John Hurst
Brief history Europe
The most complete and most quick reference
INTRODUCTION
If you like to read books from the end, wanting to know how it all ends, then you will definitely like this book. The end is described here almost immediately after the beginning, because the history of Europe is told as many as six times, each time from a different angle.
Initially these were lectures designed to give university students general idea about the history of Europe. But they did not begin from the very beginning and did not continue in a certain sequence to the end. I did a short one general review, and then went back and considered this or that topic in more detail.
In the first two lectures, the history of Europe is described in the most general outline. And this is actually the “shortest” story. The next six lectures focus on specific topics. Their purpose is to explore the topic in more depth and explore it in more detail.
Any “story”, in the ordinary sense of the word, has a plot: a beginning, middle and end. Civilization is in in this sense- is not history at all, it has no plot, although, of course, it is much more interesting for us to study it if we believe that a period of development is necessarily followed by a period of decline, and then complete and final destruction.
I set myself the goal of showing how the main components of European civilization interacted and were closely intertwined, how new things arose from the old over time, how the old stubbornly maintained its position and returned.
History books tell of numerous events and historical figures. This is one of strengths history because it brings us closer to real life. But what is the point of all this? What really matters and what doesn't special significance? Many people and events that are mentioned in the pages of other history books are not even mentioned in textbooks.
The more detailed lectures included in the second part of the book end around the year 1800, and only because, when I read them, the students were listening to another course of lectures on the history of Europe after 1800. But this excludes so many interesting things! From time to time I jump over this line, but if my approach is correct, you yourself will easily understand that the basics modern world, in which we live, were laid a long time ago.
After the story of the era of Antiquity, the story is mainly about the history of Western Europe. Not all regions of Europe made equal contributions to the formation of European civilization. The Renaissance in Italy, the Reformation in Germany, parliamentarism in England, revolutionary democracy in France - all these phenomena had more significant consequences than, say, the partitions of Poland.
In my work, I have drawn heavily on the work of historical sociologists, especially Michael Mann and Patricia Crone. True, Professor Crone specializes not in the history of Europe, but in the history of the Islamic world, but one of the chapters of her small book “Pre-industrial Societies” is called “Oddities of Europe”. In it, on thirty pages, she outlines European history in the most general terms - much like I do here. It was Professor Crone who gave me the idea to analyze the main components of European civilization, which is what I do in the first two lectures. For this reason, I owe her a lot.
I was fortunate to have Professor Eric Johnson as my colleague at La Trobe University in Melbourne for several years. He was a real advocate of a broad approach to history, and I learned a lot from his book The European Miracle.
In my work I do not claim originality, except perhaps the method. I gave these lectures to Australian students; they listened detailed course in Australian history, and they knew too little about the history of the civilization of which they were a part.
John Hurst
Brief history
Chapter first
ANCIENT AND MEDIEVAL EUROPE
European civilization is unique in that it is the only civilization that has had a fundamental influence on the world. She managed to achieve this through conquests and migrations; thanks to economic power and the power of ideas; and also because it was able to provide what everyone wanted. Today all countries of the world use scientific achievements and the technologies developed with their help, but science is a European invention.
European civilization is based on the following three elements:
1. Culture of Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome.
2. Christianity, which itself is a branch of Judaism, the religion of the Jews.
3. The culture of the Germanic tribes that invaded the Roman Empire.
Thus, European civilization is a mixture of heterogeneous elements. We will learn later why this is so important.
* * *If we think about the origins of our philosophy, our art, our literature, our mathematics, our science, our medicine and our understanding of politics, we have to admit that we owe all these intellectual achievements to ancient Greece.
During its heyday Ancient Greece was not a single state; it consisted of small states, or “city-states” as we now call them. Each of these states was a separate city with surrounding lands, which could be walked around in a day. In a sense, the Greeks belonged to this or that state, just as we are members of this or that club. It was in these small states that the concept of democracy first arose. It was not a representative democracy like today - no one was elected as a member of parliament. All male population cities gathered in certain place and discussed public affairs, adopted laws by vote and decided political issues.
