Unless there is a member of the Prussian branch willing to convert the only option is really Karl Anton (assuming Sigmarignen gets annexed like OTL.) since he is the only one who'd prolly have children at this point, his cousin Konstantin never sired any children, even with his morganatic second wife IOTL.
Pride Goes Before a Fall: A Revolutionary Greece Timeline
- Thread starter Earl Marshal
- Start date
Unless there is a member of the Prussian branch willing to convert the only option is really Karl Anton (assuming Sigmarignen gets annexed like OTL.) since he is the only one who'd prolly have children at this point, his cousin Konstantin never sired any children, even with his morganatic second wife IOTL.
Sadly Venetia is the main arena for the war in Italy right now, so it is unfortunately seeing the majority of the fighting and destruction. It will recover eventually, but it is still tragic nonetheless.
Sadly, it will be quite some time before Russia experiences the full consequences of its actions, but that time will come eventually.
Interestingly enough, Nicholas I of Russia likened Artur Görgei to Napoleon in OTL at least in terms of military prowess. Görgei doesn't strike me as the most ambitious person there is however; he was incredibly humble and incredibly modest, almost to the point of self deprecation, so I don't think it is something he would do willingly unless he was pushed to do it by the Hungarian people.
Karl Anton is certainly a possibility, but I'm not sure how willing the Hungarians would be to accept another German as their king after having just deposed the Hapsburgs. It's also important to note that the Holy Alliance still exists between Austria and Prussia, so they are still technically allies at this time which may also sour Hungarian opinions towards a member of the House of Hohenzollern.
Maybe.
The empire is gone, but as one of the oldest and most prestigious house in Europe, I would really like to see the Habsburg succeeds. Heck I would even prefer to see them at the top of the newly unified Italy instead of any local dynasty or the Pope. But maybe it’s too late for this to happen.
Some men are born great, some achieve greatness and some have greatness thrust upon them. - William Shakespeare
“It is a curious thing, Harry, but perhaps those who are best suited to power are those who have never sought it. Those who, like you, have leadership thrust upon them, and take up the mantle because they must, and find to their own surprise that they wear it well.” - Albus Dumbledore
I don't think that Görgei would even want the crown, he was not a political animal and he genuinely disliked the short period when he was the minister of defense.
I think the decision will most likely come down between the aristocrats, who would like a German prince (most likely a Hohenzollern) and Kossuth and his click, who most likely would like to set up a republic, lead by Kossuth himself. This was the reason in OTL, why after dethroning the Habsburgs Kossuth had the title of Governor-President, as Governor was the customary title of the regent of Hungary, while the President part implied republicanism.
Kossuth had public support, the magnates controlled the economy and Görgei had the army. But Görgei would only act within the constitutional boundaries, aka he will do whatever the Diet decides, be that Kossuth's republic or the magnates monarchy. And by 1849 Kossuth controlled the Diet, although he didn't dare to bring up the form of state before them (and he was rational enough that offering the crown to a foreign monarch could help if the situation did turn sour, which it did in OTL).
But, what better person to establish a more ceremonial/less executive monarchy than that? The main want of people in this era was less absolutism and more representative government. Görgei seems the type that would be a very hands-off, publicly neutral monarch. Exactly the type needed to establish the political foundations of a nation.
Whiel I like the mental image of Görgei getting the Holy Crown, but I don't think that is possible. Let's say that the diet is complacently polarized on the issue, with the radical liberal demanding a republic and the moderates and the aristocrats only a king for their constitution (the Conservative Party officially dissolved in OTL after the revolution). With no clear rout forward someone says that Görgei should become a king. Five seconds later Kossuth explodes into a long speech about the madness that would be to elect Görgei as a king. There is no chance that Kossuth would allow such thing to happen and while I'm not sure that he could get what he want's, but that's sure that he can veto what he don't want.
If they would need a local compromise candidate then they would choose Batthyány or less likely Széchényi, rather then Görgei. Batthyány is especially a good choice as he is a friend of Kossuth, but one of the few who could actually force moderation on him. But I think that, if it's get clear that the diet want a monarch, then Kossuth would like foreign one, whom has no power base in Hungary, thus allows Prime Minister Kossuth to rule the country.
Yes, but what Kossuth wants may not be equal to what the people of Hungary or, more importantly, the military, want. All you need is for someone to make widespread Kossuth's shortcomings that led to defeat after defeat and it starts to look like he is too big for his own ego. I think someone earlier had a quote comparing Georgi to Napoleon. Perhaps the comparison would be he and Kossuth together equal such. One has all the ego and ambition without the military acumen and the other the military genius without the ego. Someone playing it right could make a fool out of Kossuth in this situation
yah intact Hungary for a couple years has been ruled by a parliament of sorts so why not just translation fully into that and maybe have a ceremonial monarchy instead?
Chapter 71: Empire's End
Chapter 71: Empire's End
Hungary Stands Triumphant over Austria
As 1850 arrived in Vienna, a Hungarian Army nearly 120,000 strong marched to besiege it. The Austrian Army moving to oppose it numbered little more than half that and was greatly demoralized after being wittled down by two years of defeats, disunity, and deaths. Efforts by Emperor Franz Joseph and the Imperial Government to rally more men to the flag would meet with increasing disappointment, however, as fewer and fewer men were willing to serve, even under threat of imprisonment or promises of financial benefit. The, Serbians, Slovaks, and Transylvanians had been beaten into submission by the Hungarians over the past year, having seen their armies crushed and their lands terrorized; they no longer possessed the will, nor the ability to continue fighting for the Emperor. Even the Croats and Czechs had begun balking at the thought of sending more of their men to Vienna as their own lands were threatened by Hungarian invasion (in the case of Croatia) or revolt (in the case of Bohemia).
With the rest of the Empire unable or unwilling to provide more men to fill his armies, Emperor Franz Joseph was forced to turn once more to the weary people of Austria itself. Yet they too are tired of war, tired of defeat, tired of famine, and disease, and hardships. They were tired of sending their husbands, sons, brothers, and fathers to fight in Vienna’s wars, only to return as corpses or not return at all in many cases. So it was that when the Emperor pushed them for more blood to fight his war, they refused, prompting mass demonstrations throughout Lower and Upper Austria, Carinthia, Styria, Carniola, Salzburg, Tyrol, and Voralberg. Vienna would also see unrest, some of the worst unrest to be seen thus far in fact as the city became a battleground in its own right; divided between those who supported the continuation of the war and those who do not with both sides rallying in the streets on an almost daily basis. The Austrian Empire was on the cusp of collapse, needing only one last push to throw it over the edge and soon it would receive that push.
On the 3rd of March 1850, several thousand students and professors, unemployed laborers and factory workers, disgruntled soldiers, artisans, and peasants led by the priest Johann Rudolf Kutschker marched on the Palace where they hoped to deliver a petition to the Emperor asking for an end to the wars and an end to absolutism. Although they were largely liberal in their political leanings, the crowd remained relatively supportive of the Emperor and declared themselves to be his loyal subjects. Unlike the more radical republicans and socialists, these March 3rd Protesters only asked for comparatively moderate reforms like a written constitution, a publicly elected legislature, and the end of serfdom among other things, in addition to their calls for peace. The march would begin well enough, with the mass of people moving towards the Palace, but once they reached the edge of Schönbrunn’s Gardens they were met by several hundred jittery soldiers and a few unsympathetic officers who denied them a meeting with the Emperor, or even access to the palace grounds.
