Reasons for the failure of the February Revolution.
Reasons for the failure of the February Revolution.
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Reasons for the failure of the February Revolution:-
The February Revolution 1848 gave rise to great expectations in France and the whole of Europe. As a result of the February Revolution, on the one hand, the monarchy fell, on the other hand, French progressive ideologies re-emerged. But the changes that were organized in the February Revolution did not last long. All the successes of the February Revolution were temporary. In fact, the foundation of the Second Republic that was established through the February Revolution was weak. The reasons for the fall of the February Revolution were -
1. Weak Republic:-
The February Revolution brought about the fall of the Orleans monarchy in France and the birth of the Second Republic. But the foundation of the Second Republic was not strong. Because, only the citizens of Paris and its surrounding areas were familiar with the ideals of the Republic. Its impact on the entire rural areas of France was negligible. Although the Republic was established, the farmers of France did not directly benefit. Therefore, the people of the rural areas were indifferent to the Second Republic.
2. Disagreements between Republican and Socialist Ideologies: -
As soon as the Second Republic was established, disagreements began between Republican and Socialist ideologies. Republicans such as La Martin were satisfied with establishing a republic in France. But when socialists such as Louis Blanc demanded progressive reforms such as workers' rights, wealth distribution, employment, etc., a sharp disagreement arose between the two ideologies and Louis Blanc was removed from the cabinet. Then, when socialists led by Louis Blanc organized workers and started a revolt, the Republican commander Cavignac killed about ten thousand workers and suppressed the revolt. As a result, workers' rights were abolished in the French Republic and the rights of the petty bourgeoisie were established.
3. Protests of unemployed workers: -
National labor camps were established for the purpose of providing employment to workers. But instead of employment, a scheme was introduced to provide workers with 2 francs as an allowance. This created dissatisfaction among the workers. The socialists complained that the government wanted to turn the workers into beggars by giving them allowances instead of employment. But the republicans were indifferent to the socialists' demands. As a result, the anger among the workers intensified.
4. Reactionary policy of the Republican Party: -
When the Republican Party won the French parliamentary elections by a large margin, they canceled various reform programs and removed the socialists from all important government positions. Even when the national labor camp was closed, the workers chose the path of revolution.
5. Civil War: -
In the above situation, the workers blocked the streets of Paris and the republican commander Cavignac killed about ten thousand workers and suppressed the rebellion. As a result, the republican government lost the support of the peasants, workers and the common people; the bloody hands of the republic made people anti-republican; In addition, this civil war caused great damage to industry, business and internal peace and order.
6. Economic crisis:-
Civil war, recession in trade, failure in agricultural production, etc. Economic crisis appeared before the republican government due to various reasons. When the issue of the economic crisis came to light, the weakness of the republican government became evident among the common people and the republican government soon lost public support.
7. Taxation on farmers:-
To get rid of the economic crisis, the republican government was forced to implement economic reforms without seeing any other way out. But in the name of economic reforms, a new tax burden was imposed on the farmers. On the other hand, the farmers were already poor and deprived of their rights. Therefore, they refused to pay this additional tax. As a result, the situation became more complicated.
8. Disagreements regarding policy:-
In addition, there was a strong disagreement within the republican government regarding policy. They were unable to decide which approach to adopt in determining the future of France. Many contradictory ideologies came to the fore. One group wanted to establish a monarchy in France under the King of Sardinia-Piedmont; another group wanted to establish a theocracy in France under the leadership of the Pope. On the other hand, some were in favor of establishing a republic. These conflicting ideologies led the Second Republic to a more critical situation.
9. The influence of military power: -
Military power played an important role in suppressing liberal revolutions. Military power did not join any uprising against the monarchy. The entire Austrian military was loyal to the Austrian Emperor. The Prussian military was also loyal to the king. As a result, military power was used to suppress European reactionary and revolutionary uprisings.
10. Election of Louis Napoleon as President and End of the Second Republic:-
Then, when the presidential election was held, Louis Napoleon, a descendant of Napoleon Bonaparte, defeated the Republican candidate Cavignac by a large margin. Louis Napoleon did not believe in the ideals of the Republic. As a result, he dissolved the parliament on December 2, 1851, and due to his immense popularity, he was easily elected President for a second time.
On the one hand, people were averse to the Republic, seeing the weakness and inefficiency of the republican regime, on the other hand, Louis Napoleon was a descendant of Napoleon Bonaparte. As a result, he became acceptable to the people of France. The common people wanted a stable government rather than a republic. On the other hand, the farmers thought that Louis Napoleon would protect their rights and property. In addition, the common people hoped that Louis Napoleon would bring back the glorious chapter of Napoleon Bonaparte. Then, on December 2, 1852, Louis Napoleon declared the end of the Second Republic, and with that, the February Revolution ended in failure.
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