As populations grew, city-states established colonies in other parts of the Mediterranean. Greek settlements arose in the territory modern Turkey, along the coast of North Africa and even along the coasts of modern Spain, southern France and southern Italy. And it was in Italy that the Romans, who were a rather backward people during the period of history and lived in a city-state, the center of which was Rome, first encountered the Greeks and borrowed a lot from them.
Ancient Greek cities and colonies. Ancient Greek civilization consisted of cities and colonies engaged in trade and agriculture and located on the coast of the Mediterranean and Black Seas.
Over time, the Romans created a huge empire, which included itself and Greece and Greek colonies. In the north, the empire's borders followed two large rivers, the Rhine and the Danube, although these borders were sometimes expanded. In the west, the natural border was Atlantic Ocean. England was part of the Roman Empire, but Scotland and Ireland were already outside its borders. To the south lay the deserts of North Africa. The most uncertain was eastern border, because there were empires rivaling Rome. In general, the Roman Empire surrounded the Mediterranean Sea and included not only part of what is now Europe, but also territories that lay outside Europe: Turkey ( Asia Minor), Middle East and North Africa.
The Romans fought more skillfully than the Greeks. They were better at drawing up the laws by which they governed their empire. They were superior to the Greeks in construction and engineering structures, useful both for war and for peaceful life. But in all other respects they recognized the authority of the Greeks and slavishly copied their achievements. A typical representative of the Roman elite spoke two languages: Greek and Latin (the language of the ancient Romans); he sent his sons to the Athenian school or hired a Greek slave to teach his children at home. Therefore, when we talk about “Greco-Roman” culture, we do so following the Romans themselves.
Territory of the Roman Empire in the 1st century.
Most clear demonstration Geometry serves the keen mind of the Greeks. Many people have probably forgotten what it is, so let's start with the basics. Geometry works exactly the same way - it starts with the most simple definitions, serving as the basis for further reasoning and conclusions.
A starting point is a point that the Greeks defined as having a position in space but no magnitude. Of course, on this page it has a certain value, but we're talking about about the ideal case belonging to the realm of pure ideas. Second definition: a line has length but no width. Further, a straight line is the shortest distance between two points.
Based on these three definitions, we can give a definition of a circle: first of all, it is closed line, forming a certain figure. But how do we define “roundness”? With common sense, this is quite difficult to do, although it is possible. In order not to torment you, I will immediately say that a circle is a figure inside which there is a point that has a certain property: straight line segments drawn from this point to any point on the circle will be of equal length.
The development of world history was not linear. At each stage there were events and periods that can be called “turning points.” They changed both geopolitics and people’s worldviews.
1. Neolithic revolution (10 thousand years BC - 2 thousand BC)
The term “Neolithic revolution” was introduced in 1949 by the English archaeologist Gordon Childe. Child called its main content the transition from an appropriating economy (hunting, gathering, fishing) to a producing economy (farming and cattle breeding). According to archaeological data, the domestication of animals and plants occurred at different times independently in 7-8 regions. The earliest center neolithic revolution considered to be the Middle East, where domestication began no later than 10 thousand years BC.
2. Creation of the Mediterranean civilization (4 thousand BC)
The Mediterranean region was the birthplace of the first civilizations. Appearance Sumerian civilization in Mesopotamia dates back to the 4th millennium BC. e. In the same 4th millennium BC. e. Egyptian pharaohs unified the lands in the Nile Valley and their civilization quickly expanded across Fertile Crescent to the east coast Mediterranean Sea and further throughout the Levant. This made Mediterranean countries such as Egypt, Syria and Lebanon part of the cradle of civilization.
3. Great Migration of Peoples (IV-VII centuries)
The Great Migration of Peoples became a turning point in history, defining the transition from antiquity to the Middle Ages. Scientists are still arguing about the causes of the Great Migration, but its consequences turned out to be global.
Numerous Germanic (Franks, Lombards, Saxons, Vandals, Goths) and Sarmatian (Alans) tribes moved to the territory of the weakening Roman Empire. The Slavs reached the Mediterranean and Baltic coasts and settled part of the Peloponnese and Asia Minor. The Turks reached Central Europe, the Arabs began conquests, during which they conquered the entire Middle East up to the Indus, North Africa and Spain.
