10 - Conclusion

Summary

Against the backdrop of internationalization and the circulation of new ideas and modes of cooperation, the Allied Machine planted the seed of a new, modern system of European collective security, which included the imperialist surveillance of European populations and an increased territorial expansion of the four great powers, especially at the expense of the non-European world. Rather than the ministers, sovereigns or princes, the true winners of Europe after 1815 were the bureaucrats, deputies, officers, diplomats, experts, managers, bankers and lawyers. A new professional caste of security professionals and administrators arose from the Allied Machine and the Vienna System, leading to tax reforms, the standardization of police practices and transnational expertise. These were essential to the restructuring of Europe after Napoleon. In the late nineteenth century, the United States continued to gain influence and riches, weakening Europe’s position in the world. However, the security mechanisms implemented by the Allied Machine in the immediate post-war years left their mark on nineteenth-century Europe, and beyond.