93. A Peace of Kings

06/05/22 • 14 min

The Congress of Vienna set up peace in Europe for decades. Indeed, it prevented any kind of general war across the whole of the Continent for nearly a century, until the First World War broke out in 1914. But it wasn’t quite as straightforward as the outcome might suggest. The power of Russia, with 600,000 troops now occupying many parts of Europe, led to a quick rehabilitation of the former enemy, France. And some very clever diplomatic work, by the remarkable trio of the French Foreign Ministers of France, Talleyrand, Austria, Metternich, and Britain, Castlereagh, proved necessary to put the Russian bear back in his box.

The other aspect of the Congress is that what it ushered in was a Peace of Kings. Ideas thrown up by the French Revolution, of the rights of man, of popular sovereignty, of equality between citizens, were decidedly out of fashion. Which was going to prove problematic in a Britain facing harsh conditions and growing discontent.

Illustration: The Russian Bear inspired fear in the west: Tsar Alexander I published by Colnaghi & Co on 2 May 1814. National Portrait Gallery D15858

Music: Bach Partita #2c by J Bu licensed under an Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivatives (aka Music Sharing) 3.0 International License

Illustration: The Russian Bear inspired fear in the west: Tsar Alexander I published by Colnaghi & Co on 2 May 1814. National Portrait Gallery D15858

Music: Bach Partita #2c by J Bu licensed under an Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivatives (aka Music Sharing) 3.0 International License

Previous Episode

92. We meet our Waterloo

Napoleon makes his second bid for power, and comes unstuck, as Wellington and Blücher prove too much for him at Waterloo.

It’s a victory the Brits like to celebrate as a great triumph for the country, up on a par with Trafalgar ten years earlier. The truth, though, is that even within Wellington’s army, there were more Germans than Brits. And, when you add in Blücher’s Prussians, Napoleon’s defeat owed far more to German soldiery than to British.

Though Wellington’s generalship, alongside Blücher’s, was a crucial factor. The Iron Duke stood firm. Just as the old man Blücher kept his word and came to his aid, personally leading his troops, despite his advanced age and his injuries. Between them, they finished Napoleon's rule.

Illustration: A British infantry square withstanding cavalry attack. Elizabeth Thompson, The 28th Regiment at Quatre Bras. This work is in the public domain including in the United States, because it was published (or registered with the U.S. Copyright Office) before January 1, 1927.

Music: Bach Partita #2c by J Bu licensed under an Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivatives (aka Music Sharing) 3.0 International License

Next Episode

94. Pete, Dave and Bobby

Pete, Dave and Bobby are the subjects of this episode. But Pete’s a place not a person. It’s St Peter’s Field near Manchester, site of one of those epoch-shattering, and epoch-shaming, events that would mark British politics for the next decade or more.

Dave is another in the series of remarkable economists that started with Adam Smith. Apparently, he was also rather a nice guy.

As for Bobby, he was a new breed of politician, from a new class to produce leaders for Britain, and someone we’ll be hearing a lot more about in future episodes.

Illustration: Engraving depicting the Peterloo Massacre, by Richard Carlile. Public domain.

Music: Bach Partita #2c by J Bu licensed under an Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivatives (aka Music Sharing) 3.0 International License