Other Areas Throughout the 1870's
Italy:
Italy was one of the newest states in Europe, having recently been united under one flag in 1859. However, many Italians did not believe it was really united. Even Rome itself, the largest and most influential city on the Italian peninsula, was under the occupation of French troops. In Northern Italy, Austria-Hungary controlled large pieces of land that were ethnically Italian. In the early 1870's, some of the extremely nationalist politicians began using the term
errante territori, or "wandering territories", to describe the ethnically Italian lands not under the Italian flag. This became popular to many Italians, and many formed groups that supported the idea of bringing these lands back to their rightful owner.
1875 marked the first victory for these Italian nationalists. The French were in the midst of turmoil that May, and the French garrison in Rome had become almost a skeleton force. On May 10th, the Italian Prime Minister, Benedetto Cairoli, and the Italian Parliament, agreed to take back Rome by force, and declared war on the Papal States. A few days later, after token resistance by the Papal States' small army and the small contingent of French soldiers, Rome was taken. The next month, after a plebiscite, the territory that had once been the Papal States was annexed into the Kingdom of Italy. Many in Europe were tense, as they thought this could lead to a wider war, and patrols on both the Italian and French sides of the border were put on high alert. However, France never made an official statement, even though French soldiers were involved in many of the short skirmishes. The tensions between the two nations were never really extinguished.
Benedetto Cairoli rode the Wave of Nationalism to the Prime Minister's Position in 1875
Ottoman Empire:
The war against Russia in 1875 was a disaster. Istanbul, although never taken, was only saved by the request for a cease-fire, and much of the Ottomans territory in the Balkans were now under Russian influence. Not to mention that the money it took to both fight the Russians and Serbians had depleted much of the Ottoman treasury. In 1876, the nation was finally succumbing to the sickness it had been stricken with for decades.
The Ottoman Empire's biggest problem was that it so far had been unsuccessful in stemming nationalist sentiments from its various nationalities. Although some reforms had been made during the Tanzimat Era from the 1830's-1860's to try and bring the different cultures together and create a nationalism centered around being an Ottoman, instead of an Armenian, Arab, Muslim, or non-Muslim, the reforms had not brought around much change. They had however, inspired a great amount of young men to try and reform the nation even further, and bring about a real change of direction. They called themselves the "Young Ottomans."
After the disastrous war against Russia, the Sultan, Abd Al-Aziz, had been deposed by his ministers, and inexplicably died a few days later, apparently by suicide. His successor Mehmed Murad V, wasn't much better, he was declared mentally ill after only a few weeks on the throne, but in that span of time was able to really agitate the reformist faction, by refusing to issue a new Constitution. By the ascension of Abdul Hamid II, many were at their boiling point.
Many did not know what to expect from the Sultan. Some thought he would have at least some liberal ideas, and actually many conservatives saw him as a threat. The Conservatives were proved wrong however. Hamid II was not a reformer, and had no intention of ever seriously pursuing a Constitution. The Young Ottomans were devastated by this. They had thought that just maybe this would be the time the Ottoman Empire truly turned a corner and modernized. The most senior of the Young Ottoman sympathizers, Ahmet Şefik Mithat Pasha, had been Grand Vizier until the outbreak of the Russo-Turkish War in 1875, but now was back, as a vocal supporter of the Ottoman reform movement.
Ahmet Şefik Mithat Pasha
In February of 1876, a meeting was held between some Young Ottoman leaders, not including Mithat Pasha, and the half-brother of the Sultan, Mehmed V. The leaders convinced Mehmed V to support the movement toward a Constitutional Monarchy, and press his half brother for reform. If Abdul Hamid II refused however, the reformers would have no choice but to remove him from the throne. In this case, Mehmed V would become Sultan, and call for a new Constitution. The deal was essentially a coup d'etat, and although the removal of the Sultan would be noticed, the actual power grab would be behind closed doors, to spare the Ottoman Empire from outright civil war.
Over the next few weeks, the Ottomans continually called for a new Constitution, but the Sultan, once again refused. On the night of March 2nd, a large group of Young Ottomans, Mehmet V, and even some military officers, stormed Dolmabahçe Palace, and after a short skirmish with some palace guards, murdered Abdul Hamid II. The next day, the death was ruled as suicide, and Mehmet V took the throne, calling for a new Constitution in front of a loving crowd. On March 4th, Ahmet Şefik Mithat Pasha was and asked to oversee the formation of the new Constitutional Monarchy, and was reinstated as Grand Vizier. Although not a part of the actual coup, Mithat Pasha was aware of it, and however much he did not approve of the Young Ottoman's rash and impatient move, he accepted it nonetheless.
The Constitutional Era began in 1876, with the declaration of the new Ottoman Constitution by Mehmet V. The new government was made up of two houses, the Upper House which were appointed by the Sultan, and the Lower House which were elected by the people. Any man over 25 paying taxes could vote, making the Ottoman electorate one of the largest in Europe. No political parties were made, but throughout the the next year, especially in the Lower House, men of the same ideology grouped together, made deals, and tried to unite their electors, essentially creating parties in every way except in name. The Ottoman Empire seemed to have found a cure for its disease.
Spain:
In 1871, the new King of Spain, Amadeo I, standing alongside Juan Prim, declared he would uphold the Constitution and lead them to glory. In the years afterward, he did not lead the Spanish people to great power status, but he did hold the nation together during the Crash, something that many though would be impossible. Most of the credit does not really belong to him though. Although he had power, the influence over the nation's future really belonged to Juan Prim. Amadeo I did not take offense to this, he was content with his power, and let Prim and the
Cortes, the main legislative body in Spain, handle the day-to-day affairs of the empire.
When the Crash struck in 1873, Spain was not hit as hard as the rest of Europe. There was not a whole lot of production in Spain at that time, and modernization efforts were put to the wayside, as the Spanish government wished to unite the country under the new government first. This was difficult enough, and was only made more so by the Carlists, who in 1874 rose up for the third time in Spanish history, beginning with a failed attempt on Juan Prim's life on September 6th, 1874. The Third Carlist War that followed was not very long, it only lasted a year, from the fall of 1874 to the late summer of 1875, when the Carlists were crushed in the northern sections of the country, specifically Navarre and the Basque country. With the victory over the insurrectionists, the Spanish government achieved a unity unknown to Spain in over a decade. The new government, led by the intensely popular Juan Prim, and the now moderately popular Amadeo I, looked to modernize, and look outward as well, attempting to reposition themselves as an imperial power. The first step was completed in 1878, when separatists on the island of Cuba were defeated by Spanish soldiers.
Carlist Insurgents in Navarre - 1875
