Editing Romantic nationalism (section)

===Conservatism and revolution in the 19th century===
{{see also|Concert of Nations|Revolutions of 1848}}

Following the ultimate collapse of the [[First French Empire]] with the fall of Napoleon, conservative elements took control in Europe, led by the Austrian noble [[Klemens von Metternich]], ideals of the [[balance of power (international relations)|balance of power]] between the [[great powers]] of Europe dominated continental politics of the first half of the 19th century.  Following the [[Congress of Vienna]], and subsequent [[Concert of Europe]] system, several major empires took control of European politics.  Among these were the [[Russian Empire]], the [[Bourbon Restoration in France|restored French monarchy]], the [[German Confederation]], under the dominance of [[Prussia]], the [[Austrian Empire]], and the [[Ottoman Empire]].{{cn|date=August 2018}}

The conservative forces held sway until the [[Revolutions of 1848]] swept across Europe and threatened the old order.  Numerous movements developed around various cultural groups, who began to develop a sense of national identity.  While initially, all of these revolutions failed, and [[reactionary]] forces would re-establish political control, the revolutions marked the start of the steady progress towards the end of the Concert of Europe under the dominance of a few multi-national empires and led to the establishment of the modern [[nation state]] in Europe; a process that would not be complete for over a century and a half. [[Central and Eastern Europe]]'s political situation was partly shaped by the two [[World Wars]], while many national identities in these two regions formed modern nation states when the collapse of the [[Soviet Union]] and the multinational states [[Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia|Yugoslavia]] and [[Czechoslovakia]] led to numerous new states forming during the last decade of the 20th century.{{cn|date=August 2018}}

[[File:American Progress (John Gast painting).jpg|right|thumb|upright=1.35|[[John Gast (painter)|John Gast]], ''American Progress,'' (circa 1872) celebrates [[United States|U.S.]] romantic nationalism in the form of westward expansion&nbsp;– an idea known as "[[Manifest Destiny]]".]]