats and these two are always in conflict. (Laura)

As an accomplished historian Marx recognized that society wasn't always dominated by two social classes and saw the industrial age in which he was living as one separate from the times of the past when the church was more powerful. He saw history as being driven by economics rather than omnipotent ideas and the realities of capitalism and the factory system had led to the establishment of only two classes in his mind. (shred)

Reform Bill of 1832 - The Reform Bill of 1832 reformed the British electoral system. It doubled the number of male voters in England, eliminated the rotten boroughs, and redrew Parliamentary lines. At first, the Tories (rich, conservative, elite landowners) were reluctant to pass the bill. However, the king threatened the House of Lords, claiming that he would appoint Whigs to take their place if they did not vote to pass the Bill. Eventually, due to the King’s warning and the looming threat of violent revolt, the Tories passed the Bill and were willing to enact change rather than cause an “English Revolution.” (Mackenzie)

Utopian Socialists- During a time of conflict between conservative and liberal contraversy, came a new political philosophy, utopian socialists. They focused on protecting the poor and rejecting the previously normal laissez-faire policies. These men included Count Claude Henri de Saint-Simon, Charles Fourier, and Robert Owen. While some of their ideas were impractical, Robert Owen seemed to be the closest to a practical and possible method for a utopian socialist. There was a sense of cooperation and respect between both the owner and his workers to create a paternalistic mill society. (Sarah T)

Critics of Owen would say that it is in human nature to maximize profit at the cost of someone else's well-being, see the iron law of wages or communist manifesto. Marx would say that as long as the means of production are not shared equally, there will always be tension and conflict is inevitable. As long as there were no consequences of the bourgeoise to exploit the middle class, the owners would toe the line as much as they were able, or be run out of business by someone who did. Competition fosters exploitation of the working class, therefore capitalism is flawed, Marx would say. Jordan

Watt, James- James Watt, inventor of the steam engine, was a man who had great influence over the Industrial Revolution with his invention. Although Watt was not necessarily the first man to invent the steam engine, he made improvements to previous designs that enabled the steam engine to be usable and practical. From here, things began rolling with the IR and new inventions and ideas came soon after. (Sarah T)

Zollervein- Within the German states, there was a zone named Zollervein that was designated in 1834 as a free trade zone of 17 German States. This showed Germany's economic liberalism, along with their nationalism. This strong emphasis on nationalism and liberalism was mainly concentrated in German Universities where it eventually spread and Zollverein was created. (Sarah T)

The Zollverein began in 1818 when Prussia lowered tariffs along its Western and Eastern borders, along raw materials and goods to flow more freely. More Prussian and Hohenzollern territories joined this trade zone in throughout the mid-1800's and strengthened Germany's collective economy in comparison to Austria and France. (Shred)