European History 2: Russian Boogaloo.
As the year of our Lord 1830 came to a close, Europe continued its peaceful period. Underneath the supposed peace and cooperation between the great powers that ruled the continent (Austria, Prussia, France, Russia and the United Kingdom) there were however great issues, with disputes, secret treaties and arrangements, betrayals and planning going on every day.
In the Balkans, after its revolution Greece had become an independent kingdom. The Ottomans were weakened by the lost and especially by the interventions of Russia and the United Kingdom, and it was clear that they were no longer able to terrorize all of Europe at once and force them to form mega-coalitions as their only hope of victory. A single European power was enough now. Still, the old Empire was averse to change and reform and the European powers had no real interest on it, except for Russia who wanted to “liberate” the Balkans and possibility obtain Constantinople. Much to the Sultan’s shame, the main deterrent for Russia was not the might of the Ottomans, but rather the British obsession with the Balance of Power, balance that would definitely be affected should Russia obtain the strategic port.
There were bigger problems around the continent for all the powers though, especially for Austria which was still led by Metternich: Liberalism was growing stronger. Napoleon and his French Empire had been defeated, but the defeat had not been total. After all, no foreign soldier had set foot on French soil when the peace treaty was signed. France’s government was notably liberal and they propped up several likeminded government, most prominently in Spain and Portugal. Discontent was widespread, but perhaps no one was more displeased with the situation in France than its king, Carlos X.
Carlos X was an absolutist that believed in the divine rights of kings. To him, having an elected parliament and being a figurehead king was the worst possible fate, and he wanted major powers, especially the ability to pass laws and choose his prime minister without the approval of the Parliament. He did have, like the British monarchs, some powers reserved due to being the king, but he was unable to use them.
The situation in Spain was worse. King Fernando VII was even more displeased with the situation in his country, which still suffered lingering consequences from the Napoleonic Wars, most importantly a weak economy, high rates of immigration, rebellious colonies and loss of prestige due to having lost both The Independence Wars of Latin America and the Iberian Campaign. He tried, in vain, to reconquer Mexico during La Reconquista (known in Spain as the “Latin American Reconquista” o “La recolonización” to differentiate it from the conquest of Granada) but this only ended up in disasters and in the French enforced Peace of Madrid. After that, Fernando VII lost almost all his power to the Spanish Cortes. The Cortes, however, were deeply divided in what to do with the king. The liberals wanted to continue the constitutional monarchy, the monarchists wanted to reinstitute the absolute monarchy. Some moderates proposed to adopt a system like Mexico under Agustin I, where the Emperor (or King in Spain) would have some measure of power, but most government affairs would still be in hands of the Congress, but they were shut down. A major problem the liberal forces of Spain faced was that most of their support were in the popular classes, who were unable to vote due to universal suffrage not being in place yet. As such, the monarchists and conservatives held a disproportionate amount of power and the liberal governments were unable to actually do anything. This contributed to high immigration towards the new world, almost exclusively to the ex-Spanish colonies and mostly to Colombia, which had, under Miranda and Santander, made laws for easier migration from Spain. Some advances could be made, like cooperating with Britain to finish the slave trade and finally abolishing slavery in metropolitan Spain in 1832, along with minor education reforms, but those weren’t the sweeping reform the people were expecting.
When it comes to the remaining Spanish colonies, Cuba, Florida and the Philippines, the Cortes were unable to make any reforms and were divided on whether tightening the leash or reforming the colonies was the correct path to keep them under control. Cuba, emboldened by the victories and success of the ex-Spanish colonies, most notably Mexico and Colombia, had several rebellions through Fernando’s reign. The island was also not correctly administered and its resources not correctly used, as a result Colombia’s Hispaniola overtook it in sugar production and later in Tabaco, which didn’t sit well with the Cuban elites. International attention towards the island was also a major concern, as the island had become, together with Texas, a boiling point for tensions between the United States and the Mexican Empire. The United States, mostly the southern States of Dixie, had ambitions over the island, wanting to annex it to balance the number of slave and free states. Mexico was less imperialistic, their ambitions being more akin to “liberating” the island and establishing a puppet republic. Of course, both nations were in the path of each other. The United States considered that Cuba was an apple that would “naturally navigate towards the union if its unnatural tie with Spain is severed” but to them Mexico was “the low thug that steals the apple and then lets it rot”. Mexico on the other hand considered the Cubans brothers and some Mexican military men wanted war to finish the liberation of the Americas. Even Colombia had some ambitions over the island, but the governments of Santander and Sucre were not interested in war.
