Lecture Outline:

• Causes of 1848 Revs
• Rev in France
• Rev in Germany
• Frankfurt Parliament
• Why did revs fail?
• Legacy

Key Questions:

• Why Revolutions in 1848?
• What were the goals?
• How did the revolutions play out in France and Germany?
• Why did the revolutions fail? Where did they succeed?
• What lasting impact did revolutions have on Europe…and the world?

Here is my lecture. Enjoy.

This document, based on a chapter from the author’s Germans and the Revolution of 1848-1849, which appears in the New German-American Studies series published by Peter Lang, is presented in recognition of the 150^th anniversary of the March Days in Berlin that followed the deposition of King Louis-Philippe in France and the fall of the Austrian minister Clemens Metternich in Vienna, events that triggered a wave of revolutions all across the continent of Europe.

This account should be of special interest to descendants of Forty-Eighters who fled to the United States after conclusion of the revolutionary debates and hostilities.

A good chapter

Your assignment is to study the Revolutions of 1848 and to conduct a student-led discussion that reflects your studies.
 

 
Main questions:

1. Why and how did a wave of revolution sweep Europe in 1848? What were the grievances and demands of the protestors?
2. What methods did the revolutionaries employ to reach their objectives?
3. Assess the impact of the following on 1848: industrialism, liberalism, nationalism, class consciousness, socialism, utopianism, urbanization, democratization, and positivism.
4. How, why, and to where to the Revolution spread?
5. Compare and contrast the Revolutions in Italy, France, Hungary, and German states. Why was there no significant Revolutionary movements in Britain and Russia? Note: for purposes of this assignment, disregard other revolutionary states.
6. Who were the key people and events? Make an identification list.
7. What were the results of the Revolutions of 1848?  Historian A.J.P. Taylor once called 1848 a moment when “history reached a turning point and failed to turn.” Were the Revolutions of 1848 an utter failure? What is the legacy of this movement?
8. How did 1848 effect the Rise of the Modern State?

Mandatory Resources:

1. Start with Wikipedia. After reading the broad view of 1848, visit the “main articles” for the Revolutions in Italy, France, Hungary, and German states.
2. Charles Fourier: Theory of Social Organization, 1820
3. Four short primary source documents on Revolutionary France
4. The Carlsbad Decrees, 1819
5. Secondary Source: Revolution and the National Assembly in Frankfurt am Main
6. Photo: 1848 in Germany

—>You will submit notes on 1-6 above. Consider the questions while reading and taking notes.

 
Very, Very Strongly Recommended Resource:

• BBC4 Discussion: Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss 1848 (45 minutes). This is an ideal model for the class discussion. Bragg and three history lecturers. I hope you all listen to as much of this as you can make time for.

Suggested Resources:

• Chartism: The People’s Petition, 1838
• John Stuart Mill: Liberalism Evaluated, 1873
• Thomas Carlyle: Signs of the Times: The “Mechanical Age
• Frederich Engels’ Speech at the Graveside of Karl Marx, 1883
• Percy B. St. John, a French eyewitness to the events of 1848

Optional Resources – The Modern Connection: 1848 vs. 1989 vs. 2011:

• Every Revolution Is Different, Anne Applebaum at Slate
• 2011: The Arab World’s 1989 or 1848?, Mark Katz at George Mason University
• Eric Hobsbawm on 2011: ‘It reminds me of 1848…”
• 1848 vs. 2011, cool infographic from Time

Evaluative Rubric:
____/15 Quality and Quantity of Notes from Resources (due on day one of discussion)
____/10 Individual Participation in Discussion (sliding scale)
____/5 Class grade: quality of discussion (to what extent does the class offer valid and nuanced responses to the given questions?)
____/30 Total
 

Every Revolution Is Different, Anne Applebaum at Slate
Bringing Down the Old Order is Easy; Building A New One is Tough, John Steinberg from Foreign Affairs
2011: The Arab World’s 1989 or 1848?, Mark Katz at George Mason University
Eric Hobsbawm on 2011: ‘It reminds me of 1848…” From the BBC

Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss 1848, the year that saw Europe engulfed in revolution. Across the continent, from Paris to Palermo, liberals rose against conservative governments.

The rebels were fighting for nationalism, social justice and civil rights, and were prepared to fight in the streets down to the last man. Tens of thousands of people lost their lives; but little of lasting value was achieved, and by the end of the year the liberal revolutions had been soundly beaten.