Nationalism In The 19th Century

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“Nationalism is the belief that people’s greatest loyalty should not be to a king or an empire but to a nation of people who share a common culture and history” (McDougal 253). Before the 18th century, people of a common ethnicity accepted the king that ruled over them, even if he was from a different nation. However, after the French Revolution of 1830, smaller groups of people who shared the same history and culture began to form together and create a nation-state. The rise of nationalism in the 19th century changed Europe’s borders as nationalists strengthened and unified nations such as England and Italy, but also separated large empires like the Russian Empire. England reformed its government by increasing suffrage to prevent a rebellion that would break the nation apart. After the Revolution of 1830, the middle class protested for the right to vote, which frightened …show more content…

Over the course of almost 4 centuries, Russia had conquered a substantial amount of land inhabited by people of other ethnicities, including Ukrainians, Poles, Estonians, and several others. The problem was that each ethnicity had its own culture and history, all of which were different than the Russians. As a result, the Romanov dynasty implemented a new policy: Russification. This rule forced Russian culture and values upon the ethnically diverse population. The goal of Russification was to dissolve other cultures and tighten Russia’s grip on its people. However, the policy backfired heavily; it intensified the feeling of nationalism among non-Russians, which aided in the empire’s undoing. Despite the destruction nationalism caused vast empires such as Russia, it also united and strengthened nations like Italy and Russia. After the French Revolution of 1830, the idea of having loyalty to one’s people rather than a king spread throughout Europe. This is a concept that changed Europe, and still affects us

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