When the mob learned of this, they quickly grew agitated throwing insults at the officers and debris at the soldiers. Father Kutschker would attempt to calm the people by citing scripture and leading his followers in prayer, but the mood of the crowd had begun to shift from placidity to unease and anger. The situation was not helped by unrest elsewhere in the city, which had become violent in many cases usually between groups of radicals and reactionaries. Sadly, Father Kutschker’s march would be inadvertently mistaken for one such gang of anarchists and socialists presently rioting on the other side of Vienna, prompting the soldiers on guard to open fire on them by mistake when the crowd turned hostile. What followed was by all accounts a massacre. Out of 8,900 marchers, over 2,600 lay dead or dying while another 3,800 suffered varying degrees of injuries. Many of the dead had been trampled to death by their compatriots who fled in fear at the sound of gunfire, prompting the stampede of civilians and peasants.
The Schönbrunn Massacre
The murder of innocents outside Schönbrunn Palace would spark widespread outrage throughout Vienna, with both Conservatives and Radicals flocking to the streets to denounce this act. Under mounting pressure by the mob, Franz Joseph would immediately agree to begin implementing the protestors demands, but in the aftermath of the Schönbrunn Massacre, it is simply too little, too late. Within a matter of days mob took to the streets of Vienna, and began attacking soldiers on sight, government buildings were put to the torch, and government officials are lynched in the streets. The rioters would even murder the Interior Minister, Count Franz Stadion von Warthausen and Minister of Commerce, Karl Ludwig von Bruck when they attempted to leave the Palace after an emergency meeting of the State's Council. The violence in Vienna would become so great that Emperor Franz Joseph and the Imperial court would be forced to flee the city, seeking refuge with Field Marshal Alfred Candidus Ferdinand, Prince of Windisch-Grätz and the Imperial Army outside Pressburg.
With the Government in flight, anarchy soon consumed the Austrian Capital as rival parties vied for supremacy. Over the course of the next few days Republicans, Socialists, Monarchists, and Anarchists would take power, only to lose it within a few hours or a few days at most. Of them all, the Commune of Viennese Laborers - one in a long list of socialist parties - would last the longest at nearly two weeks, but even its reign was short lived. Its leader, the radical lawyer Robert Blum plunged the city into a state of tyranny and terror as political opponents and ideologues were arrested and executed for crimes against the Revolution. His authority outside of Vienna was rather limited, however, as most of the Imperial Austrian Army remained loyal to the deposed Hapsburgs, thanks in large part to the loyalty of their commander Field Marshal Grätz who quickly moved his army to suppress the revolt.
Despite the support of the Army, the situation for the Imperial Government remained incredibly dire as they were now trapped between a hostile Vienna and a Hungarian Army. Hungarian General Artur Görgei was still marching on the Austrian capital with an army nearly doubling that of the Austrians and while he was still several days away besieging Komárom Fortress, momentum had clearly shifted in favor of the Hungarians and against the Empire. Faced with defeats on all fronts, a Hungarian Army on his doorstep, his allies nowhere to be seen, and his own capital in rebellion against him; Austrian Emperor Franz Joseph was finally forced to accept that this would be the end for his Empire. His will to preserve his Empire had been shattered and now he only wished to preserve what he could. And so, on the 19th of March, Emperor Franz Joseph directed Field Marshal Grätz to retake Vienna no matter the cost.
It was now a race against time for the Imperial Government, which had been forced to effectively abandon the front with Hungary in order to deal with the Viennese Uprising. Arriving outside Vienna three days later, Field Marshal Gratz threw caution to the wind and immediately ordered an assualt against the city, hoping to retake it before the Hungarians could arrive. It is possible that the Commune could have reached out to the Hungarians for support against the Imperial Army, but this is something that they simply refused to do for one reason or another.[1] Either out of a sense of some nationalistic disdain for the Hungarians, or out of anger for plunging their homeland into a bloody war, the people of Vienna refrained from seeking Hungarian aid, ultimately condemning the Viennese Revolution to defeat. The fighting was hard, but the Commune mob would eventually succumb to the army’s advance, smothering the burgeoning Socialist revolution in its cradle.
Imperial Troops fight with Revolutionaries atop a Barricade in Vienna
With Vienna recovered, some fools hoped to continue the war against Hungary and Italy, but Emperor Franz Joseph refused. The anarchy in Vienna had broken his resolve and his spirit, furthermore his army was on the verge of mutiny after the fighting in Vienna and would fight no more. Thousands had been killed in the fight to retake Vienna and thousands more had been wounded. The city was in shambles, many government buildings had been left in ruins, and the populace largely remained hostile towards the Imperial Government. When the Hungarian General Artur Görgei and the Hungarian Army arrive outside Vienna one week later, they would find to their surprise, not an army ready to fight against them, but a pair of envoys from Emperor Franz Joseph requesting terms for peace.
Unaware of the developments in Vienna, Görgei would initially defer the decision of peace to Buda for their consideration, but when presented with a personal letter by the Emperor and testimonies by the British and French ambassadors confirming Franz Joseph’s intentions, he magnanimously agreed to a truce. Had Görgei known of the events in Vienna, it is questionable whether or not he would have pressed on to support the uprising there. While he was a soldier and a loyal Hungarian, he did not desire more fighting, nor did he desire to needlessly throw away his men’s lives when victory was so clearly at hand right then and there.
With that, the War in Hungary was effectively over as a cease fire lasting one month was immediately put into effect between the Austrians and the Hungarians. During this time, both armies would remain encamped outside Vienna whilst their respective diplomats met to determine the details for the peace conference. The news of the truce was received with joy in Austria and Hungary, but contempt in Buda as the Hungarian Diet remained opposed to peace, whilst the Austrians remained standing. The prevailing belief in Buda, was that the Austrians would never abandon their claims to Hungarian land unless Austria lay dead at their feet. General Gorgei's truce betrayed that belief, resulting in a number of condemnations by politicians in the Diet and firebrands in the media who called for his resignation and even his arrest in some instances.
Lajos Kossuth was absolutely furious once he learned of Artur Görgei’s decision and would immediately fly into a rage, condemning the general as a traitor and demanded his execution for treason. But for the first time in nearly two years, Lajos Kossuth would find himself largely unable to influence the people to his side, as the promise of peace proved a much stronger motivator than a call for more war. When the Diet in Buda called for a continuation of the war against Austria until they achieved total victory, they would find the same unrest in Hungary that Austria had endured in Vienna only weeks before. The Hungarian people, were ready for peace. Unable to stop the peace talks, Lajos Kossuth decided to join them directly and impact them as best he could by taking control of the entire process.
Artur Görgei, Lajos Kossuth, and Representatives of the Austrian and Hungarian Governments meet to discuss a Cease Fire
Eventually, the Hungarians and the Austrians would agree to a British proposal to meet in London in two month’s time where they would debate the finer details of the formal peace treaty. Until that time, both sides would refrain from further fighting, both sides would recall their forces from the other's territory, and both sides would refrain from supporting unrest in the other's territories. With a tentative agreement established with the Hungarians, the Austrian Government's immediate attention shifted to the Italian Peninsula where they hoped to conclude the conflict there as well.
