‘Revolution’ as an Event

Abstract

The widespread discontent so clearly evident in Europe at the beginning of 1848 was not in itself sufficient to cause a revolution. Very few people even considered the possibility of revolution. Why, then, in some areas, did conflict begin between representatives of the state and some of its subjects, and why in certain circumstances did this lead to revolutionary situations, that is, those in which a change of government occurred and in which the possibility of major social changes was at least in prospect? Why, moreover, was so much of the continent affected? Looking at the geography of revolution, one obvious point was that it began in capital cities — the foci for political activity, but also urban centres experiencing rapid economic change and population growth — and only subsequently affected other towns and rural areas. The outbreak in Paris on 23–24 February was clearly a major stimulant, everywhere serving to intensify governmental crises of confidence and to encourage opposition. Nevertheless the subsequent evolution of revolutionary situations depended primarily upon local and national circumstance.