4. Fall of the Roman Empire (5th century)
Two powerful blows- in 410 the Visigoths and in 476 the Germans - crushed the seemingly eternal Roman Empire. This jeopardized the achievements of ancient European civilization. The crisis of Ancient Rome did not come suddenly, but for a long time matured from the inside. The military and political decline of the empire, which began in the 3rd century, gradually led to the weakening of centralized power: it could no longer manage the sprawling and multinational empire. The ancient state was replaced by feudal Europe with its new organizing center - the “Holy Roman Empire”. Europe plunged into the abyss of turmoil and discord for several centuries.
5. Schism of the church (1054)
The final schism occurred in 1054 christian church to East and West. Its reason was the desire of Pope Leo IX to obtain territories that were subordinate to Patriarch Michael Cerullarius. The result of the dispute was mutual church curses (anathemas) and public accusations of heresy. The Western Church was called Roman Catholic (Roman Universal Church), and the Eastern Church was called Orthodox. The path to the Schism was long (almost six centuries) and began with the so-called Acacian schism of 484.
6. Little Ice Age (1312-1791)
Beginning of the Small ice age, which began in 1312, led to a whole environmental disaster. According to experts, during the period from 1315 to 1317, almost a quarter of the population died out in Europe due to the Great Famine. Hunger was a constant companion of people throughout the Little Ice Age. During the period from 1371 to 1791, there were 111 famine years in France alone. In 1601 alone, half a million people died in Russia from famine due to crop failures.
However, the Little Ice Age gave the world not only famine and high mortality. It also became one of the reasons for the birth of capitalism. Coal became the source of energy. For its extraction and transportation, workshops with hired workers began to be organized, which became a harbinger of the scientific and technological revolution and the birth of a new formation public organization- capitalism. Some researchers (Margaret Anderson) also connect the settlement of America with the consequences of the Little Ice Age - people came for a better life from Europe “forsaken by God.”
7. Age of Great Geographical Discoveries (XV-XVII centuries)
Age of the Greats geographical discoveries radically expanded the ecumene of humanity. In addition, it created the opportunity for the leading European powers to make maximum use of their overseas colonies, exploiting their human and Natural resources and making fabulous profits from it. Some scholars also directly link the triumph of capitalism with transatlantic trade, which gave rise to commercial and financial capital.
8. Reformation (XVI-XVII centuries)
The beginning of the Reformation is considered to be the speech of Martin Luther, Doctor of Theology at the University of Wittenberg: on October 31, 1517, he nailed his “95 Theses” to the doors of the Wittenberg Castle Church. In them he spoke out against existing abuses catholic church, in particular against the sale of indulgences.
The Reformation process gave rise to many so-called Protestant Wars, which seriously influenced the political structure of Europe. Historians consider the signing of the Peace of Westphalia in 1648 to be the end of the Reformation.
9. The Great French Revolution (1789-1799)
The Great War that broke out in 1789 French revolution not only transformed France from a monarchy into a republic, but also summed up the collapse of the old European order. Its slogan: “Freedom, equality, brotherhood” excited the minds of revolutionaries for a long time. The French Revolution not only laid the foundations for democratization European society– it appeared as a cruel machine of senseless terror, the victims of which were about 2 million people.
10. Napoleonic Wars (1799-1815)
Napoleon's irrepressible imperial ambitions plunged Europe into chaos for 15 years. It all started with an invasion French troops to Italy, and ended in an inglorious defeat in Russia. Being talented commander Napoleon, however, did not disdain the threats and intrigues with which he subjugated Spain and Holland to his influence, and also convinced Prussia to join the alliance, but then unceremoniously betrayed its interests.
During the Napoleonic Wars, the Kingdom of Italy, the Grand Duchy of Warsaw and whole line other small territorial entities. The commander's final plans included the division of Europe between two emperors - himself and Alexander I, as well as the overthrow of Britain. But the inconsistent Napoleon himself changed his plans. The defeat in 1812 by Russia led to the collapse of Napoleonic plans in the rest of Europe. The Treaty of Paris (1814) returned France to its former 1792 borders.
