Why the Year 1848 regarded as the Year of Miracles in Europe?

After the outbreak of the revolution of 1848 in France, against the autocratic rule of Louis Philippe, a revolt took place in Vienna on 18th of March. It ultimately led to the downfall of Metternich, the great reactionary.

Later on Austria, Germany and Italy were also subjected to revolts. Hungary and Crete also followed the example of Austria, Germany and Italy. People of Rome raised their voice against Pope and he had to provide constitution to his people.

The rulers of Denmark and Holland were also forced to provide a new constitution to their people. The Chartist Movement of England was also motivated by the French Revolution of 1848. Thus it is quite evident that 1848 was the year of miracles in the history of Europe.

Revolutions in Europe

It is said that the revolutions of other countries of Europe broke out as a result of the successful revolution in France, because they erupted after the fall of Louis Philippe.

But it cannot be concluded that the Revolution of France was the only cause of the change which was introduced in Europe in the year 1848.

As a matter of fact, the peoples of the European countries were fully prepared for the Revolution due to the economic, social and political unrest and discontent. The success of the Revolution of France was only a signal which encouraged the peoples to agitate against their rulers.

The following were the main causes which contributed to the spread of the tide of revolutions all over Europe in 1848:

Economic Changes:

The economic development which took place in the countries of Europe during the period 1830-1848 was an attempt in the direction of modernisation.

Owing to the Industrial Revolution, there was brought about a revolutionary change in the means of production, transport and international trade. Each, country was busy in the production of various items on a large scale.

It gave birth to the era of capitalism. The development of the means of transport, large-scale production and the increasing international trade were the main characteristics of the era of capitalism.

Owing to a considerable increase in the international trade, the economic system of one country was essentially affected by the economic changes introduced in the other countries of Europe.

The new system of production divided the people of all countries into two groups the capitalists and the labourers or the rich and the poor. The industries were controlled by the capitalists and the status of the industrial workers was deteriorating day by day.

Thus the economic system of every country was greatly transformed and the poor people were alarmed at this change. Their dissatisfaction was the main cause leading to the outbreak of the revolutions in their respective states.

Social Changes:

During the years 1830-1848 the economic changes created a lot of social tension and discontent in Europe. The economic system naturally affected the entire social system. The deteriorating conditions of the masses provoked public debate and discussion, and many writers and philosophers of the time began to think over this problem seriously.

They wanted to reorganise the society on a sound basis so that the idea of social security might be recognised. They bitterly criticized the existing social setup of the different countries.

They preached new doctrines concerning the organisation of the society. They declared the. At the existing social system must be swept away and the new system must be organised on a thoroughly democratic basis.

Conse­quently, the thinkers presented before the people the new doctrines of their own, though these doctrines were different from one another. These were the idea of complete democratic setup, the idea of imaginary socialism of Saint Simon, and the idea of scientific and revolutionary socialism of Karl Marx.

The existing social system of European countries did not accord with these ideas and, therefore, it was to be abolished. The new revolutionary ideas contributed a lot to the outbreak of the revolution in order to reorganise the society anew.

Conservatism of the Governments:

The passivity of the govern­ments of different countries of Europe in the area of political and social reforms was also an important cause for the revolution of 1848. Reactionary and conservative governments still operated in the Central and Eastern Europe after the July Revolution of 1830.

Although a great change had been brought about in the political and social ideas of the people, the rulers made no attempt to reorganise the social and political setup of their respective states in accordance with the surge of these ideas.

The tide of liberalism had partially engulfed the states of the Western Europe. But these states also ignored the social problems and demands of the people.

They argued that the state was a political institution and thus, it had nothing to do with the problems or demands of the people.

As a matter of fact, the demand of political reforms was ignored by the governments of these states because they thought that after introducing the reforms, the feeling of democracy would develop and the ruling power would have to be transferred from the elite to the hands of the common people.

Thus, the conservative outlook of the governments of European countries also played an important role in the sweep of the revolutionary tide through the entire Europe.