- The German middle class decided to vote for an all - German National Assembly in 1848, and hence came to Frankfurt.
- Around 1831 persons were elected. They comprised the National Assembly. The assembly decided to organize Frankfurt Parliament in the church of St. Paul.
- Thus, on 18th May, 1848 the famous Frankfurt Parliament was convened.
- The assembly decided that the German nation would be a monarchy controlled by Parliament, and offered this term to the Prussian King.
- But he rejected it and joined other monarchs to oppose the elected assembly.
- The parliament faced strong opposition from aristocracy and military.
- The Parliament was dominated by the middle class who resisted the demands of workers and artisans. As a result of this the middle class lost their mass support.
- Ultimately, the monarchy and military combined together with aristocracy, won over the liberal nationalist middle class and the assembly was forced to disband.
Therefore, the Frankfurt Parliament is famous in history as a failure of liberalism and victory of monarchy.
******************************************************************************************
Who were Marianne and Germania? What was the
importance of the way in which they were Portrayed?
- GERMANIA-personification of the german nation or the germans as a
whole commonly associated with the romantic era and revolutions of 1848.
- she is the female
allegorical figure of germany representing germany's
strength,power,willingness to make peace & heroism.
- she is depicted as a
robust woman with long, flowing, reddish blonde hair & wearing armour.
- she often weilds the reichsschwert(imperial
sword) & possess a medieval style shield that sometimes
bears the image of a black eagle on a gold field
Marianne --
- Delacroix’s famous painting from 1830 is
titled Liberty Leading the People, but his allegorical figure of a woman
with a Phrygian cap carrying the Tricolor and a rifle with disregard for
her state of undress influenced later representations of Marianne...
- Marianne the female figure was used to represent the
French nation.She had the features of Justice,Liberty and the
Republic.Statues of Marianne were installed in public squares.
*********************************************************************************
Comparing the images of
Bharat mata and Germania........??
By Abanindranath Tagore |
- The image of Bharat Mata as painted by
Abanindranath Tagore shows her as bestowing learning, food and clothing. She bears aesthetic quality as denoted by the mala held by her.
- This is similar to the image of Germania
as painted by Philip Veit, where
she holds a sword, but looks more feminine.
- The other painting of Bharat Mata is more
manly in its representation. In it, she is shown as bearing power
and authority as denoted by the lion and elephant beside her. The latter
image is more akin to the image of Germania by Lorenz Clasen, where she
wields a sword and shield, and looks ready to fight.
(i) The image of Germania was the symbol of German nation
whereas; the image of Bharat Mata was the symbol of Indian nation.
(ii) Both images inspired nationalists who worked very hard to unify their
respective countries and to attain a liberal nation.
(iii) The image of Bharat Mata is different from that of
Germania in the sense that former reflects the religious basis
of its making. (view of pseudo secularists...i think)
(iv)
The image of Bharat Mata painted by Abanindranath Tagore is bestowed with
learning, food, clothing and some ascetic quality also. Another painting of
Bharat Mata in which we find Mata holding Trishul and standing beside a lion
and an elephant – symbols of power and authority. This image appears to be more
akin to the image of Germania where she holds a sword and a shield.