~Iage 1UPOL I1br/Brandeis University

EUROPEAN HISTORY FACT SHEET

The following fact sheet covers the United Kingdom, France, and Germany(Prussia). For further background, corlsult the following works, which were used

in the preparation of this fact sheet: Raymond Grew, editor, ~r!~~~ Qf eQl!t!£~lQ~y~lQQm~~t !~ 5YrQQ~ !~Q tn~ ~~!t~Q §t2t~~j Barrington Moore, Jr., §Q£i~lQr!gi~~ Qf Q!£t~tQr~niQ !~Q Q~mQ£r~£Y; Perry Anderson, b!~~~g~~ Qf tn~eQ~Q1Yti~t §t~t~; William Langer's 5~£Y£lQQ~Q!~ Qf ~QrlQ ~i~tQrY (a referencework); and Dan Jacobs, David Conradt, B. Guy Peters, and William Safran,

~QmQ~r2tiY~ eQl!t!£~.

THE UNITED KINGDOM

William, Duke of Normandy, defeats Anglo-Saxon King Harold at Battleof Hastings. William the Conquerer imposes an advanced forrn offeudalism on the country, but the Norman conquest also brings a higherdegree of centralization and royal control. The Domesday survey(1086) helps the monarchy achieve greater administrative efficacy.William I retains one feature of Anglo-Saxon lQ£~l government, theshire. As an unpaid administrator recruited from the native elite,the local sheriff (and, later, the Justice of the Peace) provides acrucial link between local and central government. Later on, thesheriff and J.P. also inhibit the development of a professionaljudicial and administrative bureaucracy along the lines of Frerlch

Absolutism.

1103 First invasion of Ireland.

Reign of Henry II. Corlflict with Thomas Becket (and papacy). HenryII is also responsible for reforms that extend the scope of royal

Justice.

1154-118'3

Magna Carta (Great Charter). Although the result of a conflictbetween King John and his barons over the safeguarding of feudalprivileges, the Magna Carta is regarded as the foundation of the

moderrl Br i t ish const it ut ion.

./1215

Parliament develops out of King's Great Council under Henry III.

Conquest of Wales.

1327-1377

Under reign of Edward III, Parliament develops into a strongerinstitution with two houses (Commons and Lords). Local Justices ofthe peace take over many of the tasks of "amateur" administration once

eKercised by sheriffs.

1337 Beginning of Hundred ~ears War under Edward III. Phillip VI of

France and Edward clash over control of a) areas of southwesterrlFrance owing hoMage to the English crown and b) Flanders (today partof Belgium), politically under French administration but economi~allylinked to England. Armed conflict breaks out in 1338, and a series ofwars continues until about 1453, when the French 'ui'lder Char\es VII)expel the Engl ish (unde~' ~enry VI) from Normandy and Gllye1"\n~. ":-;,eFrench victory doe~ \')ot, tl~,wever, mark t",~ ~1"\d' of E1"\g 1 i-;i-: ,;. ';\:'11,:, '

regain lost territories on the Co1"\tine1"\t.)

~Iage c:

1348-1351

Decimation of population by Black Death results in regulation of wagesand prices and the Statute of Laborers, which requires able-bodied toAccept work. However, labor shortage speeds up transition from feudalto formally "free" l.bor. Enclosure movement (for sheep-raising) alsobegins at this time, continuing into 18th century. Social structureof YQQ~r classes becoming more fluid.

Outbreak of the W~r of the Roses, between the riv~l houses ofLancaster and York, each claiming the English crown.

The War of the Roses is ended when Henry Tudor, Earl of Richmond,defeats Richard III on Bosworth Field. Henry, who is descerlded fromthe Lancaster line but is married to a York, reestablishes nationalunity under the Tudor dynasty after three decades of destructive civilwar.

1509-1547

Reign of Henry VIII. Protestant reformatiorl and creation of Church ofEngland. Herlry greatly strengthens monarchy in the short run, but hiscostly wars with France (which force him to sell confiscated Churchlands and rely on the support of Parliament> ultimately strerlgthen thelanded gentry at the eKpense of the crown.

15'37-1603

Rebellion and subjugation of Ireland.

