Empire, nation and popular warfighting. 1813 in the European history

Abstract

The last period of the Napoleonic Wars, which in 1813 led to the Battle of the Nations (Völkerschlacht) has been traditionally viewed as the starting point for both national politics and the national State building process in Europe. This would be a consequence of the new kind of warfighting, namely the popular and national uprisings. The author addresses these issues, taking into account the social history of war, the opinions of contemporaries —particularly in the controversial case of the Spanish war against the French occupation— and the changing political goals of elites in the following times. Therefore the article highlights the need for a non-linear approach to the origins of the European national States.