Diplomatic History of Europe 1500 - 2000 | The Crimean War (Lecture 18)

Lecture 18: The Crimean War of 1853–1856 has been called an unnecessary war, but it reflected deeper tensions and diplomatic problems in the European order. Arising out of the long-standing Eastern Question of the future of the Ottoman lands, this crisis pitted the Russian Empire against two other Great Powers in the West—Great Britain and France—which invaded Russia through the Black Sea. A crucial outcome of the war, which ended in a Russian defeat, was the battering of the Concert of Europe and its vision of conservative solidarity now that Great Powers had come to blows. While Russia withdrew to reform and reorganize, the earlier structures were weakened, setting the stage for dramatic changes.

Essential Reading:
A. J. P. Taylor, The Struggle for the Mastery of Europe, 1848–1918, pp. 46–98.

Supplementary Reading:
J. C. Hurewitz, “Ottoman Diplomacy and the European State System.” Middle East Journal 15 (1961), pp. 141–52.
Alexis Troubetzkoy, A Brief History of the Crimean War.