-
Period: to
Europe
-
Peace of Westphalia
"All the Vassals, Subjects, People, Towns [...] shall be for ever incorporated with the Kingdom France, with all manner of Jurisdiction and Sovereignty, without any contradiction from the House of Austria, or any other"
"All Partys in this Transaction shall be oblig'd to defend and protect all and every Article of this Peace against any one, without distinction of Religion"
Articles 76 and 123 of the Treaty of Munster, which introduced the concept of Westphalian sovereignty and religious freedom -
Adam Smith
Adam Smith was a pioneering economist in his advocacy for laissez-faire and various precursors to our modern capitalist system, such as free trade. In his "Theory of Moral Sentiments", Smith suggests that capitalism and free trade could reduce inequality and promote peace, which has been confirmed by various periods of peace brought on by economic booms, but also questioned due to the resurgence of imperialism, or "the highest stage of capitalism" in the late 19th century. -
Congress of Vienna
The Congress of Vienna aimed to create and maintain long-lasting peace following the French Revolution and Napoleon's rule. The Holy Alliance and Concert of Europe tried to balance power in Europe. The Congress was largely successful in this aim, however Mazzini's founding document for his revolutionary group "Young Italy" (1832) suggests that self-determination was still a pressing issue, and would go on to be Restoration Europe's biggest predicament. -
Kleindeutschland
The concept of Kleindeutschland was a threat to the peace and power balance of Restoration Europe, in that it advocated the unification of the German states under Prussia, not Austria. Johann Droysen's speech to the Frankfurt parliament, arguing for Kleindeutschland under the basis of nationalism and reformism, was however a huge symbol of the decline of Empires in favour of self-determination, a recurring source of tension in European History. -
Woodrow Wilson's 14 Points
American President Woodrow Wilon's 14 points were a list of guidances meant to serve as the basis for the Treaty of Versailles, thereby securing a lasting peace following WWI.
Wilson's speech to Congress outlining these points shows a new, idealistic yet modern, approach to peace-keeping. However, the Treaty of Versailles and work of the League of Nations suggests that these concepts were applicable only when they did not interfere with states' nationalistic and imperialistic goals. -
Appeasement
Appeasement is a peace-keeping policy concerned with compromise and concessions in order to prevent war. It is most commonly asssociated with Britain's foreign policy towards Nazi Germany in the 1930s.
The excerpt of a letter to Neville Chamberlain from Anthony Eden, Foreign Secretary, resigning in protest of the Munich Agreement, shows the strain that this policy caused in England where many believed peace was no longer an option and force had to be used to stop Hitler.
