7.2 Nationalism

Nationalism between 1815 and 1914 was the idea that people who share a language, history, or culture should have loyalty to their own nation and often their own state. It took many forms, from romantic idealism and liberal reform to racialism and anti-Semitism, and conservative leaders like Napoleon III, Cavour, and Bismarck learned to use popular nationalism to build or strengthen states.

Nationalism AP Euro Summary

In AP Euro 7.2, nationalism means loyalty to a nation based on shared identity, culture, language, history, or political goals. From 1815 to 1914, nationalism affected Europe by inspiring liberal reform, Italian and German unification, exclusionary racialism and anti-Semitism, Zionism, and new strategies for strengthening states.

The key exam move is to explain nationalism as a flexible force, not one single ideology. It could unite people around a nation-state, help conservative leaders build power, or divide societies by defining minorities as outsiders.

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Why This Matters for the AP European History Exam

Nationalism is one of the central forces of the 19th century, so it shows up across multiple-choice questions, short-answer questions, and essays. You will often need to explain how nationalism developed and how it affected Europe, which lines up with causation and continuity/change reasoning. Because nationalism had several faces (unifying, liberal, racialist, anti-Semitic), it is also strong material for source analysis and for building arguments where you compare different forms of the same idea.

This topic also sets up later content. The unification of Italy and Germany, rising diplomatic tensions, and the alliance systems that fed into World War I all grow out of the nationalism you learn here.

Key Takeaways

• Nationalists encouraged loyalty to the nation in many ways: romantic idealism, liberal reform, political unification, racialism with anti-Semitism, and chauvinism that justified national expansion.
• A new generation of conservative leaders (Napoleon III, Cavour, Bismarck) used popular nationalism to create or strengthen the state instead of resisting it.
• Anti-Semitism grew even as many western European Jews became more socially and politically acculturated during the 19th century.
• Zionism, a form of Jewish nationalism led by figures like Theodor Herzl, developed late in the century as a response to rising anti-Semitism.
• The Austro-Hungarian dual monarchy recognized the political power of the largest ethnic minority (Hungarians) to try to stabilize a multiethnic state.
• Nationalism could both unite people into new nation-states and divide societies by excluding minority groups.

The Many Forms of Nationalism

Nationalism is loyalty to a nation, usually based on shared language, history, culture, or ethnicity. In the 19th century it did not have one single face. Nationalists pushed national loyalty through several channels:

• Romantic idealism: emotional and cultural bonds like shared language, folklore, and national history. Writers and thinkers such as Johann Gottlieb Fichte, the Grimm Brothers, and Giuseppe Mazzini are examples of figures who promoted this kind of cultural nationalism. Pan-Slavists pushed a version that stressed shared Slavic identity.
• Liberal reform: the idea that a unified nation should also have constitutions, expanded rights, and representative government.
• Political unification: the drive to bring fragmented territories together into one state, which mattered enormously for Italy and Germany.
• Racialism and chauvinism: ideas of national or racial superiority that could justify national aggrandizement (expanding a nation's power and prestige) and the exclusion of minority groups.

That range is the key point. The same word covers a movement that could be hopeful and reform-minded in one place and aggressive or exclusionary in another.

Conservatives Use Nationalism

Early in the century, many conservatives feared nationalism because it was tied to revolution and liberal change. By mid-century, a new generation of conservative leaders flipped that strategy and used popular nationalism to build or strengthen the state.

• Napoleon III in France, Cavour in the Italian states, and Bismarck in Prussia all harnessed national feeling for state-building.
• The idea was practical: instead of fighting nationalism, channel it into loyalty to an existing or emerging state.

This is the bridge to the next topic. The same leaders, especially Cavour and Bismarck, drive the unification of Italy and Germany covered in 7.3.

Anti-Semitism and the Dark Side of Nationalism

Nationalism that defined the nation by ethnicity or race often treated some groups as outsiders. Jewish communities were a frequent target.

