Why did the Revolution of 1848 fail in Austria?

Answer 1

The revolutions of 1848 failed notably because three kinds of demands-social and economic, liberal, and national-were not easily reconciled. This is illustrated in France by the Socialists Blanc and Albert on the one side, and the Liberal Republicans Marie and Arago on the other. Middle-class moderates like Lamartine gained control of the revolutionary movements and resisted the more radical demands of the lower classes, thus losing much of the popular support that was essential to their success.

The revolutions also failed due to lack of organization. In Austria, for example, the revolts in Prague, Vienna, and Budapest maintained no communication among them, allowing the Austrian army to attend to each in isolation, without a united front. Finally, the return of conservative and reactionary forces was probably due to the middle class.

Another reason why the revolutions failed was because moderate liberals of the middle class feared the radicalism of the workers, preventing any type of lasting alliance. Therefore, when radicals took control of the revolutions in Paris and in Eastern Europe, the middle class liberals turned their backs, preferring absolute rule and Law and Order, to the uncertainty of radical revolution.

The main failure of the 1848 revolutions also lay in the lack of coordination and cooperation and there was little common ground. The primary causes of failure were those deep divisions between the groups of revolutionaries, in terms of tactics as well as what they wanted to get out of it. Although the class groupings already used are an area of historical debate, and are undoubtedly not steadfast and without exception, it is still useful to examine the 1848 revolutions as the uprisings of three distinct categories. Peasant unrest caused by long-standing poor conditions led to calls for independence in Sicily, and constitutions in the other states of Italy to protect the lower classes. Sicilian farmers had few desires for liberal government and unification, simply wishing to overthrow Ferdinand II in Naples, while the liberal revolutions raged in the North with the prime objective of expelling Austria.

Answer 2

The revolutions of 1848 failed notably because three kinds of demands-social and economic, liberal, and national-were not easily reconciled. This is illustrated in France by the Socialists Blanc and Albert on the one side, and the Liberal Republicans Marie and Arago on the other. Middle-class moderates like Lamartine gained control of the revolutionary movements and resisted the more radical demands of the lower classes, thus losing much of the popular support that was essential to their success.

The revolutions also failed due to lack of organization. In Austria, for example, the revolts in Prague, Vienna, and Budapest maintained no communication among them, allowing the Austrian army to attend to each in isolation, without a united front. Finally, the return of conservative and reactionary forces was probably due to the middle class.

Another reason why the revolutions failed was because moderate liberals of the middle class feared the radicalism of the workers, preventing any type of lasting alliance. Therefore, when radicals took control of the revolutions in Paris and in Eastern Europe, the middle class liberals turned their backs, preferring absolute rule and Law and Order, to the uncertainty of radical revolution.

The main failure of the 1848 revolutions also lay in the lack of coordination and cooperation and there was little common ground. The primary causes of failure were those deep divisions between the groups of revolutionaries, in terms of tactics as well as what they wanted to get out of it. Although the class groupings already used are an area of historical debate, and are undoubtedly not steadfast and without exception, it is still useful to examine the 1848 revolutions as the uprisings of three distinct categories. Peasant unrest caused by long-standing poor conditions led to calls for independence in Sicily, and constitutions in the other states of Italy to protect the lower classes. Sicilian farmers had few desires for liberal government and unification, simply wishing to overthrow Ferdinand II in Naples, while the liberal revolutions raged in the North with the prime objective of expelling Austria.