The Crimean War was a military conflict that rocked Europe from 1853 to 1856. The war involved major contemporary European powers, such as the Ottoman Empire, the United Kingdom, Sardinia, France, and Russia. A number of long-term and short-term factors triggered the Crimean War that resulted in the death of thousands and the destruction of innumerable property. The overall decline in the prowess of the Ottoman Empire; failures in diplomacy between major European powers, such as Russia and France; and religious differences between Roman Catholics and the Eastern Orthodox Church directly contributed to the Crimean War. The end of the Crimean War, in February 1856, prompted massive changes in the balance of power in Europe. Moreover, the disastrous capitulation of Russia during the Crimean War triggered massive changes in the nation’s institutions and laid the framework for its development into a major European power. An amalgamation of both religious and diplomatic differences sparked the Crimean War which not only resulted in massive power changes in Europe but also triggered Russia’s development into a European superpower.
Causes of the Crimean War
The Decline of The Ottoman Empire
The overall decline of the Ottoman Empire caused the Crimean War. Early 19th century Europe was characterized by the gradual decline of the Ottoman Empire, which had been a leading European power in the 18th century. in the early 19th century, the Ottoman Empire was characterized by massive internal administrative and military weaknesses that weakened its position in Europe.[1] The Serbian Revolution of 1804 resulted in the secession of the first Balkan Christian nation, Serbia, from the Ottoman Empire.[2] The successful Serbian Revolution made other Christian states demand secession from the Ottoman Empire thus triggered a number of bloody revolutions that further weakened the empire’s position as a European superpower. For example, in 1830, after a decade of fighting, Greece became an independent state.[3] Greece’s independence was followed by the declaration of self-autonomy by Egypt, the Ottoman Empire’s most powerful vassal state, in 1831.[4] The general decline of the Ottoman Empire led several European nations such as Russia to vie for various territories of the disintegrating nation.
The decline in the administrative and military strength of the Ottoman Empire fueled a religious dispute between the Roman Catholics and the Eastern Orthodox churches thus triggering the Crimean War. The occupation of Europe by the Ottoman Empire in the 16th and 17th centuries was characterized by the peaceful co-existence between both the Eastern Orthodox Church and Roman Catholic Church.[5] Moreover, at the zenith of the Ottoman Empire’s power and influence in Europe, in the 17th and 18th centuries, both the Orthodox and Catholic churches peacefully eco-existed with Islam, which was the main religion practiced in the vast Ottoman territory.[6] The decline of the Ottoman Empire strengthened the influence of both the Orthodox and Catholic churches as the then Emperor Omar Pasha could not effectively monitor and control the activities of the two churches.[7] Moreover, the administrative decline of the Ottoman Empire made Emperor Omar Pasha allow both Russia and France to meddle in the dispute between the Catholic and the Orthodox churches.[8] The foreign interference of both Russia and France, due to the administrative weakness of the Ottoman Empire, further worsened the religious dispute and instigated the Crimean War.
Russia’s Expansionist Policies
Russia’s expansionist policies under the leadership of Tsar Nicholas I triggered the Crimean War. The final defeat of Emperor Napoleon I at the behest of Russia’s Tsar Alexander I resulted in the enactment of both Holy Alliance and the Treaty of Vienna in 1815.[9] The two confirmed Russia’s position as a leading superpower in Europe and a central figure in the balance of power in the region. Tsar Nicholas I, who ascended to the Russian throne in 1825, in a bid to improve his leadership ratings decided to expand Russia’s territorial boundaries and vassal states.[10] In 1826 Tsar Nicholas I began his southward expansion that enabled Russia to annex the Cossacks, Crimean Khanate, and Circassians.[11] These three states acted as the buffer zone between Russia and the Ottoman Empire and their annexation by Tsar Nicholas I highlighted his intentions of annexing the disintegrating territories of the Ottoman Empire. In 1829 Nicholas I ordered his Russian forces to annex the Danubian principalities of Moldavia and Wallachia.[12] Moldavia and Wallachia were key southern territories of the Ottoman Empire and their annexation by Russia triggered the Crimean War.
