The Prague Slavic Congress of 1848 (, ) took place in

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire, officially known as the Empire of Austria, was a Multinational state, multinational European Great Powers, great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the Habsburg monarchy, realms of the Habsburgs. Duri ...

(now

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

) between 2 June and 12 June 1848. It was the first occasion on which representatives from nearly all

Slav The Slavs or Slavic people are groups of people who speak Slavic languages. Slavs are geographically distributed throughout the northern parts of Eurasia; they predominantly inhabit Central Europe, Eastern Europe, Southeastern Europe, and N ...

populations of Europe met in one place to discuss the emerging idea of

Pan-Slavism Pan-Slavism, a movement that took shape in the mid-19th century, is the political ideology concerned with promoting integrity and unity for the Slavic people. Its main impact occurred in the Balkans, where non-Slavic empires had ruled the South ...

. The delegates at the Congress were not only anti-Austrian, but also

anti-Russian Anti-Russian sentiment or Russophobia is the dislike or fear of Russia, Russian people, or Russian culture. The opposite of Russophobia is Russophilia. Historically, Russophobia has included state-sponsored and grassroots mistreatment and di ...

, despite the latter being the only fully independent Slavic nation at the time. Several other were held in different central and eastern European cities over the next century.

Background

The initiative came from

Pavel Jozef Šafárik Pavel Jozef Šafárik (; 13 May 1795 – 26 June 1861) was a Slovak philologist, poet, literary historian, historian and ethnographer in the Kingdom of Hungary. He was one of the first scientific Slavists. Family His father Pavol Šafárik (17 ...

and

Josip Jelačić Count Josip Jelačić von Bužim (16 October 180120 May 1859; also spelled ''Jellachich'', ''Jellačić'' or ''Jellasics''; ; ) was a Croatian lieutenant field marshal in the Imperial Austrian Army and politician. He was the Ban of Croatia betw ...

, but was organized by Czech activists

František Palacký František Palacký (; 14 June 1798 – 26 May 1876) was a Czech historian and politician. He was the most influential person of the Czech National Revival, called "Father of the Nation". Life František Palacký was born on 14 June 1798, at ...

, Karl Zapp,

Karel Havlíček Borovský Karel Havlíček Borovský (; 31 October 1821 – 29 July 1856) was a Czech writer, poet, critic, politician, journalist, and publisher. Early life and education He lived and studied at the gymnasium in Německý Brod (today Havlíčkův Brod, ...

, and

František Ladislav Rieger František Ladislav Rieger (10 December 1818 – 3 March 1903) was a Czech politician and publicist made famous for his leadership of the early Czech nationalist movement. Early life Rieger was born into the household of a miller in the town of ...

. The exact goal of the Congress was unclear even as it was beginning. In addition to lacking a goal, the conference planners also quarreled over the format and the agenda of the gathering. Perhaps this was an indication of how difficult the conference would be for the factions to come together. Once underway, the conference met in three sections:

Poles Pole or poles may refer to: People *Poles (people), another term for Polish people, from the country of Poland * Pole (surname), including a list of people with the name * Pole (musician) (Stefan Betke, born 1967), German electronic music artist ...

and

Ukrainians Ukrainians (, ) are an East Slavs, East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine. Their native tongue is Ukrainian language, Ukrainian, and the majority adhere to Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodoxy, forming the List of contemporary eth ...

(at that time

Ruthenians A ''Ruthenian'' and ''Ruthene'' are exonyms of Latin language, Latin origin, formerly used in Eastern and Central Europe as common Ethnonym, ethnonyms for East Slavs, particularly during the late medieval and early modern periods. The Latin term ...

);

South Slavs South Slavs are Slavic people who speak South Slavic languages and inhabit a contiguous region of Southeast Europe comprising the eastern Alps and the Balkan Peninsula. Geographically separated from the West Slavs and East Slavs by Austria, ...

; and Czecho-

Slovaks The Slovaks ( (historical Sloveni ), singular: ''Slovák'' (historical: ''Sloven'' ), feminine: ''Slovenka'' , plural: ''Slovenky'') are a West Slavic ethnic group and nation native to Slovakia who share a common ancestry, culture, history ...

