Congress of Vienna

Abstract

The Congress of Vienna (18 September 1814 to 9 June 1815) was a conference of all political powers in Europe, that gathered on the occasion of the defeat of Napoleonic France. After the conquest and the domination of France in Europe, the maps had to be redrawn. The congregation had to reorder Europe in many ways, the one which concerned the territorial claims, the other in political, legal and moral terms. Head of the Congress was Prince von Metternich. The negotiations were also continuing, when Napoleon returned from exile and his power in France in March 1815 re-established. The final act of Congress was signed nine days before Napoleon's final defeat at Waterloo.

Congress of Vienna

Introduction

One of the most important events in modern European's political history was the Congress of Vienna. This event caused a significant impact on the reform of the map of Europe after the downfall of Napoleon Bonaparte. During the 19th century, the basic establishment of the European state system took place, these systems were formed at the Congress of Vienna by the monarchs and representatives, who agreed to reshape the land among the great powers in Europe (Ketelbey, 1958, p.146). After Napoleon was defeated in 1814 from major powers, the Treaty of Paris was arranged. The political leaders that belonged to the Congress of Paris, gave their consent for the treaty of Paris , to be held in Vienna in the year 1815( Frankforter, Daniel and Spellman,2009,P.99) . The ongoing talks in Vienna from 1814 lasted until June 1815, which was aimed at creating a state of equilibrium and peace, and to reshape the continent between the great powers (Biag, 1999).

According to the researchers, there were different point of views and analysis about the intentions of powers towards this conference. For this reason, this paper will illustrate and elaborate the ambiguousness related to the matter, in order to highlight the purpose and achievements of crucial actors in this event. In addition to this, this essay will present success and failures that rose as a consequence of this settlement. The structure of the essay is divided in four main sections:

Background information about the Congress

The attempt of peacemaker

The successful of the Congress and its outcomes

The failure of the Congress and its reasons.

This paper utilizes the approach of critical investigation and research about the literature and material that is already present on the topic. It is crucial to investigate how different leaders and political figures attempted and carried out the negotiations related to the Congress, and how far they were able to achieve what they planned.

Background

Prominent People for the Congress

The Congress of Vienna consisted of a variety of delegations who were monarchs, princes, diplomats, pretenders, ambassadors, professors, priest, statesman, soldiers and all representatives of great powers (Ketelbey, 1958, p.146). The emperor of Austria and Russia, the kings of Prussia and Denmark, Bavaria and German princes attended this event (Bloy.M, 2002). The most important negotiators were top-notch diplomats which represented the five great ...