Reform and Revolution 1815-1848: Crash Course European History #25

In the aftermath of the revolutions and upheaval in 18th and early 19th century Europe, there was a hunger for reform across the continent. Reformers like Robert Owen, Charles Fourier, and Auguste Comte proposed radical new ideas, and at the same time, regular people began to stand up and ask for greater equality, and a louder voice in how they were governed. Results were mixed, but a lot of the ideas that emerged during this time are still echoing in our world today.

Sources

-Hosking, Geoffrey. Russia: People and Empire. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1997.
-Hunt, Lynn et al. The Making of the West: Peoples and Cultures. 6th ed. Boston: Bedford St. Martin’s, 2019.
-Judson, Pieter M. The Hapsburg Empire: A New History. Cambridge: Harvard University Press,
-Kent, Susan Kingsley. A New History of Britain: Four Nations and an Empire. New York: Oxford University Press, 2017.
-Sperber, Jonathan. Revolutionary Europe 1780-1850. 2nd ed. London: Routledge, 2017.

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[MrBinthestudio]

"Various forms of excrement hit various fans." Awesome! Just fantastic!

[lhfirex]

It's always good when John Green hosts/teaches a history course on Crash Course, but thanks a ton for your message at the end about the importance of education and critical thinking.

[jamesmcelwain]

legit laughed out loud at "That what is what like to be 36 in 1824."

[joeevans]

'the religious object pilfering class' HAHAHAHAHA

[ramshacklealex]

"Peterloo." So -loo was kinda like the 19th century's version of the whole -gate cliché, huh?

And they're both replacing the word "water"! Could it be a coincedence?

Yup.

[Mruta]

Marx' quote about religion being the opiate of the masses is often taken out of context. He meant that religion provides comfort to people, regardless of whether it's true or not.

[ElLorenzoMagnifico]

Great video and I know this is NOT the main focus, but I feel the need to clarify that while Bolivar looked up to Napoleon in his younger years, throughout the thermidorian reaction and during his reign as consul, he later called him a traitor to the revolution when he declared himself emperor. Alright I'm done. Cheers/

[isbestlizard]

hey that fourier fellow looks like he might... transform things ;D

[noahqb]

That felt much more like an older crash course and I really liked it. Funny bits, sarcasm, a whats that to Stan, really well done. I know that this is European history and John has always talked about how bored he is of European history but this episode was really good.

[AverytheCubanAmerican]

Simón was inspired by Napoleon while his fellow liberator José de San Martín enrolled in the Spanish army to fight Napoleon before he decided to leave for South America to help liberate the colonies

[Kat-ezni]

As a member of the Religious Object Pilfering Class I can see why these oppressive measures would merit a Revolution

[nitsuanew]

John just gave the best closing statement ever.

[redflags]

It was Engels who differentiated between the utopian socialism of Owen, Saint-Simon, and Fourier and their scientific socialism based on Hegel and Feuerbach; the chief difference of which was the application of Hegel's idea of dialectics with Feuerbach's materialism to Marx's analysis of political economy, thus leading to what we understand as core to Marxism - the idea of class struggle shaping all societies.


As for Marx and religion, Marx did say religion was the opium of the masses. But he also said that it was the "sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless conditions." Literally right before he said it was the opium of the masses. Marx didn't hate religion. He understood it as necessary relief to an oppressed proletariat, while at the same time noting it as a tool of the bourgeoisie to maintain the superstructure.

[TheDarthbinky]

The "opiate of the masses" quotation about religion wasn't *necessarily* Marx calling it a bad thing. He was saying that religion was essentially a coping mechanism for how awful life was for the working class. The full text is:

"Religious suffering is, at one and the same time, the expression of real suffering and a protest against real suffering. Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless conditions. It is the opium of the people."

Of course, like pain-killers such as opium, over-reliance on it while avoiding any sort of correction to the situation is indeed a bad thing, and he does go on to say that as well.

[MahraiZiller]

“At the time”? (7:50) As a Brit (and as a Mancunian - resident of Manchester - with a huge passion for the history of my city), I can tell you that we are still dealing with both the hold of large landowners on our parliament today.
Why do you think the House of Lords still exists as an unelected house, and how even the commons is dominated by aristocratic or pro-aristocratic forces.

And as a minor point, it wasn’t the police who fired.
The police didn’t exist yet at the time of Peterloo.
It was the troops.

Also, the reason it was called “The Peterloo Massacre” is to do with Waterloo, but it’s because the Prime Minister at the time was the duke of Wellington - the self same hero of Waterloo.
I really think that should have been mentioned quickly to give context to what went on.

But also, yeah as always great vid. Got most of it across both succinctly and in an entertaining way ❤️

[stkyriakoulisdr]

11:08 Of course Fourier would emphasise harmony

[ellyreads]

Welcome back, Green, It is always awesome to see you on screen. I hope you always be in excellent health.

[rdreher]

I know that the "zar" pronunciatino of "tsar" is entrenched in English, but I'm Russian and so I hate it. Would love it if you switch to "tsar" - you know with an actual /ts/ sound, which is why it's romanized with a <ts> (when not romanized in the more confusing "czar" way).

[SirThanksalot_]

I guess we're not the only ones, but you forgot the low countries! :)
The Austrian (Southern) Netherlands and Northern Netherlands (United Provinces) were conquered as the first nations by the French in 1795. After their defeat 20 years later, they were united only to fall apart again 15 years later into modern day Belgium and the Netherlands. And it all started with inspiration by the French revolts of 1830.

[defyingblueprints]

I always felt bad that I didn't understand 'recent' European history as a European. But so much happens all at the same time, all the time!