IGCSE History: The Nineteenth Century 1848-1914 — Revision Notes

Condensed for the final weeks. For the full explanation, use the The Nineteenth Century 1848–1914 study guide.

The 1848 revolutions

Causes: nationalism, liberal demands for constitutions, economic hardship after poor harvests, and the example of France.

They failed almost everywhere because the revolutionaries were divided between liberals and radicals, the middle classes withdrew support once property seemed threatened, the peasantry was largely uninvolved, and the conservative powers retained control of their armies. Austria and Russia went further and intervened militarily to restore conservative rule, most notably crushing the revolt in Hungary and helping suppress the risings in Italy. The lesson drawn — that unification would come through force rather than debate — shaped everything that followed.

Unification

Italy (1859–1870). Obstacles: Austrian control of the north, the Papal States dividing the peninsula, regional loyalty, and poor communications. Key figures: Cavour (Piedmontese diplomacy and the French alliance), Garibaldi (the Expedition of the Thousand in the south), Mazzini (nationalist inspiration), Victor Emmanuel II (king).

Germany (1864–1871). Bismarck’s method was deliberate: “blood and iron”, and three carefully chosen wars — Denmark (1864), Austria (1866), France (1870–71) — each of which advanced Prussian leadership. The Ems Telegram provoked France into declaring war, so that the southern German states joined Prussia against a foreign aggressor rather than being annexed.

Bismarck’s skill lay in isolating each opponent diplomatically before fighting, and in stopping when the objective was achieved rather than pursuing total victory.

Each war had a specific outcome that advanced unification step by step: the Danish War (1864) left Prussia and Austria in joint control of Schleswig and Holstein, an arrangement Bismarck deliberately used to manufacture friction with Austria; the Austro-Prussian War (1866) excluded Austria from German affairs entirely and created the North German Confederation under Prussian leadership; and the Franco-Prussian War (1870–71) ended with the German Empire proclaimed at Versailles in January 1871, bringing the southern German states into union with the north.

The alliance system

Alliance	Members
Triple Alliance (1882)	Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy
Triple Entente (1907)	Britain, France, Russia

Britain abandoned “splendid isolation” because German naval expansion under Tirpitz threatened British naval supremacy, and the Entente Cordiale (1904) with France followed by the Anglo-Russian agreement (1907) resolved colonial disputes.

The alliances turned a local crisis into a general war — but they were also intended to deter it, and stating both sides of that is what raises an answer.

Long-term causes — MANIA

Militarism	Arms race, glorification of the military, the Anglo-German naval race over dreadnoughts
Alliances	Two armed camps; obligation to support partners
Nationalism	Slav nationalism in the Balkans; French desire to regain Alsace-Lorraine
Imperialism	Competition for colonies; Moroccan crises of 1905 and 1911
Assassination	Franz Ferdinand at Sarajevo, 28 June 1914

The Balkans and the outbreak

The Balkan Wars of 1912–13 left Serbia enlarged and confident, and Austria-Hungary alarmed at Slav nationalism within its own borders.

The July Crisis: assassination → Austria’s ultimatum to Serbia, backed by Germany’s “blank cheque” → Serbia’s near-total but incomplete acceptance → Austria declares war → Russian mobilisation to protect Serbia → German mobilisation and the Schlieffen Plan → invasion of Belgium → Britain enters under the 1839 Treaty of London.

Why the plan mattered: the Schlieffen Plan required Germany to attack France first and quickly, through Belgium, in order to avoid a two-front war. Once Russia mobilised, German military planning left almost no room for diplomacy — which is why the crisis escalated in days rather than months.

Not every Balkan crisis led to war. The annexation of Bosnia by Austria-Hungary in 1908 inflamed Serbian and Russian anger, and the Moroccan crises of 1905 and 1911 brought France and Germany close to conflict, yet both were defused through diplomacy. This matters for evaluation: Balkan tension and imperial rivalry alone did not make war in 1914 inevitable — what changed was the great powers’ readiness to escalate rather than negotiate once the July Crisis began.

Answering the causation question

“Was the assassination the main cause?” is the standard essay. The strongest structure:

1. Yes — it was the immediate trigger; without it the July Crisis would not have occurred when it did.
2. But — the tensions were already in place; MANIA had built a system in which any Balkan crisis could escalate.
3. Judgement — the assassination was the spark, not the cause; a different incident could have served, but only because the long-term causes had made the material combustible.

Examiners reward weighing factors, not listing them. Always reach an explicit conclusion.

Exam traps

• Listing causes without explaining how each contributed.
• Treating the assassination as the sole cause.
• Confusing long-term causes with the immediate trigger.
• Omitting specific dates, names and treaties — precision is what separates bands.
• Failing to answer the actual question in the conclusion.
• Describing events at length instead of explaining or evaluating them.

Self-test

1. Give two reasons the 1848 revolutions failed.
2. What was Bismarck’s method for unifying Germany?
3. Name the members of the two alliance blocs.
4. What does MANIA stand for?
5. Why did the Schlieffen Plan make escalation so rapid in 1914?

Answers: 1. The revolutionaries were divided between liberals and radicals; the middle classes withdrew support once property seemed threatened; the peasantry was largely uninvolved; the conservative powers kept control of their armies — any two. 2. Isolating each opponent diplomatically, then fighting three limited wars — against Denmark, Austria and France — and stopping once the objective was achieved. 3. Triple Alliance: Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy. Triple Entente: Britain, France, Russia. 4. Militarism, Alliances, Nationalism, Imperialism, Assassination. 5. It required Germany to defeat France quickly through Belgium before turning east, so Russian mobilisation forced immediate German action and left almost no time for diplomacy.