The Crimean War Flashcards
(12 cards)
1
Q
Understanding Europeanness
A
- Defining the location and meaning of Europe - recognising where it culturally and physically located is undetermined.
- ## JPA Pocock = shift from Europe as a continent to an idea/civilisation - itself relatively recent concept due to little coherent sense of a European history.
2
Q
Congress of Vienna 1815 + link to russia
A
- Document = effort to maintain peace and stability throughout Europe between nations and potential observer Parties like the Ottoman Empire via treaties and trade.
- Effort to define European boundaries = Russia’s involvement to defeat Napoleon showed fading of European territory.
- Possibly ended at the Crimea War, 1848 revolutions or the 1914 global European conflict.
3
Q
Eastern Question over the Ottoman Empire
A
- Concern over political and economic instability due to the collapsing Ottoman Empire (e.g Egypt controlled autonomously by Mehmet Ali), enabling a
- Eurocentric - questions European boundaries before the 18th century and 20th century.
- Ottoman Empire - in territorial decline and “on the wrong side of history” by not sharing or adapting to European modernity and technological prowess, achieving some modernisation via Tanzinmat in the 1850s, especially with the military (spent 70% yet technologically inferior).
4
Q
Eastern Question and Russia
A
- debate on Russia as part of Europe - questioned what is Europe and Russia.
- 18th century Russia was in a paradoxical situation = increasingly modernised state, adopting European-style institutions and particularly how the ruling classes assimilated foreign cultural influences/interested in enlightenment ideas.
- improvement from the economic backwardness but Westernisation reinforced Russia’s archaic social structure = e.g Catherine II, the Great was dubbed an “enlightened absolutist reformer”, but the period was the golden age of serfdom.
French Revolution adds ideas of change and modernity in Central Western Europe - new ideas that monarchies ruled by divine rights were no longer the norm, Russian autocracy is a model of medieval survival or despotic policy. - Aid to defeat Napoleon - gained annexation of Polish and Finnish territory and filled the space left after the collapsing empires.
5
Q
Britain’s fear of Russia
A
- Feared Russia would intervene in the Ottoman decline - did in 1828-29 upon receiving Austria’s support = founder of the Holy Alliance in 1815 to defeat European revolutionary and nationalist movements.
- Especially as Russia founded the holl
- Sought to prevent Russia making Turkey a buffer state - introduced modernisation reforms.
- Restricting Ottoman influence -preferred Greek independence than sovereignty under Turkey.
- Even after easing religious restrictions, it was not extensive enough due to opposition from Turkish officials and religious figures.
- Russia’s weak neighbours policy - sought to utilise negotiations with Turkey to control their power and territories with the Adrianople treaty.
- Russia remained reluctant and cautious with the Concert of Europe - e.g frequent peace treaties with different nations.
6
Q
Britain’s control over the Middle East
A
- Importance of trade and control over a particular route through India was threatened by Russian expansion - more than imagined (Figes).
- Deemed a cash regime run with military presence - vulnerable, defended by geography and the larger surrounding dormant empires.
- Involved with French revolutionaries as the declining Ottoman polity could pose a useful tool to enact as a territorial roadblock in West Asia.
- Development of the idea of the Middle East - British control over the Persia which they tried to test during the Napoleonic Wars.
7
Q
Fear regarding the Ottoman Empire religion and Figes’ analysis over Russia
A
- Ottoman Empire - a Muslim polity that is discriminatory towards non-Muslims with some patterns of tolerant accommodation, noting most European Ottomans were Orthodox Christians.
- Believed polities in Western Europe betrayed the cause of Christendom by making alliances with the heathen Ottomans against other Christian powers.
- Feared Russia would intervene - did in 1828-29 yet they required Austria’s support.
8
Q
How much has the credit of the prolonged peace after 1815 should be assigned to Congress fr Vienna:
A
- Created peace through the diplomacy and Austrian gains of territory.
- successful job in resolving most conflicts within the signatory powers.
- local wars = Piedmond-Austria as one of moment of conflict between the powers.
- severity of conflict = when two powers oppose, or 1850s with big powers, 1870 Franco-Prussian War or 1914 with the total breakdown of the Treaty with all powers now involved.
9
Q
How much origins of the Crimean war be found in Vienna - no balance of power
A
- Established with no balance of power - Russia and Britain were more powerful and likely caused international dispute and conflict.
- Shroder = change around the Congress of Power and term emerges as a mantra, rather than a real truthful reflection of how Congress works and the system in underpinning European peace.
+ Operated in 18th century.
+ Involved in various conflicts.
+ Imbalance of power - is it bipolar or hegemony due to B/R indifference in opinion.
10
Q
Crimea War and Vienna
A
- Established in 1815 - changing European and international map, especially with the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, and the unresolved Eastern Question.
- Britain using Turkey as a buffer state increases confidence while Russia fears a lack of access of influence and territorial spills before other European states - creates and reintroduces conflict into international affairs.
- problems arise outside of the subjugated by Vienna.
- it doesn’t topple architecture.
- shows the fortunes of the Eastern Question and the Ottoman Empire might be separate issue from the maintainence of the Vienna system within its territories.
- both shows Congress is not suitable for other areas - Eurocentric
11
Q
Impact of the 1930s revolutions
A
- Supported the Greek Revolution 1821-32 to destroy the Ottomans and benefit.
- Defeated the 1930 Polish Revolution - declaring the end of Romanov rule, end of feudalism and emancipation of Jews - rising backlash for Russian democrats who had supported the uprising.
- European events inspire Russian Radicals, political thought and responses to Russia’s own social question.
12
Q
Decembrist Revolt
A
- 1825 Revolt against Nicholas I regarding succession and debate of post-Napoleonic developments - brutally defeated, widely impactful and starts a period of repression and autocracy.
+ Alienation of intelligentsia from State and Govt.
+ Secret circulation of banned underground literature.
+ Westernised Russians’ interest of intellectual and cultural life of Berlin - seen as figureheads of Russian backwardness.
+ Development of liberal press carefully critiquing the political regime.
