Patching Up Europe

This lesson's essential question asked: What should people in power do when their power is threatened? In class we learned about the fall of Napoleon, and thought about what we should do with war-torn Europe and it's inhabitants. We watched a video clip on Klemens von Metternich, and learned about the Congress of Vienna.  Metternich had approached Napoleon and requested that he give up his conquests and restore old boundaries. Napoleon denied and threatened to go to war against Austria again. The congress of Vienna was soon started to figure out what would become of Europe after Napoleon was finally defeated, and attempted to reverse Napoleon's changes. We then were presented with the challenges of the Congress of Vienna and tried to solve them from Metternich's conservative point of view. 

The Congress of Vienna (http://germanhistorydocs.ghi-dc.org/images/30011286-p%20copy.jpg)

One of the concepts introduced at the Congress of Vienna was the Balance of Power. Like its name suggests, the Balance of Power balanced power between Russia, Austria, Prussia, Britain and France. Napoleon, not the French people, was ultimately viewed as the enemy. However, the French people did have to return stolen artwork and wealth. This balance ensured that there was no war between the major powers for the next thirty years after the Congress of Vienna. The Congress of Vienna ultimately helped to make France a constitutional monarchy, quell revolution, gave people freedom of religion, issued statements against slave trade and for the protection of Jews.
I agree with the people of the Congress of Vienna. When leaders have their power threaten, if they want to keep their position, they need to tighten their rule. By teaming up, the major powers could cooperate to prevent rebellion. While Napoleon had some very good ideas, the conservative people who were in charge did not agree, and when their power was returned, they wanted to prevent any more Napoleonic shenanigans. This may not have benefited the lower classes, but it returned the wealthy aristocrats to their previous positions. Perhaps it was a bad idea to complete get rid of Napoleon's ideas, and they could've been kinder to the now thriving lower classes. Sometimes, it is better to sacrifice power for the greater good, but it is often hard for leaders to understand this.  In an ideal world, leaders would be perfect and be very willing to sacrifice anything, but in reality, they are human just like the rest of us, and it is understandable that they don't want to risk losing power.