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Congress of Vienna Timeline

(September 18, 1814 – June 9, 1815)

The Congress of Vienna was a series of diplomatic meetings held in Vienna between 1814 and 1815, chaired by Austrian statesman Klemens von Metternich. Following the defeat of Napoleon Bonaparte, representatives of the major European powers—including Austria, Britain, Russia, Prussia, and France—gathered to restore stability, redraw the continent's political boundaries, reestablish a balance of power, and prevent future large-scale wars in Europe. Less

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Diplomacy & Alliances

Castlereagh leads British delegation

Sep 1814 - Feb 1815

The United Kingdom was represented first by its Foreign Secretary, Viscount Castlereagh, who played a central role in brokering compromises among the powers until his return to England in February 1815.

Image source: Robert Stewart, Viscount Castlereagh

Castlereagh leads British delegation

Talleyrand advocates France at the Congress

Sep 1814 - Jun 1815

Having already negotiated the Treaty of Paris (1814) for Louis XVIII, Talleyrand skillfully represented France at the Congress, leveraging divisions among the Allies to restore France to a place among the great powers.

Image source: Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord

Talleyrand advocates France at the Congress

Preliminary conference on protocol convened

Sep 30, 1814

The major Allies' indecision over how to conduct their affairs without provoking a united protest from the lesser powers led to the calling of a preliminary conference on protocol, to which Talleyrand of France and the Marquess of Labrador, Spain's representative, were invited on 30 September 1814.

Image source: Congress of Vienna

Preliminary conference on protocol convened

Spain's Marquess of Labrador joins preliminary talks

Sep 30, 1814

The Marquess of Labrador represented Spain when he was invited to the preliminary conference on protocol on 30 September 1814, though Spain would ultimately become the most important hold-out against the Congress settlement.

Image source: Pedro Gómez Labrador

Spain's Marquess of Labrador joins preliminary talks

Secret treaty against Russo-Prussian plan signed

Jan 3, 1815

Britain, France, and Austria signed a secret treaty among only the three of them, agreeing to go to war against Russia and Prussia if necessary to prevent the Russo-Prussian partition plans for Poland and Saxony from coming to fruition.

Wellington replaces Castlereagh as British representative

Feb 1815 - Jun 1815

After Castlereagh's return to England in February 1815, the Duke of Wellington took over as Britain's principal representative at the Congress of Vienna.

Image source: Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington

Wellington replaces Castlereagh as British representative

Portugal raises claim to Olivenza

Feb 1815 - Jun 1815

Portugal pressed at the Congress for the return of the town of Olivenza and other territories ceded to Spain by the Treaty of Badajoz of 1801, a claim that made Spain the most important hold-out against the settlement.

Image source: Olivenza

Portugal raises claim to Olivenza

Alexander I promotes Holy Alliance principles

Mar 1815 - Jun 1815

Tsar Alexander I succeeded in forming the basis of the Holy Alliance, based on monarchism and anti-secularism, created to combat any threat of revolution or republicanism, drawing on the spirit of the Congress deliberations.

Image source: Holy Alliance

Alexander I promotes Holy Alliance principles

Congress Proceedings

Metternich chairs the Congress

Sep 20, 1814 - Jun 9, 1815

Austrian statesman Klemens von Metternich, Duke Metternich, chaired the Congress throughout its duration in Vienna, guiding the diplomatic proceedings and shaping the conservative settlement that would define European politics for decades.

Image source: Klemens von Metternich

Metternich chairs the Congress

Congress of Vienna opens

Sep 20, 1814

The Congress of Vienna formally began its work in Vienna in September 1814, gathering representatives of the great European powers to discuss and agree upon a new political and constitutional order for Europe following the downfall of French emperor Napoleon Bonaparte.

Hundred Days erupt; Congress negotiations continue

Mar 20, 1815 - Jun 9, 1815

Remarkably, negotiations continued unaffected despite the outbreak of fighting triggered by Napoleon's return from exile and resumption of power in France during the Hundred Days of March to July 1815.

Image source: Hundred Days

Hundred Days erupt; Congress negotiations continue

Final Act of the Congress signed

Jun 9, 1815

The Final Act, embodying all the separate treaties produced by the Congress, was signed on 9 June 1815, nine days before Napoleon's final defeat at Waterloo, completing the redrawing of the European order.

Territorial Settlements

Poland-Saxony crisis dominates negotiations

Oct 1814 - Jan 1815

The fate of Poland and Saxony became the most explosive issue at the Congress, as Tsar Alexander I sought most of the Duchy of Warsaw while Prussia demanded all of Saxony, alarming Austria, Britain, and France.

Russia's retention of Finland confirmed

Oct 1814

In addition to its role in Poland, Russia retained Finland at the Congress, which it had annexed from Sweden in 1809 and would hold until 1917 as the Grand Duchy of Finland.

Image source: Grand Duchy of Finland

Russia's retention of Finland confirmed

Swedish Pomerania sold to Prussia

Oct 1814

Swedish Pomerania, which had been given to Denmark in January 1814 in return for the Kingdom of Norway, was sold to Prussia as part of the territorial rearrangements settled at the Congress.

