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T
HE
N
AP O L EO N I C
at–
tempt to restore t he
Roman Empire in t he
West is but a shor t–
lived success.
Napoleon 's fi na l defeat a t
Waterloo in 18 15 sends the one–
time mas t er of Eu rope into
lonely exi le on the rocky island
of St. Helena in the sou t h
Atlan tic. And his dream of a
unified Europe follows him into
the abyss.
Defeated France is reduced to her
1790 boundaries, assessed a large
indemnity payment and
forced to submit to an
all ied army of occupa-
tion. T he u npopular
Bourbons are restored
to the French throne
under Lo uis XV I I I ,
brother of Louis XVl.
He will reign as French
king until his death in
1824.
Fee ble Con fed e ratlon
But the affai rs of the
rest of Eu rope a lso
have to be reordered.
To guard against the
recurrence of war, the
Congress of Vienna
convenes to rcdraw the
map of Eu rope a nd
bring stability to the
war-ex hausted Conti–
nent.
Among t he chief negotiators are
Austria's chancellor Prince Metter–
nich, Britain's fo reign min ister
Lord Castlereagh, Czar Alexander
I of Russia, Prussia's King Freder–
ick Will iam
lll ,
France's represen–
tative Talleyrand, and the Papal
delegate Cardinal Consalvi.
The international assembly reor–
ganizes the political boundaries of
Europe. O ne of the results of the
Congress is the establishment of
the German Con fe d e r ation
(Deutscher Bund)
under the presi–
dcncy of Austria. The defunct Holy
Roman Empire of the G erman
Nat ion is no more.
Napoleon's rcorganizat ion of
Germany consolidated scores of
smaller German states into larger
entities. The new German Con–
federation is an association of 39
10
THE
HISTORY
OF
EUROPE
&
THE
CHURCH
PARTEIGHT
THE
SECO
NO
REICH
by
Keith W. Stump
Editor 's Note: We continue our series
of artic/es examining the centuries–
long relationship between Europe and
the Church. Our first seven install–
ments covered the story to the defeat
ofNapoleon at Waterloo in 1815. Part
Eight surveys the next hundred years,
to the demise ofthe German Empire in
World War l .
sovereign German states. But it is
a feeble organization. Unity is still
severely hampered by rivalries
among states. T he loosely knit
league wi l l limp along unti l
1866.
Flrst Step Toward Unity
Prince Metternich ( 1773-1859),
the Austrian c hancellor, seeks to
make Austria a leading European
power and the undisputed head of
the German-speaking peoples. But
his designs are opposed by a for–
midable antagonist- Prussia.
Under Frederick the Great (kjng
in P russia from 1740 to 1786) ,
Prussia had become a rival to Aus–
tria fo r control of the German
states. This rivalry persists. Prussia
sti ll seeks to grun the upper hand in
German affairs.
In 1834, P russia organizes a
German customs union, known as
the
Zollverein,
under Prussian
leadership. It ereates a free-trade
area throughout much of Germany,
removing unnecessary restrict ions
from commerce.
The
Zollverein
shows the Ger–
mans the value of coop–
eration.
It
encourages
the desire for unity .
H istor ians will look
back on the customs
union as a key fi rst step
on the road toward
German reunification.
Revolutions in Franca
Back in France, a revo–
lution in July 1830
d ri ves the Bou r bons
from the throne. T he
Bou rbo n monarc h ,
Cha r les X
( 1824-
1830), flees to Eng1and
in exile.
The new king of the
French is Louis-Phil–
ippe, duke of Orléans.
Though a relative of
the exiled king, Louis–
Philippe has a reputa-
t ion as a progressive . He reigns for
nearly 18 years as constitutiona l
monarch.
In 1848, a revolut ionary tide
sweeps across Europe. The color–
less and increasingly unpopular
Louis-Philippe is one of its victims.
Abd icating in February, he too
fl ees to England.
On December 1
O,
1848, Louis
Napoleon Bonaparte (1808-1873),
a nephew of the late Emperor
Napoleon 1, is elected president of
France's Second Republic. The
republic, however, is short-lived.
In the last month of 1851, Louis
Napoleon Bonaparte stages a widely
popular
coup d'état,
establishing an
authoritarian government under his
leadership. A vote is taken in favor of
the restoration of the Empire.
The Second Empire is formally
The
PLAIN TRUTH