1601 Elizabethan Poor Law, regulating public charity.

James VI of Scot land becomes James I of EnglaYld.two countries under Stuart dynasty.

Personal union of

ChArles 1, f.ciy,g A religious rebellion in Scotland, summons "ShortPArliamer,t." But Parli.ment i~ dismissed whey, if refuses to grant theking money unless he re.pond& to long-5tAnding religious (Protestantreform) And economic (monopolies, royal chArters, ship money)grievances. Financial obligations to the military force Charles tocall a second session, the "Long Parliament," which institutes reformsand impeaches the king's ministers.~v

.~.. J"- \

',~ 'Pj64C- \ _V\~' 1649

..~~.') " '11

...<-9.("-\

English Civil War between Charles and the Parliamerltary army. Warerlds with the capture of the king, the purging of the Parliament irl1648 by the Army ("Pride's Purge"), and the trial .nd e)(ecution of theking under the Authority of the "Rump (i.e., unpurged remnant)P.rli.ment" in 1649. During the Civil War, radical religious andsocial movements (Levellers, Diggers) emerge.

1&49-1&60

COMMONWEALTH AND PROTECTORATE. Oliver Cromwell, the Puritan armygeneral, is made Lord Protector after he purges the Rump Parliamentand sets up the "Barebone's Parliament" in 1653. After his death irl1658, he is suc~eeded for a few months by his son Richard. Therefollows a period of rule by the military and the ~ump Parliament.In 1660, one of the army generals captures Londorl e.nd recalls theliving members of the original Long Pari iament (frnm '.640>. Thereconstituted Long Pay.li~.nt,' :in turn, ,~;;;!,~. ,.. 'r , ~turn 'fromexile (the " Restorat ion" T.'

i::

~'a. ~ e

1689 "Glorious Revolution," when King James II is replaced by William andMary of Orange. Victory for the Whig party (who believe in suprernacyof Parliament), opponerlts of the Tories. (Whigs become the Liberals,Tories the Conservatives in the 19th century.) Parliament passesDeclaration of Rights (strengthening Parliamerrt and some civilliberties) and Toleration Act (allowing for more religious dissent).

1707 Act of Union, uniting parliaments of England and Scotland.

Hanoverian succession,

1791-1822

Period of domestic political repression during and after war withrevolut ionary and Napoleonic Frarlce.

First Reform Act.

1838-1848

Period of Chartist agitation for a constitutiorlal rep'Jblic,culminating 1839.

1832 Factory Act, prohibiting (or reg'.1latirlg> child labor and setting upsystem of factory inspection.

New Poor Law, creating workhouses for paupers.

Repeal of Corrl Laws. Victorian Bri tairl becomes more cornmi tted tCIlaissez-faire industrial economy and free trade.

Second Reform Act, followed by Reform Acts of 1884, 1918 (all men andwomen over 30). Women over 21 get vote in 1928.

19111922

Beginning of constitutional crisis over Lloyd George's budget andHouse of Lords.Parliament Act removes last vestiges of real power from House of'Lords.Irish independence.

First Labour (coalition) government, under Ramsey MacDonald,

General strike in sympathy with coal miners.

Second MacDona 1 d governmey,t.

MacDonald, without broad support of Labour party, forms NationalGovernment in coalition with Liberals and Conservatives.

1945-1950

First postwar Labour gover~me~t establishes foundations of welfarestate (nationalization of Ba~k of Engla~d a~d mines, National HealthService etc.).

1950-1964

Conservative governments.

1964-1979

Labour governments except for Conservative government of Edward Heath(early 1970' s). Growing violenci.'? J::, ,.1!:: tc! imposit ion of direct rl.!lein Northern Ireland (1972). D~volu'~ioYI issue in Wales and Scotlarlc

:--:

~Ia~e 4

(also discovery of North Sea oil).reJoins) Common Market.

Britain Joins <then leaves, then

1979-today

Government of Margaret Thatcher. Social Democratic party splits offfrom Labour party 1981, forms alliance with Liberals. Benefiting fromthe Falklands war arid a badly divided opposition, Thatcher winsreelection to a second term.