. The Pole-Ukrainian section contained a combination of

Ruthenes A ''Ruthenian'' and ''Ruthene'' are exonyms of Latin origin, formerly used in Eastern and Central Europe as common ethnonyms for East Slavs, particularly during the late medieval and early modern periods. The Latin term was used in medieval sou ...

Mazurians The Masurians or Mazurs (; ; Masurian: ''Mazurÿ''), historically also known as Prussian Masurians (Polish: ''Mazurzy pruscy''), are an ethnic group originating from the region of Masuria, within the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, Poland. They ...

, Greater Poles, and

Lithuanians Lithuanians () are a Balts, Baltic ethnic group. They are native to Lithuania, where they number around 2,378,118 people. Another two million make up the Lithuanian diaspora, largely found in countries such as the Lithuanian Americans, United Sta ...

. Of the total 340 delegates at the Congress, the greatest number came from the Czecho-Slovak section. 237 Czecho-Slovaks participated along with 42 South Slavs and 61 Pole-Ukrainian. German was the primary language used during discussions. During the Congress, there was debate about the role of

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

in the lives of the Slavs. Dr. Josef Frič argued that the “primary goal is the preservation of Austria”, adding that the Congress “only differs on the means.” This point was disputed by

Ľudovít Štúr Ľudovít Štúr (; 28 October 1815 – 12 January 1856), also known as Ľudovít Velislav Štúr, was a Slovak revolutionary, politician, and writer. As a leader of the Slovak nationalism, Slovak national revival in the 19th century and the c ...

who told the Congress, “our goal is self-preservation”. Such a disconnect was typical of the environment of this conference. One important statement did come out of the conference around 10 June, when the ''

Manifesto to the Nations of Europe A manifesto is a written declaration of the intentions, motives, or views of the issuer, be it an individual, group, political party, or government. A manifesto can accept a previously published opinion or public consensus, but many prominent ...

'' was pronounced. The statement was a strongly worded proclamation that demanded an end to the oppression of the Slav people. The Slavs did not look for any type of revenge, but they wanted to “extend a brotherly hand to all neighbouring nations who are prepared to recognize and effectively champion with us the full equality of all nations, irrespective of their political power or size”. This was an important development because it indicated some sort of unity among all of the Slav people of Europe. The Congress was cut short on 12 June because of the

Prague Uprising of 1848 The Prague uprising (), also known as the Pentecostal Storm, was an armed conflict on 12–17 June 1848 in Prague, which culminated in the revolutionary process in the Czech lands. The uprising was a spontaneous unprepared uprising, which was suppr ...

that erupted due to Austrian garrison in Prague opened fire on a peaceful demonstration. This later became known as the

Whitsun Whitsun (also Whitsunday or Whit Sunday) is the name used in Britain, and other countries among Anglicans and Methodists, for the Christian holy day of Pentecost. It falls on the seventh Sunday after Easter and commemorates the descent of the H ...

tide events because of the timing during the Christian holiday of

Pentecost Pentecost (also called Whit Sunday, Whitsunday or Whitsun) is a Christianity, Christian holiday which takes place on the 49th day (50th day when inclusive counting is used) after Easter Day, Easter. It commemorates the descent of the Holy Spiri ...

. The delegates left in disgust and some were even arrested because of the revolutionary nature of the Congress(Orton 86) which marked a period in the

history of Austria The history of Austria covers the history of Austria and its predecessor states. In the late Iron Age Austria was occupied by people of the Hallstatt Celtic culture ( 800 BC), they first organized as a Celtic kingdom referred to by the Romans a ...

as the

Bach's absolutism The Austrian Empire, officially known as the Empire of Austria, was a Multinational state, multinational European Great Powers, great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the Habsburg monarchy, realms of the Habsburgs. Duri ...

(after the Interior Minister

Baron Alexander von Bach Alexander, Baron von Bach (German: ''Alexander Freiherr von Bach''; 4 January 1813, Loosdorf, Austria – 12 November 1893, Schöngrabern, Austria) was an Austrian politician. His most notable achievement was instituting a system of centralized ...