Cuba thus became the main point of debate when it came to the Spanish colonies. Reforms were sorely needed, but none were coming due to the Cortes’ bickering. Spain couldn’t let Cuba become independent, that would be a humiliation, and letting either the US or Mexico take over it would be an even greater humiliation. What to do then? Finally, due to concerns over possible war, the island was militarized and several army units were moved to garrison it. The people were unhappy, but there was nothing they could do for the moment. As a result, immigration from the island to the nearby countries started, mostly to Hispaniola where the booming sugar and Tabaco industries needed cheap labor and Colombian laws that greatly favored criollo or mestizo Spanish-speaking Catholic, of which there was a majority in Cuba.
Florida would be a lesser concern if not for the fact that it shared a border with the US and American ambitions over it were higher. The Florida fiasco that took place after the US attempted to invade it almost ended up in war, but it was resolved by Agustin I’s Imperial Treaties. Due to Florida being an indefensible backwater, the Spanish were happy to help Mexico and obtain payment for it.
The Philippines on the mean time did receive certain reform, most importantly education laws that increased the number of Spanish speakers there. However, obviously, education had to be implemented first on the mainland, and thus most of the time there were no schools, no teachers and no funding. The islands’ resources were misused and underdeveloped, but the liberal had managed more advances there than even on the Spanish mainland. After all, the Philippines were not considered that important, especially when compared with Cuba, and the conservatives weren’t as willing to challenge the liberals to prevent reforms there. Nonetheless, they were willing to challenge their budgets, rendering the reforms mot due to lack of funding,
France, on the meantime, continued expanding and consolidating its power, also taking over some minor islands and territories in Africa. Most importantly, their consolidation of Wallonia and Luxembourg was almost completely, with Brussels even starting to become French-speaking. Their conquest of Algeria had been successful, and the French industry and military power was only second to the United Kingdom. There were tensions, of course, due to this. Both world powers were in a semi Cold War, neither wanting outright war but neither wanting to allow the other to do as they pleased either. Some important points were in Greece, where the UK banned France from taking action against the Ottomans fearing the spread of French influence; Colombia, where after the Colombo-Peruvian War started a summit decided that neither power would interfere in wars between two Latin American countries, and, most important for European history, Flanders, where there was a rebellion by Catholics who resented living under Dutch rule and France intervened in favor of the Dutch government even after the British government demanded France remained neutral. Both were in a continuous race for influence and power, and for that they needed to flex their muscles often. Europe and Latin America became battlegrounds for influence, France establishing itself in Iberia, Italy, the Netherlands, Mexico and La Plata and the UK in Scandinavia, the Balkans, the Middle East and India, and Colombia and its “Colombian Block”.
Still, as it was previously mentioned, the fact that the king himself was the most vocal opposite to the government weakened France. This led to many elements in the government wanting to replace Carlos X with a more liberal-minded monarch, such as the Orléanist and Carlos X’s cousin, Louis Philippe. However, they couldn’t simply depose Carlos X. That would’ve seemed like a repetition of the French revolution, and while it would most likely not lead to another continental war, it would harm France’s standing and influence. Especially, Spain and Portugal could become absolutist monarchists again if France wasn’t there to keep their monarchs in check. In Portugal king John VI was happy to be a liberal king, but there were pro-absolutist revolts led by Miguel I, a son of John VI that claimed that Pedro IV (Emperor Pedro I of Brazil) had lost his claim to the throne after he decided to proclaim the independence of Brazil. France intervened, but that only strengthened the absolutist elements of the country and when John VI died, a crisis started. Dom Pedro wanted to resolve it by abdicating Portugal’s throne to his daughter, Maria, but Miguel then came back stronger than ever.
The French intervened again, but that only damaged their relations with their Iberian allies, as the French Army had to pass through Spain to reach Portugal, which had not requested French help. Miguel was defeated before he could really obtain the Portuguese throne, but his defeat didn’t solve anything. He was still alive, and able to lead the absolutist elements within Portugal from the exterior, leading to multiple uprisings. Portugal was not stable at all, and even though the French quite possibly saved them from civil war, the Portuguese people blamed the current woes in them. Furthermore, the Spanish were not happy with them either. After all, the Spanish refusal to grant them military access had not stopped the French from marching an army to get to Portugal. What would stop them from marching an army to Madrid and installing a puppet regime again?
Due to economic problems and dwelling influence, a window of opportunity opened for Carlos X, who managed to paint the situation as being the fault of the “evil” parliamentary government, while he, “the good king”, tried to stop them from doing that. He painted himself as a saint, the defender of tradition that wanted to protect France while the parliament was a bunch of evil, God-less radicals that wanted to re-start the Napoleonic Wars.
France was already deeply divided. Napoleon’s influence lingered on the nation, and even though the parliament had been trying to distance themselves from his memory, many nations still looked at them with suspicion. Just like Spain, France was almost evenly split between the liberals and the conservatives. The conservative forces had been emboldened, and had also received foreign support, mostly from the UK and Austria, both of which would rather have an absolute monarchy France than a liberal constitutional monarchy, especially on the middle of the liberal resurgence in Europe.
