The Revolution of the Liberals 1848


 
 
Concept Explanation
 

The Revolution of the Liberals 1848

1848 The Revolution of the Liberals: In other parts of Europe like Germany, Italy, Poland, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, men and women of the liberal middle classes combined their demands for creation of a nation-state. This demand was based on Constitution, freedom of press and freedom of association.

May Revolution: On 18th May, 1848, 831 elected representatives marched in a festive procession to take their places in the Frankfurt Parliament convened in the church of St Paul. They drafted a Constitution for a German nation to be headed by a monarchy subject to a Parliament. When the deputies offered the crown on these terms to Friedrich Wilhelm IV, King of Prussia, he rejected it and joined other monarchs to oppose the elected assembly.

Suppression of May Revolution: The opposition of the aristocracy and military became stronger and the social basis of Parliament eroded. The Parliament was dominated by the middle classes, who resisted the demands of workers and artisans and consequently lost their support. In the end, troops were called in and the assembly was forced to disband.

Issue of Political Rights to Women: The issue of extending political rights to women was a controversial one within the liberal movement, in which large numbers of women had participated actively over the years. Women had formed their own political associations, founded newspapers and had taken part in political meetings and demonstrations. Despite this, they were denied the suffrage rights during the election of the assembly.

Serfdom and Bonded Labour Abolished: Conservative forces were able to suppress liberal movements in 1848, but could not restore the old order. Monarchs were beginning to realise that the cycles of revolution and repression could only be ended by granting concessions to the liberal-nationalist revolutionaries, Thus, serfdom and bonded labour were abolished both in the Habsburg dominions and in Russia. The Habsburg rulers granted more autonomy to the Hungarians in 1867

 
 
 


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