11. Industrial revolution (XVII-XIX centuries)
The Industrial Revolution in Europe and the USA made it possible to move from an agricultural society to an industrial one over the course of only 3-5 generations. The invention of the steam engine in England in the second half of the 17th century is considered to be the conventional beginning of this process. With time steam engines began to be used in production, and then as a driving mechanism for steam locomotives and steamships.
The main achievements of the era Industrial Revolution can be considered the mechanization of labor, the invention of the first conveyors, machine tools, and the telegraph. The advent of railways was a huge step.
Second World War took place on the territory of 40 countries, and 72 states took part in it. According to some estimates, 65 million people died in it. The war significantly weakened Europe's position in global politics and economics and led to the creation of a bipolar system in world geopolitics. Some countries were able to achieve independence during the war: Ethiopia, Iceland, Syria, Lebanon, Vietnam, Indonesia. In countries of Eastern Europe, busy Soviet troops, socialist regimes were established. World War II also led to the creation of the UN.
14. Scientific and technological revolution (mid-20th century)
The scientific and technological revolution, the onset of which is usually attributed to the middle of the last century, made it possible to automate production, entrusting control and management production processes electronics. The role of information has seriously increased, which also allows us to talk about an information revolution. With the advent of rocket and space technology, human exploration of near-Earth space began.
Beginning of the 19th century was a dramatic period in European history. For almost 15 years in a row, battles raged in Europe, blood was shed, states collapsed and borders were redrawn. Napoleonic France was at the center of the events. She won a number of victories over other powers, but was ultimately defeated and lost all her conquests.
Victory allied powers over Napoleonic France ended a turbulent period in European history that began with the French Revolution XVII I century Peace has come. The winners had to solve many questions political structure post-war Europe.
England, small in size and population, ranked first in the world in terms of volume. industrial production and financial resources. Political system in England was one of the most democratic. But despite this, there were many disadvantaged people here too.
By the beginning of the 20th century. England lost first place in terms of industrial production, but remained the strongest maritime, colonial power and financial center in the world. IN political life restrictions continued monarchical power and strengthening the role of parliament.
During this period, France experienced a change of three political regimes: two monarchical and one republican. The then established empire of Napoleon III also turned out to be fragile, despite serious economic achievements and some foreign policy successes.
At the beginning of 1848, all of Europe was shocked by bourgeois-democratic revolutions, which affected all countries and essentially merged into one powerful movement. Their the most important tasks were the elimination of feudal orders, the destruction of absolutism and the establishment of a constitutional system. In Germany, Italy, Austrian Empire had to resolve the issue of the relationship between different peoples. The struggle for these goals was carried out by the bourgeoisie, intelligentsia, workers, artisans, and peasants. They were the main ones driving force revolutions.
IN German history second half of the 19th century V. two important events occurred: political unification and making Germany the strongest industrial country Europe. At the same time powerful German Empire considered herself deprived in the colonial sphere.
In the middle of the 19th century. There were about 20 million wage workers in Western countries. At this time, in the labor movement, along with economic all big role Political demands began to play a role. International organizations arose with the goal of changing the state system and gaining power by the working class.
What is culture? This question was raised by Europeans in the second half of the 19th century. Currently, there are more than five hundred definitions of culture. But scientists obviously won’t stop there. The word "culture" comes from Lat. cultura, which has several similar meanings: cultivation, upbringing, education, development, veneration.
In the 19th century Great strides have been made in the fields of education, science and technology. Scientific discoveries, which poured in as if from a cornucopia, contributed to the development of modern industry. Under their influence, people's ideas about the world around them and the centuries-old way of their life changed. Over the course of one century, a person moved from a carriage to a train, from a train to a car, in 1903.
The progressive people of Europe enthusiastically embraced the slogan of the French Revolution, “Liberty, Equality and Fraternity.” Many heard the music of the revolution in it and were filled with radiant hopes. But soon bitter disappointment set in. Beautiful slogans were distorted and replaced by revolutionary tyranny. Violent bloodshed first flooded France, then Europe.
The formation of industrial civilization had a huge impact on european art. As never before, it was in close connection with social life, spiritual and material needs of people. In the context of the growing interdependence of peoples, artistic movements and cultural achievements quickly spread throughout the world.
