Question

Most conservative regimes set up in 1815 introduced strict censorship laws. What was the primary purpose of these laws?
a. To regulate information written about the rulers and their policies.
b. To control the growing demand for modernising the army.
c. To restrict the spread of ideas of liberty and freedom expressed through newspapers and other publications.
d. To prevent the circulation of views suggesting that modernisation could strengthen traditional institutions.

• A. Only a and b
• B. Only a and c
• C. Only b and d
• D. Only c and d

Hint:

Think about what conservative rulers feared after the French Revolution and which statements describe a press law.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is B

Step 1: Recall the background of 1815:
In 1815 the European powers met at Vienna after Napoleon was defeated. They wanted to put back the old monarchies that the French Revolution and Napoleon had shaken.
The governments that came out of this settlement were called conservative regimes. They wanted to protect monarchy, the Church and the old social order.

Step 2: Find what the censorship laws were aimed at:
The French Revolution had spread the ideas of liberty, equality and freedom of the press. Conservative rulers feared that these ideas would make people demand rights and nations of their own.
So they brought in strict censorship. Newspapers, books, plays and songs were checked, and anything that showed the ideas of liberty and freedom was stopped. The main purpose was to keep these ideas from spreading.

Step 3: Check statement a:
Censorship laws controlled what newspapers and books could say about the rulers and their policies. Criticism of the government was not allowed to reach the public.
This is a real aim of the laws, so statement a is correct.

Step 4: Check statement b:
The laws were about printed and written material. They had nothing to do with the demand for modernising the army.
So statement b is wrong.

Step 5: Check statement c:
This is the central purpose. The laws were meant to restrict ideas of liberty and freedom that were being spread through newspapers and other publications.
So statement c is correct.

Step 6: Check statement d:
Conservatives of that time did not fear the idea that modernisation could strengthen traditional institutions. They actually believed it themselves, and many of them were happy to modernise the army and the administration to make the monarchy stronger.
A law cannot be aimed at stopping a view the rulers themselves held. So statement d is wrong.

Step 7: Choose the option:
Only a and c are correct. This is option B.

Final Answer:
Strict censorship laws of 1815 were meant to control writing about the rulers and to stop ideas of liberty and freedom from spreading through the press. This is option B. \[\boxed{\text{Option B: Only a and c}}\]