Q1.

Explain new words

Nation State, Modern State, Plebiscite

The concept and practices of a modern state, in

which a centralised power exercised sovereign control over a clearly
defined territory, had been developing over a long period of time
in Europe. But a nation-state was one in which the majority of its
citizens, and not only its rulers, came to develop a sense of common
identity and shared history or descent. This commonness did not
exist from time immemorial; it was forged through struggles, through
the actions of leaders and the common people.Plebiscite – A direct vote by which
all the
people of a region are asked to accept or reject
a proposal

Q2.What steps did the revolutionaries take to create a sense of collective identity
among the French people?

the French revolutionaries

introduced various measures and practices that
could create a sense of collective identity amongst
the French people. The ideas of la patrie (the
fatherland) and le citoyen (the citizen) emphasised
the notion of a united community enjoying equal rights under a
constitution. A new French flag, the tricolour, was chosen to replace
the former royal standard. The Estates General was elected by the
body of active citizens and renamed the National Assembly. New
hymns were composed, oaths taken and martyrs commemorated,
all in the name of the nation. A centralised administrative system
was put in place and it formulated uniform laws for all citizens
within its territory. Internal customs duties and dues were abolished
and a uniform system of weights and measures was adopted.
Regional dialects were discouraged and French, as it was spoken
and written in Paris, became the common language of the nation.

Q3.Explain the Napoleonic Code of 1804.

in order to make the whole system more rational and efficient. The
Civil Code of 1804 – usually known as the Napoleonic Code –
did away with all privileges based on birth, established equality
before the law and secured the right to property. This Code was
exported to the regions under French control. In the Dutch Republic,
in Switzerland, in Italy and Germany, Napoleon simplified
administrative divisions, abolished the feudal system and freed
peasants from serfdom and manorial dues. In the towns too, guild
restrictions were removed. Transport and communication systems
were improved. Peasants, artisans, workers and new businessmen
enjoyed a new-found freedom. Businessmen and small-scale
producers of goods, in particular, began to realise that uniform
laws, standardised weights and measures, and a common national
currency would facilitate the movement and exchange of goods
and capital from one region to another.

Q4.Explain the Treaty of Vienna.

the Treaty of Vienna of 1815 with the object of undoing

most of the changes that had come about in Europe during the
Napoleonic wars. The Bourbon dynasty, which had been deposed
during the French Revolution, was restored to power, and France
lost the territories it had annexed under Napoleon. A series of states
were set up on the boundaries of France to prevent French expansion
in future. Thus the kingdom of the Netherlands, which included
Belgium, was set up in the north and Genoa was added to Piedmont
in the south. Prussia was given important new territories on its western
frontiers, while Austria was given control of northern Italy. But the
German confederation of 39 states that had been set up by Napoleon
was left untouched. In the east, Russia was given part of Poland
while Prussia was given a portion of Saxony. The main intention
was to restore the monarchies that had been overthrown by
Napoleon, and create a new conservative order in Europe.

Q5.Write a note on Giuseppe Mazzini.

the Italian revolutionary Giuseppe Mazzini.

Born in Genoa in 1807, he became a member of the secret society
of the Carbonari. As a young man of 24, he was sent into exile in
1831 for attempting a revolution in Liguria. He subsequently founded
two more underground societies, first, Young Italy in Marseilles,
and then, Young Europe in Berne, whose members were like-minded
young men from Poland, France, Italy and the German states.
Mazzini believed that God had intended nations to be the natural
units of mankind. So Italy could not continue to be a patchwork of
small states and kingdoms. It had to be forged into a single unified
republic within a wider alliance of nations. This unification alone
could be the basis of Italian liberty. Following his model, secret
societies were set up in Germany, France, Switzerland and Poland.

Q6.'An event that mobilised nationalist feelings among the educated elite across
Europe was the Greek war of independence.' Explain.

An event that mobilised nationalist feelings among the educated elite

across Europe was the Greek war of independence. Greece had
been part of the Ottoman Empire since the fifteenth century. The
growth of revolutionary nationalism in Europe sparked off a struggle
for independence amongst the Greeks which began in 1821.
Nationalists in Greece got support from other Greeks living in exile
and also from many West Europeans who had sympathies for ancient
Greek culture. Poets and artists lauded Greece as the cradle of
European civilisation and mobilised public opinion to support its
struggle against a Muslim empire. The English poet Lord Byron
organised funds and later went to fight in the war, where he died of
fever in 1824. Finally, the Treaty of Constantinople of 1832
recognised Greece as an independent nation.

