# Canonical recap data for Congress of Vienna Reshapes Europe (1815)
# Source: https://recap.at/1815/congress-vienna
# Format: YAML 1.2 (UTF-8). Generated at request time.
slug: congress-vienna
canonicalUrl: "https://recap.at/1815/congress-vienna"
title: Congress of Vienna Reshapes Europe
aliases:
- Congress of Vienna
- Vienna Congress
- Treaty of Vienna
- Concert of Europe
subtitle: Congress of Vienna Reshapes Europe
recapType: global_event
eventStatus: concluded
startDate: 1815-01-01
datePrecision: year
year: 1815
decade: 1810
country:
name: Austria
slug: austria
summaryShort: A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter during battle, from the Latin congressus.
summaryLong: A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter during battle, from the Latin congressus.
lede: In 1815, Europe's major powers gathered in Vienna to redraw the continent after Napoleon's defeat. Over eight months, diplomats led by Austrian foreign minister Klemens von Metternich negotiated a new political order designed to prevent any single nation from dominating again. The resulting system of balanced power and restored monarchies shaped European politics for the next century.
heroImageUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/32/Europa_Congres_Ridderzaal_Den_Haag._Overzicht%2C_Bestanddeelnr_902-7379.jpg/1280px-Europa_Congres_Ridderzaal_Den_Haag._Overzicht%2C_Bestanddeelnr_902-7379.jpg"
heroImageCredit: Wikipedia · "Congress"
importance: 50
sourceConfidence: 75
keyFacts:
- label: Duration
  value: September 1814 to June 1815
- label: Location
  value: Vienna, Austria
- label: Lead negotiators
  value: Klemens von Metternich (Austria), Prince Talleyrand (France), Lord Castlereagh (Britain), Alexander I (Russia), Frederick William III (Prussia)
- label: Major signatories
  value: Eight nations signed the final act; over 200 delegations attended
- label: Territory redistributed
  value: Poland, Saxony, the Netherlands, and Italian states redrawn; Belgium created as independent state
- label: Key outcome
  value: Concert of Europe established as framework for collective decision-making on continental affairs
- label: Guiding principle
  value: Balance of power; restoration of legitimate monarchies
- label: Duration of resulting system
  value: Maintained broadly until 1848 revolutions; Concert lasted until 1914
timeline:
- date: 1814-09-18
  title: Congress opens in Vienna
  description: Delegations from eight major European powers and hundreds of smaller states and principalities begin assembling. Klemens von Metternich becomes the dominant figure in negotiations.
- date: 1814-11-01
  title: Formal sessions begin
  description: After weeks of preliminary diplomatic maneuvering, the Congress officially convenes to address territorial claims and the new European order following Napoleon's abdication.
- date: 1815-03-09
  title: Napoleon escapes Elba
  description: News of Napoleon's escape from exile forces the Congress into overdrive. The major powers agree to accelerate negotiations and mobilize armies, adding urgency to outstanding disputes.
- date: 1815-04-15
  title: Crisis over Poland and Saxony
  description: Russia pushes for control of Poland while Prussia seeks Saxony. Tensions peak between Russia and the Western powers; Talleyrand skillfully positions France as mediator, regaining diplomatic standing.
- date: 1815-06-08
  title: Final Act signed
  description: All powers sign the Final Act of the Congress of Vienna, formalizing territorial settlements, the Concert of Europe, and the framework for continental governance.
- date: 1815-06-18
  title: Battle of Waterloo
  description: Napoleon is defeated decisively, confirming the territorial decisions made in Vienna and validating the Concert of Europe as the mechanism for managing future crises.
sources:
- url: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Congress"
  title: Congress
  provider: Wikipedia
related: []
impactStatement: The Congress established the framework for European geopolitics that persisted through the 1848 revolutions and into the age of Bismarck. It replaced revolutionary idealism with strategic calculation-a shift that defined 19th-century statecraft and ultimately proved as fragile as the equilibrium it sought to impose.
categories: []
taxonomy:
domain: political
eventTypes:
- diplomatic_summit
- treaty_signing
- peace_accord
canonicalClasses:
- governance
- transformation
- conflict
impactRadius: global
velocity: gradual
predictability: scheduled
intentionality: planned
domainCoupling: multi_domain
lifecycleClass: birth
metaDescription: How Europe's powers redrew the continent in 1815 and set the stage for the next hundred years.
