Early life
Klemens Metternich was born into theMarriage and the Congress of Rastatt
In England, he met the King on several occasions and dined with a number of influential British politicians, including William Pitt,Ambassador
Dresden and Berlin
The Holy Roman Empire's defeat in theParis
In the ensuing reshuffle in Vienna Count Johann Philipp von Stadion-Warthausen became theForeign Minister
Détente with France
Now back in Austria, Metternich witnessed first hand the Austrian army's defeat at theAs France's ally
When Metternich returned to Vienna in October 1810, he was no longer as popular. His influence was limited to foreign affairs, and his attempts to get a fullAs a neutral
Metternich was much less keen on turning against France than many of his contemporaries (though not the Emperor), and he favoured his own plans for a general settlement. In November 1813 he offered Napoleon the Frankfurt proposals, which would allow Napoleon to remain Emperor but would reduce France to its "natural frontiers" and undo its control of most of Italy, Germany, and the Netherlands. Napoleon, expecting to win the war, delayed too long and lost this opportunity; by December the Allies had withdrawn the offer. By early 1814, as they were closing in on Paris, Napoleon agreed to the Frankfurt proposals, too late, and he rejected the new, harsher terms then proposed. Nevertheless, the Allies were not faring well, and although a statement of general war aims that included many nods to Austria was secured from Russia, Britain remained distrustful and generally unwilling to give up the military initiative she had fought 20 years to establish. Despite this, Francis created the Austrian Foreign MinisterAs a coalition partner
Austria's allies saw the declaration as an admission that Austria's diplomatic ambitions had failed, but Metternich viewed it as one move in a much longer campaign. For the rest of the war he strove to hold the Coalition together and, as such, to curb Russian momentum in Europe. To this end he won an early victory as an Austrian general, the Prince of Schwarzenberg, was confirmed supreme commander of the Coalition forces rather thanCongress of Vienna
In the autumn of 1814, the heads of the five reigning dynasties and representatives from 216 noble families began gathering in Vienna. Before ministers from the "Big Four" (the Coalition allies of Britain, Austria, Prussia and Russia) arrived, Metternich stayed quietly in Baden bei Wien, two hours to the south. When he heard they had reached Vienna he journeyed to meet them and encouraged them to go with him back to Baden. They declined, and four meetings were held in the city itself. In these, the representatives agreed on how the Congress would operate and, to Metternich's delight, named his own aide Friedrich Gentz secretary to the negotiations of the "Big Six" (the Big Four plus France and Spain). When Talleyrand and Spanish representative Don Pedro Labrador learned of these decisions, they were incensed that agreements were negotiated by the Big Four only. Sweden and Portugal were similarly angered by their exclusion from all but the full Congress, especially since Metternich was determined to give the latter as little power as possible. As a result, the Big Six became the Preliminary Committee of the Eight, whose first decision was that the congress itself be postponed to 1 November. In fact, it would soon be postponed again, with only a minor commission beginning work in November. In the meantime, Metternich organised a controversially vast array of entertainments for the delegates including himself. Leaving Castlereagh to negotiate on Tsar Alexander's behalf, Metternich briefly turned his attention to quelling anti-Habsburg feeling in Italy. Around the same time, he learnt that the Duchess of Sagan was courting the Tsar. Disappointed, and exhausted by social rounds, Metternich let his guard drop, angering Tsar Alexander during negotiations over Poland (then ruled by Napoleon as theParis and Italy
Metternich was soon back with coalition allies in Paris, once more discussing peace terms. After 133 days of negotiations, longer than the turmoil itself, the second Treaty of Paris was concluded on 20 November. Metternich, of the opinion that France should not be dismembered, was happy with the result: France lost only a little land along its eastern borders, seven hundred millionAachen, Teplice, Karlsbad, Troppau and Laibach
Metternich's primary focus remained on preserving unity among the Great Powers of Europe and hence his own power as mediator. He was also concerned by liberal-mindedChancellor
Hanover, Verona, and Czernowitz
In 1821, while Metternich was still at Laibach with Tsar Alexander, the revolt of PrinceHungarian Diets, Alexander I's death, and problems in Italy
In the early 1820s, Metternich had advised Francis that convening theEastern Question revisited and peace in Europe
In 1831 Egypt invaded the Ottoman Empire. There were fears of the Empire's total collapse, by which Austria stood to gain little. Metternich therefore proposed multilateral support for the Ottomans and a Viennese Congress to sort out details, but the French were evasive and the British refused to support any congress held in Vienna. By the summer of 1833 Anglo-Austrian relations had hit a new low. With Russia Metternich was more confident of exerting influence. He was mistaken, however, and left to observe from afar Russian intervention in the region (culminating in theRevolution
Though Metternich was tiring, memoranda kept pouring forth from his chancellery. Despite this, he did not foresee the building crisis. The new PopeExile, return, and death
After an anxious journey of nine days during which they were honoured in some towns and refused entry to others, Metternich, his wife, and son Richard arrived in the Dutch city ofHistorians' assessment
Historians agree on Metternich's skill as a diplomat and his dedication to conservatism. According to Arthur May, he believed that:the mass of Europeans yearned for security, quiet, and peace, and regarded liberal abstractions as repugnant or were utterly indifferent to them. The best of all patterns of government, he insisted, was autocratic absolutism, upheld by a loyal army, by a submissive, decently efficient bureaucracy and police machine, and by trustworthy churchmen.Particularly during the remainder of the nineteenth century, Metternich was heavily criticised, decried as the man who prevented Austria and the rest of central Europe from "developing along normal liberal and constitutional lines". Had Metternich not stood in the way of "progress", Austria might have reformed, dealt better with its problems of nationality, and the
Issue
Metternich's children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren are (names are untranslated):Honours and arms
Honours
Arms
Other honours
In 1823, botanistSee also
* Metternich StelaNotes
References
Bibliography
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *Primary Sources
* Walker, Mack, edFurther reading
* * Šedivý, Miroslav. ''Metternich, the Great Powers and the Eastern Question'' (Pilsen: University of West Bohemia Press, 2013) major scholarly study 1032pp * Siemann, Wolfram. ''Metternich: Strategist and Visionary'' (Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2019). A major scholarly work presenting Metternich as a thwarted innovator in the national industrial policy.External links
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