FRANCE

987-996

Reign of Hugh Capet, founder of the Capetian line (the major truYlk offuture dynastic braYlches in France). Beginning with Hugh, theCapetians expand arid strengthen a state that has its center in the lIede France, the Ylorthern regiorl s'Jrrounding Paris. There are majorrivals to Capetian hegemony, most notably the House of Burgundy.

1328 Accessiorr of Philip VI, first king from the House of Valois (a brarlchof the Capetiarrs). During his reign, the Hundred Years War begins.(See UNITED KINGDOM.) Feudal conflicts inside France combine with aJoint outside attack from Eng land arid Burgundy to wea~.erl the alJthori tyof the Valois rulers.

14'"\~'.:..:.-1461aridafter

Uy,der Charles VII, the weakness of the Valois dynasty is ended withthe defeat of the English at the end of the Hundred Years War. KYlightset'vice is abandoned for a permarlent army, arid the tai lIe (a royal taxfrom which the nobility is exempt) is introduced ir. 1439. CharlesVII's successor, Louis XI (14bl-1483), defeats Burgundy, and hissuccessors unite Brittany (the last remaining principality not subjectto ~'arisiarl corltrol) with Valois France at the end of the cent ury. Irlthis ur,ited, strengthened Frerlch kirlgdom, the nobility retairls powerirl provincial assemblies and local ~~r!~~~n!E' At the national level,the Estates-General experiences a revival, but becaljse the nobility is

tax-exempt, the noble "estate" has little reason to make use of-thisrepreserltative institutior,.

1562-15'38

The Religious Wars. Oster,sibly a conflict betweerl the Huguerlots(Frerlch Protestants) arid the Cathol ic League, this reI igious struggleoverlaps with dyrlastic struggles (among three rival lines to thethrone) as well as with municipal rebellions, peasarlt revolts, andregiorlal conflicts. The wars subside when Henry of Navarre (aProtestar,t) gains the throne and converts (for the second time!) toCatholicisrn. Henry IV, the first Bourbon king, reestablishes orderand issues the Edict of Nantes in 1598, which grants a measure ofPQlitical protection to the Huguerlots. Henry's Bourbon succeSSQrs laythe fourldatior,s fc,r Frerlch Absolutism, which culminates with LollisXIV.

1610-1643

Hey,ry's son, Louis XIII, comes to the throne at age 9. In 1614, thelast session of the Estates-Gey,eral prior to the French Revolut iOYI isheld. Frorn 1624 onward, the chief administrator of the Frerlch stateis Cardinal Richelieu, who establishes the i~i~~Q2~i systern and laysthe groundwork. for the highly centralized Old Regime described by

Tocqueville. Side by side with this tightly controlled stratum ofroyal burea'Jcrats, however, other privileged political classes less

4

~Iage 5

subJect to monarchical control are growing: the nQQ!~~§~ Q~ rQQ~(noble-controlled Judiciary) and the Qffi£i~r§ (tax farrners and othergovernment officials who can buy, sell, or even inherit publicoffices).

1643-1715

Reign of Louis XIV, the "Sur. King." UrJtil 1661, the power behirld thethrone is Cardinal Mazarin. Between 1648 and 1653, elements of theFrerlch rlobility left out of the emerging Absc,lutist system arid otherclasses, overburdened by Mazarin's expensive wars, revolt against thecentral state irl a series of disturbances known as the "Fronde."Scared by the exterlt of the rebellions, most of the nobility ralliesto Louis after the Frorlde. Followir,g the death of Mazarirl, Louisdevelops a highly personal style of rule, establishing a court atVersai lIe where the nobi I ity can come to take part irl the clJl t of theSurl King. His minister of finances, Colbert, encourages Frerlch tradethrough the mercantilist system. In 1685, the Edict of Narltes isrevoked.

1789 After Louis XVI's corlflict with the Q~~l~~~n! of Paris over theresl:,lutiorl of the state's fiscal crisis, the Estates-Gerleral issumrllorled for the first time since 1614. The Estates-General becomesthe Nat ional Assernbly, which proclaims an end to feudal ism arid issuesa declaration or. the "Rights of Marl." Beginning of the FrenchRevolut iorl.