Negotiations with the Italians would prove to be more complicated than the negotiations with the Hungarians, as each member of the newly christened Italian Confederation demanded a seat at the negotiating table no matter their level of support for the War effort. Complicating matters even further; each state had their own goals and their own demands. Many Italian states would even oppose talks of peace with Austria while they remained in control of any part of Venetia and Trento. Their efforts to present a united front were scuttled almost immediately however, when Pope Pius IX instantly agreed with a proposal for peace conference, followed soon after by the King Ferdinand II of the Two Sicilies. Sardinia, Parma, Lucca, Modena, Tuscany, and the Lombards remained committed to continuing the war for a while longer, however, but when France and Britain made it known that they would intervene to restore order to the peninsula, the remainder fell into line, some begrudgingly, others more willingly. By the end of June, they too would agree to the British offer of mediation for their peace talks with the negotiations taking place in the city of London in early August.
Meeting in London in August 1850, representatives from Austria, Britain, France, Hungary, the Italian Confederation (Lucca, Modena and Reggio, the Papal States, Parma, San Marino, Sardinia-Piedmont, the Two Sicilies, and Tuscany), Prussia, and Russia, along with observers from Denmark, Germany, Greece, Moldavia, the Netherlands, the Ottoman Empire, Portugal, Serbia, Spain, Sweden-Norway, and Wallachia gathered to discuss a conclusion to the wars plaguing the Austrian Empire. The 1850 London Peace Conference was divided into two sub-conferences; one which would resolve the War between the Austrian Empire and the Italian states, and the other concerning the War between the Austrians and the Hungarians.
Unsurprisingly, the treaty between the Austrians and the Hungarians would be the simplest to resolve; the Kingdom of Hungary would gain its independence from the Austrian Empire, Austria would renounce all claims to Hungarian territory, resources, and heraldry, and it would cede the crownlands of Transylvania and the Serbian Voivodeship to the Hungarian State. The most contentious point of debate would regard the Kingdom of Croatia which vehemently resisted Hungarian overlordship. Ban Josip Jelačić of Croatia had seen to it that several Croatians be appointed to the Austrian peace delegation, both as a show of his growing influence in the fallen empire, and to reinforce his people's opposition to continued Hungarian rule. The Hungarians were opposed to giving up Croatia as the two kingdoms had been united in personal union for nearly 750 years, more importantly however, if Croatia remained with Austria then Hungary would be denied a port on the Adriatic Sea, greatly undercutting the Hungarian economy.
However, as the Austrian loyalists still retained most of Croatia, it would have been an uphill battle for the Hungarians to regain Croatia. Ultimately, Hungary would be forced to renounce its claims to the Kingdom of Croatia, which was to be retained by the Austrian Empire, thus breaking the nearly 750-year old union between their two states. Finally, the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary would formally end all hostilities with one another, both states would return all captured prisoners without ransom, both states would remove their military personnel from the other’s lands, and both states would allow free and safe passage across their borders to any refugees, merchants, or immigrants wishing to cross the frontier. The terms to end the war between Austria and Hungary were relatively easy to determine, but the terms for the ensuing peace were not as the matter of Hungary’s government proved a heated point of contention between the Conference's participants.
Representatives of the London Conference of 1850
For the past two years Lajos Kossuth had been the unchallenged master of Hungary, a king in all but name, now with the war against Austria at an end, this situation quickly became untenable as Kossuth's adversaries both in Hungary and abroad detested his continued rule over the country. His open support of the Italians had spurned his already tenuous relationship with Austria, and his open support for the Poles had burned any bridges he had with Prussia and Russia. Even his relationship with Britain and France had been strained owing to his appalling treatment of Hungary’s minorities under his regime. Moreover, his republican leanings strongly discredited him in the eyes of the conservatives and many moderates in Hungarian Society who supported the Hungarian monarchy, which was now vacant following the formal deposition of the Hapsburgs. The harshest criticism would come from his former colleague, now chief adversary, Count István Széchenyi who had surprisingly returned to the fore of Hungarian politics at this time, denouncing Kossuth as a tyrant and a dictator unfit to lead Hungary. While he was certainly ambitious and incredibly prideful, Lajos Kossuth was no fool.
Instead, Lajos Kossuth would shock the world when he announced his support for a Hungarian monarchy, not with himself as King, but with Count Lajos Batthyány de Németújváras.[2] Count Lajos Batthyány was a Hungarian nobleman with great poise and stature both within the Hungarian nation and outside its borders. Known as a reformer and moderate liberal, Batthyány had made a reputation for himself in the Upper Chamber of the old Hungarian Diet and as a member of the new Provisional Government, championing progressive initiatives for Hungary. Batthyány's reputation as a reformer did not alienate his fellow magnates however as he managed to work closely with Count István Széchenyi in the Diet for many years.
Perhaps his most importantly, Batthyány was a close ally and friend of Lajos Kossuth dating back to Kossuth's arrest by the Austrian authorities in 1837. Despite having little connection with one another, Count Batthyány put his reputation, his name, his fortune, and even his life on the line for Lajos Kossuth and publicity campaigned for his release on his behalf. Eventually, Batthyány and his allies would win Kossuth’s freedom several weeks later, cementing the friendship between the two men and tying the two men at the hip politically from thereafter. Batthyány would even support Kossuth's election to the Lower Chamber of the Diet in 1847 for the county of Pest and would work alongside each other in the Diet as Leaders of the Opposition for the Upper and Lower Chambers respectively.
These public showings of solidarity were well remembered by the Governor-President of Hungary who endeavored to repay his longtime friend and ally for all the years of support and capable service to Hungary, while also throwing a relatively meager bone to those still opposed to him. Despite his close ties to Lajos Kossuth, the Hungarian Conservatives could find little fault with him, nor could the Moderates, or even Count Széchenyi. The British and French were not opposed to his nomination either, believing that he would be a moderating force on Lajos Kossuth and help stabilize the country. And so, on the 1st of September, Count Lajos Batthyány de Németújváras was named King of Hungary. The decisions reached in the London Conference of 1850 would be later ratified in the Treaty of Pozsony signed later that year in early November formally ending the War of Hungarian Independence.
King Lajos III of Hungary
With the peace between Austria and Hungary formalized, the London Conference’s full attention shifted to concluding the war between Austria and the Italian Confederation. Despite presenting an outward image of unity and cohesion by the members of the Italian Confederation, the Italians themselves were somewhat divided over what they wished to achieve at the London Conference of 1850. Sardinia having contributed the most to the war effort, both in terms of manpower and financial backing, demanded the most concessions from Austria; specifically, they wanted Lombardy, Trentino, and Venetia from the Austrian Empire despite the Austrians still retaining large swaths of Trentino and Venetia. Tuscany and the Papal States desired complete independence from both Austria and Sardinia for both Lombardy and Venetia. The Two Sicilies in a surprising about face, wanted Austria to retain both Lombardy and Venetia in return for considerable autonomy and their admittance to the Italian Confederacy as full member states. Parma, Modena, and Lucca all had their own representatives in London calling for minor adjustments in their own borders; even little San Marino had an envoy in attendance, although he was purely an observer in the negotiations who refrained from voting on any of the measures presented at the Conference.
The Austrian diplomatic position in comparison was far more united, as they were intent on preserving as much of the Kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia as they possibly could for the Empire. Nevertheless, the chief Austrian representative at London, Prince Schwarzenberg recognized that some concessions to the Italians would be necessary to achieve peace. Lombardy was almost immediately written off as a lost cause by the Austrian delegation who effectively gave it up without a fight at the London Conference. Instead, the retention of Venetia received the majority of their time and energy as the region had still been highly contested at the time of the ceasefire.
