An Exiled Generation

Focusing on émigrés from Baden Württemberg and Hungary in four host societies (Switzerland the Ottoman Empire England and the United States) Heléna Tóth considers exile in the aftermath of the revolutions of 1848–1849 as a European phenomenon with global dimensions. While exile is often presented as an individual challenge Tóth studies its collective aspects in the realms of the family and of professional and social networks. Exploring the interconnectedness of these areas she argues that although we often like to sharply distinguish between labor migration and exile these categories were anything but stable after the revolutions of 1848–1849; migration belonged to the personal narrative of the revolution for a broad section of the population. Moreover discussions about exile and amnesty played a central role in formulating the legacy of the revolutions not only for the émigrés but also for their social environment and ultimately the governments of the restoration. As a composite the stories of émigrés shaped the post-revolutionary era and reflected its contradictions.