1792 Abc,l it iorl of the monarchy, creat ion of the FIRST REPUBLIC.

ExecutioYI of the king, beginning of the Terror, dictatorship of theJacobiYI Comrni ttee of Publ ic Safety arid Robespierre. In 1794, duriYlgthe moYlth of Thermidor (revolutionary calendar), Robespierre ishimself guillotined.

1795-1799

Rule of the Directory, arl executive committee of five.

1798 Orl the 18th of Brumaire (revolut ionary calendar date for Nov. 9), COIJpd'etat of Directory member and General Napoleon Bonaparte. Ir11799,Bonaparte establishes a three-member Consulate with himself as chiefCounsel.

NapoleoYI assumes title of Emperor. The first Napoleonic Empire lastsUYlt i I other European powers defeat him in 1814 and again at Watet'loo iYI1815.

1815-1830

BOURBON RESiORATION (Legitimist>.

1830 JULY MONARCHY of LolJis Phil ippe (Orleanist)

1848 Revolution establishing SECOND REPUBLIC.

1852 Coup of Louis Bonaparte establ ishing SECOND (Napoleclnic) EM~IIRE.

1870 Defeat of Napoleon II at Battle of Sedan in FraYlco-Prussian war. Lossof Alsace-Lorraine to Germany. Siege of Paris, suppression of Paris

co'""

I='age 6

Commune. THIRD REPUBLIC, lasting until Second World War. (Variousconstitutional laws create the legal foundations for for a republicanform of government in 1875. A major constitutional crisis occurs iYI1877 when the President and National Assembly clash over the questioYIof whether the executive or the legislature forms the government. Thecrisis is resolved in favor of the National Assembly.)

Trade unions legalized.

1886-1889

Boulanger crisis. While the Republic is endangered by scandalsand torn by conflict between the right (monarchist and pro-Church ir.orientation) and the left (republican and anti-clerical), apolitically astute army general, Boulanger, erlJoys great popularity.General Boulanger has the chance to attempt a coup d'etat in 1889 butfails to take advantage of this opportunity to establish adictatorship. Following the Boulanger crisis came the "Ralliement":The Church -- which had beerl providing the conservative enemies of theFrerlch democracy with an institutional focus -- encouraged Catholics

to participate in republican politics.

1898 Height of the Dreyfuss Affair. Emile lola, the novelist, publishes arlarticle ("J'accuse") which charges that Captain Dreyfuss, a Jewisharmy officer tried on a trumped-up treason charge four years earlier,had been framed by anti-Semitic foes of the Republic. After thearmy's coverup has beerl exposed, Dreyfuss receives a second trial andis eventually exonerated with a Presidential pardon. Frerlch politicsis divided into two camps -- the Dreyfusards and the anti-Dreyfusat'ds.

The affair is a symbol of deeper divisions between Rep'Jblicarls (or, oneside) and those monarchists and reactionary Catholics (on the otherside) who have not yet accepted French democracy. Following theDreyfuss affair, Radical Republ ican governmerlts ur.dertake measures toseparate church and state and to weaken the power of the clergy.

1914 First World War. Formation of the "union sacree" -- a patrioticall iarlce of bo'J.rgeois part ies with social ists who abandorl their"internationalism" in favor of national unity. Assassinatior.ofsocialist leader Jean Jaures, who opposes the war.

Formation of Popular Front government under Socialist Prernier LeorlBlum. A coalition of left parties concerned about the rise of fascisrnabroad and eventually committed to social reforms at horne. An uDsurgeof worker militancy (factory occupations) leads to a few welfare statemeasures and government protectior/ of collective bargaining betweenemployers and employees (the Matignon agreement). The Popular Frontcollapses in 1937 due to an economic crisis.

War with Germany.

Frerlch defeat and establishment of VICHY REGIME, a right-wir,g Germarlclierlt state, headed by Marshal Petain and Pierre Laval. A FreeFrench resistance under General DeGaulle forms a goverrlment-in-exilein London.

Liberation.

to.