The Austrian diplomats would also direct most of their efforts towards winning foreign support from Britain, France, Prussia, and Russia. The Prussian and Russian delegates almost immediately sided with Austria and supported a return to the status quo ante bellum. Britain would take the opposite stance, having come to recognize the instability and apparent weakness of the Austrian Empire and threw much of its support behind the Italians. Thus, the deciding vote came down to the new French Government and its new Emperor Napoleon II. But to understand the French decision making, we must first understand the events that brought about Napoleon II's ascent to power in France.
Napoleon II had come to power at a time of great hardship for the French nation. The French economy was in tatters after a horribly mismanaged and profitless war, famine continued to ruin harvest after harvest leaving the masses to starve, the people were in revolt against the corrupt and ineffective Second Republic, and the Army was on the verge of mutiny in late 1848 and early 1849. Into this picture arrived Napoleon Franz, the son of Napoleon Bonaparte, who marched into Paris riding high on public sentiment for his father and animosity towards the failed Republican regime of Louis-Eugene Cavaignac. His victory over the Prussians at Brussels and the conclusion of the dreadful Belgian War on honorable terms would also earn him praise in Parisian editorials. However, his reign was not unchallenged as Cavaignac and his followers, particularly those in the countryside continued to resist Napoleon II’s proclamations of a Second French Empire and would continue to profess the legitimacy of the Second French Republic. While their calls for the masses to rise up in support of the Republic ultimately fell on deaf ears the entire matter left Napoleon II's legitimacy in doubt.
Emperor Napoleon II of France
Napoleon Franz would not immediately proclaim himself Emperor by right of conquest or military coup, but rather through a democratic election. The matter was to be put to a vote, on the 22nd of June 1849, 34 years after the final abdication of his father. The campaign would be close with Napoleon Franz’ political opponents on both the right and the left opposing his ascension, but the man who would be Emperor would not be denied however, as he ran an impressive campaign, promoting himself as a champion of the French worker who promised to restore the wealth, prosperity, and greatness of France. His “victory” over the Dutch and the Prussians was also touted as a early success, which many hoped would be the first of many with Napoleon Franz on the throne. More than anything, he presented himself as a man of lordly caliber, capable of doing good and effecting lasting change in France. So it was that when the election arrived on the 22nd of June, Napoleon Franz won the referendum by a margin of 59% to 41%. Finally, after years in exile, Napoleon II had regained his father’s throne and he endeavored never to lose it again.
His reign was not without its problems however as the revolutionary fervor which brought him to power threatened to destabilize all of Europe. Germany was in a state of flux, Poland lay in ruins, and Austria was at war with Hungary and Italy. The War in Italy was particularly vexing for Napoleon II as the French government and the French people favored the Italians over the Austrians, but his familial connections to the Austrian emperor stayed his hand from directly supporting the Italians with Military intervention. While his years in Vienna had not been his fondest, having been little more than a prisoner in a gilded cage where he was subjected daily to Metternich’s paranoia and contempt, the Hapsburgs were still his family and he did not wish to see his young cousins left destitute. Ultimately, through a considerable exhaustion of his own political capital, Napoleon II had managed to convince upon the French National Assembly to refrain from actively involving itself militarily in Italy and choose instead to lend its voice to the growing chorus of states calling for a peaceful conclusion to the war.
Napoleon II would decide upon a compromise between the Italians and the Austrians based largely upon the situation on the ground; the lands of Lombardy up to the Adige River would be ceded to the Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont, but the lands and communes of Venetia and Trentino would be retained by Austria. However, the Austrian Government would permit Venetia a significant degree of autonomy and they would allow Venetia to join the Italian Confederation as a full member state. It was not a perfect solution, and one which certainly disappointed many ardent Italian nationalists and Austrian Imperialists, but it was acceptable to many moderates desperate for peace. To mollify the Italian liberals and nationalists, he would also propose a number of changes to the Central Italian Duchies which had witnessed great unrest prior to and during the initial Milanese revolt in March 1848.
First and foremost, the Duchy of Parma had been left without a ruler for the past few months following the death of Duchess Maria-Louisa in the Summer of 1849; having lived long enough to see her son on the French throne once again. As such, the Duchy was to be returned to the House of Bourbon-Parma, leading Duke Charles Louis of Lucca to assume the Parmese throne as agreed upon in the Treaty of Fontainebleau. However, in return he was required to relinquish the Duchy of Lucca which was to be re-annexed by the Grand Duchy of Tuscany.[3] The House of Bourbon-Parma would also be required to give up the lands of Guastella which were to be given to the Duchy of Modena-Reggio, provided they permit their formally ousted Duke Francis V to return to his throne. In a surprising twist, Napoleon II and the Austrian Emperor Franz Joseph would support the union of the duchies of Modena and Reggio and Parma through the betrothal of Princess Beatrice, the only daughter and heir of Duke Francis, and Prince Robert, the grandson and heir of Duke Charles Louis establishing a political and dynastic union between the two duchies upon their marriage and ascension to their respective thrones.
Finally, the Conference of London would assent to the formation of the Italian Confederation, which was established as a political, economic, and military association between the constituent members. The Italian Confederation would be comprised of the Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont, the Grand Duchy of Tuscany, the United Duchies of Parma-Modena, the Papal States, the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, the Republic of San Marino, and the Kingdom of Venetia. The Italian Confederation would establish a National Diet and a Supreme Court in the city of Rome and the Pope would be nominated as the head of the Italian Confederation. Finally, the Italian Confederation would establish a defensive military alliance between all member states, a customs union between all member states, and free passage across borders for all residents of all member states. With these matters finally settled, the Italian Confederation and Austrian Empire would sign the Treaty of Rome two months later in late October finally ending the Italian War of Independence.
The signing of the Treaty of Rome and the Treaty of Pozsony would not conclude the London Conference of 1850, however, as there was one last matter left to be discussed, the fate of Austria itself. Having lost Hungary, Transylvania, the Serbian Frontier, and Lombardy, the Austrian Empire was a shell of its former self. Nearly half of the old Empire had been stripped away from it and the half that remained had been devastated and in a state of disorder. In the east, Galicia was a wasteland, having been desolated by the Russians; most of its people had fled into the mountains where they continued to strike out at their oppressors from time to time. With the region still in a state of unrest and with Vienna unable to support any sizeable presence in the area at the time, the Conference asked Russia to keep the peace in the region in Vienna's stead until such a time that the Austrian Government could do so themselves. The neighboring Crownland of Bukovina was in a similar situation; although it had remained nominally loyal to the Imperial Government throughout the entire conflict with Hungary, it was now completely isolated from the rest of the Empire with Galicia still in a state of rebellion and Hungary independent. Here again, the Russians came to dominate the region, albeit in a more indirect manner as the region remained under Austrian control.
In the West, Venetia had been bloodied after nearly two years of constant fighting on its lands and though the fighting there had finally ended, the people of Venetia were discontent with the resulting peace treaty which left them subject to Austria. Vienna had been left in ruins after the Viennese Uprising in March, while much of Austria proper had experienced varying degrees of violence as well. Finally, Croatia and Bohemia were on the verge of revolt themselves, forcing Vienna to reach an accord with them lest they lose the last remnants of their once great empire.