During the 19th century, western European Jews generally became more socially and politically acculturated, meaning more integrated into national life. At the same time, anti-Semitism grew across Europe, often tied to nationalist movements that defined belonging in narrow ethnic or religious terms.

Examples that illustrate this rising anti-Semitism include:

• The Dreyfus affair in France, where Captain Alfred Dreyfus, a Jewish army officer, was wrongly convicted of treason in 1894. The scandal exposed deep anti-Semitism in French society and split the country over his innocence.
• The Christian Social Party in Germany and Karl Lueger, the mayor of Vienna, whose politics drew on anti-Semitic appeals.

Treat these as illustrative examples of the pattern, not as a required checklist.

Zionism as a Response

Zionism, a form of Jewish nationalism, developed late in the 19th century as a response to growing anti-Semitism throughout Europe. Theodor Herzl is the key figure to know. Zionism called for a Jewish homeland where Jews could live free from persecution. The important connection for this topic is that Zionism was itself a nationalist movement, sparked by the exclusionary nationalism around it.

The Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy

Multiethnic empires faced a serious problem in the age of nationalism: how do you hold together a state full of different national groups who each want recognition or independence?

The Austrian Empire answered with the creation of the dual monarchy of Austria-Hungary in 1867. This arrangement recognized the political power of the largest ethnic minority, the Hungarians, by giving Austria and Hungary separate parliaments while sharing the same Habsburg ruler. It was an attempt to stabilize the state by reconfiguring national unity rather than suppressing it.

The takeaway: this was a compromise meant to manage nationalism, not eliminate it. Other national groups inside the empire still had grievances, which is why nationalism remained a long-term threat to Austria-Hungary.

How to Use This on the AP European History Exam

Multiple Choice

Expect sources (speeches, posters, political cartoons, excerpts) that show one form of nationalism. Identify which form it is: romantic/cultural, liberal, unifying, or racialist/anti-Semitic. Watch for questions that connect a leader like Bismarck or Napoleon III to the strategy of using nationalism for state-building.

Free Response

When a prompt asks how nationalism affected Europe, do not write only about unification. Strong answers show its range: it built new states, fueled liberal reform, and also produced anti-Semitism and chauvinism. That complexity is exactly what graders reward.

• For causation prompts, link nationalism to outcomes like Italian and German unification or the instability of multiethnic empires.
• For continuity and change prompts, contrast early-century nationalism (often tied to liberal revolution) with later nationalism (more racialist and aggressive).

Using Sources Effectively

Use point of view and purpose. A nationalist appeal from a reformer reads very differently from one tied to racial superiority, even if both use the word "nation." Naming the specific form of nationalism is a quick way to show sophisticated understanding.

Common Trap

Avoid treating nationalism as one single, always-positive force. The prompt usually wants you to recognize that nationalism both united and divided people.

Common Misconceptions

• Nationalism was always liberal or progressive. It could be liberal and reform-minded, but it could also be racialist, anti-Semitic, and aggressively expansionist. Both belong in your understanding.
• Conservatives always opposed nationalism. Leaders like Napoleon III, Cavour, and Bismarck deliberately used popular nationalism to strengthen the state.
• Zionism appeared randomly. Zionism developed specifically as a response to growing anti-Semitism in Europe and was itself a form of nationalism.
• The dual monarchy solved Austria-Hungary's nationality problem. It only addressed the largest minority, the Hungarians. Many other national groups remained dissatisfied, so tensions continued.
• Acculturation ended anti-Semitism. Many western European Jews became more integrated during the 19th century, yet anti-Semitism still grew, which is part of why Zionism emerged.

Related AP European History Guides

• Unit 7 Overview: 19th-Century Perspectives and Political Developments
• 7.6 New Imperialism: Motivations and Methods
• 7.1 Context of 19th Century Politics
• 7.7 Imperialism’s Global Effects
• 7.3 National Unification and Diplomatic Tensions
• 7.4 Darwinism and Social Darwinism