Metternichs German Policy Volume Ii

Using new archival sources, this book shows that Prussia sought not the unity of Germany but its partition into five masses loosely enough joined to assure her control of the North. Hardenberg, not Metternich, supported the feudalistic claims of the estates suppressed by Napoleon and the resurrection of ancient estates' assemblies based mainly on corporate orders. Originally published in 1984. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

Using new archival sources, this book shows that Prussia sought not the unity of Germany but its partition into five masses loosely enough joined to assure her control of the North. Hardenberg, not Metternich, supported the feudalistic claims of the estates suppressed by Napoleon and the resurrection of ancient estates' assemblies based mainly on corporate orders. Originally published in 1984. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

This volume follows Metternich's career up to the restoration of the Bourbons in France. Originally published in 1963. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

Despite the large number of books and studies written about Metternich, there is still a period of his political career that scholars neglect to this day, the 1840s. This book offers an analysis of Metternich's German policy in the years 1840–1848 and thus fills a gap in Metternich studies. Analysing this period is important due to the fact that over the course of those less than nine years, Metternich lost his influence within the German Confederation. He represented a certain way of behaving – moderate, calm and reconciliatory – but it was an attitude which was rejected during the period of rising mass nationalism. Nevertheless, he continued to endeavour to steer this escalating nationalism, and by applying calming policies prevent it from causing armed conflicts in Europe. Since Metternich conceived the German Confederation at the Congress of Vienna in 1815 as one of the pillars of the European peace settlement, the issue is viewed from the perspective of European crises of the time, from the Rhine Crisis to the Swiss civil war. Similarly, it presents his policy in a broader context of economic and social history. The book follows revisionist research on Metternich and refutes some of the clichés still associated with his policy.