Russia’s expansionism threatened the interest of not only the Ottoman Empire but also of the United Kingdom and France and therefore directly instigated the Crimean War. Russia’s takeover of Moldavia and Wallachia was an affront against the sovereignty of the Ottoman Empire. Moreover, the southern territories of Moldavia and Wallachia were key to the economic survival of the struggling Ottoman Empire.[13] Russia’s southward expansion into the Ottoman Empire threatened the United Kingdom’s key strategic and economic interests in the Middle East and India. Britain saw Russia’s annexation of the territories of Moldavia and Wallachia as a risk, particularly to its territories in India and the Middle East that were located in the southwestern flank of the Ottoman Empire.[14] Moreover, Russia’s expansion into the Danube principalities of the Ottoman Empire infringed on France’s economic exploitation of the Black Sea.[15] France relied on the Black Sea for its international trade with countries in the Middle East and the annexation of the Danube principalities by Russia meant that France had to seek Russia’s permission to use the Black Sea.[16] Therefore, under the leadership of Napoleon III, France partnered with Britain to fight the Russians.
Religious Conflict
The conflict between the Roman Catholics and the Eastern Orthodox Church appertaining to the ownership of the Holy Land was the main instigator of the Crimean War. For several years, divergent religions and denominations had disagreed over the true owners of the Holy Land, which is the present-day Bethlehem and its environs.[17] The control of the Holy Land and its numerous religious sites was a perennial source of dispute between the Jews, Muslims, and Christians in the Ottoman Empire.[18] At the peaks of its administrative and military prowess, the Ottoman Empire was able to amicably solve religious disputes relating to control over the Holy Land.[19] The general decline in the administrative and military prowess of the Ottoman Empire, however, facilitated intense rivalry between the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church over control of the Holy Land. In 1853 a conflict between Roman Catholics and members of the Orthodox Church in Bethlehem resulted in the slaughter of more than ten Russian Orthodox monks.[20] The death of the Russian monks heightened tension between Russia and France and Austria who sponsored Catholic activities in the Ottoman Empire.
The use of gunboat diplomacy to resolve the dispute between the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches resulted in a stalemate and therefore sparked off the Crimean War. After the 1853 bloody riots in Bethlehem, Napoleon III asserted France’s sovereign authority over the territories dominated by Christians in Palestine.[21] France’s imposition of dominion over Palestine irked Russia who sponsored the Eastern Orthodox Church. Tsar Nicholas I, disputed France’s authority in the region and pointed to the 1757 Treaty of Kucuk Kaynarca that declared Russia as the protector of the Eastern Orthodoxy in the Ottoman Empire.[22] France and Russia agreed to use diplomacy to resolve the dispute both. However, Napoleon III opted for gunboat diplomacy, the use of force to impose one’s decision on another state, and sent France’s warship the Charlemagne to the Black Sea.[23] Tsar Nicholas I, also opted to deploy Russia’s 4th and 5th army corps along the River Danube to combat France’s gunship diplomacy.[24] The overt show of force by the two nations resulted in the failure of the diplomatic talks and onset of the Crimean War.
Consequences of the Crimean War
The capitulation of Russia during the Crimean War reduced Russia’s influence in Europe. Before the Crimean War Russia was considered a superpower in Europe and tasked with the role of balancing power in the region.[25] Russia’s influence in Europe however sharply declined after its defeat and surrender in 1856. To add to the nation’s woes, the Treaty of Paris, signed on 30th March 1856, forced Russia to restore to the Ottoman Empire the several territories it had annexed in its expansion bid.[26] The transfer of the country’s previously annexed territories undermined its superpower status in Europe and massively reduced its regional influence compared to other nations such as France. Moreover, with the insistence of both the United Kingdom and Austria, Russia agreed not to establish military forts on the Black Sea.[27] This reduced Russia’s military capabilities in Europe and exposed it to retaliatory attacks from the Ottoman Empire and other European nations such as France. With no military presence in the Black Sea to protect its territory from external attacks, Russia was forced to sell its overseas territory, Alaska, to the United States.[28] The Crimean War, therefore, reversed the gains Russia had gained in Europe.
The Crimean War disrupted the balance of power in Europe and result in the collapse of the first phase of the Concert of Europe. The Concert of Europe represented the balance of power in Europe and acted as a mechanism of preserving peace in the region.[29] The first phase of the Concert of Europe was created after the Congress of Vienna, 1814-1815, that involved the contemporary European superpowers, such as the United Kingdom, France, Prussia, Russia, and Austria.[30] The first phase of the Concert of Europe was based on the Holy Alliance, a treaty which linked the monarchs of Catholics (Austria), Protestants (Prussia), and Orthodox (Russia), and was focused on maintaining the balance of power in Europe.[31] The Crimean War resulted in the collapse of the Holly Alliance as it pitted Orthodox Russia against the Roman Catholic Church supported by both Austria and France.[32] Moreover, the Crimean War led to the military defeat of Russia and therefore affected the power balance of Europe. The change in European power balance resulted in the mutual collapse of the first phase of the Concert of Europe, which was heavily dependent on Russia.
