Introduction
Alexander I of Russia also known as Tsar Alexander was born in Saint Petersburg to the late emperor Paul 1, who was a Grand Duke, and Maria Feodorova. Alexander 1 was the eldest in a family of four brothers. Alexander was raised up by his grandmother, Catherine the Great. He underwent emotional turmoil owing to the influence on his life by his grandmother and the father who held contrasting views on many issues. Catherine the great was advocating and persuading the young Alexander to adopt the principles of the Genevois philosopher, Rousseau. This great philosopher held the view that uncorrupted morals prevailed in the state of nature. He noted that the negative influences in the society were as a result of the transformation from love to pride. In his book, the social contract, he outlined the requirements and the basics of a legal governance system build within an accepted organization called classical republicanism. These were the virtues the grandmother wanted Alexander to adhere to when he took to the helm. However, he learnt about the long held traditions of the Russian autocracy during his interaction with the military governor. Through these influences and the input from his father, Young Alexander learnt to uphold the virtues of love towards the human kind while at the same time retained some elements of contempt to humanity. This essay will discuss Alexander I and the Holy Alliance in the historic time within the After Vienna Treaty and the building of Europe with Great Powers.
Alexander married Louise of Baden on October 1793 when he was only 15 years old. Three years later, her grandmother died thus ushering his father, Paul 1, to the throne contrary to her wishes. The tenure of Paul 1 was acrimonious and short-lived resulting in his assassination in March 1801. According to Schnitzler in his book, Alexander was crowned the Kremlin on March 24 1801 thus officially succeeding his father. He endeavored to restore and reform the Russian system of governance. This led him to relax some laws such as the censorship and travel which were detrimental in the lives of the serfs. Most of these rules were imposed by his predecessor and thus the need for their abolition to restore the freedom enjoyed during the reign of the Catherine the Great.
Alexander I early years as Emperor of Russia
During his early years of his leadership, Alexander invaded Persia in 1804-15 and Turkey in the years 1806-12. These wars were successful and resulted in the annexation of Georgia and Caucasus from the Persian authorities. The Bessarabia and the parts of the black sea in the eastern side were also seized from the Turks. In subsequent battles with Sweden, his army was able to annex Finland. Nonetheless, the luck and superiority enjoyed by the Russian army came under intense test when the Russian engaged France troops in battles of supremacy. This led to Alexander 1 to extend an olive branch to Napoleon thereby resulting in the treaty of Tilsit in July 1807. The treaty meant that the Russian emperor had to recognize the Grand Dutchy of Warsaw which was initially given to Prussia in 1795 Partition. Napoleon on his part allowed Russia to continue with its expansionist policies. The next five years saw relative stability and normalcy return in Europe thus allowing him to concentrate on improvement of the education system and the establishment of the Lycee at Tsarsoye Selo.
Formation of the Holy Alliance
In 1812, tensions flared up between the two empires thus forcing Napoleon to attack Russia as part of his expansionist policies. Napoleon troops crushed the Russian troops as they marched to Moscow. However, unusual turn of events led to Napoleon to leave Russia in December with only 20% of his army. This set a retaliatory attack on France leading to the occupation of Paris in 1814. This Russian victory garnered Alexander 1 the name, the Blessed. This heralded another era which ushered in the Holy Alliance. The Holy Alliance was an agreement between Russia, Prussia and Austria signed on September 26, 1815 under the guidance of Tsar Alexander 1. Prussia was represented by King Fredrick William III while Emperor Francis I represented Austria. The pact was grounded on Christian values which were advocated to prevent the occurrence of revolutions. It is therefore worthwhile to say that the treaty was against all forms of governances not rooted in Christian values such as democracy, secularism and most importantly revolution. The holy alliance was also referred to as the Concert of Europe.
The three leaders endorsed the principles of justice, love and peace as the vital elements that guided individual and public life. The monarchs declared that they would preach this message to their subjects and urge them to uphold these principles while at the same time practicing the teachings of Jesus Christ. They extended an olive branch to other leaders and eventually King Louis XVIII of France and Prince Regent joined them before the end of the year. On October 1, 1814, the convention of Vienna was opened after the fall of Napoleon. All countries in Europe attended in a bid to restore the sanity experienced before the rise of napoleon revolution in 1789. Its principal aim was to map all the boundaries of the continent for once and for all. The convention was to be guided by various principles which included the containment of French aggression, reinstatement of overthrown legitimate leaders, restoring the balance of power and reprimanding the protagonists of the revolution while rewarding the antagonists.
