History of the Modern World, 10th Edition (Palmer)

Chapter 13: True Global Consolidation of Large Nation-States, 1859-1871

Learning Objectives

The moral and psychological consolidation of nation-states, which entailed an expansion of constitutionalism, even in Japan and Russia.

The role of war in nation-state consolidation.

The unification of Italy under Cavour’s politics of reality.

Bismarck’s role in founding a German empire.

The power of the newly consolidated German empire, which magnified the role of Prussia among the European powers.

The establishment of a dual monarchy in Austria-Hungary, which represented a compromise between Germans and Magyars and the exclusion of other nationalities.

Alexander II’s cultivation of liberal support and the threat to his rule by revolutionists, especially anarchists.

The impact of the 1861 Act of Emancipation and other reforms on Russian society.

The resolution of secessionist tendencies in the U.S. by way of the victory of the North during the American Civil war.

The resolution of separatist tendencies in Canada with the reunion of French and English regions and the pioneering of dominion status.

Japan’s rapid modernization and westernization after centuries of isolation and antiforeign sentiments.