A Concise History of Modern Europe: Liberty, Equality, Solidarity

269 Pages·2022·7.718 MB·English

by  David S. Mason

A Concise History
of Modern Europe
Liberty, Equality, Solidarity
Fifth Edition
David S. Mason
ROWMAN & LITTLEFIELD
Lanham • Boulder • New York • London
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Editorial Assistant: Haley White
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British Library Cataloguing in Publication Information Available
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Available
Names: Mason, David S. (David Stewart), 1947- author.
Title: A concise history of modern Europe : liberty, equality, solidarity /
David S. Mason.
Description: Fifth edition. | Lanham : Rowman & Littlefield, [2022] |
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2022010233 (print) | LCCN 2022010234 (ebook) | ISBN
9781538161579 (cloth ; alk. paper) | ISBN 9781538161586 (pbk. ; alk.
paper) | ISBN 9781538161593 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Europe—History—1789-1900. | Europe—History—20th
century. | Europe—History—21st century. | Europe—Politics and
government—1789-1900. | Europe—Politics and government—20th century.
| Europe—Politics and government—21st century.
Classification: LCC D299 .M359 2022 (print) | LCC D299 (ebook) | DDC
940.2/8—dc23/eng/20220314
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022010233
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022010234
The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of
American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper
for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992.
For Sharon
Fifty years of love and adventure, beginning in Europe

Contents
Boxes, Illustrations, and Maps ix
Preface and Acknowledgments xiii
Introduction: Revolutionary Europe 1
Timeline of European History 7
1 The Old Regime and the Enlightenment 13
The Old Regime in France 13
The Enlightenment 18
The Impact of the Enlightenment 23
2 The French Revolution and Napoleon 25
1789: The Revolution Begins 27
The Radical Republic and the Terror 30
Napoleon and Europe 31
3 The Industrial Revolution and the Birth of Capitalism 39
Causes of the Industrial Revolution 40
Socioeconomic Consequences of Industrialization 44
The Impact of the Industrial Revolution 47
4 1848: The People’s Spring 49
Europe after 1815: Reaction 50
Liberalism and Nationalism in the Early Nineteenth Century 51
Precursors to 1848: The 1830 Revolution in France 53
The Revolutions of 1848 54
v
vi Contents
Revolt Spreads through Europe 57
Repression and Reaction 59
Consequences and Legacy of 1848 59
5 Marx, Marxism, and Socialism 61
Karl Marx 62
The Communist Manifesto 62
Marxist Theory 66
The Idea of Communism 69
The Legacy of Marxism 70
6 Darwinism and Social Darwinism 73
Charles Darwin 74
The Theory of Evolution by Natural Selection 75
Darwinism and Religion 76
Social Darwinism 78
Social Darwinism and European History 80
The Influence of Darwinism 81
7 The Unifications of Italy and Germany 85
Nationalism and the Nation-State 85
Prelude to Unification: The Crimean War 87
Mazzini, Cavour, and the Unification of Italy 88
Bismarck and the Unification of Germany 91
The Dual Monarchy of Austria-Hungary 93
Implications of Nationalism and Unification 94
8 The Age of Imperialism and the Scramble for Africa 97
European Expansionism before the Nineteenth Century 98
The Motivations for Imperialism 98
The Scramble for Africa 100
The Colonization of Asia 103
Patterns of Colonial Rule 104
The Legacy and Consequences of European Imperialism 105
9 World War I 107
Europe on the Eve of War 107
The Tinderbox: Nationalism in the Balkans 109
The Spark: The Assassination 110
The Escalation 111
The War 111
Versailles, the Peace Settlements, and the League of Nations 115
Consequences of the War 117
Contents vii
10 The Russian Revolution and Communism 119
Tsarist Russia 120
Hints of Change and Reform 121
1905: Prelude to Revolution 123
Marxism and Leninism 125
World War I and the Two Revolutions 126
Civil War, New Economic Policy, and Consolidation 128
Stalin and Totalitarianism 131
The Legacy and Meaning of the Russian Revolution 133
11 World War II and the Holocaust 135
Europe between the World Wars 136
The Rise of Militarism and Fascism 137
Hitler’s Aggression 140
The War 142
The Holocaust 146
The Consequences of World War II 147
12 Europe Divided, the Cold War, and Decolonization 151
The Division of Europe 152
The Onset of the Cold War 154
Decolonization 158
Postwar Western Europe 161
Eastern Europe after the War 163
Conclusions: From Cold War to Perestroika 165
13 1989: The Collapse of Communism and End of the Cold War 169
Before 1989: Soviet Hegemony and the Brezhnev Doctrine 170
Gorbachev and Perestroika 173
The Revolutions of 1989 175
The Disintegration of the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia 179
Transition from Communism to Market Democracy 182
Conclusions: The Impact of 1989 183
14 The European Union: Europe United and Free? 187
Origins of the Common Market 187
From Common Market to European Union 190
Expansion to Eastern Europe 193
The European Superpower? 195
Growing Pains 196
The European Union’s Immigration Crisis 199
Brexit 201
What Is Europe? 203
viii Contents
15 Europe in the Twenty-First Century 207
Flashpoints of Globalism versus Nationalism 208
Russia’s Place in Europe and the Crisis in Ukraine 210
Europe’s Evolving Relationship with the United States 213
Glossary 217
Notes 227
Suggestions for Additional Reading 233
Index 241
About the Author 251
Boxes, Illustrations, and Maps
BOXES
1.1 The Play That Sparked a Revolution: The Marriage of Figaro 21
2.1 Women on the Revolution 29
2.2 Charles Dickens on the Guillotine 31
2.3 The Napoleonic Code 33
2.4 The War of 1812 34
2.5 Beethoven and Napoleon 36
3.1 The Crystal Palace 43
3.2 Tennyson’s “Locksley Hall” 47
4.1 Adam Mickiewicz: Romantic Poet and Revolutionary 55
5.1 Robert Owen, Karl Marx, and Indiana 68
6.1 Darwin’s Finches and Pigeons 77
6.2 Sigmund Freud: Psychology and Civilization 83
7.1 Verdi and Italian Independence 87
7.2 Giuseppe Garibaldi: Italian Nationalist and
Romantic Revolutionary 90
9.1 A Sweet and Honorable Death 114
ix