A Franchman on Hardenberg In The Congress of Vienna

I was privileged enough to attend the Congress at Vienna shortly after Napoleon's defeat at Waterloo. I took special note to Prince Karl von August Hardenberg and his Austrian supporters. They are a burly group, much more masculine and domineering than we sissy Frenchmen. These physical characteristics can be equated to their diplomatic mentality and desire for territorial expansion. Being more specific, their need for the the entire region of Saxony. They petitioned to send every bit of it in their direction but unfortunately only got two fifths of it. I think the Austrians are brutes but I only criticize their awesome masculinity to compensate for my extreme femininity.

Jusqu'à la fois prochaine

France and Russia in the Congress of Vienna

France and Russia did not dispute much over land in the Congress of Vienna. However both countries were battling Prussia in the congress to gain lands each coveted. France wanted to keep their boundaries first of all, but also wanted to gain some lands in the Rhine. Prussia also wanted lands in the Rhine and in Saxony. Russia on the other hand was very interested in Poland. Russia wanted to annex all of the former Duchy of Warsaw and once again Prussia wanted this land as well. In its centralized position in Europe, Prussia had much to gain and wanted a lot of land to add to its Germanic empire.

The French Revolution's Effect on Bourgeoisie

The French Revolution had a very profound effect on the Bourgeoisie or common people of France. Inspired by the American Revolution against the British, the impoverished class of the French social system revolted against the now weak monarchy of Louis the XVI. They were tired of his decadent and wasteful ways allowing the rich to get richer and poor to become poorer with each passing day. The revolution was a step towards eqaulity among men. This does not mean economic equality but equal opportunity to be just as prosperous as your neighbor.

The Spark of the French Revolution

Towards the turn of the 19th century, the age of enlightenment had reached it’s peak and was more influential as ever before. The ideas of the Enlightenment were spreading and affecting the people of Europe, especially France, at an exponential rate. As these thoughts of civil liberties, the resentment of noble and clerical privileges, and the resentment of royal absolutism became known by a great majority of the French, oppressed population it seem as if change was the only option and it had to occur on a large scale. John Locke, preached on the idea of civil librities that should be a right and not only a privledge of upper classes. Also, with constant struggle economically and agriculturally the people of France felt that Louis XVI was incapable of ruling their country successfully, which reinforced the idea of creating a constitutional monarchy. The thoughts and concepts, established by the enlightened thinkers of the time, provided the spark for the inevitable French Revolution.

The Enlightenment's Effect on the French Revolution

Directly before the start of the French Revolution, the Age of Enlightenment was flourishing throughout Europe. New, revolutionary ideas burgeoned from places all over Europe. Ideas like civil rights and women rights, which would be fought over for centuries after came from this time. Along with these ideas came the ideas of liberty and equality. Many European countries still had feudal societies, France was among them. As France went to fight the American Revolutionary War, the estates, or classes, of France intermingled. The nobility talked to the peasants and both nobillity and the peasants talked to the colonists. Due to all the coloquy between the people in the war, enlightenment ideas were spread immensely. Now the peasants, who had not known of these ideas before, discovered the ammunition they would use to fight with. Now the peasants, and all of the tax crippled third esate, called for change with liberty and equality. They took action and started the notorious French Revolution.

French Revolution's Impact on the Third Estate

Indeed the French Revolution's impact on the Third Estate was nothing less than tremendous. The revolution of course started due to the Third Estate's displeasure with their social status and the way France was being run by the incompetent monarchy. By successfully rising up and gaining power over the upper classes, the Third Estate proved revolution was possible. The Third Estate was given rights not previously afforded to them. However, Robespierre's action were brutal and harsh and after his Reign of Terror he was executed himself. Nonetheless, to an extent, the rights of peasants and Third Estate would be forever changed.

Thomas Hobbes was a fantastic political philosopher who coincidentally was not in the greatest of favors with the French in the early 1650's after his publication of the Leviathan. This very famous piece of literature angered French Catholics and Anglicans greatly. The idea of modern western philosophy was obscure and abstract. Especially to despotic ruler Louis the XVI who would not stand for any kind of democratic teachings in his absolutist world. It would have served the French well to practice what Thomas Hobbes preached lest they enjoyed having their country being sent into spiraling debt and poverty

Population Explosion and France

During this time period all of Europe had a great population explosion. This greatly affected France as 90% of its population resided in its third estate. The third estate was the lowest class and were basically peasants. When rough winters hit France during these years, the price of bread, France's main foodstuff during this time, rose dramatically. This made bread unaffordable to the peoples of the third estate. As unrest grew, more and more people became upset with King Louis XVI. Because bread was unavailable to so many people, while so few at so lavishly, change was needed. With the great congregation of people who were in this estate, they had much power. As they started to revolt, the wheels of the French Revolution began to turn.

France and Economics

Louis XVI during his reign put France into a great debt due to the constant spending of France's money on materialistic things, which his wife Marie Antoinette was greatly at fault for. Furthermore, France's involvement in the American Revolution also had put France in tremendous debt. Because of this France struggled to take part in Western mercantilism from the insufficent funds for ships and good transport. Peasents were also in a troublesome situation, there was potential for a famine.

Food and Medicine in France

Like most European countries in the 18th century, France demonstrated a major difference between the quality of food and medicine received by the upper and lower classes. Lower classes survived mostly off of bread and vegetables. This diet often proved satisfactory, but many people had a vitamin C deficiency and thus suffered from scurvy. Meanwhile, upper class citizens indulged themselves with various meats and sweets. Due this unhealthy diet many were upper class citizens were ill with gout. Middle class citizens had the most balanced diet and were therefore the healthiest. Predictably, upper classes received superior medical care to everyone else. Although doctors were not as well trained today, they could afford treatments and medicines that were too expensive or not available to lower class citizens.