What was 19th-century nationalism, and why did it become so powerful?
Topic 7.2 Nationalism: the idea of the nation, its romantic and liberal roots, and how it became the dominant political force of the 19th century, uniting some peoples and dividing others.
A focused answer to AP European History Topic 7.2, on 19th-century nationalism: the idea that peoples sharing a language, culture, and history should form their own nation-state, its romantic and liberal roots, and how it both unified peoples (Italy, Germany) and threatened the multinational empires.
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What this topic is asking
Topic 7.2 asks you to explain nationalism: what the idea of the nation meant, where it came from, and how it became the dominant political force of the 19th century. The College Board wants you to see nationalism's romantic and liberal roots and its double power to unite some peoples and divide others.
What nationalism means
The roots of nationalism
The power to unite
The power to divide
But nationalism cut both ways.
Why it mattered
Nationalism is the master theme of Unit 7 and one of the most consequential forces in modern history. It built the great nation-states of Italy and Germany (Topic 7.3), destabilized the multinational empires, justified the New Imperialism, and, in its racial forms, paved the way for the catastrophes of the 20th century. Understanding nationalism, its roots, its power to unite and divide, and its shifting character, is essential to the politics of the whole later course.
Try this
Q1. Define nationalism in one sentence. [Recall]
- Cue. The belief that a people sharing a common language, culture, and history should govern itself in its own nation-state, above older loyalties to dynasty, region, or religion.
Q2. Explain how nationalism could both unite and divide 19th-century Europe. [Short explanation]
- Cue. It united peoples into new nation-states (Italy, Germany) but also drove the many peoples of the multinational empires to demand self-rule, threatening to tear Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman, and the Russian empires apart.
Exam-style practice questions
Practice questions written in the style of College Board exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.
AP 2018 (style)3 marksBriefly describe ONE belief of 19th-century nationalism. Briefly explain ONE root of nationalism. Briefly explain ONE way nationalism could divide as well as unite.Show worked answer →
A Short Answer Question (SAQ), 3 points, one per task.
A. Describe: that a people sharing language, culture, and history should govern itself in its own nation-state.
B. Root: the French Revolution's idea of the sovereign nation, and Romanticism's celebration of the unique spirit and past of each people.
C. How it divided: the many peoples of the multinational empires demanded self-rule, threatening to break those empires apart.
Markers want a belief, a root, and the divisive side of nationalism.
AP 2021 (style)6 marksEvaluate the extent to which nationalism was the most powerful political force in 19th-century Europe.Show worked answer →
A Long Essay Question (LEQ), scored on the 6-point argumentation rubric.
Thesis (1): "Nationalism was the most powerful political force of the 19th century, remaking the map through unification and threatening the multinational empires, though it worked alongside liberalism, industrialization, and Realpolitik."
Contextualization (1): the legacy of the French Revolution and the ideologies of Unit 6.
Evidence (2): the unification of Italy and Germany; nationalist strains in Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman lands; the romantic and liberal roots of national feeling.
Analysis (2): argue nationalism was central while showing how it combined with other forces, then add complexity by noting its double power to unite and to divide.
Related dot points
- Topic 7.1 Contextualizing 19th-Century Perspectives and Political Developments: the legacy of revolution, nationalism, and industrialization that shaped the politics, ideas, and imperial expansion of the later 19th century.
A focused answer to AP European History Topic 7.1, setting the scene for Unit 7: how the legacies of the French Revolution, the rise of nationalism, and industrialization combined to shape the nation-building, imperialism, and new ideas (from realism to Social Darwinism) of the later 19th century.
- Topic 7.3 National Unification and Diplomatic Tensions: the unification of Italy and Germany through Realpolitik and war, and the diplomatic tensions and shift in the balance of power that followed.
A focused answer to AP European History Topic 7.3, on the unification of Italy and Germany: the role of Cavour, Garibaldi, and Bismarck, the use of Realpolitik and war to build nation-states, and how the rise of a unified Germany shifted the European balance of power and bred new diplomatic tensions.
- Topic 7.4 Darwinism and Social Darwinism: Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection and how it was applied, as Social Darwinism, to justify competition, inequality, racism, and imperialism.
A focused answer to AP European History Topic 7.4, on Darwinism and Social Darwinism: Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection, its impact on science and religion, and how Social Darwinists misapplied survival of the fittest to society to justify economic inequality, racism, nationalism, and imperialism.
- Topic 6.6 Reactions and Revolutions: the wave of liberal and national revolutions that swept Europe, above all in 1848, their demands, and the reasons most of them failed.
A focused answer to AP European History Topic 6.6, on the revolutions of the early 19th century and especially 1848: the liberal and national demands that drove them, why they erupted almost everywhere at once, and why most of them collapsed, with lasting effects despite their failure.
- Topic 5.8 Romanticism: the Romantic movement's reaction against the Enlightenment, its emphasis on emotion, nature, and the individual, and its influence on art, thought, and nationalism.
A focused answer to AP European History Topic 5.8, covering Romanticism: its reaction against the Enlightenment's emphasis on reason, its celebration of emotion, nature, imagination, and the individual, and its influence on art, literature, and the rise of nationalism in the early 19th century.
Sources & how we know this
- AP European History Course and Exam Description — College Board (2020)