Pan Slavism

During the 19th century Pan-Slavism grew increasingly popular. The idea of Slavic political and cultural unity was controversial and although it appealed to many Slavs who felt nationalism towards their race there were many different opinions. Some believed that there was a cultural, ethnic, and political connection among all Slavs. Others argued that there was no place for Pan-Slavic goals in the present empires. Slavic peoples populated the Austro-Hungarian, German, Russian, and the Balkan Areas of the Ottoman Empires. However as a result of their geographic diversity, there was no single language or literature for the Slavic population.

they wanted the slavs to breakaway because that would weaken austria-hungary

russia always used the slavs as like a political tool

Above all, the cultural and political issues in the debate over Pan-Slavism were nationalism for ones race and a quest for power.

Slavic nationalists wanted to unify and form a free and content Pan-Slavic Empire. They believed that all Slavic peoples should maintain a close connection to one another. They were unhappy that among the Slavs, nationality came after humanity, while the opposite of this was true for other nations. In a lecture given by Bronislaw Trentowski in 1848, he stated that if he were ever a tsar, he would destroy the Ottoman and Austrian Empires, thus liberating the Slavic peoples and hence gaining their support. He would free Poland, along with every other Slav occupied country. Some people saw Pan-Slavism as the freeing of non-Russian Slavs from their Ottoman, German, and Austro-Hungarian rulers.

Not everyone agreed with the intentions of Pan-Slavism. Some people did not think that that the Slavs were one nation. Karel Havlicek, a Czech journalist shared this belief. He believed that nationality was not only determined by language, but also by customs, religion, government, and way of education. In 1848, he published an article called "Slav and Czech", in which he stated that the name Slav is and should always remain a geographical name.

Bulgarian poet, Christo Boter, who strongly believed that only small federations of Slavs, in accordance to location should be built, shared a similar yet different view. This is because if only small federations of Slavs would be built, then the Slavs within these federations would share similar beliefs, culture, and political systems. As a result, no nationality would be offended. In addition, not every Russian wanted the uniting of other Slavs with Russia. In 1915, Gabriel de Wesselitsky, a Russian journalist, declared that that Pan-Slavism was supported by only the weakest and most oppressed. He argued that the supporters of Pan-Slavism would visit Russia to complain of their suffering and discrimination, and try to unsuccessfully provoke Russian sympathy.

Many Russian rulers believed that it was their duty to unite their Slavic brothers. Russia's motive for this was patriotism as well as expansion. In his Manifesto, Tsar Nicholas II stated that faith, blood, and historical tradition united the Slavic peoples of Russia. He argued that Russia was always concerned with the fate of the Slavs. However many Russians claimed that Pan-Slavic goals involved life, independence, resurrection and liberty. But at the present time, there