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| b. European Diplomacy |
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(See Nov. 20)| THE CONGRESS SYSTEM, masterminded by Prince Metternich, rested on the Peace of Paris, the Holy Alliance, and a renewal of the Quadruple Alliance (Nov. 20, 1815) between Great Britain, Austria, Prussia, and Russia. Each member agreed to supply 60,000 men should a violation of the Treaty of Paris be attempted. This alliance, signed for a 20-year term, was renewed in 1834. The Quadruple Alliance also established the main tenet of the Congress System—government by conference. | 1 |
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| 1818, Sept |
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| The first congress under this system, Aix-la-Chapelle, settled the question of the French indemnity payments and the withdrawal of the allied troops in France. The Quintuple Alliance, including the four powers of the Quadruple Alliance and France, was established, and questions of slave trade and the status of Jews were raised. This congress was followed by two more: | 2 |
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| 1820–21 |
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| Congresses at Troppau and Laibach were called to consider the revolutions in Spain and Italy (See 1820) (See 1820, July 2). Metternich induced the three eastern powers to accept the Troppau Protocol, which directed against revolutions that might upset the peace. England refused to sign the protocol, marking the growing distinction between British laissez-faire liberalism and the German conservatism. This division was stressed further at the Congress of Verona. | 3 |
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| 1822, Oct |
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| The Congress of Verona considered the Spanish and Greek situations. Canning, who replaced Castlereagh after the latter's suicide on the eve of the meeting, refused to cooperate with the conservative powers. | 4 |
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| 1831, Nov. 15 |
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| Treaty ratified the London Protocol of Jan. 21, which recognized Belgian independence and placed Leopold I on the throne (See 1831, June 4). It also recognized an independent Greek state, as stipulated in an earlier conference protocol (1829–30) (See 1831, June 4). Belgium was also declared neutral in 1831. | 5 |
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| 1834–39 |
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| The Carlist War in Spain (See 1834–39) threatened to depose Queen Isabella and the constitutionalists. A Quadruple Alliance of Britain, France, Spain, and Portugal defeated the Carlists in 1839. | 6 |
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| 1841, July 13 |
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| Convention of the Straits. This convention closed the Straits (the link between the Black Sea and the Mediterranean) to warships, provided that the Ottoman Empire remained at peace. It thus benefited British naval power at the expense of Russian power because the latter lacked access to the Mediterranean from the south. (See European Diplomacy, 1848–1914) | 7 |
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