The World War and What was Behind It Part 7

The southern part of the Netherlands, which is today called Belgium, had belonged to the Hapsburg family, the emperors of Austria. As was previously said, it was conquered by the French and remained part of France until the fall of Napoleon. It was now joined with Holland to make the kingdom of the Netherlands. Its people were Walloons and Flemish, almost entirely Catholic in their religion, and they very much disliked to be joined with the Protestant Dutch of Holland.

[Map: Europe in 1815]

The state of Finland, which had not been strong enough to defend itself against its two powerful neighbors, Sweden and Russia, had been fought over by these two powers for more than a century. It was finally transferred to Russia, and in order to appease Sweden, Norway, which had been ruled by the Danes, was torn away from Denmark and made part of the kingdom of Sweden. The Norwegians desired to remain an independent country, and they loved the Swedes even less than they loved the Danes. Therefore, this union was another source of trouble.

The greater part of the kingdom of Poland and all of Lithuania were joined to Russia.

Russia got back all of the territory she had taken in 1795, and in addition large parts of the former shares of Prussia and Austria. In order to pay back Austria for the loss of part of Poland, she was given all of northern Italy except the counties of Piedmont and Savoy near France.

The German states (and these included both Austria and Prussia) were formed into a loose alliance called the German Confederation.

England's share of the plunder consisted largely of distant colonies, such as South Africa, Ceylon, Trinidad, etc. France shrank back to the boundaries which she had had at the beginning of the revolution. The kings of France, of the Two Sicilies, and of Spain (all of them members of the Bourbon family) who had been driven out by Napoleon, were set back upon their thrones.

This arrangement left Italy all split up into nine or ten different parts, although its people desired to be one nation. It left Austria a government over twelve different nationalities, each one of which was dissatisfied. It joined Belgium to Holland in a combination displeasing to both. It gave Norway and Finland as subject states to Sweden and Russia respectively. It left the Albanians, Serbians, Roumanians, Bulgarians, and Greeks all subject to the hated Turks. It set upon three thrones, once vacant, kings who were hated by their subjects. It divided the Poles up among four different governments--for, strange as it may seem, the powers could not decide who should own the city of Cracow and the territory around it, and they ended by making this district a little republic, under the joint protection of Austria, Prussia, and Russia. In fact, the Swiss, serene in their lofty mountains, were almost the only small people of Europe who were left untroubled. The Congress of 1815 had laid the foundation for future revolutions and wars without number.

At first, the Poles were fairly well treated by the Russians, but after two or three unsuccessful attempts at a revolution, Poland, which, as one of the states of the Russian Empire, was still called a kingdom, was deprived of all its rights, and its people were forced to give up the use of their language in their schools, their courts, and even their churches. In the same fashion, the Poles in Prussia were "not even allowed to think in Polish," as one Polish patriot bitterly put it. All through the first half of the 19th century, there were uprisings and struggles among these people. As a result of one of them, in 1846, the little Republic of Cracow was abolished, and its territory forcibly annexed to Austria.

The Italian people formed secret societies which had for their object the uniting of Italy, and the freeing of its people from foreign rulers. All through Germany there were mutterings of discontent. The people wanted more freedom from their lords. Greece broke out into insurrection against the Turks, and fifteen years after the Congress of 1815 won its right to independence. Not long afterwards, the southern half of the Netherlands broke itself loose from the northern half, and declared to the world that it should henceforth be a new kingdom, under the name of Belgium. About the same time, the people of France rose up against the Bourbon kings, and threw them out "for good." A distant cousin of the king was elected, not "king of France"

but "citizen king of the French," and the people were allowed to elect men to represent them in a parliament or Congress at Paris. In Spain, one revolution followed another. For a short time, Spain was a republic, but the people were not well enough educated to govern themselves, and the kingdom was restored.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Prince Metternich]

The statesman who had more to do with the division of territory in 1815 than any other was Prince Metternich of Austria. He stood for the "divine right of kings," and did not believe in allowing the common people any liberty whatsoever. In 1848, an uprising occurred in Austria, and crowds in Vienna, crying, "down with Metternich," forced the aged diplomat to flee. During the same year, there were outbreaks in Germany. The people everywhere were revolting against the feudal rights of their kings and princes, and gaining greater liberty for themselves. In 1848, France, also, grew tired of her "citizen king,"

and that country a second time became a republic. The French made the mistake, however, of electing as their president, Louis Napoleon Bonaparte, nephew of the great Napoleon, and in time he did exactly what his uncle had done,--persuaded the French people to elect him emperor.

Questions for Review

1. What were the motives of each of the nations represented at the Congress of Vienna?

2. Why were the Russians and Prussians the leaders of the meeting at first?

3. Why did the English and Austrians a.s.sist each other?

4. What had Napoleon done for Poland? (See last chapter.) 5. What kings deposed by Napoleon were set back on their thrones?

