Europe 1848: June Days

The apparent success of the European revolutions belied the divisions between the city-based reformers, who desired everything from moderate reforms to the complete overthrow of the current systems of government, and the general population, who were often traditionalists. Thus when the new French Republic implemented universal male suffrage, the people elected a conservative government. Shocked, the urban workers and radicals took to the streets of Paris in June but were crushed by the National Guard. The monarchies of Europe took note—if even France could rein in its revolutionaries, so could they.

Main Events

15 May 1848 Counterrevolution in Naples

King Ferdinand II of the Two Sicilies declared martial law in Naples, sending in troops to brutally crush the liberal opposition and plunder the city. Two days later he dissolved parliament and withdrew Naples from the First War of Italian Independence.in wikipedia

18 May 1848 Frankfurt Parliament

On 1 May 1848, as set out by the Vorparlament (pre-parliament), federal elections were held in all 38 states of the German Confederation to elect members for a new National Assembly. On the 18th these elected deputies gathered in the Kaiseraal in Frankfurt, in the Free State of Frankfurt, where they formally convened the assembly, known as the Frankfurt Parliament, and suspended the German Confederation. The parliament then began a year-long session of debate and deliberation in an attempt to restructure Germany to become a constitutional monarchy under an hereditary emperor.in wikipedia

2–12 Jun 1848 Pan-Slavic Congress

In June 1848 representatives from various Slavic groups—including Czechs, Slovaks, Poles, Ruthenians/Ukrainians, Slovenes and Croats—gathered in Prague, in the Kingdom of Bohemia in the Austrian Empire, to hold the first Pan-Slavic Congress. There were substantial disagreements among the 340 delegates present as to what the goals of the Congress were, with some arguing that the preservation of Austria was more important than nationalism. The Congress was brought to an abrupt end when Austrian soldiers arrived and arrested some of the leading delegates.in wikipedia

10 Jun 1848 Battle of Vicenza

At the end of May 1848 the Italians repulsed the forces of the Austrian Empire under Joseph Radetzky at Goito, Lombardy-Venetia. Undaunted, Radetzky instead turned and advanced on Vicenza, where his 30,000-strong army defeated 11,000 troops of the Papal States, under the command of Sardinian general Giacomo Durando, in June. The battle removed the Papal States from the First War of Italian Independence, linked the Austrian armies in northern Italy, and isolated Venice.in wikipedia

21–23 Jun 1848 Wallachian Revolution

On 21 June 1848 revolutionaries in Wallachia revealed their agenda, the Proclamation of Islaz, to a cheering crowd, prompting an immediate change of government. Concerned, the ruling Prince Gheorghe Bibescu asked his officers to take a renewed oath of allegiance, but was told that they would not shed the blood of Romanians. Encouraged the people rallied in the streets with the Romanian tricolor flying, prompting the prince to abdicate and the unpopular Russian consul to leave the country for Transylvania.in wikipedia

23–26 Jun 1848 June Days

On 23 April 1848 a conservative-leaning constituent assembly was elected to power in the newly formed Second French Republic, to the shock of the Parisian public and French radicals, who briefly and unsuccessfully attempted to dismantle the assembly by force. Two months later the new government announced the closure of National Workshops, which provided jobs and wages for the poor, prompting thousands of French workers and their supporters to march on the Place de la Bastille in Paris. By the end of 23 June the revolutionaries controlled most of eastern Paris, but, with the aid of the National Guard, the government suppressed the revolt over three days of fighting. More than 10,000 people were killed or injured in the uprising and, of the many insurgents arrested, over 4,000 were deported to Algeria, ending all hopes of a renewed revolution.in wikipedia