The resulting compromise would see the Austrian Empire reforged into the Triune Kingdom of Austria, Bohemia, and Croatia (more commonly known as the Triple Monarchy). All three Kingdoms would be granted written constitutions, establishing voting rights, legislatures, and ministries for all three kingdoms. Each would have complete sovereignty over their own internal affairs, and they would be permitted to establish limited diplomatic relations with foreign powers. The three kingdoms would remain united under the Imperial Government however, which was given expansive regulatory and judiciary power over the three constituent kingdoms. A new Imperial Parliament was to be established with each Kingdom sending representatives to the chamber with the number being based on their respective populations. Additionally, the three kingdoms would be tied together militarily through alliance treaties and financially through an economic union. Finally, the Emperor, Franz Joseph would remain head of state for all three Kingdoms, and he would retain the sole authority to dismiss the parliaments of all three kingdoms and call elections for all three kingdoms.
The fall of the old Austrian Empire and the Rise of the new Triple Monarchy would spell the final defeat for the order established across much of Europe in the aftermath of the Napoleonic Wars. The House of Bonaparte had retaken the French throne from the hated House of Orleans. The states of Germany had been united into a closer union, while Italy began moving towards unification as well with the creation of the Italian Confederation. Even Great Britain was wracked with angst and unrest, both at home and abroad, troubled with wars abroad and revolts at home. While its struggle would not see the sheer destructive calamity of the Polish Uprising, or the cataclysmic change of the Hungarian War of Independence, the unrest in Britain would be the among the worst in terms of his great length and instability.
Next Time: My Life for Eire
[1] In the OTL Vienna Uprising, the Viennese were reluctant to ask for assistance from the Hungarians.
[2] Count Lajos Batthyány de Németújváras was arguably the third most prominent politician in Hungary behind Lajos Kossuth and Count István Széchenyi. While Batthyány was certainly more of a liberal than Szechenyi, he was also more moderate than Kossuth making him a convenient compromise between the two. He is also someone who would be able to gain the support of the necessary factions in Hungary needed to gain the throne as he was both a prominent nobleman and a supporter of the revolution.
[3] This arrangement was established following the War of the Sixth Coalition in the Treaty of Fontainebleau, where the deposed Empress Marie Louise would be granted the Duchy of Parma, Piacenza, and Guastella to rule until her death, whereupon it would be returned to the House of Bourbon-Parma. Until that time, the Bourbon Dukes of Parma would be granted sovereignty over the lands of Lucca which were carved out of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany and upon their return to Parma, the Bourbons would return Lucca to Tuscany.
Hungary Stands Triumphant over Austria
With the rest of the Empire unable or unwilling to provide more men to fill his armies, Emperor Franz Joseph was forced to turn once more to the weary people of Austria itself. Yet they too are tired of war, tired of defeat, tired of famine, and disease, and hardships. They were tired of sending their husbands, sons, brothers, and fathers to fight in Vienna’s wars, only to return as corpses or not return at all in many cases. So it was that when the Emperor pushed them for more blood to fight his war, they refused, prompting mass demonstrations throughout Lower and Upper Austria, Carinthia, Styria, Carniola, Salzburg, Tyrol, and Voralberg. Vienna would also see unrest, some of the worst unrest to be seen thus far in fact as the city became a battleground in its own right; divided between those who supported the continuation of the war and those who do not with both sides rallying in the streets on an almost daily basis. The Austrian Empire was on the cusp of collapse, needing only one last push to throw it over the edge and soon it would receive that push.
On the 3rd of March 1850, several thousand students and professors, unemployed laborers and factory workers, disgruntled soldiers, artisans, and peasants led by the priest Johann Rudolf Kutschker marched on the Palace where they hoped to deliver a petition to the Emperor asking for an end to the wars and an end to absolutism. Although they were largely liberal in their political leanings, the crowd remained relatively supportive of the Emperor and declared themselves to be his loyal subjects. Unlike the more radical republicans and socialists, these March 3rd Protesters only asked for comparatively moderate reforms like a written constitution, a publicly elected legislature, and the end of serfdom among other things, in addition to their calls for peace. The march would begin well enough, with the mass of people moving towards the Palace, but once they reached the edge of Schönbrunn’s Gardens they were met by several hundred jittery soldiers and a few unsympathetic officers who denied them a meeting with the Emperor, or even access to the palace grounds.
When the mob learned of this, they quickly grew agitated throwing insults at the officers and debris at the soldiers. Father Kutschker would attempt to calm the people by citing scripture and leading his followers in prayer, but the mood of the crowd had begun to shift from placidity to unease and anger. The situation was not helped by unrest elsewhere in the city, which had become violent in many cases usually between groups of radicals and reactionaries. Sadly, Father Kutschker’s march would be inadvertently mistaken for one such gang of anarchists and socialists presently rioting on the other side of Vienna, prompting the soldiers on guard to open fire on them by mistake when the crowd turned hostile. What followed was by all accounts a massacre. Out of 8,900 marchers, over 2,600 lay dead or dying while another 3,800 suffered varying degrees of injuries. Many of the dead had been trampled to death by their compatriots who fled in fear at the sound of gunfire, prompting the stampede of civilians and peasants.
The Schönbrunn Massacre
The murder of innocents outside Schönbrunn Palace would spark widespread outrage throughout Vienna, with both Conservatives and Radicals flocking to the streets to denounce this act. Under mounting pressure by the mob, Franz Joseph would immediately agree to begin implementing the protestors demands, but in the aftermath of the Schönbrunn Massacre, it is simply too little, too late. Within a matter of days mob took to the streets of Vienna, and began attacking soldiers on sight, government buildings were put to the torch, and government officials are lynched in the streets. The rioters would even murder the Interior Minister, Count Franz Stadion von Warthausen and Minister of Commerce, Karl Ludwig von Bruck when they attempted to leave the Palace after an emergency meeting of the State's Council. The violence in Vienna would become so great that Emperor Franz Joseph and the Imperial court would be forced to flee the city, seeking refuge with Field Marshal Alfred Candidus Ferdinand, Prince of Windisch-Grätz and the Imperial Army outside Pressburg.
With the Government in flight, anarchy soon consumed the Austrian Capital as rival parties vied for supremacy. Over the course of the next few days Republicans, Socialists, Monarchists, and Anarchists would take power, only to lose it within a few hours or a few days at most. Of them all, the Commune of Viennese Laborers - one in a long list of socialist parties - would last the longest at nearly two weeks, but even its reign was short lived. Its leader, the radical lawyer Robert Blum plunged the city into a state of tyranny and terror as political opponents and ideologues were arrested and executed for crimes against the Revolution. His authority outside of Vienna was rather limited, however, as most of the Imperial Austrian Army remained loyal to the deposed Hapsburgs, thanks in large part to the loyalty of their commander Field Marshal Grätz who quickly moved his army to suppress the revolt.
Despite the support of the Army, the situation for the Imperial Government remained incredibly dire as they were now trapped between a hostile Vienna and a Hungarian Army. Hungarian General Artur Görgei was still marching on the Austrian capital with an army nearly doubling that of the Austrians and while he was still several days away besieging Komárom Fortress, momentum had clearly shifted in favor of the Hungarians and against the Empire. Faced with defeats on all fronts, a Hungarian Army on his doorstep, his allies nowhere to be seen, and his own capital in rebellion against him; Austrian Emperor Franz Joseph was finally forced to accept that this would be the end for his Empire. His will to preserve his Empire had been shattered and now he only wished to preserve what he could. And so, on the 19th of March, Emperor Franz Joseph directed Field Marshal Grätz to retake Vienna no matter the cost.
