How far was the old order restored by decisions taken at the Congress of Vienna? The old order was restored to an extent at which peace can be maintained and a balance could be struck between the new and old order. The old order refers to the pre-revolutionary situation in Europe, including but not limited to the political structure and the territorial boundaries. The new order refers to the relatively new ideas brought by Napoleon, including but not limited to nationalism, liberalism, freedom, etc. As far as restoration or preservation goes, it can be divided into three sectors, 1) restoration of legitimate rulers; 2) restoration of territories; and 3) preservation/restoration of the monarchial system. First, the restoration of legitimate rulers. Before the French revolution, all European countries except Britain were ruled by absolute monarchs. During the Napoleonic Wars, Napoleon overthrew many of the rulers, such as replacing the House of Orange in the Netherlands with Louis Bonaparte, his brother; dethroning the Bourbon king in Spain; and also reorganizing Italy into three kingdoms. ‘Legitimacy’ was one of the principles that the Congress based upon. Therefore, all of the rulers that were …show more content…
For example, Belgium was united with Holland to form the Kingdom of the Netherlands; Italian States were put under Austrian control; and Norway was transferred from Danish to Swedish rule. This does not mean that the Settlement were against nationalism. The decisions were made so that peace could be guaranteed. Obviously, ‘peace’ was the unquestionable main point of the Congress of Vienna. At the time, both Italy and Belgium were incapable of defending themselves against their neighbor, France. It was for the maintenance of peace that they were put under foreign rule. In addition, the settlement ruled that the people of Belgium were to be granted constitution and religious freedom, as mentioned