Long nineteenth century
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The long nineteenth century is a term for the 125-year period beginning with the onset of the French Revolution in 1789, and ending with the outbreak of the First World War in 1914. It was coined by the Soviet writer Ilya Ehrenburg<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>Template:Dead link and later popularized by the British historian Eric Hobsbawm.
Background
The concept is an adaption of Fernand Braudel's 1949 notion of le long seizième siècle ("the long 16th century" 1450–1640)<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> and "a recognized category of literary history", although a period often broadly and diversely defined by different scholars.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Numerous authors, before and after Hobsbawm's 1995 publication, have applied similar forms of book titles or descriptions to indicate a selective time frame for their works, such as: S. Kettering's French Society: 1589–1715 – the Long Seventeenth Century, E. Anthony Wrigley's British Population During the 'Long' Eighteenth Century, 1680–1840, or David Blackbourn's The Long Nineteenth Century: A History of Germany, 1780–1918.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>Template:Dead link<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> However, the term has been used in support of historical publications to "connect with broader audiences"<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> and is regularly cited in studies and discussions across academic disciplines, such as history, linguistics and the arts.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>Template:Dead link<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Dead link
Overview
Hobsbawm lays out his analysis in The Age of Revolution: Europe 1789–1848 (1962), The Age of Capital: 1848–1875 (1975), and The Age of Empire: 1875–1914 (1987). Hobsbawm starts his long 19th century with the French Revolution, which sought to establish universal and egalitarian citizenship in France, and ends it with the outbreak of the First World War, upon the conclusion of which in 1918 the long-enduring European power balance of the 19th century proper (1801–1900) was eliminated.
In a sequel to the above-mentioned trilogy, The Age of Extremes: The Short Twentieth Century, 1914–1991 (1994), Hobsbawm details the "short 20th century" (a concept originally proposed by Iván T. Berend), beginning with the First World War and ending with the fall of the Soviet Union, between 1914–1991.Template:Sfn
A more generalized version of the long 19th century, lasting from 1750 to 1914, is often used by Peter Stearns in the context of the world history school.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Religious history
In religious contexts, specifically those concerning the history of the Catholic Church, the long 19th century was a period of centralization of papal power over the Catholic Church. This centralization was in opposition to the increasingly centralized nation states and contemporary revolutionary movements and used many of the same organizational and communication techniques as its rivals. The church's long 19th century extended from the French Revolution (1789) until the death of Pope Pius XII (1958).<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> This covers the period between the decline of traditional Catholic power and the emergence of secular ideas within states, and the emergence of new thinking within the church after the election of Pope John XXIII.
See also
- Belle Époque
- Belgium in the long 19th century
- France in the long 19th century
- Long eighteenth century
- Long War (20th century), proposed by Philip Bobbitt
- Women Philosophers in the Long Nineteenth Century