Carlos X realized this, and since he was by now obsessed with becoming an absolute monarch once again, decided to conspire with two men that shared his ideas: Carlos, brother of Fernando VII of Spain and Miguel of Braganza. We’ve already talked about Miguel, but who was Carlos?
Carlos was the brother of Fernando VII and the next successor to the Spanish throne if Fernando died without a male heir. To counter this, Fernando VII decided to redact the Pragmatic Sanction (Pragmática Sanción), allowing his daughter, Isabel, to succeed him to the throne. The Cortes, for once, agreed to pass the law, since Carlos was an even worse absolutist than Fernando. For example, he believed that the already very Catholic Spain had degenerated into a Godless hellhole due to French and liberal influence, and proposed a return to absolutism and fanatical religious views. In theory, the Pragmatic Sanction should’ve prevented him from ever ascending to the throne, but the problem was that a change to the Spanish constitution needed a 3/5 majority, not just a simply 50+1. However, it wasn’t clear whether it counted as a true change to the constitution, that wasn’t clear in the position of the king in respect of the Cortes. As such, Carlos’ supporters, the Carlists, were able to argue that the passing of the law was illegal.
When Fernando VII died in 1838, not long after the Pragmatic Sanction was passed into law, and, predictably, a succession crisis started. Isabel, now known as Isabel II and Carlos, who designated himself Carlos V, claimed the throne. Isabel’s mother, Cristina, acted as regent due to Isabel still being underage, and as such she took the leadership of her own faction, the Cristinos.
Carlos, autoproclaimed Carlos V.
France’s government once again tried to intervene, but this time the conspiracy the two Carlos and Miguel had been planning came into play. The Three Absolutists (as they would later be called) had planned to, through a series of revolts and Carlos X using his (not yet used) powers as king to prevent France from interfering, basically reverse the current situation, creating an absolutist block of alliances. Thus, when the French government tried to once again sent an army to put down the Carlists, Carlos X vetoed the initiative.
The French government was baffled by this. After all, they had allowed the King to conserve his powers, but they weren’t meant to be used. The King had to be a figurehead, like the king of Britain was. But technically Carlos hadn’t done anything illegal, he was in his total rights to veto the expedition. This caused a first diplomatic crisis, as the government and its king fought against each other.
In the meantime, and thanks to Metternich and Britain, the Carlists had advanced in Spain and yet another uprising took place in Portugal. Worried about this, the French government created the Foreign Legion, made exclusively of foreigners and only allowed to fight outside of France, to fight against them. The Legion was actually a French army in all but name, but as its soldiers were technically foreigners (most of the were from France’s colonies and allies) and also volunteers, no one could say anything against it. In response, and under the leadership of Carlos X’s son, the dauphin de France, Luis Antonio, an expedition was sent, nowadays known as the One Hundred Sons of San Luis (Cien mil hijos de San Luis).
As a result, French soldiers ended up fighting against French soldiers in Spain and Portugal, which became battlegrounds, not only for the armies, but also for the ongoing battle between the king and the government. This battle would continue for the next five years, being known as the Carlists Wars in Spain and the Liberal Wars in Portugal. France was divided, and that division led to radicalization in both sides. This instability had several consequences, most importantly the return of Napoleon’s nephew, Louis Napoleon Bonaparte, from Switzerland, and him launching a coup d’état attempt, that ultimately failed but meant that Bonapartists were once again players. France’s government demanded Napoleon’s extradition, but Switzerland, a nation that had sworn eternal neutrality, refused. However, most of the support from French monarchists and conservatives had gone towards the Orleanist faction, that wanted to install Louis-Phillipe in the throne.
By 1842 it was obvious that soon enough the forces opposing Carlos X would be much bigger than the forces supporting him. Wary of this and seeing that the Liberal leaders of France were become more and more willing to negotiate with their moderate monarchist counterparts, especially the Orleanists, Carlos X tried to take further measures to finally become the absolutist monarch he dreamed of being. His attempts to censure the press and increase his powers failed, but nonetheless Carlos X pressed on. The parliament was getting increasingly tired of him, but they couldn’t just get rid of him. That would, after all, remind everybody of the French revolution.
Failures just continued to pile up for the Three Absolutists. In Portugal, Pedro IV (Emperor Pedro I of Brazil) returned and helped his daughter gain terrain back from Miguel. And in Spain, due to dwelling support for absolutism both there and in France, mostly due to Cristina rebranding herself as a liberal regent, the Carlists started to lose terrain. Revolts, some minor and some bigger, broke up through France. Initially they demanded the dissolution of parliament, but slowly they started to demand the abdication of the king. And thus, in a last-ditch effort to take absolute power, Carlos X activated his emergency powers and issued decrees forbidding suffrage, free press and public meetings, while also dissolving the French parliament.
