The apparent division of the Great Powers after 1830 into two opposing ideological camps, the Liberal Alliance and the Holy Alliance, contained a potential threat to the working of the Concert of Europe

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The Congress System, which took the form of a series of congresses and diplomatic meetings held between 1818 and 1822, can be regarded as a practical expression of the rather general concept of the Concert of Europe. The Concert of Europe was an attempt to regularize the conflicting ambitions of the Great Powers in the interests of Europe as a whole. As such, its effectiveness was dependant on the willingness of all five Great Powers to show moderation in the pursuit of their individual interests. Without this, it would be impossible to reach a consensus on important issues. Although The Concert’s main aim was to maintain peace, revolts in different areas of Europe such as Spain, Portugal, Belgium and France, made its peace making facilities harder to obtain due to the delicate circumstances.

The struggles between constitutionalists and absolutists in Spain during the 1820’s continued during the following two decades. When British troops were withdrawn from Portugal in 1827, the result was the triumph of the absolutists, who were backed by Spain, allowing Miguel to become King. In the 1830’s Spain would endure a dispute, as a result of Ferdinand’s death in September 1833 and his brother Don Carlos claiming the throne. As Carlos was supported by the absolutists in both Spain and Portugal, Ferdinand’s widow turned to the constitutionalists for support. The French, who had become supporters of constitutionalism, offered Great Britain an alliance in 1834, to work together in support of the constitutional governments in Spain and Portugal. Although Palmerston rejected the offer, in 1834 he accepted a wider Quadruple Alliance of Britain, France, Portugal and Spain in order to defend constitutional institutions and to exclude Miguel from Portugal and Carlos from Spain.

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By the terms of the Treaty, whereas Britain might intervene alone in Portugal in defence of its measures, France was specifically forbidden from doing so in Spain. After a combination of the Spanish army and British navy destroyed the absolutist forces of King Miguel and Don Carlos in the spring of 1834, Miguel fled but Carlos presented more of a problem, as he renewed his claim and raised more troops, joining forces with the Basques in their flight for independence. But neither Britain nor France was prepared for Guerrilla warfare so they therefore refused the Spanish Queen’s appeals for ...

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