I='.:-.g E? 7

Constitution of FOURTH REPUBLIC. Initially, a "tripartite" coalition(Socialists, Catholics, Communists) along with General DeGaulle formsthe government. DeGaulle soon quits politics and remains irlretirement throughout most of the 1950's. The tripartite coalitiorlbreaks apart with the onset of the Cold War. Throughout the 1950's,France is ruled by a succession of weak and unstable parliamentarycoalitions. But administrative continuity and economic growth areprovided by planning ministries, who preside over a decade ofsuccessful agricultural and industrial modernization.

FIFTH REPUBLIC formed when the parties of the Fourth Republic turn toDeGalllle for a solut ion to the Algerian crisis. DeGalllle demarlds aconstitution with broad executive powers as a condition for his

acceptance of office.

DeGaulle strengthens the Presidency with a constitutional amerldment

establishing popular election of the President.

1965 DeGaulle reelected in first popular Presidential election.

The "May ever-Its" -- a revolt of workers and students paralyzes Frar-ice

in the worst crisis of the Fifth Republic.

DeGaulle resigns after French voters defeat his proposal for a reformof the Senate and local government in a referendum. He is succeededby two other conservative leaders of the Gaullist coalition --

Pompidou and Giscard d'Estaing.

The new Socialist party and the Communist party Join with one srnaller

left party to issue a "Common Program of the Left." Although subjectto continual renegotiations throughout various elections in the1970's, the Common Program demonstrates that the left is successfullyadjust irag to the President ial systern created by DeGaulle. Everlt'Jally,the two parties of the right -- the Gaullists under Chirac and tne

Independerlts under (then) President Giscard also form a comrnon

program.

1972

19SfElection of Francois Mitterrand as first Socialist Presiderlt of Fifth

Republic.

After a series of economic crises, cabinet reshufflings, and policyrevisions throughout his term in office, Mitterrand appoints a new

Prime Minister and goverr.ment. The Commur.ists leave the ruling

coalition.

Parliamentary elections give the parties of the right a majority irl the

National Assembly. Mitterrand names one of his rivals, Jacques Chirac,as Prime Minister. The resultirlg arrangement, unique in the shorthistory of the Fifth Republic, is a governing "cohabitatiorl" of the

right and left.

-y

i='a~e 9

from Prussia during the Baltic War (1656-1650). In the 1670's,Prussia also becomes involved in large-scale conflicts with France andSweden. At the same time that Prussia becomes a European power tocontend with, Frederick William consolidates his rule domestically:He suppresses representative institutions, puts an end to resistarlcefrom urban centers, and creates a militarized civil service cerlteredaround the §~n~!:~l~!:i~.Q?;~Q!!!mi?;?;~!:i~! (Gerleral War Commissariat>.

The Great Elector's successor, Frederick III, becomes the firstPrussian King (redesignated Frederick I). He is followed by ~ingFrederick William I, the "Sergearlt King," who consolidates themilitary service state created by his grandfather, ~!g£iQ~ FrederickWilliarn. By the time the Sergeant King is succeeded by Frederick II("Frederick the Great") in 1740, the Kingdom of Prussia can competewith other powers for the leadership of Germany.

1740 Prussia acquires Silesia, an economically more advanced regioYl8

Prussia is defeated by Napoleon in the Battle of Jena.

the "Era of Reforms."There follows

1807-1816

The Stein-Hardenberg Reforms. Stein reforms the ministerial systern ofPrussian governmerlt alorlg Frerlch lirles. His reforms are followed bythe agrarian reform of Hardenberg, which turns the Junker class into amore commercially oriented landowning class. The moderr.izatiorl ofPrussian agriculture arid public administration helps Prussia to defeatNapoleorl. In the post-Napoleonic settlement, Prussia picks up thenorthern Rhineland and Westphalia -- later the industrial heartland of

Germany (including the Ruhr valley, center of heavy industry).

Foundation of the lQllygrgi~, a north German customs urlion.

D'~ring the Revolution of 1848, liberals and nationalists frorn German-speaking states gather in Frankfurt with the aim of creating a $ingleGerman natiorl-state. The two major options are 1) the ~l~ir!Q~~!?£b(or little German) solution with Prussian monarch as the head clf stateand 2) the grQ??Q~~!?£h (or big German) solution looking toward theHapsburg monarch. Neither solution is achieved; the revolutiorl isdefeated. Among the counterrevolutionaries is a Junker namedBismarck.