wikidataQid: Q2495862
archiveSnapshots:
- url: "https://web.archive.org/web/20260429173025/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Congress"
  capturedAt: 2026-04-29
  label: Congress
  originalUrl: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Congress"
gallery:
- url: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/32/Europa_Congres_Ridderzaal_Den_Haag._Overzicht%2C_Bestanddeelnr_902-7379.jpg/1280px-Europa_Congres_Ridderzaal_Den_Haag._Overzicht%2C_Bestanddeelnr_902-7379.jpg"
  thumbnailUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/32/Europa_Congres_Ridderzaal_Den_Haag._Overzicht%2C_Bestanddeelnr_902-7379.jpg/800px-Europa_Congres_Ridderzaal_Den_Haag._Overzicht%2C_Bestanddeelnr_902-7379.jpg"
  caption: Congress
  credit: Wikipedia · "Congress"
  width: 330
  height: 277
comparisonThenNow:
- metric: Major European powers at the table
  thenValue: 5 (Britain, Russia, Prussia, Austria, France)
  thenYear: 1815
  nowValue: 27+ (EU member states)
  nowYear: 2024
  note: Congress of Vienna established the Concert of Europe; modern EU evolved from post-WWII reconstruction
- metric: Territory of Poland
  thenValue: ~127,000 sq km (Congress Kingdom under Russian control)
  thenYear: 1815
  nowValue: ~312,000 sq km (independent nation)
  nowYear: 2024
- metric: Belgian independence from Netherlands
  thenValue: Unified under single rule
  thenYear: 1815
  nowValue: Separate independent states
  nowYear: 1830
  note: Congress created the United Kingdom of the Netherlands; Belgium seceded in 1830
- metric: German Confederation member states
  thenValue: 39 states
  thenYear: 1815
  nowValue: 1 unified nation (Germany)
  nowYear: 2024
- metric: Duration of negotiation
  thenValue: 10 months
  thenYear: 1815
  nowValue: Modern EU treaties typically 2-4 years
  nowYear: 2024
consequences:
- title: Concert of Europe established
  year: 1815
  description: Klemens von Metternich, Prince of Austria, orchestrated a framework where major powers would meet to resolve disputes and maintain the balance of power, creating a century-long relative peace in Europe despite the Napoleonic Wars' devastation
- title: Polish-Lithuanian union dissolved
  year: 1815
  description: Poland lost independence and became the Congress Kingdom under Russian dominion, while Lithuania was absorbed into the Russian Empire; this subjugation lasted until 1918
- title: German Confederation replaces Holy Roman Empire
  year: 1815
  description: The Holy Roman Empire, dissolved in 1806, was succeeded by a loose confederation of 39 German states under Austrian presidency, delaying German unification until Bismarck's wars in the 1860s
- title: Belgian-Dutch tensions crystallize
  year: 1815
  description: The Vienna settlement unified Belgium and Holland under the House of Orange, but religious and linguistic differences festered; Belgium declared independence in 1830 after a brief revolution
- title: Restoration of European monarchies
  year: 1815
  description: Louis XVIII returned to the French throne, and hereditary monarchies were restored across Europe as victorious powers sought to undo revolutionary gains and prevent future upheaval
- title: Metternich's reaction dominates policy through 1848
  year: 1815
  description: Metternich's conservative ideology—suppressing nationalism and liberalism—shaped European politics for 33 years until revolutions across the continent in 1848 challenged the old order
culturalContext:
topMusic: []
topFilms: []
topTVShows: []
zeitgeistNote: The Congress of Vienna occurred in the twilight of the Romantic era, when European intellectual life was consumed with questions of national identity, legitimate sovereignty, and the proper balance between order and liberty. The period saw intense diplomatic correspondence and political philosophy debates, but recorded popular music and film did not yet exist as cultural forms.
relatedQueries:
- Congress of Vienna 1815 Metternich
- Concert of Europe balance of power
- Poland Russian Empire 1815
- German Confederation 39 states
- Belgium independence from Netherlands 1830
- Congress of Vienna outcomes consequences
- Klemens Metternich conservative restoration
- Napoleonic Wars settlement 1815