The humiliating capitulation of Russia during the Crimean War spurred massive changes in the nation’s social, administrative, and economic structures. Russia instigated the Crimean War under the false belief that it was a European superpower with an invincible army.[33] The disastrous defeat of Russia during the Crimean War exposed the shortcoming of the nation’s military and administrative capacity. Moreover, the stringent fines and punitive measures imposed on Russia by the 1856 France Treaty resulted in massive domestic discontentment and outrage against the nation’s top military and administrative leadership.[34] Russia’s failures during the Crimean War caused a massive reformation of the nation’s politico-economic and social structures. Tsar Alexander II, who succeeded Nicholas I, implemented wide-ranging changes in Russia aimed at uprooting the corruption culture that dominated the nation’s top administrative and military echelons.[35] Moreover, through pragmatic policies, aimed at restoring Russia’s lost European grandeur, Alexander II improved the nation’s infrastructure and financial systems. The Crimean War, therefore, exposed Russia’s weaknesses and enabled the nation to develop into an economic and military superpower in Europe.
The Crimean War spurred the development of nursing and battlefield medicine. The high number of British deaths in the Crimean battlefronts made two young nurses Florence Nightingale and Mary Seacole petition the War Office for safe passage to Crimea.[36] Though not granted passage, the two made it to Crimea and opened a field hospital for the treatment and care of the wounded soldiers.[37] The field hospital operated by both Seacole and Nightingale was a massive success as it saved the lives of thousands of soldiers.[38] The revolutionary nursing care offered by Nightingale and Seacole gained massive publicity and was earmarked for further research. The then Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Lord Palmerston ordered an inquiry into the effectiveness of Florence Nightingale and Mary Seacole’s work in Crimea.[39] The positive results of the investigations resulted in the advancement of nursing and its incorporation into warfare as an essential element of battlefield medicine.
Conclusion
The Crimean War was an armed conflict that involved several European nations and took place from 1853 to 1856. The Crimean war was primarily instigated by the decline in the Ottoman Empire in the 19th century after being rocked by numerous internecine wars. Russia’s expansionist policies, particularly under the leadership of Tsar Nicholas I also directly resulted in the Crimean War. Religious differences between the Roman Catholic Church and Eastern Orthodox Church over control of the Holy Land triggered the conflict in 1853. The Crimean War resulted in the collapse of the first phase of the Concert of Europe and the reduction of Russia’s influence in the region. Moreover, the Crimean War laid the foundations for the development of modern nursing practice.
Bibliography
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Winks, Robin William, and Joan Neuberger. Europe and the Making of Modernity: 1815-1914. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005.
[1] Winks, Robin William, and Joan Neuberger. Europe and the Making of Modernity: 1815-1914. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005.
[2] Winks and Neuberger 19.
[3] Winks and Neuberger 20.
[4] Winks and Neuberger 19.
[5] Figes, Orlando. The Crimean War: A History. Metropolitan Books, 2011.
[6] Figes, Orlando 89.
[7] Figes, Orlando 89.
[8] Figes, Orlando 90.
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[10] Badem, Candan 79.
[11] Badem, Candan 79.
[12] Badem, Candan 81.
[13] Badem, Candan 92.
[14] Badem, Candan 93.
[15] Badem, Candan 94.
[16] Badem, Candan 94.
[17] Small, Hugh. The Crimean War: Europe’s Conflict with Russia. The History Press, 2018.
[18] Small, Hugh 56.
[19] Small, Hugh 57.
[20] Small, Hugh 59.
[21] Trager, Robert F. “Long-term consequences of aggressive diplomacy: European relations after Austrian Crimean War threats.” Security Studies 21, no. 2 (2012): 232-265.
[22] Trager, Robert F. 239.
[23] Trager, Robert F. 241.
[24] Trager, Robert F. 241.
[25] Baumgart, Winfried. The Crimean War: 1853-1856. Bloomsbury Publishing, 2020.
[26] Baumgart, Winfried 194.
[27] Baumgart, Winfried 190.
[28] Baumgart, Winfried 190.
[29] Baumgart, Winfried 210.
[30] Baumgart, Winfried 210.
[31] Baumgart, Winfried 211.
[32] Badem, Candan 123.
[33] Baumgart, Winfried 175.
[34] Baumgart, Winfried 175.
[35] Baumgart, Winfried 176.
[36] Badem, Candan 88.
[37] Badem, Candan 88.
[38] Badem, Candan 88.
[39] Badem, Candan 92.