It was now a race against time for the Imperial Government, which had been forced to effectively abandon the front with Hungary in order to deal with the Viennese Uprising. Arriving outside Vienna three days later, Field Marshal Gratz threw caution to the wind and immediately ordered an assualt against the city, hoping to retake it before the Hungarians could arrive. It is possible that the Commune could have reached out to the Hungarians for support against the Imperial Army, but this is something that they simply refused to do for one reason or another.[1] Either out of a sense of some nationalistic disdain for the Hungarians, or out of anger for plunging their homeland into a bloody war, the people of Vienna refrained from seeking Hungarian aid, ultimately condemning the Viennese Revolution to defeat. The fighting was hard, but the Commune mob would eventually succumb to the army’s advance, smothering the burgeoning Socialist revolution in its cradle.
Imperial Troops fight with Revolutionaries atop a Barricade in Vienna
With Vienna recovered, some fools hoped to continue the war against Hungary and Italy, but Emperor Franz Joseph refused. The anarchy in Vienna had broken his resolve and his spirit, furthermore his army was on the verge of mutiny after the fighting in Vienna and would fight no more. Thousands had been killed in the fight to retake Vienna and thousands more had been wounded. The city was in shambles, many government buildings had been left in ruins, and the populace largely remained hostile towards the Imperial Government. When the Hungarian General Artur Görgei and the Hungarian Army arrive outside Vienna one week later, they would find to their surprise, not an army ready to fight against them, but a pair of envoys from Emperor Franz Joseph requesting terms for peace.
Unaware of the developments in Vienna, Görgei would initially defer the decision of peace to Buda for their consideration, but when presented with a personal letter by the Emperor and testimonies by the British and French ambassadors confirming Franz Joseph’s intentions, he magnanimously agreed to a truce. Had Görgei known of the events in Vienna, it is questionable whether or not he would have pressed on to support the uprising there. While he was a soldier and a loyal Hungarian, he did not desire more fighting, nor did he desire to needlessly throw away his men’s lives when victory was so clearly at hand right then and there.
With that, the War in Hungary was effectively over as a cease fire lasting one month was immediately put into effect between the Austrians and the Hungarians. During this time, both armies would remain encamped outside Vienna whilst their respective diplomats met to determine the details for the peace conference. The news of the truce was received with joy in Austria and Hungary, but contempt in Buda as the Hungarian Diet remained opposed to peace, whilst the Austrians remained standing. The prevailing belief in Buda, was that the Austrians would never abandon their claims to Hungarian land unless Austria lay dead at their feet. General Gorgei's truce betrayed that belief, resulting in a number of condemnations by politicians in the Diet and firebrands in the media who called for his resignation and even his arrest in some instances.
Lajos Kossuth was absolutely furious once he learned of Artur Görgei’s decision and would immediately fly into a rage, condemning the general as a traitor and demanded his execution for treason. But for the first time in nearly two years, Lajos Kossuth would find himself largely unable to influence the people to his side, as the promise of peace proved a much stronger motivator than a call for more war. When the Diet in Buda called for a continuation of the war against Austria until they achieved total victory, they would find the same unrest in Hungary that Austria had endured in Vienna only weeks before. The Hungarian people, were ready for peace. Unable to stop the peace talks, Lajos Kossuth decided to join them directly and impact them as best he could by taking control of the entire process.
Artur Görgei, Lajos Kossuth, and Representatives of the Austrian and Hungarian Governments meet to discuss a Cease Fire
Eventually, the Hungarians and the Austrians would agree to a British proposal to meet in London in two month’s time where they would debate the finer details of the formal peace treaty. Until that time, both sides would refrain from further fighting, both sides would recall their forces from the other's territory, and both sides would refrain from supporting unrest in the other's territories. With a tentative agreement established with the Hungarians, the Austrian Government's immediate attention shifted to the Italian Peninsula where they hoped to conclude the conflict there as well.
Negotiations with the Italians would prove to be more complicated than the negotiations with the Hungarians, as each member of the newly christened Italian Confederation demanded a seat at the negotiating table no matter their level of support for the War effort. Complicating matters even further; each state had their own goals and their own demands. Many Italian states would even oppose talks of peace with Austria while they remained in control of any part of Venetia and Trento. Their efforts to present a united front were scuttled almost immediately however, when Pope Pius IX instantly agreed with a proposal for peace conference, followed soon after by the King Ferdinand II of the Two Sicilies. Sardinia, Parma, Lucca, Modena, Tuscany, and the Lombards remained committed to continuing the war for a while longer, however, but when France and Britain made it known that they would intervene to restore order to the peninsula, the remainder fell into line, some begrudgingly, others more willingly. By the end of June, they too would agree to the British offer of mediation for their peace talks with the negotiations taking place in the city of London in early August.
Meeting in London in August 1850, representatives from Austria, Britain, France, Hungary, the Italian Confederation (Lucca, Modena and Reggio, the Papal States, Parma, San Marino, Sardinia-Piedmont, the Two Sicilies, and Tuscany), Prussia, and Russia, along with observers from Denmark, Germany, Greece, Moldavia, the Netherlands, the Ottoman Empire, Portugal, Serbia, Spain, Sweden-Norway, and Wallachia gathered to discuss a conclusion to the wars plaguing the Austrian Empire. The 1850 London Peace Conference was divided into two sub-conferences; one which would resolve the War between the Austrian Empire and the Italian states, and the other concerning the War between the Austrians and the Hungarians.
Unsurprisingly, the treaty between the Austrians and the Hungarians would be the simplest to resolve; the Kingdom of Hungary would gain its independence from the Austrian Empire, Austria would renounce all claims to Hungarian territory, resources, and heraldry, and it would cede the crownlands of Transylvania and the Serbian Voivodeship to the Hungarian State. The most contentious point of debate would regard the Kingdom of Croatia which vehemently resisted Hungarian overlordship. Ban Josip Jelačić of Croatia had seen to it that several Croatians be appointed to the Austrian peace delegation, both as a show of his growing influence in the fallen empire, and to reinforce his people's opposition to continued Hungarian rule. The Hungarians were opposed to giving up Croatia as the two kingdoms had been united in personal union for nearly 750 years, more importantly however, if Croatia remained with Austria then Hungary would be denied a port on the Adriatic Sea, greatly undercutting the Hungarian economy.
However, as the Austrian loyalists still retained most of Croatia, it would have been an uphill battle for the Hungarians to regain Croatia. Ultimately, Hungary would be forced to renounce its claims to the Kingdom of Croatia, which was to be retained by the Austrian Empire, thus breaking the nearly 750-year old union between their two states. Finally, the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary would formally end all hostilities with one another, both states would return all captured prisoners without ransom, both states would remove their military personnel from the other’s lands, and both states would allow free and safe passage across their borders to any refugees, merchants, or immigrants wishing to cross the frontier. The terms to end the war between Austria and Hungary were relatively easy to determine, but the terms for the ensuing peace were not as the matter of Hungary’s government proved a heated point of contention between the Conference's participants.
Representatives of the London Conference of 1850
For the past two years Lajos Kossuth had been the unchallenged master of Hungary, a king in all but name, now with the war against Austria at an end, this situation quickly became untenable as Kossuth's adversaries both in Hungary and abroad detested his continued rule over the country. His open support of the Italians had spurned his already tenuous relationship with Austria, and his open support for the Poles had burned any bridges he had with Prussia and Russia. Even his relationship with Britain and France had been strained owing to his appalling treatment of Hungary’s minorities under his regime. Moreover, his republican leanings strongly discredited him in the eyes of the conservatives and many moderates in Hungarian Society who supported the Hungarian monarchy, which was now vacant following the formal deposition of the Hapsburgs. The harshest criticism would come from his former colleague, now chief adversary, Count István Széchenyi who had surprisingly returned to the fore of Hungarian politics at this time, denouncing Kossuth as a tyrant and a dictator unfit to lead Hungary. While he was certainly ambitious and incredibly prideful, Lajos Kossuth was no fool.