Q7.Language too played an important role in developing nationalist sentiments.

Justify the statement with the example of Poland.

The Grimm brothers also saw French domination

as a threat to German culture, and believed that
the folktales they had collected were expressions
of a pure and authentic German spirit. They
considered their projects of collecting folktales
and developing the German language as part of
the wider effort to oppose French domination
and create a German national identity.

Q8.The 1830s were years of great economic hardship in Europe. Elaborate.

The
first half of the nineteenth century saw an enormous increase in
population all over Europe. In most countries there were more
seekers of jobs than employment. Population from rural areas
migrated to the cities to live in overcrowded slums. Small producers
in towns were often faced with stiff competition from imports of
cheap machine-made goods from England, where industrialisation
was more advanced than on the continent. This was especially so in
textile production, which was carried out mainly in homes or small
workshops and was only partly mechanised.peasants struggled
under the burden of feudal dues and obligations. The rise of food
prices or a year of bad harvest led to widespread pauperism in
town and country.

Q9. Give details of Frankfurt Parliament.

in the city of Frankfurt and decided

to vote for an all-German National Assembly. On 18May 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. While the opposition of the aristocracy and military
became stronger, 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.

Q10.Write a short note on "Women's role in the nationalist struggle".

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 taken part in
political meetings and demonstrations.

Q11. Briefly trace the process of German unification.

In 1848, amid a surge of nationalist sentiment, middle-class professionals,

businessmen, and artisans in German regions
convened in Frankfurt, advocating for a unified German nation with a constitutional
monarchy. On May 18, 831 elected
representatives assembled in the Church of St. Paul, drafting a constitution
proposing a monarchy under parliamentary
oversight. However, King Friedrich Wilhelm IV of Prussia declined the crown,
aligning with other monarchs to thwart the
elected assembly. As opposition from the aristocracy and military intensified, the
parliament's social base eroded, primarily
due to middle-class dominance and neglect of worker and artisan demands.
Eventually, military intervention disbanded the
assembly. This episode reflects the broader process of German and Italian
unification. Despite initial liberal efforts, monarchy
and military opposition, aided by Prussian landowners known as Junkers, suppressed
the movement. Prussia, under Otto von
Bismarck's leadership, then spearheaded unification through strategic wars with
Austria, Denmark, and France, culminating in
Prussian triumph and the proclamation of King William I as German Emperor in
January 1871, symbolizing the completion of the
nation-state formation.

Q12.Choose three examples to show the contribution of culture to the growth of

nationalism in Europe.

Art, poetry, and music played pivotal roles in fostering nationalist sentiments,
especially during the Romantic era.
Romanticism rejected the primacy of reason and science, instead championing
emotions, intuition, and mystical
experiences to cultivate a collective cultural identity as the bedrock of
nationhood. Figures like Johann Gottfried
Herder argued that true German culture resided within the common people,
popularizing folk traditions such as songs
, poetry, and dances to epitomize the nation's spirit. This emphasis on vernacular
language and the preservation of local
folklore aimed not only to revive an ancient national essence but also to
disseminate modern nationalist ideals to largely
illiterate populations.

In regions like Poland, which had been partitioned by Russia, Prussia, and Austria,
despite the loss
of territorial independence, national sentiments persisted through cultural
expressions. Artists like Karol Kurpinski conveyed
the national struggle through operas and music, elevating folk dances like the
polonaise and mazurka into symbols of resistance.
Language also became a potent tool in nurturing nationalist sentiments, as seen in
the clergy's defiance of Russian language
impositions, leading to persecution and imprisonment. The use of Polish in
religious gatherings emerged as a symbol of resistance
against Russian dominance, underscoring the profound role of culture in shaping
and sustaining nationalist fervor.

Q13.Explain what is meant by the 1848 revolution of the liberals. What were the
political, social and economic ideas supported by the liberals?

Parallel to the revolts of the poor, unemployed and starving peasants

and workers in many European countries in the year 1848, a revolution
led by the educated middle classes was under way.men and women of the liberal
middle classes combined
their demands for constitutionalism with national unification.

Politically, they demanded constitutionalism with national unification,

nation-state with a written constitution and parliamentary administration.
Socially, they wanted to rid society of its class-based partialities
and birthrights.