the originis of the congress
DESCRIPTION
Why the Congress of Vienna got together and why they made the decisions that they did. A look at the different sides of the discussion that made decisions along the way.TRANSCRIPT
Thecongress
ofvienna
Why?• Because the geography of
Europe had been so changed by Napoleon, a group of leaders from the major powers in Europe gathered in Vienna, Austria to talk about how to put it back together.
Why?•The congress itself was a year-long attempt to figure out what to do with Europe.
Why?• Prince Metternich, the host of
the event, was the Austrian minister of foreign affairs who had some very strong ideas about what direction Europe should go in.
Why?• Others at the congress were
Czar Alexander I of Russia, the Duke of Wellington (who had defeated Napoleon) and Lord Castlereagh of England, and Charles de Talleyrand of France.
New styles• Two new political philosophies
emerged at the Congress of Vienna.
• The first was liberalism, which supported guarantees for individual freedom, political change, and social reform.
New styles•The followers of liberalism were very much in favor of the ideas of the Enlightenment and thought that the French Revolution needed to happen.
New styles•This is opposed by conservatism, which supported the traditional political and social order and resisted changes that threatened that way of life.
New styles•Conservatives looked at the French Revolution as a bad thing because it changed the way things used to be.
New styles•Nationalism also became
popular again, but its meaning was adapted from not only wanting to form a nation, but also to take pride in a common culture regardless of political boundaries.
New styles• For liberals, this meant a desire
to allow people to free themselves from foreign control.
• For conservatives, it meant an end to the old world order.
What they want•Each nation came to Vienna wanting something different, something that benefited them over every other nation.
What they want•Metternich of Austria was a conservative who opposed liberalism and nationalism.
What they want• Czar Alexander I of Russia
was a very religious man who brought with him a view of international relations based on Christian values of charity and justice.
What they want• Lord Castlereagh believed in
the same things as Metternich and that the way to prevent anyone like Napoleon taking power again was to achieve a balance of power in Europe.
What they want•A balance of power means that no nation could become too strong or too weak.
What they want• Talleyrand of France had a
difficult job because it was his nation that had brought about the Congress of Vienna when it allowed Napoleon to try and take over Europe.
What they want•His job was to make sure that France did not get punished too harshly.