1863-1865

Prussia and Austria fight Denmark for control of Schleswig-Holsteirl,at the base of the Danish peninsula. The war with Denmar~. marks theinternat ional debut of Prussian Chancellor Otto von Bismarc~., whopromises to achieve by "blood and iron" what the liberals had failedto do by parliamentary means in 1848 -- urlite Germany.

1866 Victory of Prussia over Austria. In addition to helping Prussiabecome the undisputed leader of German unification, the war helpsChancellor Bismarck to divide his domestic political opponerlts: Irl adispute over how to finance the war, the Chancellor manages to splitthe liberals into two groups, one of which (the National Liberals)supports his methods of national unification.

Fbi':l\i'1't~on='of t:'Ie Nurth ~;?j~";j::n Co'()f~deration, domil1ated by Prussia.. . ~:~ a . -- . ,. .,.

9

~'a g E :1.121

Franco-Prussian War. By defeating the Second Napoleonic Empire,Bismarck acq'lires Alsace-Lorraine for Prussia and completes theunification of Germany orl the basis of the "little German" solution.All German states north of the Austrian border now united in the GERMANREICH (or EMPIRE) with William I of Prussia serving as Emperor(Kaiser). Although the Reichstag (or Imperial parliament) in Berlin iselected on the basis of universal manhood suffrage, the PrussiarlLandtag (or provincial parliament) is elected on the basis of acomplicated three-class voting system that favors the very wealthy.And it is in Prussia, by far the largest territory within the newReich, where real power lies. (Typically, the Imperial Chancellor orReichskanzler was also the Minister-President of Prussia.)

1870's !S!:!l!!:!r~~!!!Qf ("Cultural Struggle") of Bismarck against the Catholics,concentrated in the Center party. Most Catholics are from southernGermany, and the Catholic Center party is in favor of local government("particularism"), as opposed to the centralizing tendencies of thePrussian-dominated (and Lutherar.-dominated) Reich. For Bismarck, whobrarlds Cerlter party supporters "Reichsfeinde" (enemies of the Reich),the Kulturkampf is a method of consolidating the new Empire with thesupport of the (largely Protestant, largely northern) NationalLiberals. By the 1880'5, the Kulturkampf comes to an end, andBismarck. seeks Catholic support for a political coalition less relianton liberal support.

1878-187'3

The so-called "second four"lding" of the Reich. In 1878, Bismarc\l.secures the passage of the Anti-Socialist Law, banning the increasinglypopular Social Democratic party. With this measure, the SocialDemocrats (SPD) begin to replace the Catholic Center party as-Reichsfeind" Nr. 1. In 1879, Bismarck puts together a protectionist(high tariff) coalition -- the "marriage of iron and rye."

Both of these measures ch~rlge the social b~»is of support for theBismarckian-Wilhelmi~n Reich And help m~ke the Empire more repressiveand less subject to parliamentary control. Now that the Reich isnearly a decade old, Bismarck no longer wants to be dependent on theNational Liberals for support. He therefore weakens the liberals intwo ways: 1) Economically, by splitting the liberal camp intclprotectionists and free traders. 2) Politically, by splitting theliberal camp into eKtreme anti-socialists and supporters ofparliamentary liberties. Bismarck's protectionist, anti-socialistalliance lets him bring Conservative agrarians (and, later, Catnolics)into the governing coalition of the 1880's.

Passage of the Sickness Insurance Law, the first of several measuresBismarck favors in order to create a paternalistic, conservativewelfare state and to lessen the popularity of the persecuted SPD amongthe workers.

1890 Kaiser William II dismisses Bismarck as Chancellor. Until 1894, theCharlcellor is General Caprivi, who moves Germany away from theprot ect ion i sm ..~ t hI! 1B80' s .nd back toward free trade. Th is move isvigorously r" '~! .: "justry and by the Junkers. Throughoutthe 1890' s, '-': ';oJ' . ',.,.,::,.. agitates for a revision of Caprivi's

iel