Image source: Swedish Pomerania

Swedish Pomerania sold to Prussia

Mediatization gains of German states recognized

Nov 1814

Most of the territorial gains of Bavaria, Württemberg, Baden, Hesse-Darmstadt, and Nassau under the mediatizations of 1801–1806 were recognized by the Congress, confirming these states' enlarged territories.

Image source: German mediatisation

Mediatization gains of German states recognized

Duchy of Lucca established for Bourbon-Parma

Nov 1814

The Duchy of Lucca was established temporarily as compensation for the House of Bourbon-Parma, with reversionary rights to Parma after the death of Marie Louise, attributed through a collateral treaty stipulating Lucca would later be annexed by Tuscany.

Image source: Duchy of Lucca

Duchy of Lucca established for Bourbon-Parma

German consolidation into thirty-nine states debated

Nov 1814 - Jun 1815

The consolidation of Germany from the nearly 300 states of the dissolved Holy Roman Empire into a much less complex system of thirty-nine states, four of which were free cities, was confirmed through protracted negotiation at the Congress.

Image source: German Confederation

German consolidation into thirty-nine states debated

Division of Italy into independent states agreed

Dec 1814

Among the decisions reaffirmed from the Treaty of Chaumont was the division of Italy into independent states, reversing the unification imposed under Bonaparte and restoring dynastic rulers across the peninsula.

Restoration of the Bourbon kings of Spain agreed

Dec 1814

The Congress reaffirmed decisions including the restoration of the Bourbon kings of Spain, part of the broader principle of legitimacy championed by the Allies after the fall of Napoleon.

Enlargement of the Netherlands decided

Dec 1814

The Congress agreed to enlarge the Netherlands to include what in 1830 became modern Belgium, creating a strong buffer state on France's northern border.

Image source: United Kingdom of the Netherlands

Enlargement of the Netherlands decided

Establishment of a confederated Germany planned

Dec 1814 - Jun 1815

A key decision reaffirmed from the Treaty of Chaumont was the establishment of a confederated Germany, replacing the old Holy Roman Empire with a loose association of sovereign German states.

Murat backs Napoleon, launching Neapolitan War

Mar 1815 - May 1815

Joachim Murat, the king installed by Bonaparte in Naples, supported Napoleon in the Hundred Days and started the 1815 Neapolitan War by attacking Austria, jeopardizing his throne.

Image source: Neapolitan War

Murat backs Napoleon, launching Neapolitan War

British colonial gains under Treaty of Paris affirmed

Apr 1815

Under Article VIII of the Treaty of Paris (1814), France ceded Tobago, Saint Lucia, the Isle of France and its dependencies including Rodrigues and the Seychelles to Britain, arrangements woven into the Congress settlement.

Ferdinand IV moves to regain Kingdom of Naples

May 1815

Following Murat's defeat, Ferdinand IV, the Bourbon King of Sicily, moved to regain control of the Kingdom of Naples, a restoration underpinned by the Congress's settlement of Italy.

Image source: Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies

Ferdinand IV moves to regain Kingdom of Naples

Prussia awarded sixty percent of Saxony

May 1815

Under the compromise reached, Prussia received 60 percent of Saxony, much of which became part of the new Province of Saxony from 1816, while the remainder returned to King Frederick Augustus I as his Kingdom of Saxony.

Image source: Province of Saxony

Prussia awarded sixty percent of Saxony

France's loss of annexed territories confirmed

May 1815

Apart from its other results, the Congress confirmed France's loss of the territories it had annexed between 1795 and 1810, which had already been settled by the Treaty of Paris.

Russia enlarges with most of Duchy of Warsaw

Jun 1815

Among the Congress's principal results was the enlargement of Russia, which gained most of the Duchy of Warsaw, creating the Congress Kingdom of Poland under the Tsar's rule.

Image source: Duchy of Warsaw

Russia enlarges with most of Duchy of Warsaw

Prussia acquires Poznań, Westphalia, and Rhineland

Jun 1815

Prussia acquired the district of Poznań, Swedish Pomerania, Westphalia, and the northern Rhineland, significantly strengthening its position in western Germany as a barrier against France.

Legacy & Impact

Foundations of the Concert of Europe laid

May 1815 - Jun 9, 1815

The Congress of Vienna settlement gave birth to the Concert of Europe, an international political doctrine emphasizing maintaining political boundaries, the balance of powers, and respecting spheres of influence, guiding European foreign policy until 1914.

Key Facts

  1. The Congress of Vienna (1814-1815) was convened after Napoleon's defeat to restore order and stability to Europe following the Napoleonic Wars.
  2. Austrian diplomat Klemens von Metternich hosted and dominated the Congress, promoting the principle of conservatism and the restoration of legitimate monarchies.
  3. The Congress established the principle of the balance of power, ensuring that no single nation could dominate Europe as France had under Napoleon.
  4. Major territorial changes included the enlargement of Prussia and Russia, the creation of a German Confederation replacing the Holy Roman Empire, and the restoration of Bourbon rule in France.
  5. The settlement created the Concert of Europe, an informal system of great-power cooperation that helped prevent major European wars for nearly a century.

Source

This Congress of Vienna timeline was generated with the help of AI, using information found on the internet.

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