This was the last straw for many people, who finally stopped blaming the parliamentary government and turned their anger towards Carlos X. A revolution broke up and the army refused to put it down. Carlos X had no option other than to resign. He would die a little later than a year, in exile in Austria. As for France, it was clear that they needed a king. A republic was not an option, as that would probably alert “Balance of Power” obsessed Britain and the very anti-liberal Austria. After a month of arguing, in July 1843 the liberals and the Orleanists reached a compromise: Louis-Philippe would become the new constitutional king of France, under the tricolor and the principles of Liberté, égalité et fraternité
The Second French Revolution of 1843 saw the fall of Carlos X and his branch of the Bourbons in favor of Louis-Philippe, from the House of Orleans. In Europe, it damaged the relations of France with several of the Great Powers, situation that Perfidious Albion took advantage of. In the rest of the world, the major consequences were in Mexico, where the Emperor was married to Carlos X’s granddaughter. This broke the Franco-Mexican alliance and contributed to the start of the Mexican-American War.
In the rest of Europe, perhaps the most surprising developments were taking place in Russia- We’re going to focus on who would later become Tsar of Russia, a man full of contradictions and that always creates heated debates, Nicolas I.
Though he didn’t meet her, he greatly admired his grandmother, Empress Catherine the Great. His admiration for her ended up conducting to admiration for another man, a dear friend of Catherine that would often talk about his dreams. He, Nicolas thought at first, was just a madman and a dreamer, but Nicolas was still intrigued for the man. After all, the appreciation his grandmother showed for him was evident. She had even offered him help in any Russian consulate in any part of the world.
Nicolas didn’t think much of the man until in 1816 news arrived at Russia: Colombia had consolidated its independence from the Spanish Empire. Latin America was of little consequence to Russia, and thus to Nicolas, but things changed when Nicolas learned that the man responsible for the independence of the Continent was the same man his grandmother had so much affect for. Nicolas started to investigate into him and discovered that, among other things, the man had been Marshall de France, colonel in the United States, had once met the British Prime Minister and had now liberated a continent. Nicolas was impressed and arranged for a state meeting with him, since he was now a head of state himself. The meeting would take place not in Russia, but in Paris. The Nicolas that came back to Saint Petersburg was a different man. It’s fair to say that Francisco de Miranda made an impression in Nicolas.
We’re now going to talk about Constantino I. Constantine Pavlovich was the young brother of the Russian Tsar, Alexander I. Initially a great admirer of liberalism and Napoleon, Constantino became disillusioned after Napoleon’s catastrophic invasion of Russia and consequent death. Still, he remained a liberal. He had been groomed and prepared by Catherine the Great to be the Emperor of a new Byzantine Empire. Instead, Constantino dreamed of a new Russia, but believed it to be that, only a dream. But when his little brother Nicolas informed him that the dreamed their grandmother had so much affection for had managed to accomplish his dream, Constantino looked to the future with renowned spirit.
He refused the post for Poland his brother had offered him and instead decided to focus on trying to reform Russia. His brother was an absolutist, but he tolerated it.
When Alexander I died, it was expected that the throne would fall in Constantino. He was reluctant at first. He had planned to reform Russia, but was having little success. However, it was clear that the army was on his side and in 1825 he ascended to the throne. This brought hope for reform to the liberals, that became known as the Decembrist due to their insistence that December 1825 was a new dawn for Russia.
His Imperial Majesty Constantin I, Tsar and Autocrat of all the Russias.
Now some notes to round up this period of Europe. In 1837, at age eighteen, Alexandrina Victoria became Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom after the death of Willian IV. In Italy, Austria put down two different liberal revolts in Sardinia-Piedmont and Two Sicilies. In the Ottoman Empire, the principalities of Serbia, Wallachia and Moldavia obtained almost de jure independence, with Serbia being recognized as a monarchy with its own dynasty. In Egypt, after refusing to assist France, Mohammad Ali rebels against the Sultan and marches troops through Syria, taking control of the area and defeating the Ottomans, before Russian intervention forced him to retire his troops with great territory gains. That wouldn’t be enough and soon the Oriental Crisis would start when he declared the independence of Egypt from the Ottoman Empire. In Germany, Prussia started a customs union with every German nation except for Austria. And in Canada, revolts break against British rule.
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AN: Has a month really passed? Wow... Time flies. Sorry for not updating. I've been busy with school, traveling and such. Well, after this we'll see Mexico kicking the U... I mean, the American-Mexican War. Ehem. By the way, I planned for this to include something very special due to being May 1st, but it's too soon. It'll be in the next chapter on Europe, but it's a surprise! *hums l'internationale*
