Europe In Retrospect
A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE PAST TWO HUNDRED YEARS
by Raymond F. Betts
CHAPTER THREE
International Order & Domestic Strife
The Age of Revolution
"When France sneezes, Europe catches cold," Mettemich once remarked. His homely metaphor summed up the dominant characteristic of the years 1815-1848, when revolution frequently occurred along lines originally drawn by France. In 1819 there was a brief, liberal revolution in Spain; another occurred in Italy in 1820. Then there was the Greek revolution for independence from Turkey in 1821, an activity that inspired the English poet Lord Byron to participate. Russia endured a short and confused revolt in 1825 when liberal, aristocratic factions attempted to influence the succession to the throne. And then in July 1830, France underwent another revolution, this one joined in the same year by a revolution in Holland. Finally, in 1848, a series of revolutions erupted throughout all of Western Europe with the notable exception of Great Britain.