). Among arrested was

Mikhail Bakunin Mikhail Alexandrovich Bakunin. Sometimes anglicized to Michael Bakunin. ( ; – 1 July 1876) was a Russian revolutionary anarchist. He is among the most influential figures of anarchism and a major figure in the revolutionary socialist, s ...

who became apprehended in

Dresden Dresden (; ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; , ) is the capital city of the States of Germany, German state of Saxony and its second most populous city after Leipzig. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, 12th most p ...

in 1849 for his involvement in 1848 Prague events and deported to the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

Congress Commissions

Czech-Slovak Commission

, Czech historian, oversaw the entire conference as president. *

, Slovak philologist, poet, literary historian and ethnographer, chairman of the Czecho-Slovaks. *

, Slovak poet, journalist, publisher, teacher, philosopher, linguist and member of the Hungarian Parliament. *

František Zach František Zach (; /František Zah; 1 May 1807 – 14 January 1892), known as Franjo Zah (Фрањо Зах), was a Czech soldier and military theorist, best known for his service to the Principality of Serbia, being the first acting General and ...

, Czech-born soldier and military theorist.

Polish-Ruthenian Commission

The commission was created on the initiative of

and

. It was headed by

Leon Sapieha Leon Sapieha (18 September 1803–1 September 1878), sometimes written as Leon Sapiega, was a Galician noble (''szlachcic'') and statesman. Biography Leon was born and educated in Warsaw, and studied law and economics in Paris and Edinburgh fr ...

and discussed issues of the Polish-Ruthenian relations. Galician Ruthenians (native pronunciation Rusyns, modern

) were represented by the political organizations

Supreme Ruthenian Council Supreme Ruthenian Council () was the first legal Ruthenian political organization that existed from May 1848 to June 1851. It was founded on 2 May 1848 in Lemberg (today Lviv), Austrian Empire as the result of the 1848 Spring of Nations and in ...

and Ruthenian sobor. *

Karol Libelt Karol Libelt (8 April 1807, Poznań, South Prussia – 9 June 1875, Brdowo) was a Polish philosopher, writer, political and social activist, social worker and liberal, nationalist politician, and president of the Poznań Society of Friends of ...

, Polish philosopher, writer, political and social activist, social worker, chairman of the Poles and Ukrainians. *

( Iwan Borysykewycz, Hryhorij Hynyłewycz, Ołeksa Zakłynśkyj) * Ruthenian sobor (

, Jan Tadeusz Lubomirski, Kasper Cięglewicz, Ludwik Stecki)

South Slavic Commission

Stanko Vraz Stanko Vraz (baptized Jakob Fraß; 30 June 1810 – 20 May 1851) was a Slovenian language, Slovenian-Croatian language, Croatian poet. He Slavicized his name to ''Stanko Vraz'' in 1836. Biography Born in the village of Cerovec Stanka Vraza, Cero ...

, Slovene poet, vice-president of congress. * Pavo Stamatović,

Serbian Serbian may refer to: * Pertaining to Serbia in Southeast Europe; in particular **Serbs, a South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans ** Serbian language ** Serbian culture **Demographics of Serbia, includes other ethnic groups within the co ...

writer, historian, and archpriest, chairman of the South Slavs. *

Jovan Subotić Jovan Subotić (30 January 1817 – 16 January 1886) was a Serbian lawyer, writer, politician and academic. Biography Jovan Subotić was born at Dobrinci in Srem on 30 January 1817. After completing his high school (gymnasium) education in Srems ...

, Serbian lawyer, writer, politician and academic.

Notes

External links

Slavic Congress in Prague
at the

Encyclopedia of Ukraine The ''Encyclopedia of Ukraine'' (), published from 1984 to 2001, is a fundamental work of Ukrainian Studies. Development The work was created under the auspices of the Shevchenko Scientific Society in Europe (Sarcelles, near Paris). As the ...

* Dr. T. Mackiw.
150 YEARS AGO: The Ukrainian National Awakening in Halychyna
'. The Ukrainian Weekly. November 8, 1998. * Stebliy, F.I.
1848 Slavic Congress in Prague
'. Encyclopedia of History of Ukraine. {{Authority control Pan-Slavism 1848 in the Austrian Empire 1848 conferences Revolutions of 1848 in the Austrian Empire 19th century in Prague Political movements in the Austrian Empire Poland–Ukraine relations Participants of the Slavic Congress in Prague 1848