The Rise of Modern Europe
The European Revolutions of 1848, known in some countries as the Spring of Nations or the Year of Revolution, appeared to be a revolutionary wave which erupted in Sicily and then, further triggered by the revolutions of 1848 in France, soon spread to the rest of Europe and as far afield as Brazil.
Changes had been taking place in Europe in the first half of the 19th century. In politics, both liberal reformers and radical politicians were seeking change in their nations' governments. In society, technological change was creating new ways of life for the working classes, a popular press extended political awareness, and new values and ideas such as popular liberalism, nationalism and socialism began to spring up. The straw that broke the camel's back was a series of economic downturns and crop failures that left the peasants and the poor working classes starving
Large swathes of the nobility were discontented with royal absolutism or near-absolutism. In 1846 there had been an uprising of Polish nobility in Austrian Galicia, which was only countered when peasants, in turn, rose up against the nobles. Alongside of this, in Greater Poland breakout uprising against Russia prepared by democrats.
Next the middle classes began to get agitated. Whatever aspirations Karl Marx and his followers may have had as laid out in The Communist Manifesto (published in German February 1, 1848), the workers had little solidarity, and practically no organization.[citation needed] Both the lower middle classes and the working classes wanted liberal reform, and finally a group with some organization pushed for it. While much of the impetus was from the middle classes, much of the cannon fodder came from the lower. The revolts first erupted in the cities.
Sicilian revolution of independence of 1848
It commenced on 12 January 1848, and therefore was one of the first of the numerous revolutions to occur that year. The Revolution which began in Palermo was one of a series of such events in Italy, though perhaps more violent than others. It quickly spread across the island and throughout Italy, where it prompted Carlo Alberto, King of Sardinia, to follow the example of Ferdinando II and issue a hastily-written constitution. In imitation of these events, riots and revolutions followed around Europe at the same time, and may be considered a taste of the socialist revolts to come.
Revolutions of 1848 in France
The February 1848 revolution ended the July Monarchy (1830-1848), replaced by the Second Republic (1848-1852), while the June Days Uprising gave a lethal blow to the hopes of a "Social and Democratic Republic" ("la République sociale et démocratique", or "La Sociale"). On December 2, 1851, Louis Napoleon ended the Republic by a coup d'état proclaiming the Second Empire (1852-1870) the next year. The Second Republic, however, is best remembered for having first established male universal suffrage and for Victor Schoelcher's abolition of slavery on April 27, 1848. The February Revolution also established the principle of the "right to work" (droit au travail), and decided to establish "National Workshops" for the unemployed. At the same time a sort of industrial parliament was established at the Luxembourg Palace, under the presidency of Louis Blanc, with the object of preparing a scheme for the organization of labour. These tensions between liberal Orleanist and Radical Republicans and Socialists caused the second, June Revolution.
Revolutions of 1848 in the German states
Germany" at the time of the Revolutions of 1848 had been a collection of 38 states loosely bound together in the German Confederation. As nationalist sentiment crystallized into resistance of the traditional political structure, repeated calls for freedom, democracy and national unity came to threaten the status quo. The Hambacher Fest of 1832, for instance, reflected growing unrest in the face of heavy taxation and political censorship, and culminated in the origination of the black-red-gold as a symbol of the republican movement, and of a unity among the people.
Liberal pressure spread throughout the German states, each of which experienced the revolutions in their own way. Fearing the fate of Louis-Philippe of France, some monarchs accepted some of the demands of the revolutionaries at least temporarily. The revolution was triggered by events in France at the end of February and soon spread to Germany, known there as the March Revolution. In the south and the west of Germany, large popular assemblies and mass demonstrations took place. They primarily demanded freedom of the press, freedom of assembly, arming of the people and a national German parliament.