XIX Europe in Blossom. Part One: The Western World 1821-1871

This series of historical meetings is timed to the close of the 19th century, an era that rapidly began shaping the modern world.

After the French Revolution and Napoleonic Wars, Europe attempts to restore the old order, but this proves impossible: a self-aware society feels confined by old borders. Scientific and technological breakthroughs open unprecedented horizons, deepen social inequality, and give rise to new political movements like socialism and nationalism.

The imperial race among France, Britain, and Russia; the whirlpool of the American Civil War; the decline of the Ottoman and Habsburg empires; the birth of new nations Italy and Germany. This lecture will trace how this period transformed humanity and laid the foundations of the world we live in today.