The Vienna Treaty
According to Bloy (2002), the principal negotiators were Metternich from Austria, Talleyrand and Dalberg representing France, and Castlereagh and Wellington for Great Britain. Others were Von Humbolt and Nesselrode and Rasoumoffski from Russia. The final act which comprised a compilation of all the separate treaties between different countries was signed on June 9, 1815. The principal outcome of the treaty was that France had to relinquish control of all those areas it took over from 1789-1810. The treaty led to many provisions which favored the great powers namely Prussia, Russia, United Kingdom and Austria. Among the provisions was that Russia was given the Duchy of Warsaw (Poland) and Finland. Saxony and Danzig were also taken over by Russia. Austria rule was restored in Tirol and Salzburg. The United Kingdom was given back its old colonies particularly the cape colony in southern Africa, Tobago and the Martinique. Another recommendation was the formation of a German confederation consisting of 38 states which were to be under the control of the Austrians. Other notable achievement included the condemnation of slave trade ( Bloy, 2002).
After the close of the Vienna treaty several other congresses involving the four powers of Europe occurred with an aim of consolidating the gains they had achieved in the Vienna congress. Immediately after the signing of the Vienna treaty, monarchs from Russia, Prussia and Austria who had been holding meetings with the aim of striking a deal that would restore peace and sanity in Europe agreed to sign the holy alliance under the stewardship of Tsar Alexander I. According to the catholic encyclopedia, Alexander was influenced by Baroness Von Krudener in instituting religious elements in his rule (1910). This led him to conceive the religious ideals under which the famous Holy Alliance was to be formulated. There was discontent from the other partners when he presented the document since they recognized the need to separate religion from political views. Metternich was vehemently opposed to it but cooled down when he realized the treaty had no major implications to the Prussians. After this treaty, several other conventions occurred that resulted in the total replacement of the holy alliance with a purely political alliance championed by Metternich.
The congress of Aix la Chappell
The congress of Aix la Chappell was convened in October 1 to November 15, 1818. This meeting is also referred to as Aachen congress. It marked the first of the four congressional meetings that were held by the great powers of Europe. It was a follow-up to the Vienna congress and was attended by Alexander I of Russia, Armand Emmanuel and duke de Richelieu from France. Francis I of Austria, Viscount Castlereagh from Great Britain and Fredrick William III from Prussia represented their countries in the congress. It was called to deliberate on the modalities of withdrawing the army stationed in France since the ouster of Napoleon. The congress was also to chart the way forward in regards to the relationship amongst the four countries. The congress was also supposed to review their collective relationship with France. Several deliberations were passed. Immediate evacuation of France was agreed on. The other outcome saw the signing of a secret protocol aimed at retaining and renewing the presence of the quadruple alliance. The signing was done on 15th November.
The congress led to a declaration of all the members to respect and maintain their union based on the principles of Christianity with the motive of promoting peace. Prior to the outcomes, the congress was preoccupied with the formation of the intended European Alliance especially the military aspects. Other issues on the discussion table were the forms of approach that were to be taken in tackling slave trade and the pirates in the high seas. No resolution was reached on this matter owing to the fact that Britain and Russia offered counter solutions thus derailing the whole process. At the end of the congress, concerns over domestic affairs in Germany led the members to agree on the need for a conference to be organized in Frankfurt. By the time the congress closed, a wide range of issues had been discussed and most of them deliberated on. The congress is remembered for setting a precedent of an international platform designed to govern and direct the affairs of Europe.
Congress of Troppau
The second meeting, Congress of Troppau, was held from October to December 1820 at Troppau in Silesia in what is referred to as Czech Republic. The conference was attended by Francis I of Austria, Alexander I of Russia and Fredrick William III of Prussia. Others were the foreign ministers from Russia, Prussia and Austria. Observers from Britain and France were allowed to attend the conference although the two countries were excluded from these talks. The meeting was called to discuss ways on which the uprising in Naples could be contained. This conference did not achieve much compared to the previous one. From the start, clear divisions of the members wee evident thus making impossible for any meaningful business to take place. The conference was especially taken to be informal in the manner of engagements probably due to the mistrust that had stared developing between Eastern and Western powers. This led to failure to come up with punitive measures against the revolutionary leaders in Nepal. However, the Troppau protocol was finally signed on 20th November, 1820.
The Troppau protocol
The major deliberation was the exclusion from the European alliance, any state or states that experience a change of guard through a revolution and the resultant administration pose a threat to the existence of other states or the region. The state was to remain excluded until the return of stability and rule of law was observed. However, not much action was taken to ensure the implementation of this deliberation. The congress adjourned and the members agreed to meet in the Congress of Liabach where the issues would be discussed in depth. The congress of Liabach was held from 26th January to12th May, 1821 at Liabach in modern day Slovenia. It was attended by members of the holy alliance and other European rulers but excluded the papacy, British and Ottoman Empire rulers. It main agenda was to come up with resolutions dictating how the intervention and eventual occupation of the Siciles by Austria was to be implemented. This was to send a clear message to revolutionists that their action would not be tolerated and they were doomed to fail in their undertakings (Philips, 2002).