Instead, Lajos Kossuth would shock the world when he announced his support for a Hungarian monarchy, not with himself as King, but with Count Lajos Batthyány de Németújváras.[2] Count Lajos Batthyány was a Hungarian nobleman with great poise and stature both within the Hungarian nation and outside its borders. Known as a reformer and moderate liberal, Batthyány had made a reputation for himself in the Upper Chamber of the old Hungarian Diet and as a member of the new Provisional Government, championing progressive initiatives for Hungary. Batthyány's reputation as a reformer did not alienate his fellow magnates however as he managed to work closely with Count István Széchenyi in the Diet for many years.
Perhaps his most importantly, Batthyány was a close ally and friend of Lajos Kossuth dating back to Kossuth's arrest by the Austrian authorities in 1837. Despite having little connection with one another, Count Batthyány put his reputation, his name, his fortune, and even his life on the line for Lajos Kossuth and publicity campaigned for his release on his behalf. Eventually, Batthyány and his allies would win Kossuth’s freedom several weeks later, cementing the friendship between the two men and tying the two men at the hip politically from thereafter. Batthyány would even support Kossuth's election to the Lower Chamber of the Diet in 1847 for the county of Pest and would work alongside each other in the Diet as Leaders of the Opposition for the Upper and Lower Chambers respectively.
These public showings of solidarity were well remembered by the Governor-President of Hungary who endeavored to repay his longtime friend and ally for all the years of support and capable service to Hungary, while also throwing a relatively meager bone to those still opposed to him. Despite his close ties to Lajos Kossuth, the Hungarian Conservatives could find little fault with him, nor could the Moderates, or even Count Széchenyi. The British and French were not opposed to his nomination either, believing that he would be a moderating force on Lajos Kossuth and help stabilize the country. And so, on the 1st of September, Count Lajos Batthyány de Németújváras was named King of Hungary. The decisions reached in the London Conference of 1850 would be later ratified in the Treaty of Pozsony signed later that year in early November formally ending the War of Hungarian Independence.
King Lajos III of Hungary
With the peace between Austria and Hungary formalized, the London Conference’s full attention shifted to concluding the war between Austria and the Italian Confederation. Despite presenting an outward image of unity and cohesion by the members of the Italian Confederation, the Italians themselves were somewhat divided over what they wished to achieve at the London Conference of 1850. Sardinia having contributed the most to the war effort, both in terms of manpower and financial backing, demanded the most concessions from Austria; specifically, they wanted Lombardy, Trentino, and Venetia from the Austrian Empire despite the Austrians still retaining large swaths of Trentino and Venetia. Tuscany and the Papal States desired complete independence from both Austria and Sardinia for both Lombardy and Venetia. The Two Sicilies in a surprising about face, wanted Austria to retain both Lombardy and Venetia in return for considerable autonomy and their admittance to the Italian Confederacy as full member states. Parma, Modena, and Lucca all had their own representatives in London calling for minor adjustments in their own borders; even little San Marino had an envoy in attendance, although he was purely an observer in the negotiations who refrained from voting on any of the measures presented at the Conference.
The Austrian diplomatic position in comparison was far more united, as they were intent on preserving as much of the Kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia as they possibly could for the Empire. Nevertheless, the chief Austrian representative at London, Prince Schwarzenberg recognized that some concessions to the Italians would be necessary to achieve peace. Lombardy was almost immediately written off as a lost cause by the Austrian delegation who effectively gave it up without a fight at the London Conference. Instead, the retention of Venetia received the majority of their time and energy as the region had still been highly contested at the time of the ceasefire.
The Austrian diplomats would also direct most of their efforts towards winning foreign support from Britain, France, Prussia, and Russia. The Prussian and Russian delegates almost immediately sided with Austria and supported a return to the status quo ante bellum. Britain would take the opposite stance, having come to recognize the instability and apparent weakness of the Austrian Empire and threw much of its support behind the Italians. Thus, the deciding vote came down to the new French Government and its new Emperor Napoleon II. But to understand the French decision making, we must first understand the events that brought about Napoleon II's ascent to power in France.
Napoleon II had come to power at a time of great hardship for the French nation. The French economy was in tatters after a horribly mismanaged and profitless war, famine continued to ruin harvest after harvest leaving the masses to starve, the people were in revolt against the corrupt and ineffective Second Republic, and the Army was on the verge of mutiny in late 1848 and early 1849. Into this picture arrived Napoleon Franz, the son of Napoleon Bonaparte, who marched into Paris riding high on public sentiment for his father and animosity towards the failed Republican regime of Louis-Eugene Cavaignac. His victory over the Prussians at Brussels and the conclusion of the dreadful Belgian War on honorable terms would also earn him praise in Parisian editorials. However, his reign was not unchallenged as Cavaignac and his followers, particularly those in the countryside continued to resist Napoleon II’s proclamations of a Second French Empire and would continue to profess the legitimacy of the Second French Republic. While their calls for the masses to rise up in support of the Republic ultimately fell on deaf ears the entire matter left Napoleon II's legitimacy in doubt.
Emperor Napoleon II of France
Napoleon Franz would not immediately proclaim himself Emperor by right of conquest or military coup, but rather through a democratic election. The matter was to be put to a vote, on the 22nd of June 1849, 34 years after the final abdication of his father. The campaign would be close with Napoleon Franz’ political opponents on both the right and the left opposing his ascension, but the man who would be Emperor would not be denied however, as he ran an impressive campaign, promoting himself as a champion of the French worker who promised to restore the wealth, prosperity, and greatness of France. His “victory” over the Dutch and the Prussians was also touted as a early success, which many hoped would be the first of many with Napoleon Franz on the throne. More than anything, he presented himself as a man of lordly caliber, capable of doing good and effecting lasting change in France. So it was that when the election arrived on the 22nd of June, Napoleon Franz won the referendum by a margin of 59% to 41%. Finally, after years in exile, Napoleon II had regained his father’s throne and he endeavored never to lose it again.
His reign was not without its problems however as the revolutionary fervor which brought him to power threatened to destabilize all of Europe. Germany was in a state of flux, Poland lay in ruins, and Austria was at war with Hungary and Italy. The War in Italy was particularly vexing for Napoleon II as the French government and the French people favored the Italians over the Austrians, but his familial connections to the Austrian emperor stayed his hand from directly supporting the Italians with Military intervention. While his years in Vienna had not been his fondest, having been little more than a prisoner in a gilded cage where he was subjected daily to Metternich’s paranoia and contempt, the Hapsburgs were still his family and he did not wish to see his young cousins left destitute. Ultimately, through a considerable exhaustion of his own political capital, Napoleon II had managed to convince upon the French National Assembly to refrain from actively involving itself militarily in Italy and choose instead to lend its voice to the growing chorus of states calling for a peaceful conclusion to the war.
Napoleon II would decide upon a compromise between the Italians and the Austrians based largely upon the situation on the ground; the lands of Lombardy up to the Adige River would be ceded to the Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont, but the lands and communes of Venetia and Trentino would be retained by Austria. However, the Austrian Government would permit Venetia a significant degree of autonomy and they would allow Venetia to join the Italian Confederation as a full member state. It was not a perfect solution, and one which certainly disappointed many ardent Italian nationalists and Austrian Imperialists, but it was acceptable to many moderates desperate for peace. To mollify the Italian liberals and nationalists, he would also propose a number of changes to the Central Italian Duchies which had witnessed great unrest prior to and during the initial Milanese revolt in March 1848.
