The Congress of Vienna
1814-1815
The Congress of Vienna was held from September of 1814
to June of 1815. After the downfall of Napoleon Bonaparte, this international
conference was called to create a balance among the European powers in such a
way so as to prevent future wars and maintain peace and stability on the
European continent. The means of achieving this goal would be through a major
reshaping of European interior borders.
Important People:
Though the conference opened with a series of glittery
balls and conferences, the delegates soon got down to work. Mainly, the four
major powers of Europe (Austria, Russia, Prussia, and Great Britain)
were left to make most of the big decisions. Austria sent Prince Klemens von Metternich, the Austrian minister of State who
was also acting as a president of the Congress. The Russian Empire was
represented by Alexander I, the emperor of Russia. The main delegate from Prussia was
Prince Karl August von Hardenberg, and Great Britain was represented by
Lord Castlereagh, and later Arthur Wellesley, the
first duke of Wellington.
This group of major powers decided that France, Spain, and the smaller powers would
have no voice in important decisions. However, the
French diplomat, Charles Maurice de Talleyrand, was successful in allowing France to have
an equal voice in the negotiations. Talleyrand became the deciding vote in many
of the decisions.
Important Decisions:
France was deprived of all territory conquered by
Napoleon. The French monarchy was restored under the rule of Louis
XVIII. Austria
was given back most of the territory it had lost and was also given land in Germany and Italy (Lombardy and Venice).
Russia
got Finland
and control over the new kingdom of Poland. Prussia was
given much of Saxony and important parts of Westphalia and the Rhine Province.
Britain
got several strategic colonial territories, and they also gained control of the
seas. The Dutch Republic was united with the Austrian
Netherlands to form a single kingdom of the Netherlands under the House of
Orange. Norway
and Sweden
were joined under a single ruler. Switzerland was declared neutral
and Spain
was restored under Ferdinand VII Results
of the meeting:
The goal of the congress was to re-establish a balance
of power among the countries of Europe and
have peace between the nations. The Congress proved to be highly successful in
achieving its goal, for the peace in Europe
was left almost undisturbed for nearly 40 years.