6. What were the greatest wrongs done by the Congress?

7. How did the Poles protest against the settlement made by the Congress?

8. What did the Belgians do about it?

9. What did the French finally do to the Bourbon kings?

CHAPTER XI

Italy a Nation at Last

The Crimean War curbs Russia.--Cavour plans a United Italy.--War against Austria.--Garibaldi, the patriot.--The Kingdom of Sardinia becomes part of the new Kingdom of Italy.--Venice and Rome are added.--Some Italians still outside the kingdom.

Meanwhile, Italy, under the leadership of two patriots named Mazzini and Garibaldi, was in a turmoil. The Austrians and the Italian princes who were subject to them were constantly crushing some attempted revolution.

One thing which helped the cause of the people was that the great powers were all jealous of each other. For example, Russia attacked Turkey in 1853, but France and England were afraid that if Russia conquered the Turks and took Constantinople, she would become too powerful for them. Therefore, both countries rushed troops to aid Turkey, and in the end, Russia was defeated, although thousands of soldiers were killed on both sides before the struggle was over.

You will remember that the counties of Piedmont and Savoy in western Italy, together with the island of Sardinia, made up a little kingdom known as the "Kingdom of Sardinia." This country had for its prime minister, a statesman named Count Cavour, who, like all Italians, strongly hoped for the day when all the people living on the Italian peninsula should be one nation. At the time of the Crimean War (as the war between Russia on the one side and Turkey, France, and England on the other was called) he caused his country also to declare war on Russia, and sent a tiny army to fight alongside of the English and French. A few years later, he secretly made a bargain with Napoleon III. (This was what President Bonaparte of France called himself after he had been elected emperor.) The French agreed to make war with his country against the Austrians. If they won, the Sardinians were to receive all north Italy, and in return for France's help were to give France the county of Savoy and the seaport of Nice.

When Cavour and the French were all ready to strike, it was not hard to find an excuse for a war. Austria declared war on Sardinia, and, as had been arranged, France rushed to the aid of the Italians. Austria was speedily beaten, but no sooner was the war finished than the French emperor repented of his bargain. He was afraid that it would make trouble for him with his Catholic subjects if the Italians were allowed to take all the northern half of the peninsula, including the pope's lands, into their kingdom. Accordingly, the Sardinians received only Lombardy in return for Savoy and Nice, which they gave to France, and the Austrians kept the county of Venetia. A fire once kindled, however, is hard to put out. No sooner did the people of the other states of northern Italy see the success of Sardinia, than, one after another, they revolted against their Austrian princes and voted to join the new kingdom of Italy. In this way, Parma, Modena, Tuscany, and part of the "States of the Church" were added. All of this happened in the year 1859.

These "States of the Church" came to be formed in the following way: The father of the great king of the Franks, Charlemagne, who had been crowned western emperor by the pope in the year 800, had rescued northern Italy from the rule of the Lombards. He had made the pope lord of a stretch of territory extending across Italy from the Adriatic Sea to the Mediterranean. The inhabitants of this country had no ruler but the pope. They paid their taxes to him, and acknowledged him as their feudal lord. It was part of this territory which revolted and joined the new kingdom of Italy.

You will remember the name of Garibaldi, the Italian patriot, who with Mazzini had been stirring up trouble for the Austrians. They finally pursued him so closely that he had to leave Italy. He came to America and set up a fruit store in New York City, where there were quite a number of his countrymen. By 1854, he had made a great deal of money in the fruit business, but had not forgotten his beloved country, and was anxious to be rich only in order that he might free Italy from the Austrians. He sold out his business in New York, and taking all his money, sailed for Italy. When the war of 1859 broke out, he volunteered, and fought throughout the campaign.

But the compromising terms of peace galled him, and he was not satisfied with a country only half free. In the region around Genoa, he enrolled a thousand men to go on what looked like a desperate enterprise. Garibaldi had talked with Cavour, and between them, they had schemed to overthrow the kingdom of the Two Sicilies and join this land to the northern country. Of course, Cavour pretended not to know anything about Garibaldi, for the king of Naples and Sicily was supposed to be a friend of the king of Sardinia. Nevertheless, he secretly gave Garibaldi all the help that he dared, and urged men to enroll with him.

[Ill.u.s.tration: The First Meeting of Garibaldi and Victor Emmanuel]

With his thousand "red-shirts," as they were called, Garibaldi landed on the island of Sicily, at Marsala. The inhabitants rose to welcome him, and everywhere they drove out the officers who had been appointed by their king to rule them. In a short time, all Sicily had risen in rebellion against the king. (You will remember that this family of kings had been driven out by Napoleon and restored by the Congress of Vienna in 1815. They were Bourbons, the same family that furnished the kings of Spain and the last kings of France. They stood for "the divine right of kings," and had no sympathy with the common people.) Crossing over to the mainland, Garibaldi, with his little army now swollen to ten times its former size, swept everything before him as he marched toward Naples. Everywhere, the people rose against their former masters, and welcomed the liberator. The king fled in haste from Naples, never to return. A vote was taken all over the southern half of Italy and Sicily, to decide whether the people wanted to join their brothers of the north to make a new kingdom of Italy. It was so voted almost unanimously. Victor Emmanuel, king of Sardinia, thus became the first king of United Italy. He made Florence his capital at first, as the country around Rome still belonged to the pope. The pope had few soldiers, but was protected by a guard of French troops.