The French and British were not happy with this action thus putting the future of the European alliance. Before the start of the conference, there were differences of opinion on who was responsible for bringing normalcy in the affected Naples with some arguing the responsibility lay on the alliance while others supporting Austria. Austria and Russia had sent strong delegations, led by their emperors, to the congress due to the sensitivity of the agenda.
According to Nicolson (1946) in his book, he noted that acrimonious debates and arm twisting during this conference with each side of the divide trying to validate their argument. In particular, Metternich was desperate and was instrumental in pushing for the Austrian intervention while the British and French representatives failed to commit themselves to the principles been pushed by the protagonists. At that juncture, the Russian emperor offered to assist with arms in case of any future revolutions. During this conference, many events occurred that seemed to support the need of having a united force. In March, revolts occurred in Piedmont while Danubian was invaded by Ypsilanti. The conference closed on May 12. 1821. The initial members of the Holy Alliance issued a declaration which explained their intention to invade and suppress revolutionary governments so that human suffering is prevented. This was stab on the back to the British and the French who hadn’t consented to that agreement thus opening fronts for divisions in the congress. The next conference was to be held in Verona in Italy.
Verona congress
The Verona congress was the last of the four meetings slated by the European powers. It main aim was to deliberate on the revolution in Spain. The main driver of the congress was French king Louis XVIII who wanted the European powers to give him the go ahead to attack Spain. King Louis wanted to overthrow the government which was regarded unconstitutional. This congress was the most heated congress due to the sensitivity of the Spanish attack. The British had close ties with the Spanish and therefore were not going to allow the French to attack her without giving clearer explanations. A minister, wellington, was dispatched to the congress with a clear mandate of expressing the dissatisfaction of the British government, the need to recognize to protect the Greek and not to allow the allies to involve the British in their military activities.
The congress witnessed the questioning of the allied powers to explain their specific roles in supporting France and to what acts and aid they would give to France if they are called upon to participate as the quintuple alliance. At that point in time, the powers were divided on the principle of intervention and non-intervention. A lot of communication and lobbying took place before the holy alliance gave a response to France. This heralded the collapse of the quintuple alliance with the British declining to participate in the war. The intervention of France in Spain eventually resulted in the battle of Trocadero which reinstated Ferdinand VII of Spain (Philips). The concert of Europe gradually became weak as the effects of economic and political pressures increased domestically and within Europe. The Concrete of Europe prevented the occurrence of major wars in Europe until the successive wars of the late 19th century.
Torbustzay in his book in 2002, notes that the failing of Alexander I wife health and his mistrust of his close associates led to his deterioration of his health in mid 1820’s. In 1821, Alexander realized that his dream of a united Europe was not going to happen when a revolt occurred in Greece. This made him confused and left him at crossroads whether to pursue his ambitions of orthodox leader or united Europe ambitions. His ideals of a united Europe was also vehemently opposed and dismissed by some of his close allies including Metternich. This stark reality and the deteriorating health made him to become weaker until he succumbed to illness while on a trip to the south of Russia in November 1825. His ailing wife died a few months later. However, Alexander I death became a controversial story with many version of his deaths been rumored
Conclusion
Alexander I was among the few Russian emperors who helped shape the history of European politics. Although his ascension to power was controversial, he actually made a point of improving the living conditions of the Russian people. Mixed events in the many wars helped boost his image as a leader particularly when he is named Alexander the Blessed after he successfully defeated Napoleon and captured Paris. This success and the influence from the Baroness Von Krudener inspired him to form Holy Alliance. The Holy Alliance restored order and normalcy in Europe and ensured the boundaries were drawn again to reflect the way they were in 1789 before the napoleon revolution started. This was achieved in the congress of Vienna where all the nations in Europe were represented. The Vienna treaty was a historic moment for Europe since it helped lower simmering tensions between countries. After the Vienna treaty the Concrete of Europe held four other congresses where the French and the British were incorporated. The Concrete of Europe played its role of preventing large scale wars until the revolution wars of 1848 and the successive wars of late 19th century. There is need for strong and visionary leaders like Alexander I who can steer their countries or regional bodies in achieving their goals.
Works Cited
Bloy, Marjie. A Study in Allied Unity. The Congress of Vienna : 1812-1822. 2002. Web.
Nicolson, Harold. The Congress of Vienna: A Study in Allied Unity: 1812-1822. New York: Harcourt, Brace and company, 1946. Print.
New York: Arcade Publishing, Inc, 2002. Print.
Phillips, Alison. Cambridge Modern History. New Jersey: The Law Exchange Ltd, 2005. Print.
Schnitzler, Johann. Secret history of the court and government of Russia under the emperors Alexander and Nicholas. London: R. Bentley, 1847. Print
Troubetzkoy, Alexis. Imperial legend: the mysterious disappearance of Tsar Alexander I. New York: Arcade Publishing. Print.