The USA was a new type of country. It did not have a past like European and Asian countries. But there was a democratic constitution, parliament and great opportunities for the development of the bourgeoisie. The Americans wisely took advantage of their favorable geographical location: mild climate, fertile lands, abundance of forests and minerals.
The most important and at the same time the most tragic event American history became the Civil War, which broke out in 1861. It took four years of brutal battles to keep the United States united. After bloody war The Americans, forgetting their differences, set to work together and turned their country into a power of global importance.
The 19th century was a time of great changes in the spiritual life of the United States. The industrial revolution and economic success destroyed the strict Puritan injunctions, which condemned art created not by reason, but by feeling. Everything inspired optimistic confidence in the great destiny of America. People naively believed in their unlimited capabilities.
In history Latin America XIX century the most important event was the formation of independent Latin American states. Spain and Portugal were the first European countries who lost their richest colonies. However, the collapse colonial system, created by Europeans, occurred only in the second half of the 20th century.
Autocracy and serfdom were an obstacle to modernization Russian society in the 19th century Most feudal landowners did not realize this. Only the advanced part of the nobility, disillusioned with the inactivity of the tsar and the government, tried to change the situation themselves by force.
The second period (1815-1825) of the reign of Alexander I was characterized by most historians as conservative in relation to the first period (1802-1814) - liberal, aimed at implementing large-scale reforms in Russia. The strengthening of the conservative trend and the establishment of a strict police regime in the country are associated with the name of the all-powerful A.
60-70s - this is a time of radical transformations in Russia, which affected almost all the most important aspects of the life of society and the state. For relatively short term reforms were carried out in the country in the fields of economics, management, military affairs, education and culture.
The accession to the throne of Alexander II, the weakening of censorship, some liberalization of the government policy in comparison with Nicholas's time, rumors about upcoming transformations and, first of all, the preparation for the abolition of serfdom - all this had an exciting effect on Russian society, especially for young people.
Socio-economic processes that took place in Russia during turn of XIX-XX centuries, were extremely contradictory. Economic success combined with a backward system government controlled, restrictions on freedom of enterprise, and the reluctance of tsarism to carry out consistent reforms aimed at modernizing the country.
Russian Revolution 1905-1907 is one of the late bourgeois revolutions. 250 years separated her from English revolution XVII century, more than a century - from the Great French Revolution, more than half a century - from the European revolutions of 1848-1849. The first Russian bourgeois revolution differed from its predecessors in European countries.
Less than 10 years separate Russia from the end of the first bourgeois-democratic revolution of 1905-1907. before the start of the second - in February 1917, which radically changed the whole course historical development Russia. During this period, the autocracy tried to resolve the most important socio-economic and political issues raised by the revolution through gradual reforms.
Characteristic features of the culture of the first half of the 19th century. were: its democratization; an increase in the number of cultural figures from unprivileged classes; close interaction of Russian culture with world culture, primarily with European culture; the beginning of world recognition best achievements Russian culture.
Abolition of serfdom, reforms of the 60-70s, rise social movement, the establishment of capitalism - all this contributed to the growth of enlightenment and the further development of culture. The leading role in art in the post-reform period belonged to the advanced common intelligentsia.
In 1868, an event occurred in Japan that dramatically changed the course of the historical development of this country. For the first time after the 12th century. Imperial power was restored. It was not just the Tokugawa shogunate, which began in 1603, that ended. The entire system of the shogunate, which had existed in Japan for almost seven hundred years, collapsed.
Of all the Asian countries, only Japan developed as independent state. She strove for power and prosperity in order to take a prominent place among the European powers. To this end, the imperial government borrowed from the West its scientific, technical, economic and political achievements. At the beginning of the 20th century.
The history of Europe begins with the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476. On the ruins of this largest state formed barbarian kingdoms, which became the basis of modern Western European states. History is conventionally divided into four stages: the Middle Ages, the New and Modern times and the modern era.
Western European Middle Ages
IN IV-V centuries AD Germanic tribes began to settle on the borders of the Roman Empire. The emperors recruited new settlers to serve, unaware of the fatal role they would play in the fate of their state. Gradually, the Roman army was filled with people from foreign lands, who, during the period of unrest that shook the empire, often determined the policies of the sovereigns, and sometimes even took part in coups, placing their own proteges on the throne.
