International Law and the Politics of History

Abstract

Habsburg monarchy was unable to compete with Prussia for mastery of Central Europe. Pásztorová’s excellent book is divided into several case studies chronicling Metternich’s German policy during the 1840s. She examines specifically: the rise of German nationalism during the Rhine crisis, the failure to find a peaceful solution to the SchleswigHolstein question, the fallout occasioned by the annexation of the free republic of Krakow and the Swiss civil war of the Sonderbund in 1847. At all of these turningpoints, Metternich proved unable to salvage what he could of the delicate equilibrium that had been established in 1815 between Austria and Prussia. The accession of Frederick-William IV on 7 June 1840 made matters worse. Unlike his docile father this monarch wanted to play a leading role in German affairs. Metternich time and again failed in his attempts to contain German nationalism and the growing tide of liberalism that was emerging on the margins of the Austrian Empire. The international fallout from the annexation of Krakow saw him portrayed as a vicious reactionary unwilling to respect his own rules. This event exposed just how vulnerable the Vienna settlement could be to revision. Finally, the war of the Sonderbund highlighted the tenuousness of Austrian influence over southern Germany. Metternich proved unable to prevent the Catholic cantons from being overwhelmed by their more powerful neighbours. Most distressing for Metternich was the Catholic monarchs of Southern Germany’s refusal to intervene or seal the Swiss-German border. German nationalists became enthused and inspired by the apparent regeneration of Switzerland, expressing the unconcealed hope that the same might be achieved in Germany. This is a wide-ranging study which is a masterclass in the new diplomatic history. It is based on an impressive sifting of published and unpublished diplomatic papers throughout Germany, Austria, and Scandinavia. This study presents readers with much untapped material from the Acta Clementina (Metternich’s private papers) from Prague’s national archives. As a good student of international relations Pásztorová’s enquiry is not relegated to elite politics but examines the public sphere too by analysing painstakingly a wide array of newspapers and pamphlets. The result is an original, meticulously researched and rigorous study. Thanks to Pásztorová’s work we now have a much better and lucid understanding of the slow drift towards the 1848 revolutions in Germany (and the slow road to Königgrätz in 1866). This book will be invaluable and relished by scholars and students of nineteenth-century European History and the Vormärz period.