First and foremost, the Duchy of Parma had been left without a ruler for the past few months following the death of Duchess Maria-Louisa in the Summer of 1849; having lived long enough to see her son on the French throne once again. As such, the Duchy was to be returned to the House of Bourbon-Parma, leading Duke Charles Louis of Lucca to assume the Parmese throne as agreed upon in the Treaty of Fontainebleau. However, in return he was required to relinquish the Duchy of Lucca which was to be re-annexed by the Grand Duchy of Tuscany.[3] The House of Bourbon-Parma would also be required to give up the lands of Guastella which were to be given to the Duchy of Modena-Reggio, provided they permit their formally ousted Duke Francis V to return to his throne. In a surprising twist, Napoleon II and the Austrian Emperor Franz Joseph would support the union of the duchies of Modena and Reggio and Parma through the betrothal of Princess Beatrice, the only daughter and heir of Duke Francis, and Prince Robert, the grandson and heir of Duke Charles Louis establishing a political and dynastic union between the two duchies upon their marriage and ascension to their respective thrones.
Finally, the Conference of London would assent to the formation of the Italian Confederation, which was established as a political, economic, and military association between the constituent members. The Italian Confederation would be comprised of the Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont, the Grand Duchy of Tuscany, the United Duchies of Parma-Modena, the Papal States, the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, the Republic of San Marino, and the Kingdom of Venetia. The Italian Confederation would establish a National Diet and a Supreme Court in the city of Rome and the Pope would be nominated as the head of the Italian Confederation. Finally, the Italian Confederation would establish a defensive military alliance between all member states, a customs union between all member states, and free passage across borders for all residents of all member states. With these matters finally settled, the Italian Confederation and Austrian Empire would sign the Treaty of Rome two months later in late October finally ending the Italian War of Independence.
The signing of the Treaty of Rome and the Treaty of Pozsony would not conclude the London Conference of 1850, however, as there was one last matter left to be discussed, the fate of Austria itself. Having lost Hungary, Transylvania, the Serbian Frontier, and Lombardy, the Austrian Empire was a shell of its former self. Nearly half of the old Empire had been stripped away from it and the half that remained had been devastated and in a state of disorder. In the east, Galicia was a wasteland, having been desolated by the Russians; most of its people had fled into the mountains where they continued to strike out at their oppressors from time to time. With the region still in a state of unrest and with Vienna unable to support any sizeable presence in the area at the time, the Conference asked Russia to keep the peace in the region in Vienna's stead until such a time that the Austrian Government could do so themselves. The neighboring Crownland of Bukovina was in a similar situation; although it had remained nominally loyal to the Imperial Government throughout the entire conflict with Hungary, it was now completely isolated from the rest of the Empire with Galicia still in a state of rebellion and Hungary independent. Here again, the Russians came to dominate the region, albeit in a more indirect manner as the region remained under Austrian control.
In the West, Venetia had been bloodied after nearly two years of constant fighting on its lands and though the fighting there had finally ended, the people of Venetia were discontent with the resulting peace treaty which left them subject to Austria. Vienna had been left in ruins after the Viennese Uprising in March, while much of Austria proper had experienced varying degrees of violence as well. Finally, Croatia and Bohemia were on the verge of revolt themselves, forcing Vienna to reach an accord with them lest they lose the last remnants of their once great empire.
The resulting compromise would see the Austrian Empire reforged into the Triune Kingdom of Austria, Bohemia, and Croatia (more commonly known as the Triple Monarchy). All three Kingdoms would be granted written constitutions, establishing voting rights, legislatures, and ministries for all three kingdoms. Each would have complete sovereignty over their own internal affairs, and they would be permitted to establish limited diplomatic relations with foreign powers. The three kingdoms would remain united under the Imperial Government however, which was given expansive regulatory and judiciary power over the three constituent kingdoms. A new Imperial Parliament was to be established with each Kingdom sending representatives to the chamber with the number being based on their respective populations. Additionally, the three kingdoms would be tied together militarily through alliance treaties and financially through an economic union. Finally, the Emperor, Franz Joseph would remain head of state for all three Kingdoms, and he would retain the sole authority to dismiss the parliaments of all three kingdoms and call elections for all three kingdoms.
The fall of the old Austrian Empire and the Rise of the new Triple Monarchy would spell the final defeat for the order established across much of Europe in the aftermath of the Napoleonic Wars. The House of Bonaparte had retaken the French throne from the hated House of Orleans. The states of Germany had been united into a closer union, while Italy began moving towards unification as well with the creation of the Italian Confederation. Even Great Britain was wracked with angst and unrest, both at home and abroad, troubled with wars abroad and revolts at home. While its struggle would not see the sheer destructive calamity of the Polish Uprising, or the cataclysmic change of the Hungarian War of Independence, the unrest in Britain would be the among the worst in terms of his great length and instability.
Next Time: My Life for Eire
[1] In the OTL Vienna Uprising, the Viennese were reluctant to ask for assistance from the Hungarians.
[2] Count Lajos Batthyány de Németújváras was arguably the third most prominent politician in Hungary behind Lajos Kossuth and Count István Széchenyi. While Batthyány was certainly more of a liberal than Szechenyi, he was also more moderate than Kossuth making him a convenient compromise between the two. He is also someone who would be able to gain the support of the necessary factions in Hungary needed to gain the throne as he was both a prominent nobleman and a supporter of the revolution.
[3] This arrangement was established following the War of the Sixth Coalition in the Treaty of Fontainebleau, where the deposed Empress Marie Louise would be granted the Duchy of Parma, Piacenza, and Guastella to rule until her death, whereupon it would be returned to the House of Bourbon-Parma. Until that time, the Bourbon Dukes of Parma would be granted sovereignty over the lands of Lucca which were carved out of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany and upon their return to Parma, the Bourbons would return Lucca to Tuscany.
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we have been blessed by an update so soon anyway
I don't see them holding onto to the rest of Italy for more than 10-20 years it just too much of a drain on resources and you don't get much in return with a disloyal populace
Also the ottomans new rival now in the balkans ar hungray in a way which in the end they may be a bigger threat then the Austrians every were
I don't see them holding onto to the rest of Italy for more than 10-20 years it just too much of a drain on resources and you don't get much in return with a disloyal populace
Also the ottomans new rival now in the balkans ar hungray in a way which in the end they may be a bigger threat then the Austrians every were
Ain't that the fucking truth. It's not "may be," it's "will be." The Hungarians could possibly take Croatia from Austria in a future war (the Italians are, ironically, their most natural ally outside of Prussia), but unless they want to expand against Russia (ask Napoleon I how that one went), their only real option for expansion is south, into the Balkans... which makes them a natural ally of Greece, funnily enough, since they'd both be fighting the Ottomans and wanting their land.
Oh god, I hope things go better in Ireland than in Poland - otherwise you've managed to severely bloody both of my major ancestries!
Yah the only thing holding them back is their dis unity from claiming the rest of italy even with Austria going into a slow decline and your tottaly right about them being natural allies
Now in germany with the southern germany block no longer having any power backing them they may turn to prussia to protect them from french or vis versus
Galicia is now a big, ugly, untenable panhandle. Wonder what'll happen to that in the future...