This alignment of events led to the fact that in 476, the military leader Odoacer overthrew the last Roman emperor, Romulus Augustus, and new states of Western Europe were formed on the site of the former Western Roman Empire. The largest and most powerful of them was the kingdom of the Franks, which achieved power under the monarch Clovis. The new state reached its peak under the Frankish king Charlemagne, who assumed the title of emperor in 800. His possessions included Italian territories, part of Spain, and Saxon lands. The collapse of the empire after the death of Charlemagne determined further development mainland.
The history of Europe in the Middle Ages is characterized by the establishment of a feudal mode of production in most countries. The power of the monarch in the first stages of development was strong, but due to the strengthening of centrifugal tendencies, the state broke up into a number of independent possessions. IN XI-XII centuries begins rapid development cities that became the basis of capitalist production.
New time
Europe, whose history is characterized by a rapid pace of development, in XV-XVII centuries experienced a real turning point in the socio-economic and political relations First of all, because of the beginning, Portugal, Spain, and after them the Netherlands, France embarked on a real race to discover and conquer new territories.
IN economic sphere In the era under review, the period of the so-called primitive accumulation of capital begins, when the prerequisites for industrial revolution. England became a pioneer in machine production: it was in this country that the rapid development of large-scale industry began already in the 17th century. Europe, whose history had never known anything like it until now, experienced intensive development of industrial production largely thanks to the English experience.
The era of bourgeois revolutions
New history of Europe on next stage was largely determined by the replacement of feudalism with the capitalist mode of production. The consequence of this struggle was a whole series of bourgeois revolutions, which the XVII-XVIII centuries Europe. The history of these coups is closely connected with the crisis of absolutist regimes in the leading states of the mainland - England and France. Establishment unlimited power The monarch was met with stiff resistance from the third estate - the urban bourgeoisie, which demanded economic and political freedoms.
These ideas and aspirations of the new class were reflected in a new cultural movement - enlightenment, whose representatives put forward revolutionary ideas about the responsibility of the monarch to the people, natural human rights, etc. These theories and concepts became the ideological basis for bourgeois revolutions. The first such revolution occurred in the Netherlands in the 16th century, then in England in the 17th century. Great French revolution XVIII century marked new stage in the socio-economic and political development of Western Europe, since during its course feudal orders were legally abolished and a republic was established.
Western European countries in the 19th century
Understanding the meaning Napoleonic wars allows us to identify general patterns, according to which history developed in the century under review. The countries of Europe completely changed their appearance after Congress of Vienna 1815, which determined the new borders and territory of Western European states.
On the mainland, the principle of legitimism was proclaimed, which presupposed the need for government legitimate dynasties. At the same time, the gains of the revolutions and Napoleonic wars did not pass without a trace for the states of Europe. Capitalist production, creation large industry, heavy industry brought into the arena new class- the bourgeoisie, which from now on began to determine not only the economic, but also political development countries Europe, whose history was determined by changes in socio-economic formations, entered a new path of development, which was consolidated by Bismarck’s reforms in Germany,
20th century in the history of Western Europe
The new century was marked by two terrible world wars, which again led to changes in the map of the continent. After the end of the first war in 1918, they disbanded largest empires, and in their place new states were formed. Began to take shape military-political blocs, which subsequently played a decisive role in the Second World War, the main events of which unfolded on the Soviet-German front.
After its completion Western Europe became a springboard for the capitalist camp opposed to the Soviet Union. Such large political entities as NATO and the Western European Union were created here, as opposed to
Western European countries today
It is customary to include 11 states: Belgium, Austria, Great Britain, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein, Monaco, the Netherlands, Switzerland, France. However, for political reasons, it is customary to also include Finland, Denmark, Italy, Spain, Portugal, and Greece in this list.
In the 21st century, the mainland continues to move toward political and economic integration. The Schengen area contributes to the unification of states in the most various fields. At the same time, these days there are centrifugal aspirations of a number of states that want to pursue an independent policy, regardless of the decision of the European Union. The latter circumstance indicates the growth of a number of serious contradictions in European zone, which are aggravated by migration processes, which have especially intensified recently.