Vienna 1815: The Congress that Never Worked

The Prince de Ligne famously wrote to a friend that ‘the congress is not working, it is dancing’, and he was not far wrong. As the hundreds of participants gathered in Vienna in the autumn of 1814, there were great expectations throughout Europe of an equitable settlement that would open a new age in international affairs. In fact, all the major issues had already been settled between the four major powers, which intended to resolve the remaining questions strictly among themselves. As a result, the congress never actually opened and all the delegates assembled only once – to sign and seal what had been decided over their heads. The greatest casualty was central Europe, and Germany in particular, with fatal consequences stretching into the twentieth century.

Der Vortrag ist Teil der wissenschaftlichen Veranstaltungsreihe „Forum" der Graduiertenschule für Ost- und Südosteuropastudien und findet in Kooperation mit der Munich History Lecture sowie der Gesellschaft für Außenpolitik statt.