However, ten years later, in 1870, when war broke out between France and Prussia, the French troops left Rome, and the troops of Italy marched quietly in and took possession of the city. Rome, for so many years the capital, not only of Italy but of the whole Mediterranean world, became once more the chief city of the peninsula. The pope was granted a liberal pension by the Italian government in order to make up to him for the loss of the money from his former lands. The dream of Italians for the last 600 years had finally come to pa.s.s. Italy was again one country, ruled by the popular Victor Emmanuel, with a const.i.tution which gave the people the right to elect representatives to a parliament or congress. One of the worst blunders of the Congress of Vienna had been set right by the patriotism of the people of Italy.

It should be noted, however, that there are still Italians who are not part of this kingdom. The county of Venetia, at the extreme northeast of Italy, was added to the kingdom in 1866 as the result of a war which will be told about more fully in the next chapter, but the territory around the city of Trent, called by the Italians Trentino, and the county of Istria at the head of the Adriatic Sea, containing the important seaports of Trieste, Fiume, and Pola, are inhabited almost entirely by people of Italian blood. Certain islands along the coast of Dalmatia also are full of Italians. To rescue these people from the rule of Austria has been the earnest wish of all Italian patriots, and was the chief reason why Italy did not join Germany and Austria in the great war of 1914.

[Map: Italy Made One Nation, 1914]

Questions for Review

1. Why did England and France side with Turkey against Russia?

2. What bargain did Cavour make with Napoleon III?

3. How did the rest of Italy come to join Sardinia?

4. Explain the origin of the "States of the Church."

5. Why did Sicily and Naples revolt against their king?

6. What Italians are not yet citizens of the kingdom of Italy?

CHAPTER XII

The Man of Blood and Iron

The people demand their rights--Bismarck, the chief prop of the Prussian monarchy--The question of the leadership of the German states--The wonderful Prussian army--The war on Denmark--Preparing to crush Austria--The battle of Sadowa--Easy terms to the defeated nation--Preparing to defeat France--A good example of a war caused by diplomats--Prussia's easy victory--The new German empire--Harsh terms of peace--The triumph of feudal government.

All of this time, the kings of Europe had been engaged in contests with their own people. The overthrow of the French king at the time of the revolution taught the people of the other countries of Europe that they too could obtain their liberties. You have already been told how the people of Austria drove out Prince Metternich, who was the leader of the party which refused any rights to the working cla.s.ses.

That same year, 1848, had seen the last king driven out of France, had witnessed revolts in all parts of Italy, and had found many German princes in trouble with their subjects, who were demanding a share in the government, the right of free speech, free newspapers, and trial by jury. The empires of Austria and Russia had joined with the kingdom of Prussia in a combination which was known as the "Holy Alliance."

This was meant to stop the further spread of republican ideas and to curb the growing power of the common people.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Bismarck]

Not long after this, there came to the front in Prussia a remarkable man, who for the next forty years was perhaps the most prominent statesman in Europe. His full name was Otto Eduard Leopold von Bismarck-Schonausen, but we generally know him under the name of Bismarck. He was a Prussian n.o.bleman, a believer in the divine right of kings, the man who more than anybody else is responsible for the establishing of the present empire of Germany. He once made a speech in the Prussian Diet or council in which he said that "blood and iron," not speeches and treaties, would unite Germany into a nation.

His one object was a united Germany, which should be the strongest nation in Europe. He wanted Germany to be ruled by Prussia, Prussia to be ruled by its king, and the king of Prussia to be controlled by Bismarck. It is marvellous to see how near he came to carrying through his whole plan.

After the Congress of Vienna in 1815, Prussia remained among the powers of Europe, but was not as great as Austria, Russia, England, or France. The German states, some 35 in number, had united in a loose alliance called the German Confederation. (This union was somewhat similar to the United States of America between 1776 and 1789.) Austria was the largest of these states, and was naturally looked upon as the leader of the whole group. Prussia was the second largest, while next after Prussia, and much smaller, came the kingdoms of Bavaria, Saxony, Hanover, and Wurtemburg. Bismarck, as prime minister of Prussia, built up a wonderfully strong army. He did this by means of a military system which at first made him very unpopular with the people. Every man in the nation, rich or poor, was obliged to serve a certain number of years in the army and be ready at a moment's notice to join a certain regiment if there came a call to war.

Having organized this army, and equipped it with every modern weapon, Bismarck was anxious to use it to accomplish his purpose. There were two counties named Schleswig (shle?s'vig) and Holstein (hol'stin) which belonged to the king of Denmark and yet contained a great many German people. The inhabitants of Schleswig were perhaps half Danes, while those of Holstein were more than two-thirds Germans.